'RECESS': IT'S TIME TO PLAY.Byline: Valerie Kuklenski Staff Writer Everyone who ever made it past sixth grade can debate the cause of his or her most traumatic, emotionally scarring grade-school memories: Was it the all-school program with the dorky dork n. 1. Slang A stupid, inept, or foolish person: "the stupid antics of America's favorite teen-age cartoon dorks" Joshua Mooney. 2. costume and that missed cue, the first math test with a word problem or the homemade volcano that failed to bubble over at the science fair? No matter. It's the good times that will be recalled while watching ``Recess: School's Out,'' the first big-screen adaptation of Disney's smart Saturday morning animated series on ABC ABC in full American Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. television network. It began when the expanding national radio network NBC split into the separate Red and Blue networks in 1928. . The series deals with a bunch of fourth-graders at Third Street School who know how to make the most of those brief outdoor free-for-all interludes and are blissfully unaware that they're learning about life in the process. (One recent episode, for instance, dealt with a mock trial A simulated trial-level proceeding conducted by students to understand trial rules and processes. Usually tried before a mock jury, these proceedings are different from Moot Court proceedings, which simulate appellate arguments. the kids held after one threw a rock during a dirt-clod fight.) The movie is set during one of those wonderful three-month recesses known as summer vacation Summer vacation (also called summer holidays or summer break) is a vacation in the summertime between school years in which students are off for 3 months, depending on the country and district. , but the story is still about recess - this time, preserving the precious playtime that a subversive movement is out to erase from the school-day schedule. T.J. Detweiler (voiced by Andy Lawrence) is a prankster and a regular visitor in the office of Principal Prickly (Dabney Coleman Dabney Wharton Coleman (born January 3, 1932) is an American actor. He is best known for his abrasive characters and his always present mustache. Biography Early life Coleman was born in Austin, Texas to Mary Wharton Johns and Melvin Randolph Coleman. ), but he's no juvenile delinquent juvenile delinquent n. a person who is under age (usually below 18), who is found to have committed a crime in states which have declared by law that a minor lacks responsibility and thus may not be sentenced as an adult. in the making. (Wouldn't be a Disney character if he were, now would he?) On the last day of school, T.J. is drooling drooling the discharge of saliva from the mouth. A normal feature in some breeds of dogs such as St. Bernard, Newfoundland and English bulldog, presumably because of their loose, pendulous lips. with anticipation for those lazy, hazy, crazy days with his pals Gretchen (the brain), Spinelli (the feisty squirt), Vince (the popular jock), Mikey (the gentle giant) and Gus (the self-esteem-challenged new kid). But his plans go down the tubes when he learns all the others are off to one camp or another. He's bracing for the most boring summer a kid ever suffered through when, while riding his bike past his supposedly locked-up school, he sees an eerie green glow through the windows. His parents and the police dismiss it as the product of an overactive o·ver·ac·tive adj. Active to an excessive or abnormal degree: an overactive child. o imagination. T.J. tracks down his leisure-loving principal and persuades him to check it out - and the mystery deepens. T.J. has no choice but to recall his chums from their baseball, space, military, wrestling and opera camps so they can save their school - including, of course, the playground. James Woods is perfectly smarmy as the villainous Philliam Benedict, an educator who is using high-tech science to bring about the end of recess nationwide. His rationale might make sense to some real-life administrators, which makes him even scarier than Snow White's and Cinderella's stepmothers put together. All the kids, with the exception of Spinelli's Pam Segall, are voiced by children and teens, a casting decision that may hurt the longevity of the series as puberty hits their vocal cords vocal cords: see larynx. Vocal cords The pair of elastic, fibered bands inside the human larynx. The cords are covered with a mucous membrane and pass horizontally backward from the thyroid cartilage (Adam's apple) to insert on but works well now for the characters' credibility. Creators Paul Germain Paul Germain (born in 1959) is an American animation screenwriter and producer. Among the shows Germain has written and/or produced for are Rugrats, The Simpsons, Lloyd in Space and . and Joe Ansolabehere Joe Ansolabehere (born in 1959) is an American animation screenwriter and producer of Basque descent. Ansolabehere has written and produced for many animated television shows, including Rugrats, Duckman, Hey Arnold!, and Lloyd in Space. (Germain also served as dialogue coach) and director Chuck Sheetz Chuck Sheetz is an animation director on The Simpsons. He has also done work on King of the Hill and Recess, in addition to directing the Drawn Together episode "Captain Hero's Marriage Pact". wisely brought the kids together in the recording studio as much as possible, departing from the traditional method of having the dialogue director read cues during solo sessions. It made for good give-and-take among them and better acting. Just because this is a Disney production, it doesn't mean you should look for highly realistic, ultra-romanticized art that can be adapted into snow globes and porcelain figurines. But that's OK. Paul and Joe (they like to be on a first-name basis with their audience) have created a look that is as basic and down-to-earth as their characters. ``Recess: School's Out'' is for kids, sure, but it also appeals to their 40-something parents with a '60s soundtrack that includes ``Incense and Peppermints,'' ``One,'' ``Born to Be Wild'' and ``Let the Sunshine In.'' Stick around for the closing credits to hear Robert Goulet's rendition (in Mikey's character) of ``Green Tambourine.'' Then join the kids on the nearest jungle gym. ``RECESS: SCHOOL'S OUT'' (Rated: G) The stars: Voices of Andy Lawrence, Dabney Coleman, James Woods and April Winchell. Behind the scenes: Directed by Chuck Sheetz. Created and produced by Paul Germain and Joe Ansolabehere. Written by Germain, Ansolabehere and Jonathan Greenberg. Running time: One hour, 24 minutes. Playing: Citywide. Our rating: Three stars CAPTION(S): photo Photo: The final bell rings and summer's here in ``Recess: School's Out,'' the big-screen version of the animated Disney series. |
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