Animation
Film Review – Entergalactic
On the surface, Entergalactic (2022) contains the familiar beats of a love story. Two people have a meet cute, share a connection, and fall for one another. It’s a tale as old as storytelling itself. But through the magic of music and animation, this version breathes new…
READ MOREFilm Review – Pinocchio (2022)
When Walt Disney released Pinocchio (1940) as its second feature length animated film, it cemented both the man and the studio as cinematic titans. Not only did it prove that Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937) was not just a flash in the pan success, but that animation can…
READ MOREFilm Review – Luck
When it comes to animation – especially ones featuring fantastical, imaginative environments – world building is vital. Whether its magical castles, distant planets, or multiverse dimensions, being able to create a place characters can believably exist in can make or break a film. Monsters, Inc. (2001), made…
READ MOREFilm Review – The Sea Beast
The Sea Beast (2022) is a surprisingly effective animated adventure. It has several elements that calls to mind the likes of Moana (2016) and How to Train Your Dragon (2010) but adds a level of intelligence more thought provoking than expected. How many family films would introduce a theme as…
READ MOREFilm Review – Chip ‘n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers
When it comes to reboots of ‘80s and ‘90s children cartoon shows, studios follow a blueprint set in stone. Take familiar characters, transfer them to a modern, real-world setting, and switch up the style so they are rendered in CGI rather than hand drawn. These…
READ MOREFilm Review – The Bad Guys
The Bad Guys (2022), the latest adventure from DreamWorks Animation, imagines a world where anthropomorphic animals live and interact with humans. They walk on two legs, wear human clothing, drive cars, communicate with spoken language, etc. This – of course – raises a host of questions.…
READ MOREFilm Review – Apollo 10½: A Space Age Childhood 
Writer/director Richard Linklater’s entire career has been marked by his obsession with the passing of time and how it feeds into our nostalgia. Whether it be nostalgia for high school (Dazed and Confused, 1993), college (Everybody Wants Some!!, 2016), romance (The Before Trilogy) or childhood itself…
READ MOREFilm Review – Turning Red
Disney/Pixar’s latest animated offering, Turning Red (2022) is a candy colored, pop-infused adventure. It continues the studio’s streak of family oriented fun while highlighting more serious, adult-centered issues. The approach has solidified to the point that each film has become a variation of the same themes. Characters…
READ MORE