Brilliance, even for animation as innovative and talented as Pixar, is a progression, not an immediate destination. Granted, the company that brought us the eternal delights of Toy Story (1 through 4), UP and Wall-E, among many, many others, has a bigger head start thatn most but evebn so, every Continue Reading
Movies
Wheee! Lucas the Spider and his friend the Fly go for a icily-fun ride
Summer is here! Lucas and his friend found a new toy to play with – if only they could get it to stay still! (synopsis via Laughing Squid (c) Lucas the Spider Here in Australia, winter, which truth be told doesn’t amount to all that much, at least compared to Continue Reading
Weekend pop art: “Wish you were fictitiously here” – imaginative postcards from pop culture locales
It was Cheers which famously asked “Wouldn’t you like to get away?” Well, yes we would and the further away from real life the better thank you very much. A nice fictional locale with none of the banal or trying trappings of the everyday would be quite lovely thank you Continue Reading
The short and the short of it: The close enough to reach otherworldliness of The Moon’s Milk
SNAPSHOTSeven and a half years in the making, The Moon’s Milk is an entirely handmade stop motion animated short about a time when the moon was close enough to be reached by ladder. Narrated by Tom Waits, the film chronicles the last expedition of Captain Millipede and his crew to Continue Reading
Weekend movie poster art: The just out of reach answers of Ad Astra
SNAPSHOTBrad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones to star in James Gray’s Ad Astra. The sci-fi epic will feature Jones as the father of Pitt’s character who, 20 years ago, left his son on a mission to Neptune in the search for extraterrestrial life. Pitt’s character, named Roy McBride, then sets Continue Reading
Little Monsters: A zombie comedy with heart … and lots of brains
SNAPSHOTThe film follows Dave (England), a washed-up musician who volunteers to chaperone his nephew’s kindergarten class field trip after taking a shine to the plucky schoolteacher, Miss Caroline (Nyong’o). Dave’s intentions are complicated by the presence of the world’s most famous kids show personality, and competition for Miss Caroline’s affections, Continue Reading
Get your Knives Out (poster + trailer)
SNAPSHOTAcclaimed writer and director Rian Johnson (Brick, Looper, The Last Jedi) pays tribute to mystery mastermind Agatha Christie in KNIVES OUT, a fun, modern-day murder mystery where everyone is a suspect. When renowned crime novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is found dead at his estate just after his 85th birthday, Continue Reading
Movie review: Ad Astra
Bonds created by parent and child should, in a perfect world at least, be the one of the strongest things in existence. But we don’t live in a perfect world alas, and all too frequently, what should a nourishing, uplifting and nurturing foundational relationship, instead fractures and breaks leaving the Continue Reading
“He’s kinda bashful isn’t he momma?”: Bambi gets a little verve and quirkiness in a new animated recap
Disney is many things but the one thing you can definitely say it isn’t is subversive. That’s why we all need Cas van de Pol, an animator from the Netherlands who, in his own words (taken from his Patreon page; yes you can, and should, support this fantastically-talented artist), “creates Continue Reading
“God’s Eye View Shots”: Looking over the quirky magic of Wes Anderson
SNAPSHOT…the overhead shot is Wes Anderson’s most distinctive shot and how unlike other directors, Wes uses it to create the most emotional moments in his filmography. (synopsis via Laughing Squid (c) Luis Azavedo, Beyond the Frame) The films of Wes Anderson are, by pretty much any measure, visual feasts. Part Continue Reading