Coyote Vs. Acme

Finally.

I'd like to thank everybody who made this theatrical release possible, as someone who was keeping tabs on this production and can firmly say go fuck yourself on your tax write offs WB, I'm happy to report this was indeed a good movie! It pretty much is as the tin says, the Coyote after decades of fruitlessly chasing the Roadrunner with faulty tech sues the Acme corporation as the film follows down and out attorney Kevin Avery who literally rises to the bar to expose the corporation. And it has my heart till the end of time for a ruthless and scathing view of companies, corporations, politicians, and all around scumbags who can eat shit and die while still crafting a highly enjoyable and indeed funny film. I have always loved the Coyote and the love has only grown since walking out of the cinema, they got this character down pitch perfect in every way, maintaining the silent comedy even in the midst of all this other story. Will Forte is a solid lead and given the fact he has to act opposite a character that isn't there does a decent job, and has quite good comedic timing to add to the plethora of Looney Tunes characters. Lana Condor was kinda my shining star throughout bringing a lot of energy and even positivity to the mix as the true supporter for Kevin and sure knows her stuff when it comes to law. And in terms of the toons if you're any kind of hardcore fan you'll be seeing actually more of the obscure and less popular characters than the big main stars. Sure you get Bugs, Daffy, Taz, Foghorn Leghorn, and Porky but the side characters get more frequent screentime that adds to the world. Though I do find it hilarious all these famous cartoon characters are found around Albuquerque, New Mexico. For a film a notch over 90 minutes it kinda surprised me how quick we got to the first court scene, it really doesn't waste your time but it's not a 12 Angry Men situation where you're stuck in the court. There's plenty of breaks and investigations with that classic Looney Tunes comedy which again they handled super well. It's a very funny film and got a few big laughs out of me and it seemed the theater I was at was digging it too. The pacing was solid, I was kinda shocked near the end how they handled the verdict but a film of this caliber ain't gonna end on a sour note and as a fledgling anarchist seeing the Coyote explosively respond to the Acme higher ups brought such joy to me. I very much enjoyed this movie and hope it endures great success and praise, may not be one of the greatest movies of all time but damn good nevertheless. I give it 3 stars, 8/10, now if only we could get that Batgirl movie out into the world then I could feel that justice for all isn't just words.

A Goofy Movie

Don't ask me why, madness just striked.

Though in all seriousness in the near decade I've been doing this I haven't given a lot of love to the 2D animation department at the house of Mouse so I figured it couldn't hurt. I have not seen this movie before but I certainly have heard about it, it's kind of an interesting case of nostalgia for many it would seem though it's far from a house hold name, definitely a cult hit in my estimation. It's a fairly grown up story about Goofy and his son Max starting to hit that era of the generational gap and how a father and son are trying to reconnect amidst the backdrop of a road trip movie, and what I vastly enjoy so much about it and can even respect it a good deal is it doesn't really pull any punches. There is frustration, there is a lack of listening, there's dare I say depression at times, so it doesn't surprise me why people hold it near and dear to their hearts. Now granted this was a follow up to the Goof Troop television series but trust in me when I say you can watch it without the backstory, and that point is even further compounded when we get to the sequel tomorrow. It really can be it's own singular thing and that's a luxury compared to nowadays! And being an animation project in the 90s it has that distinct look and feel to the era, and I kinda had this little epiphany strike me while watching which is, the 90s was the last gasp of when old could mix with new. Now what do I mean by that? Well simply put, a lot of the comedic elements are things I have seen in Looney Tunes and Three Stooges shorts but that juxtaposition of the generational gap is present even there with the slick, colorful, and modern animation style. Bill Farmer does a very good job playing Goofy who admittedly out of the classic original lineup of Disney characters might be my favorite, he still has that highly animated sensibility but can show emotion of wide degrees that gets you invested. Same for Jason Marsden as Max, you know what he's going through with the angst, and the crushing on a cute girl, and how he wants to distance himself from his dad but not in a mean spirited or despicable way. He's a kid who's growing up and that has been proven time and again as good drama for stories. It very much centers on these two throughout for the less than 90 minute runtime, but I'll of course shoutout Kellie Martin, Jim Cummings, and Rob Paulsen who all still put solid work in and easily elicited reactions from me both positive and negative. The only real problem I have with the movie is dear lord, it just flies by! Sure it takes it's time when needed but when we are nearing that climax, it's going at warp speed and I honestly feel there were chunks left on the cutting room floor, and the climax itself is like...3 minutes before firmly shifting back into falling action and resolution not long after. If memory serves this was a theatrically released film which perplexes me further why it's as short as it is, but I heard the production was kind of an uphill battle and it really came down to the wire to get the film done and out so I can't be that mad at it and I'm not really, it's just kind of a bummer it isn't longer. The songs are mostly ehhhh but seviceable, the animation quality is worthy of a theatrical picture, the story is basic but certainly quite good, and I am pretty happy to say I've finally seen it. I give it 3 stars, 7/10, and I'll see you next time.

Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins

What a way to f***ing start this week!

Oh man, this...this brought back some stuff. So how does one describe The Journey Begins? Shite. I mean that's the easy way at least, but you have this direct to video project that is this mighty bizzare mix of 3D and 2D animations, essentially being the cliffnotes version of Mortal Kombat to get you prepped for the big movie. Except for the fact the movie hit about 10 days before this. Friggin' whoops apparently! How do you mess that up? It even has some behind the scenes footage with cast interviews and stuff at the very end, so you would think this would come out like a solid 2 weeks before the film. I'm sorta dumbfounded at that. The story is this pseudo-prequel/parts of the original movie/ buncha' bullshit you never saw. It starts on the boat where Liu, Johnny, and Sonya are heading for the tournament as they come actoss these characters and learn the backstory of the actual Mortal Kombat tournament. And this is where the 3D animation comes in, and it's not good. I mean not. Good. But it is fascinating to see because they used motion capture for it, and such technology was in it's sheer infancy, I mean even in Two Towers it was still being perfected but they did such a good job with it. And boy howdy, you better f***ing believe I thought this was the most high tech, cool, state of the art shit you ever seen. I rented this tape a good fair amount of times in my youth, and the 3D CG fights were my favorite part. I'm so happy I waited until a more mature, seasoned, and intelligent me started writing reviews. In fact even the animation style is so unheard of, they used 3D backgrounds and environments that look much worse than a Nintendo 64 game but still animated the characters in the 2D style. So you have this hilariously jittery, poorly tracked, flat out garbage animation trying to interact with a 3D world. They had no budget for this, they blew it all on CG wonder, they barely had animation cells to film a scene. It's that special kind of cheap animation where they constantly reuse bits and pieces and the lip syncing makes Godzilla movies look masterful. I simply cannot wrap my brain around why this exists. I know I didn't exactly have a warm reception to the new Mortal Kombat trailer but I think it is extremely safe to say we are on an upward spiral. It's not getting worse than this. No way. Absolute tripe. Thank God you can watch it for free on the YouTubes, because I have wasted money on a bit in my life, but I'm not wasting it here. 1 star, 2/10, I somehow have nostalgic memories of this but it does not hold any sway this time. Watch if you are morbidly curious or are still part of the Kombat Klub. Movie coming up tomorrow on a very special day so stay tuned for more.

Christopher Robin

I don't think I've ever cried in a theater before.

It's everything I wanted and more. If this was the last movie I ever saw or reviewed, I think I would be quite happy. Curse you Disney and your hold on my childhood, this movie shouldn't be so good but it is. It takes a more deep and moving approach while still being fun, charming, wonderful, and of course perfect. Ewan McGregor is always nice to see in a movie, and he is very Mr. Banks for lack of a better term for I'd say half the movie even after meeting Pooh and going on a adventure, but he's still so nice and has that charm to him. Christopher's daughter Madeline is also quite wonderful too, and I don't think I need to say a word about our friends from the Hundred Acre Wood. They're all perfect, perfect voice, perfect character, perfect look to the point where I desperately want them all. But the movie is more than happiness, with it tugging on your heartstrings with reckless abandon and made me severely emotional. You can keep all the moments in film history, Disney or otherwise, that made you emotionally wrecked cause I think this tops even UP and that was an emotional movie. It fits that special kind of bittersweet, melancholy movie like Her or Lost In Translation, where you love it so and yet it breaks your heart. The best parts though are the sort of reflection moments, like we see at the end of the first movie, they have those moments that elevate the film from fun family movie to one of the best movies made. And a lot of that comes from how Christopher grew up, he got sent to a boarding school where soon after his father passed away, he enlists in the army and actually fights during World War 2, and returns home to his wife and 3 year old daughter. I mean dang man, that's a shock to the system! There's plenty of fun, charming, and humorous scenes but I'm so glad they decided to go a bit farther and make it more than a family movie. I won't divulge into plot because well, you probably already know how it goes from the trailer but I will tell you it ends nice. Better than nice in fact. There are some beautiful atmospheric shots, and the film couldn't look more pretty in my opinion. I'd tell you to go see it but I have a feeling you probably already have. And I will miss being here, if it's only for a little while. But I promise to be back and we'll have more movies to see and enjoy.

Winnie The Pooh (2011)

I feel so bad not seeing this movie until now because it is quite wonderful.

I'm kinda surprised the film got a theatrical release, a rare thing indeed for Pooh, but the film barely scrapes by an hour! And even more so, this was Disney's last hand drawn film which is a real shame because it looks very, very good. So we start in a very familiar way and in a familiar setting, where the inhabitants of the Hundred Acre Wood have discovered that Eeyore has lost his tail and they all venture to find it, later finding a letter by Christopher Robin that they misunderstand as a warning against a terrible creature known as a backson leading our friends to try and trap the creature and relocate Eeyore's tail. This sounds basic, but let me tell you this was a blast to watch. The writers really must be applauded because there is so much good humor and funny moments it keeps the movie going in unique ways. There's even more fourth wall humor, way more funnier than last time which is a joy to see. It's similar in style to the original movie, yet has it's own unique look and story. Voice cast is still really good, with Jim Cummings doing great work though I have to admit Tigger kinda sounds like Bill Murray in Caddyshack. Special love goes to Kristen Anderson-Lopez who plays Kanga, I can't explain why but she is pure magic in this movie and for such a small role she brings such enjoyment for me. It's short, it's sweet, it's wonderful. And I cannot wait for Friday, but also sadly it will be the last review for a good long while, at least until late September then we come back full force. Until Friday good friends.