Rio, a movie from the makers of the beloved Ice Age movies, hit the theatres this past weekend with a colorful, music-filled bang.

Set in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, takes the audience on a journey of self-discovery and empowerment. This animated film is centered around a domesticated bird, Blu (Jesse Eisenberg) who is the last of the Macaw species, or so his owner, Linda (Leslie Mann) and Blu believe.

After being taken from the wild, Blu ends up in the small town of Moose Lake, Minn., when the young girl, Linda, takes him in. Fifteen years later a goofy scientist, Dr. Barbosa (Gracinha Leporace) shows up on Linda’s doorstep with news that there is in fact another Macaw who lives in Rio de Janeiro; a feisty female named Jewel (Anne Hathaway).

After a little bit of convincing on Dr. Barbosa’s part, Linda and Blu agree to make the trip to Brazil to try to save Blu’s species. Not long after Blu’s arrival, Jewel and Blu are kidnapped by smugglers. To make matters worse, the two birds are chained together and Blu has never learned to fly.

After escaping the smugglers, Blu and Jewel must find a way to free themselves from the chains and find Linda. The two come across a friendly toucan, Rafael (George Lopez) who offers his assistance. On their trip to meet up with Rafael’s friend Luiz (Tracy Morgan) who has the power to rid themselves of their chains, Blu meets new friends while trying to escape the grasps of the smuggler’s evil bird, Nigel (Jemaine Clement).

Blu attempts to face his many fears and learn to fly, while struggling to make his way back to his oldest friend Linda.

With an all-star cast and so many talented artists on board this project, it is no surprise that this film was so entertaining to watch. With so many vibrant colors, it was definitely aesthetically pleasing to watch.

The movie is easy to follow. Getting up to grab some more popcorn or going to the bathroom was not going to leave you lost. However, that is to be expected of a G-rated, animated family film.

While it was not necessary to watch the entire film to understand what was happening with the plot, the comedy and sheer entertainment of the film was enough to keep me in my seat.

This movie is not only for the young, but for the old and everyone in between. With great life lessons and no shortage of humor this is a family film is a must see.