By: Trevor Chartrand Animation studio Laika Entertainment has a reputation for dark and brooding content with releases like Corpse Bride (2005) or Coraline (2009), but this year’s Missing Link breaks their mold as a fun-for-most-ages adventure story.
Like a near-death experience, I can recall the exact moment when I first watched the trailer for Underdogs. The shabby preview – exchanging comedic pacing and intelligence for celebrity vocals that didn’t match the animation and a stupid premise – almost eclipsed the train wreck that followed it (Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2).
In the small town of Australia’s Warrnambool, there’s been a steady drop-off of fairy penguins. The stubby animals think they’re safe at a sanctuary on Middle Island, but end up being dinner for foxes. Not only is this bad for the animals, but this has also put a damper on the sanctuary’s future; causing its relevance to dwindle.
By: Addison Wylie Strange is right. Magic? Not so much. Oscar winner Gary Rydstrom takes a stab at feature length directing and writing with animated musical-fantasy Strange Magic, a movie that shouldn’t be anyone’s “first” for anything. It begins as a novelty act with some redeeming moments of punchy animation and terrific duets, and then pushes its luck too far. The story (conceived by Star Wars’ George Lucas) gives audiences two opposing territories. There’s a…
By: Addison Wylie The Planes franchise is not for me. However, I’m not a seven-year-old boy who’s obsessed with airplanes and other miscellaneous aviary vehicles – the demographic these films are so clearly for. That’s not to snub the seven-year-old boy who likes to play with toy airplanes in his parents’ living room. Being a kid is a great time and should be cerished. There’s a lack of responsibilities, you have no dire worries, and…
By: Addison Wylie I’ve enjoyed covering the TIFF Kids International Film Festival in the past, but this year was especially cool. This marked the first year for any festival where I obtained an industry pass. The TIFF Kids Industry pass entitled you to sit in on exclusive conversations, workshops, keynotes, and Q&A’s. The team behind the festival made sure they delivered on guests who could provide truthful insight about the world of filmmaking and…
By: Addison Wylie Knight Rusty is a terribly hard movie to warm up to. Mostly because it comes across as a padded-out episode of a television cartoon that would barely have enough steam to punch out at 22 minutes. What’s worse is that Knight Rusty plays as one of the weaker adventures during one of the final seasons when the creators have started recycling ideas and effort. Right off the bat, moviegoers are thrown into…
By: Addison Wylie In any other situation, The Lego Movie would’ve been used as a promotional tool to shill out a new line of toys to wide-eyed youth while parents have premonitions of their wallet getting lighter by the second. Luckily, filmmakers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller – who were responsible for the surrealist Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs adaptation and the hilarious 21 Jump Street reboot – to shut down that possibility completely. If you…
By: Addison Wylie The fine people at Disney usually have a good handle on their films, which is why the occasional slip-up- like Planes or last year’s Cars 2 makes me more sad of its existence than angry at how bad it is. Planes, an animated film taking place in the Cars universe, plays like an undemanding direct-to-DVD time filler. It’s funny that Planes comes out on DVD/Blu-ray a week after Blockbuster announced their final closings…
By: Addison Wylie TV spots for the Dreamworks/20th Century Fox collaboration entitled The Croods describe the prehistoric family as “the first modern family” – I suppose, trying to connect this new animated family to a current popular commodity. It shouldn’t stoop that low because The Croods is a good film and has every right to stand on its own. Grugg (voiced by Nicolas Cage who sounds as if he’s been longing for an animated role)…