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Disney's Recess: School's Out review

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By Total Film published 27 July 2001

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Pokemon, Rugrats, Doug'€™s 1st Movie: it seems there'€™s no end to the TV cartoons taking a stab at celluloid stardom. The latest small-screen creations to try the transfer are the heroes of Disney'€™s Recess, a playful posse of pre-teen pranksters who spend their break periods at Third Street School making life hell for grumpy Principal Prickly (Dabney Coleman) and the fearsome Ms Finster (April Winchell).

The only thing better than recess is the summer vacation, but then TJ Detweiler (Andy Lawrence) discovers his friends are all heading off to camp. Luckily for TJ, teacher-turned-criminal mastermind Dr Benedict (James Woods) is using his empty school as the base for a secret plot to eliminate summer holidays forever.

Forget the functional animation and there'€™s much to enjoy here, not least a Yellow Submarine-style flashback and lively vocal performances from Woods, Robert Goulet and Melissa Joan Hart.

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Total Film

The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine. 

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