REVIEW: Zootopia [2016]

“Where anyone can be anything” In the tradition of Happy Feet (climate change) and Monsters University (fraternity life), Disney’s Zootopia has transposed adult themes onto PG-rated family fare again. Whereas those previous two were misguided—the former shoving a political agenda down kids’ throats without warning and the latter proving a weird stamp of approval on questionable activities we hope our children will show moderation towards—this one’s worthy cause of harmony and inclusivity is age-appropriate and universal. It takes a hard left into #BlackLivesMatter jurisdiction with blatantly satirical comments confusing youngsters…

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The 88th Oscars recap through tweets …

  The Oscars are today! You know, the awards show where Leonardo DiCaprio is “overdue” but black people can “wait till next year.” — Bette Midler (@BetteMidler) February 28, 2016 Bette Midler‘s tweet hours before the 88th Annual Academy Awards started says it all above. #OscarsSoWhite would and to a point should be the focus of the show because all the chaos that ensued once the nominations revealed a second consecutive year without a non-white acting nod deemed it so. However, the uproar was directed towards the Academy hastily and…

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REVIEW: Krigen [A War] [2015]

“B for Bang” It’s not inconsequential that Tobias Lindholm‘s latest drama is simply and generically titled A War [Krigen]. This isn’t a story about Afghanistan or even Denmark—war is war no matter where it takes place or who is involved. Instead the film is about our actions both home and abroad, in the fight and outside it. It’s about our ever in flux notion of conscience and moral compass as it relates to patriotism rather than right or wrong. At the end of the day war is fought because governments…

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REVIEW: バケモノの子 [Bakemono no ko] [The Boy and the Beast] [2015]

“Find the meaning on your own” Two worlds collide once young Kyuta (Shôta Sometani) and warrior Kumatetsu (Kôji Yakusho) meet in Mamoru Hosoda‘s バケモノの子 [Bakemono no ko] [The Boy and the Beast]. The former was recently orphaned after his mother’s death (she had divorced his father years ago and her family refuses to get in touch with him), currently working his way towards becoming a solitary street urchin full of dark rage aimed at the human race for causing him such pain. The latter is a candidate to replace the…

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REVIEW: The Witch [2016]

“We shall conquer this wilderness. It will not consume us.” I find it funny that the Satanic Temple has “endorsed” Robert Eggers‘ stunning debut The Witch considering its pro-Catholic message. The first thing we see is William (Ralph Ineson) standing before his 17th century Puritan plantation’s governors as his family is excommunicated and exiled into the neighboring New England woods. They believe they can survive alone once happening upon a tract of land with which to build a small farm, but without God’s protection tragedy befalls them. Suddenly the corn…

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REVIEW: Almost Holy [Crocodile Gennadiy] [2016]

“I don’t need permission to do good deeds” The most fascinating part of Steve Hoover‘s latest documentary Almost Holy [Crocodile Gennadiy] is how its subject Gennadiy Mokhnenko parallels the life of well-known Russian cartoon “Krokodil Gena”. The latter deals with a lonely crocodile zoo worker named Gena and his friend Cheburashka: a young, abandoned creature rejected by the establishment employing him. The two therefore construct a home for the lonely as a result so nobody will feel their pain again. This show is the only thing to come out of…

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REVIEW: Me Him Her [2016]

“Are you about to be super interesting up in this bar right now?” You have to give Max Landis credit for trying to breathe fresh air into Hollywood tropes through his genre merging scripts whether you believe they’re effective or not. Everyone loved Chronicle‘s sci-fi, found footage, horror thriller combo and reviled American Ultra‘s stoner Bourne Identity meets Mr. & Mrs. Smith (although the latter’s reaction may have hinged upon people’s inability to remove his Twitter-celebrity-the-world-loves-to-hate-on from the work). His latest foray in the millennial screenwriting annals is a play…

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REVIEW: Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom [2015]

“I came here to defend my future, the future of my children, compatriots and country” After the success of The Square, there really wasn’t a better place than Netflix for Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom to flourish. A TIFF People’s Choice Award and Oscar nomination later and we see that to be true. Evgeny Afineevsky‘s documentary is very similar to that 2013 film because it is very much a mirror of those events. As a president begins a political takeover into dictatorship, the people of Ukraine stand up…

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REVIEW: They Came Together [2014]

“I admire your spirit” It’s one thing to satirize the romantic comedy genre and a whole other to literally break it down into its myriad tropes to build a story around them without transforming their generic designations into fully formed characters. But that’s exactly what David Wain (co-writer/director) and Michael Showalter (co-writer) did with They Came Together. It’s so transparent in its commentary that I was surprised they gave leading male Joel’s (Paul Rudd) brother (Max Greenfield‘s Jake) a name. The two men are so invested in calling each other…

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REVIEW: Evil Dead [2013]

“Okay. Let’s play cold turkey.” I wouldn’t say hopes were high, but I did enter Fede Alvarez‘s Evil Dead remake with an open mind. I liked the idea of bringing the series back to horror as the original Sam Raimi chiller was the trilogy’s best to me. In concert with this was my complete lack of nostalgia due to my never having seen them until my twenties. So there was literally nothing telling me it couldn’t be successful—including Raimi and star Bruce Campbell giving their thumbs up as producers. I…

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REVIEW: Cartel Land [2015]

“As long as He allows it, we will make drugs” With the success of “Breaking Bad” on TV, Sicario in theaters, and wannabe politicians like Donald Trump on the campaign trial, now’s the perfect time for Matthew Heineman‘s documentary Cartel Land. But while it begins as a glimpse at the vigilante militias forming on both sides of the US/Mexico border to show the troubles citizens face every day as a result of the drug cartels in a way that makes us want to join the fight and help keep illegals…

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