[Movies] The Secret Life of Pets (2016) Review

There are those movies whose trailers feel like they're tailor-made to appeal to a wider audience but also feel "too good" such that you can't help but suspect that the trailer features all the best bits of the movie. This feels especially true when it comes to animated features that primarily target kids but feel obligated to throw in as much fun stuff for adults that it can when it comes to the promotional materials for the movie.

The Secret Life of Pets really feels like one of those movies. It doesn't necessarily mean that it's a bad movie right off the bat, but it isn't quite as amazing as you'd like for it to be. The stuff that made the trailer so funny didn't necessarily define the greater narrative of the movie.

The actual story felt very different from the scenario of the trailer as this was less about what pets do at home while their owners are off at work but instead a whole separate adventure that just happens to take place while the pet owners are away. It sounds very similar but seriously, it's a different story.

[Movies] Coco (2017) Review

It is interesting how Disney Pixar has become such a trusted name in animation. Perhaps that statement is still inaccurate - we trust Pixar as storytellers and year over year they consistently manage to find new ways to tell highly personal and engaging stories in a variety of ways across a variety of story genres and all that good stuff. Long story short: Pixar makes good movies.

Coco was a little hard to read at first, but the general trust in the Pixar brand was enough to get us to the movie theater. The risk was how this felt of too similar a tone to The Book of Life, another movie that focuses on the mythos and aesthetic of the Mexican Day of the Dead - Dia de los Muertos.

But as has been often the case with many Pixar movies, it was a totally different animated experience and one that had us really amazed at how a seemingly simple story could be told so elegantly and so beautifully. This is an amazing movie.

[TV] Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Season 5 Review

With the end of Star Wars Rebels just around the corner, I thought I'd go through my older reviews for the preceding animated series, Star Wars: The Clone Wars. But I was surprised to find that I had somehow missed out on reviewing the fifth and final full season of that show. I suspect I had totally forgotten about it because of my displeasure at the show's sudden cancellation after Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise.

Like with Rebels, I was prepared to dislike Star Wars: The Clone Wars at first since I was a bit more dedicated to the first animated Star Wars: Clone Wars (no "the") series that had come out before it. Also like Rebels, the show eventually won me over given how great the stories became.

This last season had a lot going for it and it was still preparing plot threads for two additional seasons they had sort of expected to still happen before the show was canned. And so it ends on an odd note, but remains a great show.

[Videos] In a Heartbeat Short Film

This week we saw the release of the animated short film In a Heartbeat, which is about a closeted boy who risks being outed when his heart literally jumps out of his chest to chase after the boy of his dreams. The film was created by Beth David and Esteban Bravo and they initially sought funding on Kickstarter and managed to collect nearly 5 times as much as their official Kickstarter funding goal of $3,000.

The film is about 4 minutes long and is certainly endearing and poignant given the limited time frame. It's not exactly going to change minds or anything like that but it at least deserves watching when you have the time.



In a Heartbeat - Animated Short Film

[Transformers] The Prime Wars Trilogy Web Series

Okay, we have about two weeks until August and I still haven't found time to write about the Transformers: Combiner Wars animated web series being created by the folks over at Machinima. The new series is targeted at older Transformers fans, which means geeks like me who collect the Transformers Generations and Transformers Masterpiece lines. The creative team behind the series is  Eric S. Calderon, George Krstic, and F.J. DeSanto.

From the looks of things, the story ties to the on-going IDW comic series, particular the former Robots in Disguise comic, which is now simply The Transformers because of the kid-friendly Robots in Disguise cartoon. They've released 4 separate prelude videos to get everyone warmed-up and things are looking pretty interesting, to say the least.

So for your afternoon viewing pleasure, here are the four animated shorts:

[Movies] Zootopia (2016)

The modern Disney movie is hard to distinguish from a Pixar movie at times given the general shift to CGI animation versus traditional cell animation. Thus we get animated after animated feature that continue to blur the lines between the sort of stories Disney used to tell versus the stories that Pixar crafts. But I that isn't necessarily a bad thing of course for as long as it results  in more good stories.

Zootopia is a quirky animated piece that is in itself a celebration of the love for anthropomorphic animals. and the buddy cop movie genre as well, in a manner speaking. The movie has also triggered an interesting wave of  cosplay efforts at various geeky conventions that probably has the furry community quite happy.

The movie has weird implications when you look at things somewhat more seriously, but of course this is meant for children and we probably shouldn't go there. But the same time the movie just wasn't quite as engaging as I had hoped despite the fun in the trailer. I'm glad that we only watched it on home video.

[Movies] The Little Prince (2015)

The Little Prince is one of the world's most beloved books by fans of all ages. And something so loved can't possible be easy to adapt into another medium given how high everyone's expectations would be. And yet people moved forward and made a movie based on this book and they decided to go all out.

I'm big fan of stop-animation films. There's something about the medium that just fascinates me so much - and this dates back to those old Christmas movies and of modern classics like The Nightmare Before Christmas and Coraline. With the increased reliance on CGI-fueled animation as a more convenient and potentially more cost-effective animation solution, we don't see too many stop animation movies anymore.

But this time around the used a blending of both and the end result is certainly quite the unique movie experience. I have limited concerns about the direction they decided to take with the movie, but on the whole I think it's safe to say that this movie is quite beautiful.

[Movies] Minions (2015)

Despicable Me is not the first animated movie to lead to a franchise and eventually spin-off titles as well. And it is hardly the first time when the lovable sidekicks end up stealing the spotlight and becoming lead characters in their own right. It took a while for these little yellow guys to get this far but in some ways it almost feels long overdue. And sure, this is still largely a Despicable Me prequel of sorts, we all know that it's not about Gru at all.

Thus we come to Minions, a movie dedicated to these intellectually-challenged henchmen who don't even speak English. And yet they remain to be the primary focus of this movie and most definitely have the most screen time, even though this doesn't mean the most dialogue. And the movie still worked this regard, although not quite in the same sort of wordless fun that we experienced with Shaun the Sheep.

Perhaps the greatest contribution of this movie wasn't necessarily giving them more of an origin story, but perhaps more about helping more of us finally figure out which Minion is which, at least among the primary trio. Or maybe that's just me - they all tend to look alike after all.

[Movies] Inside Out (2015)

I was both excited and worried when it was announced that Pixar's next big movie project was Inside Out, a movie focused on the various emotions that we go through in life. Sure there's a lot of inherent potential for comedy because of the fact that Pixar is Pixar and exaggerated emotions can be hilarious. But emotions are also highly complex and there was definitely the risk of oversimplifying things here.

But Pixar is Pixar is Pixar and if any company could handle a movie of this nature, then of course it had to be them. And while the movie still generated a lot of laughs and had a lot of great visual humor, as expected, it also had a pretty serious message for everyone, regardless of age.

Yes, we know Pixar movies to be highly emotional. Yes, they always tell stories. And yes, they also may have a sort of anecdotal moral inherent in the story to boot. But I think this movie stands out versus other Pixar movies given the strength of the message and how central it felt with respect to the theme of things.

[Movies] Monsters University (2013)

Apart from Toy Story and Cars, Monsters, Inc. is the only other Pixar property that has had a direct movie sequel released thus far. Sure, there's talk of future work related to stuff for Finding Nemo and even The Incredibles, but we can't really count them until they actually get released. We're getting there, Pixar. We're getting there.

Monsters University isn't actually a sequel but is instead a prequel, which is the sort of thing that makes a lot of movie-goers groan a bit. I mean seriously, there are very few prequels that have done well and more often than not we regret the results.

And while the Pixar folks didn't quite hit a home run with me with the Cars movies, the Monsters. Inc. franchise has always had more success that most. Even their bad movies are still fairly decent, it may just become more a question of preference and such. And this movie isn't too bad as a prequel despite my earlier complaints of such efforts to expand a franchise. It has some choice moments and certainly makes for some fun times.

[Movies] Cars 2 (2011)

So I wasn't all that much of a fan of the first Cars movie, and I was rather disappointed to hear that a sequel had been made. Given so many other Pixar properties that I loved move, it was annoying on some level to see that it was this movie that got a sequel. Then again, this franchise is a Lasseter  baby when you get down to it.

Cars 2 is a full sequel to the 2006 with many of the characters from the first movie returning to feature in this story. But it also features a much larger story that goes well beyond the small town of Radiator Falls and brings the adventure to a truly global scale.

What interested me most the interesting creative decision to shift more of the focus the story to Mater as opposed to Lightning McQueen, who was pretty much the protagonist of the first movie. Then again, it just goes to show that Pixar has that brand of creative liberty that shows a willingness to shake things up. Then again, it could also have been a strictly business-related decision to focus on the character that had more resonance with a wider audience.

[Movies] Toy Story 2 (1999)

I think I'm just about done with my recap of the various Pixar movies that have been released over the years. Admittedly I haven't seen some of the more recent sequels like Cars 2 or Monsters University, but I'll get around to them soon enough. But you know how sequels are - it's hard to get all that excited.

Toy Story 2 represents the first sequel that Pixar ever created, and it's of no surprise that they chose to go back to their roots and build on the success of the first Toy Story movie. And while sequels often feel like cheap attempts to recreate past successes when it comes to most movies, Pixar certainly demonstrated that there was still plenty of good story left in this particular world.

And the first Toy Story was pretty hilarious on its own and I didn't think things could get any better. But man, this movie really expanded things in interesting directions and managed to find new ways to push the humor and really develop these characters. And what this movie really did was turn a great movie into a brilliant franchise.

[Movies] Monsters. Inc. (2001)

So here's the next installment of my reviews of the various Pixar movies. I think this one helps close out the initial gap, although I'll have to work on Toy Story II next week or something. It's an interesting experience, although it often feels like being asked which child I love more when it comes to final scoring and inevitable ranking of these movies. I still won't come up with a "definitive" listing of all movies and how they compare to one another though - down that path lies madness.

But Monsters, Inc. is a strong animated feature with its own share of unique and clever characters. And it had a pretty interesting story, yet another staple of any Pixar animated production.

Monsters, Inc. seemed really funny to me back in the day wasn't quite as amazing in repeat viewings. This doesn't make it a bad movie or anything like that. It's just not quite the same experience after first viewing - but that may just be speaking from the perspective of having seen so many other Pixar movies since this one.

[Movies] A Bug's Life (1998)

So after the release of Toy Story, a lot of folks were curious as to what Pixar's next project was going to be. It was a landmark movie in itself and it rather changed the CGI animation world and also represented an odd counterpoint to traditional animation development at Disney and other studios. But there were still a lot of people that thought that Toy Story was just a fluke and its success wouldn't immediately be repeated.

Three years later we have A Bug's Life as Pixar's next feature film and it seemed to have a strange concept. Plus around the same time there was the even stranger movie Antz, that actually came out before this one. I remember seeing that movie and feeling all confused as to why this was supposed to be entertaining since it had a heck of a lot of Woody Allen just being, well Woody Allen.

So here was another bug-centric movie and I wasn't sure if it was going to be any good since Antz has been so disappointing. But despite that adverse release environment, this movie just shined through and reminded the world that Pixar truly has a unique voice in the industry.

[Movies] Penguins of Madagascar (2014)

Given how busy our schedules have gotten, Tobie and I don't quite have as much time to catch new movies at the cinema. But we really push for things from time to time or when opportunities come up. So despite big budget movies like Exodus and such being out, I was most happy to devote a surprise movie slot to watch the new Penguins of Madagascar movie.

For fans of the Madagascar series of animated movies, the lead characters in Penguins of Madagascar shouldn't be all that new. The four quirky penguins were a major source of comic relief in the original movies and more often than not ended up stealing quite a number of scenes. And after exploring all these characters further through various TV spin-offs, we finally get a movie focused on the penguins alone.

I'm pretty sure that I've admitted that I'm rather into penguins for one reason or another. And I'm not talking solely about these penguins from the Madagascar movies - I think back to how much I laughed the first time I watched the Wallace and Gromit short, "The Wrong Trousers." How can you not laugh at a penguin who dresses up as a chicken with a rubber glove in order to commit crimes? But I digress.

[Movies] The Book of Life (2014)

Guillermo Del Toro is one of the more interesting figures in the movie making industry given his unique artistic vision and clear passion for what he creates. And while he predominantly deals in the realms of horror, he has demonstrated interesting range with big summer blockbuster flicks like Pacific Rim among others.

So when news broke out that Del Toro was behind the animated feature project The Book of Life, I was both surprised and excited. Here was something rather new from Del Toro (although you could argue his Hellboy movies had similar sensibilities in some ways) and the early looks at the movie looked pretty stunning.

And this was a movie that was centered around the Mexican Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos), a rather interesting take on the need to remember the dead. My first exposure to this aspect of Mexican culture was actually through the classic LucasArts adventure game, Grim Fandango. The game literally took you to a weird afterlife with the skeletal protagonist Manny Calavera. But that could hardly prepare me for the visual feast that this movie turned out to be.

[Movies] The Animatrix (2003)

One of the best things that ever came out of The Matrix franchise of movies has to be The Animatrix - a direct-to-video release that consists of various animated short films set in the world of the Matrix. What at first seemed like more fluff material was in fact a genuine attempt to expand the storytelling behind The Matrix into new avenues.

It has often been said that The Matrix owes a lot to various influences including different Hong Kong kung-fu movies and of course the ever diverse world of anime. So it was interesting how the Wachowskis eventually tapped some of those very influences to come up with this visually brilliant collection of short films.

I rarely take the time to rewatch the Matrix movies apart from them just happening to be showing on cable TV. But I do make a bit more of an effort to re-watch The Animatrix when time allows, only because I truly enjoyed them so much. And whether or not you're invested in the whole Matrix back story, this is a great standalone piece that does a lot better than all of the movie sequels.

[Movies] The Lego Movie (2014)

I got into LEGO at a early age - it was one of the first distinct toy brands that I remember getting into when I was about 3 years old. And while I don't collect them as much as I used to these days (primarily because of cost and difficulty of storage), I maintain a love for the franchise and I still get into the various LEGO-themed games that are released for various console platforms.

At first I was worried that The Lego Movie would just be a horribly long commercial for the toyline. And I know that's a somewhat funny statement to hear from someone who is so into the Transformers franchise - one that grew to great success because of a cartoon series that was also pretty much a series of commercials disguised as stories.

But as the trailers for the movie started to hit the internet and more and more information was released about what the film would actually be about, it was clear that they had decided to make a heck of a lot more of this movie than I had anticipated. And the end result was actually pretty awesome.

[Movies] Frozen (2013)

Things have been shifting around at Disney in recent years - something I'd like to attribute to the creative leadership of Pixar's John Lasseter. He was named Disney's Chief Creative Officer back in 2006 when Disney acquired Pixar. And yet despite this shift, there's still a difference between Pixar movies and Disney animated features that keep both distinct and entertaining in their own ways.

Frozen is the latest feature that was released during the 2013 Thanksgiving season. I initially wasn't expecting too much from the movie since the core story didn't particularly excite me for one reason or another. However, the movie's popularity, as uniquely driven by how viral the song "Let It Go" has become, reached a point where I couldn't ignore the movie any longer.

Okay, maybe ignore is too strong a word. More of the movie's success forced me to bump it up in my movies-to-watch queue quite significantly - which proved a wee bit of a challenge given the fact it was no longer showing in local theaters. But hooray for the internet!

[Movies] Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 (2013)

I had rather enjoyed the quirkiness of the first Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs when it came out a few years ago. It wasn't exactly the most life-changing movie out there, but I do rather enjoy food being crazy. And this movie certainly pushed the limits of where food could go - at least until the sequel came around.

Then comes the most unexpected sequel Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2. Immediately it was pretty obvious that this was a safe, money-driven sequel given the the first movie had already taken extreme liberties with the source material (which to be fair, was a children's book so that's really not much material to work with) and they didn't even bother to give the movie a clever name. Instead they just tacked a 2 at the end of it and left things at that.

I finally caught this movie as part of the in-flight entertainment features on my way home from Singapore over the holidays. I wasn't particularly concerned that I was watching this potentially vibrant and visual movie on the limited screen nested into the seat in front of me (and and a slight angle at that) since I didn't really have high expectations for the movie. But I was curious enough to invest my flight time into following this little adventure.