Movie Info:
Writer: Caroline Zelder
Director: Caroline Zelder
Cast: William Baldwin, Lisa Guerrero, Owen Pearce, Chris Kelly, Henry Winkler, Brenda Strong
Rating: PG
Studio: Paramount Studios
Release Info:
Theatrical Release: April 25, 2008
DVD Release Date: May 5, 2009
Online Availability: “>Amazon for $22.49
As a young girl, I loved shows with marionettes (puppets). I especially loved The Muppets, Sesame Street, Mister Rogers and even Captain Kangaroo. The characters from all the shows kept me glued to the television for hours. I was so amazed with the colorful characters that my Mom would have to pull the electrical cord out of the socket to get me away from the TV. Consequently when I read a description for A Plumm Summer and saw a puppet, known as Froggy Doo, starring in it, I was totally interested.
As the kids and I sat down to enjoy the movie, my mind began to wander to the cast. I enjoy watching Brenda Song on the Disney Channel in The Suite Life on Deck as London Tipton, the spoiled heiress to the Tipton fortune. Also, I was really excited to see Henry Winkler, since I haven’t seen him in a program in quite some time. As a matter of fact, the only character I pictured Henry Winkler was as Fonzie from Happy Days. I had a tough time trying to see him as any other character but the Fonz. To my surprise his acting was spot on for his part as Happy Herb.
After my short reminiscence of the Happy Days show, my mind was then in a trance of boredom. My excitement, as well as the kids, was very short lived. My oldest son stated that it was a ‘baby movie’ and my younger two kids were a bit squeamish when it came to Froggy Doo. It wasn’t that Froggy Doo was scary to them, but that he wasn’t ‘real’ enough for them. As my six-year-old daughter put it, “Froggy Doo isn’t like Elmo. He looks fake.” I have to agree with her, I didn’t enjoy Froggy Doo as much as I had hoped either.
At that time when the kids lost all interest, I turned the movie off and came back to it that evening to continue watching it alone. I followed the storyline and watched the movie only because I had to review it. If I didn’t have to review it, I would have definitely handed the movie to someone else who might enjoy it.
The A Plumm Summer Plot
A Plumm Summer is a Paramount Pictures family adventure movie based on a true story, set back in 1968 in Peaks View, Montana. It is the story of two young brothers, Elliott and Rocky Plumm, who try to stay one step ahead of the FBI in order to crack the ‘frog-napping’ case and get Rocky’s beloved Froggy Doo back on the air.
Elliot, played by Chris Kelly, is a six-year-old boy who absolutely adores Froggy Doo. Froggy is the side-kick of Happy Herb. Elliot is devastated when Froggy Doo is kidnapped right before he was to appear on the air. His brother, Rocky, played by Owen Pearce, has out grown the kids program but is willing to help his little brother crack the case and win the love of his father Mick. Not to mention, Elliot also stands to win the heart of his new neighbor, Haley (Morgan Flynn).
Together this trio will attempt to solve the case of the missing Froggy Doo. In doing so they have many adventures along the way.
Storyline/Plot: 
Replayability:
Acting: 
Directing:
Audio/Visual:
A Plumm Summer was filmed in Widescreen Version that is enhanced for 16:9 televisions. Basically this means that this movie is only played in widescreen and you will see the black bars at the top and bottom of your television screen. This was not an issue for me when watching the movie. I also did not have any problems with clarity or dusting of the film. The colors and scenery were clear.
As for the audio, it is in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The audio is crisp and clear throughout the entire movie. This is the only audio track that is available. Overall, it’s clear, but standard.
Visual:
Audio:
Bonus Features:
There are a selection of bonus features included on the A Plumm Summer DVD. The first is a commentary with Frank Antonelli, the writer and producer and Caroline Zelder, the director and writer. This commentary is fairly interesting. It provides information on their vision for the film, making the film and the like, but when it comes to commentaries it is pretty standard. There are a selection of deleted scenes. It’s clear why they were deleted. Everything was pretty boring in this section. The gag reel is next, and the kids and I actually laughed along with the actors at this. It’s worth a watch at least once.
There is a Behind the Scenes Red Carpet feature. The cast and crew for A Plumm Summer weigh in on making the film, how much it meant to be a part of this production and what they thought about the movie. There is also a Behind the Scenes Music Video, which shows production and filming. Finally, there is the theatrical trailer for this movie.
Bonus Features:
Bottom Line
A Plumm Summer wasn’t as good as I expected. It had potential, with Froggy Doo, but he was too unrealistic making the story fail. My kids couldn’t sit through it. My kids range in age from toddler to pre-teen. If you can’t appease any child in that group or the adult watching it with them, this film is obviously not worth the purchase for any audience.
Technorati Tags: A Plumm Summer, Henry Winkler, Puppet, Family, Paramount Pictures, Froggy Doo
Written by Ang – Visit Website
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