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.
by J. Nagle
Nimona was, of the Disney-Fox merger, one of the names that Blue Sky Studios fans were sad to see go in 2021 upon the studio’s closure. However, hope was restored in 2022 when Annapurna Pictures and Netflix acquired the film, with a projected 2023 release date. With these roadblocks in mind among others—such as the film’s original release date setting it up to compete with Sonic—those looking forward to the film were pleasantly surprised on June 30th, 2023 when they were treated to an adaptation that provided a faithful as well as captivating story within its world.
The visual style of Nimona pops in a way different from most animated films, a result of the experimentation Blue Sky Studios found themselves making with their latter films such as The Peanuts Movie and Ferdinand. The film utilizes a mixture of 3D animation with traditional 2D elements, which can be attributed to its stylistic adaptation of graphic novel flair. However, it’s important to note that this technique was a bit ahead of its time in development. DreamWorks Animation Studios experimented with the same concept in 2022 starting with The Bad Guys, elaborating on this concept later the same year with Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Two years earlier, Nimona would find itself incorporating some of the same elements during its production that made those same films so captivating to look at.
Part of what makes Nimona so daring is its central plot being so reliant on the strained relationship between Ballister and Ambrosius, two characters whose romance has seldom been shown onscreen in mainstream animated cinema, a romance definitely not to the degree of which it’s integral to the story. In addition, Nimona’s own journey alongside Ballister shows many metaphors for the fluidity of gender and how those who express themselves in an untraditional way can be cast out of society. It’s a great thing Annapurna decided to revive the film, because it delivers some very clear and heartfelt messages that many people in the LGBTQ+ community can relate to and may still need.
Chloë Grace Moretz and Riz Ahmed provide inspiring and emotional performances as the title characters and Ballister Boldheart respectively, and the rest of the cast—some names surprising—provide an outstanding job on their vocal work as well. Eugene Lee Yang of The Try Guys fame voices Ambrosius Goldenloin, a respected knight and Ballister’s love interest, and RuPaul of RuPaul’s Drag Race provides the voice of Nate Knight. Additionally, Nimona creator ND Stevenson has a vocal cameo as Kwispy the Dragon in an in-universe cereal advertisement.
Nimona is now streaming on Netflix.
by J. Nagle
Wes Anderson’s newest film, Asteroid City, once again brings together veteran Wes Anderson fans without alienating the new ones it’s surely made. Light spoilers ahead!
When a new Wes Anderson feature releases, there tends to be a sense of curiosity drummed up in the cinephile space, though not in the sense that the film seems confusing. Anderson’s style of marketing and trailers give away his eccentric direction and writing style, but almost never give away crucial twists and plot details worth a spoiler warning online. However, he allows just enough of a plot through in his trailers to let world-building seep through, to craft the environment shown in Asteroid City, thus beginning a curiosity not dissimilar to that of the prodigies shown in the film.
Anderson’s eye for palette control in his films leads to the atmosphere of the titular Asteroid City being one of the more colorful desert towns explored in modern cinema. Half of this job is done incredibly well with the color mixing and set design working together in the town, and the same can be said for costume design. Each character’s clothing has little notes and details that carry over to the next while still feeling distinct from the next. This can be said for both the film’s main narrative in Asteroid City as well as—without giving away too much—the more monochromatic narrative the film opens with.
One theme that both narratives in the film excel with is that of creation. Wes Anderson excels in writing location-as-character screenplays as seen with films such as The Grand Budapest Hotel, which can be seen once again with the titular town in this film. However, the film’s other plot concerning the creation of the Asteroid City play is more character-driven. It feels both meta and not at the same time—bringing together how art and the artist coalesce into one another and coexist. Each component in Asteroid City plays a huge role in its felt authenticity, and each component feels as though it shines outside of the central narrative once the audience gets a feel for how the two stories play off of each other.
The weight and intricacies of the two stories are both things that it takes time for the viewer to get used to, but once adjusted to them, it’s shown how integral the two are to each other. The film brings a great feeling to the idea of living for creation, an idea many filmmakers can feel themselves in.
Asteroid City is playing in theaters now worldwide.
The online hype around Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse seems to not be dying out anytime soon as Sony Pictures Animation employees who have worked on the movie are coming out and sharing production art. However, among the names that have received viral praising for their shared behind-the-scenes work, one name has stood out to most as a shocking prodigy.
Preston Mutanga—known online as LegoMe_TheOG—is known by his YouTube fanbase (as well as Twitter) to make impressive LEGO animations in Blender using dynamic posing, lighting, and shot composition. What shocks most people is that he’s 14 years old and doing this at a level where those within the industry—namely, producers and writers Phil Lord & Christopher Miller—were taking notice.
Mutanga’s recreation of the first trailer went lightly viral on Twitter, visible enough to where Lord & Miller noticed, showing it to those working on the film. After some negotiations between the studio, Mutanga, and his family, they worked out a contract for Mutanga to build the scene of the LEGO universe briefly explored within the film.
The LEGO universe within Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was briefly mentioned in an interview with Jake Johnson, the voice of Spider-Verse’s Peter B. Parker, though its prominence and direction was unknown beyond its confirmation. While it was a nice inclusion to put another The LEGO Movie-esque feather in the cap of Lord & Miller, we’re all very pleased that a skilled young artist like Preston Mutanga is receiving the recognition and work he deserves from his passion project.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is playing in theaters now worldwide.
Wes Anderson is going right into production of his 13th feature film later this year, The Film Stage revealed earlier today.
The announcement came during the press tour for Wes Anderson’s new film, Asteroid City, set to release next Friday. Cinematographer and frequent collaborator on Anderson’s films Robert Yeoman revealed Wes Anderson’s plans to head into production on a new film later this year, with Michael Cera being cast in a currently undisclosed starring role.
The sudden announcement shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to those familiar with Anderson’s work—Yeoman goes on to describe Anderson as a “workaholic”, citing the short release gaps between his films in the past. Once filming on Asteroid City wrapped, Anderson and Yeoman reportedly went right back into filming with the director’s elusive Henry Sugar adaptation set to release on Netflix in the future.
Three of the names in talks to join the film are Michael Cera, Jeff Goldblum, and Benicio del Toro. While Goldblum and del Toro have starred in Wes Anderson films before—their most recent appearances being Asteroid City and The French Dispatch, respectively—Cera is a newcomer to the director’s productions. However, it should be noted that Cera was originally in talks to join Jeff Goldblum early in Asteroid City’s production, though negotiations obviously fell through. Cera’s performance could bring a new flavor of eccentricity to Anderson’s stories, due to the strange nature of the characters he’s often been cast into in previous films and shows.
Wes Anderson’s newest film Asteroid City is set to have a limited release on June 16th, followed by a wide theatrical release on June 23th a week later.
Get Some Strange!
