If you’re reading this now, Avengers: Endgame is, at the moment, the most financially successful film of all time. There are a lot of factors and responsible parties who can take credit for this film reaching that milestone, and even from a logistics standpoint, this film should be celebrated. It helps that the characters are so beloved (let’s face it, there is huge brand awareness), and the studio has such reverence for the material. Further, the actors playing these iconic superheroes have done so well with the roles. So well in fact, you could probably make a movie about these guys having lunch or hanging out in the living room (see…
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Off the Shelf…’Solo: A Star Wars Story’
In the post-trilogy landscape, there have been some really great Star Wars films that exist beyond the hallowed Episodes IV, V and VI. The Force Awakens, even as a thinly veiled remake of A New Hope is so much fun. Rogue One is the prequel you’ve been looking for, and along comes Solo: A Star Wars Story attempting to flesh out the mythology of everyone’s favorite smuggling scoundrel. Did it work? Let’s just say that in our theatrical review of Solo, we were not very kind (check that out here). But having seen this four times now, I have warmed to this story which is serviceable and quite thrilling in…
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Off the Shelf…’Captain America: Civil War’
While we were not entirely fond of the previous installments in this series, Captain America: Civil War is a vast improvement in terms of dramatic storytelling. This third entry is much more sophisticated, and capable of handling multiple characters as opposed to the sluggish blur that was Avengers: Age of Ultron. The most memorable part of this (you can thank the Civil War comic series) is that there is motivation – true, legitimate impetus and consequences – for each character taking a stance. It’s easy to see why each character is so resolute, but don’t feel bad if you can’t easily take a side. Really, neither one is wrong. It’s amazing how…
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Off the Shelf…Hollywood in Vienna: The World of James Horner
To anyone even remotely interested in film or film music, James Horner should be more than a household name. With over 130 original compositions for a variety of film and television productions, Horner has put an indelible stamp on the entertainment world and, as a result, pop culture in general. Horner’s work became so essential to the project that he was not merely a consultant to each production, it was the narrative, characters, and editing that needed to keep pace with and adapt to what he’d written. That’s an exaggeration, sure, but to film fans, it sure feels that way. Arguably the poster child for the profession, John Williams, will be remembered…
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Off the Shelf…Disney’s ‘Zootopia’
Disney’s latest Blu-Ray offering is something that feels classically Disney, yet has the awareness and modernity of something like the studio’s frigid Princess pic. Zootopia trades ballgowns and musical numbers for a sweet-natured but surprisingly adult story. Sure it gets a candy coating, thanks to the conceit of a civilized mammalian populus, but while not intended as a straight-up comedy, this cuddly whodunnit is an all-out laugh fest. We loved it in the theaters, and this is just a blast at home; now we can go frame by frame to take in all the grandeur of the flora and fauna directors Byron Howard, Rich Moore, Jared Bush, and their team crafted. It’s a delicious…
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Off the Shelf…’Aladdin’
It is no surprise that 20 years later, Aladdin, quite possibly the most amazing and crowd-pleasing film in the Disney Renaissance, still holds up. While the film is ever more than the sum of its parts, two decades of having songs and characters ingrained in our brains and pop culture have shown just how transcendent the film was, and continues to be. A colorful mix of great voice talent, witty writing, dazzling visual splendor, and of course the songs that nearly everyone knows the words to contribute in making this animated effort an outstanding cinematic achievement. There are plenty of other places to find gushing and glowing reviews of this…
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Off the Shelf…’Cop Car’
In Jon Watts‘ simplistic thriller, Kevin Bacon portrays a shady police officer who oozes unsavory from the very first moment we see him. Forget that the film starts with him dragging a body to dump in makeshift, yet well-worn pit in some clandestine location. Most of the time, Bacon has a uniquely effortless way of telegraphing that he’s a bad dude with very little effort. Still, his insidious delivery can be as charming as it is nebulous. Playing a corrupt Sheriff, he’s prepared to go great lengths to conceal his nefarious deeds, but also keep the fact he’s a dirty cop under wraps. Yet, like a modern-day Scooby-Doo episode, he would have gotten away with it…
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Off the Shelf…’Porco Rosso’
Of all the fanciful adventures Hayao Miyazaki has taken the world on, fan-favorite Porco Rosso might just be the odd member of the family. A male-centric story about a fighter pilot, cursed to live life as a pig, doesn’t seem that odd or whimsical when you stack up the film’s brief synopsis against any other Studio Ghibli title. But while this story comes across as a breezy mix of ideas (and a quasi love-story), there’s a real sweetness to the themes, a fun sense of adventure, and lots of laughs. There are also plenty of lovable characters in Miyazaki’s love letter to the films right out of Hollywood’s golden age. At GoSeeTalk, we are…
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Off the Shelf…’Pom Poko’
Without fail, and regardless of the plot, there are a number of similar and familiar themes running through every Studio Ghibli feature. Yet among the most prominent – feminism, and characters far removed from their element or comfort zones – environmentalism is a common through line. Co-founder Isao Takahata isn’t normally known for a lot of levity or fluff in his films. Think about Grave of the Fireflies and The Tale of Princess Kaguya and it’s easy to imagine Takahata as the Felix Unger to his partner, and fellow Studio Ghibli co-founder, Hayao Miyazaki. Pom Poko is rife with weighty and mature themes. At the heart of the film is the message…
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Off the Shelf…’The Hundred-Foot Journey’
The Hundred-Foot Journey is a wonderful film that shows that while we as nations and races may still be divided, we can come together in a great many ways. One of those is a very simple one – food. Hassan Kadam has one passion and goal in life: to cook. Playing an important role in his life, his mother was responsible for teaching his to smell, taste, and prepare the ingredients. His family’s restaurant was quite famous, and brought a great many people to their tables because of traditional culinary masterpieces. Yet a political upheaval resulted in riots, and the restaurant was left in the wake of the resulting madness.…
