That was an excellent one.

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

In a web interview a few years ago, one of the head honchos at Pixar was asked the secret to making a successful kids' movie and he said it was to make something that adults will enjoy. Kids, he said, have terrible taste; they'll will watch anything. A kids' movie that is too dumb for the grown-ups is going to languish at the box office. But if you make a movie with some clever dialogue and engaging plot, plus some elementary "teaching moments" that mainstream parents can discuss with their kids, then you will enjoy robust ticket and video sales.Pixar put that formula to good use with their successful run of computer-animated films, but I am hesitant to watch anything released direct to video. But I was pleasantly surprised with Buzz Lightyear of Star Command: The Adventure Begins.There's more "kids' stuff" here than in Toy Story and its progeny, but there's still plenty for adults to love. The voice talents are top-flight, especially Wayne Knight as Zurg. (Kudos also go to Stephen Furst, Adam Corolla and Larry Miller, all of whom seemed to be enjoying themselves and working their roles well.) Besides the voices, the film also offers some clever dialogue and good visual humor (picture a lazy robot reading a catalogue called "Victoria's Circuits"). The plot is competent. Good themes (like valuing teamwork and obeying the rules even when you don't like it) give the kids something to think about.Finally, William Shatner shows up in the end credits with a laugh-out-loud spoken rendition of the Buzz Lightyear theme song: "To Infinity and Beyond." I had a good time explaining to my nephews and my son about Shatner's infamous "Lucy In the Sky (With Diamonds)" recording.I'd like to see Pixar make more stuff like this.

If you ever want a bit of a laugh while babysitting, this might be a good film to have with you. Kids will love it simply because it's got Buzz Lightyear, an amusing villain, and loads of aliens. Maybe it's just a sign of my immaturity, but I found quite a lot of the jokes in this movie very funny (and even the parts that aren't funny can be vaguely amusing in their corniness). The characters do a lot for the movie - Lightyear's unlikely friend and partner Warp Darkmatter has several funny lines, and XR's personality changes and sarcasm make him quite endearing. Even the villain, the Evil Emperor Zurg, has his likable moments.While you won't miss any life-changing moments if you don't see this movie (and really, it pales in comparison to the Toy Story movies), it's a good choice if you've seen every other kids' movie too many times and want to watch something that'll amuse you too.

It begins with a standard S&R mission and in the end Buzz is involved in an adventure, where the whole galaxy is at stake, with him and his friends being the only ones left to stop evil emperor Zurg, who is the excellent villain here. At no time is the movie ever boring, the story is never hold up at any point for too long and while the overall plot is predictable (Buzz will defeat Zurg and save the galaxy), in between it often takes unexpected turns. The robot and Zurgs men add a great deal of comedy and the attentive viewer will notice some wonderfull allusions "That's not a spacecraft - it's obviously a weatherballoon"

I bought this because my 2 year old just cant get enough of Buzz Lightyear. (Or Woody for that matter.) He always asks for this DVD "Buh Buh Buh". Unfortunately, I'd guess there is never more than a four or five minute span when Buzz isn't shooting something, or something is shooting at Buzz. I dont know that it's a real damaging film for the kids, but be prepared for a full length gun toting shoot out.