Child's play: 2012 a promising year for kids' movies

Merida is the star of Pixar's new 3-D movie, "Brave," coming June 22.

By Gael Fashingbauer Cooper

Sick of watching that "Smurfs" DVD over and over again? Fear not, parents -- 2012 offers a toybox full of animated and other movies for kids.

3-D is a controversial topic. The extra dimension jacks up ticket prices, some kids refuse to wear the special glasses, and often it doesn't do much for a film but make it murkier. But we have high hopes for the 3-D conversion of two beloved movies this year. "Beauty and the Beast 3-D" comes out Jan. 13 and "Finding Nemo 3-D" swims into theaters Sept. 14. (3-D versions of "Monsters Inc" and "The Little Mermaid" are coming in 2013.)

Especially worth noting: If your little princess loved "Tangled," be sure not to show up late for "Beauty and the Beast 3-D," as it will be preceded with a short about Rapunzel and Flynn's wedding.

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It's always easy to get excited about the next Pixar release. "Brave" is coming to theaters June 22 in 3-D. Heroine Merida is a flame-haired Scottish princess and a skilled archer. When she accidentally brings chaos to her kingdom, she must set things right. We'd watch the film version of a software licensing agreement if Pixar made it.

If you are one of the many who adored Mary Norton's book series about "The Borrowers," you'll want to make your calendars for Feb. 17. That's when the film based on the first "Borrowers" book, "The Secret World of Arrietty," hits U.S. theaters. Teenage Arrietty and her parents live under the floorboards of a house belonging to "human beans," and "borrow" items from the household to get by. The film was made in Japan, but it's in English, and those who loved "Ponyo" or "Spirited Away" will be happy to know that animator Hiromasa Yonebayashi of those films directs this one.

The Dr. Seuss lines, "I am the Lorax, I speak for the trees" are familiar to many from the book. Now "The Lorax" is coming to theaters, in 3-D. It will be released on March 2, which would have been Dr. Seuss' 108th birthday. Danny DeVito voices the grumpy Lorax, with Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, and Ed Helms voicing the other major roles.

Plenty of today's parents grew up in the 1980s, and they'll find some memories in the nostalgic video-game theme of "Wreck-It Ralph." Director Rich Moore worked on "The Simpsons" and "Futurama," so he's right in his element here. John C. Reilly voices an arcade-game bad guy who decides he wants to be good, and the game looks a lot like Donkey Kong crossed with the original Mario Brothers. It leaps into theaters Nov. 2, and we bet a video-game version will follow.

If "Pirates of the Caribbean" is too grown-up for your pirate-loving kids, you might want to walk the plank to your local theater for "The Pirates! Band of Misfits," hitting theaters March 30. From the producers of "Chicken Run" and "Wallace & Gromit," this 3-D movie features the voices of Hugh Grant, Salma Hayek and Jeremy Piven, and throws in some random history too. Queen Victoria and Charles Darwin cross the pirates' paths.

If you listen to kids' radio, you can't avoid hearing Sacha Baron Cohen's "I Like to Move It" from 2005's "Madagascar" (will.i.am performs it in "Madagascar 2"). We imagine there will be a new version of the song for "Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted," the first 3-D film in the series. If you want to see it, you'll have to move it, move it into theaters June 8.

The "Madagascar" series is only up to its third film, but "Ice Age" makes four this summer with the release of "Ice Age: Continental Drift." Yes, it's in 3-D too, of course, July 13 is the release date.

First, there was the original "Frankenweenie," a black and white short film that Tim Burton made for Disney in 1984. The film has an infamous history -- Burton was fired by Disney after making it (they apparently thought it was too scary and a waste of money) and it wasn't released as planned. It went to home video in 1994 after Burton made a name for himself. Now Burton and Disney are friends again, apparently, and he's turning the short film into a full-length movie. It focuses on a kid version of Victor Frankenstein, who sets out to revive his dog after the pooch is hit by a car. It'll reach theaters Oct. 5, a spooky Halloween treat.

What movies for kids (or kids at heart) are you looking forward to in 2012? Tell us on Facebook.