As a 90’s kid, Nickelodeon was a huge part of my childhood. Shows like Rugrats, CatDog and Angry Beavers were shows that I watched on a regular basis and found incredibly entertaining throughout my formative years. Another show played a big role throughout my childhood and that show is Hey Arnold!. The young characters present in the show represented things that I believed to be true about myself. They represented a group of young individuals who showed a glimmer of hope in the most difficult situations. They were constantly dreaming about the bigger and the better that was available to them both inside and outside of their hometown and they dealt with difficulties that most children deal with on a regular basis throughout their educational and social careers. I saw these children on my television screen every week and they allowed me, at a very young age, to understand that even with the negatives that took place throughout everyday life, a silver lining was present all the time. Something Hey Arnold! did very well was that it encouraged children to ask questions and become inquisitive as the characters they have come to love grow deeper and more compelling. In 2002 Hey Arnold! The Movie aimed to answer some of those nagging questions and see these beloved characters progress in new and interesting ways.
Hey Arnold! The Movie takes viewers to the fictional city of Hillwood where Arnold (Spencer Klein), his best friend Gerald (Jamil Walker Smith) and the rest of their friends and family have just been notified by corporate technology guru Scheck (Paul Sorvino) that he would, in just a few short weeks, demolish the city in which they live and build a new, modern mall. The residents of Hillwood are expected to, in that short time, pack their bags, sell their homes and businesses and find a new place to live. Arnold, being the inquisitive and optimistic young man that he is, refuses to accept this declaration as a reality. Arnold fails over and over again, but is determined to, with only forty-eight hours left to go, work with Gerald to find a way to save the city. At just nine years old the two boys have the odds stacked against them, but, as is expected with the two boys, they will do whatever it takes to save the people and the city that they love.
It can sometimes be difficult to find value in a film that is geared toward children and is nearly twenty years old. Hey Arnold! The Movie, however, while providing nostalgic value, more importantly provides a lesson that viewers of all ages can relate to. That message is that you cannot go too far to help the people you care about (within reason of course). That message transcends audiences of all ages and creates a connection between the beloved characters on screen and the people who have grown up with them.
Obviously animation is the key to Hey Arnold! The Movie’s success. Without a solid approach to the animated aspect of the film, viewers would fail to appreciate the story, the characters and the important messages strewn throughout. Nickelodeon Animation Studios, especially in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s was one of the most well-known animation studios in the world. They regularly produced films seen by people of all ages and always found ways to connect with those viewers. Nickelodeon has, since its inception, used digital animation to bring their stories and their characters to life. Their ability to utilize some of the most cutting edge technology to create seamless animation and bring characters like Arnold, Gerald and the dreaded Helga Pataki (Francesca Marie Smith) to life proves their worth in the realm of cinema. Silly animation can become a distraction and can cause films to lose value and meaning as viewers aim to ignore their failed attempts. Hey Arnold! The Movie depicts flawless scenes that, even today, have the ability to entertain.
The voice acting is stupendous and provides clarity in each and every moment. It can be difficult for children, the target audience of Hey Arnold! The Movie, to understand and absorb what is occurring in each scene. However, the ability of the cast to convey emotion with such precision allows these young audiences to understand what is happening in the most important moments of the film. Marie Smith, in particular, is able to manipulate her voice in a way to express the emotions that she constantly juggles and viewers are able to pick up on the subtle nuances in the character’s voice as she guides certain scenes and ultimately makes the story possible.
Hey Arnold! was an important part of my childhood, and I genuinely enjoyed sitting down and watching the cartoon every week with the people in my family. I can remember the real world situations making sense and understanding that, even if I didn’t fully grasp what was being said, there was information hidden within the dialogue and who the characters were that pertained to me. Hey Arnold! The Movie is a blast from the past that still supplies viewers with the same feeling that it did nearly twenty years ago. It contains valuable lessons that transcend genders, races, social classes, etc. and allows these viewers to understand the importance of family, friends and perseverance. This film is a hidden gem that lives up to the nostalgic hype.
Directed by Tuck Tucker. Written by Craig Bartlett & Steve Viksten. Starring Spencer Klein, Francesca Marie Smith, Jamil Walker Smith, Dan Castellaneta, Tress MacNeille, Paul Sorvino, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐½/10
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