by J Nagle
One of the more recent drops on Netflix is Damien Chazelle’s La La Land, released in late 2016. The plot may seem similar to those who viewed Chazelle’s more recent film, Babylon, from 2022. The films are two sides of the same coin, La La Land having a more positive perspective on the experience of stardom while Babylon focuses on some of the darker aspects that come with it, as well as the entertainment industry as a whole. While some of Babylon‘s horrors stretch themselves out during the film’s 3 hour runtime, La La Land‘s brisk pacing and dynamic, immersive scenes make for one of the quickest 2 hour films to watch.
Ryan Gosling, currently in the spotlight for his performance as Ken in Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, plays Seb Wilder, an ambitious pianist down on his luck who’s moved to Los Angeles to fulfill his dreams. He stars alongside Emma Watson who plays Mia Dolan, an equally ambitious actress who craves some of the same stardom Gosling’s character does. As the two are shown in their own separate storylines fighting for their lives in the industry, the two are also shown alone together, fighting with each other for what stardom really means to them. Damien Chazelle’s emphasis on location as character in these moments is crucial to making each line, motion, and expression feel so integral to its respective scene.
The supporting cast includes names such as John Legend as well as J. K. Simmons, the latter of whom some may recognize from his performance in Chazelle’s first feature film, Whiplash, both of whom play key roles in Seb’s story early on.
La La Land is now streaming on Netflix.
Some movies this summer can’t be as fortunate as Barbie and Oppenheimer, having constant aspects teased and marketed that keeps hype going and growing consistently towards its release. One of these movies is Dreamworks Animation’s Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken, released right at the end of June. The film set a new record for the lowest grossing opening weekend out of any Dreamworks film ever, with its current total cementing its status as a box-office bomb—only around $35 million on a $70 million budget.
Again, most Dreamworks fans know this is a result of the film’s poor marketing. Dreamworks has had some notoriously bad marketing recently, with another example being December’s Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. The film was hardly marketed, with even some Shrek fans being unaware of its release. Being launched alongside a myriad of other box office hits such as Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Avatar: The Way of Water, it was looking likely that the film would flop. However, out of nowhere, word of mouth both in real life and on the internet led to the realization that the film was an instant classic and was deserving of a trip to the theater. Ruby Gillman suffered from the same marketing, though did not see the return that Puss in Boots did. A few more of these factors can be attributed to its mixed reception upon release and its introduction of an original story—whereas Puss in Boots: The Last Wish was a sequel to a Shrek spinoff.
Stylistically, the film is very fast-paced and flashy at times, credited to its dazzling underwater scenes and obvious satire on the “high school movie” genre. Ruby Gillman finds itself subverting some of the tropes typically found in high school movies, however plays some of them straight as well which doesn’t exactly mix the best with the subversion Dreamworks is known for in their films. Once a predictable element enters the plot, the viewer is left wondering when it’s going to subvert itself just like most of the other tropes in the movie. But the moment never comes and the viewer already knows how said plotpoint will end up about an hour before it does resolve in some way.
Ruby’s family tree, while small, is somehow convoluted whenever the spotlight is on them. Miscommunication and falling outs between family members is something that can be relatable for many, and would have been great when expanded upon earlier on rather than showing up. However, miscommunication between the film and its audience occurs instead, making it feel, at times, like another “then this happened” movie. This is something Turning Red handles better, and while Ruby Gillman does hit some of the same plot beats that Turning Red does, the two movies are not the same by any means. Both have their strengths and weaknesses, their pushes and pulls, and when put into perspective are obviously independent of each other.
Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken is now out on Digital, as well as in theaters.
by J Nagle
A year ago today, we briefly reported on the film Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank in our July release of Weekend Box Office. It stuck out like a sore thumb in some theaters’ previews, as it’s rare to see a film under the Nickelodeon Movies banner release in theaters not based on a pre-existing property in 2023. In this sense, the film felt a bit out of place, like something that would have released years ago.
Well, this technically is the case; Paws of Fury was first greenlit in 2010 under the title Blazing Samurai and faced numerous production issues and shifts that caused its seeming development hell. It seems like something that would have been better off a Paramount+ exclusive at this point, but it probably still released in theaters due to contractual obligations or something like that. The premise is also bizarre—an animated soft remake of Blazing Saddles made for kids where every character is a common house pet?
On the one-year anniversary of its release, we watched through the film to see what exactly its deal was. Here are our findings.
Paws of Fury feels like, ironically, a feature-length version of one of those film recap/parody cartoons across YouTube. In its attempts to distance itself enough from Blazing Saddles to justify its existence and loosely maintain its plot beats, it just ends up feeling like a lackluster replica that makes the viewer want to watch Blazing Saddles instead. Its attempts to tackle racial allegory fall flat, as it feels like the idea’s abandoned for the majority of the movie, something that people again feel Blazing Saddles handled much better.
The animation feels a tad expressive, in the sense that it feels like the bare minimum compared to other animated releases that came out before and later in the same year. Considering the lengthy parade of vanity cards the film opens with, it really felt like it should have been something more. The best animation in the entire film, in my opinion, was found in the opening of the film. This animation is 2D rather than the 3D the rest of the film uses, and its flashiness is honestly the most entertaining visual the film has to offer. Again, disappointing given it’s only used for the intro.
In spite of its mixed public reception before release, small marketing budget, and little fanfare upon release, Paws of Fury came surprisingly close to breaking even at the box office last year, grossing $42.5 million on a budget of $45 million. While most older audiences weren’t impressed by the film, there is at least a decent enough low-budget kids movie to be found here. There’s definitely worse out there, and it would be pretty funny to see some grown-up kid admitting that this was their first exposure to Samuel L. Jackson’s work in cinema.
Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank is now streaming on Paramount+.
by J Nagle
Whether it’s with It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia or What We Do in the Shadows, FX has proven time and time again to be capable of broadcasting some of the year’s hottest programs in TV. Last year, The Bear proved itself to be a new name worthy of carrying on this lineage of acclaimed FX programming, with the show’s second season releasing earlier this summer. With said season review already underway here, we wanted to take a moment to review the show’s first season, giving an overview of what’s captivated audiences and critics alike.
The Bear follows Carmen Berzatto—known in the show as Carmy as well as the titular Bear—as he manages the restaurant inherited from his brother Jeremy’s death, The Original Beef of Chicagoland. This narrative is juggled with many other struggles Carmy is managing simultaneously, such as his brother having died in the first place. As both narratives progress and characters develop throughout the season, we get to see their perspectives on both the restaurant’s process and their own methods of processing grief.
The writing throughout the restaurant narrative has multiple strengths and weaknesses that can both entice its viewing audience while also occasionally failing to ignite the same spark other parts have. At times, the cooking segments can feel like they bring little progression to the characters’ development or that of Carmy’s personal struggles, despite how well-directed each shot of said cooking feels. By the fourth or fifth episode, most sections of said segments can feel a bit samey in how they add to the story, as well as moving a bit too quick at times for some. However, some of this is in the show’s favor, as the fast pace goes to justify the frantic nature of the restaurant, as well as serving as an extremely accurate point of view of working in the food service industry.
The restaurant introduces the audience to the main characters they’ll get to know throughout the course of the season, ranging from new recruits to those who have been there since before the death of Carmy’s brother when he ran the establishment. This is where the show excels—each character gets their own time to shine during the season and flesh themselves out. Whenever Carmy’s late brother is brought up, each recalls a different memory or tradition from when he was around to manage the team, and each member of the team clashes or gels with the new management style in a different way. Sometimes the team just wishes his brother had stuck around with them—and occasionally, so does Carmy.
Both seasons of The Bear are now streaming on Hulu.
by J. Nagle
Whether from the Barbenheimer craze spawned by excited fans or from their fascinating marketing tactics, even those who hate all things Mattel have at least heard of the rapidly approaching Barbie film adaptation. While many of its stars have made a point to talk about the fun they had shooting the movie, none have been nearly as vocal as the film’s Ken—or at least, one of them—Ryan Gosling.
While some fans of his work may recall some of his more serious roles, such as Drive or Blade Runner 2049, the actor seems to have been having a blast working on the film in all the roles he could. Every Barbie interview with Gosling seems to reveal a new experience he’s had, and the fun that’s come with it.
To call upon the recollection of one’s own youth is nothing new in acting, where someone may need to call upon a previous memory or place in their life to achieve the authenticity they or a director is looking for in their performance. However, Ryan Gosling seems to be approaching this role as Ken with the vitriol of a character who’s already changed our world extensively, a character he’s nowhere near ready to say goodbye to once Barbie releases.
In this recent interview as well, Gosling ponders on the existence of what he dubs “Kenergy” in the modern world. How it applies to theatergoers planning to see Barbie on opening day and beyond, as well as those undiscovered, with untapped po-Ken-tial. Of all the roles in his catalog, Ryan Gosling definitely seems to be pushing for Ken to be at the top of his list for the foreseeable future.
Barbie is set to release worldwide on July 21st, 2023.
by J. Nagle
What exactly is going on in this photo?
On July 10th, some photos off the set of Marvel’s Deadpool 3 began circulating through Twitter, baffling and exciting both Disney and Fox Marvel fans alike. As shown above, a broken down and apocalyptic 20th Century Fox logo will be appearing in the film, in-universe. Speculation has been running rampant, with fans wondering what this means for the film. Will this be a final send-off for Fox’s X-Men universe, or perhaps a loosely adapted Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe within the Fox Marvel universe’s constraints? Is this just another classic Deadpool meta commentary joke on 20th Century Fox’s merger into Disney’s unending acquisitions?
Things definitely appear that way, or maybe a giant prop of the former studio’s logo was constructed solely for a one-off gag—which would be in the spirit of Wade Wilson’s psychotic sense of humor.
More photos off the film’s set show Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds in costume as Wolverine and Deadpool respectively, donning costumes that indicate the department had a few more tricks up its sleeve in this final installment.
In addition to a completely redesigned and retooled Deadpool suit, Marvel fans were pleased to see Jackman finally wearing Wolverine’s classic suit after two decades of none from Fox’s X-Men films. Some pointed out the addition of long sleeves to Wolverine’s suit, due to the comic book-accurate Wolverine suit actually having no sleeves. However, some speculate this is to negate the risk of skin cancer for Jackman, a disease the actor recently announced he had overcome.
Deadpool 3 is set to release worldwide on May 3rd, 2024.
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