Brothers-in-arms Orion Pax and D-16 become sworn enemies Optimus Prime and Megatron.
Director: Josh Cooley
Brothers-in-arms Orion Pax and D-16 become sworn enemies Optimus Prime and Megatron.
Director: Josh Cooley
Armed with nothing but a hatful of dreams, young chocolatier Willy Wonka manages to change the world, one delectable bite at a time.
Director: Paul King
A family of ducks decides to leave the safety of a New England pond for an adventurous trip to Jamaica. However, their well-laid plans quickly go awry when they get lost and wind up in New York City. The experience soon inspires them to expand their horizons, open themselves up to new friends, and accomplish more than they ever thought possible.
Director: Benjamin Renner
With help from Princess Peach, Mario gets ready to square off against the all-powerful Bowser to stop his plans from conquering the world.
Director: Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic
Cast: Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogen, Fred Armisen
Release Date: April 5, 2023
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi
Rated PG for action and mild violence.
Runtime: 1h 32m
Review:
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a more than capable family film that plays it safe with the brand as it delivers a light, colorful experience. Directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic clearly have an affection for the property, something readily apparent as they deliver a game to film experience that checks all sorts of nostalgic boxes along the way. The story is simplistic to a fault as it moves from one set piece to another as it recreates various bits of game play in what amounts to a cinematic retrospective. Those familiar with Horvath and Jelenic previous movie, Teen Titans Go! To the Movies, which lovingly skewered a variety of DC's comic properties won't find that sort of edge here. There's a definite sense that Nintendo didn't want anything but the glossiest version of their IP on display and for the most part the duo obliges even though slivers of their sensibilities shine through exemplified by an insane, fatalistic blue Luma. Outside of that its safe and corporate approved which probably keeps the film from being a better overall film. As is, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a solid adaptation of the video game that sure to please younger kids and deliver enough nostalgia make to older fans happy.
C+
My dear reader(s): This weekend I was able to catch up with a couple titles I'd very much been looking forward to, Marvel's Eternals and Hotel Transylvania: Transformania.
Spoiler level here will be mild, just a small, non-plot-specific comment on HT4.
First up: Marvel's Eternals.
D-List Marvel heroes attempt to save the world whilst navigating their own personal soap operas.
'Kayyyyyyy...first I want to say I didn't hate Eternals as much as many seemed to, and I didn't think it was any worse than most Marvel content. There were a few specific things I liked, and more that I didn't like, and for whatever that is worth to you, my dear reader(s), here they are.
The pros:
Richard Madden. I've been taking a pass on a good many comic book movies these days, but there was no chance I was missing a movie with Richard Madden. With Richard Madden in tights, no less. Happy days!
An interesting and diverse cast. Perhaps the most diverse of any costumed hero flick to date. We love to see it.
(Spoiler) turning up in the mid-credits scene. If you're online at all, ever, you probably know, but I won't divulge it here. Suffice to say I squealed even though I knew it was coming.
A couple truly unexpected (at least by me) developments. Mostly Eternals doesn't reinvent the wheel, but there were a few times I thought, whoa, did not see *that* coming!
The potential for some of these characters to get very interesting, assumimg they get some space in a less-crowded future film. The possibility is there. We'll see what they do with it.
The cons:
Eternals is too long, easily by 30 minutes, maybe more. Way too much filler. BUT...
...it also fails to explain most characters fully enough for non-comic readers. No one here is Captain America; the casual viewer could do with an abridged history and explanation of powers for these folks.
Most of the dialogue is awkwardly written and badly delivered, and the story is messy and borrows too much from other genre pictures.
Some of the effects are inexpicably sketchy for such a big-budget effort, and, finally...
...despite their potential, *this* movie didn't make me interested enough in any of these characters to care if I ever see them again. (I'm interested enough in a couple of the actors to care a lot, but that's another matter altogether.)
Marvel's Eternals clocks in at 156 minutes and is rated PG13 for "fantasy violence and action, some language, and brief sexuality."
Eternals is another forgettable bit of fun from Marvel, but it suffers for its bloated runtime, lack of familiar heroes, and failure to flesh out new faces. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Marvel's Eternals gets four and a half.
Marvel's Eternals is now streaming on Disney+.
Next on my weekend agenda: Hotel Transylvania: Transformania.
Van Helsing's Monsterfication Ray turns humans to monsters and monsters to humans.
The fourth installment in the Hotel Transylvania series caused me to utter perhaps the strangest words that have ever come out of my mouth: "I hope this is still good without Adam Sandler!" Drac here is voiced by one Brian Hull. I'm not a fan of Sandler and I'm not 100% sure I'd have noticed the difference if I hadn't known beforehand, but - armed with the knowledge - something definitely felt off with the new Drac. That being said, the HT movies are among my favorites, and I enjoyed this installment quite a bit.
Many faves from the previous films have returned here: Steve Buscemi, Keegan-Michael Key, David Spade, Molly Shannon, Selena Gomez, and Andy Samberg, to name a few. What initially seemed like a limited spooky premise has been parlayed into movies that tell pretty different stories. This one is good fun with a nice message about valuing people for who they are, not who you want them to be. The animation is cute and colorful, if nothing groundbreaking. Transformania plays like a finale, and if it is, it's a good one. If they choose to make more, well...I'll be first in line, despite the fact that this Drac (spoiler alert) really doesn't say, "Blah blah blah." Not even once. *sadface*
Hotel Transylvania: Transformania runs 98 minutes and is rated PG for "some action and rude humor, including cartoon nudity." (Seriously, I didn't make that up.)
Hotel Transylvania: Transformania is a dopey good time for the whole family. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Hotel Transylvania: Transformania gets seven.
Hotel Transylvania: Transformania is now streaming on Amazon Prime.
Until next time...
Down-on-their-luck Broadway stars shake up a small
Director: Ryan Murphy
Cast: Meryl Streep, James Corden, Nicole Kidman, Keegan-Michael Key,
Andrew Rannells, Ariana DeBose, Tracey Ullman, Kevin Chamberlin,
Release Date:
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Musical
Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, some suggestive/sexual references and
language
Runtime: 2h 10min
Review:
Ryan Murphy’s Prom is an over the top musical cornucopia of schmaltz and
positive message that’s easy to digest.
Those looking for any deep meaning should probably look elsewhere
because this film is all glitz and jazz hands.
Character development is sparse with each character representing more of
a type than a fully formed person. The
real trick is that Murphy keeps you engaged with each of these characters
throughout each musical number. The
cast, which is made up of A listers, helps mainly because they are all clearly
having a great time and it shines through in their performances. Streep, Kidman and Corden all seem very much
in their wheel house belting out Broadway style musical numbers so that
shouldn’t come as much a surprise.
Somehow Jo Ellen Pellman finds a way to have her moment even with all
the luminaries sharing the same proverbial stage. It’s an impressive
understated performance that is sure to draw the attention of more than a few
casting directors. The film itself feels
a little like a more musical riff on Footloose with a generally upbeat feel
which works for the current situation.
It’s overlong, Netflix seems terribly uninterested in reigning in their
talent, and overstuffed but it’s the best kind of comfort food for anybody who
loves musicals.
B-