Thomas & Friends - Misty Island Rescue [DVD]

The previous CGI Thomas film is probably my 4 year old son's favourite, so I was expecting him to enjoy this new one too.In fact both my son and my six year old daughter love it. There's a bit more excitement and action in this new film than in the previous one which is no bad thing.The little book of the story included in the case is a nice bonus as they both demand to hear it before going to bed after having seen the film.Otherwise the bonuses on the disc itself (the film weighs in at around an hour) are pretty skimpy:- a sing-along version of the main song (which gets my kids dancing like lunatics)- a 3 minute documentary similar to that on the first film (which the kids enjoy)- a 'game' which literally last about 30 seconds and is always the same. The pay-off is a bonus sing-along song which doesn't feature in the film (which gets my kids doing another lunatic dance routine)In any case, if your kids like the CGI Thomas TV series and the first film they will love this one. It's certainly the new 'best film ever' in my household.

No problems

Bought this for Thomas mad 4 year old son for xmas, he was delighted with it and we've had it on at least twice a day since xmas, he was pleased as it has his new favourite engines in Bash Dash and Ferdinand. Also good as Misty Island has been mentioned on the Thomas episodes on telly this explains where Misty Island is and why the engines are there(they are a bit naughty).Also good as the DVD includes a book of the story to read at bedtime. He Also got a Misty Island playset so has been acting out the scenes from the film!

Opening with a decidedly ropey Pirates of the Caribbean-style score, Misty Island Rescue is pretty much as self-explanatory and easy to follow as it sounds. Narration is provided by Michael Angelis (sounds more like Bernard Hill than Ringo Starr) and the CGI is to a decent standard. 60 minutes may sound short for a film but I think anything longer and children might lose interest in what is quite a slender storyline.The opening of the story concerns the building of a new Search & Rescue Centre on Sodor. Following the loss of their supply of Jobi wood due to rash action on behalf of Diesel, Thomas is rewarded with a trip to the mainland to see the Search & Rescue Centre there. Needless to say, things don't go well and Thomas finds himself adrift and eventually stranded on the mysterious Misty Island. Soon, the Fat Controller (I'm surprised in these PC times that they are still allowed to call him that) and the rest of the Sodor engines realise that Thomas is missing and they set about rescuing him but not before Thomas has made some new friends and discovered a new supply of Jobi wood.One of the main themes of Misty Island Rescue is decision-making, both good and bad. Thomas is rewarded early on for his good decision-making when he saves Diesel and this then becomes his mantra throughout the remainder of the story. Despite ending up stranded as a result of a bad decision, Thomas soon recovers his confidence when he meets up with the "logging loco's" Dash, Bash and Ferdinand who, seemingly, were banished for being too playful. This also reinforces the secondary theme of Misty Island Rescue: usefulness. Diesel is teased by Thomas for not being as useful as a "steamy", Thomas is rewarded for being "The Most Really Useful" engine and so on. Also, the metaphor of the mist is used well to emphasise that a clear way forward is not always visible and a decision must be made on the evidence available. It seems some low-level moralising is demonstrated in the constant repetition of Thomas' mantra too; Thomas has made a good decision once so therefore, in his view, all his decisions subsequently are equally as good. Thomas soon learns that being wrong is often the best way to learn a lesson or help rid oneself of pre-conceptions. Being wrong is a complex lesson to explain and I think the story manages well enough without resorting to extremes.As for the narration and dialogue, I found the repetitive and alliterative approach very pleasing. As a long-time fan of Dr Seuss, I know that children learn well by rhyme and association. Bearing in mind that this film is probably aimed at pre-schoolers, I think it can be forgiven for being a little on the simplistic side; the story is easy to follow, the narration is relaxed and friendly and the character's voices are easily identifiable. One thing that slightly bewildered me was the choice to give Dash and Bash voices that were ever-so-slightly similar to Ant and Dec. Whether this was by design or accident I don't know but it just seemed like an odd choice when regional accents hardly feature (except for the narration, of course).All in all, a decent children's film and, where as I could get into another entirely different subject (namely the film being one huge advertisement for the Fisher Price Take `N' Play range), I hardly feel it's worth raging against too severely. Just don't go into it expecting Inception with talking trains or you'll be sorely disappointed.

Once again a superb film after 'Hero of the Rails.' Any film that encourages my 4 year old to want to read the book is good. Makes a pleasant change - no play fighting or guns. Pure fun and make believe. Don't know why anyone would complain! My son's vocabulary is far beyond his four years thanks to Thomas. He undestands the words 'alliance' 'united' and disgruntled! It has helped listen and retell a story in detail. Education cleverly disguised! Also good to combine with Pre school Thomas educational books.

This movie was such fun; so many grand LESSONS...ALTHOUGH WE WERE SO surprised that Sir Top N Hat was referred as the fat conductor; fat being a bad word and we choose not to use it, within our minds.We also chose against allowing this untoward verbal ness to derail us from our good tidings. Thomas and his friends are a good crew with lots of valuable insight. In todays world it suits us to simply acknowledge another chosen mannerism and not own it or be responsible nor condone..

I ordered the misty island rescue dvd as seen in the image and as description says but inside the box was the blue mountain mystery... strange

What can I say about this dvd. My son who is two and a half lives for 'Thomas the Tank Engine' and when we purchased this dvd he watched it about 7 times in a row. Great story line with loads of new characters. He is interactive with the dvd calling out all their new names when they get into scrapes and all in all loves this dvd. Definetly one to buy for a son who loves 'Thomas'.