This is the third year that I be able to see the "Oscar Nominated Animated Short Films". While there are several good shorts (including a few that aren't even in the running for the Oscar), there isn't one this year that's outstanding.

OSCAR NOMINEES:

"Dimanche/Sunday" - A hand-drawn short from Canada about a boy's average Sunday. It has good animation and a humorous story but just kind of sits there with no payoff or resolution. B

"The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore" - The longest title and longest short (15 min.) William Joyce ("Robots" and "Meet the Robinsons") co-directs this CGI short about a young man who is brought to a library where books literally fly off the shelves. Similar story and look as Pixar's "Up", with emotion and good messages. The animation style is a little soft and the movie wanders a little bit. B

"La Luna" - Pixar's nominated short is one of the best of the bunch. It's about a little boy who goes to work with his father and grandfather. They have an interesting job: cleaning the moon. This is a sweet and funny short with great animation. It's far better than Pixar's entry last year, the wildly disappointing "Day & Night". B+

"A Morning Stroll" - Unusual, but yet it makes perfect sense. This short combines hand-drawn and CGI animation in three very different and very vibrant styles. The story is about...well...a chicken! (and that's all I want to say). Well thought and entertaining. B

"Wild Life" - Canada's second nominated short is about a young man, in the early 1900s, who leaves England to live the "wild life" as a cowboy in Canada. The animation is all done with oil painting cels and it's great looking, but the story is a mess. There's a constant reference to comets that I just didn't get and the twist at the end doesn't really work. C

HIGHLY CONDEMMED

"Skylight" - The first half of this five-minute short is a funny rip-off of "March of the Penguins" and other nature documentaries and a social commentary on Global Warming. Then it becomes predictable and pretty ridiculous. A great start, but a disappointing finish. C+

"Hybrid Union" - A bland story about machines trying to race each other to get away from a storm. The animation is O.K., but the story and message are too obvious. I don't want to think this much while trying to enjoy a quick short. C

"Nullarbor" - A funny and more adult short from Austraila about two men who come-upon each other while driving their vehicles across a long stretch of land on the continent. The animation is good and at times, this short is laugh-out-loud funny. Predictable but enjoyable throughout. B+

"Amazonia" - Bright animation and a pretty clever story about a young frog and an older frog trying to catch food in the "Amazon". Nice, surprise ending that works. It's simple and could've had a little more bite too it, but a nice way to end the collection. B

Favorite (out of all nine): "Nullarbor"

Prediction for the Oscar Winner: "La Luna"

Japan's Studio Ghibli has had a great deal of success bringing their anime films to America, thanks in large part to Disney, which distributes the films in the U.S. Fans and critics alike have loved Ghibli movies, beginning with their first - 1986's "Castle in the Sky". Stand-outs from the studio include "My Neighbor Totoro" (1988), "Spirited Away", which won the Best Animated Feature Oscar in 2002, "Howl's Moving Castle", which was nominated for an Academy Award in 2006 and 2009's "Ponyo".

Their latest, "The Secret World of Arrietty", is a simple and sweet addition to the collection, written and co-produced by long-time director Hayao Miyazaki, who adapted it from the book, The Borrowers.

Borrowers are little people who live under the floors of homes. They take just what they need to survive from the humans they live with - an occasional sugar cube or tissue. And they have to be sure they are never seen. 14 year old Arrietty (voiced by Disney Channel's Bridgit Mendler) is just old enough to start going on borrowing trips with her father, which has her mother worried. Real-life husband and wife Will Arnet and Amy Peohler voice the parents.

One day while she's out on her own Arrietty is spotted by Sean ("Wizards of Waverly Place" star David Henrie), a teenager who's come with his aunt to stay at this house in the country. Sean has some medical problems and needs to rest before surgery. Even though she's been told to stay away from "Human Beans", as they call them, Arrietty is drawn to Sean and he is immediately fascinated with her. The two begin an unlikely friendship and learn much from each other.

The first thing that makes "The Sercet World of Arrietty" stand out is the beautiful animation - completely hand-drawn by hundreds of Japanese animators with grace and quality. The characters are vivid and expressive and the backgrounds are gorgeous, many appear to be watercolor paintings. Both Arreitty's miniature world and the real-life settings are wonderful.

The work of the voice cast in this U.S. version is quite good, including comedy legend Carol Burnett, as the home's caretaker, who's suspected for years that little people were living in the house. She's getting the hang of voicing villains (which she also did in 2008's "Horton Hears a Who!")

At times the film feels a bit rushed. I would have liked to have seen more of the unusual relationship between Arrietty and Sean before the very abrupt ending. And though it's rated G there is some adult material here, mostly involving Sean's illness. Yes, this is an animated movie with the Disney name attached, and it's a fantasy about 4-inch tall people, but this is a little more grown-up than "Ponyo" and not recommended for the very little ones. However, everyone else will enjoy this gentle, unique story.

On The Official L-C-J Report Card, "The Secret World of Arrietty" gets a B+. The year in animation is off to a great start.

2008's "Journey to the Center of the Earth" was a fun family adventure. It was also the first live-action film to be shot entirely in the new digital 3D format. The Third Dimension has come a long way in the three and a half years since "Journey 1", as we see in "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island", which showcases the technical improvements along with a few other surprises.

Josh Hutcherson ("Bridge to Terabithia", "The Kids Are All Right") is the only main cast member beck from the original. He reprises his role as Sean, who's now a teenager and still getting into trouble. Brendan Fraser played Sean's uncle in "Journey 1", but in this sequel, Dwayne Johnson is the leading man, as Sean's stepfather Hank. Sean is able to pick up codes over the radio that he thinks are coming from his grandfather, who's an adventurer trying to find the Mysterious Island that Jules Verne wrote about.

After figuring-out that the island may be more actually be real, Sean and Hank decide to try to go looking for it. They hire a wacky helicopter pilot (Luis Guzman) and his daughter Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens), to take them out to the middle of the ocean where the island is supposed to be. They barely survive a wild storm and end-up on the island where they meet Sean's grandfather (played by Michael Caine). They learn that the island is the lost city of Atlantis (no spoiler if you saw the end of the first film) and that it's about to return to the ocean floor. So it's a race again time and the rising tide to figure out how to get off the island and get back home.

The key to enjoying "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island" is not to take it too seriously. This is pure fantasy/science fiction. Caine even discusses this in the opening narration. Of course the plot is ridiculous, but it's also a lot of fun. And, just like the first one, "Journey 2" has a good enough story (with only a handful of characters) to keep your interest the entire way.

Johnson is clearly in one of his three comfort zones here, that being the 'family film'. This is his fifth family film (including career highlights "Tooth Fairy" and the animated "Planet 51"). He has tons of charisma and charm on screen. He's also a co-producer on "Journey 2", and he likely had input on some of the scenes he plays for laughs, including bouncing 3D berries off his chest right at the audience and the witty dialogue he shares with Caine. Johnson also sings in the film ("What a Wonderful World"), and he's actually not that bad.

Caine is perfectly cast as the crusty, old adventurer. Hutcherson and Hudgens are good as they deal with a possible budding romance while trying to stay alive, but Guzman is too over the top as the comic-relief character. He's forced to deliver flat jokes and fall down a lot. Overall the 3D is better than average for the CGI scenes involving huge bees, lizards, eels and birds chasing the human characters. But the regular, live-action 3D still has a way to go.

"Journey 2: The Mysterious Island" is rated PG for some brief language and mild action. A few times creatures come right at the camera, which might scare younger kids for a second or two, (but for most the in-your-face 3D is a blast!). It's appropriate for kids 8 and up, who along with their parents (and even grandparents who might be Michael Caine fans) will enjoy this first thrilling family adventure of the year.

On The Official L-C-J Report Card, "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island" gets a solid B. It's a great "Journey 2" take to beat the winter blues.

Without giving too much away, this sequel does set-up for a third installment, which should come as no surprise. Hutcherson's going to be too old for this role pretty soon so Warner Bros. better not wait another three and a half years if the do plan on making "Journey 3".

And before the film is a new Looney Tunes short called "Daffy's Rhapsody", starring Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd. Daffy's voice is the late Mel Blanc's recording of the 1953 song "Daffy's Rhapsody". The short is fast-paced, has great animation and a lot of fun.

"Big Miracle" is not inspired by the true story of the U.S. hockey team beating Russia in the 1980 Winter Olympics. That was 2004's "Miracle". In this movie, one of the first of Universal Studio's 100th anniversary year, the Americans and Russians actually work together, to try to save three whales. And, yes, it's also based on an actual event.

John Krasinski (from TV's "The Office") stars as Adam, a TV news reporter working in Barrow, Alaska (which is located above the Arctic Circle) back in 1988. One day he discovers that three large, grey whales are trapped in the ice, with only one small hole for them to come to the surface to breathe. He does a story on the whales which is shown on the NBC Nightly News. Soon everyone, from school kids to the President of the United States, becomes interested in the plight of this whale family.

Including Adam's ex-girlfriend Rachel, played by Drew Barrymore. She's the leader of Greenpeace, and she comes to Barrow to try to use her power to get the help needed to free the whales. And there's Ted Danson, who plays as an evil and greedy oil company executive and Kristen Bell, as TV reporter sent from L.A. to cover the story. And there are plenty of local Alaskans on hand. They all come together to try to save the whales.

And that's pretty much it. "Big Miracle" is a one-note film. It's all about saving these whales, who are given the Flintstones names Fred, Wilma and Bamm-Bamm for some reason. Some inspirational movies that are based on a true story grab you emotionally and really make you care about what's going to happen. "Big Miracle" just floats there, like a dead goldfish in a bowl, for nearly two hours. You're hoping that maybe it's going to come to life and starting swimming around, but it never does.

One of the main problems is that the three whales just aren't likeable. All they do is pop-up out of the water for a few seconds and then go back down. Over and over and over. Very tough for the filmmakers to get the audience to make a connection with key characters who have no personality. Compare this to last September's "Dolphin Tale", whose main character, an injured dolphin, was fun and very likeable. It also helped that the dolphin in "Dolphin Tale" was real. It's very obvious that the three whales in "Big Miracle" are animatronic creations.

As for the performances, they are shockingly bad, led by Barrymore. But it's not entirely her fault, as the dialogue she and the rest of the cast is forced to deliver is pretty corny. And there are some scenes that are utterly ridiculous, including the ones involving President Reagan and the Russians, that could have been part of a Saturday Night Live skit.

"Big Miracle" is rated PG for some mild language. It's appropriate for kids 9 and up. Parents, don't take your little ones to this thinking it's a fun, cute movie about whales. It's a long, talky movie about "saving whales". Like the two six year olds in the row ahead of me they will quickly get bored and want to leave. Come to think of it, that's kinda how I felt. The only thing that kept me going was the actual news footage of the whale rescue story that's used throughout the film. It was fun seeing Dan Rather, Tom Brokaw and the late Peter Jennings once again.

On The Official L-C-J Report Card, "Big Miracle" gets a C-.

This movie was originally called "Everybody Loves Whales". Good decision to change that, since it kept critics from writing such lines as "Nothing to love about 'Everybody Loves Whales'." However, I have to say that the biggest miracle involving "Big Miracle" will be if it makes it's budget back at the box office.