Studio Ghibli has taken Mary Nortons classic novel, The Borrowers and made it uniquely its own, but its done so without losing what is best in Nortons story. The adaptation by Hayao Miyazaki and Keiko Niwa may have been transferred the action to Japan, but the basic elements of loneliness, friendship, and the fragility of… Read More »
CHIMPANZEE
For several years now, DisneyNature has been celebrating Earth Day with a stunning film about one aspect of the marvelous big blue marble on which humanity makes its home. This year is no exception. CHIMPANZEE is a rousing evocation of how precarious, how glorious, and how infinitely fascinating nature is in general, and in particular,… Read More »
RIO 2
RIO, an animated film about a snow-bound rare blue macaw and his human companion both finding love, is such a perfect little film that hearing a sequel was on the way filled one with trepidation. Fortunately RIO 2 bucks the usual law of diminishing sequel returns with a great story, even better new dangers, and… Read More »
WINGED MIGRATION (LE PEUPLE MIGRATEUR)
You could be forgiven if see the previews of Jacques Perrins WINGED MIGRATION and conclude that this is just another well-produced documentary about our fine feathered friends. Youd be so wrong. This is to the nature documentary, even the finest ones that have found a home on PBS, what home movies are to CITIZEN KANE.… Read More »
FINDING NEMO
After seeing FINDING NEMO, you just gotta ask yourself, is Pixar capable of making a bad film? Or even a mediocre one? Whether a serendipitous confluence of talent or a sign that there is some divine being at work in our world, either way, the answer, I think, must be no. There is a touch… Read More »
BROTHER BEAR
You can’t fault Disneys latest animated film, BROTHER BEAR, for the message it wants to send to all the kiddies out there. That would be a philosophy of respect for all nature’s creatures and of taking responsibility for your own actions are both worthy lessons. Alas, the execution is 90% generic and 100% unfunny. The story… Read More »
FINDING NEMO DVD
There are many reasons to purchase a DVD. The best is that its film that you want to see on a regular basis and the other best, work with me here, is that the bonus features do more than just pad out the empty space on the disc. FINDING NEMO more than qualifies on both… Read More »
THE PRINCESS DIARIES 2: ROYAL ENGAGEMENT
Let me start by saying that I am a huge Anne Hathaway fan. And so it is that I found THE PRINCESS DIARIES 2: ROYAL ENGAGEMENT all the more irksome for squandering her talents so freely with this piffle. Actually, piffle is overselling it. The sequel picks up five years after the original left off.… Read More »
THE POLAR EXPRESS
THE POLAR EXPRESS isnt just an astonishing achievement in animation, its also a rich feast for the eye, the mind, and even the spirit. It’s a glorious evocation of that most fragile, most beautiful aspect of the innocence of early life, the childlike wonder and whole-hearted ability to be swept away by magic. Im sure… Read More »
CUP, THE (PHORPA)
I dare say that the premise of THE CUP is one you havent encountered before. Bhutans first feature length film is set in a remote monastery in that tiny country. There, near the Tibetan border lives a junior monk who is soccer mad. Many of the other monks share his passion, but Origyen is the one who eats, drinks, sleeps,… Read More »