Free Birds

Premiered November 1, 2013.

"We're going back in time to the first Thanksgiving...to get turkeys off the menu!"
-Jake
 
A turkey named Reggie  (Owen Wilson) lives on a poultry farm.  He discovers that the farmers are fattening turkeys up just to turn them into meals.  When Reggie informs the other turkeys about their fate, they cruelly oust him from the barn to fend for himself rather than listen.   Reggie's misfortune winds up being a windfall as he is chosen to receive the President's annual Thanksgiving  turkey pardon.

Reggie is chosen as the Pardon Turkey

Reggie is taken in as a pet by the President's daughter (Kaitlyn Maher) and and will live with her at Camp David.

Reggie enjoys cheese pizza and telenovelas

While enjoying the good life, watching Mexican soap operas and ordering lots of pizza, Reggie meets a wild turkey named Jake (Woody Harrelson) who (more or less) kidnaps him.   

Jake is fanatically devoted to a prophecy he received from "The Great Turkey"

Jake claims to be the president of the "Turkeys Liberation Front" and says that they must save turkeys from Thanksgiving.  In order to achieve this, they must (naturally) time travel back to the first Thanksgiving to prevent turkeys from ever becoming the main course of the holiday meal.  

Jake says he knows where they can steal a time machine from a military base conveniently located near Camp David.  (Said time machine is called S.T.E.V.E and is voiced by George Takei!) 

Reggie and Jake travel through time

They arrive in Plymouth Massachusetts in 1621, 3 days before the first Thanksgiving feast.  Reggie and Jake find themselves in the middle of a turkey hunt led by Miles Standish (Colm Meaney). 

Standish threatens Governor Bradford

They're saved by local wild turkeys, Jenny (Amy Poehler) and Ranger (Jimmy Hayward)  and taken to the wild turkeys' hideout. 

So our heroes find themselves embroiled (pun intended?)  in the turkey clan's struggle for survival against Standish who is determined to find their hiding place at any cost and the rest of the Pilgrims who are just plain HUNGRY.   

Can Reggie and Jake save future turkeys from their annual thanksgiving holocaust?  

Here is the official trailer for your perusal:



J.A. Morris says:

I'm not the intended demographic, but I thought Free Birds was okay.  Some reviewers have called it Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, but with turkeys" and that's an accurate description.  But the voice actors are top notch and Reggie is a likable protagonist.
  

Jenny & Reggie observe Earth from the time machine.

I generally enjoy the work of Owen Wilson, Amy Poehler and Woody Harrelson.  And Keith David brings his "voice of God" to the role of Chief Broadbeak.  George Takei is great as S.T.E.V.E., the voice of the time machine.  He even gets to drop his signature "Oh My!" catch phrase.  Colm Meaney makes a good villain as Miles Standish.

The "kids" love Reggie.

I don't want to spoil the plot, but there is a serious (for a kids movie) death scene that might upset younger viewers.  The subsequent turkey funeral scene was actually very moving, you might find yourself tearing up (like I did).  

The real, historical Miles Standish was noted for using excessive force at times, and that's on display here as well. If this blog was a scholarly journal article, I would suggest that turkeys are standing in for Indians who were victims of Standish's brutality...but it's not, so I won't.

Tukeys prepare to battle the Pilgrims.

But it feels longer than necessary.  There's an opening segment that shows how Reggie is a bit of a misfit, which feels like padding.  The movie could have just opened with his Thanksgiving pardon and the story would've worked just as well.  There are also some "fight" scenes between Ranger and Jake that don't seem to serve any purpose. 

Reggie arrives at Camp David

Like other recent animated features, Free Birds has pop culture references that aren't likely to age well.  We even hear the turkeys called "angry birds" at one point.  

If you're a big 3D fan like me, don't bother seeing the 3D version.  I didn't notice anything that was particularly enhaned by the 3D technology.  This was disappointing, since Free Birds was shot in "real" 3D, not just "retrofitted".  

With Christmas movies (and countless new tv specials) released every year, Thanksgiving films are comparatively rare.  So Free Birds is a nice addition to Holiday seasonal programming.  And I imagine it acting as a "video babysitter" during Thanksgiving Dinner preparations in the next few years.  It's a fun, harmless movie, but it's no classic. 

J.A. Morris' rating:

2 and a half pumpkin pies.

RigbyMel says:

I generally agree with what J.A. Morris has to say about this film.  It is an agreeably goofy, but somewhat forgettable holiday offering.   The voice talents are great and the computer animation is very good.   However, the story, while appealing in concept, is rather lackluster in the execution, which is a shame.    If one is going to do a movie featuring time traveling turkeys,  I feel one should make more hay out of the possibilities for paradox inherent.  (Did they think the concept would be too difficult for kids to understand?)

Free Birds is not a complete "turkey", but it is probably not something that will become a perennial favorite.  

RigbyMel's rating:

2 pumpkin pies

Cheers: "Thanksgiving Orphans"

Premiered November 27, 1986

Woody: "This is my first Thanksgiving away from home...unless you count last year."

Diane: "What could be more enjoyable than opening your heart this holiday season?"

Carla: "Opening yours with a can opener?"

It's the week of Thanksgiving, but Woody is already putting up Christmas decorations, including a paper Rudolph he made.  Sam says it seems like Christmas comes earlier every year. Frasier rants about the unhealthy messages for children inherent in the "Rudolph", he says the song "gives them a horribly distorted view of reality."

The gang is talking about their Thanksgiving plans: Sam has a date for the holiday (this episode takes place when Sam and Diane's relationship was "on again, off again" and they were often playing mind games); Norm says he’s(unhappily) spending it with his wife Vera and her mother; Diane is attending a recreation of the original Plymouth Thanksgiving feast at the home her literature professor.

Carla, Woody, Cliff & Frasier have no plans and it looks like they’ll be alone.  Diane suggests Carla host Thanksgiving for all those who have no family nearby.  Carla says yes, but insists it will be a pot-luck dinner.  She invites Sam and his date, Norm offers to bring a turkey and says he’ll talk Vera into joining the gang at Carla’s house too.

One by one, everyone arrives at Carla’s house and they sit down to watch football & the Macy's parade.  Norm brings a turkey that hasn’t been cooked yet, and also mentions that he and Vera had “the worst fight of our marriage” about their Thanksgiving plans.  Sam shows up without his date, his plans have fallen through too.

Diane also shows up unexpectedly, Carla initially slams the door (literally) in her face.  Diane’s professor only invited her so she could serve food, she is broken and humiliated.  Norm’s turkey is still being cooked while they watch football, much to Diane’s dismay.

Hours pass, the turkey (dubbed “Birdzilla” by Carla) is still not ready.  While waiting, Diane suggests everyone get up and tell what they’re thankful for.

After the “thankfuls” are over, the turkey is STILL not done, so they decide to eat the side dishes. Carla keeps ribbing Norm about the lack of turkey, Norm responds by throwing peas at her, then everyone joins in and we have a classic TV food fight!

J A Morris says:

Cheers is a show I literally grew up watching.  The first episode premiered when I was 11 years old, I was 21 when the series finale aired in 1993.  But this is the first episode I’d seen in a decade and it’s one of the best.  The Cheers workers & customers always acted as a support system for one another, so why not spend Thanksgiving together?   Frasier points out that families are "not necessarily limited to blood relations."  And like most “families”, there were always certain Cheers characters that were disliked by others, but in the end, they still come together to celebrate Thanksgiving...and have one of the greatest food fights in TV history!

After dinner, the gang is toasting absent friends and family members.  Sam proposes a toast to Coach, the Cheers bartender who died the previous year.  I always appreciate it when long-running shows mention departed characters.  Since the actor who played Coach, Nicholoas Colasanto had died in real life, this moment was especially poignant.

This is also an interesting Cheers episode because the bulk of the action takes place outside the bar.

"Thanksgiving Orphans" makes for great seasonal viewing.  It's available for streaming if you're a Netflix subscriber and is also available on the Cheers:Complete Fifth Season dvd set.

My rating:

4 pumpkin pies

RigbyMel says:

"Thanksgiving Orphans" is not a Cheers episode that I recall watching when it first aired, but even though I have come to it late, I have to say that this episode is a classic one.  The food fight alone makes it worthwhile, but Diane in pilgrim garb and the battle to cook Birdzilla the turkey are also wonderful moments.

This episode reminds me of the time I spent in the UK rounding up random British friends to celebrate the US holiday. (I spent 3 Thanksgivings across the pond.)  I had much better luck with the cooking aspects of the holiday, thanks in part to a little forward planning and overseas phone calls to my very patient mother. (I wound up making sweet potato pie rather than pumpkin pie as sweet potatoes were more readily available in Britain.)  I was very glad to have kind friends in Britain who were willing to help me celebrate, not unlike the way that the characters from Cheers banded together to help each other enjoy the holiday (although, my friends and I didn't have a food fight!).  So I find that this episode of Thanksgiving orphan-hood resonates with me in a very personal way.

Overall this is a great episode of a great series and one not to be missed.

RigbyMel's rating:

4 pumpkin pies