I saw four movies in theaters in 2020, which is an impressive fact when you consider that theaters were only open three months that year. In 2021, thanks to widespread vaccination availability, I was so excited to be able to return to seeing movies on the big screen. Many highly anticipated releases that were delayed due to the pandemic finally got their moment to shine. Continue reading “Sarah Kelley’s Top 10 Films of 2021”
Live-action reboots of animated classics have been all the rage lately. Disney in particular found its sweet spot with them, a cash cow that produces a comical amount of box office gold with a simple flick of the wrist. Reimagining these well-loved properties appeals to both new generations of kids who have easy access to streaming content, as well as to the older crowd who place ridiculous sentimental worth on the stories and their characters. But the blueprint is stale. These films typically follow the source material to a T to not offend the fans who aren’t always agreeable to change.
Continue reading “Review: ‘Cruella’ Doesn’t Disappoint, Surprisingly”
When I was a kid, I loved magic. Both the spells in the fantasy worlds of J. R. R. Tolkein and Dungeons & Dragons and the more “real” form, particularly tricks and illusions. Unfortunately, it is a skill that requires effort, practice, and commitment – things I really suck at. In contrast, the motivated kids in Disney’s Magic Camp all have a better trick up their sleeves. They attend the “Institute of Magic,” a summer camp to learn the art of illusions, stage magic, and close-up magic. Continue reading “Review: ‘Magic Camp’ is Magically Mediocre”
The Call of the Wild is the first movie to be released by the newly minted ‘20th Century Studios’, fresh off of their Disney Acquisition, and it’s a lot better than most people thought. It is directed by Chris Sanders, his first live-action work after a career of animation (Lilo & Stitch, How to Train Your Dragon). Continue reading “Review: ‘The Call of the Wild’ is a Refreshingly Pleasant Movie for 2020”
With The Rise of Skywalker, the last chapter in the Skywalker saga is now a couple months beyond the horizon, so we’ve decided to tackle the formidable task of covering the entire Star Wars cinematic output! For the sake of this podcast, we’ve decided to cover episodes 1-9, Rogue One, and Solo: A Star Wars Story, while talking about the series’ impact on pop culture and on our lives. While we don’t talk much about extraneous Star Wars material, there’s still ample content to chew on in the 68th episode of the UW Film Club Podcast. Feel the force in this spoiler-filled retrospective of the entire Star Wars cinematic saga! Listen now!
On this episode: Jim Saunders, Levi Bond, and Ajay Rawat
You can find us on Facebook at /UWFilmClub, and on Twitter and Instagram @FilmClubUW. Make sure to rate, comment, and subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify, and Google Play, and tune in every Monday for a new episode of the UW Film Club Podcast!
Six years ago, Disney’s Frozen was released, and to say the least, it was an immediate success. Anna and Elsa merchandise flooded stores, exasperated parents endured repeat plays of “Let it Go,” and kids everywhere grew obsessed with the film. The New York Times listed Frozen as one of the top ten most influential films of the decade. Frozen set several records upon its release, including highest grossing musical film, highest grossing animated film, and highest grossing film of 2013. There was even a spike in babies named Elsa.
Continue reading “Review: ‘Frozen II’ is Gorgeous to See and Hear”
Noelle, the most recent Disney+ addition, is written and directed by Marc Lawerence and features Anna Kendrick and Bill Hader as Noelle and Nick Kringle, Santa’s children. The story follows Noelle as she finds herself having to bring Nick back after his leaving the North Pole for a so-called “vacation.” There, Noelle and her aunt Elf Polly (Shirley MacLaine) discover the real world that we human beings live in, as well as learning the true meaning behind Christmas. The important question about Noelle is, has Disney created something of a classic or something that no one will remember fifteen years from now?
Kendrick and Hader’s portrayal as sister and brother is interesting, given the Christmas cliche of the film. At first, it seemed too good to be true, but it lived up the hype. Anna Kendrick’s performance was brilliant, especially her interactions in the real world, from understanding what (out of all things) sunscreen was to why there’s nice and rude people in society. As for Bill Hader, he gives a great performance that’s blended well with comedy. His character has a straightforward backstory and we can easily understands why he, as Santa Claus’ son, must take on the role of Santa Claus in the present time.
Even though this film is a Disney+ exclusive, there are a couple of downfalls, the first of which is the excessive branding. Typically there is one brand strategically placed so that the audience may catch or recognize it. However, in Noelle, almost every real word scene Anna Kendrick is in has product placement. It gets annoying because this is supposed to be a Disney film, not an hour and a half long commercial ad for Christmas. It just ruins the film experience because you’re looking at brand after brand and just waiting for the film to be over instead of enjoying the film from start to finish. Another letdown is that Noelle doesn’t feel like a Disney movie, but more like a cheap, Hallmark TV movie. If you don’t know anything about the Hallmark channel, it’s a channel that churns out a lot of forgettable Christmas, romance, comedy, and family made to television movies that probably no one has heard of in their lives.
Overall, this film was a bit of a let down due to its Hallmark similarities and the boatload of ads. On the bright side, it was indeed a Christmas movie, largely thanks to the performances of Anna Kendrick and Bill Hader, along with its family friendly Christmas message regarding why people (good and bad) should celebrate Christmas with their families and friends. That being said, Noelle is meant for those that are interested in watching a quick and fun Christmas movie or just want to witness Anna Kendrick and Bill Hader in a family-comedy film. Just don’t expect this film to be a Christmas classic.
2.5/5 STARS
Lady and the Tramp is the latest Disney live action reboot, based on the original 1955 animated film and directed by Charlie Bean. It stars Tessa Thompson and Justin Theroux as the classic characters of Lady, an American cocker spaniel, and Tramp, a street-smart, stray schnauzer, as they embark on an adventure together. Interestingly enough, while it is now regarded as a classic, the original Lady and the Tramp wasn’t initially well received by critics.
Firstly, Lady and the Tramp is an excellent choice to remake and debut as a part of the Disney+ launch. It is a beautiful film that manages to look high budget while also looking like a mix between a TV film and a theatrical release. It’s perfect for the family couch viewing experience and the small scale adventure does not warrant a big screen adaptation. However it’s still basically the exact same story, with very few deviations from the original, but you can also say that about 90% of Disney’s live action slate. Thompson and Theroux were well cast and really work to maintain their characters’ charm and classic feel, just like in the original. Sam Elliot was also the perfect casting for Trusty, an elder Bloodhound. One new thing Tessa Thompson’s portrayal of Lady adds to to film is a small amount of spunkiness to Lady’s character, which was not present in the original. This particular change was both believable and easy to embrace.
While the filmmakers did use real dogs combined with a little CGI on their faces when they talked, every time they spoke, it just seemed too weird. During every dialogue sequence, every dog looks at whoever they’re interacting with, then away from the camera, and then back again. It is unnatural and repetitive, and gets to a point where you don’t want to see these dogs on camera anymore, let alone their awkward mouth movements whenever they speak. It would’ve been better if Disney had used CGI to capture the animals’ full body movements, especially when speaking, to avoid the unnatural and repetitive nature of the dialogue sequences. The main human protagonists of the film (Kiersey Clemons and Thomas Mann) were fine portraying Darling and Jim Dear, but they also were ultimately unimportant due to their short screen times, which makes them seem like a talking shadow that the audience only sees for a little bit before immediately forgetting.
The story is very familiar and though it’s not great when they attempt to add new styles to shake it up, it’s a good first viewing with Disney+. It doesn’t add much in the way of new and doesn’t boast anything that makes it a worthwhile watch, but if you want to take a few hours out of your day to watch some cheap entertainment, it couldn’t hurt. Being the first Disney live action not to have a theatrical release, and besides the pacing issues, animal voice-overs, and the human appearances, this film was cute, fun, and a completely inoffensive take on the original film.
2.5/5 STARS
“Podcasts have a way of moving you past wants and hopes.”
In honor of the release of Gemini Man, the brand new Ang Lee film featuring revolutionary de-aging visual effects, we’re taking it back to 2010 with one of the most notable examples of cinema de-aging: Tron: Legacy! In this podcast, we discuss the film’s groundbreaking visual effects, its portrayal of the dynamic between father-son relationships, and, among many other things, its brilliant world-building and set design. Do you fight for the users? Then tune in now to the 53rd episode of the UW Film Club Podcast!
On this episode: Jim Saunders and Levi Bond.
You can find us on Facebook at /UWFilmClub, and on Twitter and Instagram @FilmClubUW. Make sure to rate, comment, and subscribe to our podcast on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify, and Google Play, and tune in every Monday for a new episode of the UW Film Club Podcast
When Pixar released Toy Story 3 in 2010, many of us, including myself, saw it as the conclusion to a long-running saga. So, to many, it came as a surprise when Disney announced in 2014 that Buzz (Tim Allen) and Woody (Tom Hanks) were returning for one more adventure. Toy Story 4 came to theaters on June 21, 2019 to prove once again that Pixar is the master of animated storytelling.
The plot this time around follows the cast of toys belonging to the young Bonnie, to whom Andy gave his toys when he left for college. Bonnie and her family, along with her toys and new favorite, Forky, head on a road trip where at a carnival, Woody encounters Bo Peep, his old love and a toy that was sold off years ago. From there, we are introduced to several new characters, as sequels tend to do, some of which are kind of hit or miss.
For one, Bo Peep (Annie Potts), who isn’t technically new but has been completely reinvented for this movie, is great. Her personality is wonderfully fun and her emotional and thematic role in the story is terrific. Giggle McDimples (Ally Maki), her diminutive cop partner, is another riotously fun character. In the same vein are Duke Caboom (Keanu Reeves), and Ducky and Bunny (Key and Peele). These characters are all delightful, in no small part due to their eccentric and smart casting. On the villainous side, however, we have Gabby Gabby (Christina Hendricks) and her posse of dummies. The former is a bit flat and her arc is a little bit cliché. The latter’s problem lies in the fact that they are genuinely unnerving. The issue here is not just that it might not make it as much of a family film, but that the tone set by these characters feels a little off compared to the rest of the movie (or even the franchise). As for the aforementioned Forky, I personally found him a bit weird as a concept (a toy that has recently gained consciousness and refuses to accept that is a bit macabre for Toy Story) but he’s definitely a good time on-screen.
Regardless of smaller gripes, each of these characters are at least at a baseline level of entertainment, made so by great vocal performances from the cast and consistently good humor throughout the movie. Additionally, the folks at Pixar certainly have no shortage of creativity when it comes to character design. With each installment they seem to keep finding different types of toys to make into characters and doing so with great success. With as big as the cast is by this point, however, it doesn’t seem like every character gets their time to shine. I don’t know what really could be done about this as it just seems to be a natural consequence of making sequels. That being said, Toy Story 4 still does as good a job as it can of giving every character as much interesting moments as possible.
The movie’s overall plot is very well written, despite some awkward pacing at a couple moments. It maintains the emotional lessons that Pixar is known for and delivers them in a way that is consistently engaging. In this regard, what I think Toy Story 4 does especially well is the structuring of its emotional tension. At the risk of very minor spoilers I’ll say that the key tension in the movie has to do with a difficult decision that must be made. This, I think, is incredibly potent. The tear-jerker of an ending comes not from simply a sad or happy circumstance, but due to the stress of making a difficult choice. In this way, Toy Story 4 ends on a naturally bittersweet note, providing a wonderful send-off to these characters. Above all else, this is what I love about this movie. In a franchise where every installment was as meaningful as the last, Toy Story 4 feels like a beautiful, satisfying conclusion to one of the best animated sagas cinema has ever seen.
4/5 STARS