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Post by Belchic on Nov 2, 2018 11:26:12 GMT -5
Toy Story (1995)
Toy Story. In the mid 90’s, Disney distributed this revolutionary film made by Pixar as the first fully-computer-Animated feature film ever made. At the time, Pixar was a relatively-unknown studio that made a few computer-animated shorts back in the 1980’s, but little did they know, this movie would be the launch of a new era for the studio making them one of the most beloved animation studios of all time and launching one of Disney’s most popular franchises! It’s been over 20 years since this movie hit cinemas, so does it still live in our hearts today to remind us of our childhood, or has it not aged as well as we thought? Let’s find out...
The Story The story is the typical story of a toy who feels like he has the best life a toy could ask for being the favorite toy of his owner, Andy. Then, one day, on Andy’s birthday, he gets a new toy who becomes his new favorite, and Woody gets jealous of him stealing his thunder. This results in Buzz and Woody getting separated from their home and going on an adventure together making this a typical buddy comedy. On paper, the story sounds cliche, but if you look at it for what it is, it actually works very well. The connections between the characters is very admirable, and the jokes are very clever and not so in your face. This is how you make an animated comedy. It’s not crazy, obnoxious and over the top loaded with pop culture references that only select people will get. This is definitely a perfect foreshadowing of what was to come of Pixar in the coming years.
The Animation Let me start off by acknowledging the elephant in the room: the fact that this movie is the first of its kind: being a fully-CG-animated feature film. Yes, it was revolutionary for its time, and for the first of its kind, making the movie about toys seemed like an appropriate place to start. The character animation on the toys looks so realistic that it actually looks like you could physically hold them and interact with them. Though the human animation is a little bit creepy, but understandably, this movie was the first of its kind, so they were experimenting at the time, so that makes it excusable. Though looking back at it today compared to later CGI films like Finding Nemo and Zootopia, you may notice it does seem cheap in comparison like the absence of any liquids, which at the time were too difficult to animate with computers. Though at least you can tell they were trying. Overall, despite the minor flaws, what the animation team did on this film really paid off, and it is still very revolutionary! Who would’ve known it would give cel animation a run for its money?
The Characters There are a ton of characters to talk about here, so I’ll do my best to keep this brief. The main character, Woody, is the stubborn leader with the most common sense. Buzz Lightyear is an egotistical toy who actually believes he is the real deal. Andy’s other toys don’t get as much screentime as Woody and Buzz, but they each have their own unique personalities and provide a nice blend of comic relief with their personalities. Hamm is the sarcastic one, Rex is the worry-wart, Slinky is, well...the dog, and Mr. Potato Head delivers some good prop comedy. There’s also Bo Peep, Woody’s love interest, who seems to be the only toy who cares the most about Woody. As for the human characters, there’s not too much to say about them except for the villain, Sid Phillips, a kid who tortures toys just for fun; toys have feelings too! Overall, this is a fun cast of characters who are certainly memorable on so many levels.
Toy Story is truly an animated masterpiece that still holds up today! Not only was it revolutionary for its time and launched a new era for animation, but it was also the start of what is one of the most popular animation studios of our time! This movie is one of the animated movies you must watch before you die! With its groundbreaking animation, memorable characters, and tear-jerking story, it’s no wonder Pixar started with a movie like this and have continued developing it in their following films. Sure, Pixar has had some hiccups in their career, but love em or hate em, Pixar will always be one of the dominators Of Animation, and they have this movie to thank for starting it all! No doubt about it, I gotta give this movie Belchic’s Seal Of Approval! Oh yeah! It’s that good!
Story: 10/10 Animation: 10/10 Characters: 10/10
Overall: 10/10 = 100%
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Now if you’re ready, here are the hints for my next review:
1. This movie starred the same actor who starred in the previous movie I just reviewed today. 2. This movie is based on a children’s book of the same name. 3. This is a Christmas movie.
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Post by Belchic on Nov 20, 2018 16:42:37 GMT -5
The Polar Express (2004)
The Polar Express. Based on the children’s book of the same name, this animated movie from 2004 showed us a whole new level of the book by excelling in the animation department. It’s well over a decade old, but looking back on it, does the movie still stand out as one of the standard Christmas classics, or should we just leave it at the train station? Let’s find out...
The Story The story of the film pretty much keeps the integrity of the book, but it also adds in some new stuff, which I feel was pretty much just shoehorned in there to fill the 90-minute time slot. That aside, it still delivers the message to children to try to believe in not just Christmas magic and Santa Claus, but also to believe in themselves. That seems to be the focal point as the main kids in this movie are trying to do just that as they ride the Polar Express and explore the North Pole. Sure, it may not be the most classic Christmas story, but the message it delivers is truly heartwarming and inspiring, and there isn’t a lot of slapstick comedy to distract you from it. It’s also very interesting to learn that time moves slower at the North Pole, which gives you a lot to think about when you try to tie all the different Santa Claus stories together.
The Animation Unfortunately, the animation has to be the movie’s weakest aspect. The main problem I have with it is the character animation. I understand they were trying to make it look at realistic as possible, but the problem is they made them look too real to the point where they just look flat out creepy. Aside from that, there are times when the animation can look truly breathtaking, especially the shots of the train and the worlds that surround the train and the characters. Though with that being said, this could be evidence that the movie is clearly putting special effects before story making this a very over budget animated film that just leaves me confused for the most part.
The Characters The characters in this movie are also very forgettable. Largely due to the fact that none of them have any names! Would it hurt to give the characters names??? All we have pretty much are the main boy, the train conductor, the boy’s new friends, and the rest of the train crew. This has got to be the most one-dimensional cast of characters I have ever seen! The only real memorable character in this movie is the boy voiced by Eddie Deezen, whom I can’t help but just envision as Mandark! While I will give credit to Tom Hanks for doing a good job voicing six of the characters in the film, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that the characters are so bland and one-dimensional that they’re just forgettable!
The Polar Express May have a heartwarming message, and the animation may look astonishing at times, but it’s completely ruined by the creepy-looking characters who are so bland beyond belief! I understand this movie does have an audience for it, and if you like it, good for you. If you haven’t seen it yet, it wouldn’t hurt to check it out just once, but I for one am not adding this to my list of must watch Christmas movies every year. It’s a mediocre movie. All I can say more about this movie is...it’s there.
Story: 9/10 Animation: 6/10 Characters: 4/10
Overall: 6/10 = 63%
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Now if you’re ready, here are the hints for my next review:
1. This movie was a direct-to-video release. 2. This movie is three separate stories combined into one. 3. One of the three stories is a parody on a Bill Murray classic that is themed to a different holiday.
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Post by Belchic on Dec 6, 2018 19:00:17 GMT -5
Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas (1999)
Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas. In the late 90’s, Disney releases this direct-to-video movie starring Mickey Mouse and his gang of friends. The movie features three separate Christmas stories each containing a problem that one of the characters is facing. Considering it was a direct-to-video release, not many people talk about it, but it does have a small cult following. Heck, it even spawned off a horrible sequel, which I probably will not be reviewing for some time! So looking back at this original, should we cherish this as a holiday classic, or does it deserve to be as forgotten about as the problems these characters face? Let’s find out...
The Story Like I said, this movie is three different stories in one, so I’ll talk about each one individually. The first segment is Donald’s story. Huey, Dewey and Louie have just had an awesome Christmas but are disappointed when it’s all over. They decide to wish it was Christmas every day, and they get their wish, but they are literally trapped in a death loop where they are forced to re-live the same Christmas over and over again. This story is obviously a parody on Groundhog Day, but it’s surprisingly the best of the three segments. The second segment is Goofy’s story. Goofy and Max are getting ready for Santa’s arrival until Pete tells Max that there is no Santa Claus, and now Max is starting to believe there is no such thing as Santa Claus. Now Goofy is doing all he can to get Max to believe in Santa again. This is a heartwarming segment that Goofy fans will certainly enjoy, especially those who grew up watching Goof Troop. The third and final segment is Mickey’s story. It’s Christmas Eve, and Mickey and Minnie each want to give a special present for each other, but they’re both in a financial struggle. I won’t give away the ending, but since the title of this segment is “The Gift of the Magi”, you can probably guess what’s coming. These are all very good stories, and they’re a lot of fun to watch. I’m sure kids of all ages will enjoy them.
The Animation Nothing screams classic Disney like traditional cel animation, and this movie truly delivers! Sure it’s not top-notch Animation we would see in movies like Beauty and the Beast or The Lion King, but for what it is, it’s actually really good and very pleasing to look at. Sure, people who know the Disney characters may see some slight inaccuracies with the character designs, but you gotta remember, this was a low-budget direct-to-video film, and it looks like the animators really made every penny count. It is far from a masterpiece, but it’s got a lot going on for it.
The Characters There isn’t a lot to say about these characters other than the fact that it’s Mickey and the Gang. These are all characters we’ve known for decades, and their personalities are just what we’d expect from them. Plus, they are all voiced by their respective voice actors, at least who was currently voicing them at the time: Tony Anselmo, Russi Taylor, Tress MacNielle, Alan Young, Bill Farmer, Jim Cummings, and of course, the late Wayne Allwine. There really isn’t much to say about the rest of the supporting cast since all the other characters just come and go for one short scene, but there is one character I must bring up: Aunt Gertie. She must have been made exclusively for this movie, because as far as I know, she hasn’t appeared in any form of Disney media prior to or after this movie, so where did she come from exactly? Well, regardless, if you’re a fan of Mickey and the Gang, than this is a cast of characters for you.
Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas is a fun little holiday flick that’ll be fun for Disney fans and kids of all ages. Sure it may not rank as one of the essential Christmas classics, but it’s still a fun holiday movie to put on and be entertained by. I’d say it’s worth checking out. Just remember three things: wishes can be dangerous, believe in your parents, and it’s the thought that counts in your gifts.
Story: 9/10 Animation: 8/10 Characters: 8/10
Overall: 8/10 = 83%
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Now, my next review is going to be another request. Here are the clues:
1. This movie was made by a studio that is known for doing a different style of animation than this particular movie. 2. Bill Nighy is in this movie. 3. The movie teaches us something about Santa Claus that we’ve never thought about before.
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Post by Trey_Vore on Dec 8, 2018 10:22:39 GMT -5
I'm watching that movie right now.
Nice review.
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Post by Belchic on Dec 15, 2018 15:29:59 GMT -5
Arthur Christmas (2011)
Arthur Christmas. When people think of Ardman Animation, they usually think of their claymation pieces like the Wallace & Gromit features, Chicken Run, and Shaun the Sheep. Here, however, the studio teams up with Sony Pictures Animation to make a computer-animated theatrical Christmas movie. Upon its release, it got a lot of massive praise from audiences all over the world. Today, should it still be considered a gem, or is it just another special that deserves to be forgotten about? Let’s find out...
The Story At first, the plot may seem unoriginal since its a cliche story about a brother getting jealous of his brother and trying to win his glory. It’s main story is about Santa’s son, Arthur, on a mission to deliver a present for a girl on Christmas Eve that was misplaced. This isn’t a story that’s been done too many times, but it’s common for Christmas movies to have stories in this level of urgency. Though what really comes so fascinating about the story is that it shows what Santa and his elves do with modern technology, and it also explains how Santa somehow lives for eternity: it’s because in the past, other Santa’s have passed on and brought the torch down to the new Santa’s. So in a sense, Arthur is looked upon as the upcoming next generation Santa Claus. Sure, the story may not be the most original, but it does have its share of fascinating twists that get your attention.
The Animation I will start out by saying for Ardman, this is not the kind of animation I would expect from them, but I probably would expect something like this from Sony. I don’t really have too much to say about the animation other than the fact that it’s just your average everyday run of the mill CGI-animated film. I’m not saying the animation is bad, but there’s just nothing too special about it. It just looks like the standard style we’ve all seen a million times already.
The Characters There isn’t too much to say about the characters. They’re all just average. Arthur is likable but not an amazing character. The rest of the cast consists of very one-dimensional characters, with the exception of one: Grandsanta. He is the most memorable character in the whole movie. He’s funny, he’s wise, and he’s very clever in mysterious ways. It’s too bad I can’t say the same about the rest of the cast.
Arthur Christmas is an entertaining Christmas movie, but it’s far from a masterpiece. It’s just an ok movie. If you haven’t seen it and are curious why it gets so much love, then you’re more than welcome to check it out. You may end up liking it a lot. I for one am not going to be adding this to my collection of must-watch Christmas specials anytime soon.
Story: 8/10 Animation: 7/10 Characters: 6/10
Overall: 7/10 = 70%
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Hey, guys! Just wanted to let you know that this is going to be my last review of the year. When I start doing reviews again next year, I’m going to limit my reviews to just one a month effective this January. You are still welcome to give me requests, but just bear in mind that it might be a while until I get to it. So with that said and done, let’s unveil the hints to my next review...
1. This movie started an actress who was related to another actress who starred in some of the Star Wars films. 2. This movie was made by a duo who were at one time known as the masters of Saturday morning cartoons. 3. The songs in this movie were written by a songwriting duo who are most famous for their work for Disney.
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Post by Belchic on Jan 10, 2019 14:52:24 GMT -5
Charlotte’s Web (1973)
Charlotte’s Web. Based on the award-winning children’s novel by E.B. White, the people at Hanna-Barbera made this beloved animated film adaptation that quickly became popular with people around the world. Despite getting some backlash from E.B. White and his wife, the film became an instant cult classic viewed by just about every household. Today, is Wilbur still some pig, or does he deserve to be crunchy bacon? Let’s find out.
The Story The story is about a pig named Wilbur, who was first raised by a girl named Fern, but when her father states he is about to kill Wilbur, Fern begs him to spare his life. So Wilbur is instead sent to her uncle’s farm where most of the farm animals are a bit annoyed by him. However, he manages to make friends with two animals: a duckling named Jeffrey, and a spider named Charlotte. Charlotte does everything he can to prevent Wilbur from getting slaughtered by spelling words in her web stating that Wilbur is a magnificent pig, because if he was famous, nobody would want to slaughter him. As time goes by, things change with Wilbur, and his connections with Charlotte keep growing closer. It’s a very strong story that’s really heartwarming and has a very original concept, and despite White’s displeasure with it, the movie seems to follow the book very accurately. It truly stands as a worthy film adaptation of the book it is based on.
The Animation For an animated film by Hanna-Barbera, it certainly is a unique style for them. Most of the time, you can’t even tell it’s Hanna-Barbera! Though if you’re a fan of Scooby-Doo and Johnny Quest, you’ll probably get a good kick out of the animation here. The backgrounds are very well-painted, some of the visual effects are pretty mesmerizing, and the character animation is very kid-friendly. Though one character who truly stands out in terms of the animation is Wilbur himself. As time passes in the movie, you can see Wilbur growing older, which is not something that happens very often in animation. It’s a true testimony of low-budget animation if done right, and they delivered perfectly here.
The Characters I’ll try to be as quick and to the point about these characters, because there are a lot of them in this movie. The title character, Charlotte, is a very kind motherly figure who is always willing to go out of her way to fend for Wilbur’s life, and she’s voiced by the legendary Debbie Reynolds. Wilbur himself is a playful yet worrisome pig who can get annoying at times. Templeton is a snarky rat who acts as sort of the comic relief but also Charlotte’s helper, and he’s given an unforgettable performance by Paul Lynde. Then there’s the goose who also helps Wilbur but can also be picky sometimes. Her son, Jeffrey, is Wilbur’s best friend who is nothing more than the token kid-appeal character. And then there’s Fern, Wilbur’s owner, who really cares about Wilbur, but honestly she just looks a bit old for her age. Top that off with a narration by Rex Allen, and you’ve got yourself a pretty fun cast of characters.
The Songs This movie is a musical with songs written by the legendary Disney duo: the Sherman Brothers. “There Must Be Something More” is just your token cutesy little girl song. “I Can Talk” is a fun upbeat song. “Chin Up” is fun too but can be embarrassing to listen to sometimes. “We’ve Got Lots in Common” is your typical upbeat buddy song. Then there’s the mysterious “Deep in the Dark”, which reminds me a lot of “Chim Chim Chir-ee” from Mary Poppins. “Mother Earth and Father Time” is hands down the most tear-jerking song in the movie. “A Veritable Smorgasbord” is just a song that feels like it’s just thrown in there as unnecessary filler. Then there’s “Zuckerman’s Famous Pig”, which is your token grand finale song. So yeah, there’s a lot of cliche and embarrassing songs here and there, but it’s forgivable, and it’s classic Sherman Brothers tunes. Sure, the soundtrack may not be as memorable as the songs they did for Disney, but there are some highly-underrated gems in here.
Charlotte’s Web is a fun animated classic that really captures the heart of the book. I’m sure kids of all ages will enjoy it. Sure, it has some flaws like the songs and the characters being a mixed bag, but kids will enjoy it regardless. I would not quite call it a masterpiece, but I will at least go as far to call it good. If you watch it, you should be satisfied. It’s not a waste of time at all.
Story: 10/10 Animation: 8/10 Characters: 8/10 Songs: 7/10
Overall: 8/10 = 82%
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Hey guys! Huge shoutout to the person who requested me to review Charlotte’s Web! I now have somewhat of a better appreciation for it now then I had previously. Well, that concludes my January review, now it’s time to reveal the clues to what movie I will be reviewing next month:
1. This movie is hated by a lot of people but has a small cult following. 2. This movie was released the same year as four other animated films made by different studios that were all huge mega hits. 3. This movie launched a line of direct-to-dvd sequels.
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Post by Belchic on Feb 6, 2019 16:05:41 GMT -5
Alpha & Omega (2010)
Alpha & Omega. 2010 was quite a year for animated movies. We’ve seen such masterpieces as Tangled, Despicable Me, How to Train Your Dragon, and of course, Toy Story 3. But then came this cute little flick, which got the polar opposite response as those previously said movies. Seriously, critics and audiences just hated it so much! Though somehow, it managed to spawn off a line of direct-to-DVD sequels that almost rivals The Land Before Time! Despite all the hate this movie has gotten, like most unpopular movies, it has managed to gain a cult following. Well, the movie is almost a decade old, so looking back at it today, could it be considered an underrated gem? Or does it deserve to be left out in the rain covered in mud? Let’s find out...
The Story For starters, the story is sort of your typical Romeo & Juliet story. It’s about these two wolves named Humphrey and Kate who are in love with each other, but because of pack laws, they cannot mate because Kate is an alpha wolf and Humphrey is an omega wolf. The two get caught by hunters and sent to Idaho where they can repopulate, but they instead journey together back home and soon learn to love each other. Now, this is the one part of the plot that has become so controversial that people are dubbing it one of the worst animated films ever made just because of this one little thing! I mean yes, sex-related stuff is not appropriate to have in a movie made for kids, but it’s just one small little scene! Besides, Humphrey and Kate don’t even want to do it, so what’s the bug deal? I mean heck, BlueSky got away with it by making an entire plot about repopulation with Rio, so why is this such a huge deal?! If you look beyond that, while the plot is a bit unoriginal, it’s still a cute story with many heart-warming moments, and humor that is not as shoved into your face unlike most cartoony movies. I’d even go as far to say it’s a great story.
The Animation While I do enjoy the story a lot, the animation, I admit is not the best I’ve seen. To be fair, this was Lionsgate’s first animated feature, so it’s understandable that it is lacking in the animation department. The worst part would have to be the character animation. While I admit the wolves do look beautiful for the most part, especially Kate, it’s the eyes and the manes that look the most off-putting. To be fair, this was a very low-budget film, but it probably would have made more sense to give this a direct-to-DVD release if they were going to have animation this cheap. Though, it tends to get more of a downgrade with the sequels, which were rightfully DTV releases.
The Characters If there is one thing this movie has left me with it’s a batch of memorable characters! Humphrey is the lead omega wolf who is the stereotypical male wisecracker always trying to impress the girl. Kate is the lead alpha wolf who is able to stand up for herself and finds Humphrey funny. Humphrey’s friends are the typical gang of comedic friends. Lily, Kate’s sister, is the classic adorkable female character. Garth is the typical stud who Kate isn’t all that interested in but instead falls for Lily. Marcel and Pappy are sort of the comic reliefs who really aren’t that annoying and are just tame enough to be tolerable. The rest of the wolves are strong in their own right too. To be honest, there is not a single character in this movie that I hate. They made a perfectly-crafted cast of characters here. Most of them may be classic stereotypes, but they each have something about them that makes you want to love them.
Alpha & Omega is truly an underrated movie that doesn’t deserve all the hate it’s getting! With it’s heartwarming story and lovable characters, there’s no reason why nobody should at least check this out. The movie’s only weakness is it’s animation could have been better, and that’s the only thing that’s keeping it from earning Belchic’s Seal of Approval, but it’s still in my opinion one of the great underrated classics of the decade.
Story: 9/10 Animation: 5/10 Characters: 10/10
Overall: 8/10 = 80%
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Hope you enjoyed this review. Now, it’s time for the clues for my next review:
1. This movie was recently nominated for best animated feature. 2. This movie has some big name actors in the cast. 3. The director of this movie also directed an animated movie based on a Roald Dahl book.
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Post by Belchic on Mar 10, 2019 12:13:22 GMT -5
Isle of Dogs (2018)
Isle of Dogs. After Wes Anderson made his first attempt at making an animated movie with Fantastic Mr. Fox, he decided to take another stab at it by making a more graphic and more original film nearly a decade later. The movie got a lot of praise from critics and audiences everywhere, and it even got some recognition at the awards shows. It looked like it had potential to be the best animated feature of the year. That is until Spider-Man came in at the last minute and stole its thunder! Since then, it’s been starting to become more of an underrated gem. Now that the movie is a year old, does it still hold up as a highlight of 2018, or does it deserve to be thrown in the garbage because it’s all about Spider-Man now? Let’s find out...
The Story Wes Anderson is known for making movie adaptations in his own vision. Here, however, Wes decides to make an original story, and what an original story it is! The plot takes place in Japan in the future where dogs have been exiled to Trash Island because they contain a disease that is spreading throughout Japan. While the people in Tokyo are determining what to do with the dogs, the dogs themselves are fighting for survival on the island. Meanwhile, a boy named Atari travels onto Trash Island to find his dog, Spots. While there, he befriends a dog named Chief who helps him find his dog, and Atari ultimately tries to save the dogs. The story is very deep and graphic and unlike any other dog movie I have ever seen! It’s not your cutesy animated comedy. This is a dark, serious and graphic movie! Heck, it even got a PG-13 rating! It’s also interesting how the humans speak in Japanese while the dogs speak in English so we can see the different perspectives between the two species. Put it all together, and you’ve got one epic story!
The Animation I don’t really have much to say, but the animation on this movie has just left me speechless! This is unlike any stop-motion animation I have ever seen! The animation is so incredible that words can’t even describe it! It just needs to be seen to be believed!
The Characters While the movie does have some strong characters, most of them don’t get a lot of screen time, despite this movie having a lot of big name celebrities voicing them like Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum and Yoko Ono. The two characters who really get the most development are Chief, the main dog who is tough at first but later learns to have a soft spot, and Atari, the boy who is searching for his dog. Don’t get me wrong; the other characters are great, but they rarely get much development throughout the course of the movie. There’s Chief’s other dog allies, Boss, King, Duke and Rex, who may have served as strong allies and maybe also comic reliefs. Tracy, a girl who is trying to solve the problem that is going on with the dogs as much as Atari is. Nutmeg serves as Chief’s love interest, but is barely in the movie at all. Then, there’s the mayor of Tokyo, the villain of the movie, who seems like a strong villain, but we don’t learn about his backstory or anything. It almost seemed like a total waste to have all these strong characters but only have two of them hog all the spotlight. This is the same problem Zootopia had. You would think Wes Anderson would improve on that.
Isle of Dogs is truly a masterpiece of stop motion animation! Even though I’m not a big fan of gory stuff, this is still a very well-crafted movie. And I’m not just saying that because I’m a dog lover. This movie has a very original and strong story, animation that will blow your mind, and strong characters that you can easily have a good time with! Sure, a lot of the characters may not get much screen time, and sure it may not be as popular as Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, but those do not stop it from earning Belchic’s Seal of Approval!
Story: 10/10 Animation: 10/10 Characters: 8/10
Overall: 9/10 = 93%
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Hope you enjoyed this review. Now, it’s time for the clues for my next review:
1. This movie came out in 2014. 2. This movie is often regarded as one of the worst animated movies of the decade. 3. This movie got a sequel that featured Jackie Chan.
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Post by Trey_Vore on Mar 13, 2019 14:51:59 GMT -5
1. This movie came out in 2014. 2. This movie is often regarded as one of the worst animated movies of the decade. One that deserves its status.
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Post by RaceFanX on Mar 14, 2019 1:35:21 GMT -5
You'd have to be a real "Nut Job" to watch that movie willingly
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Post by Belchic on Apr 11, 2019 19:25:11 GMT -5
The Nut Job (2014)
The Nut Job. Talk about a universally-hated film! This is an animated film that came out of nowhere in early 2014, and the first trailer alone made everyone cringe instantly! This movie is hated so much that even the name alone is enough to throw someone into a rage! Almost as much as The Emoji Movie! However, is the movie really that bad, or is it just another unfairly-underrated gem? Let’s find out...
The Story Not knowing anything about the short film this was adapted from, I’m going to do my best to sum up the story. It’s about a squirrel named Surly who is working on a heist to steal nuts. The movie feels very mean-spirited with Surly being a total jerk, characters always turning against each other and some pretty dark moments. Yes, there are some goofy moments too, but does all that combined make this movie so taboo? Not exactly. The movie still has plenty of heart-felt moments like when the characters do get along with each other. I’m not saying that makes the movie perfect by any means. It still has a lot of flaws, but not so much for me to say this movie came from Hell.
The Animation The animation is sort of hit and miss. With the character animation, sure it may look goofy and cartoony, but it’s easy to tell the animators took a lot of inspiration from Disney when creating these characters. Overall, they do look pretty nice. However, there are times when they can move a little fast and not so fluently, as if this was a low-budget film. Heck, there are even times when it looks like it’s going to go into Ratatoing territory! Or, no. Don’t even compare those two together! What the animators accomplished here is very nice, even if it looks like they’re just playing it safe.
The Characters We’ve got quite a handful of characters to talk about here. Surly is a very unlikable character because he only cares about himself, but he’s still fun to watch, kinda like Charlie Barkin. Buddy, Surly’s sidekick, is a mute rat who Surly always seems to push around, but he still remains loyal. Grayson is sort of like Gaston but ten times more annoying. Aandi, Surly’s love interest, is the most sane squirrel in the movie who is able to put up with Surly and do what’s best for the park. Precious is an adorable little pug who is also very loyal to Surly and the other rodents giving them rides on her back, and she’s overall just so lovable...Okay, just because she twerked doesn’t automatically make her bad! The rest of the characters are forgettable, but it’s not all bad. Some of these characters may have some good chemistry, but it’s a shame they went in the wrong direction with it.
I know you guys were expecting me to bash this movie to pieces, but guess what? I’m not! Even the worst animated films can have some cult followings, and The Nut Job is no exception. Believe it or not, I kinda like it. I mean, it’s not the best animated film I’ve ever seen, but it’s certainly not Norm of the North standards! I just feel it could have been executed better because these characters could have had some strong chemistry with each other, and of course, the writing could have been better. As far as how I’d rank this film...I’ve seen better, but I’ve seen worse.
Story: 6/10 Animation: 7/10 Characters: 8/10
Overall: 7/10 = 70%
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Hey guys. I just want to let you know that I’m no longer going to do these reviews on a monthly basis. I decided that with all the other stuff I’m trying to do on a regular basis, it’s getting really hard to keep up with them. But I will once in a while do a review whenever I feel like doing one. Like if I go see an animated film, or watch one on DVD, or if someone gives me a request, I’ll still do those, but doing these on a monthly basis is just too much. So I guess until next time, I’ll see you all later.
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Post by Belchic on Jun 3, 2019 16:35:27 GMT -5
Roadside Romeo (2008) Roadside Romeo. How would you react if I told you Disney made a CGI-animated film that was only released in India? Well, as shocking as this may sound, it did happen! Despite not traveling very far, the movie gained somewhat of a cult following. Now, how did I discover this film? Well, a friend of mine told me about it once, and he kept pestering me to watch it for him! I did as he requested, but this movie was not easy for me to find! I rented it through Netflix, but then about halfway through the movie, the DVD just froze, so I rush-requested another one. This one was also glitchy, but at least it made it to the end of the movie. Looking back at this rare gem now, was it really worth all the trouble to find it and watch it, or should have I just thrown my copy of it in the garbage? Let’s find out... The StoryThe movie is about a dog named Romeo who formerly lived with a rich family, but he got tossed out into the street when his family moved away. While a stray, Romeo meets four other strays and makes friends with them. Then, he meets Laila, the most beautiful girl he had ever met. But then he meets an ugly bull dog named Charlie, who also loves Laila and is determined to kill anyone who may steal her from him. As you can tell, as if the title wasn’t a giveaway, the movie is a retelling of “Romeo & Juliet” as well as the classic love triangle cliche we’ve been seeing in movies since the advent of motion picture pretty much. As much as this movie tries, the unoriginality just doesn’t do it for me. It just doesn’t seem to go anywhere. The AnimationTo the movie’s credit, this was well into the CGI era, but it doesn’t look all that appealing to look at. Most of the color schemes are so dull and almost monochrome. Then there’s the character animation, and MY GOD ARE THESE CHARACTERS UGLY! Not even Laila’s design is engaging enough to save this movie’s appearance! And this is supposed to be a DISNEY movie??? This movie came out the same year as WALL-E and Bolt, two movies that truly define how to perfect CGI animation! Yet they didn’t bother to put any of that same effort into this movie??? What were they thinking? The CharactersOf course, we can’t talk about this movie without discussing the characters. Since there aren’t too many of them, it’ll be easy to analyze them. First off, we got our main hero, Romeo. He’s your stereotypical smooth, suave-talking ladies man, but also a bit of a Gary Stu. Then of course there’s the gang of strays he ends up befriending to start a business with. To be honest, they’re not all that memorable. If there are any members of the gang who I have anything to say about, it would be the cat. Of course, every gang of dogs has to have a cat for some reason, and as always, she’s the only female in the gang too! It’s not like we’ve seen that a million times already! There is also one dog who keeps doing impressions of celebrities who are popular in India. Why? Seriously, I have never heard of any of the celebrities he imitates, and most of the time, I can’t even tell if he’s doing an impression, but how do I know he is? Because I watched the movie with the subtitles on! Look, if pop culture references make up a majority of your joke material, you risk alienating your audience, especially if they’re only relevant to a specific country. Then we’ve got Laila, the love interest of Romeo’s who you would think have strong chemistry with him, but she is so one-dimensional and barely shares any screen time with him that she’s just so forgettable and bland! Then finally, we got the villain, who is nothing more than a mashup of Carface, Fat Albert and Jabba the Hut! With so many one-dimensional characters, how am I supposed to take this seriously? The SongsI don’t have much to say about the songs other than they’re all pretty much the same, just some generic Indian dance songs. That’s kind of ironic since this movie came out the same year this song became a meme!: youtu.be/LIUrgAYmNsQTo the movie’s credit, at least they didn’t reference that, otherwise it would really date the movie! Regardless, how can I brand this as a musical and take the songs seriously if they are so bland, forgettable, and all sound the same. Roadside Romeo is a rare foreign Disney movie that looked like it had a lot of potential to be a cult classic, but they totally ruined it with an unoriginal story, one-dimensional characters, hideous animation, bland musical numbers, and Indian pop culture references up the ass! I’m sorry to say, but as much as I want to love this movie, it just wasn’t enough to win me over, and that’s why I have to give it Belchic’s Seal of Garbage. Oh, and to whoever kept pestering me to watch this movie, screw you for wasting my time! Story: 4/10 Animation: 2/10 Characters: 3/10 Songs: 3/10 Overall: 3/10 = 30%
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Post by Belchic on Jun 10, 2019 12:53:46 GMT -5
The Secret Life of Pets 2 (2019)
The Secret Life of Pets 2. Illumination may be one of the most hated animation companies of the modern day with their low-budget films, high success, and overabundance of advertising. That being said, when The Secret Life of Pets came out, critics and audience had “meh” reactions towards it. On a positive note, the movie did extremely well financially and managed to gain its own cult following. Apparently, it did good enough to earn a sequel three years later. Now that Max and his friends are back on the big screen, are they still good dogs, or is this going to turn out to be a mess that we have to clean up after? Let’s find out...
The Story One of the things Illumination struggles with is writing an engaging story for their viewers, and this franchise is no exception. The original SLP is often criticized for being a rip-off of Toy Story, but in this sequel, it’s a bit different. The sequel follows three different stories. The first story involves Max. He and Duke are determined to watch over Katie’s son, Liam, as the family goes on a road trip to the countryside. While there, Max is trained by a herding dog to overcome his fears and find his inner beast. The second story involves Gidget, who was asked to watch over Max’s favorite toy while he was away, but she loses it to a crazy cat lady, so she disguises herself as a cat with some help from Chloe in order to get Max’s toy back and earn the cats’ respect. The third story involves Snowball, who is mistaken for a real superhero by a Shih Tzu named Daisy and is on a mission to rescue a tiger from the circus. The three stories, while not perfect, are very well-written and seem to blend together very well as the film goes on. Not to mention, none of them seem like they’re ripping off anything, even if they are stories that have been done several times before. The stories just all work very well, and the movie doesn’t get confusing, so it’s easy to get engaged with it.
The Animation There really isn’t a lot to say about the animation since it’s pretty much identical to the movie’s predecessor. Not that that’s a bad thing. The SLP is visually one of Illumination’s best work since it’s not as cartoony as stuff like Despicable Me or the Dr. Seuss adaptations. You can tell that the animators went all out with the environments here. Then there’s the character animation: while the human characters still look like that classic cartoony look you’d expect from Illumination, the pets are just lovable and make you want to believe they’re real. To say the least, it’s visually stunning, and not bad for a company that works with a low budget.
The Characters All of our favorites from the original are back in this movie (except Tiberius). Max is still just as lovable as he was in the first movie, and he even improves a lot as a character...and no, I don’t mind Patton Oswalt doing his voice; in fact, I hardly notice a difference! Gidget is just as lovable here too. Buddy, Mel and Chloe are about the same, but I wish they would’ve gotten more screen time. Duke is actually more likable here than he was in the first movie. As for Snowball, he is still the show-stealer, but at least he’s not as annoying as he was in the original. As for the new characters, Daisy is not bad; she’s pretty fun. Huu is the stereotype lost wild animal. The crazy cat lady is the stereotypical cool old lady. The villain is pretty awesome, I must say! But the character everyone is talking about is Rooster! Harrison Ford gives an outstanding performance acting as a mentor to Max even if he’s not in the entire movie. So the characters are a bit hit and miss, but the hits outweigh the misses by a lot!
It’s rare for me to say this, but I think The Secret Life of Pets 2 is actually better than the original! With its engaging stories that all blend together nicely, the return of all the characters we know and love from the original as well as new characters gladly welcome in the franchise, and some of the best animation Illumination has ever done, this is one of the best animated sequels ever made! This movie far exceeded my expectations, and while it’s not perfect, it’s still a pretty darn good flick! If you’re a fan of the original, then this is a must watch! If they keep up this quality, then I seriously hope Illumination makes a Secret Life of Pets 3, but even if they don’t, this movie is for sure worthy of Belchic’s Seal of Approval!
Story: 9/10 Animation: 9/10 Characters: 9/10
Overall: 9/10 = 90%
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Post by Belchic on Dec 8, 2019 17:50:55 GMT -5
It’s been a long time since I’ve written an animated movie review, but being that it’s Christmas, and this is a movie I have been wanting to review, I decided now would be a good time to post it. The Star (2017) The Star. 2017 was not a very strong year for animated films, especially since three of the mainstream animated films of this year were distributed by Sony Pictures Animation, one of which being what many people consider to be one of the worst animated films of all time: The Emoji Movie! After that disaster, Sony decided to come into the holiday season by touching up on this little flick based on the most important Christmas story ever told: the story of the Nativity. Here, they decide to put a little spin on the story and have it told through the perspectives of the animals, and they certainly got a lot of big name celebrities to work on the picture! So now that the damage is done with The Emoji Movie, will Sony redeem itself with this picture and earn a possible place in Heaven, or will it just continue to cement their reputation as the animation studio from Hell? Let’s find out… The Story We all know the story of the Nativity. It’s the story of Mary traveling from Nazareth to Bethlehem so that she could give birth to Jesus Christ, the Son of God. If it weren’t for this story, we would never even have Christmas in the first place. This version of the story also has multiple side plots like Bo the donkey wanting to march in the cavalry with his dove friend, Dave, but he’s having trouble deciding between doing that or helping Mary get to Bethlehem. There’s another side plot about King Herod sending a hunter out to follow Mary and kill Baby Jesus, which I assume was not in the Bible and was probably just thrown in there just to give this movie some more conflict. Regardless of all these sub plots, it doesn’t stray from the fact that the story we should be focusing on the most is Mary and Joseph’s travels to Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus. The animal characters are all very entertaining to watch, and for Sony’s standards, the jokes are pretty toned down. They aren’t overly obnoxious, and there isn’t an overabundance of pop culture references or anything like that. Okay, yes, there is a twerking bird, but that’s not the only joke we see throughout the movie! Seriously, I don’t get what it is with people where once they see a character twerk in some form of media, they automatically have to brand it as the worst thing ever! Overall, this is a movie that I’m sure kids will enjoy with enough slapstick to keep them entertained and not be too obnoxious. Heck, I might even go so far to say this movie could help children grow closer to their faith. The Animation Sony has not always had the most visually-appealing movies in the animation department. Well, it is kinda hard to judge their hybrid films like The Smurfs and Peter Rabbit, but if you look at something like The Emoji Movie and Hotel Transylvania, it looks pretty bad and nothing more than a goofy, cartoony flick for kids. That being said, the animation we see in this movie is…pretty good. I mean, it’s not quite as good as something you’d see from Disney, Pixar or Dreamworks, but for a Sony movie, this is not something you would expect. The animation looks so well-polished and realistic. It almost looks like you could actually be there. Sure, some of the character animation could look a little cartoony, especially with their faces, but you can still tell the animators did the best with what they had to work with. The Characters I have a lot to say since there are a lot of characters to talk about here. Let’s start off with our main character, Bo, the donkey who feels he has a purpose in life but is split between two decisions. He is actually a very likable character, and he is easily relatable. Then we have his best friend, Dave, who is probably the most annoying character in the movie, but he does have his moments where he can dish out some good jokes. Ruth the sheep is without question the funniest and cutest character in the movie with her hyper and random personality. She’s pretty much the Pinkie Pie of this movie. The camels of the three wise men, Felix, Deborah and Cyrus are supposed to be the comic reliefs, and they truly are the show-stealers with their goofy antics and their mixed personalities. My only problem with them is they don’t seem to get enough screen time. The animals Bo meets at the stable, Zach, Edith and Leah, are also very lovable and funny in their own rights each with their own unique personality. Then we’ve got the villain of the movie, the hunter, who is quite intimidating, especially because of his size and the fact that he doesn’t talk. His dogs, Thaddeus and Rufus tend to get more screen time, and they’re the stereotypical sidekick duo of the villain with one being the smart one and the other being the stupid one. Then of course, we have all the human characters who are from the Bible, particularly Mary and Joseph. While I do find it a bit off that they have the personalities of people from a more modern day, I will say the actors who voice them still give off an incredible performance. So yeah, this may not be an exact telling of what was said in the Bible, but the characters are all very lovable and memorable. The humans give off some stellar performances, and the animals are funny enough to be lovable and just funny enough to not be annoying. The Songs While this isn’t exactly a musical, I feel the soundtrack to this movie shouldn’t be ignored. The soundtrack consists of some new renditions of Christmas carols by modern pop artists as well as some new original songs. Most of them sound really nice, especially “Breath of Heaven”, “Mary, Did You Know?” and “O Holy Night”. But the true highlight of this soundtrack is the original song sung by Mariah Carey, the movie’s title song: “The Star”. To this day, I still question why this song didn’t get nominated for Best Original Song! Anyway, if you decide that you are a fan of this movie, and you love to listen to Christmas songs during the holidays, then I highly recommend you get the soundtrack! Sony Pictures Animation may not be the best animation studio out there, and they may have hurt their reputation with The Emoji Movie, but this movie is certainly a gem of theirs. The Star may not be the strongest animated film out there, but in my opinion, it’s without question one of the best movies that Sony has ever done. It may not be as iconic as Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, but it is still in my opinion, one of Sony’s best animated movies. With its stunning animation, cute story, lovable characters, and beautiful soundtrack, they certainly delivered a fun take on the Nativity Story. If you love retellings of Bible stories, talking animals and animated comedies, then this is a must-watch! I might even say this could be The Land Before Time of Christmas movies! I think this holiday season, you should treat your family to a fun flick like this if they’re tired of watching the same old movies year after year. Some may still have mixed opinions on this movie, and I know it has a very niche audience, but as someone who is part of that audience, I am honored to give this movie Belchic’s Seal of Approval! Yeah, I know, AniMat gave it his Seal of Garbage, but if he can love a movie that I hate, then so can I!
Story: 8/10 Animation: 8/10 Characters: 9/10 Songs: 10/10 Overall: 9/10 = 88%
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Post by Trey_Vore on Jun 18, 2020 11:37:47 GMT -5
So what's your next review going to be Belchic?
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