This is one of those movies that surprises you – or at least it did me. Quite frankly, I don’t even remember why it was that we watched it. Perhaps it was a suggestion from a friend. But whatever the reason, we decided that we’d sit down with the family and see if it was any good. In the end, we were glad that we did.

It definitely starts off a bit slowly – in the not-to-distant future, Noah (Chris O’Neil) and his sister Emma (Rhiannon Leigh Wryn) going through some toys such as stuffed animals, trying to find something to do with them. It’s really a scene that most parents today might see at any point in any life. But then something a bit unusual happens.

As Noah and Emma spend more time with these toys, they develop some special abilities – increased intelligence, psychic capabilities, telepathy, telekinesis, and even the ability to communicate with insects (at least spiders). It’s probably making a statement about kids today and how much time they spend in front of the television, and that they’d be better of playing with stuffed animals, but if you’ve been reading, then you know that I’m not really a big fan of symbolism. Let’s move along.

As it turns out, Emma is really attached to one of the toys in particular, named Mimzy, which is a stuffed bunny. This attachment borders on attachment, and before long affects not just the kids, but their family and in fact the entire region with a blackout, which is soon traced to the children.

When the FBI investigates, they seize upon Mimzy, and somehow figure out that it is an advanced form of artificial life, manufactured by Intel (product placement at its finest). The only reason that the kids are believed now is because the technology is so advanced that it’s not possible to build such a construct with the technology of the day.

Then the truth comes out, and Mimzy is the last of a mission to return some pure DNA from the past to the future, who can perhaps save the world from the destruction caused by humanity’s insistent drive to pollute without care (another message, anyone). While the original mission was to take some pure DNA back to the future, it turns out that just isn’t going to happen, since Mimzy bonded with Emma, and for some reason, her parents don’t want to let her go to the future. Luckily, she sheds a tear onto Mimzy just before the time machine fires up, and that saves the world.

I’ll be the first to say that the last part is a bit hokey. But when our kids (both boys) sat down and watched (and apparently enjoyed) the story, and my wife (who doesn’t much like science fiction) watched it too, they did something right.

Rated PG for some thematic elements, mild peril and language.

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Actor: Amanda Wik, Actor: Brian Greene, Actor: Bruce Harwood, Actor: Caleb Kemble, Actor: Calum Worthy, Actor: Camyar Chai, Actor: Carlo Fanella, Actor: Chad Cole, Actor: Chris O'Neil, Actor: Curtis Caravaggio, Actor: Dagmar Midcap, Actor: Daniel Bacon, Actor: David Joshi, Actor: Eliana MacFarlane, Actor: Elias Calogeros, Actor: Elora Penner, Actor: Erica Jones, Actor: Evan Leeson, Actor: Fred Keating, Actor: Grace Walker, Actor: Hiro Kanagawa, Actor: Irene Snow, Actor: Jerry Wasserman, Actor: Joanna Coons, Actor: Joely Richardson, Actor: John Burnside, Actor: John Shaw, Actor: Julia Arkos, Actor: Kaaren de Zilva, Actor: Kathleen Duborg, Actor: Kathryn Hahn, Actor: Kirsten Williamson, Actor: Mackenzie Hamilton, Actor: Marc Musso, Actor: Megan McKinnon, Actor: Michael Clarke Duncan, Actor: Nicole Muñoz, Actor: Patrick Gilmore, Actor: Paul Jarrett, Actor: Phillip Brooks, Actor: Rainn Wilson, Actor: Randi Lynne, Actor: Rhiannon Leigh Wryn, Actor: Sam Polin, Actor: Sawyer Nicholson, Actor: Scott E. Miller, Actor: Sophia Wik, Actor: Tamatea Westby, Actor: Timothy Hutton, Actor: Tom Heaton, Director: Robert Shaye, Rated: PG, Year:2007