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obsessivestar · 5 years ago

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Steamy Love (A Tom Hiddleston x Reader) Part 23:~A Night to Remember~

Summary: As your final days with Tom are counting down, Tom sets up a wonderful date, one you'll truly never forget.

Warnings: 'Nother slight negative mention of one of Tom's ex's at the beginning. Mentions of medication.

Read it on my Wattpad: Wattpad.com/HiddlesStar

Word count: 2202

Tags: @theoneanna @midnightdragonzero @drakesfiance @kcd15 @ihthr @deviantsendbyreallife @bookgirlunicorn @cherrygeek86

Now it's January. It's the last month you and Tom are going to have together in this house, possibly for the last time in general. You knew this, but you weren't sure if Tom knew. Maybe he assumed you'd try a semi-permanent long distance relationship. Maybe he never expected this to last. You really weren't sure. You haven't really talked about it with him. Truthfully, you've been avoiding it. Part of you hoped the problem would solve itself, but it's just made you more and more anxious as time has gone on. You really need to talk about it soon, before it's too late.

You were just nearing the end of the first week of January, currently home alone as the evening rolled in. It was getting really cold outdoors so you were basically walking around the house with the same sweater and the same sweatpants every week. You washed them, of course. They were just the warmest pairs of clothing you had. You didn't like being cold.

Tom wasn't home at the moment. He had left just before the afternoon to take care of things 'for later on in the evening', as he told you. You weren't sure what that meant, but you were eager to find out. You were just scrolling through social media while you waited for him to come home. People were still losing it about your diss at Taylor Swift during one of the many interviews you've done for your movie. You were surprised that whoever had edited the interview had decided to leave that part in, but they made it seem like the interviewer wasn't as offended as she originally was. Most fans of Tom had learned to really appreciate you after that interview, though there were the select few fans of Taylor Swift that had practically flooded your Twitter replies with hate for a couple days. It didn't get to you. You've dealt with worse hate than that, far before you met Tom. You are a female Twitch streamer, after all.

Later in the evening, Tom finally came home. You hopped out of bed and out into the living room to greet him, seeing him with a couple large clothing bags and some tickets in his pockets.

"What's all that for?" You asked, raising a brow.

"Our date tonight.." Tom smiled, moving past you to go to your room. He gestured you to follow, so you did, a soft blush on your cheeks.

"Tonight? I haven't even showered--" You winced with a slight chuckle.

"Then go shower. I can lay out your outfit and such for you while you're bathing.." Tom spoke. "We have an hour to get ready.."

"A-Alright." You shrugged. You really weren't sure where this was coming from. He's never pulled a surprise date like this.

"You'll love what I have in store, trust me." He smiled at you, gently kissing your forehead before gesturing you to head for your shower. You gave a slight chuckle as you exited your room, heading to the bathroom. Your showers aren't long, but you hoped you'd have time to put on makeup afterwards.

After a couple minutes, you came out of your shower with a towel wrapped around your body and one in your hair. You turned off the light and everything and moved back to your room, seeing a long red gown with sleeves that would rest just past your shoulders. It looked similar to classic Cinderella's blue dress, but in red. You and Tom have been binge watching some of the old Disney Princess movies. Tom was surprised that you knew most of the words to the songs from Snow White and Cinderella. You both really enjoy these old movies. He's excited for you guys to watch The Jungle Book next. You know he won't be able to hold back singing 'Bear Necessites'. He sings it any chance he gets.

You did your makeup and hair before putting the dress on. You looked in the standing mirror you had and honestly, it fit you perfectly. It hugged your curves in all the right ways, and the sleeves resting past your shoulders looked a lot better than other shirts with lazy sleeves that you've worn in the past. You really liked it. You looked amazing.

You hear Tom step into the room, turning around to see him in a clean navy blue suit with a black bowtie. It made him look really good. It brought out his blue eyes.

He was looking at you practically the same way you were looking at him.

"You look...astonishingly stunning." Tom spoke with a lovesick smile, taking the time to slowly look over you.

"Oh, come on.." You chuckled a bit, looking down at the dress. "I'm surprised you didn't go with green.."

"Don't want to become too predictable now.." Tom chuckled before fixing his jacket, holding his one hand out to you.

"Are you ready?"

"For what? The date?" You blushed, stepping up to him. "Where are we even going?"

"That's a surprise, darling.." Tom spoke, smiling at you. "I can't spoil it now. There are many surprises to come.."

You shook your head some with a chuckle, taking his hand.

"Alright. I trust you.."

Next thing you knew, you were headed out for the night, getting in Tom's car and driving off. Wherever you were going, you hoped paparazzi didn't hound you. Tom seemed pretty confident that they wouldn't, thankfully.

You looked around as you traveled more into the city. It wasn't a big city, but the stuff around downtown was nice. The lights were pretty to look at. After a moment, the car came to a stop.

"We're here." Tom spoke. You turned to look over to his side, seeing the large building, the large museum. Tom smiled at you before getting out of the car, moving around to open your door for you and help you out. Once you stepped out of the vehicle, you got a good look at the museum. You and Tom walked up the small stairs, your eyes never leaving the large marble building, the only thing lighting it being the small lights below.

"You're bringing me to a museum? Isn't it closed?" You asked, a light blush on your face.

"To the public, maybe.." Tom smirked at you, taking your hand as you moved closer to the door, managing to open it with ease. "I know some people that gave me this opportunity.."

You walked into the museum with Tom, surprised to see some of the stuff on display was still lit up in view, despite no one being in here to view them. This was just like Tom's dream of taking you to a museum on a date. He remembered it.

You looked around together, viewing the different kinds of art and monuments on display. You could only stay in the main hall, but what was shown was still fascinating, and you're normally not really a history kind of person. It was just interesting to see all the different types of work, reading the history behind them. Tom loved it, too. His love for old history shines through as he explained the different pieces you came across. You listened to every explanation he gave. There was something deep down in your heart telling you that your days being able to hear him ramble were numbered. In Feburary, he'd be heading back home to the UK. You'd have to separate. You wanted to enjoy your limited time with him while you still can.

After about an hour of exploring the different sights, you exited the building with Tom.

"This was...really amazing, Tom.." You spoke with a soft smile. "It was a really eye opening experience. Thank you so much for bringing me here.."

"The night isn't over yet, my dear.." Tom spoke with a warm smile, moving back to the car with you. "There's one more place I'd like to take you.."

"Oh?" You blushed and he helped you get back in the car before getting in the driver side, starting the car.

"You're in that dress for a reason." He spoke with a little wink before driving off, getting back on the road.

The next location was a little harder to figure out. The building you parked in front of was deeper downtown, and loud music was coming from it. It didn't seem to be some sort of generic American nightclub. It looked a little old school. That got you a little excited.

You got out of the passenger side on your own this time, meeting up with Tom at his side as he got out from the drivers side. He noticed your eager smile, gently taking your hand.

"You're really going to like this one.." Tom spoke, giving you a smile before opening the door, walking in with you. You walked downstairs a bit, hearing the music get louder and louder the closer you got to the larger door. Before's you'd go in, you were stopped by a security man, who asked for your passes. That's when Tom took out the tickets and handed it to the man. The man let you through the next door after examining the tickets, politely telling you to enjoy your time.

Once you stepped through, you finally got to view the large underground diner. On one side were little diner tables where you could eat and listen to the live folk band on the stage nearby. On the other side was the dance floor, where you could dance with friends and family along to the music. Some couples were already dancing. It really reminded you of the dance scene from Snow White. You had mentioned during your time watching it that you've always wanted to goto a dance like that. You definitely preferred it over the bland pop/techno beats you hear on a loop at night clubs.

"Th-This is amazing!.." You grinned, looking around like an excited child at an amusement park. "Th-That's a real band!"

"Would you like to dance, darling?" Tom gave you a smile, kissing the back of your hand. Your cheeks went pink, giving a little giggle.

"It would be an honour.."

You smiled at him, seeing him grin as he kept your hand in his, leading you to the dance floor. You've seen Tom dance in some clips, but you've always wanted to experience that thrill in person, and tonight was the perfect night for it. You were able to keep up with all of Tom's steps, even holding your dress up like a princess as you tapped and pranced around the room. At some point, you and Tom had the whole dance floor to yourselves. You had the whole diner clapping along with you, as if you really were Snow and Prince Charming. He really was your charming. You had this big grin on your face the entire time. Tom was the same way. He hasn't danced like this in ages.

Eventually, exhaustion had hit the both of you. After one final jig, you moved to the tables to have a little snack before you'd head home for the night. Some of the diner's customers applauded you, which felt amazing, and the live band was now playing relaxing music. It was nice.

By this time, however, you realised you hadn't taken your medication. It's been quite a few hours since you were supposed to take it, but you were just having too much fun to have it slow you down now. You didn't want to end the night off being sluggish. So, despite 12am rolling by, you chose not to take it. Not until you'd go home. Tom hadn't mentioned it, either. He probably figured you had taken it before you left.

You got to have some tea and biscuits at the table, deciding to take this time to thank him for such a wonderful night. This really all meant a lot to you.

"Tom, this was...this was amazing.." You smiled warmly at her. "The dress, the museum, the dance. I-I never thought I'd get to do anything like this in my life.."

"Would you say this was quite a successful date, then?" Tom asked you, returning the smile.

"It's definitely been the perfect date." You replied, gently taking his hand. "I-I'll remember this day for the rest of my life."

"I'd like to have more times like this with you.." Tom admitted, gently caressing the back of your hand with his thumb. "In the future.."

Your smile faded some. You would really like that, too, but he's going back to the UK in less than a month. You'll be separating.

"I wish we had that time.." You admitted, looking down some.

"Why can't we?" He asked, tilting his head with slight confusion.

"You're going back to the UK in a month.." You replied, looking back at him. "For your play. After this month, you're leaving the country.."

Tom gave a little smile, looking down at your joined hands for a moment before looking back up at you, looking into your eyes.

"And what if I said I'd like for you to come with me?.."

#tom hiddleston x reader #tom hiddleston fanfiction #tom hiddleston #tom Hiddleston x you #tom hiddleston imagine #steamy love #fanfiction #fanfics

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abitterlifethroughcinema · 5 years ago

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Three Summer Taquilla Behemoths in Cinemas! WOKE! Film Reviews...Halfway Through Summer by Lucas A Cavazos

It goes without saying that Disney is undoubtedly the strongest hand in all of cinema. They have proved that beyond any shadow of a doubt over many decades but definitely most recently, what with the takeover of Pixar and LucasFilms and Marvel Studios and and and… As I hinted at last time, growing up, whether in Texas or Brooklyn, my dorky bum always had that weekly subscription of Entertainment Weekly waiting for me come week’s end. And that meant I had all the box office data, top album sales, Nielsen TV ratings, book sales and such all there to satiate my stats-obsessed appetite. Now, I bring to you a summer run-down of what fare has been most successful throughout this first half of the summer. Believe it or not, we are only halfway through the summer cinema season and these last six or seven weeks mark the last summer fare that either got delayed from the early summer due to concern of being pulverised by these upcoming blockbusters, or they are merely getting rid of fodder too long on the shelf or in need of distribution.

I’d dare say in fact that it was a rather smart move on behalf of Guy Ritchie and the entire marketing team behind the live-action remake of Aladdin, to release it just before the summer season truly hit. It is now fast closing in on 25€M in Spain alone, and has surpassed 1.1€B globally…quite an accomplished feat and second in box office stealth only behind Endgame for 2019 so far.

But let’s please talk newer reviews first as Disney’s The Lion King ###-1/2 burst into Spanish cinemas with a loud roar two weeks ago, and the same can be said of its success worldwide. Now soon to pass 19€M in Spain in a matter of mere days and more than 1.0€B globally, we at Bitter Life are pleased to say that the film, much like the formerly mentioned live-action remake, is a thing of wonder. What director Jon Favreau, who so lovingly concocted the impeccable remake of The Jungle Book a few years ago, does so well is adapt a timeless, and much beloved, cartoon classic into a breathtaking adventure story of the animal kingdom. One thing is for certain, if you are a true lover of the cartoon, this film will merely be palatable. For those few of us who were none too keen on the cartoon and its cheese-tactic musical numbers nor its cornball last-attempts at Top 40 numbers by Elton John, this film is quite the spectacle to behold. Telling the story of a proud lineage of lions who preside over what could best be described more as a savannah than a jungle, this rendering gives us a lifelike portrayal of fathers and sons, duty and honour, and is easily a testament to whatever family means to any individual. Apart from the brilliant, yet almost frightening, way in which the creators have anthropomorphised the creatures into almost too-real perfection, there isn’t too much to tell that the viewer is not going to know already, and thereby lies a part of the challenge that I find intriguing. While Disney continues to take risks in revamping their classics into live-action newer ones, do they then run the risk of petering out of new ideas? I mean, now that they have Pixar and so many more studios to pick up the slack, will we slowly see the demise of the annual big, Disney cartoon classic? We already have Frozen 2 appearing soon enough in cinemas, but even that is not building anything new and original into the cartoon oeuvre…it’s a damn sequel. I say it’s fair enough that most all investments in Disney live-action prequels are bound to be successful in terms of box office. Still, few of them will boast the talent power of Beyonce and Donald Glover, along with original Mufasa James Earl Jones, plus John Oliver, Seth Rogen, Keegan-Michael Key, Alfre Woodard. Amy Sedaris and so many more. These artists breathe life into a fun, if tired, film that we’ve all seen before, just never in this way. Here’s to hoping the tots of today don’t scare too much from the frolicking if fierce, fun found in this film.

The next big movie that has blown up the taquillas here in Spain is also the best one of the lot…Toy Story 4 ####. If we have to wait nearly a decade between film sequels to have this type of wonderment thrown lovingly at our eyes, I’ll gladly take it and wait. So far, the film has taken in a nearly whopping 19€M in Spain alone, and it is also nearing 950€M worldwide, so far be it from me to deny that absolute scores of millions agree that this film marks itself in our hearts yet again. It is rather surreal that over the span of well over a generation, the creators have moved through the mid-90s to damn near 2020 with the same revolving door of a family, while carefully detailing the intricacies of our own nostalgia…and playing on that also forces us to love it. Again, I dare say that they have achieved that tremendously throughout the entirety of the series’ lifespan. The premise this time revolves around Andy, now all grown up and, I’d suppose well past grad school, has donated his toys to little sister Bonnie, who has her own taste on what she prefers to play with versus her older brother, and dear ol’ cowpoke Woody, sensing certain neglect under the ownership of Bonnie, sneaks himself into her rucksack one day y voila!…the new adventure commences. The others set off to search for Woody, outdone by no one less than Buzz Lightyear, who is allowing himself to be led by his inner voice, which fits wonderfully into the guffaws of this type of silly and campy humour. What I began to notice while the screening went on is that the film continues to come up with a specific theme that ties itself into the plot, the denouement and frankly, throughout the film. Simply put, that would be the fear of rejection or not being wanted/accepted. Herein is where story developers like John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, Rashida Jones, Stephany Folsom, amongst others, and all under the directing tutelage of Josh Cooley, spring to life and steer the film into witty and on-fleek, au courant elements that should make excellent fodder for post-parental conversations! What more can be said? Steal away and grab a 10’er and retreat to the coolness of your local cineplex!

Lastly, the other big box office behemoth so far this summer in Spain’s movie houses is Spider Man: Far From Home ###-1/2, with just under 12€M reaped into the Spanish taquilla coffers. This time around finds us back in live-action mode and with our recurring Marvel characters picking up after the what can only be described as intense ending of Avengers:Endgame. Okay then, while I was not a fan of the new Peter Parker with Homecoming from a couple of years back, I can now see how Tom Holland has taken a stab at ye olde generic if endearing dork-that-could appeal, and he feels much more fluid now a few Marvel flicks in. Director Jon Watts and go-to writers McKenna and Sommers seem to strike a chord with their flow, though we really do have to wait until the last half of the film to see the ebb actually catch up with that flow. Here’s why…our Marvel superheroes have gone bye bye, you dig? Flashbacks of the fallen Marvel superheroes actually made me a tad sad to be honest, so when the injection of the last part kicks in with all its CGI glory, what I take the director and writers to be doing, this time around, is actually showing us how Parker is growing into his own belief within himself and his powers. Zendaya as his love interest, and I’ve monitored her from afar for quite some time, is fun as hell to watch, and she should seriously star in a film version of Sade’s life story, but it really does come down to the charm and vivid need for suspension of disbelief that envelops the characters towards the end of the film. This has a lot to do with the enter-stage-right presence of Quentin Beck, a.k.a. Mysterio, played with an enigmatic if smug awareness by Jake Gyllenhaal, and frankly, all of the myriad cast of characters do their thang to breathe a sense of renewal just when you think the film is getting a tad too slow and eager. From Sam Jackson to Marisa Tomei, though perhaps not Jon Favreau as Stark caretaker Happy Hogan…he’s best suited as a director of Disney re-boots these days, me thinks (see The Lion King review above). Apart from all that, I’d say the Marvel universe has quite rightly fixed another pathway into the continuance of the Spiderverse journey.

#abitterlifethroughcinema #SummerBoxOfficeReport #thelionking2019 #BEY #Disney #Pixar #ToyStory4 #woodyandbuzzforever #marvelATMarvel #spiderman far from home #jake gyllenhaal #tomholland #zendaya #jon favreau #EnglishRadioBCN

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shebeafancyflapjack · 5 years ago

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I finally saw the new Lion King...

Oh boy. Here we go.

I know I’m late to the party on this and there have been so many bad reviews of this film already that have mentioned the major problems. They’re all true. Every single one. So at least in that regard I got what I was expecting! Nothing better but nothing worse. I was expecting dead eyed animals with no emotion matching the voice acting and that’s exactly what it was. It was distracting and annoying but I did get over it to a point. So I’ll try not to make this review just another long rant about the lack of expressions. However I will mention that my best friend who I went to see this with is from South Africa and used to work over there at a nature reserve; she said she found the animals creepy as hell. She compared to how disturbing the uncanny valley in films like Final Fantasy (the movie) and Mars Needs Moms were.

In short; the technology is incredible and hopefully will get used in a better and ORIGINAL film, but it really didn’t fit a story this epic and personal where you need to see the fear, the sadness, the joy etc in these characters faces. It especially hit me at the end of I Just Can’t Wait To Be King where Simba and Nala are supposed to look so happy and giddy but there’s just...nothing there.

Eyes are the window to the soul in animation. And it’s not impossible to make realistic cg animals look emotional - Jungle Book and Narnia are proof of that. But this movie was definitely, in a word, soulless.

That’s the animation rant out of the way, what else can I add?

I’ll admit that I am biased. Lion King is my all time favourite Disney movie. I saw it when I was three, I still to this day have the Simba plushy I took to the first screening and held aloft, haggard and dog-eared as he is in my closet. I danced to I Just Can’t Wait To Be King at my Brownie talent show. I’ve watched the film enough times I know it beat for beat. However, saying that, I know it’s not perfect. When I went back a few years ago and watched all the old Disney films I did notice more flaws in Lion King and actually gained more appreciation for films like Hunchback and Beauty & the Beast that had slipped under my radar as a kid. Practically I do think B&TB is the stronger movie of that time. But, damnit, Lion King will always be my favourite at heart, just like Ocarina of Time will always be my favourite Zelda even though I think other games like Majora’s Mask or Breath of the Wild are technically better. Lion King was my first love and, given how meh most of the Disney remakes have been so far, I knew this wasn’t going to come close to how great the original was. But still I thought I’d give it a try and see what new things they could bring, same as I liked at least some of the new twists in Cinderella, Maleficent and Aladdin.

Sadly this movie brings nothing new aside from a different style which even that doesn’t really work. It’s a shot-for-shot remake except with certain parts slightly changed or flat out cut and it feels so off. I could tell what I was in for from the very first scene and it basically summed up the rest of the movie. First shot, same as before, the sun rises as the Circle of Life plays. Except in this one, the sun rises....and there’s like a three second gap before the music starts. I know that sounds like such a tiny thing but it happens so much! The soundtrack is EXACTLY the same, except it no longer flows with the animation the same as the old one. The first Lion King was almost on par with Fantasia with how perfect every movement and beat of the scene matched the notes of the music - like with Simba’s roar at the end, he starts roaring before the music has its big climax and it’s so distracting. That’s when I realised what this movie felt like; as though I was listening to the original Lion King soundtrack while watching National Geographic. Like the odd random bit happens to work but most of it just feels slapped on because it’s Lion King and they had to.

And when this movie does do things new, sometimes they get a laugh or can be interesting, but it’s so short and we go back to just quoting the original word for word without the same energy. James Earl Jones sounds tired recycling lines he said thirty years ago. The rest of the cast however are actually really good and we know these are great actors. When they’re saying something new it’s great but when they say words from the original it’s like they’re just quoting a different movie everyone knows.

Timon and Pumbaa, for example, are the best new addition to the movie, along with some moments from Zazu and definitely a more intimidating Scar. This is because a lot of their routine and dialogue is changed up instead of just reusing old jokes. A scene with them from the original which was the funniest for me, the hula distraction, is replaced with the start of Be Our Guest - and it’s hilarious. I was expecting to be annoyed they took it out but no, it was something new and clever even if slightly meta but I guess same as The Lion Sleeps Tonight is which was in the original (and is redone here, also pretty funny).

Moments like that worked but also in a way annoyed me more because they showed the potential of how this film could have been so much better. The same story but a new script, why was that so hard? Aladdin, Cinderella and Jungle Book had a few lines here and there similar to the original but still took risks - with JB even going as far to change the ending. I have problems with those movies, sure, but I at least respect them for trying to be creative.

Other tiny ‘new’ things that are added are Shenzi being a much stronger villain, which is kinda cool but they try to set up this rivalry between her and Nala in the final act and I was like; “...did I miss something? Was there a deleted scene were there was a bigger conflict with you two?” But then the other hyenas are no where near as funny as before, Benzai and not-Edd just do this “no homo” routine and then they don’t even speak again in the third act. Nala, Sarabi and the other lionesses get a bit more screen time but again it feels so rushed and actually makes it seem more confusing when Nala is like “if you want Simba you’ll have to come through us!” and then they all just watch again as Scar nearly pushes him off pride rock.

It also tried to fill in a plot hole with the original which, in my opinion, just created a worse one. So in the original Scar knocks out Zazu and there’s always questions afterwards of why Zazu didn’t tell the other lionesses - I always just assumed he couldn’t remember why he lost consciousness. In this one Scar sends Zazu back to ‘get the pride’ at the gorge. However, he THEN claims he wasn’t able to get to the gorge before Mufasa was killed....Except Zazu knows he was there! Yet he never tells the other lionesses! He doesn’t even say anything to Simba! It also had me questioning why Simba didn’t throw it back at Scar for sending him down there to roar and then being blamed when Scar explicitly told him to practice his roar as loud as he could - in the original Scar just hints to ‘work on that little roar’.

They did the same thing in Beauty and the Beast with that magical teleporting book. And in Cinderella where she’s more independent because she goes outside the manor and yet never just leaves. Don’t pick at something if you’re just going to create more questions.

So to sum up, is the film garbage? I wouldn’t go that far. I’m looking at it from the mind of a cynical adult who was always going to be comparing it to the original, which I think is fair if you’re doing a shot for shot remake. But for little kids who this is aimed for...I wasn’t sure watching it, some scenes I thought a bit too dark for them (like literally it’s hard to tell the lions apart in the fight scenes) but after it was done I was in the toilets waiting for my friend and I saw a little four year old girl with her mum and she was holding a Simba plushy in her arms, just like the one I had as a kid, and she was saying how much she loved it. The sight almost made me tear up with nostalgia. And it made me realise, despite all my criticism, this movie is more so for little girls like that than me. If this movie somehow made her feel the same wonder and excitement than the original did then it definitely can’t be worthless. I just hope she has or will get around to seeing the original. Maybe she’d like it more, maybe not. Maybe they will remake this movie again in thirty years and she’ll be writing a lengthy blog post about how the remake of the remake butchered her childhood memory of the remake...So long as she has those memories and those timeless feelings, it’s what matters most.

Okay I got surprisingly sappy at the end there but that really Lion King does hold such a special place in my heart I can’t not get emotional from it, even when ranting.

One last thing, my theatre was dead silent for most of the film aside from a couple of laughs at Timon and Pumbaa. However, I kid you not, when the lightning struck the tree and caused the fire around Pride Rock at the end, someone in the audience shouted out; “DRACARYS!” and I nearly doubled over laughing!

Speaking of which, Simba finding Mufasa’s body? Game of Thrones already did that scene better with Drogon and Dany. No contest.

#also wtf was up with that fur journey scene #the lion king 2019 #tlk #disney remakes #simba #mufasa #nala

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that-shamrock-vibe · 6 years ago

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Movie Review: Dumbo (Spoilers)

Spoiler Warning: I am posting this review the day after the movie is first released in the U.K, so if you haven’t yet seen the movie, go and see it and then read on.

General Reaction:

/I have fallen in love with Tim Burton’s take on Dumbo, the character not the movie. He is so adorable in places just so full of innocence that it is impossible not to fall in love with him by the end of the movie. The movie is a slow-burn I think depending on your level of enjoyment of the 1941 animated movie as well as your willingness to believe in the Disney magic. I always at least a toe in the pool of Disney magic with any Disney movie I see and that 1% of pure belief actually thought Dumbo was real.

Now when it comes to the movie as a whole, I had a good time. Just like I would if I went to the circus or an amusement park in real life, I enjoyed the spectacle and the wonder what the movie offered me. However, the fact the original animated movie is just 64 minutes whereas this 2019 version is 112 minutes did flare up red lights for me as I didn’t know how exactly they were going to add pretty much an hour of extra content to a movie that pretty much drags as it is from what I remember.

I haven’t seen the original animated movie for about 15 years if not more, but by memory the movie was “A stork brings baby Dumbo to his mother who is part of a travelling circus but he has big ears so everyone sees him as a freak and dress him up as a clown-act. He befriends a mouse who gets him drunk and he sees pink elephants, they both discover he can fly with a feather after meeting a quartet of racially-stereotypical crows who help him reunite with his mother...end of movie”. This was definitely a more fleshed-out and, in my opinion, more adult adaptation while still maintaining Disney’s family-friendly nature.

Focusing on more human characters than just the one ringmaster when you haven’t got that first-hand perspective of talking animals is definitely the right decision, and fortunately they did not pull focus from the start that is Dumbo himself. However, all the main human characters were rather compelling and charming in their own way and all of them simply aided to making Dumbo that much more adorable and cute.

When you hear Tim Burton is directing a movie, you are looking for the wonder, the macabre and the unique Burtonisms that brought us Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman and Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter....in the first Alice movie. However, for the first half of this movie I was not seeing what I was expecting from him, until Dumbo’s first circus performance where we and he see the acts before he goes on...including Burton’s reimagining of the pink elephants. With the original Dumbo had Dumbo drink and see them, I was slightly Burton was going to make a live-action baby elephant drink, fortunately thought it was merely part of the circus performance with pink elephant bubbles that somehow came to life, believe in the Disney magic!

The scene that had me on the edge of my seat was the clown scene when Dumbo was trapped on that ledge with the fire and I was holding my breath so worried for him. When a movie can make me care that much about a CGI elephant it’s something special.

Also, it is slightly concerning that the villain of the movie is essentially Corporate America, in the shape of Michael Keaton. If there were villains in the original I feel it was simply humanity in general whereas here they showed the good, the bad and the corrupted sides of humanity and that, to me, is a lot more realistic and better storytelling.

But when you consider that Keaton’s amusement park “Dremland” is very similar to the theme parks of today and this inspires Danny DeVito’s ringmaster of the circus character to make his circus more family and animal friendly whih also seems to be a very early version of DisneyWorld is either Disney commenting on themselves or on theme parks in general.

Cast:

Aside from the animals, you had many supporting human characters both in the Medici Bros. Circus and Keaton’s business associates. Front and centre is Colin Farrell who is surprisingly a WWI soldier who lost an arm during the war, this was a surprise because it was never revealed in the trailers and the only shots we see of him are most likely with the prosthetic he has. I thought the loss of his wife wasn’t as heavily felt in the movie but his for for his kids was.

The kids were okay, I am not seeing anything great here but I never really see anything great from kids in Disney movies usually, with the exception of Mowgli in The Jungle Book.

Eva Green was fabulous in this movie, I have not yet seen her star power fully shine yet because I am still seeing Helena Bonham-Carter-lite probably because Burton seems to be turning her into that. I thought the French “Queen of the Skies” they created for her was very well used in the context of the movie, the only thing I believe will hurt the character, and Eva Green, is the fact that we have very recently seen a flying trapeze lady with Zendaya’s character in The Greatest Showman and while Colin Farrell’s Holt and Zac Efron’s Phillip Carlyle are different characters, both fill that kind of middle-management/underling in their respective circuses and while Holt and Colette never explicitly have a romance in this movie it does just draw comparisons.

Danny DeVito as a circus ringmaster calls back to his turn as The Penguin in Tim Burton’s Batman Returns because Cobblepot there led a circus troupe although slightly more demonic than this group. Also, from when we first meet Medici, I had so many callbacks to his other Disney role as Philoctites in Hercules with his talk about “Rule number 1″.

As I said Michael Keaton is the villain and reasonable as a villain, although I do feel it draws more on campy than threatening at times. There are a couple of moments when he enters a room and almost sing-speaks to the point where I thought he was going to burst into song, being a Disney movie. But fortunately the only song in this movie is Baby, Mine and not sung by him.

The actual troupe are great diverse characters, however much like Shazam! it does seem to be where the diversity is.as the main cast are all Caucasian. The snake charmer, the strongman and the mermaid are the three that stand out and surprisingly the mermaid is Rae from My Mad Fat Diary. Interesting to see how far people come. She was very wooden, particularly during the song, but she was passable. I particularly loved the elephant breakout plan at the end of the movie as it felt like they all used the strengths that made them circus performers in the first place.

Going Forward:

Because Disney does only really seem to be wanting to be showing updated versions of these animated classics, I don’t see this movie going anywhere after the conclusion of the film. But honestly, that scene where Dumbo and his mother are freed from the amusement park and find safe haven in India along with a herd of their kind was beautiful and seeing Dumbo flying around the grove was the moment where I welled up because it was just so perfect an ending.

However, if they wanted to somehow attempt to link up these live-action movies, they could have had an adult Mowgli appear looking over the grove or seeing Dumbo fly by. I know it may never happen but it would have been exciting, even as a mid-post-credits scene.

Recommendation:

I had a lovely time watching this movie, I never felt bored or like I wasted my time. I would gladly see it again and do remember most of the key moments. If you are someone who wants to believe in the Disney magic then you will see it here, if you are someone who wants an updated version of the animated movie then you will have that. If you just want a great family-friendly movie then you will definitely have that. Just go and have a great time.

Overall I rate the movie a 7/10, it’s a good live-action adaptation ahead of Cinderella and Oz but below Beauty and the Beast and The Jungle Book. Somewhere on par with Maleficent and 101 Dalmatians. I enjoyed myself and I am glad I saw it.

So that’s my review of Dumbo, what did you guys think? Post your comments and check out more Disney Movie Reviews as well as other Movie Reviews and posts.

#dumbo #disney #tim burton #dumbo 1941 #dumbo 2019 #colin farrell #eva green #danny devito #michael keaton

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jamiekturner · 6 years ago

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The animation movies you shouldn’t miss in your lifetime

Animation movies are not simply more sophisticated cartoons. Over the years, they’ve introduced us to some of the best cinema characters, involved us in memorable stories, and gathered millions of fans worldwide.

But which are the best animation movies to see? In fact, what makes an animation movie good? Which was the best animation movie ever?

Of course, everyone can answer these questions differently depending on what they like, but there are a few movies we can all agree were blockbusters. What makes an animation movie stand out are most of the time the characters, story, and animation style.

Here’s our collection of the 30 best animation movies of all times. Give this list a look, and you will certainly find a few of your personal favorites in there.

If not, it is time to explore the animation world and to find new horizons!

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

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Disney’s production has more amazing cartoon movies than we can possibly gather here, but this is the story they’ll always be recognized for – the tale of the beautiful, wandering princess, the mean queen, the handsome savior, and the sidekick band of helpful and funny dwarfs.

The awesome fairytale written by the Grimm brothers was not only the kicker hand-drawn animation of Walt Disney, but also the first animation movie in the history of the moving pictures industry.

Time can do nothing against it – after almost a century, you shed some light over the old painting, and it springs to life!

Fantasia (1940)

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This great animation film brings together the best of the Disney world, Tchaikovsky’s music, and magic. You will be delighted by the unique mixture of Western classical sounds and the visual game of Disney’s characters while Leopold Stokowski leads the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Dumbo (1941)

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A filmmaker from Pixar shared an interesting story with us – his mother who could barely understand English, watched Dumbo and understood what his mom wanted as she interlocked trunks with him inside a circus cage. This is what makes this movie a proper animation hero – you understand it without words!

Bambi (1942)

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Bambi marked some of the best moments in Disney’s history and top animated movies, such as its mother being shot by a hunter and leaving the tiny sweet fawn to fend. More than a cartoon, Bambi is a lyrical and beautiful affirmation of the miracle of life, and stands for values such as family, friends, and our glorious nature. The titular doe of this movie loses its innocence as it’s mother dies, but also grows up virtuously, gains knowledge, and becomes capable of depending itself.

Robin Hood (1973)

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Robin Hood was the first animation movie to be released after Walt Disney died. At the time, it was considered to be an embarrassing, on-budget piece, but time reversed that to one of the best animation movies of all times.

We all know the story of Robin Hood – the hero of the little people who steals from the rich. He was animated several times, but none of his adaptations was as charming and memorable as the one made by Disney’s animators.

The concept was the same as in fairytales – whistling rooster narrators, a maid for Robin to fall in love with (Marian), and a furry squad of brave friends helping Robin recover what Prince John has stolen.

Belladonna of Sadness (1973)

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What inspired Japanese director Eiichi Yamamoto to create this unbelievable psychosexual animation was Jules Michelet’s book on witchcraft and feminism called La Sorciere.

The beautiful yet disturbing piece was released in 1973, and the ones who saw it certainly remember how shocking it was for the standards of that time.

In 2016, there was a new Belladonna release in the U.S., and it had pretty much the same effect on people. Even modern society finds such animated fantasy traumatizing, and is not prepared to embrace how scandalous it is.

For instance, the heroine gets visually assaulted, and some viewers may find that disturbing.

In short, you may like or dislike the story behind it, but this animation is certainly a masterpiece. It was created in a unique and delicate manner, using a pleasing pastel palette of watercolors the human eye enjoys.

Street of Crocodiles (1986)

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Movie production in the 80s was almost entirely digital, but that didn’t prevent visionaries Timothy and Stephen Quay from drawing one of world’s best stop-motion pieces. Their short animation features a hatched-faced puppet with a decaying body that navigates a bunch of dancing screws, and creates a feeling of being stuck in a vivid dream that won’t let you wake up.

The piece attracts interest even today, especially among surrealist and stop-motion artist. The Quays were actually inspired by Jan Svankmajer and the writer Bruno Schultz, two of Poland’s best known names in the surrealism world.

My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

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Two years after Street of Crocodiles, the world was introduced to an even better animated film -My Neighbor Totoro. It has been 30 years since, and this movie still lifts up the spirit of those watching it, as it features one of the most heart-warming stories.

The main characters are two adorable Japanese children leaving their home to find magic. Along the way, they discover a wondrous cat bus and a gentle giant named Totoro who helps them accomplish their mission.

This makes Totoro one of the best cartoon movies suitable for all ages: everyone could enjoy a supernatural, slightly uninhibited delight.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988)

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Robert Zemeckis is the name behind this groundbreaking, hybrid crime/comedy movie. First of its kind, this movie treats the murder of a bunny, and features an iconic toon-loathing detective working on the case.

‘Who Framed Roger Rabbit’ broke all records of production expense. It cost more than any film produced during the 80s, and became the 2nd highest-grossing movie in 1988.

Akira (1988)

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Kanye West appointed Akira as the leader among its favorite films, and many of us can agree with him. The incredibly detailed sci-fi movie doesn’t stay behind names such as Matrix or the Blade Runner, while its imaginative urban setting display makes it the finest Japanese animation ever created. In fact, Akira has become a cult with millions of followers worldwide.

The main protagonist is a Neo-Tokyo teen biker called Tetsuo. Tetsuo’s mission is to release the unlawfully imprisoned psychic Akira, and his way there features the best action scenes ever to be seen in the animation world.

The Little Mermaid (1989)

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There’s almost no girl out there who didn’t dream of becoming a mermaid, and they own this to one of Disney’s most compelling stories. This romantic movie follows the life of beautiful mermaid Ariel whose dream was to have legs and to live on land.

It is with Ariel that Disney’s renaissance took off. We all associated the Faustian tale with making important choices in our life, such as the one Ariel made when giving up her voice to pursue being human.

Her love story with charming prince Eric provided us one of the most memorable movie soundtracks, and we learnt to love her despite of her stubbornness. This is why The Little Mermaid still counts as a favorite Disney movie.

Beauty and the Beast’ (1991)

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Do you remember the love story of Bella and the Beast? Next to the inspiring story of Bella’s pure soul discovering the prince inside a buffalo, this movie caused a drastic change in the world of best animation, causing many people to take it seriously.

Looking at the magnificent ballroom sequence and the couple’s first dance, we found it hard to believe that the film was computer-generated. Actually, Beauty and the Beast was so good that it became the first animated movie to earn a Best Picture Nomination.

Aladdin (1992)

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Yup, these were the golden years of the Disney production of animated films! Following the success of Ariel, Bella, and their prices, animators recreated another iconci character, and that was Aladdin.

Prior to this movie hitting screens, many people were unaware of the inspiring and romantic rags-to-riches story, despite of it being a classic 1001 Nights tale.

It follows the dreams of an open-vested, homeless, and hopelessly in love boy who’d set an eye on a rich and beautiful princess. As hard as his evil enemy Jafar tries to get her, she still falls for Aladdin, the boy with the magic carpet, Robin Williams-voiced genie, and enormous heart.

FernGully (1992)

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FernGully is another classic in the animation world that treats the destruction of Earth and all creatures that live on it. It was created for children, and they loved how protagonist fairy Christa fought against the destruction of her Australian rainforest.

Her assistant was a boy named Zak, and her enemy was a logging company attempting to wreck her world. You may find it interesting to know that this movie inspired Avatar and the creation of princess Mononoke.

Porco Rosso (1992)

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Ain’t this a weird film! And yet, a lovely one! Hayao Miyazaki presented us the story of an ex WWI fighter pilot from Italy, and that pilot happened to be a funny red pig. For protagonist Porco Rosso, being a pig is nothing bad – he still canoodles with beautiful ladies assisted by Fio, his mechanic protégée. This film is both engaging and historically rich, and is definitely worth watching!

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

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As his projections show, Tim Burton comes up with the weirdest pairings ever – beetles and juice, hands and scissors, and this time even Hallowing and Christmas. In this movie, we get to meet the pumpkin king and his sudden Christmas joy. And right when you think it can’t get better, you hear Danny Elfman’s live performance of ‘What’s This’.

The Lion King (1994)

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Here’s another of Disney’s major works with a Shakespearean background. Instead of Hamlet, we’re acquainted with a lion family and their friends from the jungle, and we get to see some of life’s most important values on screen.

The film also has iconic musical sequences – the renowned soundtrack, for instance, is many people’s association of a beautiful childhood.

The music was written by Hans Zimmer, a legend among composers who actually manages to turn emotions into sounds. As Simba and Nala tussle in the grass, their love warms our hearts, the same as Scar’s betrayal makes us angry and eager to help Simba discover that he has no fault for his father’s death.

As we watch on, we get to adore Simba’s little Hakuna Matata friend, or the buds Timon and Pumbaa as they help him become king of the jungle.

Toy Story (1995)

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Toy Story is Pixar’s first and arguably ultimate achievement. It was such a success that it turned the company into a film franchise, and it set the standards of how a perfect movie should look.

We will remember it by the iconic ‘personalities’ of Woody, Hamm, Rex, and Buzz; and for its immense contribution to what toys meant in our lives. According to many viewers, Toy Story is the best animated movie ever!

Perfect Blue (1997)

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Japanese director Satoshi Kon made a pretty successful animated prototype of legendary Black Swan. This movie is far from a pass-time show, and we wouldn’t recommend it for kids in any case. Its protagonist is pop star Mima who decides to try out acting.

Her fans are furious about it, in particular a creepy stalker that tries to invade her life in many different ways. That, however, is not the worst thing to happen to Mima – she starts tormenting herself with her alter ego – an imaginative ‘her’ that questions her decisions, and brings her in all sorts of compromising positions.

This movie is sexually explicit, compromising, and even haunting, and gives us a pretty good overview of celebrities’ troubles with media violence, exploitation, and lack of personal space.

Hercules (1997)

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What better than an animation to make Greek mythology fun? The epic tale of demigod Hercules and his parents Zeus and Hera inspired many professionals in the movie business to bring these characters to life, including beautiful Megara Hercules saves from evil ex-boyfriend Hades.

Even after 20 years, this is a movie every kid should watch – the movie that teaches us that strength is only good when used for a good cause.

Mulan (1998)

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Remember the cute Chinese heroine who joined the army to ensure her dad doesn’t have to go? Hardly did any of us forget her epic appearance on gender’s funeral to ask if there were Huns to fight!

Mulan was also the long-awaited Asian reappearance on screen, and a role model for young women who didn’t abide to sexist norms. She was noble, brave, and extremely fun to watch – just the way we’d all like to be! Along the way, she even fell in love with Captain Li Shang, and gave this amazing story the love crown it deserves.

What made the Mulan movie even more memorable were the voices of the protagonists – the mini dragon Mu Shu was voiced by amazing Eddie Murphy, while the voice behind Mulan’s beautiful interpretation of ‘Reflection’ was none other than Christina Aguilera. Could it get any better?

Princess Mononoke (1998)

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Princess Mononoke is not a typical and soothing animation movie. The visceral and dark story is often considered as Miyazak’s best movie, and there are many reasons for that.

Following Ashitaka’s efforts to reintroduce peace between the generous gods and destructive humans, you are provided with a truly imaginative and epic visual experience. This is why Princess Mononoke became the 7th highest-grossing animation of all times.

The Iron Giant (1999)

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The Iron Giant is a much underestimated animation movie, and we believe this is so because of it being misunderstood. Rather than attaching an ‘antiwar’ label on it, we should look deeper under the surface and understand that Brad Bird’s guns are not simply killing machines – he questions how it’d be if they had a soul. Interesting, isn’t it? Put it on your list!

Chicken Run (2000)

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Chicken run is not just the funny story of a loud rooster and his fellow chickens escaping certain death – it is the stop-motion parable and homage of The Great Escape that shows us how the wreckage of capitalism looks like.

It is also a very well produced piece whose scrappy heroines are to be quoted and remembered, and it definitely deserves a look.

Monsters, Inc. (2001)

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If you’re into animation, there’s no way you missed Monsters, Inc. Its memorable snappy interplay and dizzying action sequences guarantee some serious fun to the viewer, as protagonists Sulley and his single-eyed associate Mike scare children to help Monstropolis.

Ain’t it just great to see these beasts’ freaking out as fearless moppet Boo takes over their turf?

Shrek (2001)

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What made Shrek so popular is without doubt his suitability for audiences of all ages. Children thought of it as a fantastic fairy tale of distressed damsels, dragons, castles, and a princess to be saved. Adults, on the other side, enjoyed the amazing pop culture references this animation had to offer, in particular the great soundtrack that pandered exactly to them.

This movie also has one of the best acting crews behind it – DreamWorks animation chose Cameron Diaz to voice Princess Fiona, Mike Myers to voice the titular ogre, and incredible Eddie Murphy to voice the faithful donkey steed. Could it possibly get better?

Spirited Away (2002)

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Spirited Away was based on Alice in Wonderland, and it was so well execute that it won an Oscar. The legendary tale of a wondering little girl and her magical ride into the land of the Unknown never stopped fascinating people, an effect Joe Hisaishi ensured with his new ideas and great moving instrumentals.

The Triplets of Belleville (2003)

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‘The Triplets of Belleville’ is signed by ‘Illusionist’ producer Sylvain Chomet. It is a family movie of a concerned grandma looking for her grandson, and a piece aiming to warm everybody’s heart. It will impress you from the very first opening sequence, and you will definitely want to watch it again.

Finding Nemo (2003)

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Inspired by the great success of under-the-sea animations, Pixar created what’s perhaps the most fascinating story of its kind – Finding Nemo. Protagonist Nemo is in fact a small clown fish that ventures through the scary sea to find its father, and whose journey is paired with the most exciting adventures.

Nemo meets surprisingly friendly sharks, cute turtles, and other sea creatures that need his help – the most memorable encounter, however, is the one with space cadet Dory, a character viewers loved so much that Pixar made a separate movie about it!

The Incredibles (2004)

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Any animation expert out there can confirm that animation movies are not all about visual. A large portion of their success depends on the story they tell, and Incredibles is a movie that can prove that.

The great comic book inspired an even better movie, as it brought former superheroes Bob and Helen Paar and their family on our screens. We were simply thrilled by villain Syndrome’s crime-fighting revenge, and we can easily compare the action in this anime to any well-rated fighter movie.

RATATOUILLE (2007)

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Here’s one more of Pixar’s masterpieces that combines great visuals, intriguing stories, and memorable characters. It treats the unusual alliance of rodent Remy and kitchen assistant Linguini, both working on Remy’s dream to become the chef of a great French Restaurant.

The best part of the story – their dishes manage to fascinate critic Anton Ego, just the way their personality fascinates the audiences!

WALL-E (2008)

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The Academy Award for Best Animated Feature is not the only great achievement of WALL-E. This movie was also recognized for acknowledging the dangers of pollution and human waste.

WALL-E is the main character in this animation – the Earth’s last robot that’s been alone for 700 years, and has thus developed a very curious ‘personality’. The loner is challenged by a newer robot model coming down to Earth, and the two of them create what’s today one of Disney’s most charming works.

Up (2009)

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‘Up’ has just the right features to delight all audiences – funny characters and exciting chases to make kids laugh; and a precious adventurous experience for the parenting squad. Widower Carl and wilderness explorer and adventurist Carl take us on an unpredictable journey to South America, and lift our spirit up with every achievement. This is a movie you shouldn’t miss!

Coraline (2009)

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Stop-motion animations company Laika picked an interesting book to adapt: Coraline by Neil Gaiman. As a result, they created a scary, yet very exciting movie, showing us how frustrated kid Coraline escapes from her parents and falls into trouble.

Coraline reaches a sinister and creepy world of Stepford-like replacements, including a terrorizing spider lady that follows her around. All she wants is to come back home, and viewers are there to join the journey. Certainly a piece of art!

The Princess and the Frog (2009)

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The Princess and the Frog was created by John Musker and Ron Clements, a popular cinema duo we’d have to thank for masterpieces like Moana or The Little Mermaid.

Their latest hand-drawn fairytale takes place in the jazz age, and follows the story of a waitress who’s in love with an enchanted prince (frog), and becomes a frog herself. Give it a try!

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

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Fantastic Mr. Fox is based on Roald Dahl’s amazing fox story. Screenwriter Noah Baumbah teamed with popular filmmaker Wes Anderson to adapt this tale for our screens, and introduced us to the most popular movie fox ever.

This urban fox struggles to return to its natural wild habitat and save its community – a mission that may cause retaliation against other animal species, or facing one’s own mortality. Now there’s a movie packed with integrity and values that is suitable for all generations!

How To Train Your Dragon (2010)

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‘How To Train Your Dragon’ is one more of Roger Deakins’ cinematography legends – a thrilling and adventurous tale with beautiful painterly visuals, fully 3D enabled flying sequences, and a story to remember.

Instead of picking a celebrity crew to maintain the pop-culture gag, DreamWorks focused on the sequel and let the story lead the way, and that’s where the magic began. The central moment in this animation is the unique friendship of a Viking boy and a dragon, something that’ll remind us all of our beloved childhood pets.

Batman: Under the Red Hood (2010)

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Watching the Under the Red Hood movie, you get a rare chance to experience the real Batman flick without the Joker taking over. In this occasion, Batman tries to defeat an evil vigilante who stops him from restoring order in Gotham City.

We warn you – the movie comes with some serious action and bloodshed, but it is a genuine delight for supporters of this genre.

MONSTERS UNIVERSITY (2013)

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This is the tale of Mike Wazowski, a wannabe Scarer who enrolls at a University of Monsters. The movie follows his rivalry with natural-born Scarer Sulley, as a result of which they’re both kicked out of the program.

What they have to do to get reaccepted is to win the program’s Scare Games. The challenge is – they have to join the least respected fraternity on campus (Oozma Kappa), and they have to work at the same time.

Frozen (2013)

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Frozen won multiple awards for being the best animation film, and owes it to a variety of factor. This tremendous piece warmed our hearts with wonderful characters, as well as a perfected storyline presented to us with amazing graphics.

For those who haven’t watched it, Frozen follows the epic journey of the fearless and positive Anna, as her faithful reindeer Sven and mountain man Kristoff help her find her sister Elsa.

They’re headed to the kingdom of eternal winter Arendelle where Elsa’s icy powers are trapped and endangered. To get there, Anna and Kristoff face a number of terrible obstacles, including snowmen and mystical trolls. Of course, they win in the end.

Ernest & Celestine (2014)

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Ernest & Celestine is an engaging animation film that treats the topic of stereotypes and prejudice. It introduces us to the unusual friendship between street musician Ernest (a bear) and dentist Celestine (mouse) that doesn’t resemble any previous U.S. movie production.

World of Tomorrow (2015)

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World of Tomorrow is one of the best short sci fi movies you’ll ever watch. You will need exactly 16 minutes to explore Don Hertzfeldt’s work of art where he showcases his deep admiration for the sci-fi genre.

The Netflix blockbuster explores a variety of popular topics. As sweet little Emily looks into the future, she meets her own grown-up clone, and joins a memorable, sentimental journey to learn more about her.

Basically, World of Tomorrow has two roles – entertaining toddlers who identify themselves with Emily, and taking adults on a futuristic trip where they question the ideas of cloning, virtual reality, and time travel.

Anomalisa (2015)

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Anomalisa is a very romantic drama/comedy brought to us by director Duke Johnson and screenwriter Charlie Kaufman. At first sight, it is an ordinary love story between a motivational speaker and an ordinary girl named Lisa. What makes it so popular then?

The team did an excellent job putting longing and anxiety on screen, and promoting this film as an accurate study of human character, an analysis of modern malaise, and, well…a parody. The takeaway message to remember this movie by is – Keep going, no matter what!

Ups, we almost forgot. This movie is hilarious!

Inside Out (2015)

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You all remember Inside Out, the masterpiece of animation that won the ‘Best Animated Feature Film’ Academy Award. The leading character is Riley, a girl with personified emotions ready to convey a simple, but meaningful message: We are all human beings, and life doesn’t always treat us nice. This is why critics in Cannes went all crazy about it.

The Little Prince (2016)

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Mark Osborne used Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s classic The Little Prince to create an exciting story about a girl looking for her childhood. The movie is respected for its excellent blend of computer-generated animations and paper cutouts.

Tower (2016)

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Many Hollywood movies treat attacks and incidents in the U.S, but what is really special about Tower is that it does so using animation. The storyline goes back to the 1966 shootings at Texas University, and it blends in a unique way animated characters, genuine broadcasts, and personal testimonies.

The Red Turtle (2017)

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Michaël Dudok de Wit, the Dutch animator to sign this piece, likes to refer to it as an original ode to nature. This hand-drawn miracle is nothing like the previous works of Studio Ghibli – it displays the love story between a mute castaway and a shape-shifting turtle, and it features no words at all.

COCO (2017)

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COCO will be remembered for many things, but most of all for its heart-melting soundtrack ‘Remember me’. This was Pixar’s pioneer musical film, and a piece that won viewers’ hearts as soon as it appeared.

The layered and colorful story takes place in Mexico, where young Miguel Rivera fights to become a renowned musician. His family bans music for him, but he persists pursuing a career like the one of his idol Ernesto de la Cruz.

Doing so, Miguel discovers the secrets in his family’s history, and his charming friend Hector from the Land of the Dead helps him all along.

If you enjoyed reading this article about animation movies, you should read these as well:

The most popular DC animated movies to watch in a lifetime

48 Of The Best Short Animated Films (Oscar winners included)

34 Of The Best Motion Graphics Studios And Their Work

Amazing Adobe After Effects Tutorials You Need To Watch

The Best Animated Movies For Adults: The ones to put on your list

The post The animation movies you shouldn’t miss in your lifetime appeared first on Design your way.

from Web Development & Designing https://www.designyourway.net/blog/inspiration/motion-graphics/animation-movies/

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mearnsblog · 4 years ago

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"The Fox and the Hound" (1981)

I am unsure how "The Fox and the Hound" became a kids' movie. Outside of a couple play scenes and the caterpillar subplot, it definitely does not behave much like a kids' movie! For all the infamy of the shooting of Bambi's mom, Tod's mother gets blasted within the first five minutes of this one. It sets the tone from the start that this is not going to be a good time.

The movie does this little trick where it lures you into some hope with this anthem of Tod and Copper's unlikely camaraderie, "The Best of Friends." By the time the movie reaches its climax, it has essentially flipped you the finger because Copper is now aggressively hunting Tod over a misunderstanding that badly injured his hunting mate, Chief. Isn't that sweet? The best of friends, now at each other’s throat! Yes, Copper eventually prevents his master, Amos Slade, from shooting Tod after the fox saves his life from a bear, but at that point, it's a small solace. As the movie ends, Copper is smiling and thinking about his old pal while Tod looks out at him from a cliff, but they're not really friends anymore. They'll probably never see each other again.

I am not of the illusion that every single kids' movie has to have a happy ending, or that it can't teach hard lessons about life. However, there's a fine line between, say, "Inside Out" reminding children that being sad is part of growing up and an important part of your emotions, and the savage sorrow of "Fox and the Hound."

To recap: Tod's mom gets shot and her fur is mounted. Slade is sometimes nice to Copper and Chief, but also emotionally abuses both of them and focuses more on vengeance against Tod than taking care of his injured dog. Tod's kindly owner, Widow Crane, is forced to release him into the wild preserve to protect Slade from hunting him. (Boy is that scene cutting.) The badger in the preserve shows no sympathy to Tod and isolates him yet again, pressuring the nicer porcupine into not helping Tod afterward either. A bear brutalizes Tod and Copper, who ultimately go their separate ways at the end. The only solace Tod can find is falling in love with Vixey, and I'm sorry, but that does not come close to making this movie palatable, especially since we only meet her with about 20 minutes left. Copper's still stuck with Slade anyway, and Crane is all alone unless you count her going out of her way to help Slade recover from a bear trap. Super.

Maybe the most distressing part of all this is that some on the Disney production team wanted Chief to die in that train accident, too (as he does in the book). Come on, now. We didn't need a dog death on top of all this. They argued that Chief simply being injured wouldn't have motivated Copper enough to turn on Tod, but I'd counter that it would push him too far and he wouldn't be willing to stand up for Tod to save his life at the end. Tod mistakenly thinking that Copper intentionally caused his friend's injury is enough.

A minor nit worth picking is that it's super distracting to have the woodpecker have the same voice as Tigger. I get that Disney reused voice actors, and that's fine. Everyone has to work. But that doesn't mean you should recycle key traits from past characters. Any time the woodpecker did the Tigger laugh, it briefly took me out of the movie, which wasn't helping since the subplot with the birds hunting the caterpillar was mostly a distraction. I kind of understood where Disney was coming from in mixing in another kind of hunter-prey relationship in the background of the Tod/Copper drama to show that nature often just works that way. But again, they're not interesting enough and they futz with the tone.

If Disney wanted to tell a story about how some friendships just don't last, they could tell one without piling on the sadness. It's over the top and unnecessary. The seemingly suggested idea that you might be better off sticking to your own kind (like Tod with Vixey) is not especially modern or helpful, either.

The bottom line is that adapting “Fox and the Hound” into a kids’ movie was not an easy task, so I do have to grade on a curve. Disney was hitting on some heavy issues and I respect what they were trying to go for in the tale of a broken friendship. It’s easier to hit homers when you’re taking big swings, and “Fox and the Hound” was absolutely a big swing. Some parts, like the carefully chosen orchestral score, do a great job of setting tone and cautioning the audience about specific scenes. The seasonal transition to show Tod and Copper growing up is also smart and done better than in "Bambi."

Ultimately though, I can't recommend revisiting this movie, unless you just enjoy leaning into the aforementioned grim aesthetics. It’s worth seeing if you have never done so before, but I don’t understand wanting to return to this story. There’s not much joy in replay value here. If you want to watch a coming-of-age Disney movie with emotional obstacles for the hero to overcome, just put on "Bambi" or "The Lion King." You’ll be better off.

Updated ranking

1. “Cinderella” (review) 2. “Sleeping Beauty” (review) 3. “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (review) 4. “One Hundred and One Dalmatians” (review) 5. “The Jungle Book” (review) 6. “Fantasia” (review) 7. “The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh” (review) 8. “Alice in Wonderland” (review) 9. “Lady and the Tramp” (review) 10. “Pinocchio” (review) 11. “Robin Hood” (review) 12. “The Rescuers” (review) 13. “The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad” (review) 14. “Bambi” (review) 15. “The Aristocats” (review) 16. “Dumbo” (review) 17. “Peter Pan” (review) 18. “Fun and Fancy Free” (review) 19. “The Fox and the Hound” 20. “The Sword in the Stone” (review) 21. “The Three Caballeros” (review) 22. “Make Mine Music” (review) 23. “Saludos Amigos” (review) 24. “Melody Time” (review)

#disney

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robedisimo · 7 years ago

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War for the Planet of the Apes [SPOILER-FREE REVIEW]

[Disclaimer: this review is based on the Italian dub of the film. As such, all opinions on the quality of dialogues and acting are subjective and partial.]

Who’d have thought that a series of prequels revolving around walking, talking, riding-on-horseback primates would become the best film franchise of the decade? At the very beginning, certainly not me: Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) flew completely under my radar, only making its way to me through the home video market and surprising me with its defiant ambition to climb above the bland, pulpy sci-fi expectations surrounding it.

Then came Dawn of the Planet of Apes (2014) and, though I thought I was ready for it this time around, it just blew me out of the water all over again. The trilogy’s second chapter instantly solidified itself as one of my favourite movies of the 2010s, for at least a couple reasons: one, it features at least one of the best scenes in recent cinema history; two, it expands its character arcs in (quite literally) epic directions; three, and this may be the ultimate reason to like the film, it improves upon the first instalment to such a degree that it might actually supersede The Empire Strikes Back as the definitive example of a sequel that surpasses the original.

Amusingly, the Star Wars parallels carry through to chapter three, and not just because of the obvious title cue: War for the Planet of the Apes even starts with its own “opening crawl”, and like Return of the Jedi it’s the longest film in its trilogy. It’s also quite evidently the biggest, broadening the scope, upping the number of different locales the story takes place in, and bringing more tonal variety to the table after a decidedly dark second instalment. It’s a tad strange that the franchise would wait ‘til this late in the game to introduce a small measure of occasional comedy, but it works.

For the most part, however, things do feel definitely familiar. I went into this film completely blind – no trailers or anything, which is a rarity for me – but with certain expectations. After Dawn proved to be such a transformative sequel for the franchise, I expected the final chapter to instead be of the incremental variety, keeping the tone and themes of the second one but amplifying the spectacle. Turns out I was only half right: War for the Planet of the Apes draws heavily from both previous instalments, achieving an interesting blend of all that was good in the trilogy so far and in doing so bringing to a head the entire emotional and thematic arc of the franchise up to this point.

The result is, frankly, impressive. War for the Planet of the Apes is a stunningly huge film at times, packing a lot of story in its admittedly rather sprawling runtime. There’d be much to discuss plot-wise, but since we’re in spoiler-free territory, I’ll just say this: while Dawn of the Planet of the Apes stands untouched as my favourite entry in the franchise – due to a more grounded and overall more focussed story – War’s quality comes dangerously close to that threshold. It’s definitely a film to watch and, like its predecessors, has all the markings of a modern classic.

Perhaps the one thing that weighs this threequel down is precisely its size, and not just in terms of length: its story waxes lyrical, mythical, even melodramatic. Of all three films in the series it’s probably the one that most feels like a film, with the strings moving its plot along clearly visible at times. That’s doubly evident in that the movies it draws inspiration from are rather explicit, in its mix of Apocalypse Now – with Woody Harrelson providing a truly memorable villain turn as a Colonel Kurtz analogue – and The Ten Commandments, with some inkling of the old-school Western genre thrown in for good measure. The movie’s climax in particular takes an overtly biblical turn, which in all fairness is pretty appropriate given the central role of the apes’ religion in the original 1968 film.

The point I’m trying to make, I suppose, is that Dawn felt more cohesively like a story all its own, while War is more transparent in its cinematic debts. That is, fortunately, entirely secondary, as the bulk of these prequels wasn’t the plot – they’re prequels, so we already know how it all turns out in the very end – but rather the characters. And that’s where War for the Planet of the Apes keeps knocking it out of the park, thanks to what are without a doubt the three pillars of this whole franchise.

First, the quantum leap in technology of which this series has been not just a standard-bearer but rather an active instrument, pushing the envelope ever further in the field of motion-capture effects. This is a technically astounding film, and that’s a big part of its impact. If it weren’t for this level of movie magic, you’d never be able to ask an audience to identify more with an animal mask – whether rubber or pixels – than an actual human face. It’s all the more impressive when you realise that at its core this essentially still functions on the same principle as Who Framed Roger Rabbit: it’s still flesh-and-blood actors interacting on screen with cartoons, except our animation technology has progressed to such lengths that digital characters are now closer than ever to being virtually indistinguishable from the real thing.

Second, director Matt Reeves has balls of steel. I can think of very few other filmmakers who would dare to present the blockbuster crowd with an almost-silent film, and after experimenting with sign-language conversations in Dawn the concept is exploited with even greater frequency in this final chapter. There are a couple scenes in which the execution is a tad clumsier than I’d have liked, but what the gimmick has lost in subtlety it more than makes up for in thematic heft, for reasons both plot-related – again, no spoilers here – and character-driven. Caesar is the one ape who speaks throughout the film, and that immediately paints him in our eyes as something more than beast, and closer to human than his primate companions, despite that impression being both entirely wrong and at the very root of the human characters’ discriminatory treatment of the franchise’s protagonists. There’s something to chew on there about how we tend to see a human being in even the non-anthropomorphised animals from The Jungle Book, provided that they speak as we do, more than we see one in a fellow man speaking a language we don’t understand.

On top of all that, Reeves is just a darn good director: War for the Planet of the Apes is a wonderfully shot film, with a number of great directorial choices – especially in dialogue scenes – and plenty of memorable imagery. If it weren’t for the fact that he’ll be busy helming a new Batman movie series – which is just one more reason to have hope for the DCEU’s eventual redemption – I’d definitely be campaigning for Disney to snatch Star Wars IX away from Colin Trevorrow’s dubious clutches and hand it over to him.

And third, this whole franchise simply wouldn’t be there without Andy Serkis’s performing genius. Caesar’s character journey through this trilogy is easily the pinnacle of his acting career so far, the product of years spent refining a very specific craft that’s only now starting to become less and less of a niche. You can see it in every frame he’s in: from his hauntingly soulful eyes to the small, recognisable mannerisms in his brow and lips, this is a performer who can just radiate character – not to mention, natural charisma – even through the heaviest digital make-up. His work on this series may not be as iconic or industry-changing as his seminal performance as Gollum, but it’s definitely more mature, and way more engaging. The amount of man-hours an army of animators poured into the character, making it a collective effort, means Serkis will never win an Oscar for this film; nonetheless, let it be known that it would be nothing short of scandalous to deny him a nomination.

So, to wrap up this long-winded review: a franchise based on the premise of chimpanzees taking over the world simply had no right to be as good as this prequel series got. It’s epic, it’s gorgeous, it’s deeply moving and, like the best sci-fi, it’s a haunting reflection on what it means to be human, through its deceptively ludicrous imagery of apes with guns. War of the Planet of the Apes ties together a trilogy while paving the way for further evolution – no pun intended – of the Apes franchise at large, and I for one welcome our new primate overlords.

[Verdict: VERY POSITIVE]

#KenAtTheMovies #War for the Planet of the Apes #review

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dontshootmespence · 8 years ago

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Becoming Real: I’ll Be In My Blanket Fort

The next installment of Becoming Real. Spencer and Luke have been introducing Diana to all of the Disney movies because they are going to surprise her with a trip to Disney World soon. @coveofmemories @the-slytherin-ice-queen @cosmicjennifer

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They were all ready. Diana’s dads had woken up two hours earlier than normal because they were planning to surprise their daughter this morning. At 6 AM, they woke up and grabbed every sheet the owned, draping them over the entire living room. Their ongoing endeavor to introduce Diana to every major Disney movie was going as planned, and today was going to be a Disney movie day, complete with blanket fort, coloring and food.

Now, it was 8 o’clock, and Diana was just coming out of her bedroom, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes as she dragged Thumper behind her by the ear. When she looked up, the early morning hour they woke seemed totally worth it. In addition to the sheets that were draped over the living room, they’d also strung up some plain white lights to look like stars. “What’s this?” She smiled, bringing her bunny friend close to her chest.

“This is a blanket fort for you, Daddy and I,” Luke replied, kneeling down to kiss Diana on the forehead. “We are going to watch more Disney movies today.”

Spencer brought out her favorite coloring book and a box of crayons and placed them on the floor in front of the TV. “And we’ll color and eat in here too.”

“Can we have mac and cheese today?” she asked. Whenever there was a “special occasion,” she knew she could ask for unhealthy food. Of course, Luke had already read her mind and bought mac and cheese just for the occasion.

Luke nodded as he sat down cross-legged in front of the TV and looked at their collection of movies. After watching the major ones up through the 1960s, including Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Lady and the Tramp, The Sword and The Stone, and The Jungle Book, it was time to move into the 1970s, which only had a couple major ones - one of them being The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. “Pooh Bear!” she screamed, coming to sit in Luke’s lap. “And Thumper looks like Rabbit.”

As Spencer dimmed the lights, Luke started the movie. “I like Pooh Bear,” Diana said about halfway through. “Everyone thinks he’s dumb and all he cares about his honey, but he doesn’t. He’s not really smart, but he cares about the things that matter.”

“That’s right, baby,” Luke said proudly as he brushed her hair. He’d had to study how to take care of her hair, but both he and Spencer had mastered the art recently. “What should we watch next?” Spencer laid out the next few choices in front of her, and not surprisingly, she picked out The Little Mermaid.

When the movie started, Diana got up and started dancing around the fort, singing at the top of her longs. Although this was the first time she’d seen the movie, she had heard the music before, so she already knew all the words. “Why does she want to be human?” she asked. “If I was her, I would want to stay a mermaid.”

Luke and Spencer happened to agree. That famous line came up - you know, the one about Ariel being 16 and not being a child anymore? - and both fathers laughed under their breaths. That’s how they knew they were old. “She is most definitely a child,” Spencer chuckled, leaning his arms back to sit up, his left hand gently placed over Luke’s.

After The Little Mermaid came to a close, Spencer asked if they wanted lunch, crawling out of the blanket fort to start making some mac and cheese. “Can we eat in here while we watch Beauty and the Beast next?” Diana asked excitedly, jumping up and down at the thought.

“Absolutely!” Spencer replied, peeking his head underneath the blankets. “And I have a surprise for you and Dad.”

“Really?” Luke asked, a surprised smile crawling across his face as Spencer nodded.

Within a few minutes, Spencer returned to the fort with three bowls of mac and cheese and three peanut butter cups as a surprise. “Oh, you do love me,” Luke said, opening the peanut butter cup and stuffing it in his face before going for his mac and cheese. “I love you.” Spencer practically collapsed from laughter as Luke smiled with chocolate and peanut butter still stuck in his teeth.

“So, what’s Beauty and the Beast about?” Diana asked. “I’ve heard you talk about it before, but I don’t know what it’s about. I just know Belle is Daddy’s favorite princess and Dad’s is Jasmine.”

“I do love Belle,” he said, winking at Luke. Although happily married to each other, both he and Luke had relationships with women in the past. “Beauty and the Beast is about a prince who is transformed into a Beast when he turns away a lonely traveler. He turned her away because he thought she was ugly. Then one day, a girl from nearby wanders into the Beast’s castle to find her father who’s disappeared. The Beast imprisons her in the castle, and before the last petal falls on his enchanted rose, he has to get the girl to fall in love with him, otherwise he’ll be a monster forever.”

Diana’s eyes widened at the story. Obviously, more interested in this movie than any one they’d previously watched. Her eyes affixed themselves to the screen and after the first song, she asked if Luke or Spencer would download the soundtrack for her. “He’s giving her a library?!” Diana asked, walking up to the screen and touching all the “books.” “That would make me fall in love with the Beast. A big library with all of the books and no one to bother me while I read.”

This was yet another moment that convinced Spencer that despite not being biologically connected to Diana, she was without a doubt his little girl. “That’s my baby,” he said, lifting his hand up for a high five. “Speaking of books, do you want to start reading Harry Potter together soon?” He’d been talking about it for a couple of months and she was finally ready to start reading it. She was going to attempt to read the words and he and Luke would help her along the way. After Beauty and the Beast was over, Luke fell asleep on the floor, and Diana looked like she could use a nap, so Spencer grabbed a blanket and put it over all three of them as the took a random Saturday nap, woken up about an hour and a half later by an excited Diana who was ready for the next movie.

“Aladdin now! I have to see your favorite princess,” she said, pushing on Luke to wake him up. He reached up, grabbing Diana and bringing her into his chest as he woke up with the intensity of a sleeping bear - as in, not intense at all. “This is the one with the genie, right?”

Spencer nodded his head. They were in the golden age of Disney movies. He loved all of these movies, even though Belle was by far his favorite princess. “This movie was inspired by the folktale Aladdin and the Magic Lamp from One Thousand and One Nights.”

“Is that a book?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. With the nod of Spencer’s head, she continued. “I’m gonna read that one day too.” Yet again, after the first song, she begged to have the soundtrack put into her music so she could listen to it at night. They would do anything to give some variety to the Disney music they listened to. They’d loved Moana, but they hadn’t heard much else in the past few months and they were starting to go batty. “I think the Genie is one of my favorite characters so far,” she said, giggling like crazy during the Genie’s crazy monologue. “He’s funny.”

“That he is, honey,” Luke replied. While the movie continued, Diana pulled up her coloring book, happily coloring away while she sang some of the music. After the movie, they still had a couple hours until dinner, so they decided to take a break, eat dinner and then watch one more movie before bed. “Lion King will be the last one for today,” Luke said, excited to be leaving off on his favorite Disney movie ever. “I love this one.”

After dinner, Diana went back to sitting in Luke’s lap; they’d been switching on and off with each movie. “I think we’re going to have to watch this one again,” Spencer whispered, poking Luke and pointing towards his chest. It was still a bit on the early side, but Diana had passed out on Spencer’s chest, Thumper still clutched in her arms while Can You Feel The Love Tonight played in the background.

“When did she pass out?” Luke asked. Neither had a clue. But it didn’t matter. Today had been an amazing day, so they’d be glad to do it again. The more Disney the better. Plus, they still had quite a few movies to go through before revealing their big surprise to their little girl.

#otp: it's all good #spencer reid x luke alvez #spencer reid #luke alvez #reidvez #ralvez #dontshootmespence #becoming real

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elizas-writing · 8 years ago

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Editorial: What Makes a Good Disney Remake?

Since the release of the live-action Beauty and the Beast, Disney fans are starting to get on edge about the remakes. I haven’t really seen anyone who 100% liked it, and for some fans, it just pissed them off. This doesn’t exactly help with the news to follow that 19 Disney remakes are in the works.

Nine. Freaking. Teen. Remakes?? (Including spin-offs and sequels)

A lot of these are still rumors, and whether or not they’ll actually hit the production stage is a whole other story. But still, nineteen? Really? Who’s asking for all these? Do I seriously need a backstory for Cruella de Vil?

At this point, it’s starting to feel like the Disney Sequel era all over again; just a bunch of cash grabs banking on nostalgia with little to no effort put in to capture the same passion. And there doesn’t seem to be a limit on what they plan to remake, regardless of its popularity among the Disney community or pop culture in general.

So this got me wondering, what actually makes a good Disney remake?

Now, I try not to be a purist in regards to Disney remakes. I want to give the benefit of the doubt as much as I can, regardless of what expectations I hold certain movies by. Hell, I was willing to give Beauty and the Beast the benefit of the doubt for a while up until I heard Emma Watson sing. And in theory, remaking the Disney classics isn’t a bad idea, because for as great as masterpieces as many of them are, a lot of them (particularly the older films) aren’t the most perfect at storytelling. A lot of them can have plot holes, inconsistent pacing, underdeveloped characters, and way too much filler.

Take Cinderella for example. It’s a good movie in its own right, and it’s the one most people will usually go to when they think of the fairy tale. But way too much time to the film is given to the mice who don’t add anything to the overarching plot, leaving Cinderella and her prince underdeveloped as characters and especially as a romance. This was something the live action film fixed by giving the two leads more screen time, particularly before the grand ball.

I’m going to take a look through some of the remakes I’ve seen (sorry, Cinderella and Pete’s Dragon won’t be on here as I haven’t seen those) and briefly go over what worked and what just straight up failed. Keep in mind some of this is a bit opinion based, but I am trying to keep a balance between the good and the bad. Take it for what it’s worth.

Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass

I mean, you’d think Tim Burton tackling Alice in Wonderland would be perfect, right? Well...

I’ll give it credit that it does go for an angle of what if we saw Alice years later going back to Wonderland. Nothing new as we’ve seen in American McGee’s Alice but still a fun concept to play with. And there are some fun and interesting character designs with just the right amount of exaggerations. But everything else feels so dark and dreary and takes away all the whimsical-ness of Wonderland, and it starts taking itself WAY too seriously with talks of prophecy and trying to go back in time and fix things, like you’re not making Lord of the Rings here. You’re adapting a nonsensical book made for a ten-year-old girl. It also tried to throw in some girl-power Jane Austen-esque themes which don’t even fit in well and just get muddled in an incoherent narrative that can’t be bothered to try to make Alice an interesting character. She’s mostly there to move the plot along and throw some first-wave feminist one liners. And by the second movie, uuuuugggh just... what even was that mess?

Maleficent

Retelling a classic fairy tale from the villain’s perspective and it turns out they’re not the villain? Why not?

On one hand I do really like this story, especially as it presents a very obvious rape metaphor with Maleficent losing her wings thanks to Stefan, and she learns to love again in a new way. Diaval is a fun character by expanding the crow’s role. While there’s some CGI overuse, it does have beautiful scenery and fairies. And give credit, they actually got a 16-year-old to play Aurora. But honestly, this is a film that could have worked better as an original story. Just change the characters names, tweak up the script, and you got a pretty solid movie.

And there’s no denying the question: Why did this movie need to exist? Yeah, I know it’s trying to go for a Wicked sort of route but Maleficent’s transition back to a good character just feels rushed, and they don’t take enough time to actually go through what she did. Not to mention, her arc is done at the expense of making characters like the Three Good Fairies HUGE IDIOTS. A lot of people also didn’t even feel the need to make her sympathetic cause this is one of the best Disney villains of all time. We didn’t really need an explanation why she’s evil; she just is and loves every minute of it. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

The Jungle Book

I stand by this as the best of the Disney remakes as well as just being a great film in general.

Not only is there impressive hyper-realistic CGI at work (I mean look at Bagheera here!), but it actually fixed the major problem with the original 1967 film: Cut out the filler. There’s more focus on Mowgli and his wolf family and how he survives as a human in the jungle. There are more scenes from the Ruyard Kipling book. Shere Khan is a way more intimidating villain with wonderful work by Idris Elba. And you see Mowgli go through more of a coming of age story as he finds his place in the world, and he’s also innovative in the ways he survives in the jungle. Mad props to Neel Seethi for this being his first major film and working entirely against blue screens. It can’t be easy, but you know he had a great director to work with, which is a lot saying for child actors who many of which do rely on, well, their directors to give a good performance.

I’m honestly grasping at straws to find anything that didn’t work in the film. At the most, the songs they kept didn’t add much, and Kaa and King Louie don��t do much for the story besides some exposition and kick ass visuals. But those are just nitpicks if I have to be honest.

This was the movie that got my hopes up for Disney remakes, which is saying a lot given that I thought the 1967 film was just okay. It’s the perfect balance of updating and adding to the story while also paying homage to the original.

And then...

Beauty and the Beast

Oh.. this freaking movie.

It’s definitely a beautiful looking movie, and it tries to introduce new plot elements. Key term: tries. Anything new just feels slapped in and is never developed any further. Belle and Beast both having dead mothers? Beast having an abusive father? Belle being an inventor? That book where they can travel anywhere in the world? The Enchantress being there the whole time? None of that (and possibly more) is ever brought up again. Most of the film just felt like a frame-by-frame remake, and at that point, I’m better off watching the original film that was fine as is. Only a few select songs are well-performed, and hell, only a select few actors are trying to give some passion. I felt way more for the servants than I did the main couple.

Like I said, now it’s feeling like cash grabs banking on nostalgia. How did we go from a really good remake to a really bad one? It astounds me.

And which such a huge list of remakes, it’s really concerning as to if anything new will be done or if they’ll just continue making frame-by-frame the same damn thing. But we also need the new ideas fully fleshed out and will work in the final product. Yet with some of these remakes, what more can you do? Classics like The Lion King and Aladdin are practically perfect as is. We’ve seen Peter Pan done to death, what else can you cover? Who the hell is asking for a Dumbo remake when the original was made on a shoestring budget, not to mention you gotta cut out the racist crows?

Part of me still wants to give the benefit of the doubt, but after such a disappointment like Beauty and the Beast, it’s still discouraging to think most of these will be crap. Maybe Disney will see some of the criticisms and actually take those to heart and make films worthwhile and give us something we want to see. But for now, I’m hesitant for what the future holds and if they can make good remakes of their own films.

#disney #disney remake #disney remakes #my writing #editorial

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unusual-ly · 8 years ago

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Ok I need to ramble a bit about the live action Beauty and the Beast cuz I went to see it with Yazi last night and tbh it was brilliant. Gonna put this under a read more just cuz there's quite a bit (and when I say quite a bit I mean way too much especially about LeFou)

First off, my stance on the whole live-action-remakes-of-classic-animated-Disney-films is that I don't think they're exactly necessary but that doesn't mean I won't enjoy them. I enjoyed Cinderella, Maleficent and Jungle Book and I definitely enjoyed Beauty and the Beast, it's probably my fav of the remakes so far

Every scene/song that was kept the same or very similar to the original made me super nostalgic and a bit teary-eyed and the changes/new stuff were fun and interesting. Be Our Guest was frickin wild but my fav song they kept from the original was Belle, I just loved the choreography, the cinematography, Emma Watson's voice and absolutely everyone's acting in that scene. My fav new song was Evermore (which I'm listening to on repeat rn it's beautiful and the sequence was so moving to watch)

I have adopted 2 new sons: the Beast and LeFou. They are precious and I love them

The Beast isn't too different from the animated version but there was a few little things that seperate them. Both versions are great, but still, live action Beast was so nice to watch develop and like I said, his song Evermore is amazing. His final fight with Gaston was so tense I was so scared for him. Protect my furry child

Now, LeFou. Wow, LeFou is really different in this version, he's much deeper and sort of has his own little subplot. And he's smarter, much smarter than Gaston at least. The name "LeFou" doesn't really suit him tbh he's not a fool in the slightest. So I'm now headcanoning that it's a nickname Gaston gave him to try and big himself up more in comparison (and I kinda want to find a real name for him now). I know there's been some controversy around how LeFou is gay in this version and people saying how it's not good representation cuz he's a villain and the animated version apparently played off a homophobic character archetype. Course I can't say too much on that but me and Yazi talked about it and we've agreed he's at least a pretty decent gay character in the live action version. So his whole thing is that he's obviously got a Big Dumb Crush on Gaston and from what I've read, the idea is that he's kind of figuring out his sexuality and his feelings during the story. Throughout the whole film, LeFou pretty much watches over Gaston, calms him down when he gets worked up, fawns over him, bribes the other villagers into bigging him up during the song Gaston but he's constantly having second thoughts about if he's doing the right thing. He's always trying to change Gaston's mind and stop him from getting too violent or extreme. (SPOILERS FOR PRETTY MUCH THE REST OF THIS PARAGRAPH!!) The worst thing he does is only hesitating when Gaston ties up the unconscious Maurice and leaves him to the wolves but he feels awful and he's relieved when Maurice comes back safe. And where the animated LeFou was super into it in the Mob Song, live action LeFou at that point is starting to think maybe he shouldn't be doing this. There's an extra part in the song where he sings "there's a beast running wild, there's no question, but I fear the wrong monster's released". He realises Gaston is wrong and going too far and that he's got himself caught up in it. Then when they're actually fighting the enchanted servants Gaston betrays LeFou - he lets him get beat up and almost crushed just to protect himself. During this scene LeFou catches Mrs Potts and saves her from smashing on the floor and they have this brief little talk that's basically "I was on Gaston's side but idk anymore it's not working out" "oh you're too good for him" "true". Then in the ballroom scene at the end you see him dancing with a woman for a bit then the partners switch and he comes face to face with this cute guy and is just like "oh". Hopefully that guy treats him better than Gaston

Damn I wrote a lot about LeFou but he was such an interesting character and had a lot of funny, touching and emotional moments

The cast was quite racially diverse. Granted all of the main cast was white but a lot of the secondary cast were POC and they were all good people, no antagonistic or stereotypical characters. Notable characters: the priest Pere Robert who Belle borrows her books from, Plumette, Lumiere's girlfriend who became a feather duster and Madame Garderobe, the singer who became the armoire. Also two interracial couples! Besides Lumiere and Plumette, Madame Garderobe is married to Maestro Cadenza. The villagers were really mixed in their races too

Belle is demiromantic and asexual fight me. The scene near the beginning when Gaston's trying to convince her to marry him has the classic "you should be concerned about having your own children" "I'm not ready to have children" and that alone is a feminist thing and a good moment for Belle but I also take something about the way she says it and her expression when she says it as a hint that she's not interested in sex. Plus I already headcanoned Belle as ace anyway. She's demiromantic because it takes time for her to become good friends with the Beast and then she starts to fall for him. It's when they've properly bonded that something really happens

I won't spoil this bit but you should know that the backstory about Belle's mother is heartbreaking. Prepare yourselves

A lot of small plot holes from the original film got filled in such simple ways. Aside from what happened to Belle's mother, there's the whole problem with the timeline not working with the Beast's age fixed by changing the line "10 years we've been rusting" to "too long we've been rusting" and the painting of the prince shows him actually being younger, how Belle was strong enough to get the Beast onto Philippe after he saves her from the wolves just with her telling him "you have to help me, you have to stand" and why everyone apparently loves Gaston with no real explanation - he's a war hero. There's a few others but I can't remember them rn

I am very angry at myself because I didn't realise Emma Thompson was playing Mrs Potts until she turned human again and I love Emma Thompson I should have been able to tell Ly how could you

Belle is a furry. That is all

#Beauty and the Beast #shut up Ly #LeFou

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docmurph12 · 5 years ago

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Alright so the last review was a lot of fun, so I kind of want to do another one. I dont know who is even reading these but it's a blast watching these with a critical mind rather than a fanboy one and writing a semi professional review. I think I'm going to make a hobby of this. Anyways.

So this one I was actually a lot more hopeful for than I was for Aladdin. Maybe as a result I was....let down more than I was watching Aladdin. I am actually writing this after about the first 20 minutes of the film. I'm not going to post until I'm finished with it, but I dont see a lot changing here, and you will know why in a moment, so don't hold your breath for a rollercoaster review, because it's going to be about as flat as the film was.

So going in, I knew what I signed up for at least. Sarah was a little bitter, having to rewatch the first 15 minutes again. I'm going to say this is almost a SHOT for SHOT remake. I mean FRAME FOR FRIGGING FRAME, LINE FOR LINE. Even the timing is ALMOST EXACTLY THE SAME. Honestly I might be just as much to blame for this as the next guy. I wear nostalgia glasses loudly and proudly. Just take a look at my living room. But the further I got into this thing the more I found myself asking "Is this truly what I wanted?" A few points before I finish this thought, because I am definitely going to lose my train of thought between the baby and the continuing movie.

-This feels like Disney wanted to go shot for shot, and only partially committed. Shots were almost copied verbatim, could have been traced in some cases, but because they were going live action.....I dont know how else to explain it but if there were an uncanny valley for animated animals it undoubtedly lives here, in the "Pridelands".

-Unfortunately the voice casting suffers a bit here too. It certainly isnt helped by the...lifeless animation (yes I know live action animals dont generally emote, but for christ's sake all things considered it's the goddamned Lion King. Come on now), but the performances are largely flat and dull. Standouts in disappointment especially pointed at the death of Mufasa, large parts of James Earl Jones' performance (mostly just because you can hear the age in his voice, where in 1994 he sounds about where he should have been age wise. There is a youthfulness in his wisdom that literally is bringing tears to my eyes thinking of the strength of that performance, compared to this one), NOT Jeremy Irons, oh sorry, Chiwetel Ejifor, and the shameless insertion of Beyonce (sorry folks, she is the Kristen Stewart of voice acting, and clearly in it just for the money as opposed to actually adding anything to the craft).

-There should not have been so much freedom allowed with the musical performances. With a couple small exceptions, The vocal performances were stale. It kind of felt like the performances were a meal and SO much was eaten up by the original performers that there just wasn't much left for the usurpers, or that they just didnt know what the hell to do with it.

-All hate aside, this film is visually stunning. I sort of hated the animal performances, or lack thereof anyways, but it is still a beautifully realized film. My favorite scene visually is 1000% where Simba is speaking with the spirit of his father, and the lightning is rolling through the clouds, outlining parts that look like a lion's head, instead of outright just being fully visible. Fucking beautiful. (By the way, we just got through the final fight between Scar and Simba. I didnt know it was possible to trace a cartoon with a computer but they did it. W......T......F......of course it has to happen as I'm complimenting it.....)

-Seth Rogan and Billy Eichner were pretty charming. The only outstanding performances in the movie from top to bottom. That said, Donald Glover was pretty good too. Speaking of exceptional performances in the face of an overall poorly performed film, my OTHER favorite part of the film was the three of them singing The Lion Sleeps and running through the oasis. Holy shit that was charming.

-Sad and kind of disappointing was the fact that the VERY little original writing, or improv, or whatever the hell it was was really good. I loved the quipping between Timon and Pumbaa, and it was REALLY good when it went a little meta. The fart joke and the piece about "Be our guest" was immediately recognized as both reverent reference and irreverent ribbing and was appreciated by both me and Sarah. Sort of shines a disappointing eye on Jon Favreau. I loved what he was able to accomplish with The Jungle Book. I realize he probably didnt do a lot of the screenwriting on either film, but with producer credits comes criticism for laziness where high quality is expected. Cmon man, I love what you do. SO DO IT ALREADY.

-I largely think this film could have been helped on a few fronts with one improvement. OR possibly changing a way the movie was put together, that is, if what I THINK happened was what actually happened. Animated films originally gave you a at minimum believable performance by capturing the physical performance of the voice actor performing ADR, and giving a rough animation estimate of that performance, since movement and expression largely impact what comes out vocally. I am not 100% sure that isn't what happened, but it FEELS like it didnt happen. If animating aspects of physical performances isnt the route, I genuinely think that having a sort of facial motion capture coupled with ACTUAL emoting could have drastically improved performances. It's interesting to see what happens when you put primarily voice actors in front of a camera, or primarily screen/stage actors in front of an ADR microphone. You can truly see the depth (or sometimes lack of) of their abilities as actors. One of my absolute favorite voice actors is Bryan Cranston, for that very reason. Unbelievable performer, in every arena. One of my least favorites is FUCKING BEYONCE. Goddamn is she a one trick pony, if that trick was simply existing. Truly a MASTER OF THAT CRAFT. That said, its 2019 (at that point), if we can give Andy Serkis EVERY tool to be successful, Disney should be able to put out a LITTLE Disney money to allow their actors to, you know, act.

Long (looooooooooooooooong) story made super short is The Lion King (2019) is more of the same, and symptomatic of a problem we created for ourselves: Shameless money grabs at nostalgia. Disney miscued like crazy at remaking a thing I didn't realize until only now how precious it was to me as a kid. Couple that with the fact that they have done SIGNIFICANTLY better doing the same thing but doing a different take, with a different, more modern and possibly more poignant message (I'm looking DIRECTLY at you, Maleficent). Honestly, as much as it KILLS the kid in me to say it, leave the sacred cows alone. Sometimes a good thing just needs to be left to be admired. Nobody ever thought they needed to improve on, say, Miles Davis' Kind of Blue, Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, or Ridley Scott's Blade Runner with a sequel or a remake. Wait. Shit. I mean Lewis Carroll's Alice in WonderlandGODDAMNIT. I QUIT.

Verdict--4/10. Seriously please make it stop at Mulan. I really want to see that one, see it not suck, and see it STOP. And for the love of god PLEASE DONT CAST BEYONCE IN IT.

#lion king #disney #movie #review

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weekendwarriorblog · 6 years ago

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WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND November 30, 2018 - The Possession of Hannah Grace

Finally! A long-needed reprieve from the slew of fall releases with a weekend where there’s only one new wide release … and it’s the textbook definition of a “dumper,” too. At least all the Thanksgiving releases did better than I predicted, particularly Creed II, and they should continue to dominate over the next couple weeks until a bunch of new wide releases open on December 14.

THE POSSESSION OF HANNAH GRACE (Sony/Screen Gems)

I’m not even sure what to say about this horror movie, originally called “Cadaver,” except that it was directed by Dutch filmmaker Diederik Van Rooijen (no, I don’t know that name either) and that it’s been on the shelf for quite some time. Presumably, it’s a leftover from the Clint Culpepper Screen Gems that was famous for making low-budget horror films that would be bounced around the release calendar, sometimes for years. This one is about the found corpse of a young girl who may have been killed via exorcism.

This was originally supposed to open in the summer of 2017, but like so many other Screen Gems films, it was continually pushed back, so now it follows the studio’s summer horror release Slender Man, which probably should have done better than its $30.6 million domestic gross. The it wound up on the less-than-desirable weekend after Thanksgiving, a known dumping ground.

Regardless, various horror hits have proven that having bankable stars isn’t completely necessary, and one thing that Possession has going for it is exactly that, having the word “possession” in its title, because it’s something that still holds a lot of interest for horror fans. Having the word “exorcism” in the title helped Scott Derickson’s debut The Exorcism of Emily Rose and The Last Exorcism, though not the latter’s unfortunate sequel. Chances are that few over the age of 20 will have any interest in the movie even with stronger horror films like Halloween and Overlord mostly vacating theaters.

Like Slender Man, this movie doesn’t really have any bankable stars, with Shay Mitchell from Pretty Little Liars being the film’s biggest name, followed by Grey Damon, Mirror Master from The Flash.

On top of that, Screen Gems is only opening Possession in less than 2,000 theaters, another pointer that it shows little faith in the movie, as does the fact it won’t be screened in advance for critics (another Screen Gems practice of olde). I’m sure that the critics forced to pay to see the movie on Thursday night to review will just be THRILLED to write raves about a movie that few will know or care about. Frankly, I’ll be shocked if The Possession of Hannah Grace gets anywhere near the top 5 this weekend, and a 7th place opening with between $5 and 6 million would be about as good as it should get.

This week’s Top 10 should look something like this…

1. Ralph Breaks the Internet (Disney) - $24.5 million -56% 2. Creed II (MGM) - $18.5 million -48% 3. The Grinch (Universal) - $14 million -54% 4. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (Warner Bros.) - $12.7 million -57% 5. Bohemian Rhapsody (20thCentury Fox) - $7 million -50% 6. Instant Family (Paramount) - $6.5 million -48% 7. The Possession of Hannah Grace (Sony/Screen Gems) - $5.3 million N/A 8. Widows (20thCentury Fox) – $4.4 million -47% 9. Robin Hood (Lionsgate) - $3.9 million -58% 10. Green Book (Universal) - $3.3 million* -40%

*UPDATE: Universal didn’t expand this into more theaters as I expected, so I’ve lowered my number accordingly. Maybe the studio will expand it further next week.

LIMITED RELEASES

While there’s only one new wide release, there’s plenty of limiteds, and two of the most high-profile ones are from Netflix, one that’s also streaming Friday, the other streaming in December. For those who want to go out this weekend, there’s also a musical-comedy to put horror fans into the holiday spirit that’s been running the genre fest circuit…

Those who have been waiting for this year’s big holiday musical zombie comedy are in luck, because John McPhail’s ANNA AND THE APOCALYPSE (Orion Pictures) comes out Friday after playing almost every genre festival going back to Fantastic Fest 2017. Taking place in the town of Little Haven, it stars Ella Hunt as Anna, a young woman planning for her high school holiday musical whose world is turned upside-down by the zombie apocalypse, but that’s not going to stop her and her friends from breaking out into song. I saw this film a few months back, and I was mixed on it, partially because it’s such an obvious homage to Shaun of the Dead but also has very modern poppy songs that really weren’t my cup-of-tea. I know a lot of people who love the movie, though, and if you want a fun time, I think the film is quickly becoming a cult classic among those who have seen and dug it.

MOWGLI: LEGEND OF THE JUNGLE is Andy Serkis’ second feature as a director, and as you may have guessed, it’s based on the same Rudyard Kipling novel “The Jungle Book” that inspired the Disney movies, using the performance capture CG technology Serkis perfected in the “Planet of the Apes” movies. Featuring performances and voices by Cate Blanchett (voicing the python Kaa), Christian Bale (as Bagheera), Benedict Cumberbatch (Shere Khan) and Serkis himself as Balloo, this is a much darker take on the material, probably not for very small kids, but I liked it more than the Jon Favreau Disney movie, maybe because it handles things more seriously. I also thought newcomer Rohand Chand was a much more palatable Mowgli. The film does decently when it’s just Mowgli and talking animals, but gets even better when humans are introduced into the story. Netflix will give Mowgli a limited theatrical release before streaming on the network starting Dec. 7.

The latest GKIDS animated contender to the Disney animated Oscar domination is MIRAI (GKIDS), the new film from filmmaker Mamoru Hosoda (Summer Wars, Wolf Children) along with Japan’s Studio Chizu. It’s about a four-year-old boy named Kun, whose parents give him a baby sister named Mirai (or “future”), who he immediately is jealous of due to the attention she gets. I watched the dubbed version of the movie (not my favorite thing since dubbed Japanese films always seem somewhat dumbed down for Western audiences), featuring the voices of John Cho, Rebecca Hall and Daniel Dae Kim, and it’s a fairly sweet movie with some great life lessons for younger children. It doesn’t have as many fantasy aspects as other Japanese Anime films but it does have Kun interacting with different versions of those around him, including his dog.

Receiving a one-week qualifying release on Friday is Germany’s Oscar entry is NEVER LOOK AWAY (Sony Classics), the new film from Oscar-winning filmmaker Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (The Lives of Others). This is another historical drama, loosely based on the life of visual artist Gerhard Richter with Tom Schilling (Woman in Gold) playing a young artist who has watched East Berlin go from Nazi occupation, watching his older sister be sentenced to death due to her mental illness by a ruthless Nazi doctor (Sebastian Koch), to falling in love with a young woman (Paula Beer) who happens to be that doctor’s daughter and escaping to West Berlin during the country’s contemporary art movement. I found the movie to be overly long and a little confusing, because I wasn’t sure what the movie was supposed to be about until about 30 minutes into it. Either way, it will open for its full theatrical release in February.

Another Oscar entry out Friday is the one from Italy, which is Alice Rohrwacher’s HAPPY AS LAZARRO, exec. produced by Martin Scorsese and getting a limited theatrical release in New York and L.A. (mainly for Oscar qualification) at the same time as streaming on Netflix. It’s a fable set within the countryside estate of Inviolata, a community of hard-working tobacco farmers who are being used by the area’s greedy Marquise. Much of the film is seen through the eyes of a teenaged simpleton named Lazzaro (Adriano Tardiolo), who observes more than he speaks, creating an introspective film that jumps forward in time… and that’s about all I can say about what’s a pretty major plot twist.

Another acclaimed doc getting a limited theatrical release is Dava Whisenant’s BATHTUBS OVER BROADWAY (Focus Features), which follows comedy writer Steve Young who discovered a number of vintage record albums that ended up being “internal use only” cast recordings for Broadway musicals made for some of America’s biggest companies like General Electric, Ford and more. The winner of this year’s Albert Maysles Award for Best New Documentary Director, the film features interviews with David Letterman (White wrote for Letterman’s show and Letterman is also the film’s exec. producer), Chita Rivera, Martin Short and more, and it will get a limited release Friday.

In THE MERCY (Screen Media), directed by James Marsh (The Theory of Everything, Man on Wire), Colin Firth plays Donald Crowhurst, an amateur sailor who participates in a 1968 round-the-world sailing race. Although he isn’t as experienced as other racers, Crowhurst’s design sense convinces him that he can be the fastest in the round-the-world race, much to the concern of his wife (played by Rachel Weisz). Crowhurst’s journey in his boat the Teignmouth Electron was the stuff of legend as he relayed stories back to the press in England, but as they say on the internet, you would not BELIEVE how his story ended…. And I won’t give it away. As a sailing aficionado myself (having received my sailing license a few short years ago), I was pretty excited for this movie when I heard about it a few years ago -- I even asked Firth about this when I interviewed him for the last Bridget Jones movie -- but it ended up being a dull and ultimately dour affair that didn’t even keep this sailing fan invested.

Opening on Wednesday at the Metrograph is Gary Hustwit’s doc Rams (Film First) about design innovator Dieter Rams, best known for his work at Braun and Vitsoe. No surprise that the theater owned by a designer and doc filmmaker in Alex Olch would show this, and Hustwit will be there in person after the 6pm screening Friday and 4:30pm screening Sunday to discuss. Also, it features an original score by Brian Eno!

A rare limited release from Warner Bros’ is Til Schweiger’s Head Full of Honey, an English remake of his own 2014 German hit of the same name. It stars Nick Nolte as Amadeus, a man who is slowly succumbing to dementia, much to the consternation of his son (Matt Dillon) and his wife (Emily Mortimer). In order to help her grandfather get back some of his memories, Amadeus’ 10-year-old granddaughter Tilda (Nolte’s actual daughter, Sophia Lane Nolte) takes her grandfather to Venice before he can be thrown into a home.

Opening in select theaters and On Demand is the John Pogue-directed crime-thriller Blood Brother (Lionsgate) starring R’n’B star Trey Songz (aka Tremaine Neverson) as a cop forced to risk his life to stop an ex-con from getting revenge on the childhood friends who let him take the fall for a crime they committed. It also has a cameo by WWE superstar R-Truth!

For one “night” only, people can see the director’s cut of Lars von Trier’s controversial serial killer thriller The House That Jack Built (IFC Films), starring Matt Dillon, which played (and disgusted many) at Cannes over the summer. I haven’t seen it yet but already got my ticket, hoping that I won’t be as nauseated as I was in the clit-snipping scene in Anti-Christ. Von Trier’s latest also stars and the “American cut” (or whatever it’s called) will be released theatrically on Dec. 14. If you’re in New York, it’s showing almost all day at the IFC Center but with many screenings already sold out.

Henry Barrial’s drama DriverX (Sundance Selects) stars Patrick Fabian (The Last Exorcism) as a middle-class L.A. father whose record store closes, so to keep his family afloat, he takes a job driving for a ride-share service called “DriverX,” forcing him to learn to deal with his young passengers. It opens at the IFC Center in New York and presumably in L.A. and On Demand.

Just in time for the holidays, the family-friendly animated Elliot: The Littlest Reinder (Screen Media) will open in select cities Friday and then be available for one-night only in other areas on Saturday night. It’s the story of a miniature horse named Elliot who travels to the North Pole to compete for a spot on Santa’s sleigh team. It features the voices of Josh Hutcherson, John Cleese, Martin Short, Samantha Bee and more.

Opening Friday at the Cinema Village isNo Shade (Artmattan Films), Clare Anyiam-Osigwe’s British romantic drama starring Adele Oni as freelance photographer Jade, who has been in love with her best friend Danny for 10 years, but what’s keeping them from going further is the shade of her skin.

Other films out this weekend include the Bollywood offering 2.0, Shankar’s follow-up to 2010’s Robot; Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza’s Sicilian Ghost Story (Strand) opening at the Quad; the Korean crime-thriller Unstoppable (Well GO USA) from Kim Min-Ho; and filmmaker Robert Townsend returns with his new doc Making the Five Heartbeats (about his 1991 passion project), which gets an Oscar-qualifying run at L.A.’s Laemmle Noho 7 this Friday and in New York on Dec. 7

STREAMING

Netflix will also be streaming Italy’s Oscar entry HAPPY AS LAZARRO on the streaming network starting Friday in case you can’t get to one of the cities/theaters playing it. (See above for more.) Also, the holiday movies start coming at you hot and heavy with the sequel A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding, starring Rose McIver and Ben Lamb, which follows last year’s holiday rom-com. Angela’s Christmas is an animated family movie set in 1910 Ireland featuring the voices of Ruth Negga (Preacher) and Lucy O’Connell, based on Frank McCourt’s book. (I’m not sure if this is the same short that premiered in 2017 or an extension, sorry!) From France comes Romain Gavra’s crime-comedy THE WORLD IS YOURS about a small-time mobster who accepts a job in Spain that involves drugs, the Illuminati and his overbearing mother. The description describes the movie as “Cynical” which means that it was made for me! Lastly, there’s Sebastian Hoffman’s Spanish film Tiempo Compartido (translated as “Time Share”), described as “Cerebral” (maybe not so much for me?). It involves two family men trying to save their families from a tropical paradise convinced that an American time share company wants to take their loved ones away.

REPERTORY

METROGRAPH (NYC):

A couple more days of the Midnight Cowboy restoration, plus the Darius Khondji retrospective continues for a few more days – I highly recommend seeing David Fincher’s Se7en on the big screen if you haven’t already. This weekend’s Playtime Family Matinee is one of my personal faves, Terry Gilliam’s The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, screening on Saturday and Sunday at 11AM – bring the kids! A bit last-minute, but Metrograph has added a Spike Lee X6 mini-retrospective, since he was already slated to intro a screening of BlacKkKlansman. They’ve added 1990′s Mo’ Better Blues, his 2006 reunion with Denzel for Inside Man, 2000′s Bamboozled, and one of my personal faves, Summer of Sam from 1999. (Not really repertory, but the Metrograph is also launching a series this weekend called Double Exposure: Portraits and Parallels Across the Diaspora, as in African and African-American filmmakers. I’m afraid I don’t know too much more than what you can read on the site.)

NEW BEVERLY (L.A.):

Exciting news for L.A. repertory buffs… The New Bev is back!! The festivities will kick-off Saturday with screenings of Tim Burton’s Batman Returns, a double feature of Butch and Sundance: The Early Days and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and a 25th Anniversary screening of Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused! Unfortunately, these are all sold out online but there may be tickets available at the door. I look forward to the programming ahead for this beloved theater.

FILM FORUM (NYC):

Rita Hayworth 100 continues through Thursday with screenings of Blood and Sand, Cover Girland The Lady from Shanghai on Wednesday, andPal Joey, Separate Tables and Gilda on Thursday. This weekend’s Film Forum Jr. selection is Elliot Silverstein’s 1965 film Cat Ballou, starring Jane Fonda, Lee Marvin and Nat King Cole. Beginning on Friday, they have a 4k restoration of Edgar G. Ulmer’s 1945 film Detour (Janus Films), starring Tom Neal and Anne Savage. On Friday, Film Forum is also launching a new 4k restoration of Alex Cox’s 1991 Mexican feature Highway Patrolman (Kino Lorber), and I’m always interested in seeing more from the director of Repo Man and Sid and Nancy.

EGYPTIAN THEATRE (LA):

This weekend, the American Cinematerque’s theater has an Argentina: New Cinema 2018 series, so no repertory for now.

AERO (LA):

On the other hand, the Cinemateque’s other theater is showing a bunch of Buster Keaton movies as part of The Great Buster series (named after the recent Peter Bogdonavich doc), which will include Sherlock Jr. (1924) and Steamboat Willie Jr. (1928) on Friday as a double feature, The General (1926) on Saturday with the 1921 short The High Sign, Seven Chances (1925) on Sunday with a digital restoration of the short Cops!, followed by a screening of that aforementioned doc Sunday evening. Should be a fun weekend for Buster Keaton fans.

QUAD CINEMA (NYC):

Ack! Totally spaced on the fact that the Quad was doing a giallo series, which began over the weekend with Perversion Stories: A Fistful of Giallo Restorationspremiering DCPs of many rarey-seen if even screened in the States films like The Case of the Scorpion’s Tale (1971), Torso (1993), The Suspicious Death of a Minor (1975) and more. I’m really bummed that I forgot to mention this in last week’s column (that’s what happens when you begin a series on a Sunday, Quad) and that I wasn’t able to get to any of these, but it runs through Thursday so if you’re reading this on Weds. morning (hopefully), you still have time to catch a few of them.

IFC CENTER (NYC)

Late Night Favorites shows James Cameron’s Aliens (1986), Weekend Classics continues its Coen Brothers retrospective with O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) in 35mm on Friday through Sunday, while the Shaw Brothers Spectaculars series offers The Super Inframan

(1975), which looks pretty cool.

LANDMARK THEATRES NUART (LA):

This weekend, the theater gets the restoration of Luchino Viscoti’s Senso (1968) which had been playing at New York’s Film Forum. Matt Donato*’s favorite film of all time, Dude Bro Party Massacre III, will play at midnight on Friday. (*Look him up on social media!)

FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER (NYC):

German filmmaker Christian Petzold will be in town for a sneak preview of his new film Transiton Friday night, but it will kick off Christian Pentzold: The State We Are In, a two-week retrospective of the underrated German filmmaker who has delivered such modern-day classics as Barbara and Phoenix (one of my favorite movies of 2014), 2008’s Jerichow and many more, some of which have barely been seen in the United States, including his 1998 television film The Sex Thief, and 2000’s The State I Am In. Click on the title above for the full line-up, but Pentzold will do QnAs after Transit and a couple others this coming weekend.

BAM CINEMATEK (NYC):

On Monday, BAM kicked off its Making Waves: New Romanian Cinema series, so no repertory for now.

MOMA (NYC):

The Museum of Modern Art is in the midst of it’s The Contenders 2018 series, but it also continues its Silent Comedy International series with screenings of Transatlantic Teamwork on Thursday and Sunday, Clowning Around (the World) on Thursday, another screening of Daffy in Deutschland on Friday and other repeats over the weekend. Modern Matinees: Douglas Fairbanks Jr.continues with State Secret (1950) on Thursday, Stella Dallas (1925) on Friday then A Woman of Affairs (1928) next Wednesday. Since I haven’t seen any of this, I have nothing further to add.

MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE (NYC):

The 50thAnniversary restoration of Gordon Quinn and Gerald Temaner’s Inquiring Nuns continues as well as Glenn Close: Ten Great Performances by Glenn Close with Dangerous Liaisonson Friday evening, a “Sensory Friendly Screening” of Disney’s 101 Dalmations on Saturday (as well as another matinee of this on Sunday, Reversal of Fortune and Cookie’s Fortune on Saturday afternoon/evening, as well as Albert Nobbs and Close’s latest The Wife on Sunday.

That’s it for this week. Next week, no new movies in wide release... but I’ll still have a column for those interested in other stuff.

#WhatToWatchThisWeekend TheWeekendWarrior Movies Reviews BoxOffice ThePossessionOfHannahGrace

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annahopeful · 7 years ago

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I arrived on Koh Chang with sunset. The perfect welcome to my last stop on this trip. This was meant to be the relaxing part, let’s see if it works out as planned…

Koh Chang is an island on Thailand’s East coast. It is part of the maritime nature reserve, which makes it a great spot for wildlife watching, snorkelling, diving and enjoying emerald blue waters. You can reach the island by ferry only, there is an airport nearby on the mainland (Trat), but I chose to book a private transfer from Bangkok, which may have worked out cheaper and doesn’t really take up any more time than flying (considering check-in/out times etc.). If you are considering the taxi transfer option, I can only highly recommend to book with Ian from ‘I am Koh Chang’, who provides an excellent service and will help you with any Koh Chang related question.

I stayed at Kai Bae beach, which is a quieter part of the East side of the island, but still offers plenty of options to go out for dinner or drinks and do a bit of shopping. I discovered the Funky Monkey Cafe, which was a great find. A modern and quirky bar/ cafe, offering delicious homemade ice creams, yummy cocktails and playing great tunes – all for decent prices. The owner puts a lot of love and thought into the decoration, it is well worth a few Instagram posts ;-).

New Years Eve. One word: random. That day I was rather emotional (of course, it’s me we are talking about. Sigh.). I really wanted to be around people, around people who know me and love me. I struggled a lot and took to Twitter, who managed to calm me down a bit. I tried to call my friend, but the connection was really poor and we only ended up sending voice messages, which made me cry. The hotel arranged a (compulsory) Gala Dinner, which included a big buffet, some cultural performances and a fire show. The awkward part of it was, that tables were assigned as per hotel booking, meaning I again sat at a table on my own. And I had the table closest to the stage, so everyone could have a good look at me sitting there by myself. Cringe. At the end of the meal I spotted another lady on her own and invited her to join me – Brook from Seattle, who teaches Communication at college (isn’t it fabulous that this a subject on the curriculum!?). And from that point the evening turned out to be so much more fun. The hotel next door had a fabulous band playing, so we snug over there, managed to get free champagne, watched a fire performance at the beach, saw their fireworks and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

So did I manage to relax? At the end of my first day sun lounging at the beach I got itchy feet and booked a full day snorkelling trip with Kai Bae Hut Jet Boats – covering 5 islands within the nature reserve. I also booked a full day mountain hiking tour. The snorkelling trip was good, even though I had hoped for a smaller group. Brook joined me on this trip, it felt good to have a partner in crime. We went by jet boat, they squeezed about 35 people on that boat which was a little disappointing as the trip was advertised as a ‘small group tour’. But hey ho – the snorkelling was great. We saw so many fish, in all colours of the rainbow – absolutely amazing! If you would float still in the water the fish would come up close, only inches away from your goggles and look at you. I giggled so many times, well as much as possible under water anyway. Some of the corals were still alive and shimmering in purple, blue and yellow shades, I can only imagine what a fully alive reef would look like – a true underwater Disney world paradise. Shame I didn’t bring my underwater camera. Unfortunately most of the corals we saw were dead though, which is a very real reminder of what we do to our environment.

At the end of the boat trip another lady mentioned that she was interested in joining my hiking tour, so here I had another companion – it worked out rather beautifully.

The hiking tour, however, was an experience of a different kind. I am not sure if I should say it was awful. It certainly was not what I expected. About 60% of the time I was worried for my safety. I was aware that hiking in the jungle would not include well marked trails etc. What I didn’t expect though was the complete lack of instructions (recommended clothing, footwear, other equipment) and outline of what we would actually do (walking – of course, climbing mountains – of course, partly canyoning, abseiling, …). We were a small group of 5 people and walked from the West coast to the East coast of the island, in total 10km as the crow flies, climbing 4 mountains along the way, each with an elevation of up to 500m, passing waterfalls and crossing a river about 10 times. Luckily I wore hiking boots, long trousers and a long sleeve shirt, despite the heat, as we had to fight our way through the bush. One stretch we even had to rob on hands and knees as the vegetation was so thick we couldn’t get through any other way. Half of the day we followed a riverbed, which included abseiling between 10-20 metres on flimsy ropes that were tied to trees – a couple of people in the group were really scared, and by that time all of us were a bit fed up with what turned out to be a rather worrying trek. Our guide, however, couldn’t be more blasé – all was ‘easy, don’t worry’. Despite insect repellent I discovered that a leech had attached itself to my ankle. I flicked it off and within 5mins my sock was soaked in blood, and the bleeding wouldn’t stop. I mentioned it to the guide and he just said ‘oh well, that happens quite often’. After 1.5hrs and two soaked tissues I insisted of him looking at it (no, it still hadn’t stopped) – he took out a cigarette and but a lump of tobacco on the wound. After about 15min it eventually stopped bleeding, leaving me relieved but a bit uneasy – is it possible to get an infection from a leech bite? I was too scared to google it, as I would probably have read I would lose my foot or so… 😉 So, would I recommend this trip. No, certainly not. If you want to do it nevertheless, please be prepared, bring plenty of water, snacks and expect the unexpected.

Apart from that, I had a lovely time on the island. I managed to lie still for about two days, soaked up the sunshine and met some lovely people. I didn’t quite manage to even out my tan lines.

And yes! I am still in touch with Andrew. He will be in France in August to go to a friend’s wedding, we agreed that if neither of our situations changes by then I will be his +1. Big smile. He went on another tour again today, I am a little jealous about it. I’d love to see both again, the country and of course him. Gosh, his kisses were quite something. Gives me butterflies just thinking about it.

I have also exchanged emails with a few people from my NZ group. And am still in touch with Nia, the other single lady in the group, who I will definitely meet again when I am back at home. I found another soulsister.

Now I am in the car again on my way back to Bangkok. Originally I had planned to drop my luggage at the airport and then go back into the city for some sightseeing. However, I decided against it, booked a room at a hotel with a spa and pool – I will enjoy the sunshine before heading back to cold and rainy London.

I can’t quite believe how long I have been away. And I am not sure if I am ready to face reality. But here goes.

Links: I am Koh Chang transfers, Funky Monkey Cafe

Travel diary: Days 27-34 – Koh Chang, Thailand I arrived on Koh Chang with sunset. The perfect welcome to my last stop on this trip.

#advice #diary #hike #inspiration #Koh Chang #New Years Eve #snorkelling #Thailand #travel

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furederiko · 8 years ago

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Wanted to post this yesterday, but couldn't make it because... well, life happened. And also long weekend, which means traffic both in real and virtual world *sigh*. On the bright side, this last Random News Digest for April 2017, gets to be the final post of the month as well. Enjoy!

Disney Live Action

Itching for another live action revisit of your favorite classic Walt Disney animated movies? Then you only need to wait a little longer, because the coming years will be a BLAST. Guy Ritchie's "Aladdin" is expected to begin filming very soon. Likely this very summer, as that casting call suggested. Meaning, it's probably aiming for that UNTITLED August 3rd, 2018 opening. Niki Caro will later move forward with her 'extremely muscular' rendition of "Mulan". A movie that is set to be released on November 2nd, 2018. And guess what will come after? Jon Favreau's "The Lion King"! Yes, Favreau himself announced via Twitter, that the movie is now expected to arrive on July 19th, 2019. Does this mean, the sequel to "The Jungle Book" will need to wait a bit longer, then? Hmmm... I hope Neel Sethi doesn't age up too fast to reprise his role. Otherwise, it would end up becoming a "Tarzan" movie instead.

We know that Donald Glover is voicing Simba, and James Earl Jones will reprise his role as Mufasa. We also aware that Disney is openly pursuing the one and only Queen-Bey, Beyoncé Knowles to voice Nala. What about the other characters? Well, guess what... apparently two actors are currently in final talks to voice Simba's jungle guardians, his foster fathers, the never-ever-worry outcasts, Timon and Pumbaa. The scene-stealing dynamic-duo carefree-combi who are responsible for Simba's growth in the movie. And these actors are... Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen. Ain't that an interesting choice, eh?

While I'm a bit disappointed that Favreau decided not to ask Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella to reprise their roles, the thought of Rogen's voice coming out of an adorkable gruff-voiced fat warthog is just too good to dismiss. What can I say, I AM a bit biased when it comes to Rogen. As for Eichner, I'm honestly not that familiar with his work (don't ask why I haven't seen "Parks and Recreation"). But from my quick research... it's obvious he's a genuine HILLARIOUS guys, and does sound like a younger version of Lane. His real life rambunctious mannerism basically screams, "that's how the snobbish meerkat Timon would look as a human!". In fact, I think he'll make an awesome coupl... I mean duo with Rogen *grins*. Nope, I'm not kidding, go ahead and watch their one time togetherness on Eichner's "Billy on the Street"! Doesn't that feel like Timon and Pumbaa already?!... So yeah, I wholeheartedly APPROVE of this pair!!! b(^o^)d

I do hope that these two goofballs' singing ability, is as good as their comedy though. After all, this movie WILL be a musical as planned, right? At least that's how I have been assuming until now, because "The Lion King" without "Hakuna Matata" would totally sound off. But perhaps we shouldn't worry about that, because Favreau is determined, if not feel a bit daunted to deliver and live up to audience's expectation. Especially because the original animated movie was such a beloved title, that still has a strong fanbase with "an emotional connection" until now. "When you direct it, you have to love it, especially one of those that takes like two or three years to do,... Love it to the point of obsession. So there are things that I might want to see or be involved with or act in but that's a lot different than I have to live, breathe, sleep it, dream it. If I'm going to do my best work, I have to be completely immersed.", he said, which was definitely a reassuring point of view. Let's just cross our fingers that Favreau will be able to replicate the same success of "The Jungle Book", whether in modernized storytelling, nostalgic music, or through dazzling photo-realistic visual effects.

The Hollywood Reporter also revealed, that there's another popular animated title freshly entering the live action circuit. This new one is "Christopher Robin", and yes, it's about that one and only boy who is best friends with THE Winnie the Pooh!!! Does this mean it's a Winnie the Pooh live action remake? Probably... but it comes with a twist. Our gentle Christopher has become a dashing handsome middle-aged man! HUH? Yes, this movie will focus on an adult version of the character, who has lost his sense of imagination. Marc Forster is currently working on it, and the actor being approached to portray Christopher, is the dashing Ewan McGregor. Fantastic choice, because I totally can see him as a much older version of this character. Allison Schroeder is said to be working on the script's third rewrite, which doesn't sound encouraging. Then again, the idea of the movie alone is already a make or break situation. Will this even work? Yes and no, it's still anyone's guess. I just hope the animal characters are still an important part of it, otherwise, what's the point, right?

Disney have also announced new release dates for two UNTITLED live action movies. On April 3rd, 2020, and on March 12th, 2021. Is "Christopher Robin" one of said title? How about Tim Burton's "Dumbo", "Cruella", "Tinker Bell", "The Little Mermaid", and those other titles currently in development? Hmmm... this is getting confusing. All I can say is, the House of Mouse is totally on a roll. So it's a good time to be a Disney fans!

Disney Animation

If you think "The Lion King", as well as the fourth Avengers movie from Marvel Studios are enough a reason to make you anticipate the year 2019, then you'll be ecstatic to know what comes next. "Frozen 2", the sequel to that 2013 mega-hit animated movie, is also set to arrive on November 27th, 2019! Directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee are returning, alongside the cast members like Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, and Josh Gad. Eventhough most of them are not yet confirmed. I have to admit, I'm not too certain if the first movie even needed a sequel, nor that it's necessary. But its massive success alone would be more than enough to attract a lot of audience, particularly those little girls who grew up with, and likely are still humming the tune of "Let it Go" until now. Yep, that song is EVERYWHERE, isn't it? Personally, I think the Pacific Island version is a better and stronger number (That's "How Far I'll Go" from "Moana", in case you don't get it), but who am I to argue with popular opinion, right? Here's hoping the SIX years gap would be worth the wait. After all, the original audience should be teenagers when this sequel finally arrives. And you know how it is when children grows up!

Unfortunately, this news arrived alongside several release dates shuffling for upcoming Walt Disney's releases. This covers all of their divisions, which means the animation titles are inevitably affected as well. "Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2" will now open on November 21st, 2018, which is a 7-months delay from its initial March 9th release. "Gigantic", which is Disney's long overdue take on classic "Jack and the Beanstalk" tale, was initially scheduled to be out on that precise date. It will now open on November 25th... 2020, which is a two-years delay! Ouch. An UNTITLED animated movie that was supposed to open on that date, will now arrive on November 24th, 2021, alongside a Pixar release on June 18th of the same year.

Indiana Jones

Through the same release date announcement, Disney also revealed that "Indiana Jones 5" has been delayed from July 2019, to July 10th, 2020. According to Collider, it might be caused by director Steven Spielberg, who is pushing in his other projects beforehand. This movie has limited Spielberg's availability to work on this sequel, which can only begin production on Fall 2018, if not Spring 2019, at the earliest. For the time being, actor Harrison Ford is still set to reprise his role as the legendary Professor Jones, and David Koepp is currently working on the script. But one can never tell nor predict what's going to happen in the future, so their participations have easily become uncertainty thanks to this delay. Let's just hope the best for this project, okay? But of course, no matter how you see it, this is definitely Disney's way of world domination! LOL.

Star Wars

Whooa, there! Wait a sec, apparently I'm not done yet with Disney *sigh*. This time it's from their Lucasfilm divison, as the much anticipated and tentatively titled "Star Wars: Episode IX" has received an official release date. Unlike the first two modern-era movies, the 2015 "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" and "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" that's coming later this year, the 9th core iteration of the franchise will NO LONGER open in December. Instead, Disney has moved it forward to premiere on May 24th, 2019. Yes, Christmas comes early that year for "Star Wars" fans! I guess with no other Marvel Studios' releases in 2019 following UNTITLED Avengers movie (don't forget, the Spider-Man sequel is distributed by SONY), "Star Wars" has no problem vacating its usual December spot to jump into the Summer slot. Which could either be a good or bad news. Good, because in a way, the franchise does belong as a Summer blockbuster. But bad, because of the inevitable fierce competition. Forget about other studios, Disney's own Avengers 4 should still be playing that week! Risky move...

Of course, I agree with Collider, in that the primary intention might be to not keep "Star Wars" fans waiting too long. "Han Solo: A Star Wars Story", also a tentative title by the way, is set to be released on May 25th, 2018. If Episode IX sticks to its December landing, then there will be a long 18 months hiatus between them. Add to that, the absence of "Star Wars REBELS", which should have ended its final season months prior to the Han Solo movie? It can end up damaging the franchise due to the lack of hype. A gap too long can always produce negative result to a franchise. Colin Trevorrow is set to helm the final part of this new trilogy. If his previous experience with "Jurassic Park" worries you, then you need to remember that Rian Johnson is the one writing the script. That clearly ensures the connectivity between his Episode VIII to Trevorrow's Episode IX. I'm sure we'll be hearing more about this movie, as soon as "The Last Jedi" is released later in December. May the Force be with this franchise. But seriously, 2019 (particularly in Summer), is shaping up into one massive of a year for movies, eh?

Jurassic Park

Speaking of Colin Trevorrow, the sequel to his 2015 movie, "Jurassic World 2" has been in production for a while. But that doesn't stop the J.A. Bayona movie to add more star power to its roster. It's a familiar face too, someone who's no stranger to being chased by dinosaurs, having starred in the first two movies of the franchise. Yep, Jeff Goldblum... is set to reprise his role as Dr. Ian Malcolm in the upcoming movie. He'll be joining the new leads, Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, fellow actor from the original movies in B.D. Wong, and new faces in the franchise like Justice Smith, James Cromwell, Geraldine Chapling, Ted Levine, and Toby Jones. This would be Goldblum's second comeback role, after returning for "Independence Day: Resurgence" last year. A movie that had a Hemsworth, before he took on the older brother in the upcoming Thor movie. Looks like he only needs to co-star with the third, eldest one, to score a Hemsworth-Jackpot! LOL to that!

As I said above, if there's something you need to worry, then it's not "Star Wars: Episode IX". It's THIS movie that I believe you should be concerned with. Why? Because eventhough Trevorrow isn't directing, he's the one writing the script with Derek Connolly. In case you forget, it's the script to "Jurassic World" that bogged the movie down among critics. I can't help but feel concerned that the same thing is going to happen with this one. But as always, we'll see if that's the case or not. After all, the first movie did become financially success despite being challenged critically. "Jurassic World 2" will arrive next year, on June 22nd.

X-Men Universe

In case you missed the news last week, FOX has dated "X-Men: Dark Phoenix" to arrive on November 2nd, 2018. I didn't discuss about it much, because the news arrived mere hours before my queued post went up. Thus, I was only able to make a quick minor update for it.

For that reason, I feel like talking about it now. And by talking, OBVIOUSLY it means 'ranting', what else? LOL. Nope, I won't point out the similarity of powerset between Jean Grey's Phoenix and Carol Danvers' Captain Marvel, whose solo movie is set to arrive just a few months later. It's about my issue with Quicksilver. No really, call me crazy, but I actually wonder if FOX is intentionally pushing "Dark Phoenix" just to exercise their copyright property with him again. After all, there IS a rumor that Marvel Studios is going to feature their version of Marvel's famous speedster again in the next Avengers movie. Whether that 4chan originated report is credible or not (NOTE: it didn't get it right for Sylvester Stallone's character, so there's that). But seriously, it's the timing that intrigues me. Why? Because both movies will be released in the same year! Coincidence much?

Judging from past experience, in how the studio managed to pointlessly shoehorn Quicksilver in "X-Men: Apocalypse"... the movie that suspiciously arrived in the SAME year to "Captain America: Civil War"? I doubt it. Just stop and think about it. Had the Marvel Studios' version survived "Avengers: Age of Ultron" in the previous year (remember, Aaron Taylor-Johnson even filmed a scene wearing a new official Avengers costume, which could be briefly spotted in the Bluray featurette), his next logical step would be to show up alongside his twin-sister in "Civil War". Things clearly did NOT go that way, and instead, we got a FOX version who raced through time to reenact a now-boring slow-motion sequence last year. In a movie so dull and bad, I feel openly ashamed to have seen it. So yeah, feel free to consider me as a conspiracy theorist, but I sure will NOT be surprised if Evan Peters' Quicksilver is somehow included again in "Dark Phoenix".

I also didn't have time to talk about who might be directing this dreaded-sounding (I'm praising and being sarcastic at the same time) movie. We know for sure, that producer Simon Kinberg (who wrote "X-Men: The Last Stand", the Brett Ratner movie that misguidedly butchered the story in the first place), IS writing the script to this movie. But since Bryan Singer might be out of the picture, Kinberg is stepping up by openly thinking of making this his directorial debut as well! Here's what he said, "I definitely would love to take another stab at the Dark Phoenix story. The seeds of Phoenix definitely are planted in (Apocalypse). She can’t control her powers unless she either fully stops them or lets them all loose, and that’s kind of Phoenix. I think in future movies to come we’ll definitely see a bit more of that.". Ignoring the fact that Kinberg has a messy understanding of the source material... emphasis on the phrase 'take ANOTHER STAB', perhaps? Because that already spells like sinister trouble *sigh*. These guys have failed Phoenix the first time. They made Magneto a borish nagging character. They've wasted the Silver Samurai into an ugly mess of CGI. They turned Apocalypse, into one big joke/meme. Will they have better luck with Phoenix redux? We'll see...

Kingsman

The good news is, even with the atrocities of their X-Men franchise (not talking about solo movies like "Deadpool" or "Logan"), FOX DOES have a strong trump card on their sleeve: the "Kingsman" franchise. 2015's "Kingsman: The Secret Service" was an unexpected pleasant surprise. The whole James Bond-esque nod and satire worked, it had amazing and likeable cast of characters, and the R-rated action scenes were bloody thrilling albeit religiously controversial. Suffice to say, director Matthew Vaugh definitely hit the ball off the park so far, that he even did something unprecented: agreeing to do a follow-up!

Its sequel, "Kingsman: The Golden Circle" is already showing off signs of equal greatness! The first trailer for this sequel has been released last week, and it's looking fantastic. The swagger, the action, and the style? WOW!!! I became a fan of Taron Egerton as soon as the first movie ended, and here, we get to see him fully owning his role as Eggsy. Ain't that a sight for sore eyes! This Eggsy is no longer the apprentice, he's a full-blown Kingsman now, and takes on a far crucial role in the organization. Particularly when it is directly targetted, and well... literally blown to pieces. Thus they need to cooperate with the US counterpart, the Statesman, and this is where the cowboy Channing Tatum comes to play. It's always fascinating to see and hear American and British clashing heads and accents with one another. That alone already sold the movie for me. But really, this movie is loaded with great actors, including the return of Colin Firth. Dang it, this feels amazing already! So yeah, September 27th, 2017 is the date to look out for!

The Chronicles of Narnia

Turns out, we're getting the 4th movie after all! So... yaaaay, I guess? According to Variety, director Joe Johnston is set to direct "Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair". Which itself is the title of the sixth volume out of seven, if Wikipedia is not mistaken. This movie series might feel a little under-appreciated, but there are people who are looking forward to see more. Particularly, those who are fans of the author C.S. Lewis, like several members of my extended family. The benefit of this particular chapter, is that it will focus on a separate story from the first trilogy. So Johnston won't need to bring back all of the old characters, some whose actors have already retired from acting. Only Will Poulter would be needed to reprise his role as Eustace Scrubb. But he has grown up since the third movie, while the story requires a younger age. This means, Johnston has the benefit of working with mostly, if not entirely new cast members this time. A set that possibly lead towards more sequels in the future. No release date has been set for the time being, but I won't be surprised if it will arrive late next year. Let's just hope this one will be more faithful to the book, unlike what happened with the third movie.

Gintama

This live action movie looks interesting as well! Yes, a new 30 seconds trailer for "Gintama the Movie" has recently been released, and it's showcasing new footage from the movie. That includes Gintouki and Shinpachi's first meeting. I'm not familiar with the series, so I can't say anything about it. But the slick action, and level of talents who are participating in this title, is enough to make me excited. Yes, Shun Oguri is everywhere, and has played numerous lead characters from various manga/anime adaptations. But dang it he's a good actor, who gives it all when it comes to building a character. And that's a good reassurance to the quality we can expect from this adaptation. If anything, I sincerely hope it would be as delightful as the "Rurouni Kenshin" adaptation several years back. It's certainly looking that way. "Gintama" will open in Japan on July 14th, 2017.

DC Films

Hmmm... I didn't want to talk about this, but it's a rather interesting news so I've decided to make a quick detour. Remember "The Flash"? The movie that was supposed to arrive next year, but has fallen into a circle of development limbo? Well, according to Screen Junkies, director Robert Zemeckis is being approached by Warner Bros to take on the movie. This is BIG news, because Zemeckis is famous and beloved for his "Back to the Future" movie series. Problem is, as soon as the Youtube Channel reported this news, El Mayimbe of The Wrap debunked it on Twitter. He said that Zemeckis only had a meeting, and that WB is talking with other directors for the project. Hmmm... perhaps Screen Junkies got it wrong, or they could be right, who can really tell. But the fact that El Mayimbe doesn't have a good track record with many of his latest scoops, is also something important we need to consider. The good sign that we can take from this report however, is that WB is still intent on making the movie. So that could serve as an encouraging news to DC Fans out there. But as always, don't get your hopes up too soon. Please also consider the studio's track record, particular for this exact project...

SONY Marvel Universe

Collider talked to actor Liev Schreiber about his upcoming voice role as the mysterious villain for Miles Morales' "Animated Spider-Man" movie. He didn't really reveal any major hints about WHO the character will be, but he did mention that he has seen the script and will soon be recording his lines in the coming months. According to Schreiber, the story will "feel very familiar, in a good way, in a kind of throwback way", especially for real hardcore Spider-Man fans. Considering Morales himself is a new character who was created in 2011, the word 'throwback' becomes a big question mark. If I need to make a wild guess, I say his character is going to be the Goblin, or Norman Osborn. Morales might live in a different universe to Peter Parker, but it's a parallel world, so most of Peter's adversaries are his as well, albeit in different form/look. I guess we'll have to wait and see if my prediction is correct or not. This movie will arrive on December 21st, 2018. Will you be watching this family-friendly animated movie, or WB's "Aquaman" instead? Hmmm...

Marvel Studios

As you can guess from my rather-melancholic review, "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" has opened early in several countries, including mine. The North American region won't be seeing it until later this week (on May 5th), but it has been expected to arrive with an approximately $150 million domestic opening weekend. That number would be the second-biggest number of the year, following the $174 million of Disney's very own "Beauty and the Beast". I say, that estimation sounds quite plausible, despite the fact that some of the critical reviews are calling out this movie as 'Not so fresh'. After all, the general idea that negative reviews would affect audience's response and the movie's overall revenue, has been negated gracefully by "Beauty and the Beast" last month, or "The Fate of the Furious" earlier this month. As of writing (April 30th 01:00AM local time... don't ask why), the Rotten Tomatoes score for "Vol. 2" is sitting comfortably on 87%, which is admittedly a bit lower than the 91% of the first movie.

I need not to remind you, that "Vol. 2" IS a visually gorgeous and compelling character-driven movie that will undeniably attract families and die-hard Marvel fans. Yes, it's a risky sequel that might not work with everyone. Yes, it did hit me hard emotionally. But the fact that I'm already itching to see it again, is a clear sign that... yes, it's THAT good. I honestly want to go back to retrace those abundant Easter Eggs, as well as seeing it in again 3D. Because darn it, my country's a jerk. It didn't held any 3D viewings on the day of premiere! Otherwise I would've chosen that feature instead *sigh*.

Speaking of Easter Eggs, director James Gunn reached fans through his social media, to explain about his friend, Nathan Fillion's statement regarding his deleted cameo. As has been spotted before on set by keen-eyed fans, Gunn confirmed that Fillion was supposed to appear as Simon Williams... "in some movie POSTERS in a scene cut from the movie.". This could be that 'Easter Eggs loaded' scene that Gunn admitted had to cut during editing. He added that, "It was a way to have fun with one of my best pals.". It's possible that the sequence will later be made available on the Bluray, but I'm not so certain. Without spoiling anything, while the movie did take place on Earth several times, I can't help but wonder where exactly this particular scene would've taken place. Oh well, I hope Fillion will still be playing the character in future Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, because that's a brilliant and spot-on casting for the superhero turned actor!

Director Peyton Reed has revealed that "Ant-Man & The Wasp" will start filming very soon in June. This statement was inline with Kevin Feige's word during the press junket for "Vol. 2". Confirming that Evangeline Lilly will not be in "Avengers: Infinity War", Reed expressed his excitement to promote Lilly's Hope van Dyne, into becoming a full pledged superheroine alongside Paul Rudd's Scott Lang. Reed said, that Ant-Man and Wasp has always worked as a team for him, and that sentiment would be the prime focus of the movie. Reed even assured that "It’s every bit as much her movie as it is Scott Lang’s". "Ant-Man & The Wasp" will arrive on July 6th, 2018, but I'm sure we're going know more and probably see bits of the movie in this year's San Diego Comic Con International, and/or during Disney's D23 Expo that will take place just several days earlier.

Production for this 'duo movie', will certainly run in parallel with the UNTITLED 2019's Avengers movie, or as many would love to call it, "AVENGERS 4". The "Infinity War" team is expected to proceed with its production in August. Which means, the chance of Lilly's Wasp and also Brie Larson's Captain Marvel (her movie is scheduled to begin production afterwards, in February 2018) to have crucial part in it, has become significantly higher. The title for Avengers 4, is still being kept tightly wrapped by the folks at Marvel Studios. Feige casually agreed to Cinema Blend, that revealing the title too early might be a spoiler for "Infinity War". Intriguingly, the European premiere for "Vol. 2" took place the following days, and actress Zoe Saldana accidentally worded out some interesting statement that caused the fans buzzing. Why? Because it was indicated, that the title would be something along the line of "Avengers: Infinity Gauntlet". Makes sense, but... not so spoilery, huh? Indeed, because her director had gone out to clarify that it's NOT the title. Talking to Yahoo.UK, Gunn said that Saldana might have merely misspoken. Which is good, because now we can continue speculating about it! LOL.

Of course, Saldana's interview still confirmed that the Guardians will also appear in the movie. Meaning the crossover with the Avengers will not take place in "Infinity War" alone, which CAN be considered spoiler on its own. More interestingly, Feige revealed that while "Vol. 2" only took place several months (with its own valid reason) after 2014's "Guardians of the Galaxy", the gap towards "Infinity War" would be four years. That means, during such time span, Earth would have been challenged by various events that ranged from Ultron's sinister plan for humanity's extinction, the disassembling of the Avengers in "Captain America: Civil War", Dormammu's dimensional breakout in "Doctor Strange", up to whatever is going on in "Black Panther". Naturally, there will be more character growth and 'changes' among the Guardians themselves, and that is indeed the case. Members of the Guardians "will have evolved slightly, in some recognizable ways", Feige said. Having seen "Vol. 2" a few days ago, I can personally attest that these gang of misfit has already changed 'emotionally' through the course of the movie. And that its mid-credit scenes took place at least months if not a year or two afterwards. It's definitely going to be interesting to see how far they have become when we see them again in "Infinity War".

As I have mentioned last week, "Avengers 4" will mark a conclusion, and migration to a new era. Feige already said that the MCU will be VERY different after that. Even the 'Phase' system might evolve into a different concept starting in 2019. With the infinite ways it will take shape (remember the Multiverse?), fans everywhere are chiming in with their own speculations and personal hopes about it. But what about Marvel Studios themselves? Turns out, talking to Fandango, Feige himself thought that "it’s a little early to know what it’s going to look like. I think things are going to look very different at that point". He did however, reveal the reason why Gunn had signed up early on for "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3". A little something the studio will call, the 'COSMIC UNIVERSE'. Indeed, just like how "Doctor Strange" paved way for the existence of Multiverse, in a way "Vol. 2" also worked as a gateway towards bigger, broader, and more outlandish cosmic adventures. And yes, several (of five) mid-credit scenes of "Vol. 2" HAVE already alluded the vastness of the cosmic side alone. At the very least, it has shown us what kind of story or character we can expect to see in "Vol. 3".

Last but not least, in case you forgot or are not aware of this, Marvel Studios had already put three 'UNTITLED' placeholders for the year 2020: May 1st, July 10th, and November 6th. But since it is a division of Disney, one of its future release date also got affected by the recent shift. Namely, the July 10th has been pushed into August 7th. Why am I talking about these future dates? The current common sense is that, "Vol. 3" would be taking the May 1st date. But now I can also see it taking the August 7th one, because the first movie DID open in that month. Especially if the studios wishes for May to be Earth-based. Perhaps, "Doctor Strange 2" then? Remember, the first movie was initially meant as Summer movie, but was delayed to accomodate Benedict Cumberbatch's theatre schedule. What about the third date then? Just a wild guess, but it's likely going to be a new property, and if Feige's words is any indication, it'll be something that takes place in the Cosmic Universe. Nobody knows what it will be for now, but here's a wild guess: "Nova"!!! Let's just wait and see if I'm right or not! ;D

Marvel TV

This one will be another quick one! After doing several memorable episodes on Marvel's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.", there are signs that director Kevin Tancharoen will be involved in Marvel's "The Inhumans" as well. Which is a GOOD news, because the guy has a good taste when it comes to action scenes. And boy, judging from the result of showrunner Scott Buck with "Iron Fist"? This show needs ALL the help it could get. Of course, the report was not official, and was only deducted through stalking observing his activity on social media. But Tancharoen has maintained a tight-knit relationship with ABC Studios in recent years, not to mention AoS is produced by his own sister and brother-in-law. So it makes A LOT of sense for him to take part in this series as well. At the very least, we can look forward for the episode he directed, even if we might end up skipping the rest... *sigh*.

Netflix

Earlier this month, some fansites reported that Marvel's "Luke Cage" has begun filming. I even stated that on last week's R-N-D. As it turns out, that was inaccurate report! *mindblown* LOL. Lead actor Mike Colter was present at the Chicago's C2E2 Convention, and aside from revealing fun little details during the production of Marvel's "The Defenders", he clarified the report that filming for Season 2 will begin later in June. Perhaps the ones spotted in New York was merely second unit doing prepping work? Who knows. But there you have it folks, right now, only Marvel's "Jessica Jones" is in production. Colter did share a little hint about "Jessica Jones" second season as well, having worked closely alongside Krysten Ritter throughout "The Defenders". According to him, audience can expect the vibe of the new season to be "dark and heavy". That's intriguing, right?

Meanwhile, Jessica Henwick shared to Entertainment Weekly, that "The Defenders" will take place one month following the ending of Marvel's "Iron Fist". She also added that her character, and possibly Finn Jones' Danny Rand who will be actively busy hunting members for The Hand, will not be in New York when the mini series begins. This helps explain why both Colleen Wing and Danny are rarely seen alongside the other Defenders during filming. But not to worry, she also teased that seeing different characters from different series interact with one another, will make Marvel fans excited. "They’re going to see Colleen and Misty... they’re going to love seeing Luke Cage with the Iron Fist, Danny Rand. I think fans are going to freak out.", she teased. Well, no kidding girl! This will be the ONLY show where we'll be able to see those, right? To think that we could have had it more, had we have a "Heroes for Hire" show. Such a waste of potentials...

DC Television

WB Television has been toying with this one idea for quite some time, and looks like it's finally happening. "Titans", a live action adaptation of the popular "Teen Titans", is set to debut on 2018. Remember back in 2014 when "Vampire Diaries" star Steven R. McQueen stated his desire to play Nightwing? He even pursued it for quite some time, especially back when TNT was still interested in the project. Well, with opportunities opening in both movie and TV side, looks like he might finally have a shot after all. "Titans" is expected to star Dick Grayson as the leader of characters like Starfire, Raven, and others. So it sounds like the roster will be precisely like in the comics.

Greg Berlanti, the godfather of all the recent DC series on CW Network, is of course one of the man behind this. He's teaming up with Akiva Goldsman, a very excited Geoff Johns, and Sarah Schechter to write and produce the series. Intriguingly, these guys chose the name "Titans" while dropping the 'Teens' part completely. Does this mean the characters are going to be grownups, then? I actually thought this would be WB/DC's attempt to enter the young adult market, following Marvel's foray with their upcoming new shows. Looks like that might not be the case. But hold on right there... apparently, this show won't even air in the CW (so don't expect crossovers with "Arrow" or "The Flash"! LOL)! It will arrive in a whole new platform, a DC-branded, direct-to-consumer digital service. Developed by WB Digital Networks Group, this service is designed to deliver immersive experience for DC fans. So general audience aren't allowed, right? Bummer. It remains to be seen if this is a good strategy, but I guess we'll see what happens next year.

The good news is, that new series will not be alone in the new service. "Young Justice: Outsider", the long awaited third season of the fan-favorite series, will also arrive in it. In this new season, the teenage heroes will take on meta-human trafficking and terrifying threat it creates. Sam Register, Brandon Vietti, and Greg Weisman are producing, while Phil Bourassa is tackling as the art director for WB Animation. All of these names are people who are experienced in animated series/movies. For the time being, both series are still in early stages of production, so it might still take a while before we get to know about them.

Many fans of the series have been asking for this new season, and some like yours truly, have wanted a Teen Titans live action show. Looks like, we have received our request. But here's the big question: how would people react with the fact that it won't air on broadcast network like CW or Cartoon Network? I'm aware that the popularity of "Young Justice" and the hype for "Titans" alone could attract audience to check out this new DC-only service. But it's also still unclear whether the service is free or comes with a price. If it's the latter, would audience be willing to pay a sum amount of money, just to catch these two shows? I kind of doubt it. Perhaps if they also move "Powerless", "Gotham", and all those CW shows? Hmmmm. I personally would decide it after proper consideration first, because just like what's happening with Marvel's "Runaways" that will only be available on Hulu... I need to make sure if it's really worth the price. Because if otherwise, it's totally a no go!

Dynasty Warriors

Previously announced in December 2016, updates regarding "Dynasty Warriors 9" can soon be expected to arrive next month. While the cause for such long delay was never explained, producer Akihiro Suzuki did openly apologize for it via Twitter. Since May is just a day away (LOL!) in the Asian region, can we expect some information real soon? I hope so. Let's just wait and see...

Marvel vs. Capcom

The first story trailer for the "Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite" game has been released, and several new characters have been confirmed. Uhmm... okay, perhaps the phrase 'new characters' is pushing it a little too much. I think the better term would be 'returning characters'. Why? From the Marvel side, we're getting the jade giant Incredible Hulk, Thor Odinson, Hawkeye, and Rocket Raccoon... AGAIN. While from the CAPCOM side, we'll be seeing Interpol agent Chun-Li, cyber ninja Strider Hiryu, and the hunky zombie-killer Chris Redfield... AGAIN. These characters sounds all too familiar! Yes, because they have all been featured in previous titles before this. Which means... the game's more of the same, huh? And here I thought we're going to see fresh names like Star-Lord from "Guardians of the Galaxy", or even Rashid from "Street Fighter V"!

The only new characters announced to be joining Captain Marvel, are Ultron and Sigma (who will sadly be available as post-launch DLC). They serve as villainous characters from both sides, who will form the game's main villain when they combined into... *drumrolls* Ultron Sigma. In theory, this idea makes sense, since both are digital and mechanical beings. But will this work story-wise? It sure looks like it, because the trailer looks tense and serious, but honestly who knows. It's a pretty gutsy move though, because I don't recall CAPCOM have done this before in previous title. CAPCOM have also released a new gameplay video, that focused on the recently announced characters. Dang it, seeing Hawkeye teams up with Chris makes me all giddy with joy! LOL. We also get to see the Space Stone in effect, as it is used to trap opponents in a limited force field. That looks fun!

The game is set to be released for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on September 19th, 2017. Pre-order has been made available at most online/offline retailers, and there are two premium editions that devoted fans can choose to purchase. You can read the pricing and details on the Capcom Unity blog. So far, we only have 14 characters (8 from Marvel, and 6 from Capcom) in the game, so there will be at least 10 others or even more. Here's hoping that we'll be getting actual new characters like Scarlet Witch, Vision, or unexpected Capcom characters like Miles Edgeworth in the next update. Crossing my fingers...

Nintendo

The sale of their console, the Nintendo Switch has successfully topped 2,74 million worldwide so far. In just one single month of release! And the company has just recently announced the arrival of Nintendo 2DS XL. The latest in the 3DS family that already looks slick and colorfully better than its tacky non-flippable original, and might be primed to mark the final stage of the 3DS era. After all, there was that rumor that a handheld only Switch Mini is in development to replace it.

Yet Nintendo isn't stopping with the news front, no sir! It just made another surprising statement that undeniably turned people's head: they are skipping E3... AGAIN! Sure, they are famous for being notoriously absent in the recent years, but one would assume that they would be go all out this year to promote Switch and its relatively small catalogue of games. And some of us have also thought that the company will be using this opportunity to announce the heavily rumored "Pokemon Stars". A title that would totally benefit the console's appeal. I guess we're all caught off guard, eh? Then again, it seems they might be holding a Digital Event once again to compensate, because they ARE extremely comfortable with their "Nintendo Direct". So I guess, the likelihood of "Pokemon Stars" being announced still exists after all, huh? Crossing my fingers again...

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