Review: "Luck"

Skydance Media is a film company officially founded on April 4th, 2006, by David Ellison, who continues  as the company’s CEO. Since its founding, Skydance has co-financed and co-produced films with Paramount Pictures, beginning with Flyboys (2006) starring James Franco, and the remake of True Grit (2010) which starred Jeff Bridges and garnered 10 Oscar nominations. Their most recent work Paramount was this summer’s blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick (2022). In March 2017, they teamed with Illion Animation Studios (based in Madrid, Spain) and Apple Original Films to begin producing CGI Animated movies. Their very first animated film, distributed by Apple TV+, is Luck. This is my review: 

Sam is the world’s clumsiest 18-year-old. She grew up in an orphanage, but is now too old to live there and has begun to live independently as a working adult. Her best friend is a five-year-old orphan named Hazel, who is desperate to be adopted. Sam wants to help her find a family. One day, Sam finds a penny in the street that she believes will bring good luck to both her and Hazel. She has difficulty keeping the penny on her person and magical adventures ensue, including a new friend: a loony, but soft-hearted cat named Bob.

The inspiring message of this movie is that no one is born with only good luck or bad luck. Life is all about enduring bad fortune whenever it happens, and one has to balance those two. It seems that bad times make you love the good times even more and it’s the bad times that help you tell when the good times are.

The film’s voice cast includes Tony-Nominee Eva Noblezada as Sam and Simon Pegg as Bob. Supporting voice cast Members include Oscar-Winners Whoopi Goldberg and Jane Fonda as well as veteran voice-over artists Grey DeLisle and John Ratzenberger. The film’s producing credits were shared by four people: David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, David Eisenmann, and John Lasseter. This is Lasseter’s first return to animation since his departure from being the Chief Creative Officer of Disney and Pixar Animation Studios. The film was directed by Peggy Holmes, who directed Disney’s Secret of the Wings (2012) and The Pirate Fairy (2014). It was written by Kiel Murray who wrote the screenplays for Disney/Pixar’s Cars (2006) and Cars 3 (2017). 

All in all, 2022 has proven to be a great year for animated movies from Turning Red to The Bad Guys to Minions: The Rise of Gru. Luck is part of what has been a really good run. Each film has been uniquely entertaining and told an inspiring message, but “Luck,” may be the best. Balancing bad luck, and knowing that good luck can still surprise us when we least expect it is a great message for kids and adults alike.  

 

   

Review: "Jurassic World: Dominion"

“Welcome to Jurassic Park,” was an iconic line spoken by the late-great Sir Richard Attenborough in Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park (1993). When Spielberg released it, the art of filmmaking changed forever. It was the highest-grossing film worldwide and garnered three Oscars, including one for Best Visual Effects—the world had simply never seen anything like Dinosaurs coming back to life (until Titanic (1997)). The blockbuster spawned five sequels, The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) also directed by Spielberg, Jurassic Park III (2001), Jurassic World (2015), Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018), and Jurassic World: Dominion, released on June 10th of this year. This is my review of the latest iteration:

Picking up from where “Fallen Kingdom,” left off, Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) and Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) have been carefully watching out for their adopted daughter, Maisie Lockwood (Isabella Sermon) in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. When Maisie feels overprotected, she runs away only to be kidnapped with Beta, a “baby” raptor who is the offspring of Blue, the raptor from the previous “Jurassic World” films. They are taken to an engineering corporation called Biosyn, where Dr. Ian Malcolm works (once again played by Jeff Goldblum) and he has invited his old friends Dr. Ellie Sattler (once again played by Oscar-Winner Laura Dern) and Dr. Alan Grant (once again played by Sam Neill) to study Biosyn’s locusts. Soon they discover that Biosyn’s CEO Dr. Lewis Dodgson (played by Campbell Scott) is greedily making dinosaurs of its own, but as a competitor to InGen, the originators of “Jurassic Park,” and the two stories collide as Owen and Claire set out to rescue their daughter.

The combined casting of Howard and Pratt with the reunions of Dern, Neill and Goldblum make the film one loud, wild, and epic ride. Although the special effects in the film are similar to the effects used in each of the previous films, the story is perhaps more touching than the others. As adventure continues to peak excitement, the healing of wounds in romantic relationships cleverly parallel. It’s been advertised on TV as the “closing of the Jurassic era,” and honestly, I don’t think one could have asked for a more moving finale.

The film is directed by Colin Trevorrow, director of “Jurassic World,” with Spielberg credited as Executive Producer. (He had the same credit on the previous two “World” films.) Trevorrow co-wrote and co-executive produced this film as well. Music was composed by Oscar-Winner Michael Giacchino, though the score also includes John Williams’s original theme. The Cinematography was done by Oscar-nominee John Schwartzman who also did the cinematography for the first “World” film. Although fans will miss the late-great Sir Richard Attenborough (who died in August 2014), the returns of Dern, Neill and Goldblum give the film the “reunion” feel that fans wanted.

Overall, “Jurassic World: Dominion,” is a wonderful ending to the “Jurassic Park” series. I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s better than the best of its predecessors, but like “Top Gun: Maverick,” it’s the kind of reunion film that works. A modern, up-to-date, story with a simultaneous nod to the past, and a reunited set of talent to boot!    

Review: "Top Gun: Maverick"

“I feel the need for speed,” was arguably the most iconic line from 1986’s Top Gun, spoken by both Maverick and Goose. The film won the Oscar for Best Original Song, “Take My Breath Away,” and was directed by the late-great Tony Scott, younger brother of Ridley Scott, who passed way in 2012. 36 years later, Paramount Pictures released the long-awaited sequel Top Gun: Maverick on May 27th, 2022. This is my review:

For the last 36 years, Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (once again played by Oscar-nominee Tom Cruise) has been working as U.S. Navy Test Pilot. When he learns that the Rear Admiral Chester “Hammer” Cain plans to shut down the “Darkstar” program because their plane can’t reach a Mach 10 speed, Maverick decides to take the plane up himself to reach that speed. What ensues leads to many different “reunions,” including a reconnection with one of his old flames, Penny Benjamin.

Very few sequels tend to be as good as or even better than their original predecessors. I would say that “Top Gun: Maverick,” is an exception. While the film’s plot is an emotional tribute to “Goose,” who died in the first film, the film itself is a very nice tribute to Tony Scott. Director Joseph Kosinski keeps Scott’s spirit alive. 

In the theater where I viewed it, it opened with an introduction by Tom Cruise saying that “Top Gun: Maverick,” was made strictly for the fans. As the story unfolds, you can see what he means, but that doesn’t make it any less enjoyable. Although Cruise and Val Kilmer (reprising his role as “Iceman”) both return, without anyone else from the 1986 original, their appearances alone make it a faithful tribute. Personally, I wasn’t a big fan of the original, but I respected it. I am, however, a HUGE fan of its sequel because I wasn’t expecting it to be so emotionally moving. Honestly, it’s the best 2022 film I’ve seen so far!

Besides Cruise and Kilmer, the supporting cast includes Oscar-Nominee Ed Harris as Rear Admiral “Hammer” Cain, Oscar-Winner Jennifer Connelly as Penny Benjamin and Miles Teller as Lt. Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw. The film is once again produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, who produced the original, and featured three credited screenplay writers, one of whom is Oscar-Winner Christopher McQuarrie (who won Best Original Screenplay for 1995’s The Usual Suspects), and has directed Cruise in most recent Mission Impossible movies: Rogue Nation (2015), Fallout (2018), and the upcoming Dead Reckoning Part’s I and II, both of which will respectively be released in 2023 and 2024.

All in all, “Top Gun: Maverick,” is a perfect movie for everyone, whether you’re a fan of the original or not. You might even become a fan of the original after seeing its sequel. The film ends with you feeling the need for even more speed.   

 

Review: "Chip n' Dale Rescue Rangers"

Chip and Dale Chipmunk made their debut in Disney’s 1943 cartoon Private Pluto, where they both developed mischievous reputations. 45 years later, they received their very own television show Chip n’ Dale Rescue Rangers (1988-1990), produced by Walt Disney Television Animation, which aired on television for three years. On May 20th, 2022, Disney rebooted the series with the Disney+ original film Chip n’ Dale Rescue Rangers. Here’s my review: 

“Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers,” picks up where the television show left off, in which Chip and Dale have both discovered that their life-long friendship has fizzled. Dale has always felt like a “second banana” to Chip because Chip has always been the more popular chipmunk, whereas Chip was planning on retiring to become an insurance salesman. They go their own separate ways, but are later contacted by their old “show” friend, who is financially in debt, but is also hoping that they will reconcile. Monterey Jack is later kidnapped, and Chip and Dale decide to rescue him and thus reunite the “Rescue Rangers” gang.

This film follows in the footsteps of the groundbreaking Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), consisting of cartoon character cameos in live-action backgrounds. While “Roger Rabbit,” only included hand-drawn cartoons, “Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers,” includes both hand-drawn and CGI cartoons. Each cameo is humorous. (Spoiler Alert: There’s even a cameo by Roger Rabbit!)

While the cameos in “Rescue Rangers,” are nostalgic, the story itself inspires a sense of nostalgia. Today, the Walt Disney Company produces films with computer animation, but it was built on hand-drawn animation, and while both forms are equally entertaining, CGI is more in use today whereas hand-drawn is not. Honestly, this was more interesting to me than the story of the film itself, which was funny, but not necessarily what I would characterize as great. 

This film stars the voices of John Mulaney as Chip and Andy Samberg as Dale. The voice cast also features Oscar-winner J.K. Simmons, Seth Rogen, Tress MacNeille, and Da’Vone McDonald. Live actors include Kiki Layne, Chris Parnell, and Heather Dragulescu. The film was co-written by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, who were credited writers on How I Met Your Mother (2005-2014) and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2015-2019). The film was directed by Saturday Night Live (1975-present) director Akiva Schaffer and was co-produced by David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman, who received Best Picture Oscar Nominations for producing 2010’s The Fighter.

Overall, “Chip n’ Dale Rescue Rangers,” is a funny movie, and a faithful reunion for the television show. It was also especially nice to hear Chip and Dale both voiced by grown male adults rather than their usual “high-pitched” squeaky voices. I would not rank it as one of my top favorites of 2022, but I sincerely appreciated the nostalgia it depicts and I’m hopeful that you will too.  

   

 

Sketchbook: Captain Hook

    
    Continuing from last week, I wanted to show you my version of Captain Hook from the classic Disney film Peter Pan (1953) from the Disney+ miniseries, Sketchbook (2022). Captain Hook is a lovable character. Although a villain, it is humorous whenever he gets impatient with his sidekick, Mr. Smee, whenever Smee doesn’t understand his plans to destroy Peter Pan, or wounds up screwing them up. He’s also a good piano player, and he’s very devoted to protecting his ship, as well as his shipmates, though to be fair, he’s probably most devoted to protecting himself so one can’t deny his selfishness. Here’s my Capitan Hook: 

Sketchbook: Mirabel

    
    If you have Disney+, you know that streaming service has a lot to offer. It consists of original Disney products, along with Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic. On April 27th, 2022, Disney+ released a new miniseries titled Sketchbook, in which six Disney animators teach how to draw beloved Disney characters and they also talk about how their careers led them into animation and how much they love what they do. In honor of that fact, instead of writing about something I thought I would show you my versions of those characters, each of which I drew while watching Sketchbook, beginning with Mirabel Madrigal from the Oscar-winning Encanto (2021). Happy Mother's Day!

Review: "The Bad Guys"

DreamWorks Animation released their first CGI Animated movie Antz on October 2nd, 1998. Three years later, they released Shrek (2001), which became the very first Animated Movie to win the Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film, and saw three sequels. Since then, DreamWorks Animation has produced more than 40 animated films, both hand-drawn and CGI,  many of them are reaching classic status. On April 22nd of this year, they released their 42nd film: The Bad Guys (2022). Here’s my take on this film:

“Bad Guys,” is the story of a team of five animal criminals: Wolf, Shark, Tarantula, Snake, and Piranha. They live together in a parodied Los Angeles where humans live right along with anthropomorphic animals. One day when caught in the middle of a major heist, the group is arrested, but before the police take them to jail, the “governor” (a talking red fox named Diane Foxington) decides to give them all a chance at redemption by having them go to the home of the town’s philanthropist (a guinea pig named Professor Rupert Marmalade IV.) She believes Marmalade can teach them what it means to be good.

DreamWorks Animation based this film upon The Bad Guys, a children’s graphic novel series, by Aaron Blabey. Blabey explained in an interview with the New York Times that he was “inspired by his love of Quentin Tarantino films and driven by the idea to write a book that could be ‘as exciting as playing an Xbox or watching a movie.’” Blabey published the first “Bad Guys” series in 2015 and the the film is loosely based on the first four.

Not only is “Bad Guys,” a fun movie, it inspires a sense of fun and rebelliousness. Sooner or later, the movie indicates, one has to decide whether or not they will take on responsibility in life…and that can be hard. Fun is had, but work is also meant to be done, and doing good is valuable.

This film is directed by Pierre Perifel, who makes his DreamWorks feature film directorial debut. The film’s voice cast includes Oscar-Winner Sam Rockwell as Wolf, Craig Robinson as Shark, Awkwafina as Tarantula, Marc Meron as Snake, Golden-Globe-Nominee Anthony Ramos as Piranha, Zazie Beetz as Diane Foxington, and Richard Ayoade as Professor Marmalade. The film’s screenplay was written by Etan Cohen who also wrote DreamWorks’s Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa (2008), with additional material by Yoni Brenner and Hilary Winston. The film’s music was scored by Daniel Pemberton, who received a Best Original Score Oscar Nomination for 2020’s The Trial of the Chicago 7, and original author Aaron Blabey was also credited as an Executive Producer on the film.

Overall “Bad Guys,” is a fun and funny movie. I liked it much better than I thought I would because of its clever humor and great characters. I also appreciated how this movie showed that being good means taking on lots of responsibility, but the responsibility is worth-it In comparing this film to Disney/Pixar’s Turning Red (2022), released on March 11th, I would say that “Bad Guys,” is a funnier film but “Turning Red’s,” story (dealing with life’s stress) was easier to connect to personally. Both are exceptional films in their own right!