Posts Tagged ‘disney’
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Movie Review: The Secret World of Arrietty (2010)
Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi
Plot: Based on the book “The Borrowers,” this story finds a family of little people living inside of an old house in the country owned by a little old lady. Borrowers take little things that they need – tissue paper, sugar, etc – and doing so is an adventure because the world outside the walls is so large and dangerous. When the house owner’s grandson becomes ill (heart problems), he comes to live with her and sees Arrietty. Whenever a Borrower is seen by a human, the family has to move – but Arrietty doesn’t want to move.
As the boy continues to try to help the family of little people living in his grandmother’s house, his grandmother starts to become suspicious and figures out that the family does in fact exist – and wants to prove it to the world! Can the boy and Arrietty keep her family safe from the suspicious grandmother, and learn to co-exist in peace?
This movie is, like most Studio Ghibli movies, BRILLIANT. Another imaginative journey that takes you, the viewer, to a unique world that is fully fleshed out and interesting. You want to talk about a world you could spend forever and a half in, check out the Secret World of Arrietty – it’s our world, but everything is tiny. And therefore, much different and more dangerous.
The lazy fat cat out in the yard? Not a threat to humans, but it is a threat to the little people. The mean old crow living in the trees? How about the bugs that live in the walls of your old country home?
All of these things are touched on in the movie, but I feel like they could definitely be blown out as a series or sequels (which, I’m sure they will not do, but if they did I would likely give it a view). Like all Studio Ghibli movies, this flick feels too short to cover off on all of the cool and fun things you could do in this world. But that’s not a bad thing. “Leave your audience wanting more” is a good way to stay in business.
The animation, as always, is top notch and the colors and visuals are so jaw-dropping all other cartoons will pale in comparison once you’ve watched this flick. There is so much imagination, so much going on in front of you and behind the scenes, that you’ll really want to be more immersed into the world. The music, too, is very stand out. So much so I went to download the soundtrack as soon as the movie ended. GET THE SOUNDTRACK!
The voice work is serviceable. I’m not a fan of anime dubs, but Studio Ghibli movies I tend to be able to tolerate more than others. Probably because Disney puts so much time and effort into the English voice cast direction. The Japanese language track is where this movie is at (for me, anyway), since there’s so little emotion from any of the English voice characters, other than from Arrietty herself.
The story starts off simple enough, and Arrietty’s world is so interesting that you will get lost in the visuals and how just getting to the kitchen is an adventure. But for me, the story really came together when the boy and Arrietty join forces to save her mother. No spoilers, but to see Arrietty finally doing things on her own and being the hero we know she can be was very rewarding – and the things the two of them have to do was just incredible!
However, like the Cat Bus in My Neighbor Totoro, there’s just not enough of this kind of stuff in the movie. Again, it leaves you wanting more. It’s where the movie peaks, and when it’s over you’ll want to re-watch those scenes over and over again.
All in all, like all of the Studio Ghibli movies, Secret World of Arrietty is worth adding to your movie collection and watching on a regular basis. There are fun and colorful visuals, great characters, superb animation and music, and the story is pretty awesome. For anyone who read The Borrowers as a kid, it’ll be a nostalgic trek down memory lane (they take some liberties in the movie, mind you, but you’ll want to go find the books again to read them to your kids…or find some kids to read them to).
Go out and buy The Secret World of Arrietty.
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Movie Review: Wreck it Ralph (2012)
Director: Rich Moore
Cast: John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, Alan Tudyk
Plot: Ralph (Reilly) is a video game character in an arcade game called Fit It Felix, Jr. Ralph’s role is the villain in the game. He wrecks things. He’s good at it, and he’s been doing it for a very long time. However, there’s a small problem: he doesn’t want to be the bad guy anymore.
On the 30th anniversary of his arcade game, Ralph finds himself not invited to the celebration party with the rest of his fellow game characters. Ralph decides to crash the party, much to the dismay of the other attendees. The mayor of the game tells Ralph if he can win a medal, he could live in the penthouse instead of living in the dump – which has been his lonely home for 30 years. So Ralph sets off to find another game with a medal he can win.
Ralph game hops to Hero’s Duty: a first person shooter where space marines fight alien bugs that like to eat things and multiply. The marines are lead by a tough-as-nails commander named Calhoun (Lynch). Ralph climbs to the top of the tower to get the medal, and upon getting it unleashes the alien swarms. One of them lands in an escape pod with Ralph, and the two of them fly into a racing game called Sugar Rush.
Once there, Ralph’s medal is stolen by Vanellope (Silverman). She’s a glitch in the game (she glitches out, and can’t leave the game) who dreams of being a racer, and uses the medal to enter herself into the big race. The winner gets a medal. The only problem is, she doesn’t actually know how to race.
Meanwhile, with Ralph being absent from his own game, the owner of the arcade thinks the game is broken and plans to unplug it in the morning – condemning everyone in there to being turned off forever! Can Ralph win a medal, fight off the alien viral invasion, and get back to his game in time to save the day and be the hero he’s dreamed of being?
Wreck it Ralph is one of the most cute and imaginative movies I’ve seen this year. If not ever. It has a lot of concepts to grasp throughout, and they keep coming even well into the second and third acts. But it’s a very fun story with some real heart and character moments.
First off, the cast is incredible and they all do a fantastic job. Lynch steals the show for me, being the modern action platform game character. Ralph is sweet and has a lot of heart, and Vanelope is…kind of annoying…. Felix (McBrayer) plays the same old character he always seems to play. And the other stolen performance is King Candy (Tudyk). You would never think that the guy who played Wash in Serenity was the same guy. It’s a pitch perfect performance all around.
Second off, Ralph is a very fun movie. There are a lot of fun video game characters making cameos throughout the movie as well. Old school gamers (like myself) may recognize some more faces than others, but mainstays like Bowser (Super Mario Bros), and several Street Fighter characters appear throughout.
The fact that Ralph is a villain who wants to become a good guy is a really compelling story. The best villains always think of themselves as heroes – but this movie gives it a little bit of a twist in the sense that Ralph actively tries to be a hero. It’s unfortunate that the hero in his game isn’t more of a villain, but that may over-complicate a movie already filled with a lot of concepts.
The story actually takes a lot of really dark turns throughout. The alien bug game is dark and scary, and at the end the movie takes a very dark turn that I found refreshing in a children’s movie – but younger viewers may find it rather intense and frightening. Make no mistake, I was not entirely expecting what happened at the end of this movie, and it had me on the edge of my seat and a little misty in the eyes.
WiR also pulls at the heart strings a bit. Ralph runs through the gamut of what being a hero is – and that includes sacrifice. And when those moments happen in the movie, you realize that what you’re watching is more than just a kids movie, or a video game flick – it’s a movie that focuses on character: Their development, relationships, and their journey.
Disney has been putting a lot of focus on these things in their movies lately, and in my book it’s producing some of the best movies we’ve seen to date.
Do yourself a favor. Go see Wreck it Ralph.
Hitchcock got it right with “Rear Window”: action / reaction. That’s basically how I’ve been putting together this entire story. Because while we were running around the Jurassic Park play area “reacting to things,” there wasn’t a lot of things to react to. Not a lot of dinosaurs. Maybe a few geckos running around, but that’s about it.
So, taking photos from other sections of the park or from other sources and you can kind of make it seem like they’re taking place in the same area.
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So we’re in November now. There are some things you need to do this month:
1) Vote. It’s a presidential election, so it’s kind of important.
2) Give thanks with your family. Because, you know, that’s an important holiday.
3) Attend Kollision Con, find me at the show, attend my panels and buy my books.
4) Eat lots of turkey. Which kind of ties into the second thing, above.
So, you know…let’s get on it!
When I was a little kid, I loved to climb trees. Outdoors were awesome. I mean, the internet didn’t exist yet and video games weren’t very advanced, so there was really nothing keeping me inside. So when I was growing up, I wanted my house to be a tree fort. To a degree, this dream has never left me.
So when you’re put into a giant tree fort playset as an adult, these dreams come out strongly. I had so much fun playing around this area – crawling through tunnels, going under water falls, climbing rope ladders and through rope tunnels. Seriously, it was a blast.
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Happy Halloween, everyone! It’s officially my second favorite holiday (after my birthday…which is only days away), and a time to dress up and act like someone else for a day.
It’s like cosplaying at a convention, but it’s a national holiday. Everyone does it. And it’s totally acceptable. Even for adults. Or so I keep telling myself.
What are you going as for Halloween?
For anyone who ever wondered, the answer is yes: I never grew up. I got taller, sure. But never lost my love of play and the imagination.
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In case you wanted to show your love and support of the work, I have created a store page (we will be updating the navigation bar to include it in the next several weeks).
I’ve already had several sales on here, which is awesome! If you shoot me an e-mail with who you would like the books made out to, I can personalize them as well.
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I have one final convention of the year coming up: KOLLISION CON!
Check out the side bar for details. It’s a fun show here in Illinois, so I hope you can make it!
And here’s where the water hosing came in!
This particular section of the park had a “humans vs dinosaurs” water area. The “humans” were in an elevated position with water hoses, and the “dinosaurs” had dinosaur heads that squirted up.
I got into a water fight with a little kid who was having a ball. He was humans, and I was dinosaurs. We sprayed at each other in the 90+ degree weather (with high humidity), until the kid eventually decided to stop dodging. He just took the sprays. Not wanting to get completely soaked on my very first day of vacation (and I hate wet shoes), I eventually had to concede.
Dripping with water (and feeling slightly more refreshed), Beth and I walked around the park with me slightly more damp than before.
Might’ve been nicer if the water had been cooler….
The pictures taken at this place were absolutely amazing. The vibrant colors, the amazing decorations. With a crew and a cast, you could have a lot of fun at a place like Islands of Adventure Jurassic Park play land.
Ignoring completely the fact that I’m walking out of the same door from the same shot as the previous page, and this is a pretty awesome shot. We couldn’t shoot from the other side, because there was a kid over there spraying the area with a hose. I got into a water fight with the kid, and I’m proud to say…well, I lost. That kid soaked me good.
But, I don’t want to spoil the events of the following pages.
Enjoy the weekend!
Hmmm, an electric fence with no electricity going through it. What could be on the other side?
The great thing about this trip to Universal was that the place was just so pretty. I wanted to take pictures of everything with everyone, and somehow make it part of the comic. Out of the over 800 photos I took that week, only a fraction of them will ever see the light of day. Which is sad, but you have to use the pictures that will tell the story (or set up the joke) best.
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NYCC was this past weekend, and it was a blast. I’ll be posting the convention report soon, but I wanted to thank everyone who stopped by the table and said hi or bought something. It was a great time and a great show, and I look forward to coming back again next year.
If you’re new to the site: welcome. You are among friends.
Oh crap, the Dinosaurs aren’t only rebelling against the humans…but they’re also responding to commercial marketing.
The last thing you need is a T-Rex hyped up on caffeine. Just saying.
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This week I’m attending New York Comic Con. I’ll be at the Reading with Pictures booth in small press (booth #3139), so be sure to swing by and say hi! I’ll have Albert the Alien books, Junkyard Chase, and of course – RWP anthologies for sale.
Hope to see you there!
So the dinosaurs with human brains (thus making them able to talk) are on Jurassic Park. Because why the heck not. However, somehow the bald man got on this island as well. And to be on that island while the dinosaurs are going to revolt, well…that’s not good.
I’m attending NYCC this weekend. Look for me in small press Reading with Pictures booth (booth #3139). It’s going to be a really fun show, and I’ll have a bunch of all-ages books available for sale, be taking pre-orders for RWP volume 2, and also giving a live reading for the kids on Sunday.
Plus, I’ll be officially unveiling the release of the next Albert the Alien book, where Albert Goes to the Movies! That’s right, artist Gabriel Bautista and I have partnered again for a funny and spectacular 24 page full-color adventure with not one, but 3 adventures! All ages appropriate, and only $5.
Hope to see you guys at the show!
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CONVENTION: NYCC
LOCATION: New York, NY
DATES: October 11-14
Look for Reading with Pictures in Small Press (booth #3139), and be sure to stop by our numerous panels throughout the weekend
CONVENTION: Kollision Con
LOCATION: St Charles, IL
DATES: November 23-25
Look for Trevor Mueller in Artist Alley, along with fellow comic creators Russell Lissau and Gabriel Bautista