GET READY FOR THE BADDEST COMEDY OF THE SUMMER! DREAMWORKS ANIMATION PRESENTS SAM ROCKWELL, MARC MARON, CRAIG ROBINSON, AWKWAFINA AND ANTHONY RAMOS IN THE BAD GUYS 2.
IN THEATERS AUGUST 1ST.
The special advance screening is at 11am on Saturday, July 26th @ Marcus Ronnie’s Cine (10am suggested arrival).
(from left) Mr. Snake (Marc Maron), Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson), Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina), Chief Misty Luggins (Alex Borstein), Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos) and Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell) n DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys 2, directed by Pierre Perifel. Photo Credit: Universal Pictures / DreamWorks Animation
Everyone’s favorite felons are back, and this time, they’ve got company.
In the new action-packed chapter from DreamWorks Animation’s acclaimed comedy smash about a crackerjack crew of animal outlaws, our now-reformed Bad Guys are trying (very, very hard) to be good, but instead find themselves hijacked into a high-stakes, globe-trotting heist, masterminded by a new team of criminals they never saw coming: The Bad Girls.
Based on the New York Times best-selling book series by Aaron Blabey, which has soared from 8 million to over 30 million copies sold since the first film’s release in 2022, The Bad Guys 2 stars the stellar original cast, led by Academy Award® winner Sam Rockwell as Mr. Wolf, SAG award nominee Marc Maron as safe-cracker Mr. Snake, SAG award nominee Craig Robinson as master-of disguise Mr. Shark, Grammy winner Anthony Ramos as Mr. Piranha and Emmy winner Awkwafina as hacker Ms. Tarantula, aka “Webs.”
The returning voice cast is joined by a new trio of comedic powerhouses as The Bad Girls: Oscar® nominee Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple) as Bad Girls leader Kitty Kat, a dangerously clever snow leopard; Oscar® nominee Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Movie Film) as Pigtail, a brilliant Bulgarian wild boar engineer; and Emmy nominee and comedy icon Natasha Lyonne (Russian Doll, Poker Face) as Doom, a wry raven with a knack for deception.
From celebrated returning director Pierre Perifel and producer Damon Ross, The Bad Guys 2 also features the alumni voice talents of Emmy nominee Zazie Beetz as Governor Diane Foxington, BAFTA winner Richard Ayoade as Professor Marmalade, Emmy winner Alex Borstein as Police Chief (now Commissioner) Misty Luggins and Lilly Singh as sensationalist reporter Tiffany Fluffit.
The Bad Guys 2 is co-directed by JP Sans, who served as head of character animation on the first film. The music is by Oscar®-nominated returning composer Daniel Pemberton.
Everyone’s favorite felons are back, and this time, they’ve got company.
In the new action-packed chapter from DreamWorks Animation’s acclaimed comedy smash about a crackerjack crew of animal outlaws, our now-reformed Bad Guys are trying (very, very hard) to be good, but instead find themselves hijacked into a high-stakes, globe-trotting heist, masterminded by a new team of criminals they never saw coming: The Bad Girls.
THE BAD GUYS (review) grossed $97.2 million in the United States and Canada, and $153.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $250.4 million.
Based on the New York Times best-selling book series by Aaron Blabey, which has soared from 8 million to over 30 million copies sold since the first film’s release in 2022, The Bad Guys 2 stars the stellar original cast, led by Academy Award® winner Sam Rockwell as Mr. Wolf, SAG award nominee Marc Maron as safe-cracker Mr. Snake, SAG award nominee Craig Robinson as master-of disguise Mr. Shark, Grammy winner Anthony Ramos as Mr. Piranha and Emmy winner Awkwafina as hacker Ms. Tarantula, aka “Webs.”
The returning voice cast is joined by a new trio of comedic powerhouses as The Bad Girls: Oscar® nominee Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple) as Bad Girls leader Kitty Kat, a dangerously clever snow leopard; Oscar® nominee Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Movie Film) as Pigtail, a brilliant Bulgarian wild boar engineer; and Emmy nominee and comedy icon Natasha Lyonne (Russian Doll, Poker Face) as Doom, a wry raven with a knack for deception.
From celebrated returning director Pierre Perifel and producer Damon Ross, The Bad Guys 2 also features the alumni voice talents of Emmy nominee Zazie Beetz as Governor Diane Foxington, BAFTA winner Richard Ayoade as Professor Marmalade, Emmy winner Alex Borstein as Police Chief (now Commissioner) Misty Luggins and Lilly Singh as sensationalist reporter Tiffany Fluffit.
The Bad Guys 2 is co-directed by JP Sans, who served as head of character animation on the first film. The music is by Oscar®-nominated returning composer Daniel Pemberton.
THE BAD GUYS 2 is in theaters AUGUST 1.
(from left) Pigtail (Maria Bakalova), Kitty Kat (Danielle Brooks) and Doom (Natasha Lyonne) in DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys 2, directed by Pierre Perifel.(from left) Mr. Snake (Marc Maron) and Doom (Natasha Lyonne) in DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys 2, directed by Pierre Perifel.
JACKPOT! is an outrageous action-comedy about a ‘Grand Lottery’ with a catch: kill the winner before sundown to legally claim their multi-billion dollar jackpot. Awkwafina plays Katie, who mistakenly finds herself with the winning ticket and reluctantly joins forces with amateur lottery protection agent Noel Cassidy, played by John Cena. Noel must protect Katie to sundown in exchange for a piece of her prize.
JACKPOT! introduces audiences to their new favorite comedy duo: Awkwafina and John Cena. Legendary director Paul Feig champions Awkwafina, another great comedienne in an action-packed starring role, following his other beloved action comedies THE HEAT and SPY, among others.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE me some Awkwafina!!
JACKPOT! Premieres Globally on Prime Video August 15, 2024.
This is gonna be awesome!
“I think it’s because you look like a bulldog that, like, a witch cast a spell on and turned into a human. You ever get that?”
“Yes.”
In the near future, a ‘Grand Lottery’ has been newly established in California – the catch: kill the winner before sundown to legally claim their multi-billion dollar jackpot. When Katie Kim (Awkwafina) moves to Los Angeles, she mistakenly finds herself with the winning ticket. Desperate to survive the hordes of jackpot hunters, she reluctantly joins forces with amateur lottery protection agent Noel Cassidy (John Cena) who will do everything in his power to get her to sundown in exchange for a piece of her prize. However, Noel must face off with his slick rival Louis Lewis (Simu Liu), who also seeks to collect Katie’s commission at all costs. JACKPOT! is directed by Paul Feig and written by Rob Yescombe.
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Since we’re nearly into Spring Break season for students, the studios are gearing up to release some sequels (usually a Summer staple). I suppose you could consider last weekend’s DUNE: PART TWO a sequel, though it’s really the conclusion of the original story. Ah, but this weekend’s big studio release is the latest entry in a “tentpole”, a franchise that’s now a teenager (sweet sixteen). Plus it’s an “all-ages” series with a”PG” rating that parents are always searching for (he’s been MIA at the multiplex for eight years now). It’s not from the “Mouse House”, but rather their biggest animation rival for a time. And this was the character they created that truly worked for me (I’m not a fan of the look of the big green ogre’s exploits). Watch out, and hold on to your snacks, as Master Po is back, and hungry as always, in KUNG FU PANDA 4. Skadoosh!!
This new adventure begins with a “call back” of sorts when some hard-working mineral minors are menaced by an old foe who should be chilling in the afterlife. Cut from the prologue to the happy patrons of the noodle shop run by Mr. Ping (voice of James Hong) and Li Shan (Bryan Cranston) who are thrilled to meet the Dragon Warrior himself, Po (Jack Black). But the festivities are cut short by a surprise visit from Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman). It seems that it’s time for Po to step up into the role of the spiritual leader of the valley creating the need for a new DW. Auditions are held, but Po isn’t quite ready to decide. Things get more complicated when he stops a skilled “sneak thief, a fox named Zhen (Awkwafina) from looting the Jade Museum. After she’s handed over to the jailer, those miners, from the opening scene, arrive to beg for help. Po is baffled that an old foe is back until Zhen mentions that this is the work of the shape-shifting master criminal The Chameleon (Viola Davis). Naturally, Zhen can lead Po right to her. The fox is put into his custody and soon the duo are on the way to her hometown, the bustling Juniper City. Along the way, they must hire a boat to take them across the vast sea. Unfortunately, the captain of such a vessel, is at a truly dangerous “dive bar”, the “Happy Rabbit”. But the danger really kicks (get it) in J.C. as they earn the wrath of the local police while trying to enlist the aid of Zhen’s old cohorts in the “Den of Thieves”. And with Ping and Li only a few hours behind him, can Po keep them all out of danger and defeat the devious, cunning Chameleon, or will his new temporary partner (the “Furious Five” are all battling evil elsewhere) pull a “fast one” on the lovable ursine?
So how can an actor be so energetic in a role he’s been “voicing” since 2008? Answer me that, Mr. Black! Perhaps that’s a big part of the near-universal appeal of the panda named Po. But it’s not all “hollerin’ and whoopin’ it up”, as Black shows us the sweet side of the bear, even giving us a touch of the caring teacher. That’s especially the case in his scenes with Zhen, whose streetwise, fast-talkin’ delivery comes from the very busy Awkwafina (this is her second Dreamworks character). Her wisecracks and “burns” keep pace with the fox’s manic slapstick, although we get some dramatic shading in the big finale. And the two are a terrific team, almost matched by Hong and Cranston as the two bickering but united “daddies”, an animalized “odd couple”. Well, there’s a third papa if you consider Hoffman’s Shifu who is still a perfect peeved straight man, er…red panda, to the exasperating Po. The story also benefits from a couple of inspired new voice actors. Ke Huy Quan is quite engaging as Zhen’s former “father figure” Han, the armadillo-like (a Sunda pangolin to be precise) who rolls about the underground lair of the underworld. It’s been said that a great villain reflects on the hero, and Davis is a treat as the regal, silky, sneering Chameleon who imbues venom into every command and taunt.
Making this sprawling action/fantasy yarn proved to be a task for two terrific directors, Stephanie Stine and Mike Mitchell, who deliver the comedy and the pathos with equal aplomb. The staging of the stunt setpieces is truly amazing, defying gravity and using it as another threat, as in the big brawl in the pub teetering on the edge of a cliff overlooking the sea (one character even asks, “Who thought this was a good location?”). The directing duo also guided an army of tremendous artisans in the look of the environments (Juniper City dazzles above and below ground) and the design of the new characters from shifty alligators to snarling wolves and even a trio of sadistic bunnies (shades of that white rabbit that bedeviled those Holy grail seekers). I was especially impressed by the constant flow of Juniper City foot (well paw and claw) traffic. The artistry is enhanced by a clever script that sports a few wild twists and a big finale that salutes the previous big-screen epics. Sure, some will be missing the “Furious Five”, but those returning characters and the new friends and enemies more than “take up the slack”. If desired this is a great send-off for the series, even as the end credits hint at a possible new direction(s). If we return to the Valley of Peace, audiences will be “pleased as Po” if they’re as well done (ala Ping’s noodles) as KUNG FU PANDA 4.
3 Out of 4
KUNG FU PANDA 4 is now playing in theatres everywhere
After three death-defying adventures defeating world-class villains with his unmatched courage and mad martial arts skills, Po, the Dragon Warrior (Golden Globe nominee Jack Black), is called upon by destiny to … give it a rest already. More specifically, he’s tapped to become the Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace. That poses a couple of obvious problems.
First, Po knows as much about spiritual leadership as he does about the paleo diet, and second, he needs to quickly find and train a new Dragon Warrior before he can assume his new lofty position. Even worse, there’s been a recent sighting of a wicked, powerful sorceress, Chameleon (Oscar® winner Viola Davis), a tiny lizard who can shapeshift into any creature, large or small. And Chameleon has her greedy, beady little eyes on Po’s Staff of Wisdom, which would give her the power to re-summon all the master villains whom Po has vanquished to the spirit realm. So, Po’s going to need some help.
He finds it (kinda?) in the form of crafty, quick-witted thief Zhen (Golden Globe winner Awkwafina), a corsac fox who really gets under Po’s fur but whose skills will prove invaluable. In their quest to protect the Valley of Peace from Chameleon’s reptilian claws, this comedic odd-couple duo will have to work together. In the process, Po will discover that heroes can be found in the most unexpected places.
The film features the voice talent of returning stars Academy Award® winner Dustin Hoffman as Kung Fu master, Shifu; James Hong (Everything Everywhere All at Once) as Po’s adoptive father, Mr. Ping; Academy Award® nominee Bryan Cranston as Po’s birth father, Li, and Emmy Award nominee Ian McShane as Tai Lung, Shifu’s former student and arch-nemesis. Oscar® winner Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All at Once) joins the ensemble as a new character, Han, the leader of the Den of Thieves.
Kung Fu Panda 4 is directed by Mike Mitchell (DreamWorks Animation’s Trolls, Shrek Forever After) and produced by Rebecca Huntley (DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys). The film’s co-director is Stephanie Ma Stine (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power). In 2008, the Academy Award®-nominated 2008 inaugural chapter, Kung Fu Panda, became DreamWorks Animation’s highest-grossing original animated film and launched a franchise that has earned more than $1.8 billion at the global box-office.
It’s the big holiday weekend, and for many families, it’s the perfect time for a big getaway. Oh, we’re not talking about a brief trek “over the river and through the woods”. Nope, how about a big excursion like the McCallister clan in the original HOME ALONE (Paris, sheesh somebody’s doing well)? Come to think of it, it’s strange that the Grisswalds don’t travel anywhere in CHRISTMAS VACATION, though Cousin Eddy drops in from afar. But I digress. Now if that’s what human families do, then how about animal families? To be more specific, those “fine feathered” families. Now in this new animated feature, it’s not ‘”yuletime”, but the temps are starting to fall prompting those web-footed folks to join a big southbound MIGRATION.
Oddly enough this story begins, actually, during storytime. Papa of the Mallards, Mack (voice of Kumail Nanjiani) relates a cautionary fable of ducks leaving the safety of the nest and flying to their doom to his kids, free-spirited pre-teen Dax (Casper Jennings) and sweet adorable baby sister Gwen (Tresi Gazal), all while mom Pam (Elizabeth Banks) rolls her eyes. She thinks that they should “expand their horizons” well past the comfy confines of the bucolic pond near Moose Lake in New England. Then, almost on cue, a flock of migrating ducks drops in for a brief respite. Of course, Dax falls for a cute duckling gal. After they leave, the family puts pressure on Mack, and…he gives in. They’ll catch up with the flock and join them on their journey to sunny Jamaica. And thanks to the pleading of Gwen, grumpy, sloppy old Uncle Dan (Danny DeVito) will also make the trip. The quintet takes to the skies and …heads in the wrong direction. After a detour to a dank swamp that’s home to a spooky but friendly heron named Erin (Carol Kane), the Mallards nearly fly right into the skyscrapers of NYC. There they encounter the boss of some hungry pigeons, Chump (Awkwafina), who, after a near rumble, takes them to a bird that can guide them to the Caribbean. Unfortunately, the exotic Delroy (Keegan-Michael Key) is locked up in a cage in the office above a trendy restaurant. Can they evade the knife-wielding chief and get back en route to paradise? Or will their final stop be inside a hot oven, covered not in suntan lotion, but in orange sauce?
Unfortunately, as with many major animated releases, the celebrity voice cast seems to be a big marketing point. Luckily there are several assured comic voices in use here. Nanjiani excels when Mac is in full over-protective panic mode. DeVito is perhaps our most endearing screen (big and small) grouch. Key is a bombastic delight as the ecstatic bird so far from home. There’s also some funny vocal work from David Mitchell as the yoga instructor/ rec-director of a place that seems like a spa retreat for ducks. Kane brings her zany quirk to the long-limbed Erin. Now, I’m a big fan of Awkwafina (she’s great in the underrated QUIZ LADY), but I’m wondering if she may want to take a voice-over “time out” as this is her eighth feature film (unless she’s hoping to follow in the legacy of the late great June Foray). Ah, but the look of the film is its real “selling point”. The backdrops are full of dazzling primary colors (those rich greens of the forest) in nature which make a terrific contrast with the looming dark canyons of the city and the stunning neons of its trendiest eatery. The character designs are also superb, making each duck unique, and giving some other fowl (Erin, Deroy) a nice “spindly” look as though their limb are bendable plastic tubing. But my favorite design may be the mute villain, the too-cool, muscle-bound, “fully-tatted” chief (love the diamond-shaped shades and the long platinum ponytail with gold hoops). Extra kudos for working in some terrific 2D-style animation in the movie’s “bedtime story” opening prologue. It’s just a shame that the story is not as unique. It’s an air-and-land riff on FINDING NEMO, as the Mallards encounter a new danger and learn lessons in teamwork and understanding others. The tiniest of moviegoers may be enthralled by the bouncy birds, manic action, and eye-popping backdrops, but this family’s not quite a “duck dynasty” in this occasionally amusing MIGRATION.
This spring, for the first time in almost a decade, comedy icon Jack Black returns to his role as Po, the world’s most unlikely kung fu master, with a hilarious, butt-kicking new chapter in DreamWorks Animation’s beloved action-comedy franchise: Kung Fu Panda 4.
Check out the brand new trailer.
After three death-defying adventures defeating world-class villains with his unmatched courage and mad martial arts skills, Po, the Dragon Warrior (Golden Globe nominee Jack Black), is called upon by destiny to … give it a rest already. More specifically, he’s tapped to become the Spiritual Leader of the Valley of Peace.
That poses a couple of obvious problems. First, Po knows as much about spiritual leadership as he does about the paleo diet, and second, he needs to quickly find and train a new Dragon Warrior before he can assume his new lofty position.
Even worse, there’s been a recent sighting of a wicked, powerful sorceress, Chameleon (Oscar® winner Viola Davis), a tiny lizard who can shapeshift into any creature, large or small. And Chameleon has her greedy, beady little eyes on Po’s Staff of Wisdom, which would give her the power to re-summon all the master villains whom Po has vanquished to the spirit realm.
So, Po’s going to need some help. He finds it (kinda?) in the form of crafty, quick-witted thief Zhen (Golden Globe winner Awkwafina), a corsac fox who really gets under Po’s fur but whose skills will prove invaluable. In their quest to protect the Valley of Peace from Chameleon’s reptilian claws, this comedic odd-couple duo will have to work together. In the process, Po will discover that heroes can be found in the most unexpected places.
The filmfeatures the voice talent of returning stars Academy Award® winner Dustin Hoffman as Kung Fu master, Shifu; James Hong (Everything Everywhere All at Once)as Po’s adoptive father, Mr. Ping; Academy Award® nominee Bryan Cranston as Po’s birth father, Li, and Emmy Award nominee Ian McShane as Tai Lung, Shifu’s former student and arch-nemesis. Oscar® winner Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All at Once) joins the ensemble as a new character, Han, the leader of the Den of Thieves.
Kung Fu Panda 4 is directed by Mike Mitchell (DreamWorks Animation’s Trolls, Shrek Forever After) and produced by Rebecca Huntley (DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys). The film’s co-director is Stephanie Ma Stine (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power). In 2008, the Academy Award®-nominated 2008 inaugural chapter, Kung Fu Panda, became DreamWorks Animation’s highest-grossing original animated film and launched a franchise that has earned more than $1.8 billion at the global box-office.
(from left) Po (Jack Black) and Zhen (Awkwafina) in Kung Fu Panda 4 directed by Mike Mitchell.
So, how accurate are some of those old sayings? Well, in the case of “You can pick your friends, but you can’t pick your family”, well…yes, 100 percent. That’s especially true with siblings, going all the way back to Cain and Abel. Sure brothers battle, but is that ditto for sisters? This weekend’s new comedy uses that as its “springboard”. These two ladies couldn’t be more different or argumentative, Fortunately, they’re both hilarious, and their characters are played by two talented actresses. You see, the elder is a party gal while the other is saddled with the title QUIZ LADY.
We first meet the aforementioned QZ as a timid eight-year-old indulging in her favorite weekday activity, watching the live TV show “Can’t Stop the Quiz” hosted by true hero Terry McTeer (Will Ferrell). And she pretty much aces all the questions despite her older sister indulging in lots of teenage drama (boys, friends, dresses, etc.). And just a few years later she storms out of the house, as lil’ sister focuses on that program. Cut to her today and her grown-up adult self, Anne Yum (Awkwafina). She’s now living in a duplex building next to her cranky older neighbor Francine (Holland Taylor), and still never misses CSQ, though she now shares it with her aging pooch, Mr. Linguine. The next morning, like clockward, she’s off to her nine-to-five cubicle job as an accountant. Her routine is disrupted one day as she gets a call at work. It seems that her Mom has “booked” from the nursing home. Anne dashes down there just in time for an unexpected (and very unwanted) reunion with big sis Jenny (Sandra Oh). After some bickering, they learn that Mom is actually in Macao with her new beau. Then things get really complicated when her “loan shark” Ken (Jon Park) dognaps Linguine to ensure the sisters clear her eighty grand debt. But Jenny’s got a plan: Anne has to win the dough on CSQ! But she’s painfully shy and wants to go unnoticed and blend into the background. Can the two stop their verbal sparring long enough to get to the TV studio and get the beloved doggie back home?
Now here’s a great new comedy team-up! Though she’d be considered the “straight” partner of the duo (much like Bud Abbott). Awkwafina elicits lots of laughs as she commits to a constant shoulder slump while trying to dash past anyone who might spot her. This makes her annoyance about unwanted fame work so well. And it’s a terrific “set-up” for her loopy, loose body language under the influence of “relaxers” given by the human wrecking ball that is Ms. Oh as the no-filter big sis Jenny. Unlike lil’ sis, she’s confident with little talent or smarts to back it up, even comparing herself to Oprah as she tosses off her hair extensions. In the supporting but certainly pivotal role as the master TV MC, Ferrell tones down his usually manic persona, giving McTeer an endearing dorky quality echoing his SNL work as the great Trebek in their “Celebrity Jeopardy” sketches and killing it with awkward attempts at humor (to a contestant: “I see you’re from Kentucky. Did you ride here on your horse?”). Plus he’s got a great comic rapport with Jason Schwartzman as the unctuous, smarmy long-time CSQ champ Ron Heacock, flashing his way too bright “pearly whites”. Taylor brings her decades-old sitcom skills to bear as the always irritated and noisy next-door neighbor. Kudos also to the fabulous Tony Hale as the owner of a motel in Philly who really tries to stick with his Ben Franklin cosplay (“Does thou have a major credit card?”).
This sprightly-paced, candy-colored farce is helmed by Jessica Yu, squeezing every ounce of yucks possible from the screenplay by Jen D’Angelo. There are terrific satiric jabs at celebrity culture, workplace politics, and even at society’s stereotypes of Asians (when a trucker yells, “Learn to drive”, Jenny calls him racist until he leans out of the driver’s side window and, well you can guess). Not only does Yu elicit wonderful work from the lead duo, but she peppers the whole film with funny folks including a loving cameo showcasing a recently “taken too soon” comedy icon. Sure it is a smart script, but the film’s not too sophisticated for some well-executed slapstick and plenty of subtle sight gags. Yes, the idea of a long-running TV game show being broadcast live feels far-fetched (though Regis did it for several weeks twenty years ago), but it just adds to the silly comedy chaos and family bonding at the happy heart of QUIZ LADY.
As I mentioned last week, nostalgia appears to be playing a big role in this just-started cinema Summer season. The remake of that 1990s buddy comedy may just be the tip of the iceberg (a fixture of the, umm, sea). For this holiday weekend’s big, really big as Ed Sullivan would say, movie release, go back just two or three more years to 1989. That year may be best known for the BATMAN box office blockbuster, but it’s also a watershed (oops, sorry) moment for feature Animation, particularly at the “Mouse House”. Disney feature animation was just beginning to snap out of a creative stupor as the modest successes of THE GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE and OLIVER & COMPANY began to offset the losses of the fantasy debacle THE BLACK CAULDRON. This is all covered in the superb documentary feature WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY. And then two Broadway “whiz-kids,” thought that the company should return to classic fairy tales with a Tony-worthy musical score. To say it made a big (sorry, again) splash would be an understatement. And since Disney began remaking their classic cartoon epics, it was just a matter of time before we dove under the waves for a new spin on THE LITTLE MERMAID. Grab your noseplugs and jump in…
The first image we see is of the ocean along with a quote from the tale’s creator, Hans Christian Anderson. From there the camera pans up to the trading vessel captained by the dashing Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King). While he deals with rough waves we are sent far below the commotion to witness a meeting of “merpeople”, the royal daughters and their father King Triton (Javier Bardem). They’re preparing for the Coral Moon” celebration, but one member of the family is missing. Ariel (Halie Bailey) and her fish friend Flounder (voice of Jacob Tremblay) are exploring a sunken ship and evading a hungry shark. Meanwhile, Triton sends his royal aide, a crab named Sebastian (voice of Daveed Diggs) to retrieve her. Naturally, their reunion erupts into a familiar squabble about the “surface people”. Afterward, during a rousing musical number, Flounder tells her of Eric’s ship, which encounters a storm. The prince is knocked out and falls into the depths only to be rescued by Ariel. She brings him to the shore and swims away just as he starts to awaken (her image is fuzzy to him). Later Sebsatian accidentally spills the beans and a furious Triton lambasts Ariels and destroys her cove full of “gadgets and gizmos a’ plenty”, those prized “found” human trinkets. The heartbroken Ariel is accosted by two moray eels, Flotsam and Jetsom, who take her to their mistress, the sea witch, and Triton’s envious sister, Ursula (Melissa McCarthy). She hatches a scheme to exact revenge on big brother by offering Ariel a chance to be human for three days in order to be with Eric and receive “true love’s kiss”. Ah, but she must be mute. Can this earn her a fairy tale happy ending or does the tentacled sorceress have a few tricks (new and old) to torpedo the burgeoning romance?
After the whirlpool (sorry again) surrounding her casting and the first released in-character images, I’m happy to agree that Bailey is a delightfully engaging Ariel. She literally hits all the right notes, aside from her superb vocal renditions of the beloved score, as she balances a child-like innocence and curiosity with a yearning, a true longing to expand her horizons and to act on her first sparks of romance. Under the sea or on the shore, she’s splendid. Bailey even Holds the screen alongside the powerhouse work of McCarthy, funny, ferocious, and, well, Divine (wink, nudge) as the slithering enchantress. Somehow she’s snooty, sneering, and vain, particularly in the “laugh-out-loud” moment when she’s called a witch…to her face! As her brother, Bardem is brusk and imposing, though we see that Ariel is his “special spawn”, who can make him regret his intimating bluster and bellowing. The object of Ariel’s feverish desires, Hauer-King as Prince Eric is a swashbuckling “dream guy”, who is slowly charmed by his mute mystery woman. On the vocal front, Diggs delivers the tunes with a bouncing, subtle island lilt, Tremblay conveys all the anxieties and humor of a pre-teen fish, and Awkwafina is a hoarse-throated hoot as the confidently clueless Scuttle. Back in live-action roles, Noma Dumezweni is regally warm and nurturing as the Queen, Art Malik is stuffy and befuddled, though understanding as her advisor Grimsby, and Jessica Alexander is the sultry and sinister Vanessa, who’s a big “roadblock” in the road to “happily ever after”.
Back in the director’s chair, after a five-year-hiatus (rather than a remake he made the follow-up to another Disney classic, MARY POPPINS RETURNS) is the man from CHICAGO, Rob Marshall. He keeps the pace zipping along, though the runtime is nearly an hour longer than the 1989 original. And there’s the big controversy about this as with the glut of recent “live revamps’ of the Disney “treasures”. It’s pointless to go on a tirade against these “marketing masterplans”. Yes, they’re all unneeded and the effort would be better spent on original ideas and concepts, but the titles have “name recognition’ and execs hope this could lead to another “cinematic universe”, like Marvel. So, case closed, they exist and the discussion should be about their quality and merits. Going from the excellent retelling of CINDERELLA and THE JUNGLE BOOK (though Favreau fumbled with THE LION KING) to the tepid DUMBO (there’s a true miss-match with Tim Burton) and PETER PAN AND WENDY, this would rest comfortably in the upper third. The locales and backdrops (that ocean is dazzling blue) are eye-catching, the CGI is seamless, though the more realistic renditions of Sebastian and Flounder take away some of the tales’s charm, and the songs are still superb (the other doc to watch is HOWARD all about the original much-missed lyricist). I was dismayed that two tunes were cut in order to bring a couple of songs (so they can nab a Best Song Oscar nom) that teamed Allan Menken with Lin-Manuel Miranda, as the prince gets his own “I want” ballad and Scuttle gets a riskay rap, really. Dave Magee’s new script adaptation tries to address some of the “concerns” of the original (Ariel now can’t remember that she needs a kiss from Eric), but some of the plot shufflings seem awkward. So though the tinkering can be frustrating for the long-time admirers, little ones new to the fable should be engaged (but that attacking shark may be a bit much for some), since those marvelous melodies and compelling performances prove that with this take on THE LITTLE MERMAID, “what more is you lookin’ for”?
3 Out of 4
THE LITTLE MERMAID is now playing in theatres everywhere
(from left) Renfield (Nicholas Hoult) and Dracula (Nicolas Cage) in Renfield, directed by Chris McKay. Courtesy of Universal
The horror comedy RENFIELD gives the Dracula story gets a modern twist by re-imagining the vampire’s servant Renfield, played by Nicholas Hoult, as in a co-dependent relationship with his demanding boss/ master Dracula, played with scenery-chewing glee and comic menace by Nicolas Cage. A big part of the real fun of this very bloody horror comedy is in it fabulous recreations of Tod Browning’s classic 1931 DRACULA with Bela Lugosi. Hoult does an impressive Dwight Frye as Renfield impression, including that crazy laugh, in these sequences (and occasionally throughout the movie). Nicolas Cage mimics the elegant Bela Lugosi in the recreations of Tod Browning’s classic but otherwise Cage’s Dracula is his own mix of monsters, drawing on more on Christopher Lee and others than Lugosi.
Actually, a lot of the fun for classic movie fans in director Chris McKay’s bloody vampire comedy are the beautifully-executed recreations of that classic monster movie. McKay also alludes to various other Dracula movie incarnations, and references how the monsters in monster movies tend to get bigger and more powerful in sequels while still having the same kind of showdowns with the forces for good battling them. The film alternates between comedy and bloody cartoon violence action scenes, while Renfield grapples with his toxic relationship with Dracula, and his longing for a normal “life” (even though he is also undead).
The film opens with Renfield (Nicholas Hoult) at a self-help group for people with co-dependency issues. He isn’t there to talk about his relationship with his controlling boss, the Prince of Darkness, Dracula (Nicolas Cage) but to hunt for victims for his master. But Renfield tries to play nice guy by not targeting the people at the session, but their tormentors, along with whatever criminals he comes across.
Dispatching one of these tormentors brings Renfield in contact with a drug-dealing crime ring, and the drug lord Teddy Hobo (Ben Schwartz), who runs that part of the Lobo crime family business for his powerful crime boss mom, Ella (Shohreh Aghdashloo), and then in contact with straight-arrow cop Rebecca Quincy (Awkwafina), rebelling against corruption in the force, and her partner (Adrian Martinez), who is less committed to that fight.
The story is set in New Orleans, a perfect spot for this tale, where Dracula is in hiding as he recovers from a very nasty encounter with a van Helsing-type and a priest, which leaves Renfield to do the hunting (or should that be shopping?) for him. Before the tale really gets underway, narrator Renfield gives us a quick recap of that and how he and his boss Dracula met.
This launches us into that wonderful flashback with a marvelous recreation of early scenes Tod Browning’s 1931 black and white DRACULA, either sampling the Universal monster classic (and not that this film is the same studio as distributor) and inserting Nick Cage and Nick Hoult in to the Dracula and Renfield roles. These bits of homage to the original sound film are worth the ticket price alone and there are more snippets later. The classic movie recreations are followed by a quick summary of how Renfield and Dracula ended up in New Orleans, where the story takes place and where Dracula is in hiding as he recovers from a nasty encounter with a van Helsing-type and a priest, which leaves Renfield to do the hunting (or should that be shopping?) for him.
However, Renfield is growing tired of his long life of servitude – and his temperamental and demanding master, and longs for something like a more normal life. When Dracula complains about the quality of the victims, all baddies, that Renfield is bringing him, and demands a better quality of blood – like from nuns and cheerleaders – Renfield reaches a new low. Maybe it is time to admit he is co-dependent.
You can see the comic potential in that, and the script dives right in. In between the drama between Renfield and his toxic boss, we get plenty of action sequences, of the cartoon violence variety, and in the horror movie “buckets-o-blood” vein (ahem). This is over-the-top stuff, with spurting red stuff and limbs severed and heads popped off, but those sensitive to blood and guts should take note.
The film has some great comic moments but overall it suffers from too-slow pacing and a tendency to repeat or draw out some scenes, as if wanting to extend the running time. Generally the comic and relationship scenes work better than the action ones, where the slow pacing and a lack of inventiveness does not work well with a blood-and-gore horror, where speed is needed. While there are some delightful moments between the two Nicks, and an especially funny and spot-on for relationship humor where Cage questions Hoult when Renfield is trying to conceal information from the Prince of Darkness, but the best parts of the film are by far the classic movie recreation scenes, where both Cage and Hoult reveling in the parts with winking humor.
Both Nicks are excellent in this, milking their scenes together for comedy, as Nick Cage’s Dracula plays the worst boss ever with hints to everyone kind of toxic relationship. Where the film falls short is in the action sequences. RENFIELD subscribes to the Buckets-O-Blood school of horror, with cartoon violence that involves spurting founds of red and limbs torn off and heads popped off in the most exaggerated manner. The problem is that the action is a bit slow and repetitive, not nearly fast enough to make it work, and has lackluster, almost generic music under it, which doesn’t help. Oddly, the sound track to the more comic relationship parts is excellent.
Renfield is taken with officer Quincy’s unshakable ethical standards but the scenes between Hoult and Awkwafina don’t always completely work. Hoult plays the smitten Renfield well, with a sweetness and innocence, but Awkwafina seems less comfortable in her narrowly defined role which does not give her enough room to shine. The casting seemed a good idea but as the part as written is too confining, although Awkwafina does get some drama mileage out of it, regarding avenging her father and protecting her sister. Among the supporting characters, Iranian American actor Shohreh Aghdashloo is the elegant and coolly-powerful stand-out in her few scenes. As her son, Ben Schwartz is more noisy and blustering than scary, like an overgrown teenager determined to show how bad he is, while still trying to impress his mom.
RENFIELD serves up gory horror comedy fun, very much on the bloody side. Although some scenes seem to repeat points already made and the action scenes could be energetic, the impressive classic film sequences more than make up for any flaws.
