Lu Over the Wall
In Masaaki Yuasa’s energetically animated Lu Over the Wall, shy student Kai makes an interesting discovery with music.
Adventure
Dave Made a Maze
Bill Watterson’s Dave Made a Maze will receive comparisons to Dan Harmon’s TV show Community. Their quirky in similar ways, the characters are alike, and there’s an uncanny connection to pop culture in both. Most importantly, just like in Harmon’s cult hit, Dave Made a Maze is a story of misfits trying to define their self-worth while “adulting” by way of their own arrested development.
Power Rangers
By: Nick Ferwerda How do you take one of the cheesiest television shows of all time and turn it into a solid standalone movie? Believe it or not, but Power Rangers does a commendable job at doing so.
Blood, Sand and Gold
Blood, Sand and Gold is touted as a low-budget blockbuster. The globetrotting adventure was made for $258,000 in less than two months, and it doesn’t show. The film isn’t modest (lavish scenery and accessories hog the screen), but the production does a commendable job disguising itself. In spite of cutting costs, Blood, Sand and Gold is still 24 karat schlock.
The Babymoon
The Babymoon is still admirable for its efforts despite its imperfections. The premise is also surprisingly layered – another element that earns our respect. When the movie slacks on convincing dialogue or it loses subtlety in the performances, writer/director Bailey Kobe isn’t afraid to send his audience into a feverous tailspin, making us wonder in amusement how our jilted characters wound up on this crazy adventure in the first place.
The Journey Home
By: Addison Wylie Parents: if you feel your child is too old for those Air Bud movies but too young for Wild America and Alaska, that happy medium you’re looking for can be found in The Journey Home. A boy named Luke (played by Dakota Goyo) attempts to reunite a lost polar bear to its mother by travelling across perilous, icy terrain through flurries of snowstorms and over ice caps. The polar bear (which is eventually given…
Jack the Giant Slayer
By: Addison Wylie Throughout Jack the Giant Slayer, our title character played by Nicholas Hoult has a look on his face that seems like it should be accompanied with the phrase, “are you #*@#ing kidding me?”. Surely, this is supposed to be aimed towards a giant beanstalk leading towards an army of grotesque giants that live in the sky, but it’s a more appropriate telling of what I was asking myself while watching Bryan Singer’s…
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
By: Addison Wylie Dwayne Johnson continues his streak of children’s movies with his starring role in Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, a sequel to the surprise hit starring Brendan Fraser. It’s still slightly puzzling to see Johnson, a hulking ex-wrestler, in these simpler vehicles aimed towards young ones. Perhaps, he’s making these for a niece or a nephew. Maybe, it’s an easy paycheque. Out of the children’s movies I’ve seen starring the former “Rock”, Journey…