A thought struck me as I was smiling and tapping my foot through Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In the Heights. Who is the antagonist here? You know, the villain? The big bad? I was too invested in the charming characters, the colorful sets, and the emotionally expressive musical numbers to consider the question. Perhaps it is gentrification …
This is the second of a 23-part series in which we take a look at each Pixar movie and their lessons. Overlooked. It’s as fitting a word that I can think of when thinking of A Bug’s Life – Pixar’s second feature film. Its top protagonists are the little people of the animal kingdom, always …
Confession: That was the first word that came to mind when I sat down in front of the keyboard, so I rolled with it. And why not? I mean, we’re talking about the granddaddies of cinematic monsters – Godzilla vs. Kong! So we go BIG. And if we look deeper beyond the rock ’em, sock …
Slavery, genocide, plagues. All the makings of a great family film, right? Welp. That’s The Prince of Egypt for ya. But look deeper! Here’s what it is also: A story of triumph and adventure. Quest for Identity. Victory over oppression. The power of belief and being part of something bigger than yourself. HOPE. Prince is …
Every Friday, for the past nine weeks, it has happened as if by unspoken social media ritual. “OMG WANDAVISION!! WHAAAAAAA??? MIND. BLOWN.” And with good reason! The topsy turvy plot, the air of mystery, the revelations, and surprise guest stars. It all adds up to FOMO levels the likes we haven’t experienced since, well, The …
This is the first in a 23 part series in which we visit the PIXAR movies in order of chronological release…. annnnnnd as I type this out, it is now hitting me the enormity of the task! It won’t be an every month kinda deal, so we should see the end in… oh… 10 years? …
ALOHA! We’re going Hawaiian this week! So naturally I gotta start with the native greeting. But Aloha means more than hello. It also means goodbye (but disregard that. We are just getting started!) And more. OH SO MUCH MORE. Netflix’s Finding ‘Ohana is almost entirely driven by this spirit of ALOHA, which is actually the …
The Covid-19 pandemic touched every corner of our lives in 2020 and the movie landscape was no different. The top grossing movie of the year was Bad Boys For Life! By default, of course. Theaters shut down a couple short months into the new year. Christopher Nolan’s Tenet was hoped to be the tentpole savior …
Let’s dish up something cinematically positive for the new year, shall we? Okay, how about some Heaven Can Wait. A bit of The Good Place. Some influence of Hayao Miyazaki. And a dash of Mr. Holland’s Opus. Now sprinkle in some buddy comedy, a teacher-mentor story where both learn from one another, an examination of …
The Star Wars Holiday Special strikes back! No wait! DON’T GO AWAY! That look of abhorrence I imagine on your face right now may likely be from the thought of THE Star Wars Holiday Special. No, not the one that Star Wars creator George Lucas concocted and aired on CBS in 1978. Not the one …