The Wild Thornberrys Movie

The Wild Thornberrys Movie Review

Eliza Thornberry and her simian pal Darwin take on an African safari, evil poachers, and a London boarding school in Eliza's big-screen debut. That's quite a tall order for a 12-year-old--and a movie soundtrack--to handle, but like the dynamic tween, The Wild Thornberrys Movie delivers. Youssou N' Dour and Sting, Angelique Kidjo with Dave Matthews and Las Hijas del Sol contribute world music celebrations flavored with exotic percussion and soulful vocals, while Baha Men skid around on the manic pace of reggae-pop with "Accident." Paul Simon's jungle-folk-tinged "Father and Daughter" is more traditional rock, as is the Pretenders' cheerfully uptempo cover of Intaferon's 1980s obscurity "Get Out of London," and Peter Gabriel's "Animal Nation," which harkens to the throbbing guitar electronics found on his 1992 album Us. Even the teen pop-centric tracks are high quality--Nick Carter's sunny keyboard nugget and Sita's irresistible "Happy." Appealing to kids and adults both, without pandering to either crowd, The Wild Thornberrys Movie is an enjoyable delight through and through. --Annie Zaleski