Disney Planes Fire & Rescue Review #FireAndRescue

Image from Disney press materials

On Monday, I had the opportunity to attend a sneak peek of Disney’s latest movie — Planes: Fire & Rescue.

To be honest, I was excited for the excuse to go to the movies with my big kid {Kinley, age 3.5}, but not terribly excited about the movie. After all, I thought Planes was cute, but just OK for adults. {Read that review here.}

I may have even had some eye rolls at the beginning — it seemed to be strikingly similar to the first one and seemed to crash and burn right off the bat. Even Kinley was getting antsy in her seat, and she is usually a huge movie lover.

But, I am glad we stuck through it and Kinley relaxed thanks to a few suckers, because it got better. I enjoyed some of the adult humor sprinkled in, and absolutely LOVED the music!

SYNOPSIS FROM DISNEY

Planes: Fire & Rescue is a comedy-adventure about second chances, featuring a dynamic crew of elite firefighting aircraft devoted to protecting historic Piston Peak National Park from raging wildfire. When world famous air racer Dusty {voice of Dane Cook} learns that his engine is damaged and he may never race again, he must shift gears and is launched into the world of aerial firefighting. Dusty joins forces with veteran fire and rescue helicopter Blade Ranger and his courageous team, including spirited super scooper Dipper {voice of Julie Bowen}, heavy-lift helicopter Windlifter, ex-military transport Cabbie and a lively bunch of brave all-terrain vehicles known as The Smokejumpers. Together, the fearless team battles a massive wildfire and Dusty learns what it takes to become a true hero. Directed by Bobs Gannaway {“Secret of the Wings”}, “Planes: Fire & Rescue” hits theaters in 3D on July 18, 2014. This film is rated PG.

Image from Disney press materials

PERSONAL CONNECTION

I come from a family of firefighters — my grandpa, dad and brother have all served or are currently serving on the Detroit Fire Department. Anyone who is familiar with the firefighting world in Detroit knows that it is a thankless job where people get hurt nearly everyday. I will be the first to shout it from the rooftops that these men and women do not get the pay they deserve for risking their lives daily. So with that, I LOVED that the film started out with a dedication to all firefighters, and kept the wonderful theme that firefighters are true heroes throughout. Even Brad Paisley wrote a song for the film about his firefighting family. I couldn’t find the full release version online, but here’s a little preview of it:

I also learned a lot about how they put out fires in our national parks — something I’ve never thought about, but loved learning. Turns out Disney did its research, which I fully appreciated. Some of the scenes even mirrored actual events from the past, which I found to be neat as I read up on the film.

VERDICT

The visuals were stunning, so for that I would recommend seeing it in 3D. It felt like we were flying at parts, which was fun. I was astonished with how well they matched the voices to the characters, too. And their eyes! They looked so alive. I can’t recall the animation being as strong in the first movie.

Was it better than the first? YES. While it’s a far cry from an iconic Disney classic, it finished strong enough. For that, I would recommend you bring any plane or firefighting-loving child to see this movie. Otherwise, I would skip out on the theater all together and wait until it comes out on DVD.

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Do you plan to see Planes: Fire & Rescue? It opens in theaters TODAY!