REVIEW: The Peanuts Movie [2015]

“Good grief” It’s been at least a decade since I saw anything Peanuts related so saying that Steve Martino‘s The Peanuts Movie felt like old times has to be the best compliment I can bestow. The story itself doesn’t have the type of classic longevity of its predecessorsā€”A Charlie Brown Christmas or It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brownā€”but it does possess the heart necessary to imprint on a new generation of children so parents can retrieve those past adventures as fresh lessons in being kind, generous, and an all-around friend.…

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REVIEW: Cosmic Scrat-tastrophe [2015]

ā€œMake a wishā€ Itā€™s amazing that the Ice Age series is still going on let alone the solitary adventures of little Scrat and his acorn. The studio may be just as surprised too since theyā€™ve had to relegate their latest short to UFO conspiracies. Yes, Mike Thurmeierā€™s Cosmic Scrat-tastrophe sees everyoneā€™s favorite pre-historic squirrel shoving his delicious prize into the yolk of an alien spacecraft frozen within an iceberg. Attempts to free it allow the entire vehicle to escape through our atmosphere and ultimately form our solar system by happenstance.…

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REVIEW: Dope [2015]

“Congratulations. You have found your iPhone.” Malcolm Adekanbi (Shameik Moore) is a geek. You don’t even need the opening line of Rick Famuyiwa‘s Inglewood-set high school adventure Dope to state as much once we meet him. A self-proclaimed “oreo” with straight-As, constant beat-downs by Bloods-member Bug (Keith Stanfield), and Harvard aspirations his guidance counselor (Bruce Beatty) even scoffs at, the time to finally escape and be what his neighborhood loves to mock him for has arrived. SATs are around the corner, an interview with an Ivy League-alum in the position…

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