Review: "THE HAUNTED MANSION" 2003 is Perfect for a Family Fright Night

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 2 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Haunted Mansion (2003)

Running time:  88 minutes (1 hour, 28 minutes)

MPAA – PG for frightening images, thematic elements and language

DIRECTOR:  Rob Minkoff

WRITER:  David Berenbaum

PRODUCERS:  Don Hahn and Andrew Gunn

CINEMATOGRAHER:  Remi Adefarasin (D.o.P.)

EDITOR:  Priscilla Nedd-Friendly

COMPOSER:  Mark Mancina

COMEDY/FAMILY/FANTASY/HORROR

Starring:  Eddie Murphy, Terence Stamp, Nathaniel Parker, Marsha Thomason, Jennifer Tilly, Wallace Shawn, Dina Waters, Marc John Jefferies, and Aree Davis

The Haunted Mansion is a 2003 American supernatural horror-comedy film directed by Rob Minkoff and starring Eddie Murphy.  Released by Walt Disney Pictures, the film is loosely based on the Disney theme park attraction, “The Haunted Mansion,” which first opened at Disneyland in 1969 and at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida in 1971.  The Haunted Mansion the movie focuses on a realtor and his family who are summoned to a haunted mansion where they must learn lessons about the importance of family if they want to escape.

In the film, The Haunted Mansion, Jim Evers (Eddie Murphy) is a workaholic real estate agent.  He is allegedly part of a team, Evers & Evers, with his wife, Sara (Marsha Thomason, the British actress who played Martin Lawrence’s love interest in Black Knight).  However, you’d hardly know that they are a team because Jim spends so much time away from Sara and their children.  And since Sara (as many movie wives do) complains that he spends too much time away from the family, Jim decides to take the family on a trip to a lake.

Sara, however, gets an invitation to visit Gracey Manor, a foreboding manor locked behind a huge iron gate and nestled in a jungle of sinister vegetation.  If that wasn’t enough to say “haunted house,” the mansion has a rather spacious scenic graveyard on the property.  Sara alone had been invited, but Jim insists that they make the visit to Gracey as part of their vacation stop, so their children, sassy girl Megan (Aree Davis), and the seemingly perpetually terrified Michael (Marc John Jefferies) go along.

At the mansion, the imposing butler Ramsley (Terence Stamp), an emaciated and cadaverous figure with an obvious air of menace about him, greets the Evers.  They meet the mansion’s owner, Master Gracey (Nathaniel Parker), a deeply troubled man who claims to be the original owner’s heir.  Gracey is apparently obsessed with Sara, and gradually Jim, Michael and Megan start to figure out the dreadful truth, but is it in time to save the family?  Will it take a band of ghosts to teach Jim Evers a lesson about the importance of family?

This premise for the film The Haunted Mansion, based upon a Disney World theme park ride, actually works, for the most part.  Director Rob Minkoff (The Lion King, Stuart Little) displays a deft touch in keeping the film both suspenseful and funny, and he expertly juggles live action so that the special effects seamlessly fit rather than seeming to have been thrown in.  Mansion is also a lot funnier than the ads for the film imply; in fact, most of the ads come across as being out of context.  This movie is pure fluff, but it’s done quite well, so someone in Disney marketing should get a reprimand.

I loved the costumes, and especially the art direction (Beat Frutiger and Tomas Voth) and set decoration (Rosemary Brandenburg).  The house and graveyard recall Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney, Christopher Lee, and Peter Cushing, a whole host of Hammer films, as well as Abbot & Costello and four decades of Scooby-Doo cartoons.  What a delightful mix!  As usual, Rick Baker does stellar makeup effects work in bringing corpses to life; this man is a national treasure.

The acting is good, and Murphy gives one of his better performances as a star of family-friendly movies.  Usually, his acting seems out of place and kind of awkward in films like Daddy Day Care (where he was good), but here his fit is natural and he seems inspired.

There is a peculiar racial subtext to this film that the storytellers attempt to conceal, but it will be obvious to most adults.  Maybe that would have made this story richer; as it is, it gives a dark edge to the inspired fluff.  Still, The Haunted Mansion is fine the way it is.  The characters have a lot with which to deal, and the resolution makes sense even if the execution of the ending stumbles a bit.  It’s a fine family film.  It has that Disney flavor that suggests Disney films from the 1950’s and 60’s, so I think The Haunted Mansion could become a Disney Halloween stable.

6 of 10

B

★★★ out of 4 stars

Edited:  Saturday, July 27, 2024

The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: "THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2" is a Truly Disappointing Sequel

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 9 of 2022 (No. 1821) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Addams Family 2 (2021)
Running time:  93 minutes (1 hour, 33 minutes)
MPAA – PG for macabre and rude humor, violence and language
DIRECTORS:  Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon
WRITERS:  Dan Hernandez, Benji Samit, Ben Queen, and Susanna Fogel; from a story by Dan Hernandez and Benji Samit (based on the characters created by Charles Addams)
PRODUCERS:  Gail Berman, Alison O'Brien, Danielle Sterling, and Conrad Vernon
EDITOR:  Ryan Folsey
COMPOSERS: Jeff Danna and Mychael Danna

ANIMATION/FANTASY/COMEDY/FAMILY

Starring:  (voices) Oscar Isaac, Charlize Theron, Chloe Grace Moretz, Javon “Wanna” Walton, Nick Kroll, Snoop Dogg, Bette Midler, Conrad Vernon, Bill Hader, Wallace Shawn, Brian Sommer, Cherami Leigh, and Ted Evans

The Addams Family 2 is a 2021 computer-animated supernatural comedy from directors Conrad Vernon and Greg Tiernan.  The film is a sequel to the 2019 animated film, The Addams Family.  Both films are based on the characters created by The New Yorker cartoonist, the late Charles Addams (1912-1988).  The Addams Family 2 focuses on the Addams Family as take a road trip, during which a scientist pursues Wednesday.

The Addams Family 2 opens at a school science fair.  There, Wednesday Addams (Chloe Grace Moretz) presents her experiment, in which she uses DNA from her pet squid, Socrates, on her Uncle Fester (Nick Kroll) to show how humans can be improved.  Wednesday is somewhat put off that her family:  father, Gomez Addams (Oscar Isaac); mother, Morticia (Charlize Theron); and her brother, Pugsley (Javon “Wanna” Walton) have decided to attend the science fair, which is sponsored by the Cyrus Strange Foundation.  Cyrus Strange (Bill Hader) himself appears at the fair as a 3D hologram, and he is instantly drawn to Wednesday experiment and hopes to recruit her to work for him.

Back at home, Gomez Addams worries that the children are drifting apart from him and Morticia.  He decides that a family vacation is just what is needed to keep the family together, so he declares that they are going on a road trip across the United States.  Uncle Fester, Thing (the sentient hand), and Lurch (the butler) join them on the vacation, with everyone packing into an huge, odd-looking camper.  Gomez even takes the family to Miami where he hopes Cousin Itt (Snoop Dogg) can help with the family dilemma.

There is a complication in these vacation plans, however.  Cyrus Strange is determined to have Wednesday, and sends a shady lawyer, Mr. Mustela (Wallace Shawn), and a brutish henchman, Pongo (Ted Evans) to trick Gomez and Morticia into believing that Wednesday might be Cyrus' child.  Wednesday is already having doubts about her connections to the Addams Family, so which family will she decide to choose, the Addams or Cyrus Strange?

Charles Addams' macabre cartoon characters first became “The Addams Family” in the former ABC television series, “The Addams Family” (1964-66).  I have been a fan of that series since I was a child.  As a child, I was also a fan of NBC's former Saturday morning cartoon series, “The Addams Family” (Hanna-Barbera, 1973).  That series depicts the Addams Family on a cross-country road trip, exploring the United States in their “Creepy Camper” that resembles their Victorian-style mansion home.  The Addams Family 2 is not a remake of that old cartoon series, but it does borrow a few elements from it.

The Addams Family 2019 was enough of a hit that producing a sequel probably seemed obvious to MGM, which holds the rights to produce Addams Family film and television series.  The end result is something that looks and feels like a sequel that was rushed into production.  The idea of Wednesday not being an Addams is a ridiculous plot.  I can certainly accept the notion of a precocious child wondering about her parentage and lineage.  However, if she is different from the rest of her family, it is because each member of the Addams Family is different from all others.  That is the point this film makes at end of the story, but we didn't need an entire mediocre movie to tell us that.  Raising questions about Wednesday's family is just a lame plot line.

So, it goes without saying that I did not like this film.  The Addams Family 2 ends up being the latest in a long line of pitiful Hollywood road trip movies.  I will say that the last 17 minutes of the film – before the end credits – are actually good.  It is the only time that the film has any real conflict, melodrama, or action, and what happens in these seventeen minutes is actually consequential to the both the Addams Family and a few other supporting characters.

The Addams Family 2019 is my favorite media adaptation of “The Addams Family” characters outside of the 1960s and 1970s.  It manages to be sweet, charming, heartwarming, and, of course, macabre – the way it should be.  I gave it a B+, but The Addams Family 2 bored the hell outta me until the last seventeen minutes.  I'm being generous giving it a C.

4 of 10
C

Wednesday, February 23, 2022


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: "THE PRINCESS BRIDE" Still Storming the Castle

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 21 (of 2020) by Leroy Douresseaux

[This review originally appeared on Patreon.]

The Princess Bride (1987)

Running time: 98 minutes (1 hour, 38 minutes)

MPAA – PG

DIRECTOR:  Rob Reiner

WRITER:  William Goldman (based on the book by William Goldman)

PRODUCERS:  Rob Reiner and Andrew Scheinman

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Adrian Biddle

EDITOR:  Robert Leighton

COMPOSER:  Mark Knopfler

Academy Award nominee

FANTASY/ROMANCE/ADVENTURE/FAMILY

Starring:  Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, Christopher Guest, Wallace Shawn, Andre the Giant, Fred Savage, Peter Falk, Carol Kane, and Billy Crystal

The Princess Bride is a 1987 fantasy-adventure and romantic film from director Rob Reiner.  The film is based on William Goldman's 1973 novel, The Princess Bride, for which Goldman wrote the screenplay adaptation.  2017 will mark the 30th anniversary of the film's release (October 9, 1987).  In The Princess Bride the film, a grandfather tells his grandson the story of a princess sought by two men who desire her – one a mysterious hero and the other a hateful prince.

The Princess Bride opens with a framing story in which The Grandfather (Peter Falk) reads a book, “The Princess Bride,” to The Grandson (Fred Savage), who is sick and relegated to his bed.  The story then travels from the present day of the Grandson's bedroom to the past of the Renaissance Era.  The place of arrival is a country named “Florin.”  There, we meet Buttercup (Robin Wright), a beautiful young woman, and Westley (Cary Elwes), the farmhand she loves to order around.  The truth is that Buttercup loves Westley, but one day, Westley leaves the farm to seek his fortune.

Later, Buttercup learns that Westley was on ship that was attacked by the Dread Pirate Roberts and is assumed dead.  The story moves ahead five years, and Buttercup has reluctantly agreed to marry Humperdinck (Chris Sarandon), Prince of Florin.  There are, however, conspiracies and conspirators afoot who stand in the way of that marriage.  This includes a Sicilian crime boss named Vizzini (Wallace Shawn), a giant named Fezzik (André the Giant), a Spanish master swordsman named Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin), and a mysterious man in black.

Recently, IDW Publishing sent me a copy-for-review of their adult coloring book based on The Prince Bride, entitled The Princess Bride: A Storybook to Color.  I decided that I finally needed to sit down and watch The Princes Bride, start to finish, in its entirety, which I had never done.  Why had I not done that before?  I don't know.  I have always been curious about the movie, and I even owned a copy of William Goldman's novel a long time ago (which I lost before I could read it).

I can describe The Princess Bride as a multi-genre movie.  It is part medieval fantasy, part storybook romance, and part swashbuckling adventure (quietly and gently adventurous).  And the result is a damn fine movie.  I don't know what makes it work, but I think director Rob Reiner has a lot to do with that.  His directorial pace and mood suggests that he wanted this movie to be a storybook tale that found comedy in the elements of fairy tales and fantasy, but without mocking and parodying them.  Also, I think William Goldman's screenplay builds the characters using quirks and eccentricities so that he can poke fun at the players rather than at the genres that are their field of play.

The resulting film is an utterly delightful and a truly unique cinematic gem.  I don't think Reiner could get The Princess Bride made today, not without pumping it full of intense action and making extensive use of computer-generated imagery (CGI).  If made today, even the film's photography would be heavily altered and enhanced through the use of software.

The Princess Bride is essentially a “hand-made” movie, and somehow the talent involved in this film made magic.  I bet they did not realize that until they saw the finished film.  If you have not yet seen The Princess Bride, it is time for you to realize the magic, too.

9 of 10
A+

Sunday, January 22, 2017

NOTES:
1988 Academy Awards, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Music, Original Song” (Willy DeVille for the song "Storybook Love")

The text is copyright © 2017 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: "Toy Story 4" is Very Good, But Not Great

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 13 (of 2019) by Leroy Douresseaux

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

Toy Story 4 (2019)
Running time:  100 minutes (1 hour, 40 minutes)
MPAA – G
DIRECTOR:  Josh Cooley
WRITERS:  Andrew Stanton and Stephany Folsom; from an original story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, Josh Cooley, Valerie LaPointe, Rashida Jones, Will McCormack, Martin Hynes, and Stephany Folsom
PRODUCER:  Mark Nielsen and Jonas Rivera
EDITOR:  Axel Geddes
COMPOSER:  Randy Newman

ANIMATION/ADVENTURE/DRAMA/COMEDY/FAMILY

Starring:  (voices) Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Annie Potts, Tony Hale, Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele,  Madeleine McGraw, Christina Hendricks, Keanu Reeves, Ally Maki, Jay Hernandez, Lori Alan, Joan Cusack, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzenberger, Carl Weathers, and June Squibb

Toy Story 4 is a 2019 computer-animated feature film from Pixar Animation Studios.  It is the fourth film in the Toy Story franchise.  The new film focuses on a new toy and a road trip that will change the life of a beloved toy.

Toy Story 4 opens nine years earlier when Woody (Tom Hanks) and the gang were still Andy's toys.  Woods leads the successful rescue of a toy car, R.C.   In the present, Woody and the other toys are happy in their new life as the toys of a little girl named Bonnie (Madeleine McGraw).  Bonnie is about to enter kindergarten and is distressed about going to school.  Woody sneaks into Bonnie's backpack and joins her on her first day of school.  Woody's action even lead to Bonnie using discarded arts and crafts supplies to transform a “spork” (spoon-fork) into a new toy she names “Forky” (Tony Hale).  Although Forky becomes Bonnie's favorite toy, the spork does not believe that he is a toy, and he is always trying to return to a trash can.

Bonnie and her mom (Lori Alan) and dad (Jay Hernandez) go on an RV road trip, and Bonnie takes Forky, Woody and company with her.  Instead of enjoying the trip, Woody spends his time trying to rescue Forky.  This misadventure leads Woody to an antique story, Second Chance Antiques, and also to a fairground/playground, where he is reunited with old friends and makes new friends.  And Woody learns just how big the world can be for a toy with an open mind.

Toy Story 4 is a good movie, not as good as Toy Story, Toy Story 2, and Toy Story 3, but quite good.  Keegan-Michael Key as Ducky and Jordan Peele as Bunny are nice additions to the cast.  Keanu Reeves is a surprise and gives a surprising voice performance as Duke Kaboom, the Canadian daredevil toy.  The sycophantic ventriloquist's dummies, “the Bensons,” are a nice, creepy distraction.  Christina Hendricks is appropriately pathetic and menacing as the tragically desperate doll, Gabby Gabby.

But Toy Story 4 is, more than the first three films, a movie about adult issues and regrets that tries to be a family movie, if not an outright kids' movie.  More than anything, Toy Story 4 is Woody's movie.  [In this film, Tim Allen's Buzz Lightyear is a supporting character and not a co-lead].  In this movie, Tom Hanks gives one of the best voice performances for an animated film that I have had the pleasure of enjoying.  In Hanks' performance, you can feel it.  Woody is like a father who “lost” one child, Andy (because he grew up and gave away his toys), so he is an obsessive “helicopter parent” about the new child, Molly, who does not need Woody as much as he thinks she does – if at all.

It would be pretentious of me to say that this movie is about becoming a man and putting away the things of boy.  No, I think Toy Story 4 is about the change and the passage of time that is forced upon us, so if we don't change and move on, change and the passage of time is going to happen anyway.

Yes, each Toy Story film has its Mission: Impossible-like operation in which our beloved toys try to save another toy or toys, my favorite being the race to save Woody from an unscrupulous toy dealer and a devious toy in Toy Story 2.  In Toy Story 4, the new “toy,” Forky, needs to be saved, and Woody keeps endangering first, himself, and then, others in increasingly desperate and dangerous bids to save the spork.

Ultimately, however, this movie feels like the franchise has come back one too many times.  The end of Toy Story 3, in which a grown-up Andy gave his beloved Woody and the other toys to Molly, was really meant to be the happily ever after.  Once Toy Story 3 grossed over a billion dollars in worldwide box office, it seemed like common-moneymaking-sense to make a fourth film.  Don't make another Toy Story film, Disney.  Let Toy Story 4 be a very good, but not great coda to the series.

7 out of 10
B+

Tuesday, July 2, 2019


The text is copyright © 2019 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Amazon Announces New Kids Shows and Returning Favorites for Fall 2017

Amazon Announces Fall Slate for Kids Originals Including If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and Sid & Marty Krofft’s Sigmund and the Sea Monsters

Wishenpoof and The Stinky & Dirty Show return for second seasons

New fall programming highlights impactful storytelling and inspiring characters

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--(NASDAQ: AMZN)—Amazon announced its fall slate for kids originals, exclusively on Prime Video. Amazon Studios creates series for kids with heart for both enjoyment and impact to inspire a generation of lifelong creative learners. The fall slate includes Wishenpoof (September 26), Sigmund and the Sea Monsters (October 13), If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (November 7), and The Stinky & Dirty Show (Fall 2017); all series will premiere on these dates in the US and UK, and made available worldwide at a later date.

    “We’re honored to reintroduce If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and Sigmund’s iconic character to a new generation of kids and families”

“We’re honored to reintroduce If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and Sigmund’s iconic character to a new generation of kids and families,” said Tara Sorensen, Head of Kids Programming at Amazon Studios. “Our fall slate will bring customers more engaging and heartwarming stories to enjoy with their families.”

Wishenpoof – New season premieres on September 26, 2017

Wishenpoof centers on Bianca (Addison Holley), a fairy who can grant wishes using Wish Magic. The series highlights her thought process as she thinks, decides and solves problems in her own creative way. Each episode features a new song by Bianca for viewers to sing along with and imaginative stories to follow. Created by Angela C. Santomero (Blue’s Clues, Creative Galaxy, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, Super Why!) and produced by Out of the Blue Enterprises, the show features guest voice talent Jason Priestly (Beverly Hills, 90210) as Bianca’s dad. The series’ learning approach is based on Ellen Galinsky’s “Seven Essential Life Skills” framework that focuses on skills to help children reach their full potential by having empathy for others, tackling challenges, communicating effectively, thinking critically, and to never stop learning. Season one is rated 4.7 out of 5 stars by customers with 79% 5-star reviews.

Starting September 26, the Wishenpoof season two soundtrack will be available to stream exclusively via Amazon Music Unlimited and Prime Music. In addition, the Wishenpoof Wish Magic Adventure Game by Haywire Group is now available on Amazon.

Sigmund and the Sea Monsters – New series premieres on October 13, 2017

Sid & Marty Krofft’s Sigmund and the Sea Monsters follows two beachcombing brothers, Johnny (Solomon Stewart) and Scotty (Kyle Breitkopf), who find Sigmund – a real live sea monster. The two brothers befriend the harmless and funny Sigmund and hide him in their clubhouse. However, keeping him a secret may be nearly impossible since the town’s overzealous Captain Barnabas (David Arquette) is obsessed with proving that sea monsters are real. With the help of their cousin Robyn (Rebecca Bloom), this team of friends makes it their mission to protect their new friend and have a great and memorable summer. Based on the nostalgic 1970s live-action series, Sigmund and the Sea Monsters is directed by Ron Oliver and is executive produced by Sid and Marty Krofft. The series will also feature a cover of the original theme song, “Friends” by The Roots.

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie – New series premieres on November 7, 2017

When you give a mouse a cookie, he’ll probably ask for a glass of milk, and then...who knows what he’ll ask for next? Based on the beloved books by Laura Numeroff (Dennis the Menace) and Felicia Bond and executive produced by Numeroff, Bond and Emmy Award-winning writer Ken Scarborough (Arthur, Sesame Street, Curious George) who also serves as head writer, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie follows the adventures of Mouse, Oliver, Moose, Pig, Cat, and Dog, as they discover that when you’ve got a curious Mouse for a friend one thing always leads to another, then another, and then another! The show's learning approach was developed in consultation with authors Mimi Ito and John Seely Brown and revolves around a cause and effect narrative structure that sparks imagination and the creativity engendered by knowing that possibilities are endless. The pilot and beloved book are both rated 4.7 out of 5 stars by customers with 82% 5-star reviews for the pilot and 84% 5-star reviews for the book. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie will feature new recordings by Grammy nominated recording artist Lisa Loeb.

The Stinky & Dirty Show – New season premieres in Fall 2017

Based on the “I Stink!” book series by Kate and Jim McMullan, The Stinky & Dirty Show follows the adventures and mishaps faced by best friends and unlikely heroes, Stinky the garbage truck and Dirty, the backhoe loader. They are a dynamic and hilarious duo of resourcefulness that learn when things don’t go as expected, asking “what if” can lead to success. The series is written and developed by Guy Toubes (The Adventures of Chuck & Friends, Littlest Pet Shop, Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi), executive produced by Toubes and Holly Huckins, and animated by Brown Bag Films, Ltd (Peter Rabbit, Octonauts, Doc McStuffins). This season will once again feature original music from acclaimed folk singer and songwriter Dan Bern and celebrity voice talent, including Whoopi Goldberg (The View), Mark Hamill (Spacey), Jane Lynch (Glee), Andy Richter (Arrested Development), Joan Cusack (Shameless) and Wallace Shawn (Toy Story). The series’ learning approach is based on Jessica Lahey’s New York Times best-seller “The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed,” specifically modeling resourcefulness, resilience, teamwork, and the benefits of failure. Season one is rated 4.8 out of 5 stars by customers with 87% 5-star reviews.

Prime members will be able to stream the series exclusively via the Amazon Prime Video app for compatible TVs, connected devices including Fire TV, mobile devices, and online at www.amazon.com/primevideokids. Members can also download the series to mobile devices for offline viewing at no additional cost to their membership. Amazon kids originals are also available on FreeTime Unlimited, the all-you-can-eat subscription service designed from the ground up for kids. FreeTime Unlimited is available exclusively on Amazon devices, including Amazon Fire TV and Fire tablets, and a year-long subscription is included with every Fire Kids Edition.

Customers who are not already Prime members can sign up for a free trial at www.amazon.com/prime. For a list of all Amazon Video compatible devices, visit www.amazon.com/howtostream.


About Amazon Original Kids Programming
In 2014, Amazon Studios began introducing kids originals for Prime Video, kicking off with the Emmy award-winning series, Tumble Leaf, about a delightfully curious blue fox, and his best friend Stick, a quirky caterpillar, as they embark on a fun and nature-filled adventure. Today, customers can enjoy a growing selection of original kids series and specials including Just Add Magic, Lost in Oz, Annedroids, Dino Dana, Thunderbirds Are Go!, Danger & Eggs, and An American Girl Story which consists of four separate specials. Two additional series will debut this fall including Sigmund and the Sea Monsters and If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.

The mission of Amazon’s original preschool series is to inspire lifelong creative learning in children beginning at the preschool age. The aim is to validate, maintain and foster young children’s creative, joyful, and curious learning spirit through offering core content that is integrated with skills children need now and for the future. This is accomplished by integrating an innovative curriculum thread through all preschool shows including The Stinky & Dirty Show, Creative Galaxy, Wishenpoof, and If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, working with established creators and educational advisors that comprise the Thought Leader Board and developing learning experiences that extend beyond the screen. All of this is to give parents confidence that these programs will provide valuable skills and life lessons that children can use in their real life—while being entertaining at the same time.

To date, Amazon Original Kids Series and Specials have won 16 Daytime Creative Arts Emmys, including “Outstanding Children’s Animated Program” in 2016 for Niko and the Sword of Light and again in 2017 for Lost in Oz: Extended Adventure; as well as “Outstanding Pre-School Children’s Animated Program” in 2015 and 2016 for Tumble Leaf and again in 2017 for The Snowy Day. Prime Video’s growing line-up of award-winning and critically-acclaimed Originals for kids and families are available to stream and enjoy using the Amazon Prime Video app for compatible TVs, connected devices, including Amazon Fire TV and mobile devices, or online at www.amazon.com/primevideokids.

About Amazon Video
Amazon Video is a premium on-demand entertainment service that offers customers the greatest choice in what to watch and how to watch it. Amazon Video is the only service that provides all of the following:

•     Prime Video: Thousands of movies and TV shows, including popular licensed content plus critically-acclaimed and award-winning Amazon Original Series and Movies from Amazon Studios like Transparent, The Man in the High Castle, Love & Friendship, and kids series Tumble Leaf, available for unlimited streaming as part of an Amazon Prime membership. Prime Video is also now available to customers in more than 200 countries and territories around the globe at www.primevideo.com.
•     Amazon Channels: Over 100 video subscriptions to networks like HBO, SHOWTIME, STARZ, PBS KIDS, Acorn TV, and more, available to Amazon Prime members in the US as add-ons to their membership. To view the full list of available channels, visit www.amazon.com/channels.
•     Rent or Own: Hundreds of thousands of titles, including new release movies and current TV shows available for on-demand rental or purchase for all Amazon customers.
•     Instant Access: Customers can instantly watch anytime, anywhere through the Amazon Video app on compatible TVs, mobile devices, Amazon Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, and Fire tablets, or online. For a list of all compatible devices, visit www.amazon.com/howtostream.
•     Premium Features: Top features like 4K Ultra HD, High Dynamic Range (HDR) and mobile downloads for offline viewing of select content.

In addition to Prime Video, the Prime membership includes unlimited fast free shipping options across all categories available on Amazon, more than two million songs and thousands of playlists and stations with Prime Music, secure photo storage with Prime Photos, unlimited reading with Prime Reading, unlimited access to a digital audiobook catalog with Audible Channels for Prime, a rotating selection of free digital games and in-game loot with Twitch Prime, early access to select Lightning Deals, exclusive access and discounts to select items, and more. To sign-up for Prime or to find out more, visit: www.amazon.com/prime.

About Amazon
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about and follow @AmazonNews.

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Review: "The Curse of the Jade Scorpion" a Nice Ode to 1940s Era Films

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 255 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001)
Running time:  103 minutes (1 hour, 43 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some sexual content
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Woody Allen
PRODUCER:  Letty Aronson
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Zhao Fei
EDITOR:  Alisa Lepselter

COMEDY/CRIME/MYSTERY/ROMANCE

Starring:  Woody Allen, Helen Hunt, Dan Aykroyd, Brian Markinson, Elizabeth Berkley, Wallace Shawn, Charlize Theron, David Ogden Stiers, and Carol Bayeux

The subject of this movie review is The Curse of the Jade Scorpion, a 2001 romance, crime-comedy and mystery film from writer-director Woody Allen.  The film follows an insurance investigator and an efficiency expert, both hypnotized into stealing jewels by a crooked hypnotist using a jade scorpion.

New York City – 1940:  C.W. Briggs (Woody Allen) is the top insurance investigator for North Coast Casualty and Fidelity of New York, and he is his boss, Chris Magruder’s (Dan Aykroyd) go-to-guy when it comes to solving the thefts of high value items that North Coast is insuring.  C.W. has also been sparring with the company’s latest hire, Betty Ann Fitzgerald (Helen Hunt), an efficiency expert with an eye on putting C.W. in his place.

At a dinner party, a crooked hypnotist named Voltan (David Ogden Stiers) uses a jeweled charm, the Jade Scorpion, to hypnotize C.W. and Betty Ann.  Soon, the combative co-workers are babbling like love struck kids.  Their colleagues think this is some kind of clever hypnosis gag, so no one realizes that Voltan has placed C.W. and Betty Ann under a post-hypnotic suggestion.  Voltan controls C.W. and makes the insurance investigator use his professional skills and inside information to steal a fortune in jewels from two prominent families that have insured their treasure with North Coast.  With the police after him for the robberies, will C.W. ever get a clue that he’s a hypnotized dupe?

The Curse of the Jade Scorpion is Woody Allen’s delightful ode to movies from the 1940’s, like his delightful 1987 movie, Radio Days, was.  Jade is a nod to the light mystery films of the 40’s, but here, this material isn’t particularly strong, although the acting is quite good and gives the movie a sense of earnest fun.  The entire cast seems up to recreating both the style and ambience of 40’s era movies and the characters in them, and that’s a credit to Allen’s direction.

Helen Hunt is spicy as Betty Ann Fitzgerald, and she makes an excellent foil for Allen’s C.W. Briggs, who is the typical wisecracking character Allen plays in his comedies.  Charlize Theron glams it up to create the sexy, bold, and randy Laura Kensington, a character with an unfortunately too small part because she gives this flick a much-needed kick in the rear every time she’s on screen.  Brian Markinson, Elizabeth Berkley, and Wallace Shawn also add the right touches to their parts and add flavor to this film.

The Curse of the Jade Scorpion isn’t great Allen, nor is it anywhere nearly as good as Radio Days.  It’s a minor, but good Allen flick that will entertain Allen fans to one extent or another.

6 of 10
B

Saturday, December 23, 2006

Updated:  Monday, May 19, 2014

The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Review: "Melinda and Melinda," Good Cast, Average Movie

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 8 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Melinda and Melinda (2004)
Running time:  99 minutes (1 hour, 39 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for adult situations involving sexuality, and some substance material
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Woody Allen
PRODUCER:  Letty Aronson
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Vilmos Zsigmond
EDITOR:  Alisa Lepselter

COMEDY/DRAMA

Starring:  Radha Mitchell, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Will Ferrell, Amanda Peet, Jonny Lee Miller, Chloë Sevigny, Steve Carell, Josh Brolin, Vinessa Shaw, Daniel Sunjata, Geoffrey Nauffts, Wallace Shawn, Larry Pine, Stephanie Roth Haberle, and Neil Pepe

The subject of this movie review is Melinda and Melinda, a 2004 comedy and drama from writer/director Woody Allen.  The film follows two alternating stories about a woman named Melinda’s attempts to straighten out her life.  Fox Searchlight Pictures gave the film a limited release in the United States in March of 2005.  Except for a cameo, Allen does not appear as a significant character in this film.

Over a meal at a restaurant, four friends, two of them playwrights, discuss the essence of life.  Is it comic or tragic?  One of them brings up a story he heard from friends about the unexpected arrival of young woman named Melinda (Radha Mitchell) at a dinner party.  The two playwrights, one who writes tragedies and the other who composes hit comedies, take the incident with Melinda and embellish it, each from his point of view.

Max the Tragedian (Larry Pine) tells a story of doomed love with Melinda as a disturbed young woman who returns to New York City after having several years of misfortune and heartbreak.  She was the bored housewife of a Midwestern doctor, and her affair with a photographer ended the marriage.  Her ex-husband also took the children from Melinda, and her subsequent suicidal depression landed her straight-jacketed in a mental ward.  She arrives at the home of her friend, Laurel (Chloë Sevigny), like Melinda a former Park Avenue princess, and Laurel’s husband, Lee (Jonny Lee Miller), a struggling actor and alcoholic.  Melinda’s arrival hastens the disintegration of Laurel and Lee’s marriage, but Melinda meets Ellis Moonsong (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a smooth talking, handsome, and debonair composer.  They strike up what looks like a promising romance until Ellis notices someone else…

Sy the Comedian (Wallace Shawn) looks at Melinda’s predicament as a romantic comedy.  She is the childless downstairs neighbor of the dinner hosts, an ambitious indie filmmaker named Susan (Amanda Peet) and her husband, Hobie (Will Ferrell) an under-employed actor.  Sy’s Melinda is also coming off a broken relationship, so Hobie befriends Melinda in an attempt to help her find a new love.  However, Hobie falls for Melinda, but he has to suffer in silence when she unexpectedly starts dating an amiable and handsome broker (Daniel Sunjata).  Thus, the film goes back and forth contrasting the fate of each Melinda.

Melinda and Melinda is a decent Woody Allen film, and it’s also a bit different from most of his pictures.  For one thing, he only makes a cameo appearance in the opening sequence that most viewers will probably miss.  However, Will Ferrell’s Hobie of the comedic half of Melinda and Melinda is the stand-in for the neurotic, smart-talking type Allen plays in his films.  The tragic half of the film is quite engaging, but not overly dark and tragic, perhaps because the cast plays it so smoothly and low key.  Mitchell gives a solid performance, and Chiwetel Ejiofor (Dirty Pretty Things) plays Ellis Moonsong as a romantic figure, which lightens up a segment that plays heavily on the notion of doomed relationships.

On the other hand, Ferrell’s performance overwhelms Radha Mitchell’s in the comedic half of the film, and that’s not a bad thing.  The romantic comic angle is mostly flat, and the romance isn’t engaging.  The more Ferrell is on screen the more his comic timing and acting come forward and livens a dull segment into something mildly amusing and somewhat engaging.

Though I’m sad to admit it, I found Melinda and Melinda to be about an average film, sometimes even a chore to watch, and it would be an average film even if someone other than Woody Allen’s name were on it.

5 of 10
C+

Friday, January 13, 2006

Updated:  Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Review: "Chicken Little" Has Big Action

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 169 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux


Chicken Little (2005) – computer animated
Running time: 81 minutes (1 hour, 21 minutes)
MPAA – G
DIRECTOR: Mark Dindal
WRITERS: Steve Bencich and Ron J. Friedman and Ron Anderson; from a story by Mark Kennedy and Mark Dindal (with additional story material by Robert L. Baird and Dan Gerson)
PRODUCER: Randy Fullmer
EDITOR: Dan Molina

ANIMATION/SCI-FI/FANTASY and COMEDY/ACTION/FAMILY

Starring: (voices) Zach Braff, Garry Marshall, Steve Zahn, Joan Cusack, Don Knotts, Patrick Stewart, Amy Sedaris, Harry Shearer, Wallace Shawn, Fred Willard, Catherine O’Hara, Adam West, Patrick Warburton, Mark Dindal, and Dan Molina

One day a piece of the sky falls to earth and hits Chicken Little (Zach Braff) on the head. The sky is falling her warns, but the townsfolk of Oakey Oaks, including his father, Buck Cluck (Garry Marshall), conclude that an acorn hit the boy chick on the head. The incident swiftly turns Chicken Little into the town joke and embarrasses his father. However, the plucky chicken joins the local baseball team with the hopes of reviving his reputation and earning his father’s respect. Chicken Little does indeed lead the team to an upset victory, and he and his pops are on good terms again.

All is well, but another “piece of the sky” hits Chicken Little on the head. Still, he’s reluctant to cause another scene and once again be labeled crazy. Instead, he enlists the help of his friends: Abby Mallard (Joan Cusack), who is also known as the Ugly Duckling because she is so… unpretty; Runt of the Litter (Steve Zahn), a tall, obese pig; and Fish Out of Water (“voice” created by film editor Dan Molina), a fish who wears a water-filled helmet, and the gang embark on an adventure to stop an alien invasion without sending the town into another panic.

Walt Disney’s Chicken Little, of course, spoofs of 17th century, rural English fable, “Chicken Little.” Disney’s new film is also their first fully computer animated film (2000’s Dinosaur combined computer generated characters with live-action background imagery), and also signals the famed movie company’s move away from hand-drawn (2D) animation to computer animated (3D) animation. Clearly aimed at children 12 and under, Chicken Little is filled with clever gags. The script is a hodge podge of sketch comedy, after school special storylines, and the kind of family psychology that would find its way on the “Dr. Phil” and “Oprah.”

The script is Chicken Little’s big problem. The animation is fine, sometimes even outstanding. There are a few moments when it has the quality of the first Shrek, but there are also times when it has the texture and quality of Disney/Pixar’s The Incredibles. However, the film is basically pretty pictures over an ugly story. The script bludgeons the audience with the notion that at this movie’s heart (which it doesn’t have) is the story of a father and son coming together. The father, in this case, Buck Cluck, must learn to accept his son’s physical shortcomings and love him for the plucky fella he is. But unlike Finding Nemo, where the parent/child dynamic seemed so natural, Chicken Little takes that relationship and drapes a cheesy action movie cartoon for children over it.

Chicken Little looks, feels, and sounds like the kind of action movies that have been so popular over the last decade, but tamed for children. Anyone who has seen Independence Day will recognize it in this flick. Chicken Little’s setting, Oakey Oaks, is the same old idealized Midwestern small town that Hollywood has been shoving at audiences for decades. That place is a fairy tale really, but it’s a good setting for War of the Worlds, which is another source reference for this flick. Chicken Little is as noisy and/or as busy as The Rock, Armageddon, Bad Boys II, etc. This is director Mark Dindal’s (The Emperor’s New Groove) Steven Spielberg/Michael Bay movie.

Chicken Little, as voiced by Zach Braff, is actually an endearing character – this movie’s saving grace, in fact. The character itself is a cutey, sort of a riff on “Egghead, Jr.” from those “Foghorn Leghorn” Looney Tunes cartoons. He’s a plucky little fella and the animators lovingly rendered and animated him.

The rest of the cast is mostly trash. The characters aren’t really characters so much as they are stereotypes that get to do stand up routines at different times in the film narrative. I immensely disliked Abby Mallard – nothing more to say about it here – and Runt of the Litter is pathetic. Steve Zahn can play quirky characters whose humor comes through even in crime dramas (Out of Sight), but his comedic gifts are lost because we don’t him here; all we get is his voice in the annoying Runt. Fish Out of Water provides nice slapstick, but the jokes come across as desperation on the writers’ parts. Garry Marshall’s Brooklyn accent is out of place in this film, and as a father, Buck Cluck is like an overbearing mother in his demands on his son, Chicken Little.

I guess the shortest and perhaps best way to describe Disney’s Chicken Little is as Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius with much better computer animation.

4 of 10
C

Saturday, November 5, 2005

Review: "Clueless" is Best Remembered for Who Was in It

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 4 (of 2002) by Leroy Douresseaux

Clueless (1995)
Running time: 97 minutes (1 hour, 37 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sex related dialogue and some teen use of alcohol and drugs
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Amy Heckerling
PRODUCERS: Robert Lawrence and Scott Rudin
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Bill Pope
EDITOR: Debra Chiate

COMEDY

Starring: Alicia Silverstone, Paul Rudd, Brittany Murphy, Stacy Dash, Donald Faison, Dan Hedaya, Breckin Meyer, Justin Walker, Wallace Shawn, Jeremy Sisto, and Julie Brown

Clueless is certainly one of the most entertaining “teenaged” movies ever made, and it is thus so because of its creator, writer-director Amy Heckerling. Heckerling (Look Who’s Talking) is well remembered for directing another landmark movie about teenagers, the fantastic Fast Times at Ridgemont High, which influenced the pop culture of at least two generations of teenagers and young people after its 1982 debut.

Cher Horowitz (Alicia Silverstone) is a pampered Beverly Hills princess who shops for fine clothes, shoes, and accessories almost non-stop. With her friend Dionne Marie Davenport (Stacey Dash), she is the most popular girl in school. When she draws the ire of her father Mel (Dan Hedaya) for poor grades, she decides that she can earn a better grade from one of her teachers, Mr. Alphonse Hall (Wallace Shawn), by setting him up with a girl friend.

That venture successful, she decides to upgrade the looks of the new girl in school, Tai Fraiser (Brittany Murphy), and to find a boyfriend for Tai. It is during her manipulation of other people’s status that she slowly discovers she is really lonely. Her frustrating search for companionship reveals to her that she is the one who is clueless.

Clueless was probably the first film to capture the attention and bucks of the so-called Generation Y baby boomers. Like the out-of-nowhere hit making band Hanson, Clueless was a surprise success. It captured the flavor and essences of Southern California teenagers from well-to-do and affluent families who could indulge their children with expensive toys, clothes, cars, and other material things. Heckerling ably captures the language and style of these teens, simultaneously poking at and documenting them in her fictional film. Her most important achievement was that she took those character types and made a good film out of it.

The performances are actually understated and accomplished considering that the characters are so over the top. Ms. Silverstone, the youthful blond of the moment for a few years, portrays Cher as thoughtful girl, who truly does understand the needs of others, but strictly through her needs. The goal of the movie seems to be to teach her that she doesn’t have to only help people if it benefits her as much, if not more than, the ones she is helping. Ms. Silverstone subtly travels that path of education all the while keeping her character interesting and entertaining. Sometimes a good character can become a bore during the course of a film when the creators are trying to teach that character a lesson.

The rest of the cast is equally up to the challenge of entertaining. Paul Rudd is quite good as Cher’s stepbrother Josh Lucas, and Dan Hedaya’s Mel is the perfect wrangler for his daughter. There is also a wealth of young Hollywood faces and character actors who take their turn making the world of Cher so vivid, so silly, and so joyous.

And that’s what this movie is - joyous.

Fun, silly, irreverent, it is also a sly commentary on particular group of the youth of America, but the film possesses enough charm that the viewer focuses mostly on the comedy and romance. Only the keenest mind of a killjoy would focus on how vacuous this film can be at times. Heckerling has created a bright, sunny movie that is both smart and enjoyable. Part parody, part satire, and a little farce, Clueless is, alas, simply fun to watch.

6 of 10
B

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Pixar's "The Incredibles" On Blu-ray Tuesday

Everyone’s Favorite Family of Undercover Superheroes Bursts Into High-Definition

Academy Award®-Winning Animated Feature Disney•Pixar’s THE INCREDIBLES Makes Its Highly-Anticipated Blu-ray™ Debut On April 12th

BURBANK, Calif., February 10, 2011 – THE INCREDIBLES, everyone’s favorite family of undercover superheroes and Disney•Pixar’s two time Academy Award®-winning animated feature film (2004 Best Animated Feature Film and Best Achievement in Sound Editing), makes its highly- anticipated Blu-ray™ debut on April 12, 2011. Releasing as a 4-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack (2 Blu-ray Discs + 1 DVD + 1 Digital Copy), this superset has something for everyone – from the discerning enthusiast who demands nothing less than the highest-quality home entertainment experience, to the family who enjoys the interactive and engaging bonus features that only Blu-ray can provide – making this a “must add” to every home entertainment collection across the nation.

From the creative minds behind the Toy Story films and Ratatouille, comes the hilarious, action-packed animated adventure about a seemingly ordinary family with an incredible secret. Releasing for the first time ever in high-definition and in its original theatrical wide screen version, THE INCREDIBLES has been packed to include fascinating audio commentary by Academy Award®-winning director Brad Bird and his fellow filmmakers, exclusive new bonus features, deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes features, hilarious bloopers and much, much more.

An explosion of fun, comedy and action-packed adventure, THE INCREDIBLES 4-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack will be available at retailers nationwide for the suggested price of $45.99 U.S./$52.99 Canada.

BONUS FEATURES:

Blu-ray:
Includes The Following All-New Bonus Features Plus All The Classic DVD Features:

• The Incredibles Revisited – A roundtable discussion with Writer/Director Brad Bird, Producer John Walker, Story Supervisor Mark Andrews, Supervising Technical Director Rick Sayre, Production Designer Lou Romano, Character Designer Teddy Newton, and Supervising Animator Tony Fucile.

• Paths To Pixar: Story Artists – Continuing the popular bonus feature series that viewers have seen on many other Disney•Pixar releases, this exciting new feature showcases multiple Pixar story artists giving viewers exciting insight into their work, their inspiration and the personal paths that eventually led them to a career at Pixar.

• Studio Stories: Gary’s Birthday – Trying to make a movie when there are not enough work days and too many birthday parties? This feature showcases how The Incredibles crew solved that problem.

• Ending With A Bang: Making The End Credits – Interview with Director of Photography Andy Jimenez and Character Designer Teddy Newton about the process of creating the end credits for the film.

• “The New Nomanisan” Island Redevelopment Plan – A guided tour of Nomanisan Island, post- Syndrome, pitching the island as a vacation resort paradise.

Classic DVD Features:
The DVD in the 4-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack Includes:
• The Incredibles feature film
• The original short film Jack-Jack Attack
• Pixar’s Academy Award®-nominated short film Boundin’ (2003 Best Animated Short)

BLU-RAY COMBO PACK TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Street Date April 12, 2011
Direct Prebook February 8, 2011
Distributors Prebook February 22, 2011
Suggested Retail Price 4-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack (2 Blu-ray Discs + 1 DVD + 1 Digital Copy Disc) = $45.99 U.S./$52.99 Canada
Feature Run Time Approximately 115 Minutes
Rated USA: “PG” (For Action Violence); Canada: “G” (For Violence) *Bonus materials not rated
Technical 2.39 (Presentation Size: 16X9)
Sound English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio Sound, Eng 2.0 DVS
Languages English, French and Spanish
Subtitles English SDH, French and Spanish


ABOUT THE FILM:
THE INCREDIBLES follows the adventures of a family of former superheroes who are rediscovering the true source of their powers—in one another. Once one of the world’s top masked crime fighters, Bob Parr (a.k.a. Mr. Incredible) fought evil and saved lives on a daily basis. But 15 years later, he and his wife Helen (the former Elastigirl) have been forced to take on civilian identities and retreat to the suburbs.

Today they, and all superheroes, live as mere mortals. Bob and Helen lead all- too-ordinary lives with their children, Violet and Dashiell “Dash” Parr, who go out of their way to appear “normal,” and new baby Jack-Jack As a clock-punching insurance man, the only thing Bob fights these days is boredom and a bulging waistline. Itching for action, the sidelined superhero gets his chance when a mysterious communication summons him to a remote island for a top-secret assignment. Now, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance, the family must come together and once again find the fantastic in their family life.

ABOUT THE CAST & CREW:
THE INCREDIBLES, features a top-notch list of voice cast talent that includes Craig T. Nelson (TV’s “Parenthood,” “Coach”) as Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible, Holly Hunter (TV’s “Saving Grace,” 1993 Academy Award®-winning Best Actress for The Piano) as Helen Parr/Elastigirl, Samuel L. Jackson (The Other Guys, Iron Man 2) as Lucius Best/Frozone, Jason Lee (TV’s “My Name is Earl,” Almost Famous) as Buddy Pine/Syndrome, Spencer Fox (The Groomsmen, and the voice of Mudbud in Air Buddies) as Dashiell Parr (Dash), Sarah Vowell (author and noted radio show commentator on public radio’s “This American Life”) as Violet Parr, Jean Sincere (TV’s “Glee,” “The Drew Carey Show,” “Frasier”) as Mrs. Hogenson, John Ratzenberger (TV’s “Cheers,” the Toy Story films) as the Underminer, Wallace Shawn (TV’s “Gossip Girl,” The Princess Bride) as Gilbert Huph and many more.

THE INCREDIBLES is produced by John Walker (The Iron Giant) and executive produced by Academy Award®-winning filmmaker and chief creative officer of Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios John Lasseter (The Toy Story films, Cars, Monsters, Inc.). Kori Rae is associate producer, and Katherine Sarafian is production manager. Written and directed by Academy Award®-winning Brad Bird (Ratatouille, The Iron Giant, TV’s “The Simpsons”). And playing a major role in creating the film’s retro-futuristic style and exuberant mood is Academy Award®-winning composer Michael Giacchino (Up, Ratatouille and TV’s “Lost”).

ABOUT THE WALT DISNEY STUDIOS:
For more than 85 years, The Walt Disney Studios has been the foundation on which The Walt Disney Company (DIS: NYSE) was built. Today, the Studio brings quality movies, music and stage plays to consumers throughout the world. Feature films are released under four banners: Walt Disney Pictures, which includes Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios, Disneynature, Touchstone Pictures and Marvel. Through the Home Entertainment division, innovative distribution methods provide access to creative content across multiple platforms.

Original music and motion picture soundtracks are produced under Walt Disney Records and Hollywood Records, while Disney Theatrical Group produces and licenses live events, including Broadway theatrical productions, Disney on Ice and Disney LIVE! For more information, please visit http://www.disney.com/.

Review: "Toy Story 3" is Really Good; So What Else is New?

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 3 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux

Toy Story 3 (2010)
Running time: 103 minutes (1 hour, 43 minutes)
MPAA - G
DIRECTOR: Lee Unkrich
WRITERS: Michael Arndt; from a story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, and Lee Unkrich
PRODUCER: Darla K. Anderson
CINEMATOGRAPHERS: Jeremy Lasky (D.o.P.) and Kim White (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Ken Schretzmann
COMPOSER: Randy Newman

ANIMATION/FANTASY/COMEDY/
ADVENTURE/FAMILY

Starring: (voices) Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Ned Beatty, Don Rickles, Michael Keaton, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzenberger, Estelle Harris, John Morris, Jodi Benson, Emily Hahn, Laurie Metcalf, Blake Clark, and Whoopi Goldberg

It was an 11-year wait for a sequel to Toy Story 2. The beloved, computer-animated Toy Story film franchise closes with Toy Story 3. The creation of Pixar Animation Studios (Monsters, Inc., Up), Toy Story 3 opened to near universal acclaim and record-setting box office, so I don’t know what more I can say. I was spellbound by the previous films. If I’d had a vote, I would have voted the first two Toy Story movies the best picture Oscar winners for 1995 and 1999, respectively.

Toy Story 3 begins with 17-year-old Andy Davis (John Morris) packing as he prepares to head off to college. Andy has not played with his toys in years, but he decides to take Woody (Tom Hanks) to college with him and store the other toys in the attic. Of course, Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), Jessie (Joan Cusack), and the rest of the toys are disappointed. However, when Andy’s mom, Mrs. Davis (Laurie Metcalf), mistakenly throws them out, they’re furious. They climb into a box of stuff to be donated to Sunnyside Daycare. They also refuse to listen to Woody when he tries to explain that Mrs. Davis’ action was a mistake.

Andy’s toys are enthusiastically welcomed by the numerous toys at Sunnyside. The leader of the Sunnyside toys, Lots O’-Huggin Bear a.k.a. “Lotso” (Ned Beatty), gives the newcomers a tour. Andy’s toys quickly become enamored with their new home, and Woody is forced to leave without them in his attempt to return home to Andy. However, all is not sunny at Sunnyside, and so, a thrilling rescue mission and breathless adventure ensue before they return home, again.

Lots O’-animated movies blend adventure, comedy, and emotion, some more deftly than others, but the difference is that in every Pixar film, the emotions are always honest and genuine. Even with expectations so high for Toy Story 3, Pixar still managed to produce a movie that charmed, captivated, and moved audiences so deeply, even making grown men cry at the end.

Starting with the first film, I was not surprised that a 3D digitally animated film about plastic toys could charm us. I’ve been watching the work of animators and filmmakers of animated movies entertain, impress, and dazzle for decades. The more talented the animators, the more they are able to match the power of live-action film, and sometimes even surpass the work of the best live-action filmmakers. Toy Story 3 is clever and exhilarating, poignant and stirring, and amusing and sometimes just plain funny.

Still, I can say the above about a lot of Pixar productions, but this time there is something a bit darker and perhaps, more special about this movie. The story echoes themes of death and endings, betrayal and bitterness, and change and new beginnings – with children’s playthings as the characters. It is like classic juvenile literature that speaks to all of us. That’s it. Toy Story 3 is great.

10 of 10

Sunday, January 09, 2011

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Review: "The Incredibles" the Best 3D Animated Superheroes... So Far

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 218 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Incredibles (2004)
Running time: 115 minutes (1 hour, 55 minutes)
MPAA – PG for action violence
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Brad Bird
PRODUCER: John Walker
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Janet Lucroy
EDITOR: Stephen Schaffer
Academy Award winner

ANIMATION/SUPERHERO/COMEDY/FAMILY

Starring: (voices) Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Samuel L. Jackson, Jason Lee, Spencer Fox, Sarah Vowell, Elizabeth Peña, Wallace Shawn, and Brad Bird

Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) and Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) are two superheroes that fall in love and eventually marry. Not long after their nuptials, the government forces superheroes into retirement because the citizens that the heroes rescue start suing the government for property damages and personal injuries. Thus Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl assume their civilian or secret identities as husband and wife, Bob and Helen Parr. They go on to have three children together, the shy Violet (Sarah Vowell), the energetic scamp Dashiell or “Dash” (Spencer Fox) and baby Jack Jack.

Bob, however, sorely missed his superhero life, so at night he sneaks outs with his buddy Lucius Best (Samuel L. Jackson), formerly known as Frozone. They done ski masks to hide their identities and rescue citizens from burning buildings and such. Bob soon catches the interest of a sexy female operative named Mirage (Elizabeth Peña). She summons him to a mysterious island and offers him a job paying him three times what he makes an insurance adjuster. The job also allows him to dress up in a superhero uniform and be Mr. Incredible again. However, a mysterious and sinister villain, Syndrome (Jason Lee), with a link to Mr. Incredible’s past arrives on the scene, and his actions bring the whole Parr family from undercover. Elastigirl assumes her old identity, but the eldest Incredible children also have powers. Dash becomes…well, Dash, the boy who can move at incredible speed. Violet becomes Shrinking Violet who can become invisible and generate force field bubbles. Dash and Violet don costumes like mommy and race off to save Daddy, but will The Incredibles and Frozone be able to save the world from the menace of Syndrome.

The Incredibles is the sixth collaboration between Pixar, the gold standard in computer animation studios, and Disney, and it is by no means their best work. However, in terms of the quality of the computer animation, The Incredibles is, to date, technically the best feature length computer animated film. In fact, there is never a moment in the film where The Incredibles really looks like the typical computer animated film. The animation is a cross between hand drawn three-dimensional art, claymation, stop-motion, and marionettes, the characters move with fluidity that is as good as the best second-tier hand drawn animation.

As for the story contents of the film: the super action is as about as good as the action in X2: X-Men United and Spider-Man 2, and that is a testament to the skill of the computer techs and artists at Pixar. It is something of a miracle to get a computer to render dramatic action on that level.

However, The Incredibles lacks the heart of classic Pixar films like the Toy Story series, Monsters, Inc., and Finding Nemo. The drama, the emotional conflicts, the plot, and the poignancy are missing. The Parr family dynamics are a bit cold, about what we’d get from an average TV family sitcom. Elastigirl, although ostensibly the co-lead, feels like a supporting character; writer/director Brad Bird dropped the ball there. The daughter Violet is vague and more of a caricature than a character.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who thinks that Patrick Warburton (who played the title character in Fox’s short-lived TV series, “The Tick” and provided the voice for an animated Superman in a Jerry Seinfeld American Express commercial) should have provided the voice for Mr. Incredible, but Craig T. Nelson is really good. He gives the character extraordinary life and individuality. Nelson truly makes Mr. Incredible one of the top screen superheroes.

My favorite characters in the film were Dash and Frozone. Frozone is sadly too relegated to the sidelines, but he has enough onscreen time to make it clear that Sam Jackson should do more animated voiceover work. Dash is an absolute delight. The quintessential hyperactive kid, he is a bold, confident, and brash young hero that could be the star of his own film. Spencer Fox’s performance and the Pixar artistry make Dash a charming scene-stealer. I wouldn’t mind an all-guys line up of Dash, Mr. Incredible, and Frozone in a follow-up.

On the strength of the high quality of the computer animation art in this film, I’ll call The Incredibles the best animated film of the year. It’s a sheer delight with the suspense, thrills, and action of a good family action film. Too bad the soft drama keeps it from being a truly great film.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2005 Academy Awards: 2 wins: “Best Animated Feature Film of the Year (Brad Bird) and “Best Achievement in Sound Editing” (Michael Silvers and Randy Thom); 2 nominations: “Best Achievement in Sound Mixing” (Randy Thom, Gary Rizzo, and Doc Kane) and “Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen” (Brad Bird)

2005 BAFTA Awards: 1 win: “BAFTA Children's Award Best Feature Film” (John Walker and Brad Bird)

2005 Golden Globes: 1 nomination: “Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy”

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"Capitalism: A Love Story" Shows No Love for Greed

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 88 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux

Capitalism: A Love Story (2009)
Running time: 127 minutes (2 hours, 7 minutes)
MPAA – R for some language
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Michael Moore
PRODUCERS: Anne Moore and Michael Moore
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Daniel Marracino and Jayme Roy
EDITORS: Jessica Brunetto, Alex Meillier, Tanya Meillier, Conor O'Neill, Pablo Proenza, T. Woody Richman, and John Walter

DOCUMENTARY

Starring: Michael Moore, William Black, US Congressman Elijah Cummings, Sheriff Warren Evans, Bishop Thomas Gumbleton, Wallace Shawn, and Elizabeth Warren

Capitalism: A Love Story is a 2009 documentary film by author and director, Michael Moore. The film focuses on the financial crisis that began in 2007 (and continued into 2010) and indicts capitalism and the current economic order of the United States. Moore details how capitalism via corporations dominates the lives of Americans and the rest of the world (by default).

Moore’s film travels around the country, especially Middle America, detailing how the excesses of capitalism and corporate greed have damaged, even destroyed the lives of some Americans. Moore attempts to enter the halls of power in Washington D.C. and the global financial epicenter in Manhattan, specifically Wall Street, to discuss greed and government bailouts. Capitalism: A Love Story’s topics include corporate-owned life insurance (called “dead peasants insurance), for-profit prisons, home foreclosures and evictions, the influence of Goldman Sachs in Washington D.C., modern worker strikes, Wall Street’s “casino mentality,” and more. The film asks several questions, but the most prominent being, what is the price that America pays for its love of capitalism? The film also has a religious component in which Moore wonders if capitalism is a sin and if Jesus would have been a capitalist.

Obviously the title, Capitalism: A Love Story, is a misnomer, but this isn’t a hate story. Moore examines “unfettered and unregulated” capitalism and also how modern capitalism is defined by greed, an insatiable lust for money, and the tendency to view everything and everyone as a commodity – all subject to exploitation. Moore is more than just a documentary filmmaker; he is also a crusader. As such he presents evidence and information specifically designed to prove his point – in this case that capitalism is destructive and evil – and also to get his audience politically aware and socially active.

Sometimes, Moore’s own actions in his movies come across as stunts – like his antics on Wall Street and near Congress in this movie. In Capitalism: A Love Story, this only serves to hurt the movie’s credibility and also makes him look more like a prankster than a documentary filmmaker. Like Fahrenheit 9/11, Capitalism: A Love Story avoids perfection because of its creator’s tendency to clown.

Still, Moore dazzles with his ability to tell stories about the struggles and suffering of ordinary working Americans. He is also one of the best American filmmakers working today. Impressive storytelling and exceptional technical skills are the calling cards of this brilliant movie director. When such a director tackles our nation’s most pressing issues, we should pay attention because it matters.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2010 Image Awards: 1 nomination: “Award Outstanding Documentary (Theatrical or Television)”

Sunday, October 31, 2010