There's always risk involved in remaking a beloved classic, and this remake is no different; it both pleases and falls short. Some will love this version of Lady and the Tramp, especially for the technical advances that have brought the CGI characters to life or for the diverse cast that will allow kids from more backgrounds to feel represented on-screen. And others will find things to complain about, like the phoniness of the unnamed time and place the movie is set in or the generally slow pacing. The remake -- which is an hour and 42 minutes long -- might have benefited from a length closer to the original's 76 minutes. Curiously, the animals come across as more genuine than the live people in this remake. Even the secondary characters, like Lady's neighbor friends (hilariously voiced by Sam Elliott and Scottish actress Ashley Jensen) or Tramp's street friends (especially the commanding Janelle Monáe) are given much fuller personalities than Jim Dear, Darling, or the dog catcher. In this sense, and perhaps rightfully so, the film will appeal more to younger audiences than to adults. Let them have their version; the adults can hang on to the original of their own childhoods. Read the full review at Common Sense Media.

Noelle takes the formula for a feel-good holiday movie and throws in a few twists, including a gender role reversal, some modern humor, foot-tapping tunes, and updated versions of the North Pole. Older audiences may get a chuckle from jokes about delivering presents by drone and Amazon Prime, adjusting algorithms to track kids' online habits to determine their naughtiness, and the appearance of a typically droll Shirley MacLaine. There are also a couple of nods to non-Christians, potentially as outreach to wider audiences, including a line Noelle delivers that "Christmas is like sushi: The Japanese invented it but now everybody loves it." That may be true, but as with sushi lovers, film fans notice the imperfections, and Noelle stumbles in a few places. An intro of the Kringle family when the siblings were kids feels unnecessary and contributes to a slightly long runtime. CGI creatures -- reindeer and puffins -- are somewhat out of place in this ultimately human tale. A running reference to Noelle as a "princess" threatens to subvert the feminist storyline. Comparisons to Elf (another North Pole creature-meets-world tale) will be inevitable, and while Kendrick's Noelle is sweeter, she's not quite as funny. Still, Christmas is about setting aside petty complaints and -- as Noelle and Polly remind us in final scenes -- finding hope, inspiration, and joy in the holiday spirit. Read the full review at Common Sense Media.

Even if you aren't hooked by the imagined dystopian future or unhurried pace, you may still appreciate the tale's central psychological paradox and potential for social commentary. We worry about robots taking over our jobs, but how much more unsettling is the idea of robots taking over our most precious family roles, including that of mother? I Am Mother's script, which was generating buzz long before it got produced and premiered at the Sundance Film Festival (where Netflix picked it up), transforms the most loving and trusted figure in a young girl's life into a robot. With a human enough figure and an affectionate female voice, "Mother" is programmed to read and respond perfectly to the emotional states of "Daughter." But, alas, the robot cannot feel human emotion and is ultimately designed to serve a higher purpose than nurturing just one individual. The way Mother has raised and educated Daughter to be technically competent and ethically principled might offer a view into what is considered ideal human knowledge and behavior. Compare her to the angry, defensive Woman, who stumbles into the facility and cracks Daughter's sheltered world. Enterprising viewers may also find broader messages in the story about what it means to be a good parent and raise a good child, the importance of family and belonging, and the intrinsic value of individual lives, or look for implications on social issues like homeschooling and embryo cryopreservation. In I Am Mother, humans designed the robots that are now designing the humans, and it's suggested that the failure of the human species was inevitable. All of these juicy propositions in the script are served by the film's futuristic yet claustrophobic set design, the director's focus on characters' expressions and reactions, and the actors' convincing performances. Read the full review at Common Sense Media.