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REVIEW: ONWARD is Pixar’s Step Backwards

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It may be bold of me to say, but in my opinion, Pixar has somewhat of a rough track record. I think they succeed pretty well at making entertaining films. But only a few have been notably exceptional. Onward is in an interesting position to review. I’m still not entirely sure whether I liked all of it or not.

THE QUEST BEGINS..

I had absolutely no expectations of this movie before watching it. I enjoy Tom Holland and Chris Pratt on their own well enough, but I hadn’t really even been following much of the promotion for the movie. Some of the art looked fun, and I really enjoyed the music choice for the trailer – which is honestly enough to sell me most of the time (and why I plan on seeing F9).

I knew I would inevitably see Onward anyway because the trailer starts with 5 letters and a little lamp jumping on screen. That’s what begins the issues with Onward for me, conceptually.

©2019 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

The past couple Pixar releases have felt off, personally. I still haven’t seen the Good Dinosaur, I missed Finding Dory until 3 years later, Cars 3 was bad, and Toy Story 4 just felt like a tech demo for their animation interns to work on that they accidentally released. 

And even though I did actually like Finding Dory, Incredibles 2, and Coco, they did still feel a bit lazy. Pixar definitely has a particular format they like to stick to – I won’t blame them, it seems to work commercially every time. But Onward is the 22nd film in their collection of releases, and honestly feels exactly the same as 98% of them. 

THE CURSE

© 2019 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

Onward seems like it missed the mark on quite a few subjects to me. The art style feels weird, to be blunt. In a world with actual magic and fantasy characters, I don’t see the need to give every character an odd humanoid face, even if they have only one absurdly large eye. 

It all looks a little odd, and I wish they would’ve done something a bit more creative. The main character of the film even looks like a recolor of Linguini from Ratatouille, which is something that I would think they could avoid.

But my disagreements with the world don’t stop there. Something about the atmosphere just feels kind of cheesy and almost lame. For all intents and purposes, the setting of the film is really doing the same job as that of Shrek, which somehow seems to pull it off more convincingly. That’s a sentence I didn’t think I’d be able to write.

© 2019 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

A LITTLE MAGIC

What I did manage to like from the atmosphere of Onward is honestly just because I enjoy the fantasy genre as a whole. It could’ve been anything on screen but if they were doing magic with wizards and pulling out D&D terms I would be on board. There is certainly a bit of charm that comes along with the Pixar touch, but I don’t think this is something that had to try incredibly hard to pull off.

And that’s my biggest issue of all – it felt pretty easy. The art style was incredibly similar to things they’ve done before (even to things the Director had made before with the studio). The score was safe and almost nonexistent in some parts. 

The things the “Inclusion Team” allegedly insured were in the movie were really bare minimum and easily modifiable for foreign markets that still don’t accept characters being openly gay. All of this making it all feel very unnecessary and almost as if they were forced to include them but were graded on completion, not accuracy.

ANCIENT HISTORY

So what’s the issue, really? Well, co-star of our Up the Waterfall podcast, Scott Otis, pointed out to me that Pixar has had a couple years in the past with two releases: The Good Dinosaur and Inside Out, Cars 3 and Coco, and now Onward and Soul. So statistically, maybe I’m just not a fan of Onward so that I can be a fan of Soul. 

But in all seriousness, I didn’t hate everything about Onward. There were some funny moments, and I think even Pixar’s worst is always an entertaining time. There are definitely people who will like this. But for me, it just feels like another tired attempt for Pixar to play it safe and stick to their patented Pixar-style punch-you-in-the-gut emotional coming of age stories based on half-baked “What if?” ideas.

I would love to see them do something different, and take a massive risk. With the massive budget and solid teamwork they now have, I’m surprised they’ve stuck to this format for so long. The Pixar Sparkshorts on Disney+ are an interesting first attempt at this, but none have really stood out to me on their own, and they definitely feel like something that a small team makes every month or so on their lunch breaks.

ONWARD REVIEW

© 2019 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

Pixar used to be known for pushing the medium of animation forward with compelling new takes. Their films were a fun break from the typical cliches of family animation. Now they’re essentially pushing out Disney’s B-stories that don’t get the bigger spotlight. And sequels.

So is Pixar truly taking a step backward with Onward? It depends on how much you’re able to relate to all of their stories – for me, not a whole lot. Or how much an emotional ending is enough to convince you you liked the movie on your way out of the theater. Again, not much here for me. Maybe it just depends on how much you’re able to enjoy a kids’ movie without thinking about it too much. And clearly I can’t. 

But that’s just me.

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REVIEW: Look At This PHOTOGRAPH

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 There’s a new great romantic classic to watch on Valentine’s Day this year. The Photograph is one I’m excited to review.

Regardless of me being graciously invited to this screening, I would have no doubt made plans to see this film on my own. The Photograph features Issa Rae and LaKeith Stanfield, two stars whose work has never been shy of amazing in my eyes. That fact alone was enough to sell me on it.

Luckily there was so much more in store.

A NEW ROMANCE

If you’ve seen any trailers for The Photograph, then you’ll know the basic plot – a reporter profiling a man in Louisiana finds there’s more to the story than he initially thought. 

I’ll cut right to the chase, The Photograph isn’t anything incredibly groundbreaking. But it doesn’t necessarily need to be. For someone who’s always enjoyed this type of movie, The Photograph really worked. It’s the kind of movie that helps you remember what’s important, what’s worth committing to, and what’s worth sometimes leaving behind.

The romance genre is ready for another powerhouse like The Notebook, and I think The Photograph could fill that position. If nothing else, I at least appreciate the growing list of romantic films named after everyday items.

Of course it wouldn’t be a review by me if I didn’t mention the soundtrack, and this one was nice. There’s not very much in the way of a score (though what was there I did enjoy), but the actual songs used throughout really add to the overall mood. It’s something to get you in the mood that you can just vibe to, and felt very natural.

A GRAND PERFORMANCE

As I hinted at before, I’ll see literally anything with LaKeith Stanfield. And I’m a big Issa Rae fan too. Their performances in this were top notch.

The connection they had was genuine, and you felt as if they had actually been through this, and were experiencing this in real time. I honestly would not have been surprised if I had walked out of the theater, opened twitter, and saw they were actually dating. They felt that real.

And they weren’t the only ones! Rob Morgan and Chanté Adams have great chemistry too. Their characters add a surprising amount of depth that I didn’t anticipate, but certainly appreciated.

To top it off, when the movie was funny, it was funny. The whole cast felt like they had experience in comedic roles for the stage – that is to say, the pacing of the comedic moments felt really great, which is something that usually I can’t say for mainstream comedy.

THE PHOTOGRAPH

Overall, expect to laugh, expect to cry, and expect to enjoy it. There are some movies I see where I just get to enjoy them, and writing a review for The Photograph was one of those times. January is always a fun time at the theaters because it’s right after the heavy awards season, and movies can just be movies for fun. And this one was certainly fun.

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REVIEW: Cats Was a Very Confusing Time

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I feel like there are a few things I should preface before this review. I am into theater, and really like musicals (I even liked the Tom Hooper version of Les Miserables), so I had already obviously been aware of Cats 2019. When the trailer came out, I think people reacted poorly because the characters look like people – not cats – but that’s what the original is, so it didn’t bother me at all. 

But this is about where my knowledge ends. Other than the ‘Memory’ song, and the general idea that there wasn’t really much of a plot in the stage show, I had no prior impressions.

That being said, as the days counted down to my viewing of this movie, I found myself getting more and more excited about the prospect of seeing it. Let me be clear, in the four days before this movie, I watched all 10 previous Star Wars movies, and then attended a showing of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and somehow was *still* more blindly excited for Cats. I was prepared for it to be a trainwreck that was funny in how bad it was, and mostly laughable because of the absurdity of it all. Surprisingly this was not the case.

Cats 2019 lives in a weird place in my head, because unlike all other things I’ve properly reviewed, I don’t necessarily ‘like it’ or ‘not like it’. There are a few movies like this for me – when you see 60+ new releases in the year, it happens. But I didn’t think Cats would be one of them.

Jellicle Cats

There are certainly a few things that really bothered me, but there were more than a few things that I did really enjoy. When this movie works, it really works. I think Tom Hooper did an excellent job in transferring this adaptation to the screen, and more so, Andy Blankenbuehler did an incredible job in modernizing the performances – but I’ll elaborate on that later.

So, let me begin with the few things that bothered me. One of the more annoying ones is hard to describe. I’m inclined to say ‘the cast,’ but I don’t know that having anyone different could’ve fixed the issue. 

If you’ve seen any of the trailers you’ll be very aware of the star-power of this movie. Dame Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Idris Elba, James Corden, the list goes on. Most of these celebrities play really very minor roles in the movie, and are more used to get people to come see it – as in, “Come see Cats starring Rebel Wilson” rather than, “Come see Cats, with the strange singing CGI animals.” But even with these minor roles, characters like Rebel Wilson-cat and James Corden-cat still manage to feel annoying and unnecessary. None of their one-liner “funny” banter occurred in any of the songs, and as a result felt like more of an obligation from the producers than an actual moment from the director.

The single thing that bothered me the most, though, was the scale. That is, the sizing of objects in relation to the cats, or even in relation to other objects. It’s one thing if a stage production of Cats the Musical has props that aren’t all directly proportionate to the cats themselves or the set around them, but when the $95M budget film version does it, it comes off as absurd. 

It sounds like a minor gripe, but it really was very noticeable in some parts of the movie. It’s very hard to describe in text alone, but even if you’re not looking for it, I think you’ll definitely see it when you watch the movie. It’s even visible in some shots of the trailer – look at the surrounding objects and scenery during the Rebel Wilson shots.

Musical Cats

The last thing I wasn’t the biggest fan of, was the new original song. For the soundtrack of this version, they actually stayed mostly true to the 80s-synth-style backing tracks of the original, which I think made it a lot more fun and exciting. It certainly worked with the visual look they were trying to go for. But, as is the case with movie musicals, they added a new song that was not in the original. This track, ‘Beautiful Ghosts,’ was co-written by Taylor Swift and original composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, and it’s very easy to tell who wrote which parts. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a very big Taylor Swift fan, but when this very stylized neon-dreamscape musical experience turns into a Taylor Swift music video halfway through, it feels very out of place. The same could be said about Swift’s take on the ‘Macavity’ track from the original. I like her songs, but she doesn’t have a very theatrical voice, and as a result, that otherwise totally fine scene feels like Taylor Swift running around in a cat outfit.

Conversely, as I started to say, I really enjoyed nearly all of the rest of the songs. Jason Derulo and Jennifer Hudson are the major players here, and they really make it worth their while. James Corden obviously entertains. But this starts to touch on another issue I had, the lack of spotlight for the rest of its cast. 

Theatrical Cats

The ‘main character’ of the movie is played by Francesca Hayward, a principal ballerina at the Royal Ballet, but she isn’t shown very often. I’m okay with this because she’s actually the most uninteresting of all of the cats – her character isn’t in the original, she just plays the role of the audience, to whom many of the songs are directly sung in the original. But I think the best performances come from Robbie Fairchild and Laurie Davidson. They have gotten absolutely zero public press, but are far and away the most entertaining members of the cast.

Visually this movie is a treat, if you can look past the scaling issue. With Andy Blankenbuehler – of Hamilton and In the Heights fame – it’s no surprise the choreography was amazing. Even the simple addition of tail-choreography (something not possible in the stage version), works so well. I noticed too that the director was very successful in making the audience aware of the position of each independent cat at all times, a sure challenge with such a large ensemble that’s always on screen. This made it feel like a stage production that was just filmed, rather than a movie version of a musical.

Fantastical Cats

I thought the experience, as a whole, was fun. It has its lows, which every production does, but it never stopped being entertaining. That’s what makes it so conflicting to rank amongst other movies this year. Was it bad? Aspects, yes. I didn’t even touch on the objectively off-putting CGI, but that’s because during some parts of the movie it’s not even noticeable because of how fun the numbers are. But it wasn’t terrible by any means.

I think if you don’t like musicals, you won’t like Cats, because the barrier to entry is pretty unforgiving, even for the stage version. But if you do, you’re likely already able to look past all of its shortcomings to appreciate the parts you will like even more. 

Maybe the real cat was the friends we made along the way.

 

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REVIEW: The Rise of Skywalker

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Star Wars the Rise of Skywalker poster

To prepare for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, I watched all 10 previous Star Wars films – yes, including Solo and Rogue One, in the span of 4 days. 20+ hours of content, all leading up to this. And yes, it was worth it.

Before I get too far, I’ve ALREADY seen some spoilers floating around online, so I’d like to be clear that I will not be spoiling anything in this review. But if you’d like to be extra cautious and not read anything, just know that I liked it. 

..Spoiler.

A Fitting End to the Greatest Story of Our Generation

Since The Force Awakens was released, the sequel trilogy has been my favorite of the three. Something about it has felt so much more full of life and fully realized than either the original nor the prequels ever did. Doing this full marathon ahead of time only strengthened that belief for me.

A lot of people like to find issue with 2017’s The Last Jedi, but I personally loved it. I do recognize some things I think Rian Johnson attempted that didn’t work out as well as others, but I don’t think that those mistakes were to the detriment of the story as a whole.

Rise of Skywalker
Finn (John Boyega), Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and Rey (Daisy Ridley) in STAR WARS: EPISODE IX.

The Rise of Skywalker, to me, was a fitting end to this trilogy. I think they identified some of those things that didn’t work out so well, and paid them off tenfold.

I think it’s also just a good movie. Star Wars to me has always been successful at being a well made film on top of an interesting story and exciting action. The music, the visual atmosphere, the direction, are all excellently done. Also, it was funny. Like, really funny. When watching this full marathon of movies, C3-PO is one of the only constant characters through the full length of the story, but I never thought he was particularly notable. In this movie, not only is he a major player, he’s very funny!

I have seen a very large amount of new 2019 releases this year, so I don’t think this was a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but I do believe that it was the best Star Wars has been executed on the screen, and I’m willing to defend that position (though most of that defense contains spoilers).

Succession of Skywalker

Rise of Skywalker
Scene from STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER

The Rise of Skywalker is a movie with a lot happening. Despite that, it never felt rushed, and it never felt like there was more than the director could handle.

One of my gripes with Last Jedi was that for the majority of the runtime, it juggles three story arcs of varying importance, and only one of them was really very exciting. Constantly switching between these unrelated events did make it feel very clunky at times. Skywalker did not have this issue.  

It perfectly handles the amount of characters it has to carry (akin to Kevin Feige’s management of the MCU entourage), and is able to introduce new stakes without it seeming incredibly far fetched or rushed to try and clean them up.

Legacy of Skywalker

I will not be going into incredible detail, because I know that personally I would consider anything about Star Wars a spoiler, otherwise I could go on and on about specific moments that I think were incredibly masterful. It paid tribute to the legacy of the original films and of Carrie Fisher. It definitely was an honest homage to what Star Wars has become.

I know that some people will not like this movie. With a fanbase of this scale, you can’t please everyone, and Disney/Lucasfilm is already on thin ice to most people because of Last Jedi and because of general lack of faith with JJ Abrams. That upsets me, honestly, because I do think that, to genuine Star Wars fans, this is a fantastic finale. It is, in every aspect, a Star Wars movie. For every great moment in the previous movies, this one single film has a version of that and it was amazing.

Rise of Skywalker
Joonas Suotamo is Chewbacca, Oscar Isaac is Poe Dameron, Daisy Ridley is Rey and John Boyega is Finn in STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER

A vocal group of Star Wars fans believe that the story should’ve ended with Return of the Jedi, and that everything since has been a mistake, and will never be as good as the originals. Obviously this is an incredibly narrow minded view, but I think it’s especially frustrating, because the amount of care and respect that has gone into the sequel trilogy is truly immeasurable. Skywalker is the culmination of those efforts.

I think the best recommendation that I can make is that if you go into the theater expecting to not like this movie because it’s not the three movies you saw from the original trilogy back in the day, then you won’t like it. Skywalker doesn’t try to recreate Return of the Jedi. It doesn’t even try to recreate The Empire Strikes Back. Skywalker is its own story and will define its own path.

Thankfully, I will be seeing it again very soon, and am very excited to do so. I think this quote from the Last Jedi sums the film up well:

“We are what they grow beyond”
– Master Yoda

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REVIEW: Frozen 2 Stays Warm

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If you were to read all of my other reviews on here and make an assumption as to what I thought of Frozen II, you would probably guess that I didn’t like it. And I’m happy to say that would be very incorrect!

I’ll start by saying that I had no expectations at all. I liked the original Frozen, but I certainly wasn’t obsessed with it or anything. I didn’t think it was anywhere near their best animated feature, but it was enjoyable. Fun and funny and fresh and new. Deep down somewhere, I was probably a little worried for Frozen II, because the previous animated film before this was another sequel, and worse, it was Ralph Breaks the Internet. I knew it couldn’t get worse than that, at least. 

Luckily all of these slight worries were immediately sheltered in Frozen II. I thought that it too was fun and funny, and despite being a sequel to one of the most popular movies of the decade, it felt very new too. The characters we quickly came to love (or come to appreciate via Stockholm Syndrome of their impact on the company) are back, and they feel just like they did 6 years ago. I guess Some Things Never Change (cue theme of using the song titles in this post).

Frozen was certainly a notable moment in Disney history, and I think Frozen II was a very appropriate successor. 

From the Academy Award®-winning team—directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck, and producer Peter Del Vecho—and featuring the voices of Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff and Josh Gad, and the music of Oscar®-winning songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Frozen 2” opens in U.S. theaters on Nov. 22, 2019.
©2019 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

All Is Found

The biggest factors that contribute to this are twofold. Technically, this movie is stunning. It’s incredibly beautiful, and it’s the first Disney movie I had seen in this IMAX theater that I actually thought really benefited from that format. The backgrounds are crazy intricate, and the characters even better. The environments feel very breathable, and despite a lot of them being very new, they immediately feel welcoming and real.

The Frozen 2 soundtrack is the other key factor here. It’s no surprise that Frozen had a great soundtrack, that, like it or not, produced some of the most prolific Disney songs in recent memory. I can only speak for myself here, but I think the new film matches that and then some. I never knew I needed Jonathan Groff singing an 80s rock ballad with a bunch of reindeer, but apparently I did, and I don’t know how I lived without it. Obviously I can’t predict whether they will all be hits or not, but I can very easily imagine that being the case.

REINDEER GAMES — – In Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Frozen 2,” Kristoff and Sven find themselves among a herd of reindeer. Featuring Jonathan Groff as the voice of Kristoff (and Sven), “Frozen 2” opens in U.S. theaters on Nov. 22, 2019. © 2019 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

Even the musical motifs that are carried through the length of the film are incorporated so masterfully that they connect all of the songs together, or even connect some songs to songs in the original film. I was *very* impressed. 

The Next Right Thing

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Ralph Breaks the Internet more though – that is to say, why I think this movie succeeds where that one did not at all. Ralph 2, for me, (and for Zannaland herself) felt like it lacked any real purpose, and didn’t gain it by the end. It showed a story we didn’t care about, with characters we didn’t need to hear more from, and was comprised largely of elements that just didn’t work together right for me. Ralph 2 got Lost in the Woods, but Frozen 2 stayed the path through and through.

The biggest issue, though, (and where I think Frozen II shines brightest) was that Ralph 2 felt incredibly un-Disney. Frozen II is a Disney movie through and through, and one that I know I will happily watch again and again, which I think I can say about exactly zero other Disney sequels. And, oh yeah, it was FUNNY! There were a lot of moments where I genuinely laughed, which is a nice change of pace from, say Maleficent 2, where I laughed more out of fear that it would never end.

Overall, Frozen II was great fun, and I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would. Now, if you don’t mind, I have to go back to listening to the Panic! at the Disco cover of ‘Into the Unknown’ for the 300th time. INTO THE UNKNOOOOOOOOWN!

Magical and larger than life, Elsa is the perfect mythic character—but she can’t help but wonder why she was born with powers. What truths about the past await Elsa as she ventures into the unknown to the enchanted forests and dark seas beyond Arendelle? Featuring Idina Menzel as the voice of Elsa, Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Frozen 2” opens on Nov. 22, 2019. © 2019 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

 

 

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REVIEW: Last Christmas – The Gift We All Need This Season

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Last Christmas posterMy daughter Sophia and I have somewhat of an addiction to bad Hallmark movies. Luckily for us, there’s not one but two whole channels devoted to playing them year round. There are Halloween and fall-themes, generic romantic ones, and of course, Christmas love stories. Now, having said that, I will admit, probably about 97% of our viewing is so we can poke fun at it. I mean, they’re fun to set a mood, but the tropes are always the same. Straight woman can’t find love with straight man of same race, because she’s either a “career woman” that never had time for love, or has to to back to her home town to help take over a family business that’s failing, or about to be bought out by a big, mean, business man (who also happens to be single and her same race). Every now and then the main characters will already be in a relationship, but it’s all wrong, and the right person is just waiting for them back home…

So while I’m sure there are folks that take these movies very seriously, we are not those people. However that does not mean we aren’t hopeless romantics! One of my favorite movies is Love Actually, and I was thrilled when Sophia finally watched it a few years back and also fell in love. We also share a love for Moulin Rouge, so we aren’t scrooges I promise. Having been exposed to both really good and really bad romantic movies, we had high hopes for Last Christmas given the cast and story behind its creation. We were not disappointed.

The premise behind Last Christmas is taking George Michael’s famous Wham! song of the same name, and creating an entire movie around it. Sounds like a short movie, right? But really, that was just the impetus. The idea for this movie came about 10 years ago, and George Michael was approached and actually liked the idea, insisting on Emma Thompson’s involvement. They met several times and went over story ideas before his untimely death on Christmas day in 2016. It took a long time to get the story right, with Emma Thompson and Greg Wise writing treatments together. The development grew and evolved from there to what is sure to become an instant classic. Last Christmas has all the side character development and charm of Love Actually, where you actually care about the people on the screen and are glad you get to know a little more about them. It has all the important messaging of It’s a Wonderful Life (the inspiration for the director’s desire to make a classic Christmas movie) without being heavy handed or feeling like the audience is manipulated.

Last Christmas movie

Kate used to feel special, but got sick and now that she’s better, her life is a shambles. She works in a Christmas shop and auditions as a singer/actress on the side. Suddenly Tom appears and things start to “look up.” He helps her realize that life is about more than just trying to make yourself happy, it’s about helping others be happy too. I won’t reveal more than that, but the story does have a twist, which Sophia and I both guessed, but it didn’t make it any less powerful.

The rest of the film is full of beautiful London scenes and quirky characters, along with some real world issues to confront as well. George Michael’s compelling music is woven throughout, acting like another character in the story, a literal chorus with a message to share. It’s truly a multi-level gift, the movie itself, the wonderful acting and story, and the music; reborn for a new audience to enjoy and appreciate. (And older audiences, as I instantly wanted to download the soundtrack on my way home, but settled for my George Michael playlist).

Last Christmas also normalized a lot of hot button issues (that frankly shouldn’t be hot button issues in 2019), like mixed race couples, same-sex couples, immigration, homelessness, and our preconceptions. It was great to see a movie come out and not attempt to capitalize or divide based on those issues, but rather just be a mirror to real life and the many people that live in it.

I cannot wait to see this movie again, and to be able to watch it every year as I do with Love Actually. Until then, I will remain inspired by the many messages of love, self-reflection, selflessness, helping others, and I’ll remember to Look Up.  

 

Last Christmas movie

 

Last Christmas opens everywhere Friday, November 8th – Go see it!

You can get the soundtrack on Friday too:

 

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

Disclaimer: I was invited to a screening of Last Christmas at no cost, but as always, my thoughts and opinions are my own.

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REVIEW: Maleficent: Mistress of Lazy Filmmaking

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As soon as I sat down to watch this movie I regretted not re-watching the original 2014 film Maleficent to refresh my memory of the plot (as it stands, I actually remembered absolutely none of it). But as I got to thinking, I realized it was actually okay that I hadn’t done this. I assume that most people don’t really remember the plot of Maleficent, and that they too would be going in relatively blind.

If you’ve read any other film review I’ve written for this site, you’ll know they all largely follow the same basic theme: I don’t really care for the movie and think it has a lot of poorly executed elements, but in the end, it’s at least mildly entertaining. So it should be no surprise that I think Maleficent: Mistress of Evil really fits that mold too.

In passing I’ve definitely said previously that the original Maleficent was my favorite live-action remake. I feel like I need to clarify this. I don’t like the original Maleficent very much either, but I liked what it attempted to be – something that wasn’t just a 1:1 remake of an animated movie from several decades ago. It had its own perspective and take on the original story that could’ve made for something very compelling. Ultimately though, personally, I don’t think that idea was seen through very well at all.

My issue at this point is that all of these movies are extremely safe and marketable. The ‘live-action’ remakes yes, but even Disney’s seldom seen original IP are stale and worry-free. An avid viewer of such movies would be quick to point out something like The Nutcracker and The Four Realms; a unique take on a classic with a bold choice in design and fresh new elements. But this too sees the shortcomings of Disney’s safe/marketable rules. A new idea like Nutcracker is heavily constrained in its budget, and ultimately can’t do very much other than simply play it safe. Now, do I think that if Nutcracker hadn’t been so constrained it would’ve been good? No, but that’s beside the point.

Obviously it’s within Disney’s best interests to play to their biggest markets and try to make as much money as possible. They can’t necessarily do that if they were to make one-off films with a unique plot that breaks the mold – it’s way too risky. They’re in the business of making money, and every movie that has left Disney’s production team for at least the past five years has been well crafted to be perfectly safe.

 

Maleficent: Mistress of Confusing Art Design

Elle Fanning is Aurora in Disney’s live-action MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL

I assume you can begin to gauge my opinion of Mistress of Evil from that alone. It took no risks, had no groundbreaking plot, made no profound statement.

I don’t think it’s necessarily fair to just criticize every aspect of the movie though – there were some things that I really did enjoy. I thought a lot of the art design was VERY good. Locations like the homeland of the Fae (from which Maleficent herself originates), felt straight out of Pandora: The World of Avatar – and ironically made me really look forward to Avatar 2. 

But it would seem that no good deed goes unpunished, because I absolutely could NOT stand the design of the fairies/creatures of the Moors. Looking at them made me want to turn the movie off. I seriously wish that a photo of them had been publicly released or sent to us. For those who do see the movie, I’m talking about the strange hedgehog girl and the bizarre mushroom boy. For those who don’t see the movie, I’m sorry that I sound crazy right now. Those two examples are just so odd looking that I hated them, but people who’ve seen the first Maleficent may remember the incredibly uncanny valley Fairy Godmother characters. Be advised that the first 10 minutes of this movie are dedicated to full CGI establishing shots that are teeming with more and more of these weird and uncomfortable creatures that I did not very much care for.

Character-design-rant aside, I also happened to enjoy the soundtrack. It fell into the background a bit more than I would’ve liked, but there were some moments when I thought it was used in a very compelling way. In a similar vein, the sound design itself was actually pretty notable. There’s a lot of odd creatures in this movie but they all manage to sound exactly like how you’d expect them to.

I had never heard of the director before, and looking at his work again now, the only notable thing he’s made was 2017’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Again, I enjoyed that movie – a bit more than Mistress of Evil – but it really just stayed the course of safe-bet movies.

 

Maleficent: Mistress of Unnecessary

Angelina Jolie is Maleficent in Disney’s MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL.

So what do we take away from this? If you’re Disney, apparently nothing. I saw yesterday that on October 18th (opening day of the movie), my local theater is showing Mistress of Evil 28 separate times. It will definitely make money, unfortunately. Disney has placed all of their filming-eggs into one very safe and secure metaphorical basket.

Sure, Mistress of Evil was yet again moderately entertaining. But to me personally, so much of the movie felt poorly executed or lazily done that I came away from it not liking it at all. Even down to the structure of the plot, it felt like a direct-to-DVD sequel from the late 90s. The only difference is that this one had a massive budget and was shown to me in an IMAX theater.

I think lazy is the best way to describe Mistress of Evil. When asking around to my friends, over half of them didn’t even know that the movie was being made, let alone coming out in two days. Before the film started we were greeted with a few short promos of upcoming Disney productions to look forward to. Of these, Z-O-M-B-I-E-S 2, a Disney Channel Original sequel to a movie I’ve never seen, made for an age group I’m way too old for, piqued my interest far more than any part of Mistress of Evil did. 

I’ll end it off by saying this: I don’t think Maleficent: Mistress of Evil is worth seeing. Normally I would add, “but that’s just me”, but this time, I really don’t think it’s just me. The Disney formula is growing old, and sure, it’s a profitable one, but for how long? Mistress of Evil probably would’ve worked better as a Disney Channel Original Movie (and from the production of it, it would’ve fit right in stylistically) or even a Disney+ Original. Especially given that it’s an unnecessary sequel to an unmemorable movie from five years ago.

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REVIEW: There’s a New King in Town

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… Or is there?

Before I begin, I think it’s important I say that, like all of the most recent films produced by Disney, I wanted this to do well. I want nothing less than the next great film from the most successful media company there has ever been. That being said, these are my opinions.

To start this review, I actually want to digress into a quick anecdote. One of my favorite new modern bands is a group called Greta Van Fleet. They’re a rock band that sounds pretty similar to Led Zeppelin. However, to quite a lot of people – including one notably scathing review on Pitchfork – they’re just a cheap Zeppelin knock-off, mooching off the successful sound of Robert Plant and the like. I personally like the band, and didn’t really understand why these people had such a strong hatred for them. That is, until I saw 2019’s The Lion King.

There’s no need to worry about spoilers in this review, as this is, beat-for-beat, exactly the same movie that was released 25 years ago. Visually, it obviously does look very different (and we’ll get to that in a second), but at least 95% of the scenes in this are unchanged from the original, even going down to random establishing shots that could have been completely unique.

Can you feel the love tonight…?

THE LION KING – (Top to Bottom) Timon and Billy Eichner, Pumbaa and Seth Rogen and Zazu and John Oliver. Photo by Kwaku Alston. © 2019 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Before we get much farther, it’ll be important to note that this review is much harsher than those I usually write. This movie made me mad that it exists. This is equally as much a review of The Lion King as it is a review of Disney’s presence in the modern box office. I can justify that because very little changed between this and the original, leaving very little to review – though I’ll go over what I can.

The vocal performances (acting-wise) feel very lazy. This is embarrassing, because this has got to be one of the most expensive casts for any movie outside of the MCU lately. Something about this movie makes the completely star-studded cast feel like a B-Team. This is not without exceptions though. Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen steal the show every time they’re on screen. But notable greats like James Earl Jones and Chiwitel Ejiofor feel like they delivered one pass on their lines and left the studio. Everyone else falls very flat.

Song-wise, I really can’t complain. The songs are good regardless of who’s singing them, and since the two leads double as Grammy-winning vocalists, it’s no surprise that they’re good. The songs are actually where I would have wished they’d stayed true to the original. The original soundtrack is fantastic, and the Broadway score only brings more life and material to it. I did enjoy the new Beyoncé track, I just thought it was oddly placed. And the lyric changes to Be Prepared weren’t really terrible, it was just weird that they chose to change that, but leave in the exact same shot of Simba walking past a spiderweb in the Elephant Graveyard.

… because I could not.

THE LION KING – Featuring the voices of JD McCrary as Young Simba, Billy Eichner as Timon and Seth Rogen as Pumbaa, Disney’s “The Lion King” is directed by Jon Favreau. In theaters July 19, 2019. © 2019 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

The animation is something that will come up often in discussions about this film. I recently watched Jon Favreau’s The Jungle Book for the first time, and it felt weird to me because of the juxtaposition between a human actor and uncanny valley animated creatures. The Lion King feels as weird somehow, without the use of a human actor.

I want to pause and say that while I have studied and practiced a bit of animation, I am by NO MEANS a professional. I didn’t care much for this movie, but I do give all the credit in the world to the incredible animation team. A lot of this movie does look absolutely amazing. I kept thinking that this would be a great demo reel for Samsung displays or something in the future. That being said, animators, please don’t kill me for the next section.

A lot of the problems I had with the vocal performances were that they were delivered as if it were a typical animated film. If you closed your eyes while watching this movie, I don’t think it would really feel out of place. The problem becomes introduced when the characters are hyper-realistic animals, which in the end, cannot convey complex emotion very well. The original Lion King works as an emotional experience (as do all hand-drawn films) because of how expressive the characters can be, even if they’re animals, or sometimes inanimate objects. When you take all of that facial expressiveness and cartoon performance out, it can be very difficult to connect.

Undoubtedly, people will feel emotions while watching this. Baby Simba is cute. Mufasa dying is sad. But that’s just the nature of animals themselves. I could have walked into the theater and been shown just a still-image of a baby lion, and still would have said, “Aw, cute”.

Long Live the King.

A FUTURE KING IS BORN – In Disney’s all-new “The Lion King,” Simba idolizes his father, King Mufasa, and takes to heart his own royal destiny. Featuring JD McCrary and Donald Glover as young Simba and Simba, “The Lion King” roars into U.S. theaters on July 19, 2019. ©2019 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I really don’t understand why this was made the way it was, or who it’s for. Most of the audience watching this movie will remember the entire plot of the original, whether they grew up watching it, or just because it’s a big enough piece of pop culture to be ingrained in the minds of anyone who knows its name. So why, then, is it just exactly the same as the original? 

My lasting impression was that it was just to make money off of people’s nostalgia, in the laziest (from an executive standpoint) way possible. The acting felt lazy and half-done. The screenplay was just copy/pasted by a temp. The score was legitimately just the original score with one or two new songs, which were moved to the credits. 

There have been “live action” remakes in the past, and no, none have really been very good. But this one just feels like the most cruel of all. But they make them because they do make money. There definitely is an audience for these movies (whom I have not met). All I’ll say is that you vote with your wallet. Seven years ago, before it was even announced, I never thought I would be advising people against seeing a remake of one of my favorite Disney movies, but here we are.

Ultimately, this movie felt, to me, like a film-student’s final project. The animation is nice to look at, but it serves more as a weird gimmick than an entertaining movie. I could imagine myself scrolling through reddit and finding a post where someone re-animated The Lion King in Cinema 4D, and then it’s just the entirety of The Lion King (2019).

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REVIEW: ‘Aladdin’ Could’ve Used a Magical Lamp

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To begin, I’ll say that this movie entertained me. To be fair, most Disney movies do – they’re lighthearted, often fairly funny, and usually have a bit of a spectacle to them/their experience. 2019’s Aladdin definitely checks all three of those boxes, but it does little outside of that.

Aladdin was fun to watch. From a design point of view, it was very interesting. I’m already very invested in Middle Eastern art and culture, and this film certainly managed to live in that world, arguably far more than the original did. And visually, it’s the equivalent to seeing a well developed Broadway show, like the ones Disney puts on (Aladdin, for example). That is to say, every musical number was a big show stopper that is definitely worth watching.

But outside of that, this film really lacks anything worthwhile.

Even after seeing it, I still wholeheartedly believe that this movie really did not need to be made. I don’t know that anyone was really clamoring for a live-action remake of a movie that’s only 27 years old, and didn’t really have many problems. Fans of the original are better off still watching the original, which is largely more charming than this version. And if you’re specifically seeking a bigger spectacle of Aladdin, the Broadway version still already exists, and while it’s not my favorite musical in the world, I think there is definitely good fun to be had, making this movie ultimately unnecessary.

This movie is admittedly more entertaining than the original, which to me never really stood out from that era’s other animated works. Like I said, the musical numbers are all as big and epic as you could ever want them to be – with all of the CGI in the world assisting Prince Ali make his big entrance. But those don’t necessarily add up to something worth more than the sum of its parts.

Will Smith is Genie in Disney’s live-action ALADDIN., directed by Guy Ritchie.

The musical numbers are actually, to me, the best parts of the film. They take Alan Menken’s wonderful original soundtrack and bring a vibrant new life to it, which fits perfectly in the vivid world the characters now live in. This is of course not including the two new songs written just for this film, both of which are sung by Jasmine. They were stylistically very clashing with the rest of the soundtrack, and felt almost as if Disney was just trying to make a song as “empowering” as ‘This is Me’, from The Greatest Showman, just because of how popular that song has become. Additionally, most of the ‘Prince Ali’ scene has actually already been posted to YouTube, and I think watching that clip is really all you need from this movie. It gives you a taste of exactly what to expect.

Will Smith’s performance is what actually keeps this movie from sinking under though. The musical numbers are great, but they are few and far between. Every time Smith was on screen he stole the show, which is actually important because most of the other performances felt nearly lifeless. Before the release of this, there was a lot of controversy about his appearance in the movie, and how they would pull it off. I didn’t really care one way or the other, but I definitely had no issue with him in the end.

Aladdin (Mena Massoud) meets the larger-than-life blue Genie (Will Smith) in Disney’s live-action adaptation ALADDIN, directed by Guy Ritchie.

Overall, it was indeed entertaining, but lacked any real purpose. The plot was more or less the same as the original, so it’s not as if they’re making any groundbreaking leaps or bounds in storytelling, which is bold for a remake of a movie only 27 years old. You can watch this movie and have fun, but you can watch the original and get the same emotional beats/moments. And simply listening to the soundtrack is enough to be satisfied for a “new” Aladdin.

There is something beautifully ironic about this movie being entirely surface-level though, as it mirrors Prince Ali’s character arc in the original film.

Parts of it felt like a Hallmark movie, parts of it felt like a Disney Channel Original Movie. It was just an odd thing that exists, but I’m not sure why. It was fun in the same way a direct-to-video sequel is fun. It exists purely to be looked at, and will be enjoyed largely because people like the original, and this movie didn’t change anything.

While it’s not a spoiler in any way, this movie ends with a black screen, you hear the words, “DJ Khaled… Anotha one!!” and the credits roll, and that should really speak for itself.

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Another Spoiler Free EndGame Review

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I never used to be a Marvel fan. Just like I never used to be a Harry Potter fan, or a Lord of the Rings fan, or a Star Wars fan. Then, as with all fandoms, a story spoke to me. With Star Wars, it was those darn adorable ewoks back in 1983. I was 8, and during a time when my sticker collection and unicorns filled most of my time, Star Wars lured me in with fuzzy teddy bear-like creatures. What was their story? What was going to happen to them? And I became a fan. (As a side-note, that fandom has faded for me since I feel like it’s been overdone and shoved down our throats for a few years now, the original trilogy will always be where my heart lies.)

With Lord of the Rings, I took longer to discover this amazing series. I had read The Hobbit in 4th grade and haaaaated it. It seemed so boring to me and I did not enjoy the story at all. Fast forward to many years later, when the buzz was everywhere about The Lord of the Rings. I had grown up loving fantasy and fairytale stories, so I figured I better read the Lord of the Rings trilogy before the movies came out. I dug in and was lost in those books for an entire summer, following up with The Silmarillion and a Tolkien biography. I became a super fan. (Like, obsessed for a while. Tolkien was a genius and I am still in awe of the worlds and entire languages he created!)

With Harry Potter, I tried to avoid them as long as I could. I felt like J.K. Rowling was totally ripping off Lord of the Rings lore, and I refused to read or see any of the movies. One night, Chamber of Secrets was on ABC Family. I got sucked in. I actually liked it. (Oddly it’s now my least favorite of the movie series.) So I read all the books (that were out at that time) and even attending midnight release parties of the last few books. Yet another super fan was born. [And yes, I promise we’ll get to EndGame – but if you are going to see it, get used to long backstories leading up to the action. 😉 ]

But with Marvel, it was different. I never read Marvel comics growing up. I read Donald Duck and Casper and Archie comics to pass the time during summers in Ogunquit, Maine. I was never really into superheroes and aside from Superman movies in the 80’s didn’t care too much about any of them.

Then, Iron Man happened. I have always loved Robert Downey, Jr. and instantly fell in love with his egotistic-but-brilliant-bad-boy-billionaire-with-a-change-of-heart character. The stories, the visuals, the blurring of lines between good and evil, I loved it all. What I found so interesting is that while the Marvel Comics already existed for decades, how a story ended or crossed over with another character, did not mean it would end up that way on screen. So there were still surprises in many cases for everyone, even the comic fanboys and girls.

I guess then I became a Marvel fan, because each movie drew me in and I wanted more. (I still have never seen 2008’s The Incredible Hulk but eventually I’m sure I will just for completist reasons along with Captain Marvel which I missed the screening for and just haven’t had time to see but I will, I swear!) I loved that they were funny while still having tons of dramatic action and also showing life lessons that each of the characters learn along the way. That’s part of what makes the series so great; there is a hero for everyone. I love something about every single Avenger. The dynamics that have grown and shifted between all of them are a great legacy for fans.

So as a fan, of course, the prospect of an “end game” of any sort was a tad depressing. Just as I did not relish the ending of the LotR trilogy in Return of the King, or the final book or movie in the Harry Potter series, I was not looking forward to the ending of such an epic, 10+ year set of stories. That said, it was an action-packed, shocking, cathartic, dramatic, draining, and satisfying (in most cases) ending to this phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

What follows is the rest of my spoiler-free review of Avengers: Endgame – (You can read Christian’s spoiler-free review here)

I was very glad that EndGame picked right up with what everyone had been doing since the end of Infinity War. After Infinity War ended, we were all dumbstruck. We needed to see that it we weren’t alone in our grief. I think we all hoped for the best to happen with most of the characters who became dust, and were less hopeful for those who had truly met their end, like my dear Loki (but you just never know with that trickster). I think this may be why the runtime of the movie was so long. There is a LOT to cover and explain and get to, and I’m glad they did. [sidenote: I was very worried about making it thru the entire movie without a bathroom break, but I drank nothing for 2 hours before and was fine :P]

AvengersEndgame

I can’t really say too much else without giving away any plot points…I wish I could…if you see the movie and want to discuss, come find me! 😉 What I can and will say is that I cried. A LOT. There are thankfully also a lot of comedic moments to cut the tension of these big, serious themes, so it is a balance. (I anticipate quite a few memes being born from EndGame.) I definitely heard a few sniffs of crying in our audience, but nothing major, so I will just say that I am an emotional person, I cry at anything even remotely resembling any sort of relationship bond. I have always been a mushy person, a trait which has been further compounded by 20 years of motherhood and the passing of ever-fleeting time. Your mileage may vary.

AvengersEndgame

These weren’t just sad tears, though. What I felt every time I cried was a gratefulness for the family that Marvel created and shared with all of us. If they didn’t do a good job of establishing these bonds of friendship and kinship, we wouldn’t care enough to even get emotional when it all ends. There are several moments throughout the film where this display of family is pretty epic.

To bring it back to Lord of the Rings again, it really reminded me of the final Return of the King. I remember being so sad that it was over, but thankful for being able to experience the entire journey over the years. These are the life-changing moments that allow us to see and appreciate how far they’ve come, how far we’ve come, and be able to move on.

It’s been eleven years. Eleven. How much has your life changed in that time? I know mine has changed immensely since then. Eleven years ago, I had 2 kids, not 3. And those two were 8 and 9 years old. Now they are 20 and 18, and I have a 10 year old. I have gotten divorced and remarried and moved 4 times, gone back to work full time. Even this blog didn’t exist 11 years ago (though we’re coming up on the 10th anniversary!). I’m pretty much a completely different person. And so are our Avengers. To quote that 90’s hit by Semisonic, “…every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” And that is what EndGame is.

AvengersEndgame

Marvel Studios’ Avengers: EndGame opens everywhere April 26.

Disney provided us a complimentary press screening, but my opinions and thoughts are my own.

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