TeenzTen An action-packed slog

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Frances Chung Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Ezmae Chang This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Lastnamehere My daughters (2 and 4) love the book, so I was excited when I saw a movie version on Netflix a few days ago. They have watched it over and over and over. So I'd say this short is a huge success with the target audience. I get a kick out of the lower reviews marking it down for unsophisticated humor. But aside from my little ones loving it, I appreciate the sweetness of the story, which is essentially about belonging. Not fitting in, but belonging - two very different concepts. I also appreciate the simple and beautiful communication between the characters as there is very little dialogue.

Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) "Room on the Broom" is an Academy-Award nominated, 25-minute short film by Jan Lachauer, Max Lang and Julia Donaldson. Two of these already worked on "The Gruffalo" together and that is why you will find a couple similarities apart from the rhymes. For example the scene near the end with the "monster" chasing away the dragon is very similar in tone and style to the ending from "The Gruffalo". The animation is very clean and precise and the group of animals reminded me already of the Bremen Town Musicians before they stood atop on each other near the end. The main character is a witch with all the usual traits, the broom, the long nose, the hat, the mole and the not so attractive appearance. However, in contrast to Disney's usual approach it is a good witch, actually one of the most likable animated characters in recent years.I liked that this short film also included animals who would not join the witch on the broom, so you could wonder a bit what the next one is gonna be. The funny highlight here is the cat and its constant skepticism when the witch invites the next guest to the broom. The dramatic highlight near the end is nicely done. The eyes of the dragon near the witch really give off a scary vibe and the chase scene is pretty dramatic too. In order to make it not too scary, they included some funny, quite bizarre rhyming for the dragon including the witch being his meal with or without chips. That was funny in an odd way. The ending not much later is decent. I liked the design of the new broom and how everybody has their space, but I did not like that it was handled a bit more emotional than it actually was with the music and everything.All in all, this is, despite the Oscar nomination, really more suitable for children although I cannot deny I had a good time watching it, maybe because my inner child is still alive and kicking.

Hellmant 'ROOM ON THE BROOM': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five) Yet another of this year's Oscar nominees for Best Animated Short Film is this British cartoon that debuted on 'BBC One' at the end of 2012 (and in America the following October, as a Halloween special on 'PBS Kids Sprout'). It's based on the kids' book written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler. The film tells the story of a witch and a cat on an adventure that attracts the attention of multiple other animals (that want to join them on their broom ride). It features the voice talents of Simon Pegg, Gillian Anderson, Rob Brydon, Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, Martin Clunes and David Walliams. It was directed by Jan Lachauer and Max Lang and written by Lang and Donaldson. Lang and Donaldson also collaborated on the Oscar nominated 'THE GRUFFALO' (from 2009). I'd rate this short about the same as it (and it's sequel two years later). It's probably pretty amusing for young children but lacks any substance or clever humor (for adults). I'm also not a big fan of the animation in these movies.Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAefz9rzS5w

Hodoer Sometimes it's hard to go back and watch something through the 'eyes of a child'. If you are over 15 years of age, this animated, short movie may not hold your attention at all and that's fine. Its aiming audience are children and I believe they'll think it's perfect. The story is not complicated - anyone can understand it and the main idea in it is friendship. There are repetitive dialogues with few alterations and everything is rhymed. The main characters are a witch and a cat... At least at the beginning. (: For those of you who don't know, the movie is based on a book. I will end this review by recommending it to all, no matter how big or small and whoosh! I am gone. (: