Hey Arnold! The Movie (2002)

30% of critics liked it
(77 reviews)
37% of users liked it
(13,702 ratings)

Everyone's favorite football-headed city kid graduates from television to the big screen in this animated comedy-adventure based on the Nickelodeon TV series. Arnold (voice of Spencer Klein) and his good friend, Gerald (voice of Jamil Walker Smith), live in a tight-knit neighborhood in the middle of… More Everyone's favorite football-headed city kid graduates from television to the big screen in this animated comedy-adventure based on the Nickelodeon TV series. Arnold (voice of Spencer Klein) and his good friend, Gerald (voice of Jamil Walker Smith), live in a tight-knit neighborhood in the middle of a big city. Like most of their neighbors, Arnold and Gerald love their community, and when they learn that Scheck (voice of Paul Sorvino), a wealthy and powerful developer, plans to buy up their neighborhood, tear down the buildings, and put up a massive shopping mall in its place, they decide something has to be done. While the adults come up with a dodgy scheme to blow up the streets in their neighborhood, Arnold and Gerald hatch a more practical scheme, with the help of Helga (voice of Francesca Marie Smith), who can't decide if she likes Arnold or hates his guts. Arnold and Gerald learn that their neighborhood was designated a historical landmark years ago, but can they prove it before Scheck moves in with his bulldozers? Hey Arnold! The Movie also features the voice talents of Jennifer Jason Leigh, Christopher Lloyd, and Dan Castellaneta. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG, 1 hr. 15 min.
Directed By: Tuck Tucker
Written By: Craig Bartlett, Steve Viksten
Genres: Animation, Kids & Family, Comedy, Special Interest

In Theaters: Jun 28, 2002 Wide
On DVD: Dec 31, 2002
Studio: Paramount Pictures

Critic Reviews

Scott Foundas, Variety
Pic has lots of charm, and parents in attendance won't feel too bored or alienated by its goings-on, while kids will lap it up.
Ted Shen, Chicago Reader
The simplistic drawing is closer to Peanuts than The Lion King, and the dialogue is strangely anachronistic.
Malcolm Ritter, Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It all unfolds just about as a grownup might expect, though at a leisurely pace that makes the movie's 72 minutes seem longer.
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
A good laugh every half-hour or so is not enough for me to recommend this film to anyone who's not a fan of the TV show.
Ty Burr, Boston Globe
Hey Arnold! The Movie is what happens when you blow up small potatoes to 10 times their natural size, and it ain't pretty.
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
The ethical, independent-minded kid has his unhip charms, and so does Hey Arnold! The Movie.
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
Not inspired. What did you expect?
Alan Morrison, Empire Magazine
Arnold has his place on the small screen, but here his attempts to save his neighbourhood from corporate takeover seem overextended.
, Time Out
The coloured pencil tones and quirky-looking characters are likeable, and the plot cuts the sentimentalism with sarky wit and minimum schmaltz.
Kevin N. Laforest, Apollo Guide
If this silly little cartoon can inspire a few kids not to grow up to be greedy bastards, more power to it.
Wilson Morales, BlackFilm.com
Hey Arnold is a film that kids and adults will enjoy.
John R. McEwen, Film Quips Online
...This film really has no business in theatres.
Harry Guerin, RTE Interactive (Dublin, Ireland)
Arnold's jump from little screen to big will leave frowns on more than a few faces.
Peter Bradshaw, Guardian [UK]
Amiable and good-natured stuff for younger kids, I suppose, but nothing to get hugely excited about.
, FilmFour.com
Another solid addition to the Nickelodeon cinema canon.
Urban Cinefile Critics, Urban Cinefile
The charm of Hey Arnold lies in its wacky characters who delight by their off-beat kooky humour in this David and Goliath story about saving the neighbourhood.
Danny Graydon, BBC
Die-hard fans will love it, but, despite being mildly diverting and inoffensive, nothing special leaps off the screen.
Margaret A. McGurk, Cincinnati Enquirer
There is nothing terribly wrong with Hey Arnold!, but neither is there anything special enough to set it apart from what its fans see on TV all the time.
Eric D. Snider, EricDSnider.com
It's an unspectacular, unexciting movie, to be sure. But what's relevant is whether it will entertain kids. Will it? I don't know; I'm not one.
Marc Savlov, Austin Chronicle
Inoffensive and sporadically funny, its chief charm is Arnold's ridiculous noggin, and that's not saying much.

Read all 20 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Phil H

Haha I love Hey Arnold! brilliant cartoon for all ages as you can relate to every character and its actually a really sensible cartoon with lessons to learn and shows kids how to behave, kinda. The series is awesome but the film is just short on coolness for me, its the old story of… More
Haha I love Hey Arnold! brilliant cartoon for all ages as you can relate to every character and its actually a really sensible cartoon with lessons to learn and shows kids how to behave, kinda. The series is awesome but the film is just short on coolness for me, its the old story of an idea working perfectly on a short 25min segment but when you try to enlarge it to a films length it goes all wrong. This isn't too bad but its not quite as good as it could of been, it loses alittle heart somewhere along the way and just doesn't quite grab you as it should. It still looks good though and all characters are present and correct with no dodgy changes made :)
Drew S

Blah.
Bryce I

Like most children cartoon movies (especially Nickelodeon films), the charm of the original series comes no where close, and that is the only difference. It's just as unoriginal, and boring as the rest.
Juan C

a smart, action packed comedy with thrills and fun at the same time! with a crispy script and colorful animation, it's one the best animated films of the year! A+
Sunil J

Hey Arnold was the last good thing that happened to Niickelodeon.