Flow (2024) Film Review

Cat is a solitary animal, but as its home is devastated by a great flood, he finds refuge on a boat populated by various species, and will have to team up with them despite their differences.

Flow is directed by Gints Zilbalodis Director of Away (2019).

Flow is one of those films that completely brings you into its world, the story being told here is told flawlessly without a single line of dialogue and puts you on this journey with the animals who get their own character traits in such simple yet fascinating ways.

It goes without saying but the film is beautifully animated, there is so much detail to every single part of this film. The way the water flows, the details on the characters and the world around them is flawless, the details helps build the world around the characters and leads to some jaw dropping moments that are a huge showcase of how beautiful and grand the world of this film really is.

The characters are simple, you have a Black Cat, a Labrador Retriever, a Capybara, Lemur and a Secretarybird. The Black Cat is our main character and the one that the film wants you to see from its perspective, each of the characters are given some fun character traits that are told in this natural way. The cat however is the one who is truly compelling, simply by interacting with the other animals and seeing the world through its eyes is enough to leave the viewer in awe. One particular scene with the cat and secretarybird in particular speaks for these beautiful character, just through the music, actions, atmosphere and such you can tell how these characters are feeling and what they are saying when they make noises. The black cat’s journey and the discoveries and how to live in this world is truly beautiful and compelling.

The film’s world really brings you to the adventures you would go on outside when you were a kid, the adventurous atmosphere is absolutely nailed down here and is quite often breathtaking, whether the black cat is on a high place or just on the ground we are given such beautiful looks into this film’s world. The film’s score also does a fantastic job of setting certain moods, it reflects the character’s feelings quite well. From wondrous, to happy, to sad the film combines these characters incredibly well with the music and sound.

The film also has these moments that almost feel personal to director Zilbalodis, this black cat taking the viewer along for the ride as we discover what exactly is in this giant world. It shows the beauty of the planet and really seems like Zilbalodis wants us to travel with this cat, the film accomplishes this incredibly well and really does make you feel like you are right there with the animals.

Overall Flow is a brilliant film, it might seem like a simple story but what makes it so special is how it’s told. Plus the black cat is just such a fascinating main character to follow that you will instantly connect with.

Flow is available in theaters.

10/10 A+

The Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim (2024)

A sudden attack by Wulf, a ruthless Dunlending lord, forces Helm Hammerhand and his people to make a daring last stand in the ancient stronghold of the Hornburg. Finding herself in an increasingly desperate situation, Helm’s daughter, Héra, must lead the resistance against a deadly enemy who’s intent on total destruction.

The Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim is directed by Kenji Kamiyama director of Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade (1999), Napping Princess (2017), a few Ghost In the Shell movies and a few others.

As someone who is a major fan of the original Lord Of The Rings trilogy and was overall very disappointed with The Hobbit trilogy (Desolation Of Smaug of grown to really like in recent years but it doesn’t touch the original trilogy still) I was all for an anime Lord Of The Rings film. This had the potential to be something really creative and even bring new ideas to the table, unfortunately that’s not what happened here. When Warner Bros said they only made this movie so that they can keep the rights to the franchise it definitely shows in this movie.

I will say that the score is quite fantastic, it has the Lord Of The Rings spirit there’s a mix of Howard Shore and new music that keeps the score interesting and beautiful. The score does a wonderful job of setting the mood and tone of the movie and actually does far more talking than the writing does for the characters. The animation a lot of the time is quite beautiful, I say a lot of the time because the character models have this weird hiccup where if they are far away they look like ragdolls with no face for some reason. But outside of that the detail is excellent and there’s some very beautifully done moments that do a solid job of capturing the many locations of the movie, especially towards the second half of the movie.

Everything else however is quite disappointing, the characters being a main offender. If you are going in expecting some great character development like the original trilogy then you are in for a disappointment. While the voice acting isn’t terrible (Brian Cox being the standout) the characters are very underwritten and are a prime example of show don’t tell. We are told things about these characters such as the main character Hera being “wild and free” but we never actually get to see that, instead we see that she’s traditional protagonist number 210. Hera’s brothers Hama and Haleth have no character development outside of being Hera’s brother, Fréaláf (Helm’s nephew) disappears for half the movie and by the time he reappears during the movie’s final act it’s almost over. King Helm while kind of a neat character at times and admittedly has a great final scene has the most sloppiest put together redemption arc I’ve seen in quite some time. Finally there’s Wulf our main villain and well he’s about as standard as you can get, very typical revenge story that really doesn’t say or do anything new.

The writing gives these characters no room to develop or have a unique identity, it’s all stock character traits that you have probably seen in countless movies. Which leads into another main issue….why was this a Lord Of The Rings film? There’s a cameo and a name drop during the final moments of the movie, how Helms Deep got its name (even then the movie does a terrible job of explaining that) and Miranda Otto returns to narrate. Outside of that I completely forgot this was supposed to be a Lord Of The Rings film, this felt much more like a very cliched fantasy film than a Lord Of The Rings film. It’s a very weird mishmash of trying to connect to the franchise and very cliched ideas that not even fans of the fantasy genre would enjoy.

It’s very weird saying “I don’t have much else to say” about a Lord Of The Rings film but that’s actually the case here The Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim is a very nothing movie, we don’t learn anything new or interesting about Middle Earth all we get is a very messy cash grab (considering how bad this movie is bombing currently it’s not even good at that.) By far the most disappointing movie of the year.

The Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim is currently in theaters.

4/10 D+

Memoir Of A Snail (2024) Film Review!

After a series of misfortunes, a snail-collecting, melancholic misfit learns how to find confidence within herself amid the clutter of everyday life.

Memoir Of A Snail is directed by Adam Elliot who previously directed Mary and Max (2009).

When I heard Adam Elliot was going to direct another film I was incredibly excited, Mary and Max (2009) was such a fantastic film that I don’t think enough people talk about. I’m happy to say Memoir Of A Snail is yet another fantastic film from Elliot, a film that is both an incredibly dark tragedy yet a very inspiring and hopeful film that’s blended with a mix of comedy.

For starters the stop motion animation is absolutely beautiful especially when combined with the use of color. The dark colors used throughout the film really set the mood and completely capture the atmosphere that is present throughout, the color and stop motion animation itself tells the story of each scene and what’s going on in great detail. Speaking of which the detail is just wonderful, it’s like reading a pop up storybook it’s all in your face but you are constantly in awe of how beautiful everything is especially the film’s world. If there’s an example of a film that immediately takes you into the world as soon as it starts Memoir Of A Snail is one of them!

The voice acting is just brilliant, Sarah Snook, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Magda Szubanski and everyone else make their characters come to life. They add so much to what at first may seem like straightforward characters, but as the film goes on we learn more about them. Sarah Snook in particular blends so well with Adam Elliot’s work and style that it’s just incredibly satisfying to watch unfold, the story of Grace (played by Sarah Snook), Pinky (played by Jacki Weaver and Gilbert (played by Kodi Smit-McPhee) is so powerful, so well done and just absolutely filled to the brim with touching moments that will leave you shedding tears.

The writing is absolutely beautiful, a story about good things that get taken away from you or go horribly wrong. Yet still finding the positives in life and have this inspiring feel despite all of that is truly fascinating. It’s a film that hits even harder since it’s actually loosely inspired by Elliot’s own life, which isn’t too surprising to hear given that the film definitely has this personal feel to it. Like Elliot is inviting you to listen as he tells his story, it’s all very beautiful to listen to and really makes you feel like you’re getting to know Elliot as a friend.

Memoir Of A Snail is one of the best films of the year, I absolutely do hope we get to see Adam Elliot’s next film somewhat soon. But if we don’t I’m sure the wait will be absolutely worth it!

Memoir Of A Snail is available on all VOD platforms.

10/10 A+

Quick Review: Watchmen: Chapter II (2024)

Former heroes face threats. The Comedian is dead, Dr. Manhattan exiled to Mars, Ozymandias survived an attack and Rorschach is arrested.

Watchmen: Chapter II is directed by Brandon Vietti director of Superman: Doomsday (2007), Batman: Under the Red Hood (2010), Scooby-Doo! Wrestlemania Mystery (2014), Batman: Death in the Family (2020) and Watchmen: Chapter I (2024)

Much of what I said in my review for Chapter I can be applied here for Chapter II. It’s a very serviceable retelling of the Watchmen comics and much like the previous movie is decently fun and somewhat interesting.

Also much like the previous movie the animation is what sticks out the most, there’s definitely some hiccups at times but for the most part the animation is consistent from the first part and does have some really great moments. The voice acting is fine enough here, Phil LaMarr is probably the standout as his narration gets your attention quite easily. Outside of LaMarr there really isn’t anything particularly special about the voice acting, it’s fine enough and gets the job done.

This movie wraps things up from the previous movie and it’s done and told in an a competent way, the two parts together paint a very competently told way to tell the story of Watchmen it’s not a bad place to start for newcomers. There are parts where admittedly the movie does sort of feel rushed particularly towards the end which is an odd decision given how the pacing of the rest of the movie was balanced decently well.

Overall not bad, but I don’t think I will ever come back to this movie nor its predecessor.

Watchmen: Chapter II is available on all VOD platforms.

6/10 C+

The Wild Robot (2024) Film Review!

Shipwrecked on a deserted island, a robot named Roz must learn to adapt to its new surroundings. Building relationships with the native animals, Roz soon develops a parental bond with an orphaned gosling.

The Wild Robot is directed by Chris Sanders director of Lilo & Stitch (2002), How To Train Your Dragon (2010), The Croods (2013) and The Call Of The Wild (2020).

The Wild Robot honestly surprised me, for a film that tells a very simple story it’s quite beautifully made plus told and actually powerful as well. The film is a huge crowd pleaser but also a film that really touches the heart in such beautiful ways.

The voice cast are all fantastic, the standouts being Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal and Kit Connor. Lupita Nyong’o who makes the lovable main character Roz come to life is truly fascinating. The viewer quickly grows attached to Roz due to just how much power Nyong’o puts into the performance, she brings this wonder to a character who is trying to learn new things and it really fits with the film’s whimsical atmosphere. She’s also able to capture the themes of parenthood, survival, kindness and coexistence in such beautiful ways throughout the film. There’s one particular moment that I’ll get to later that really sums up how excellent she really is here.

Pedro Pascal voices Fink and I have to say for a character that at first comes off as a very standard mischievous fox character we see in a lot of media. Fink is actually quite well developed, sure there might not be any ground breaking character writing. But between Pascal’s voice acting and Fink’s bond with Roz he really does quickly connect with the viewer quickly much like Roz did. Plus admittedly there was a certain scene involving Fink that did make me tear up a bit.

Kit Connor voices Brightbill an orphan runt Canada Goose that Roz takes care of, as the film progresses Brightbill becomes a really lovable character that you just want to root for. The one particular scene I mentioned earlier with Roz is when Roz is teaching Brightbill to fly in preparation for hibernation, while this montage plays “Kiss The Sky” by Maren Morris plays in the background and it’s quite honestly one of the best scenes from a film I’ve seen this year. It made me tear up and really summarizes the film’s theme of parenthood in a nutshell, it’s a huge showcase of Roz, Fink and Brightbill as characters and their bond. Brightbill really shines here and this montage is such a special transformation for him as a character.

The animation is absolutely stunning, it compliments the film’s world incredibly well and captures the heartfelt atmosphere that is strongly present throughout the film. The little details of the trees and water are such a beautiful touch and capture the feel of an actual island, there’s so many shots here that are jaw dropping due to just how tremendous they really are. There’s this sense of scale throughout the film, like the film’s world is massive even though we are restricted to the island for a lot of the movie. There’s so much more to explore and this sense of wonder it gets you incredibly excited.

Finally the film combines its themes masterfully, parenthood, survival, kindness and coexistence are all present throughout the film and not only are they shown through the characters actions but you can easily tell through the emotions as well. Blending all these themes together in such a heartwarming story was truly the best move and results many moments that bring the viewer to tears.

Overall The Wild Robot is a beautiful film that I haven’t stopped thinking about since I watched it. This is one that you absolutely should check out!

The Wild Robot is available on all VOD platforms.

10/10 A+

Transformers One (2024) Film Review!

Optimus Prime and Megatron, as former friends, bonded like brothers. Their relationship ultimately changes Cybertron’s fate forever.

Transformers One is directed by Josh Cooley who previously directed Toy Story 4 (2019).

By this point there’s been a ton of Transformers films after so many live action ones a new animated one takes the stage. Do not let the trailers fool you this is actually a really great Transformers film.

Transformers One sort of serves as an origin story and focuses on the friendship of Optimus Prime and Megatron and how they drifted apart, the way the film executes this is surprisingly quite great. This could have easily went completely wrong and even come across as silly or nonsensical, but the script and the direction the film takes has a lot of passion behind it and these characters are well developed to make the whole idea work.

The voice cast all around are quite great Chris Hemsworth as Optimus Prime and Brian Tyree Henry as Megatron are the standouts by far, seeing the two’s back and forth is truly investing and their voices gives these characters so much power and depth. The two have great chemistry and really make a lot of crucial scenes shine, Keegan-Michael Key as Bumblebee is a fun performance, Jon Hamm as Sentinel Prime makes for a great villain and Steve Buscemi as Starscream is just excellent casting. Even if he doesn’t get a lot of screen time he absolutely embodies Starscream and is a dead ringer to Chris Latta’s version of the character.

The animation is actually quite great, it takes a bit to get use to how the characters look but as the film goes on it becomes more clear that this art direction was the best move and incredibly fitting. The film has some gorgeous moments that really do make it shine and capture the world of Transformers. Plus the visuals do a very good job of building the world of the film, combine that with the dialogue that does not over explain itself and you have yourself a simple yet beautiful world.

The film exploring the friendship between Optimus Prime and Megatron plus leading into the downfall of it is the film’s main strength. It’s very reminiscent of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith (2005) and I mean that in a good way, you get the excellent action scenes, some really powerful dialogue that reflects the two’s bond and how much it’s slowly being broken. There’s a lot of loud and quiet moments between the two and it’s enough to get the viewer invested in these characters, although we know what’s going to happen it’s still incredibly powerful and well written.

There’s of course minor flaws such as Sentinel Prime being a very obvious villain from the start and some of the jokes don’t quite land. But those are nowhere near enough to take away how much fun and overall well written Transformers One really is.

Transformers One is available on all VOD platforms.

9/10 A

Spellbound (2024) Film Review

When a powerful spell turns her parents into giant monsters, a teenage princess must journey into the wild to reverse the curse before it’s too late.

Spellbound is directed by Vicky Jenson who co-directed Shrek (2001) and Shark Tale (2004) she directed Post Grad (2009) by herself.

I think if Spellbound came out 10-20 years ago it would be a lot more acceptable, but due to the bar being raised over the years with animated films this movie falls flat.

The positives mostly stem from the message being told and Rachel Zegler, the message of how adult problems or broken homes can affect kids is a beautiful one and for the most part it’s executed decently. Combine that with Zegler’s performance that is genuinely sweet and quite fun and you would think you would have solid movie.

Unfortunately the rest of the movie is just very standard kids movie elements blended into one, why this was musical I will never understand. The songs were not horrendous or anything they just had no real reason to be there, none of them are memorable at all either. They songs felt like they were there to draw out the running time, none of the characters outside of Zegler’s character Ellian aren’t particularly interesting and don’t quite get enough character moments they really need.

Finally there’s the animation which is just okay, there really isn’t anything groundbreaking going on here. But at the same time there isn’t anything particularly bad here either. It’s nice and colorful and does tell parts of the story well enough but that’s really about it.

There really isn’t much else more to say about Spellbound it’s fine distraction for children but for everyone else this is a bit of a snoozefest.

Spellbound is available on Netflix

4/10 D+

Inside Out 2 (2024) Film Review

Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust have been running a successful operation by all accounts. However, when Anxiety shows up, they aren’t sure how to feel.

Inside Out 2 is directed by Kelsey Mann which is directorial debut. Inside Out 2 is the sequel to Inside Out (2015).

Inside Out 2 was always going to happen at some point, the first film was met with immediate love both critically and financially. It’s become a huge favorite among Pixar fans and while it might not be one of my absolute favorites of Pixar I still really do like the film. I think the same can be really said for Inside Out 2.

Inside Out 2 is quite similar to the first film and the plot is very similar which is not too much of a problem since the movie itself is very charming and endearing, however there are times where it’s a bit frustrating to see it keep things a bit too safe. Plus the movie doesn’t quite have the emotional punch that the first movie had. Having that said the positives really outweigh the negatives so let’s get into those.

The cast is great and the characters are just as fun as they were in the first film, Maya Hawke plays a new character Anxiety who steals the show. Maya Hawke absolutely nails it here and completely captures the character, Anxiety plays a lot like Joy did in the first film but luckily the chemistry between the two characters is quite fun so it doesn’t leave the viewer feeling bored or that they have seen this before.

The animation is beautifully done and adds a lot of attention to detail, the scenes with Riley are touching and have the awkward situations you would expect, there’s some strong emotional moments here that makes the viewer fall in love with these characters all over again. I also do think it’s clever they added emotions mainly due to Riley going through puberty which is a theme in this film change and how to go through it or embrace it. Really nice messages here that are absolutely relatable to a lot of people.

Overall Inside Out 2 is quite great, i definitely think if they are going to continue with a third film they are definitely going to have to step it up and not make it another “Joy and other emotions get separated from the headquarters” but the film is charming, has a strong message and is crafted incredibly well.

Inside Out 2 is available on all VOD platforms.

8/10 B+

Watchmen: Chapter 1 (2024) Film Review

In an alternate world, the murder of a government sponsored superhero draws his outlawed colleagues out of retirement, into a mystery that threatens their lives and the world itself.

Watchmen: Chapter 1 is directed by Brandon Vietti director of Superman: Doomsday (2007), Batman: Under the Red Hood (2010), Scooby-Doo! Wrestlemania Mystery (2014) and Batman: Death in the Family (2020).

Not a real lot to say here, Watchmen: Chapter 1 is a very competent adaption to the comics. What the movie has going for it is mostly the animation which really fits for Watchmen there are some quite beautiful moments that really do bring this story to life and it’s incredibly nice to see this story being told with this animation. It keeps things a bit fresh since we have already seen Watchmen be done before twice now in live action.

Having that said the movie itself when it comes to the writing is just fine, there really isn’t anything here mind blowing. It’s a very basic retelling of the story that fans know and love, for newcomers this isn’t necessarily a bad way to have your first exposure to Watchmen in fact I would go as far as to say that it’s actually a solid way. It’s short, simple and doesn’t complicate things at all.

Some of the action scenes are a bit off and the movie does have it’s hiccups with some of the animation at certain points, but for the most part the movie does a good job and works with what’s given. The voice cast does a decent job and the pacing is just right, the movie is a very quick 83 minutes long and wraps up as much as it needs to.

Having that said this is chapter 1 of a two chapter story (Chapter 2 coming next year). So we don’t quite have the full picture as of yet, but for now it’s decent enough!

Watchmen: Chapter 1 is available on all VOD platforms.

6/10 C+

Despicable Me 4 (2024) Film Review

Gru welcomes a new member to the family, Gru Jr., who’s intent on tormenting his dad. However, their peaceful existence soon comes crashing down when criminal mastermind Maxime Le Mal escapes from prison and vows revenge against Gru.

Despicable Me 4 is directed by Chris Renaud director of Despicable Me (2010), The Lorax (2012), Despicable Me 2 (2013), The Secret Life Of Pets (2016) and The Secret Life Of Pets 2 (2019). This film serves as the fourth installment of the main series (sixth overall film in the franchise and serves as a sequel to Despicable Me 3 (2017).

By this point everyone and their dog knows what the Despicable Me franchise is, it’s arguably at least in the top 10 moneymaking modern franchises. The films range from being pretty cute to bad. Despicable Me 4 is quite honestly more of the same thing from other entries, which might not be bad for fans of the series but will quickly become tiring for everyone else.

I really have to give Steve Carell so much credit for sticking with this series for so long, because he is once again one of the best parts about it. Some lines in this movie that would be otherwise terrible end up being somewhat funny due to Carell’s delivery. The rest of the voice cast are solid although do not have anything really special about them.

One thing I will say this movie does a pretty good job with is Gru’s character, we get to learn even more about his past and old rivals as well. Even if this has been done before in earlier entries and spinoffs, they still manage to come up with at least something somewhat interesting. The subplot about the minions becoming superheroes is forgettable, sure there’s a few funny moments but it’s not anything that’s going to be fondly remembered.

Honestly the best way I could describe Despicable Me 4 is a kid on a sugar rush, it’s very fast paced and could be enjoyable largely depending on the viewer. It could be a fun sugar rush for some people or it can be a very dull one to get through.

Overall there really is not a whole to say about Despicable Me 4 it’s a below average sequel that’s completely harmless for kids. It gets the job done for the most part but at the end of the day is just another Despicable Me movie.

Despicable Me 4 is available on all VOD platforms.

5/10 C