Inside Out 2 review: A joyful return

I can’t believe it’s been 9 years since Inside Out came out. I remember how much I loved it back in 2015 and how it was just screaming for a sequel. Well luckily, they took their time with it to get it just right so it can live up to the legacy of the first, and it’s finally arrived. So what is it like?

Plot

Pound the Alarm

Riley has turned 13 and her emotions have guided her to grow a strong sense of self. However, one night the headquarters is rocked by the onset of puberty, and the arrival of 4 new emotions, led by Anxiety. Anxiety’s influence sends Riley into a spiral as her core emotions are banished in favour of the new recruits. Joy and the others then have to make it back to headquarters to return Riley to her normal self.

Puberty was the obvious place to go with a sequel (and was alluded to in the original film) so it’s no surprise that that’s what they did, but the question was always how they would do it. I think what they did with it was really clever, not only adding the new emotions but adding new elements to the way Riley’s mind works as she matures. It meant they weren’t just rehashing the previous story just with new characters, but had new adversities to overcome instead.

Characters

All the characters from the original film are back and the same as ever (despite a couple of the voice actors being different) so I’m sure your favourites from back then will still feel the same to you. I was always a big fan of Joy and Disgust myself. Amy Poehler really was born to play Joy and you can tell just how much she loves voicing the character, which translates into star power as she leads this movie completely.

I’m getting mixed emotions

However if we wanna talk about star power we have to talk about Maya Hawke in the role of Anxiety, because she really gives Poehler a run for her money as the main antagonist of the film and de facto new leader of Riley’s mind. I think the feeling of anxiety is something we’re all extremely familiar with so Hawke and Pixar had a tough job to try and embody that in a character and they definitely pulled it off. The way she skittishly moves around and the frazzled look she has, as well as the way she takes over so swiftly and absolutely. There’s a scene towards the end that really gets the experience of intense anxiety dead on.

I also enjoyed Ayo Edebiri as Envy, who kind of became a henchman to Anxiety, but she had this adorable little squeaky voice along with it, which really put across the insecurity that envy brings. There was also Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser) who was the nicest of the new group and develops a really sweet relationship with Sadness, as he would. The only new character that felt a little underdeveloped was Ennui who, despite being French which was a hilarious touch, didn’t really have much to do besides being a little sarcastic; I didn’t really get her purpose.

World

Coming soon to the Disneyland electrical parade

There was so much world-building in the original film, with establishing the different areas and aspects of the mind, that I didn’t see how much more they could really add-in. But my god did they have plenty of new ideas. There was so much more to explore and learn about in the world of Riley’s mind, as well as the chance to revisit some of the old places, like Imagination Land. And they managed to explain the addition of some new places in the mind cleverly, as Riley’s mind is simply expanding and maturing as she grows. This also opens the possibility of new places to explore in the next film.

My personal favourite addition to the mind was the belief system, where Riley’s memories can spawn beliefs about herself that come together to form her sense of self (the MacGuffin of the movie). I liked how this sense of self was also able to pilot Riley somewhat remotely without the emotions having to take full control. Which was a great way to symbolize how as you grow you become less of a slave to your emotions and adapt to situations more innately. It’s all just very creative and clever.

Animation

I’m embarrassed. I couldn’t think of a joke here…

I obviously rewatched the original film before I saw this one, and one of the things that always stood out about it was the use of colour. Inside Out is a very bright and striking in its character and world design and has this almost glittery watercolour effect to the design of the mind sections. They obviously kept that around for the sequel and things are just as bright and whimsical in her mind. They also had some fun with different animation styles which is always fun to see, including paper stop motion, 2D and a glitchy video game character.

But what stood out to me was the outside of the mind sections, aka the real world. I hadn’t really realized just how far we had come in terms of photorealism in Pixar animation until I watched these two films back to back. Obviously, the human characters are still cartoonish in their look and proportions so as not to cross into the uncanny valley, but they still feel more real looking. And as for the environments, we’ll they may as well have been live action with how scarily good they looked.

Future

She really Riley likes you

The movie seems to be doing pretty well already so I have no doubt its success will result in Disney greenlighting another movie in the series. Amy Poehler has already said she’d like to keep playing Joy in future movies. Obviously growing up comes with many emotional challenges and new emotions to face so there are plenty of places to go with this concept. However, the older Riley gets, the harder it’s going to be to keep things family-friendly and relatable to kids, so I’d be interested to see how they navigate that hurdle. I’ll definitely be seated for an Inside Out 3 though!

Pixar

This joke may be a little jarring

Now, Pixar has had me worried recently when they announced their plans for the future. Their last few movies haven’t done so well financially so they have obviously been a little worried. So, as a result, they said they were going to focus less on original ideas, citing Turning Red and Luca as examples of ‘directors’ autobiographies’ that didn’t do well, and instead focus on existing popular IPs. And that’s really disappointing. They seem to have forgotten that the reason those two movies didn’t make money is because Disney forced them to go straight to Disney+, but people still loved them. Also, Lightyear was based on an existing sting brand (perhaps their strongest) and that tanked critically AND commercially. The only thing that proved their point was Elemental, which despite being a great movie (one of my favourite films of last year) didn’t do so well when it was first released (though it did actually make plenty of money as it stayed in cinemas).

But completely panicking and deciding to stifle new ideas after one hiccup is not the way to go. Obviously, it’s great to get sequels to the films we love like Inside Out, but I truly hope the success doesn’t spur them on to continue this ludicrous plan and run this studio, once known for its phenomenal creativity, off the creative cliff. I guess we have to hope that Elio helps put things back on track next year.

I don’t think there was much chance that they would screw up this movie with how well they executed the original, but thank god they didn’t! If you lived Inside Out I’d definitely recommend seeing this new instalment. You won’t regret it

Elemental movie review: Some excellent chemistry!

June was a crazy month for me, so I didn’t get time to see much, let alone review anything. But I was determined to get to the cinema and see a new release, so I got out to see Pixar’s latest offering, Elemental!

I really didn’t know what to expect from this film given the hit and miss nature of Pixar (and Disney in general) recently, and the concept of elemental people living in a city seemed pretty basic. But I ended up very pleasantly surprised by what I saw!

Plot

Water cute pair

When Ember is left in charge of her parent’s shop in Fire Town of Element City, she accidentally causes a water leak which threatens to put them out of business. Along with city water inspector Wade, they must find the source of the leak and save her parent’s shop from being shut down. Along the way the pair develop and unlikely romance despite Ember’s parent’s opposition to elements mixing.

I thought it was going to become a plot where it’s a mystery to find who or what is causing the leak with a grand adventure through the city. However, that plot point was actually more just a catalyst for the real focus of the movie which is exploring the relationship between Ember and her parents and Ember and Wade. I think that could be a little disappointing for some people, but I did appreciate that it was more character rather than world-building focussed. Whether that lends itself to the big screen or small is another matter.

Characters

Speaking of being characters I have to talk about our main characters, Ember and Wade. Each one’s character obviously took the form of the element they’re based on. So, Ember is fire so she has a temper and she ‘flares up’ a lot, whereas Wade is water so he’s a lot more mellow and he cries easily. I think they did a good job not making Ember too angry all the time at the risk of making her unlikable, her temper was always justified if a little unhinged. Wade cried a little bit too often for my taste, but what did work was how his emotions brought about a change in Ember as she learned more about the elements outside of fire.

I really warmed to this family

Ember has the best storyline as she is the lead. She has to come to grips with her parent’s expectations for her versus her feelings for Wade and what she wants for her future, so we really get to know the most, whereas Wade has a lot more tell rather than show for his development. Wade is still a very likable character though because he’s just really lovely and is the kind of supportive and uplifting person that I think a lot of people would like to be with.

The next best characters are Ember’s parents, Bernie and Cinder, as they are the secondary protagonists with their own story to tell. Being refugees who came to element city for a better life, their story is about trying to hold on to their own culture and the things they’ve built while also allowing their daughter to grow beyond what they want for, and it’s some really quite beautiful stuff.

I also have to mention that Wade’s mum, Beook, is played by Catherine O’Hara (whose voice I recognized instantly) so she does an excellent job with the comedy in her voice acting.

World

Ember is not in her element here

In terms of world-building, I don’t think Element City itself was super creative in terms of design as it was mostly just regular buildings with an elemental theme. However it wasn’t lazy in any way, and it still looked gorgeous.

What was fun about the world though was the way elemental people interacted with it. If Ember breaks a window for example she can pick up the pieces and melt them down to create a new window and replace it. If Wade gets pushed into a fountain he can through the pipes and rise back out the top. You could tell they considered how each element could use their skills as a form of problem-solving which is just a really fun bit of creativity.

It also lent itself to a lot of fun gags throughout the movie. One that made me laugh early on was a blimp carrying air people deflating when the passengers got off but blowing up again when the new lot got on.

Themes

This movie actually had a lot more to say than I expected, with its major theme being that of immigration. Because the fire people were not part of the originally established element city, they had to find their own patch to build a community and they therefore rarely mix with the other elements.

At least her outfit is fire

I think it was clever to use the fact that fire doesn’t physically mix well with the other elements (it would burn plants and evaporate water for example) to illustrate how immigrant communities often feel outside of and othered by the communities they come to join and that sense of wanting to belong but being unable to integrate.

It also somewhat addresses the financial inequality between immigrant families like Ember’s and more well-off families like Wade’s, and how that affects their choices and paths in life.

It’s heavy stuff on paper, but I think, much like Zootopia did with race, this movie puts out these ideas in a very accessible way. And I hope it will teach the kids (and frankly the adults) watching to be understanding of different communities that surround them.

Romance

A couple with literal chemistry

I think by far my favorite aspect of this movie was the love story between Ember and Wade. It’s the age-old story of two people who shouldn’t be together falling in love against the odds, but cleverly done in the way of two people who literally physically should be opposites.

It’s also one of the most romantic Disney couples I think there’s ever been. Things get pretty steamy (pun absolutely intended) between the two and it’s very tender. I’m also extremely glad they didn’t use the enemies to lovers trope that had been done to death at this point. The pair pretty much like each other from the get go, which means you get more time seeing them together developing the connection.

The issue

This movie came out in the US a month before it came out here, so we already know it’s a box office bomb and it’s not doing well. Obviously, I’m disappointed because I really liked it but I think it’s down to two factors.

Firstly the ad campaign was not good. The trailer did not convey what this movie is at all. I thought that it was just going to be a knock off Zootopia but with elements, and I had no idea of the deep themes and the heavy focus on romance. And to be honest I barely saw any advertisement for it in the first place.

Firing on all cylinders

The second problem is streaming. I think (and have been told this by a few people) that most people are just going to wait to watch this film on Disney+. Everyone knows now that everything will eventually show up there so they’re being much more selective about what they pay to go see in cinemas. People have been trained to see Pixar films on streaming as 3 of the last 4 have been released only on Disney+ and the one that wasn’t (Lightyear) was not very good. It’s not just a Pixar problem though as Disney Animation’s last 2 movies have suffered at the box office before finding an audience in streaming. Encanto is the best case scenario as it completely blew up in popularity once it hit Disney+. I’m hoping for an Encanto situation with Elemental because I know people are going to love this movie when they give it a chance.

If you fancy seeing a great animated movie in the cinema then I’d definitely recommend going to see this one. Equally, please give it a watch when it comes out in Disney+ (probably in about a months time) because it really is worth your time. I’ll definitely be watching it again!

Encanto Review: A magical but medium Disney musical

Now you should know by now that I am very much a hardcore Disney stan. Disney Animation in particular is something I have a lot of sentimental love for, so I’m always excited about anything new they put out. This does not mean I’m always going to like it unconditionally, but I will admittedly always see the good in it. This well the newest addition to animated Disney canon, Encanto was released and I obviously was very excited to see it.

Story

Rule 1: You must demonstrate your powers in every photo!

The film centers around the family Madrigal who live in a magical house that was conjured from a miracle candle that never goes out. As part of the miracle, each member of the family is bestowed a gift when they come of age, except for the protagonist Mirabel, who was not given a gift. When Mirabel has a sudden realization that the house is beginning to crumble and the miracle may be dying, she must do what she can to find out why it’s happening and what she can do to stop it.

I would say the story of the film is the weakest itself is fairly predictable. It focuses on Mirabel and her feelings of inadequacy and isolation for not having a gift and wanting to prove herself, you can probably guess where things are going to end up and it’s pretty clear to see where things are going as it goes on. It also does not do a terribly good job of explaining what’s going on and why certain things are happening in terms of the magic. But I did like the way the story focussed on the family unit and what the gifts do for them both in the positive and negative.

What’s interesting about the story is that it all takes place over a few days and all within the house itself and sometimes the surrounding village. I think this is an interesting choice to focus on the family unit and the feeling of home, however the downside is it does make the stakes a little lower as there’s not so much that can really happen; worst case is the house falls down. Being small in scale doesn’t make the movie bad by any means, it does mean that the film is quainter and comfier than being epic and exciting, as a lot of Disney’s recent films have been. It’s a nice change of pace but I’m not sure it will be to everyone’s liking.

Characters

Mirabel tell us about your family. I have one!

I think Stephanie Beatriz (yes that’s Rosa from Brooklyn 99) does a great job as Mirabel. She manages to capture the sadness and the try hard aspects of the character that come from her being the one without a gift, but never makes her too mopey or depressive as she could have been. She has this energy in her voice that projects positivity and amplifies those moments where Mirabel is being her dorky and excitable self. Mirabel is the heart of the movie, and of the family too. I also really love her look, in particular that she wears glasses. It’s rare to see a protagonist, especially a female one, as a glasses wearer so I like that a lot of kids with glasses are going to see her as a hero. I don’t know if she qualifies to be a Disney Princess (I would argue that her family technically rules the village, she gets her own songs) but I would love to see her in with that group.

The other important character is Abeula Alma (Maria Cecilia Botero), the head of the family to whom the magical gift and house was given. I think she’s a really interesting parallel and contrast to Mirabel as she also does not have magical powers, but she has a purpose within the family, to keep them together and protect the magic which she was gifted with. Seeing the different ways in which the two women interact with the family and the magic itself is what drives the story towards its end point. I think they did a good job of making Abuela the stern matriarch who wants things to be perfect without making her overly villainous. Her backstory of fleeing violence and persecution while also losing her husband is heart-breaking and rings true to a lot of real history in South America which I appreciated.

The rest of the family are all secondary characters to Mirabel’s story but most do get some kind of characterization and story. Mirabel’s sisters get the most attention as her closest family, and they get their own songs. Luisa (Jessica Darrow) has the gift of super strength, but that strength is also built into her character, as she deals with staying stoic and taking on the needs of the town and family. It’s also great to see a female character who is big and muscular and that not being taken as a joke but being celebrated as a strength.

Pink is the universal colour of the mean girl

Mirabel’s relationship with her sister Isabela (Diane Guerrero) is the most explored. Isabela has the power to make flowers grow, which is the most beautiful visual gift and they make sure to utilize that as often as they can. But beauty and flawlessness is also part of Isabela’s character as she is antagonistic towards her sister, who can never live up to her perfection. But Isabela is not just a pretty mean girl as there is another side to her that is explored. Im also quite a fan of Guerrero from her work on Jane the Virgin and Orange is the New Black, and I liked seeing her here, she’s also a great singer.

Casita

Welcome to the house of fun!

The best part of this movie for me was the magical sentient home in which it’s set: Casita. It was exciting seeing all the different ways the structure would move and shift to interact with the family, and it was all within the realms of how a house could actually move if each part of it came alive. Like a stone tile can’t physically bend but it can lift up and down to make a step or move something forward.

It’s clear that the animation team put a lot of thought into how the house would work and I bet they had a lot of fun coming up with new things to do with it. That commitment to building a world is what really excites me about good animation.

I can alreday see them someday building a real Casita at one of the Disney parks. If they could get it it to move and intereact with the guest as they were inside it that would make it a really fun attraction to visit.

Songs

Mirabel is feeling like a plastic bag

A big selling point Disney made for this movie is that the songs were written by current Broadway superstar Lin-Manuel Miranda, now a frequent Disney collaborator. You can definitely see Miranda’s style in the songs, as most are very hip hop heavy, which is obviously what he’s known for with Hamilton. But the style also works well with Reggaetón which is a prevalent genre of music across Latin America.

Unfortunately, I didn’t feel like the songs were as strong as some of Miranda’s past work, and in particular none of them particularly stood out as THE SONG of the movie, which Disney usually does have (and uses to promote it). I’ve listened to the soundtrack a fair bit since watching and I do enjoy it, the songs are good, but I still agree with my original assessment that they aren’t the strongest aspect of the film. Colombia, Mi Encanto is probably the best song, which is weird because it’s not part of the actual story, but to me it gets the atmosphere of the movie down and the Colombian flavour in there, so if I was going to push a song towards an award (which is usually the goal at this time of year) I’d choose that one.

Culture

The current mission for Disney seems to be to work on representing and telling stories from all over the world, and particularly in showcasing cultures that haven’t been seen in a lot of Hollywood movies, particularly Disney animation, which built its bread and butter on predominantly European fairy-tales. As Moana focussed on Polynesian culture, and Raya and the Last Dragon on Southeast Asian, Ecanto embraces its Colombian setting.

Disney likes mums now!

Once again you can see that they tried to be as authentic as possible to the culture, including having a cast of Colombians and Colombian Americans. As I always say, I am not the person to determine whether or not they portrayed it accurately but I am seeing a lot of Colombians and Latin Americans reacting favourably online to the characters and the songs etc so that gives me pause to think they’ve done a good job.

I do feel a little like they could have explored even more of the country and it’s varied regions and cultures within the film. However, I get that they wanted to explore this family unit in the one house so they did what they needed to do to benefit the story.

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All in all, I do think this was a good movie, though it did not live to the expectations I had for it. It’s strengths are in its characters and it’s concepts rather than the narrative and the soundtrack.

The story is more quaint and cosy than it is thrilling. But I also think it will mean more to Latin audiences than it will to this white person, which is totally fair.

Where I think this movie will do best is on Disney+. It’s a great thing to sit with a family, or by yourself, all relaxed and just enjoy it.

They have already said they are trying a new release strategy for this movie and pushing it onto Disney+ early, during the holiday, so I feel like that was part of the plan all along.

I would recommend this movie if you like Disney and animated musicals in general, it is a lot of fun. I’ll certainly be watching it again, and I might appreciate more knowing what I’m getting the second time around.

Luca Review: Twee fun with very low stakes

If you hadn’t already guessed, I’m a huge Disney fan. This past year Disney+ has been a huge bonus for being able to watch Disney’s films as soon as they release without having to find the time to get to the cinema. So, here I go reviewing yet another release from the mouse house, this time it’s Pixar’s latest offering, released straight to Disney+, Luca.

Plot

How it feels when you’ve been in the bath too long

The film follows Luca, a sea monster from the coast of Italy who is fascinated by the surface. He makes friends with another sea monster, Alberto, who lives on an island on the surface, discovering that sea monsters turn human when they dry off. When Luca’s parents threaten to send him away to the deep to stop him from going to the surface again, he runs off with Alberto to the human port town of Portorosso. There they meet a young girl called Giulia who wants to win the annual triathlon but has no team. Luca and Alberto team up with her in hopes of using the prize money to buy a Vespa and explore the world.

The plot of the film is nothing particularly inventive, while I was watching the first 20 minutes I kept thinking how much it reminded me of The Little Mermaid (1989) and Ponyo (2008). Now every film has influences and parallels to other films, but if you’re thinking about those during the movie it’s a little unfortunate. The rest of the movie once their on land does diverge from those other movies plot wise but takes on a generic coming of age, kids on summer break feel. Now I will say that I don’t think creating a stellar plot was Pixar’s intention this time around. The plot seems almost secondary to its themes, those of childhood, exploration and discovering your yourself and who you want to be. These themes are explored very nicely, so I believe they achieved what they wanted to achieve.

Scope

Building off the plot of the movie, I did want to touch on the scope this movie has. Compared to other Pixar movies, particularly it’s recent ones, the scope is quite small. It all takes place in one relatively small location and the stakes for the climax are never really that high. It they lose the race they lose, if they get discovered they just go back in the ocean. There is the threat of being killed by sea monster hunters but because the film is so sweet you never feel like anyone is actually going to get killed. Now having a small scope and low stakes isn’t necessarily a bad thing, there are plenty of small films, but it does come with ramifications.

When you find out you’re going straight to Disney+

There was some anger when it was revealed that this film would debut on Disney+ for free rather than with premium access like Cruella (2021) and Raya and the Last Dragon (2021), especially as Pixar’s last film had gotten the same treatment. With Soul (2020), the reasoning seemed to be that they needed to get the movie out in time for it to get an Oscar and cinemas weren’t open. This obviously worked out exactly as they intended. After seeing this film, I think the fact that its not particularly grand or epic, and movies still aren’t making a ton of money in socially distanced cinemas, lead Disney to think that it would do better on streaming. It is a charming and easy-going story that you can sit down at home and watch with your family, and I think people will.

Characters

Is liking pasta a personality trait?

Much like the plot, I do find the characters to be somewhat generic and uninspired. Luca is the shy, nervous yet inquisitive kid, Giulia is spunky and outgoing but weird and Luca’s parents are overprotective but mean well. These are characters that we’ve seen before, but that’s because they work. I wasn’t blown away by how original the characters were, but I did like them an I enjoyed following them on their journey.

The one character that was a little outside of the cliché unfortunately ended up being the one that I liked the least and that was Alberto. He started off in the role of the confident kid that Luca latches onto and learns from. But as the movie progressed, I found that a lot of his actions and traits became more selfish and a little arrogant. He came across to me like a really bad friend to Luca, or to anyone really. This was supposed part of his narrative in the story, but I think they pushed it a little to far to where he just became mean.

Visuals

What the characters lack in fresh personality, they make up for in design. The design of this movie is inspired by European art, reflecting its setting. I’d describe it as a cross between a 50s art deco travel poster and Aardman Claymation. It’s a different animation style for Pixar that helps to differentiate it from their other movie, and also serves to elevate the more basic elements of the move that I’ve touched on. The character design is lovely, I particularly enjoy the design of the sea monsters and the way they use scales and fins to mimic what will become their hair and other features when they become human on land. They also have a really nice way of animating the transformation with rippling scales (it kind of reminded me of Mystique from the X-Men Movies).

Little town, it’s an Italian port

As usual with Pixar and Disney animation, the locations in the film look marvellous. As someone who loves water and the sea, I enjoyed underwater locations at the beginning of the film; they made the seabed with its seaweed look like rolling hills and farmland which was clever. I do wish we’d spent more time in that location but Portorosso was not a bad place to spend a majority of the time. I’ve not been to Italy, but I have been around Europe and I felt Portorosso authentically captured the look and feel of a Small European coastal town. It definitely felt like a real place that you could visit and have a great holiday, depending on how well received this movie is I can see them building at least a small Portorosso area at one of the Disney theme parks. Epcot does have an Italy pavilion.

Queer Theory

Can confirm that gays love ice cream

Queer film theory is something I’m very interested in as a queer person myself, seeing movies that have intentional or unintentional elements of queer coding in their story’s/characters. This movie is one of the latter. There’s quite the buzz around this movie in particular from a LGBTQ standpoint, with the nature of the sea monsters having to hide their true nature and being feared, leading to found family among those who will accept you. Also the movie focusses on a close relationship between two male character, which though platonic could easily be read as something more.

Now obviously queer coding was not the intent of the creators, and the characters are arguably much to young to be discovered or exploring their sexualities just yet. However, if some young queer people see a bit of themselves or identify with this movie in some way I think that’s something they should be happy with. It’s a sweet movie that could bring people together.

I would also possibly be interested in a sequel in the future that picks up with the characters as adolescents or young adults. I think there would be a lot to explore with these characters even if they don’t go down the gay route.

Coming straight after Soul (2020), which was very mature and sophisticated, this was a swap back to childlike whimsical storytelling for Pixar, which may come across to some as a step backwards. If I had to rank this among other Pixar projects id have to put it at a low middle. It doesn’t do anything particularly ground breaking or with an outside of the box concept like Pixar has become known for, but what it does do has a lot of heart to it that will endear people to the film.

Raya and the Last Dragon review: A gorgeous and surprisingly profound adventure.

Walt Disney Animation Studios hasn’t released an original (non-sequel) movie since Moana back in 2016. So Disney and animation stans, like myself, have been eagerly awaiting the release of Raya and the Last Dragon since it was announced a few years ago. Like everything on Disney’s release schedule, it was somewhat mucked about by the pandemic, but its finally here, both in cinemas and on Disney+. I’ve already watched this movie twice since it came out, so spoiler alert, I love it. But it’s my job here to convince you why you should love it too.

Plot

When she realizes she has to hang out with Cinderella now

The movie takes place in the dystopian former kingdom of Kumandra, now divided into 4 lands, all at odds with one another over possession of the Dragon Gem. This is the last piece to dragon magic left by the dragon Sisu. The lands have been overrun by dark creatures known as Druun, which turn anyone they touch to stone. Raya , princess of the land of Heart, must find Sisu, reunite the broken pieces of the Dragon Gem and rid the world of the Druun.

Right of the bat, the story this sets up is a lot more nuanced than typical Disney fairy tales. Instead of a cheerful musical land of optimism, it’s a more realistic world where political differences between neighbouring countries drive a wedge between trust. It’s quite profound for a family movie. Also, it’s building on Disney’s recent push away from their traditional villains. They went through a phase of having twist villains, but in this movie there is no real villain outside of the Druun. The antagonist is humanity and it’s propensity for dispute.

World

Makes the UK look boring af

The absolute best thing about this movie is it’s world building. The kingdom of Kumandra is split into 5 lands, each named after a section of the dragon shaped sea in the centre. Each has its own unique landscape and colour scheme. Raya’s land of Heart is a forest covered land who’s colours are blue and green. The land of Tail is a vast desert and they use shades of yellow and brown. Talon is a floating city full of merchants who use pinks and purples. Spine is a snow covered bamboo forest and they are grey and green. And finally Talon, Hearts main enemy are a golden city on an island and they use white and of course gold as their colours. My personal favourite location was Talon as I love their colour scheme and I’m a sucker for any water-based location.

I love any piece of media that goes into this much detail putting together the world that it takes place in. My only complaint is that there is not enough time in a movie to fully explore and flesh out this world. A TV show would be the best place to explore properly. Seeing as Disney Animation is developing series based on Moana and The Princess and the Frog, I’m hoping that could mean a Kumandra action exploration type show could end up on the board eventually.

Disney has shown in recent years a commitment to representing the cultures they base their fairy tales in. This particular story was inspired by the cultures of Southeast Asia. Now I’m obviously not the person to best speak about how well they presented the culture, but I can say that there is a clear need to honour it and present it in a way that is respectful and positive. Disney is a worldwide brand, so it’s my belief that it should do its best to make everyone feel included in their movies.

Characters

I do think Raya (Kelly Marie-Tran) as a character is a little bit generic from what we’ve seen from Disney before, particularly recently. She’s a princess, she’s a fighter, she’s sure of herself and a little bit sassy. I will say the one thing that sets her apart from other Disney heroines is that she’s more mature, and more jaded. Part in parcel coming from a dystopian world where everyone is out to get one another. I also think that after the debacle that was the Star Wars sequels, Kelly Marie-Tran really took this opportunity to prove how great she can act, and also lead a movie.

My personal favourite characters were Sisu and Namaari. Sisu, the titular last dragon, is voiced by Awkwafina, who is having the career of a lifetime right now. In her first scene I was worried that she was going to play the role too comedic, but the character quickly settles down and really becomes the heart of the movie. Her insistence that people can be good and that trusting someone can change the world is the thematic core of the whole story.

Lets go lesbians! Let’s go!

Namaari (Gemma Chan), princess of Fang, spends most of the film as its primary antagonist, as an old enemy of Raya who betrayed her when they were children. Yet you get a clear sense early on that she is only looking out for her land and her people, and she ultimately wants what all the other characters want. She is more the anti-hero than the villain. Also, the relationship between Raya and Namaari is very clearly queer coded without actually ever making it clear that there is romance there, which does lead to a conversation about how Disney presents LGBTQ+ characters. But that’s a conversation that I need longer to go into.

Raya also makes friends with characters from each of the other kingdoms which are fun additions to the cast. Boun, the young owner of a boat restaurant from Tail. Noi a baby from Talon, who works as a con artist with her monkey friends. Finally, Tong a warrior who is the last living person from the land of Spine. Raya also has a trusty animal sidekick (she is a Disney princess after all), a giant armadillo-like creature named Tuk Tuk.

Animation

Alright now I’m hungry AND I want to move

The animation in this movie is stunning. I may sound like a broken record every time I talk about a Disney or Pixar movie, but they have so much money to sink into computer graphics they can’t help but make beautiful scenery. The world building I mentioned earlier is only made more impressive by the sweeping shots of the environment. There were many times I wanted pause the movie just to take in how gorgeous it looked.

They also do something I really love with animation, which is mix different styles of animation in with the typical CGI. There are sequences, such as the prologue, in which the visuals seem to mimic traditional Southeast Asian art, which is a fun way to embrace and acknowledge the culture. There is also sequences which I felt were supposed to mimic classic comic book style drawing, which was a creative and unexpected way of portraying the action.

My concern

Sisu is judging you for not seeing this movie

My concern with this movie is not with its quality, but with how well it’s going to do. Unlike Soul (2020), but like Mulan (2020), this movie is available in cinemas and on Disney+ for an extra charge of £19.99 (about $30 in the US). Seeing the movie in cinemas is off the table for most people in the world, and everyone in the UK, and it’s totally understandable if the high price point on Disney+ is too high for people. For this reason, I’m concerned that not a lot of people will see this movie now, and will instead wait a few months until it comes out at no extra cost on the service. I also think that releasing it on the same day as the WandaVision finale might lead people to overlook it for now.

Now I’m not worried about people discovering this movie later and falling in love with it then, as I’m sure they will. I’m concerned that if the movie doesn’t make enough money on release, Disney will consider it a flop, and they don’t tend to let flops hang around. If they decide this movie wasn’t marketable, hopes of any kind of sequel or return to the world of Kumandra could be off the table. I just hope that word of mouth and recognition from those that are in a position to pay for it right now can convince Disney that this is a really good movie, and it just came out at an unfortunate time.

I’d highly recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys action, adventure or animation, chances are you’ll enjoy the characters, the world and the message. It’s really worth the money, especially with repeat viewings in mind.

If you really can’t afford the high price point on Disney+ that’s totally understandable, but make sure you check it out as soon as it becomes available at no extra cost.

Soul review: May Cause Existential Crisis!

I hope everyone is having a lovely Christmas, or a nice break if you don’t celebrate it. Unfortunately, not only am I stuck in Tier 4 of COVID restrictions, but I am isolating under orders from track and trace. So, I have no choice but to break my routine of staying in and watching movies…to stay in and watch movies. With that, let’s talk about Pixar’s Christmas Day Disney+ release, Soul (2020)!

The Story

He’s on the Soul train!

The plot follows Joe Gardner (Jamie Foxx), a high school band teacher and aspiring jazz musician. When Joe finally gets his big break, the opportunity to play with a famous quartet, he falls down a manhole and dies. Yep. Desperate to escape death and return to his body to fulfil his dreams, Joe escapes the great beyond but ends up in the great before, where souls are prepared to enter human bodies. He ends up as a mentor to 22 (Tina Fey), a stubborn soul who has never found the spark to go to earth and live within a human. Joe realises he must work with 22 to try and return to earth and fulfil his purpose.

If you think this sounds like very deep subject matter for an animated family movie then you would be correct. Compared to Pixar’s usual fare, particularly films like Cars (2006) or Toy Story (1995), this movie is a lot more mature. It does seem more geared towards adults than kids or families. Now there is nothing wrong with animation that skews older, but I do wonder how this will lead to the film’s reception with Pixar’s usual demographic. Will kids enjoy this film? I’m not sure, I don’t have any.

The Characters

Though the ideas of this story are very broad and existential, I found the movie itself to be very small in scope, taking the form of a study of one character and his simple life. That character of course is Joe. I found Joe to be quite a relatable character; I think we’ve all had the fear that we are going to waste our lives and never achieve anything. And his passion for music and jazz was really heart-warming to watch, it’s what I felt they were trying to do with La La Land (2017). If I had complaints it would be that sometimes I felt he was a bit too selfish in his pursuit of his dreams, he was a little manipulative of 22 I feel.

This character was named after a Taylor Swift song

Speaking of 22, obviously Tina Fey can make any character funny. I noticed in the credits that she was credited with additional dialogue, meaning she came up with some of her own lines. She did a really good job of capturing the innocence and naivety of a being that has never actually been alive. Seeing a middle aged woman, successfully playing essentially a child is also worthy of kudos.

There are a lot of side characters that Joe and 22 interact with on their journey that inform them of something about life and it’s meaning. One of my favourites was Joe’s mother Libba (Phylicia Rashad), a tailor who wants joe to get a stable career, despite the dreams she sees within him. I also like the character of Dez (Donnell Rawlings) who teaches 22 about taking new paths in life. I want to mention Dorothea Williams (Angela Bassett), the famous musician that Joe aspires to play with. She has an amazing look and demeaner about her. I also like seeing a male character looking up to and idolising a woman, which is something we don’t actually see a lot.

The Animation

Pixar is well known as being a pioneer of CG animation, they were the first to make it work as a full-length movie. Since then, every other major animation studio has made the switch to CG, yet Pixar has remained above them in reputation. When you see this movie, it’s not hard to see why. Pixar is constantly evolving the way they animate, working on ways to plus the visuals and be animation innovators. It’s a popular fact that, when they made Brave (2012), they invented a whole new type of software just to animate Merida’s hair realistically.

Where are the rest of The Beatles?

When it comes to realism, this may be Pixar’s most realistic movie yet. The animation on the environments of New York City is stunningly photorealistic, and the people themselves are a lot less cartoonish than Pixar’s usual characters. Obviously, the people aren’t too realistic, to avoid crossing into the uncanny valley, their faces and some proportions are still caricature-esque. You can see though, that great care has been taken to effectively imitate life, which ties in nicely with the subject matter. But its not all about realism. When Joe is in the more spiritual realms, the animators have fun with much more abstract imagery, playing with colour and combining 2D with 3D forms. The characters in this realm also twist and morph in playful ways, which adds to its whimsical nature. I think it would be safe for me to describe the visuals of this move as art.

The Themes

The form my anxiety now takes

Obviously, with the plot of this movie being what it is, the big theme within this movie is life and ultimately what you do with it. Joe and 22 spend the movie talking about finding a purpose in life, that one spark that gives your life meaning. Joe isn’t ready to die until he fulfils what he feels is his true purpose. Now this is a very hard-hitting theme for a family film, and ill be honest, I couldn’t handle it. Thinking about life and death in such a way made me somewhat existential and triggered a bit of anxiety within me. However, the message you get by the end of the movie, that ties it all together, is really worth sticking around for. I had a tough time, but when I got there, I finally understood what they were trying to say with this movie all along. And it made me feel good.

Even animated, Angela Bassett is flawless

Another, unspoken, theme within this movie is representation. This is Pixar’s first movie with a black lead. This is a fact that surprised me enough to double check, but it is true. I don’t know if it was always the intention to have a black lead, based on the plot not necessarily needing one, but whenever they decided to have one, they rightfully tried their best to tell a black story. Everything that surrounds Joe is routed in the black experience of New York City. What I find particularly impressive is that most of the characters surrounding him are black as well, or people of colour. They never felt the need to force too many white characters into the story in order to make it relatable and understandable, because this story doesn’t need them.

Though this may not be the most fun of movies, I feel that because of its strong message, stunning animation and cultural representation, this movie will be heralded by many as a masterpiece. I don’t think I’m quite ready to call it one of my favourite Pixar movies, but I can definitely agree with anyone praising it’s artistry. It’s a shoe in for some major awards when the season comes around, not just because there are so few movies around right now.

If you think you can stomach a little bit of an existential epiphany, for the sake of a beautifully crafted movie, I’d definitely recommend checking this one out.

Disney Investor Day announcements reaction!

On the 10^th December 2020, Disney held their annual Investor Day. Now, it sounds like that would be quite boring, but this is actually when they make some huge announcements about future products and of course movies & shows. I stayed up very late to watch the whole thing and am subsequently very tired. But boy was it worth it!

So, I thought id do something different and write about the announcements that were made and how I feel about them. I will go through in the order things were presented.

Star

Twinkle Twinkle

One of the biggest announcements was Disney’s creation of the Star brand for streaming. When Disney+ launched it was only for family friendly content, so really nothing higher than 15 rated. But in America they have Hulu, which Disney acquired with Fox, where they could put all their more adult appropriate content. I always thought they were just going to eventually roll out Hulu worldwide and make us pay for both like they do in America. But instead, they are creating the Star brand for Europe and many other regions.

It will sit alongside all the other brands already on Disney+, like Star Wars, Pixar etc and feature all the content from Hulu (and FX) that we haven’t really had access too. And there will be the option to allow higher rated content on your Disney+ account. So, things like Logan and Deadpool will be able to show up in your Marvel section if you activate this setting, whereas someone without this activated will not be able to see them. This keeps the option to be a family friendly service for those who prefer, but being able to cater to older subscribers needs as required.

I have to say, I’m blown away that Disney would do something this nice for us- the foreign market. Getting all this content on one service is a better deal than in their own home, where you have to pay for two separate ones. Obviously, the price will go up as there is more to pay for and I’m not sure how much by in the UK. It’s going up by €2 in the euro zone, so I’d expect something similar here; perhaps an increase of £2-4, which isn’t much. Star is coming in February (just in time for my birthday) and I for one can’t wait!

General entertainment

The first people out the gate to present new content were Hulu and FX, who Disney labelled here as ‘General Entertainment’. This was basically series and shows that don’t have any Disney branding and will be on Hulu in the US and Star everywhere else. They announced a whole bunch of new shows and new seasons of shows like The Handmaids Tale and AHS, but nothing I got that geeked out about if I’m honest.

Does this mean Kim K is a Disney princess now?

There were two things that interested me in this portion of the presentation. Firstly, they are making a Alien series, set on earth that is supposed to be very scary. A lot of people were wondering what Disney were going to do with the Alien brand after they bought fox and now we have the answer. But the other, most hilarious announcement, was that Disney bought the Kardashians! The Kardashians are making new reality shows for the Hulu/Star brand, even after just ending their series on E!, talk about a cutthroat business!

Star Wars/Lucasfilm

American Horror Story: OKA

I was surprised that Star Wars went next as they usually try and do the ‘least interesting’ stuff first, and Lucasfilm had some great stuff to announce. There are two new spin off shows coming from The Mandalorian timeline, Rangers of the New Republic and Ahsoka! I’m very excited about Ahsoka but I shall talk more about her when it comes time for my review of The Mandalorian season 2.

The Obi Wan Kenobi show, we already knew about, but the big surprise was that Hayden Christiansen is coming back for this show too, not as Anakin but as Darth Vader! The Cassian Andor show that we also knew about got a little bit of footage, but the sad news was that it doesn’t come out until 2022. Oh, and they are making a Lando show too!

Then they announced some new animated shows, one a spin off from clone wars and another focussed on R2D2 and C3PO, because why shouldn’t they get their own show? A big surprise is that as well as Taika Waititi directing a new Star Wars movie, Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins is also making one. Now, I LOVED Wonder Woman, so this is thrilling news to me. I wonder if she can convince Gal Gadot to take a role?

Outside of Star Wars, Lucasfilm also announced a willow sequel series with Warwick Davis returning in the title role. Willow was meant to be a vehicle for Warwick and for little actors in general when it was created but sadly I feel it never really materialized. So, I’m glad it’s finally getting the sequel (and love) it deserves!

Disney live action

Obviously, Disney has become infamous for taking all their old animated movies and remaking them in live action, so of course a majority of the live action announcements were about these remakes. I for one don’t care much for these remakes, even though I have enjoyed a few, so I wasn’t too jazzed about anything announced in this vein. Also, they didn’t announce any movies we didn’t already know about. The only real news was that Pinocchio and Peter Pan & Wendy are going straight to Disney+ rather than getting a theatrical release.

The swirly O means it’s spooky!

This section did, however, have three huge announcements in the form of sequels to popular movies. Hocus Pocus 2 will be out next Halloween, which I know people are going to freak out about. Personally, though I watch it every Halloween, I’m not that into the original, but I will of course watch the sequel. The sequel that excites me though is Sister Act 3, with Whoopi returning as Deloris. If you don’t find the sister act movies to be absolutely joyful then I don’t know who you are. And Whoopi has been pushing for it for so long I’m happy she finally got it. Also news on the sequel to Enchanted finally came, with Disenchanted debuting on Disney+ at some point. Amy Adams is returning as Giselle!

Disney animation

As much as I love all of Disney’s properties, I’ve always felt that Walt Disney Animation is the backbone of the company. It’s where it all began and it’s the one I hold the most emotional attachment to, so I was very excited about all the announcements made here!

While they didn’t have a lot of new movie content to share, they did reveal that Raya and the Last Dragon will be release in March in both theatres and on Disney+ with premium access. So far Mulan is the only other movie that has used premium access, and it didn’t really work out, so we shall see if Raya can make it work. They also revealed that their next film will be Encanto, a magical musical set in Columbia. Latin American culture is so full of music and storytelling so I’m excited for Disney to explore it more, especially with a country that doesn’t have a lot of global representation outside of Shakira.

I gotta dig a little deeper and work even harder to get my Disney+ show!

Just like every other Disney brand, they announced a host of new content that will be exclusive to Disney+. A few Disney characters are getting their own series, including a series of shorts about Baymax and shorts set in the world of Zootopia. But what I’m MOST excited about is the announcement of a series based on Moana and a series about Tiana! The Princess and the Frog is one of my favourite Disney films and it’s been criminally underrated for so long now. I’m so glad that the brand and Tiana as a character is getting her dues. The series will focus on her transition to becoming a princess and she won’t be a frog the whole time. I just can’t wait until 2023!

Pixar

A lot of the Pixar presentation was dedicated to promoting Soul, which releases on Disney+ on Christmas day. I shall, of course, review it. But they did reveal a few new shorts and shows that they are working on, including a Cars show and more interestingly a show based on Dug the dog from Up, which I know will excite a lot of people.

The big news from Pixar however, was the introduction of their next 3 movies. Luca, which comes out next summer, is a coming of age story set in Italy. I still don’t really know what the story is going to be, so I haven’t got excited just yet, but let’s wait for a trailer. Then there is Turning Red, which is about a teenage girl who turns into a giant red panda when she gets excited. This is such a random pitch I don’t know how to feel about it, but it seems to have a lot of Asian influence, which once again shows how much Disney is tying to market their movies to that continent.

You’ll get a real Buzz out of this joke!

Finally, the most incredible announcement was Lightyear. It’s supposed to be the movie that is what we imagine the toy of Buzz Lightyear is based on. So, its not the same Buzz Lightyear we know, but it’s the Buzz Lightyear that exists in a movie in the Toy Story world, that they then made toys of, which is what the Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story is. Do you get it? Also, Buzz is voiced by Chris Evans. It’s a lot to process.

Marvel

Marvel is obviously the biggest franchise in the world right now, so they were obviously saved for last to close the show with a bang. They wasted no time in saying how much money their movies make and how big in particular Avengers: Endgame was.

Don’t need no butterflies, Marvel gives you the whole damn zoo!

Most of their presentation was focussed on their new shows for Disney+, however. We got new trailers for the first few shows, which you’ll probably already have seen floating around the internet. I’m most excited for WandaVision, not just because it’s only a month away, but because I love Wanda as a character. They finally confirmed Tatiana Maslany as She-Hulk and Hailee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop in the She-Hulk and Hawkeye shows respectively. This we all knew, especially considering Steinfeld is literally on set right now! We also got a little look at Ms Marvel, with Iman Vellani in the title role.

But they also announced EVEN MORE shows, including a War Machine show, a secret invasion show, a Groot show and an Ironheart show. Now I am already bracing myself for the people who can’t handle the concept of a black female iron man, so Ironheart better be good and shut them up.

They did talk about the movies a little. I expected them to announce that Black Widow would release in premier access like Raya, but there was no such news. The big takeaways here were that Ms Marvel will be in Captain Marvel 2 and that of course they will not recast the role of T’Challa in Black Panther 2 after Chadwick Boseman’s tragic passing. But they will continue the franchise to honour his memory and the world of Wakanda that he helped to build and make so meaningful to so many people.

There was a lot of information to digest in this presentation, and to then get down in writing. I’m sure I must have forgotten something due to the sheer amount that was announced. But right now, I need a nap! Goodnight.

Over The Moon review: No Business Being This Good!

As we settle in for Lockdown number 2 in the UK, we’re once again going to have a lot of time to watch things on streaming. Spectacularly, they still haven’t run out of content to keep us all occupied! As an animation fan, my first choice for lockdown entertainment was Over the Moon (2020), a joint production between Netflix and Chinese studio Pearl. Animation has long been dominated by established studios like Disney, Pixar, DreamWorks and illumination, but after this movie and last years Klaus, Netflix animation is quickly coming up the pack. And if this movie is anything to go on, I’m super excited for what they have in store!

The story

The film follows 14 year old Fei Fei, who lives in a small village with her dad and their families Mooncake business. 4 years after her mother’s passing, she finds her father is engaged to a new woman, Mrs Zhong. She decides she must build a rocket to the moon, to find the legendary moon goddess Chang’e (pronounced Chung Uh) that her mother always spoke about and prove her existence. This, she hopes will prove to her father that love is eternal, and he is wrong to move on from her mother, his true love. Unfortunately, she is accidentally accompanied on her adventure by her soon to be stepbrother, Chin.

Gotta have that animal sidekick!

The movie is directed by legend of animation, Glen Keane, who worked on many of Disney’s most famous movies, including The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992) and Tangled (2010). What made this film special to Keane is that there wasn’t a committee off people or ‘braintrust’ working on the film like he had at Disney, so they had more creative freedom here to follow their ideas. The first act is very reminiscent of those early Disney movies from Keane, setting up the heroine with her wants and desires using song. The second act, once they reach the moon, though fun does admittedly have some stuff that wasn’t needed and could have been ironed out by a committee.

The third act is incredibly strong. It’s storytelling at its finest and transforms the movie with a really beautiful message. It is a tale about coming terms with the loss of a loved one and learning to accept new people into your family. The end will bring warmth to any heart.

The characters

I suppose should start with Fei Fei, played by Cathy Ang. As a character I like that she’s this mix between a science wiz and a believer in fairy tales, which is uncommon because it’s usually one or the other. And it speaks nicely to Chinas rich devotion to it’s tradition despite the way the modern world grows. At the beginning of the movie, I did find she was a little overly harsh in her reaction to her stepmother (especially as her stepmum is friggin Sandra Oh) but that is how kids can be around an emotional situation, so it’s not really a fault in the character. I also expected to find the character of her stepbrother Chin annoying, as he is written that way. But luckily, they don’t overly rely on him being a pop culture spouting, fart joke making kid like would usually be done, and he is actually quite cute.

I also like the relationship they build up with Fei Fei’s parents, having an extended prologue with multiple songs to set up her childhood and the families Mooncake business. This way we can relate to the hold Fei Fei’s mother has over the story, as we get to know her too. We know what she means, and we know her stories.

We stan a moon queen

I’ve become a little obsessed with the character of the moon goddess, and queen of the moon kingdom Lunaria, Chang’e. She is based on the character of the same name from ancient Chinese folklore, who took a pill of immortality and floated up to the moon away from her husband Houyi and became a goddess. Outside of her story, she is a fabulous character. I’m a sucker for any female character who is powerful & grandiose and completely owns it. She’s sassy and exerts her power over the other characters in a borderline antagonistic way, yet has deep emotional hold over the story with her tragic past. Also, she wears multiple outfits throughout the film, all designed by Chinese haut couture designer Guo Pei, and they’re all amazing.

The animation

The key to being a standout animated feature, when you don’t have the reputation of the bigger studios, is to have an interesting visual style. The environment of Fei Fei’s village is very much routed in Chinese visuals, with the architecture and nature surrounding it. A lot of care clearly making it a mirror of a real traditional Chinese, but how it exists today with  modern elements, such as a high speed railway and people having tablets. The animation here is crisp and clean as you would expect, but nothing too out of the ordinary for a modern CGI feature.

Cinderella got nothing on this castle

However, when you get to Lunaria, the city on the moon, that’s where the visual artistry really takes a hold of the movie. The animators based the design of this kingdom on Pink Ffloyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, and it is described by Chang’e in the movie as a radiant city of light! Everything and everyone in the location shines with a luminescent glow, with all the colours of the rainbow. It’s like being inside a lava lamp! I also enjoyed the way the environment tended to shift and change in both colour and form based on Chang’es emotion and movement. It really is a treat for the eyes.

The songs

Seriously, stream Ultraluminary

Since Disney invented the genre, musicals have been the bread and butter of animated family films. So, it can be difficult to make one that sticks out without having brilliant songs, and my god does this have some. Phillipa Soo, who plays the moon goddess Chang’e, was part of the original cast of Hamilton, so you best believe they gave her a whole bunch of songs to sing. Obviously, she does them all justice but the standout for her is the dance pop anthem Ultraluminary, which honestly could come on in any club and it would be absolutely fire. If it doesn’t at least get a nomination for Best Original Song it will be a travesty. I also really enjoy her performance of Yours Forever, which is a slow ballad, partly in Mandarin, and it’s gorgeous.

But it’s not just Soo who makes this soundtrack immense, everyone else does and amazing job. Newcomer Cathy Ang makes an impression with her vocals, as she gets her own ‘I want’ song, reminiscent of those 90s Disney princesses that Keane worked on. She also has an emotional duet with Soo’s Chang’e. The biggest surprise to me was Ken Jeong, who you’d probably know from The Hangover movies, Community and Crazy Rich Asians (2018). I’d always discounted him as a comedian, but with his own signature song as the comic side character Wonderful, I realized he actually has a pretty good voice.

The representation

Side note: love when they incorporate 2D animation somehow!

Obviously, with this being a Chinese co production, this is another example of Asian representation making it’s way into Hollywood. We see Chinese culture being showcased throughout this movie, with the Mooncakes, the environment of Fei Fei’s village, and most notably with the use of folklore with the story of Chang’e. There are many different versions of the story, which is referenced in the movie when Fei Fei realtives argue over her version of the tale. Some say she selfishly took the pills to live forever, others say it was an accident, or it was to protect Houyi. What I like is that this movie doesn’t pick a version, it hints at all of them within her. Sometimes she seems selfish and mean, other times she spears benevolent and kind. Its nice not to dismiss the multiple stories that people tell in real life.

As I mentioned in my review of Mulan (2020), we are living in a new age of Asian representation in Hollywood, mainly due to the dollars the Asian box office can bring in. But unfortunately stuff came up about Mulan, (such as where it was filmed, who was a part of it and how china was using it) that ended up dragging it down and making it unfit for what it could have done for Asian cinema and Asian talent. The movie became tarnished in my mind as well as many others, due to it’s political problems.

Luckily we still have movies like this to carry on the good work of getting representation out there. Because it is still uncommon, and it is still important. Disney may be able to redeem themselves with next years Raya and the Last Dragon (based on South East Asia rather than China). But if I was Disney, I would be mad that I didn’t make THIS movie!

If you want a to watch a highly enjoyable, gorgeously animated movie with some absolute bops of songs, I’d definitely recommend watching this movie as soon as you can. You’re on lockdown, you’ve got time. Whack on your Netflix and enjoy!

Coraline Revisit: Still my fav for Halloween!

Spooky season is upon us, and so I wanted to do a movie review for Halloween. I wanted to review a new movie this time, but there’s still nothing coming out after Tenet was the canary that died in the coal mine of cinemas. I also wanted to review the new version of The Witches, but £15.99 is way to much to simply rent one movie, especially now. So instead I decide to re-watch one of my favourite Halloween films that I watch every year: Coraline (2008)!

So why do I love it so much?

The Story

She should have gone to Specsavers!

I’ll start with the story. If you’re not familiar, it follows a young girl name Coraline Jones, who has just moved into the Pink Palace apartments with her parents. She wants to explore and have fun but her parents are busy with work and are being strict with her, especially her mother. She then discovers a small door in her home that leads to a parallel world where she meets her Other Mother and parallel versions of everyone she has met, except they all have black buttons instead of eyes. Everything is perfect and magical in this new world but soon she learns that it is not what it seems, and her Other Mother might not be the perfect parent after all.

It is based on a book by Neil Gaiman, who was inspired to write it based on the stories his daughter enjoyed and he discovered there were no books like it out there for kids. Though it may be a family movie, I’m sure you will encounter many people who said it scared the pants off them as a kid, or even as an adult. Even off the bat with the body horror aspect of buttons sewn over eyes, as the movie goes on it gets darker and creepier. Yet, it’s story still remains captivating and not overly focussed on trying to scare you.

It’s perfect for spooky Halloween fun. Technically you could argue it’s not a Halloween specific movie and you could watch it any time, but there is one scene with some Jack-O-Lanterns in so that’s good enough for me! It’s always going to be my go-to.

The Visuals

One of the things that makes this movie so special is the way it looks. The movie was made by stop-motion animation studio Laika, and it’s interesting to note that a lot of other Halloween favourites are stop motion, such as The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) and Corpse Bride (2005). I think the reason Stop-motion lends itself to spooky faire is the jerky movements that it produces that can be slightly unsettling or just off to the eye. Also, the fact that the characters are real sculpted pieces means they are kind of like living dolls.

It’s one hell of an art project!

The fact that everything on screen is real and was sculpted by hand is what makes the visuals so impressive. The time spent creating every little detail, and the sheer amount of hidden detail there is, makes it an absolutely beautiful movie to look at. Watch just the opening scene, with a doll being painstakingly sewn together becomes even more awe inspiring when you realize this.

I really love the design of the characters and environments, particularly the way they contrast between the real world and the other mother’s world. For example, the colours in the real world are much more saturated and duller compared to the alluring bright colours of the other world, to go along with Coraline’s distinctive dyed bright blue hair.

And there are differences between the characters besides the button eyes. Coraline’s mother has a long wonky nose and wears little to no makeup, whereas the other mother has a daintier symmetrical nose and is well painted with lipstick and eyebrows. All this building up a perfect lie until it finally unravels and the Other Mothers horrifying final form is revealed.

The Atmosphere

The way the movie creates atmosphere through its visuals Is impressive, but it doesn’t stop there. I wanna touch on the music of the film. There are various pieces of music in the film with children singing, such as in the opening scene. This is a choir from France, and on first impression you may assume they are singing in French. But in fact they are speaking an entirely made up language of gibberish. This then creates the feeling in your head of it being something that should be familiar but is actually off in some way, it’s unnerving. This is quite frankly a genius idea, that I will never not adore. Also it means the soundtrack is fire.

I’m going up to the hand in the sky!

There’s maybe a million videos about all the secrets and hidden details in Coraline, so I don’t need to mention them all here. But the fact that there are so many little Easter eggs and clues throughout the movie that you will almost definitely miss on the first viewing, just adds to the cleverness of the movie and also that feeling that something isn’t right. My favourite example is the motif of the other mothers hands, which comes to a head by the end of the movie. Going through and spotting all references is made to hands (along with all the other secrets) does also add a lot of fun to re-watching the movie every year.

The Performances

Obviously a good animated movie needs good voice actors, and this film of course has them. Coraline herself is played by Dakota Fanning, the go-to child actor of the noughties. There’s a reason she was in so many movies as a kid, she’s was a phenomenal child actress. Fanning captured the boisterous nature of a bored child without making her overly obnoxious as many actors would. Coraline goes through a wide range of emotions throughout this movie, from angry to excited to downright terrified and Fanning committed to them all.

The Other Mother’s diet worked too well

By far and away the most phenomenal performance in this movie is Teri Hatcher as the two mothers, and I still don’t think she has received enough credit for just how good she was here. Playing with her voice to portray contrast between two characters with the same voice is impressive enough, but then having to take one of those characters and change them over time to become increasingly more menacing is brilliant stuff. The way Hatcher delivers some of her lines as the Other Mother is ingrained in my memory. She is the star of this movie for me, one of my all-time favourite villains.

I could talk for ever about how good this film is but if I did that then Halloween would be over. It perfectly satisfies my itch for something whimsically spooky every single year at this time.

If you have never watched it, I certainly recommend watching it this spooky season. Just maybe leave a few lights on while you do.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Onward Review: Not Pixar’s best, but still pretty good.

It’s been just under a year since Pixar’s last movie, Toy Story 4 (2019), and its been 3 years since their last original (non-sequel) movie Coco (2017), which also happens to be my favourite Pixar movie. So, I was excited to see Onward (2020) and enter this new world with Pixar as one of two original movies coming out this year, preceding Soul (2020) which comes out in June. Unfortunately, this movie may be dying of Coronavirus, but I took my chances and went to a cinema to see it, and I’d like to share my thoughts.

The Plot

The premise behind this movie is that it is set in the world of magical creatures and quests akin to Lord of the Rings and tabletop games such as Dungeons & Dragons. Except in this world, they discovered science & technology just like we did and eventually all that magical stuff faded out; now they all live in the suburbs, eat fast food and take selfies.

Legs akimbo

The film follows two elf brothers, Ian and Barley, who discover that before their dad died he discovered a magical spell that would bring him back to life for one day. They try to use the spell, but it goes wrong and they only bring back his legs. So, they have to go on a quest to find a magical gem that will help them complete the spell and bring him all the way back before 24 hours is up.

Its mostly just a buddy road trip movie, going from point a to b with stuff happening on the way. I’ve ragged on that type of movie before for being unoriginal, but here they mix it together with the classic magical medieval quest to make it just interesting enough to be fun and seem different. The third act is definitely the strongest, as they introduce this villain to fight that is super creative and fun to watch, it’s just a great climax for the movie.

The overall message of the movie is also not what you expect it to be at first, at least I didn’t see it coming, and as usual for Pixar, it’s got so much heart that it’s really touching. Take some tissues because you will be crying.

The Characters

The main characters Ian and Barley are very likable, they are the typical opposites attract brother pairing. What I appreciate though is that they didn’t go with the traditional “one is cool and the other is lame” scenario. Both the brothers are lame in their own way. Ian is shy and anxious, meaning he finds it hard to make any friends and fit in. Barley is loud and outgoing, but he is a super nerd, obsessed with the old days of magic and fantasy, and he plays D&D of course. This dynamic lends itself more the journey of them bonding over their quest as they discover how close they really are.

I’m not like a regular mom, I’m an Elf mom

It’s not just Ian and barley on a quest though, as one of the side plots follows their mum Laurel venturing out with Corey the Manticore to rescue the boys and save them from an ancient curse. I really appreciate them giving the typical suburban mother something to do in this movie, rather than just sitting at home and worrying. Because what mother do you know that wouldn’t do all she could to help her AWOL sons. The friendship between the two women on their quest is also really nice.

A special mention also goes to the boy’s stepdad, a centaur cop named colt. He’s the typical embarrassing stepdad that the boys haven’t quite warmed to yet. But he’s such a lovely guy that you can’t help but like him. And it’s nice that he never feels threatened by the thought of the boy’s father coming back, he’s supportive all the way.

The World

When this movie was announced a lot of people compared it to Netflix’s Bright (2017), but for kids. Both take place in worlds based on our modern-day but with fantasy characters mixed in. But where Bright ran into problems is that it tried to be a gritty realistic tale, set in our universe with our history but with fantasy mixed in and it just didn’t make sense. Lindsey Ellis did a video that outlines in greater detail what was wrong with that movie if you want to check it out.

Mer Money Mer Problems

Onward works outs because it is set in a fictional universe with no humans, so it can be wholly its own place. It also has the benefit of being an animated, comedy movie so the world they build can be funny and silly. Anything that resembles our world doesn’t have to anachronistic, because that’s the joke. Elves with iPhones, that’s fun, maybe there was an Elf Jobs. And the pop culture references are subtle so luckily, it won’t age poorly.

The world they create is as I said, very fun and whimsical. The way they blend the two worlds together is imaginative, like the fact that they live in the suburbs, but all the houses are giant mushrooms. There’s a traditional medieval tavern, but it’s now a family-friendly restaurant with birthday parties and colouring-in sheets. It doesn’t get too full on with all this though. As the movie goes on, they venture out of the city into the countryside full of traditional fantasy scenery. My personal favourite was an open field full of ginormous beanstalks stretching into the sky. Perhaps a tribute to Disney’s canceled project, gigantic. Or maybe that’s just me being a Disney nerd.

There ain’t Mush-room in this house

Much like Zootopia before it, this movie creates a whimsical world that I would like to explore more given the time. I could see a tv spin-off working well for the movie if a sequel doesn’t work out.

The Issue

The big issue for this movie is obviously the fact that it is out now, during the outbreak of Coronavirus. Unfortunately, it came out just before things got really bad and other movies had the luxury of deciding to delay their release. Understandably a lot of people have decided not to go and see this movie because they don’t want to be sitting in an enclosed space with lots of people. So, the movie isn’t doing very well, especially by Pixar’s standards. There’s not really much that can be done either; I don’t really want to tell people they should go and see this movie because I don’t want people to get ill.

Practice your magic while you self-isolate

There are two things I can see Disney doing to somewhat help this movie out, though neither one is a perfect idea. They could rerelease this movie later when everything has calmed down and people are happy and able to go out again. This isn’t unheard of, just last year avenger’s endgame kept rereleasing and people most definitely went again. The problem with this is that because so many movies are moving now, the second half of this year is going to get really crowded and there just might not be anywhere to fit it where it’s going to make any money, especially with Disney already having to slot some many of their other movies into new release dates.

The second option is to release the movie early than planned onto streaming, or as early as they legally can. This way it can find a new audience of people who can stay at home and watch it on Disney+ without having to go out. The problem with this is that it won’t make any money on its own because streaming revenue is based on subscribers, not views. But at least if they promote the hell out of it, more people will see it and become fans. Then they will buy merchandise.

 

Remember: Don’t spell cast and drive!

This is a really fun movie, it’s not Pixar at it’s best but its certainly not Pixar at its worst. It’s not a Toy Story, but it’s more of a Finding Dory than a Good Dinosaur. It’s really a shame that this movie’s problems are entirely based on outside factors that can’t be helped. If you don’t want to go to a cinema and see it right now that’s fine, but maybe check it out when it hits streaming, hopefully sooner rather than later.

 

Update: I was right!