My friend and I had said before "Hey Arnold!" came out that it'll probably be a pretty bad movie, because of the excessive advertising Nickelodeon put together before the release. With that in mind, I was pleasantly surprised at how wonderfully entertaining it was. Now, I've been a relatively big fan of the t.v. show since it first came out, so this is a biased review, but for anyone who's a fan of the show (and as one critic pointed out, who else would want to see this?), this is well worth watching. There's a few good pieces of comedy (mostly from Grandma and Grandpa), and the parents (who'll probably be a least a little amused by it) will notice a whole bunch of cliches from other movies, which is the style in the which many of the episodes are based upon. So the bottom line of this movie is: if you're a fan of the show, this is well worth seeing. If you're not a fan (I then don't know why you're even reading this), you might be entertained, but it's up to you.

Hey Arnold! The Movie is harmless, cute, and eventful. Never being a huge fan of the show, but always liking it, I was pleased with the movie adaptation, but found it hard to accept. It's a longer episode of the show, but doesn't do anything daring or very memorable. The Simpsons got sealed into a dome, South Park started a war with Canadians, and even Spongebob set foot on land. Arnold didn't accomplish something as monumental as all the others.

For what it is, it's nothing but an extended episode of the show. Arnold and his pals Gerald and Helga try to stop Mr. Sheck, a giant businessman, from taking over their small neighborhood and replacing it with a huge, revolutionary mall. This means destroying Arnold's block and possibly losing all of his friends in the mix.

Its entertainment stems from its simplicity and the character's desire to achieve their goal. They try and buy secret agent gear to sneak into Sheck's office. Arguably my favorite scene in the movie is the broken hearted bus driver complaining about his failed relationship. The scene mirrors the film Speed, and is pretty much one of the best homages to the film I've seen.

But like I said, if you're going to bring it to the big screen, do something bigger than the series. This could've been an hour long special on Nickelodeon. A seventy-five minute film based on a Nickelodeon's series doesn't say much other than "we thought we'd make you see it a different way." Arnold is likable to a degree, but he's just another perky kid who wants a seemingly impossible thing done. Every character we've seen before. The one character I absolutely loved in the show was Oskar Kokoshka, a con artist who lived in Arnold's apartment. He has a brief appearance in the film, and does his signature voice I've loved since my childhood. Sadly, his presence is far too short. He he he.

Hey Arnold! The Movie isn't bad, but not consistently funny. The voice acting is good, the characters are still charming, the only thing that fails is its ability to stay inside the lines and not venture out to explore a bigger range in storytelling. At this point in time, the future of the series looked grim, and it seems the movie just serves as a piece of the show's history.

Voiced by: Spencer Klein, Francesca Smith, Jamil Walker Smith, Dan Castellaneta, Tress MacNeille, Paul Sorvino, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Christopher Lloyd. Directed by: Tuck Tucker.

Hey Arnold! The Movie is one of those movies where there is a easy to get into plot but there are too many things in the plot that can never be done in real life. Kids can't be spies, kids can't drive a bus,and such. Now this film spoofs too many things as well. The whole idea with the pickle juice on Big Bob, ripping his shirt, and he is all green except for his brown slacks, horrible rip off of the hulk! They spoof Scooby-Doo's best line " I would of gotten away with it if it wasn't for that football headed kid, his friend with the long hair, and the girl with the one eyebrow!" But hey, this is a Nickelodean movie so it's supposed to be for kids. If you like Hey Arnold the t.v show you'll like this. This t.v itself movie gets the big 6, good for kids and some adults but could never happen. Fun for the whole family!