It’s easy to forget that Trolls World Tour was one of the first pandemic films, in that it was the first major studio release during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Universal, who is the owner of the Trolls studio DreamWorks, decided to experiment and release the film directly to Premium Video on Demand (VOD), much to the chagrin [...]
Original animation is in a pretty bad place. And by “Original” I mean stories that have not originated from a well-known piece of media like being a sequel or a spin-off or a book. The last original animated movie to do reasonably well was Encanto in 2021, but even that only took off when it [...]
Robert Eggers has a unique gift for storytelling, an uncommon trait in common land. Eggers is uncommon in that there are few modern directors working today who can keep an audience captivated with a sublime heady story while paying attention to the innate details behind crucial details of a movie: performances, set decorations, cinematography, music; [...]
They say everything comes better in pairs, and never have I ever seen a film like Daniels' wonderous experience that is "Everything Everywhere All at Once." Experience is a keyword, and while I'll get gruff for suggesting that not every film is an experience rather than an event, "Everything Everywhere All at Once" is both [...]
Werewolf movies have been a part of the cinematic lexicon for as long as I can remember. Sean Ellis’ “The Cursed,” which hits theaters this weekend, doesn’t add to the mythological nature of this type of story. That’s not necessarily a bad thing either. "The Cursed" manages to elevate itself above its station through inventive [...]
Writer-director Asghar Farhadi came to my attention a few years ago with his intense dramas, The Salesman and Everybody Knows. A fascination developed with the director's eye toward the respective film's subjects and their environments. In his latest film, A Hero, Farhadi’s lens expertly captures anxious chaos in historic Shiraz, Iran, and in his character, [...]
The mere mention of “football” comes with aggressive, greedy, excited eyes; reminders of Sunday-morning tailgates, Saturday afternoon college games, and the illustrious legions of fans rallying behind their favored teams in annual, season-ending championship games. None of this would be possible without the passion, vigor, and interpersonal strength that comes with being a player. At [...]
Swan Song “Swan Song” boldly takes an age-old, mortal question, sets it in the near future, and asks what we would do if we were faced with the same set of circumstances. Mahershala Ali’s riveting performance supports director Benjamin Cleary’s story, finding a different vantage point from which to tell an oft-told tale. Cameron Turner [...]
It’s hard to imagine that 83 years, 11 months ago, Walt Disney pioneered animated films with his first, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” a film that reflects on family, on wishes, on princesses, on desires, on fairy tale endings. For its sixtieth animated film comes Byron Howard and Jared Bush's "Encanto," now in cinemas. [...]
Lin-Manuel Miranda has had a solid year in 2021 as he transitions from theater to film. First, it was with “In the Heights,” based on his stage play. Next, the upcoming “Encanto,” Disney’s 60th animated film for which he contributed musical numbers. Now, from Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, and Netflix, comes "tick, tick . . [...]
