Search - Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie on DVD

MPAA Rating: G Movie Release: 2002 DVD Release: 03/04/2003 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Audio Tracks: English, Spanish Subtitles: English SwapaDVD Credits: 2 Number of Discs: 2 Run Time: 1 hrs 23 mins Studio: Family Home Ent Total Copies: 14 Genres: Children's/Family, Family-Oriented Adventure, Family-Oriented Comedy See Also: Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie

One of the best-known stories from the Bible gets a new and decidedly playful retelling in this animated comedy, the first feature film from the creators of the popular video series VeggieTales. Archibald Asparagus (voice of Phil Vischer) stars as Jonah, who is chosen by God to help spread his message to the world. Unfortunately, his first stop on his evangelical tour is the city of Nineveh, where the residents while away their days bingeing on cheese snacks and arguing, usually settling a war of words by throwing fish at one another. Circumstances force Jonah to set sail across the ocean, where he's assisted by Khalil (voice of Tim Hodge), a carpet peddler who is half caterpillar and half worm ("but I'm OK with that now"), and "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything," who are led by the well-meaning but lethargic Mr. Lunt, Pa Grape (both voiced by Phil Vischer), and Larry the Cucumber (voice of Mike Nawrocki). However, Jonah's mission gets a bit of a setback when a mammoth whale changes his plans. Phil Vischer and Mike Nawrocki, who provide most of the character voices, also wrote and directed Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie, and also created the original video series. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Phil Vischer - Archibald Asparagus ("Jonah"/"Twippo")/Bob the Tomato/Mr.
Mike Nawrocki - Larry the Cucumber ("Pirate Larry")/Jean Claude Pea/Cockn
Tim Hodge - Khalil
Lisa Vischer - Junior Asparagus
Dana Anderson - Dad Asparagus

Big Idea's Biblically-themed, computer-generated Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie tapped out at about 26 million dollars in domestic box office, but the producers nonetheless were ready for an all-out home video assault. The double-disc DVD contains hours of appealing original material, from the whimsical interactive menus to the bright behind-the-scenes featurettes, much of it with a fresh twist. Nothing is static. For instance, on disc two, the "Concept Art" galleries page through the pre-production renderings with detailed, separate audio commentaries by vice president of visual development Michael Spooner (nine minutes) and art director Joe Sapulich (21 minutes); three scenes are detailed in "Progression Reels," quartering the screen to show the CG film craft from storyboard to finished product. Under the "Games" heading are "Blind Puzzle," in which blindfolded players (human actors) assemble a puzzle by following vocal directions (it's said to teach compassion), and "Second Chance Card," which shows a family issuing homemade cards when they've been wronged by a family member (it teaches forgiveness). There are live-action music videos (Chris Rice, the Newsboys, Relient K), trivia games, a "karaoke" function, a read-along storybook, and a plethora of how-they-did-it featurettes. "Outtakes" (with a Spanish-language option) are plain goofy, and the humor of this gimcrack, pioneered by Pixar, may have played itself out. But "Digital Dailies" goes a step above the outtakes by providing character commentary à la Mystery Science Theater. Disc one includes the feature film (in Dolby 2.0 or 5.1) and commentaries. ~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide