Tuesdays with Muerte

Preface This preface is both a "thank you" and an apology. I'm excited you are interested enough to engage with the topic. I'm sorry this isn't a conversation. This is a bit heavier than most of my stuff. Please only read on if this interests you.  Where Did This Question Come From? I was exploring the topic of Campbell's The Hero's Journey when I came across a Disney ad that clearly suggested that  Jiminy Cricket  was  Pinocchio's mentor, but I wasn't so sure. The video's title was  Pinocchio | Sidekicks And Mentors | Disney+ . According to Campbell, sidekicks and mentors are two very different roles. I wondered why Disney couldn't commit to a single label for Jiminy .  "Is he a sidekick or mentor?" To be fair, they probably intended for Jiminy to serve both roles, like Timothy the Mouse from  Dumbo  (1941), but the question still got my wheels turning. "What about the Blue Fairy?" Meeting Pinocchio, the Blue Fairy, and...

Reaction Two years after its theatrical release, I finally got around to watching Jonny Depp in  Transcendence . Waiting for the new-release excitement to die down was a good decision.  Transcendence  is one of those films that causes you to leave the theater disappointed. But as time goes by, the ideas from the film burrow deeper and deeper under your skin (in a good way). Immediately after my viewing of the film, I jumped online, eager to see what conversations were going on relating to the themes and questions addressed by the film. I opened the first three discussion groups I could find, read the first few review titles, and felt instantly dejected. Overwhelmingly, critics ranted about how the film failed to meet their entertainment expectations. With the all-star cast and killer trailer building up anticipation since 2012, these film buffs wanted a blockbuster—a Hollywood  sci-fi—not what they got—a true sci-fi (which happened to have expen...

Whoa! I Was Not Expecting That. You know you're in for an emotionally bumpy ride when you start crying 45 seconds into a film. Song of the Sea (see  IMDB ) is absolutely the best film I've seen all year. Period. I whole-heartedly recommend it to viewers of all ages, especially families. Here's the trailer: Rent it You should stream above in HD for $5. (It's best appreciated in HD on a big screen. Don't waste your time watching the YouTube bootleg .) Alternatively, you can rent it for $5 on Google Play , or $6 on VUDU , or Amazon . (Remember to place some tissues nearby. You have been warned.) Three Film Reviews 1. Review by Bryan Tanner Here's my one-sentence film synopsis: Song of the Sea is the epic tale of how a loving family is mystically intertwined with the fate of the entire Celtic civilization. Watch this movie if you: love visual and audial art have ever endured familial loss or pain appreciate tight and powerful story telling ...

Dear: fellow Michael Bay haters, and people who are STILL unable to cope with a re-imagined 80's Transformers cartoon franchise, and those who were abruptly disenchanted with Transformers after the first film came out back in 2007, Transformers: Age of Extinction  is critic proof.  In terms Film Crit Hulk would understand, this franchise can't be smashed.  Bay knows it.  Hollywood knows it.  And the $104 million in opening weekend box office sales knows it.   The only reason anyone went to this T4 was to see the 10-second clip of Optimus Prime riding a T-rex.  Film critics (who are concerned with story and meaning) will futilely bang their heads against a wall in their efforts to attack this film. " Trans-four-mores" was never intended to be a Nolan-esqe, deep-themed, psychological drama—it's your standard "we pay you money, you show us explosions" blockbuster transaction. Bay figured out this simple equation long ago: A successful Hollywood...

Jaina Solo cosplay by Cavalyn POTENTIAL SPINOFFS: Apparently, Disney is going to flesh out the Star Wars universe by producing spinoffs films in addition to the canon (Episode VII).  Spinoffs were inevitable in my mind, but I had no idea they'd be coming so soon.   This "STAR WARS: LEGENDS" trailer was finally released this week.  The film was o riginally planned to be finished in 2007 for the Star Wars 30th Anniversary... POSSIBLE DIRECTOR FOR "LEGENDS" : " After his monster  Godzilla   opening, director  Gareth Edwards  has landed the director’s chair for an  Untitled  Star Wars  3D stand-alone film, which Disney has dated for a December 16, 2016 release.   Alvin & The Chipmunks 4  from 20th Century Fox is the only competition so far on that date. How ironic, as it was Fox who distributed the initial  Star Wars  in 1977? "  Deadline Hollywood MY COMMENTARY: I concede that am I probably making a ...

Bandai's official 2014 Godzilla #AtomicBreath Summary: WIN? I watched Gozilla at Utah's Jordan Commons IMAX theater in 3D last night. Like the film itself, my thoughts on Godzilla are simple:  Incredible visualFX and sound, but lacking in story.  Was it a "good movie?" Whether you're an action junkie or an art snob, you'll both love it, AND hate it (for opposite reasons). Godzilla (2014) is  not just a movie about monsters smashing things up.  But neither is it what art critics would call a masterpiece .  Unfortunately for the viewer, Godzilla (2014) is a  schizophrenic film that  fails to fully satisfy either camp (see  Revelation 3:16 ). For me, Godzilla was a 123-minute, entertaining romp (as long as I managed to keep from over-analyzing it, which I too often do).  I'm a sucker for a good story.  (Biases are now on the table.)  Since this film wasn't really meant for either for the erudite or the mindless explosion-seeker,...