Finding Nemo (DVD, 2003)

Finding Nemo is one of the best animated movies I have seen to date and a great movie for the whole family. For anyone who enjoyed the Disney/Pixar movies like Toy Story, Monsters, Inc., or The Incredibles, you are sure to like Finding Nemo. Moviegoers enjoy all these movies because of the mix of the both the adult and child level humor to keep both parties engaged for the entire movie. Like its counterparts, the plot is simple enough to keep your children engaged, yet full of interesting twists to keep the adults interested. And finally, there is the usual stable of star voices to lend some punch to the movie.

Finding Nemo is the story of a fish played by Albert Brooks who travels throughout the ocean to find his son, Nemo, who has been captured by a scuba diver. While his father is encountering all sorts of sea creatures (sharks, jellyfish, sea turtles and pelicans), Nemo joins a band of misfit, hilarious fish in a dentist's office trying to figure out ways to escape from their fish tank cell. The story is well written and the various characters that are encountered along the way give the story the funny twists that keep the family laughing (as well as the younger children engaged).

At the same time, Finding Nemo hits home for parents. The adult theme of the movie explores the anxieties that every parent feels when it comes to letting your children go out on their own. Nemo (who has a malformed fin) is captured when he tries to escape his fathers over- protective role in his life. Finding Nemo does a great job of bringing these real life situations to life.

Albert Brooks is joined by Ellen DeGeneres, a hilarious Willem Dafoe and Geoffrey Rush to bring this story to life.