#15: Over The Moon

 I think this may be the first movie in my memory I've seen that comes from China that's CG. I know they exist, but they never quite had a wide enough reach into the US market for me to find them easily.

The closest may be...China's approval of "Kung Fu Panda"? If there are any you know of, please let me know!

This is about a girl named Fei Fei, who loves science and mythology in (sort of) equal measure. She has technical prowess enough for about 10 minutes and then is all pro-myth, which is fine.

This Blog is Not Dead

 There just haven't been too many things I want to watch. Remember; I'm not a real big TV person. 

There's another book review in the pipeline if I can stop rolling my eyes long enough to get through all 1000 pages. 

I can at least give you an oversight on the 2 movies I have watched since August;

 

Oh yes, and the one show. I'll lead with the show; "Harley Quinn" on HBO Max / DC Universe / Whatever is damn good.

Book Look: Once & Future by Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy

 

There's a lot of flourishy detail on the feelings of characters as they're kissing or touching, which is fine for the youth who may be closeted. But it feels like important things just ... happen with not a lot of fanfare. I'm not sure why this is happening here, or what is going on.

Some of it can be chalked up to my lack of knowledge of Arthurian Legend. Other times, it feels like I unintentionally skipped a paragraph just to go back and no, something is just happening and we're rolling with it. Then it just lingers so much and so long on a part where characters are separated and you really want them to reunite, it just feels like a waste.

The Owl House

So, somehow, I missed reviewing this alongside the first episodes of "Big City Greens" and "Amphibia". Which is weird, as I enjoy this show the most out of all of them.

It has a dark magic element with a fair amount of gruesome imagery. The art syle is really reminiscent of that of "Star vs." except with more lines in the backgrounds and more detail in the character models.

Of course, none of this is super detailed, but it's more so than "She-Ra" on Netflix. There is a large over arching plot that, in 12 episodes, has only been hinted at, and it's not even about the main character, Luz. Nothing about how she's the one to save The Boiling Isles or some chosen one nonsense (Which is actually deconstructed in about episode 3).

The hinted-at-history is about Eda the Owl Lady (Wendie Malick, and it kills me that more people were quick to recognize her from "Bojack Horseman" than from "Fillmore!"), and it's really interesting so far. It's such a slow burn that it seems rather meandering for now. As the show already has a second season planned, it will make more sense in hindsight.

#12: Hamilton

Another positive casualty of Covid-19 is pushing the
long awaited ... non bootlegged copy of the Broadway sensation that has people of color playing slave owners singing.

Let me be clear; Despite the talent involved - I have no problems with the performances - I was never a big fan of this in its heyday. It reeked of the thing white people do, when they overcompensate in liking something because it has people of color in it.

Doing it for a program where we're the slavers is...think about that.

People who are much more familiar with this production say that Lin-Manuel Miranda sounds terrible in this, as this particular filmed version was in the middle of the original cast's original run. I heard his voice in snatches in "Moana" and it's reedy and not super impressive there, but here it's what I expected. I didn't expect greatness.

Someone said that everyone else is basically, what we think of when we think of these characters except him.

You ask "Who plays Aaron Burr in Hamilton?" I'm saying "Leslie Odom, Jr." I would like to see this with a different actor for Hamilton himself.

This is one of those musicals where it is 100% musical. No talking. Which may make some things a little hard to understand, especially if subtitles are not available readily, but the gist is there.

In their proper context (and not diluted by wild Hamilton Stans on tumblr - Staniltons?), I found this really enjoyable and dynamic.

There are some things in this recording you will only see and hear in this recording. Watch and listen to "Satisfied" Renee Elise Goldsberry hits "To your union" in a way that isn't on the official recording and always has me #shook.

#11: Artemis Fowl

Because I did see "Scoob!" and it was not worth watching besides looking very good.

But WHOOOOO BOY WE'RE FINALLY HERE.

After more than 15 years in development hell, Artemis Fowl is finally a movie!

And it is-


It just is.

Book Look: Queen's Peril By E.K Johnston

Yes, a sequel (prequel) to last year's "Queen's Shadow".

First, the first 60 pages alone focuses on the points of view of;

• Panaka
• Palpatine
• Sidious
• Obi-Wan
• Tsabin
• Padme
• Padme's Parents
• Each of the handmaidens as they're picked for the position
• Shimi Skywalker
• Maul
• Mariek Panaka (Whom I actually love and wish we saw more of)

The book is called "Queen's Peril", not everybody else. I do remember that Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon are involved with Naboo during the events of whatever stupid bullshit they were dealing with. The only acceptable POV outside of Padme's would be Tsabin (Sabe).

It feels like even the author was bored by the Trade Federation nonsense because it appears out of nowhere. I've always had the idea that George created it but no one else knew what the fuck he was getting at, and so here we are.

The problem is we know (Somewhat) about the actions of Phantom Menace. We didn't need to hear it again. If this was about the second year of Padme's reign after that, it would be more tolerable.

And that's all this book is; Tolerable. I didn't think the first one was the best Star Wars novel or anything, but it did give us new insight.

Book Look: The Poppy War by R.F Kuang

It almost has the same problems as "Songbirds" - The establishing 2/6ths is great, then there is a lot of slogging for about 250 pages. And this book is about 580 pages long.

I have no idea if we can call this a YA novel, simply because of all that happens. There are graphic depictions of drug use, murder, torture, rape, and while it's not every other page, it does hit you hard when you read it.

This is essentially a book about war and mythology, and I'm glad there was no shying away from the war aspect. It was made clear that Rin, the main character, could be sold off to some old man to be a child bride. No shying away from it, no "we have to use coy language".

It took me weeks to read it because there is just so much of everything besides the actual violence. The explanations. The inner monologue. It started off so well and now I'm just going "Where is an editor?"

Book Look: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

All of the YA/middle grade staples are returning in earnest in this new decade. There's an "Artemis Fowl" movie coming (finally), Percy Jackson has a reboot, and now let's read a Hunger Games prequel.

Coriolanus Snow is a kid whose family has fallen on hard times, after being one of the prime families in the Capitol of Panem. You can tell because he and his cousin, who would become the half-cat lady hiding in the costume shops in Mockingjay, keep repeating "Snow lands on top". He pretends he still has his wealth and prestige when in reality, they're sinking.

Things About Animal (Crossing)

I've played this series since the first entry on the Gamecube - Though, savvy gamers will know that Japan had it first on the Nintendo 64 called "Animal Forest".

Nearly 20 years later, it's still going relatively strong. I've tried the mainline games, and never bothered with Pocket Camp or Happy Home Designer or that silly Mario Party-esque one.

Now, thanks to a very kind benefactor, I have Animal Crossing: New Horizons for the Switch, and have had it for a month.

There's nothing to review - You do what you want. But there are things to like and dislike.

I like the lighting and views at different times of day.

 

Book Look: Star Wars: Thrawn Novel by Timothy Zahn

In short, it's not my favorite Star Wars novel. It's probably my least favorite, simply because I'm not super fond of the military tactics, on either side of the Galactic Conflict.

There is one character who plays the political game - Arhinda Pryce of Lothal, who I quite liked as someone competent but stuck in a backwater (relatable) who gets the chance of a lifetime.

One of the biggest 'mysteries' of the series is 'Who is Blackswan', and for some reason, no one ever puts two and two together with the other character who has a swan-related name. You can kind of see why Thrawn didn't get it, as the Chiss don't naturally speak Basic, but even the humans don't? No one knew the etymology? Maybe not.

It doesn't make me want to read the next books in the series.

Book Look: Archibald Lox and the Bridge Between Worlds by Darren Shan

I am a big Darren Shan fan. The Irish horror author has touched on just about everything in the past 15 years - werewolves, demons, vampires, zombies, child trauma, murder, racism - You know. For kids!

(Er, 'middle grade').

This is his first [Character Title] and the [Noun (Preposition) Noun ] series, as most of his series' book titles are far more random in their styling. Even the other two books in the series follow this format with their titles.

And yes, all 3 books were released at once! Not to worry, they're fairly short.

It reminds me very strongly of Steven Universe + Artemis Fowl, or that it should be an indie game where the world isn't too explained, and you have to figure it out slowly.

#9: Trolls: World Tour

Honestly, the first Trolls is underrated on almost every level, except in your local preschool.

It looks beautiful, the music is pretty damn good (Despite about 50% of her movies being musicals, I feel Anna Kendrick as a singer is woefully underrated), and the moral is not one you really see in a kid's movie: "Your happiness depends on you."

With "Onward" being oddly underwhelming, and most animated movies being somewhat in limbo, I wonder what the Oscar race will look like this year.

"Soul" will probably be pushed to November, as I have it on somewhat good authority that "Raya and The Last Dragon" is a bit behind.

But, "Trolls: World Tour". Now we have more musical genre trolls. In a move that would make Millar's Batman proud*, the enemy is a Rock and Roll troll named Barb...whom I love.

This one tried to shove in morals that are just different enough to make this feel unfocused, although I could see what they were attempting to accomplish.

It's a large mash of both "You're not always right", "Stop trying to homogenize us," and "Colonialism is bad, even when we do it.". Even the troll kingdom voiced by black people are like "Hey, you tried to colonize US.". There's even a dance number. Imagine trying to explain the colonization of the Americas to white America with a song. If it was Taylor Swift, they'd listen. Finally.

 *I am vaguely aware of the Batman run where he hated rock and roll.

Book Look: Rivals! Frenemies Who Changed the World Written By: Scott McCormick

Here

While this is in the middle grade section of Audible Stories, there are a few serious topics briefly touched upon.

Narration is listed as "Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi, Samantha Turret, Khristine Hvam, Gabriel Vaughan, Josh Hurley"

I'm not sure who does the main narration, but he does a great job. The delivery is wry and straightforward, something I've always enjoyed in my media (See, "Frasier"), with the addition of a childish slant that makes me laugh ("Your face looks like a booger!").

It even taught me things I didn't know, such as RUN DMC had a song called "My Adidas", and that Adidas and Puma were created within the same family as rival sports brands.

While listed as a 'series', there are only 2 chapters, with 4 stories spread between them. I just learned this morning that there is, indeed, a Rivals 2!

Book Look: Interview With the Robot by Lee Bacon

Because of a little worldwide pandemic kicking off the decade, many businesses have put up free wares for people to enjoy.

They've also quickly added things once thought to be impossible, like 'child care for retail and hospital workers' and 'paying them more than 8$ an hour'.

Today's book is actually an audiobook! Interview With the Robot.

It's a 12 year old (In practice) robot girl named Eve, who was created and raised by David and Emory, a scientist and his son.

It's told in flashbacks, as Eve is separated from the two...of her own making. She escaped.

I enjoy everyone's vocal performances, especially Emory's. I can't review it a bunch because it would be spoiling a lot of interesting things. It's basically "What happens when a tech bro hits middle age?"

The bits of humor are rare, but they are funny.

#8: Onward

Truth be told, I wasn't horrendously interested in this movie to begin with, but it's on digital extremely early, so here we are.

The main score motif is something I like. Actually, a lot of the music is really good and used effectively.  Some of the aspects of magic are clever, such as the imitation spells.

It feels both too contemporary and somehow very 90s.

I think Tom Holland's voice is the only one that truly seems different than his normal voice. Perhaps I'm too used to Pratt as Emmett in The Lego Movie.

Props to Tom Holland for sounding somewhat different than "Spies in Disguise".

This entire time, I just kept thinking of Disney movies I liked more than the one I was watching. Characters stuck in water in a cave? That's Tangled. Fire in a cave? That's Frozen II (Though I probably like this more than Frozen II).

I don't think Pixar can do medieval magical movies very well between this and Brave.

#7: Bloodshot

"Bold of you to assume I'm watching this for Vin Diesel." 

- Me when people assume I'm watching this movie for Vin Diesel.

"Oh, I didn't know you were a comic book fan! Valiant Comics, the 90s!"

Spoiler Alert: I don't know about the source material either. Cyborg Deadpool? Nice tagline though - "You don't need a past to have a future."

It's really difficult to find any kind of suspense in this because the first trailer already told you everything. Frankly, there isn't even a real point in you watching this unless you are totally a sucker for this genre.

This is the very rare comic book movies that hints at something different and actually does more than briefly touch upon the concept.

Trailer Tuesday: For Better or Worse

Well, about time, am I right? 461 days later, Disney gives us a second Artemis Fowl trailer.

It it what we wished for, or is it at odds with the actual character in the story books - Yeah, what do you think? They even changed the tagline to "Remember the name". What year is this?

Apparent butchering of, you know, the main character, aside, I think it looks fun enough, and that Disney squandered a great opportunity to do something different. That just isn't 2020 Disney.


I'm still calling this The Mitchells Vs the Machines, because Connected is a boring, too on the nose title.

The Death of Disney Daring

I hugely respect the hardworking cast members, and every individual who works to bring a product to market. It is not easy, and a company is not a singular entity. That being said, there are people at the top who make decisions that seem good for making money...not for keeping the integrity of the property.


I'm usually a big advocate of proper representation and changing questionable things.  I don't get my panties in a twist when a movie stars all men, or when women are villains. I don't say that to be a 'cool movie girl' or anything. If you've seen me around the interwebs, I'm fiercely defending 'Birds of Prey' from those who think women existing, being friendly toward each other, and fighting an opponent who happens to be a man is blasphemy of the highest order.


But conflict isn't a questionable thing, no matter what a certain job networking site will tell you.  Why won't you let protagonist men disagree with the female leads? Hell, the first Frozen was pretty good at that, and I am no fan of it.

 Disney doesn't have the balls to have new or remade stories where men are multifaceted or in roles that hint at a conflict with the main female character unless they are truly the villain.  I'm surprised the remake of "Beauty and the Beast" kept the clashing nature.

Today's movie topics of discussion:

i. Mulan (2020)
ii. Frozen II
iii. Artemis Fowl

#6: Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)

"Do ya'll criticize white people's movies as much as ya'll
criticize Tyler Perry's?"

- Individual who forgot about how the world over clowned the original appearance of movie! Sonic The Hedgehog. 

Just like "New Mutants", "Artemis Fowl", and "Chaos Walking", "Sonic the Hedgehog" was pushed from 2019 to 2020 (or, 2021, in the case of CW).

Why? Because his initial design looked ratlike and terrifying. Non-Sonic aficionados had no problem with it, and chastised the filmmakers for revisiting the drawing board.

Newsflash, guys - This movie was going to live or die by the reception by its fans. They didn't like it. It was terrifying. VFX artists told Paramount that it looked like shit, and they didn't listen until we ALL told them it looked like shit.

So, do you sink more money into it - Around 5$m, allegedly - and push it back, or do you push forward, and release something that was prepared to be a laughingstock?

Ask Universal and "Cats".

Anyway, did a redesigned Sonic save this movie?

#5: Birds of Prey

"Why didn't they just do Gotham City Sirens?"

Is something that was said a lot about this movie. Mainly so that people could have Barbara Gordon as Oracle, and less to push Harley onto another girl gang.

My knowledge of comics comes from a handful of Youtube channels, so I didn't know. After seeing this...I do wish we had seen that, simply because A) Catwoman and Poison Ivy are only two new characters.  "Birds" has about 4, and quite a few of them get shafted, partially ignored, and underused.

I had totally forgotten Huntress (Film wise, I have always enjoyed seeing Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and this is no exception) was even in this movie until she was officially name dropped.

One aspect I enjoyed was the score, especially whenever the diamond was mentioned. You hear it specifically when Cassandra (In name only, I'm told, but still, I enjoyed Ella Jay Basco) is in the cop car.

Black History Month : Animation (Semi-Recent)

I could go older, but the only one I cold think of is probably the "Fat Albert" Cartoon. So this is from about 2004 - Present.

Most of you are far too old to know that, for a hot moment, kids played with dolls as recently as 2019. Back in 2010, there was a very popular doll line called "Monster High", that had clearly black-coded character Clawdeen Wolf (and her family) in lead roles.

Though, with the reboot, they did give her a potential love interest to make up for the fact that, for about 7 years, the black-coded girl was the only one who had no boyfriend or romantic prospects because she just didn't care. Which is a fine quality, as I'm like that myself, but it still didn't look great.

This series went through like 800 art styles so this composite video is what you're getting.

There was also a character later, a girl called Honey Swamp, with a bonafied afro, and that was cool.

Doll lines still make little webisodes today. Well, at least DC Comics and DC Super-hero girls:

Selina Kyle is usually pale (Though in some comics I believe she may be Cuban, which is also neat), but the second iteration of DCSHGs (Because there is a Generation 1, with terribly unappealing art) made her black, akin to Eartha Kitt's Catwoman way back when.

And yep, that's Cree Summer. Isn't it always? Except with Bumblebee, where it's Kimberly Brooks!

What else is happening for black people in animation recently? Or, even as far as nearly 20 years ago?

Month in Sound: Jan 2020

#4: Rocknrolla

I don't normally post the synopsis to movies here, but:

In London, a real-estate scam puts millions of pounds up for grabs, attracting some of the city's scrappiest tough guys and its more established underworld types, all of whom are looking to get rich quick. While the city's seasoned criminals vie for the cash, an unexpected player -- a drugged-out rock 'n' roller presumed to be dead but very much alive -- has a multi-million-dollar prize fall into his hands.

TLDR; A painting goes through several criminal hands, from someone who could probably be your local government representative, to the underground with criminals, to a drug addicted rockstar who faked his death.

Why did I do this?

A Twisted Tale: "Conceal, Don't Feel", "A Whole New World", "Reflection"

The Disney "A Twisted Tale" book series are reimaginings of the popular Disney stories.
They've been a thing for a few years now, with a "Cinderella" and "Peter Pan" one coming out in Spring.

But now I read 3 of them -

#3: Missing Link

Eternal Bridesmaid LAIKA finally became the bride at the latest Golden Globe's ceremony. Despite being nominated and invited constantly to lose to Disney around every turn ("Paranorman" was better than "Brave" and you can't change my mind), finally got the better of the Sequel Station by having this movie win over "Frozen 2" and "Toy Story 4".

It's remarkable how similar Lionel Frost looks like his voice actor Hugh Jackman. Just saying.

The first 15 minutes are like...backwards "Smallfoot".

Of course, at heart it is a children's movie, but it's refreshing to see the main character be an outright jackass. A conniving person who wants his own ends. And have the other one essentially be a crass, literal animal. Frankly, everyone's pretty unlikeable or irritating at first, and I don't have a problem watching them.

It's a bit of the same "It's...fine." Vein as "Klaus", though I admit to having a lot more and bigger laughs here. ("Now...hold onto me tightly!" "Are you sure...Adelina's watching.").

It's certainly ambitious visually and Laika's biggest, most creative effort. I just wish it was a little more creative with its story.

#2: Klaus

So #2 was going to be something completely different until Oscar noms hit and I had seen a whopping...0/5 nominees.

Good on Netflix for getting two submissions in, Laika, Dreamworks, and Pixar with 1.

And nothing but "Into the Unknown" for Frozen II...when we all know it should have been "Show Yourself". Whatever.

Onto "Klaus"

My biggest issue with this is that the story is really nothing special. It's the art style and animation that makes it a delight. Sometimes you'll get these bits of super contemporary music that are at complete odds with the actual setting and tone of the story, and I don't care for it.

So much about this reminded me of the underrated modern classic "Arthur Christmas", a movie which never fails to cheer me up, and I wish that had been animated like this.

There really is not a ton to say about this movie besides "it's fine" and "the ending is very sweet." and "Hey J.K Simmons isn't shouting all the time."

I don't dislike it! Though knowing the differences in lighting darker skinned people in cinema, I wonder how this art style would look like with a diverse cast with variations of lighting techniques. 

#1: Dolemite Is My Name

A man steals stories to finally hit the big leagues with a Blaxploitation movie after creating a character.

(Well, yeah, he steals them)

The production value and design of the homes reminds me greatly of my own family when I was a little girl visiting relatives that never updated their interior decorating from the 70s when I was born in the early 90s.

I'm not one to be prudish about crass humor but some of this was quite shocking. The film is rated R though. The jokes aren't even funny, they just rhyme and are crass.

Maybe it's a cultural context I'm missing.

There's a really nice segment where Toney tells Rudy "You can't will yourself into being a moviestar." and Rudy says "Well, I did it to become a comedy star."

There's also a moment where a character goes "I've been directed by Roman Polanski!" and yeah, imagine watching that in a crowd of cinemaphiles. The looks!

But a lot of cinemaphiles value art over humanity so they'd probably clap and applaud. Be better, ya'll!

It's all about a man's determined innovation. Imagine how easier it is in the modern day.

Also, I had no idea this was based on real events or a real story until the end. Maybe it was mentioned at the beginning and I spaced out but I was super surprised to see actual footage from the film.

How About Them Globes? (Golden Globes 2020)

New year, new movies, new award shows, new surprises!


I feel that I heard vague things about "1917" and then it came out of nowhere to win Best Movie, Drama. It seems genuinely interesting, for a war film, and would shake up the other bland offerings on display during the Oscars (Let's be real, a lot of innovative films are not being chosen for Best Picture).


One film that may be nominated is "The Farewell" - After all, the HFPA did give Nora "Awkwafina, blaccent in the streets, Normal Voice on the Stage" Lum the award for Best Actress in A Comedy.