Bethel University students can make the most of a Friday off by catching up on homework, or they could dig into some classic animated movies to inspire themselves to do that homework during the weekend. Inquiry class sophomores suggest these three:

Cuteness Overload

Despicable Me (2010) can simply be described as the opposite of despicable.  It tells the story of an evil villain who grows to love three young orphaned girls, the cutest group of girls anyone will ever see on a movie screen.

The youngest girl, Agnus, will literally tug at the heartstrings when she does something cute, such as when she wins a stuffed unicorn and screams, “It’s so fluffy I’m gonna die!” It kind of makes you wanna die, of cuteness overload.

Basically, if you don’t plan on watching this movie, then just consider yourself a hater of cute adopted orphaned girls that turn a hard evil villain into a soft teddy bear.

–Bryce Kunkle

What’s all the buzz about?

Bee Movie (2007) is the perfect flick for all who want to rethink life, maybe as a bee. Barry B. Benson houses the voice of Jerry Seinfeld and bends the rules as he searches for a fulfilling life beyond honey. The hive buzzes with busy bees and their melancholy yet entertaining jobs of harvesting honey.

The film shows what few bees have had the privilege to see: life outside the hive. It explores cultural differences with ironic humor that even children can understand, like when human love interest Vanessa asks Barry, “Why don’t you just fly everywhere? Isn’t that faster?” He responds: “Flying is exhausting. Why don’t you humans just run everywhere, isn’t that faster?”

Any kids or adults who like to expand their knowledge and appreciate a laugh should tune into Netflix and watch The Bee Movie. An instant classic for all humor and honey lovers.

–Grace Perrenoud

Moana tests cultural stereotypes

The movie Mulan (1998) fights gender stereotyping and shows being different from cultural norms is OK, all through main character Mulan’s perspective and the battles she faces.

The Chinese Army was designed only for men  and if she was caught fighting as a woman she would be killed. Mulan was not noticed to be a female until she was injured after wiping out the Hun army on the snow mountain. After Mulan’s secret came out, the whole Chinese military and Li Shang treated her differently. They wanted to charge her with ultimate treason/dishonor and kill her. The only way she survived was by saving General Li Shang’s life from being trapped in an avalanche of snow. Mulan stepped out of her comfort zone to provide honor to her family by taking the place of her elderly father.

I would recommend this film to anyone who enjoys watching adventure and cultural heritage. Mulan teaches us that regardless of stereotypes, we can accomplish anything. As a bonus, a live-action Mulan comes out in 2020, starring Jet Li and Yifei Liu.

–Shavonnah Roberts