Disney+ announced its highly anticipated animated series “Monsters at Work” will now begin streaming July 7, with new episodes dropping every Wednesday.
“”Monsters at Work” takes place the day after the Monsters, Incorporated power plant started harvesting the laughter of children to fuel the city of Monstropolis, thanks to Mike and Sulley’s discovery that laughter generates ten times more energy than screams. It follows the story of Tylor Tuskmon, an eager young monster who graduated top of his class at Monsters University and always dreamed of becoming a Scarer until he lands a job at Monsters, Incorporated, and discovers that scaring is out and laughter is in. After Tylor is temporarily reassigned to the Monsters, Inc. Facilities Team (MIFT), he must work alongside a misfit bunch of mechanics while setting his sights on becoming a Jokester.
Produced by Disney Television Animation and inspired by the world of Disney and Pixar’s Academy Award-winning “Monsters, Inc.,” the series introduces new monster characters alongside returning favorites. Ben Feldman stars as the voice of Tylor Tuskmon, alongside other new cast members including Mindy Kaling as Val Little, Henry Winkler as Fritz, Lucas Neff as Duncan and Alanna Ubach as Cutter. Billy Crystal and John Goodman reprise their beloved roles as Mike Wazowski and James P. “Sulley” Sullivan.
“Monsters at Work” was developed and is executive produced by Disney animation veteran Bobs Gannaway (“Mickey Mouse Clubhouse,” “Planes: Fire & Rescue”). Sean Lurie (“Inner Workings”) is producer, and Kat Good (“Big Hero 6 The Series”) and Steve Anderson (“Meet the Robinsons”) serve as supervising directors. The late Rob Gibbs (“Monsters, Inc.”) also served as director on some of the earlier episodes.
“If you’re going to have a problem with stealing, then you’re not going to like the rest of this conversation. “
The ‘Movies on Art Hill’ Series in St. Louis continues this Friday, July 26th with ANCHORMAN. Admission is FREE and the movie will start about 9pm.A Facebook invite for the event can be found HERE
The We Are Movie Geeks gang always goes to these, so if you wanna hang with the cool kids, you should go too. It’s free and they set up a big screen at the bottom of the hill. There are food trucks and beer and wine for sale. You can even go dine in the museum’s restaurant before the show if you got money to burn. If you’re a museum member, you can show your membership card and get free popcorn and ice cream (I did that last year even though my card was expired!). Of course, you can bring a cooler with your own food and drinks as well. It’s a lot of fun! Bring your dog! The movies start at 9 but get there early! Thousands of people show up, especially if the weather is nice, and close parking is scarce. There’s live pre-show music and the people-watching can be entertaining.
What’s a film series without the food?
Bring your own picnic.
Food Truck Fest, presented by Sauce Magazine, will run from 6 to 8:30 pm in the parking lot to the west of the Louis IX statue on Art Hill. Food trucks vary each week and lines will close at 8:30 pm sharp each night. Cash, credit, and debit cards accepted. An ATM will be on Art Hill Plaza.
The Museum’s Cafe will be open and serving casual fare including freshly prepared soups, sandwiches, and salads until 9 pm.
Concession stands with snacks and soda will be located at the top of Art Hill. Show your Saint Louis Art Museum membership card and get a free bag of popcorn!
Adult beverages will be available for purchase at the Panorama booth.
Bring your appetite! Before the movie starts, make sure to tap into your creative side. Each week, there will be an Art Lab for adults complete with an instructor and all the materials you need to create your own Film Series masterpiece.
Don’t miss OCEANS EIGHT this Friday. Five years, eight months, 12 days and counting — that’s how long Debbie Ocean has been devising the biggest heist of her life. She knows what it’s going to take — a team of the best people in the field, starting with her partner-in-crime Lou Miller. Together, they recruit a crew of specialists, including jeweler Amita, street con Constance, suburban mom Tammy, hacker Nine Ball, and fashion designer Rose. Their target — a necklace that’s worth more than $150 million.
August 2nd – GOONIES – A Facebook invite can be found HERE
A group of young misfits who call themselves The Goonies discover an ancient map and set out on a quest to find a legendary pirate’s long-lost treasure.
Emma Thompson (foreground) and Mindy Kaling (far right) star in LATE NIGHT. Photo courtesy of Amazon Studios.
Emma Thompson and Mindy Kaling star in a sort of buddy comedy about a much-lauded but out-of-touch late-night talk show host who hires a young South Asian-American chemist-turned-comedy writer to turn around her sagging ratings, in director Nisha Ganatra’s LATE NIGHT. Yeah, it’s silly but it is surprisingly fun as Thompson and Kaling explore topics ranging from toxic workplaces, sexism, diversity, cut-throat television competition to what makes comedy work, all with dash of inspiration and warmth
The film opens with Thompson’s
Katherine Newbury accepting yet another award for her long-career as
the first woman to host a late night talk show. Katherine’s show
features guests such as Doris Kearns Goodwin and an opening monologue
but over the years she has fallen into routine and complacency. With
all her awards, the last thing she expects is for the network’s new
female CEO to tell her she is being replaced.
Shocked into action, Katherine turns to
her writing staff and suddenly notices it is all men. In an effort to
add a woman’s voice, she hires the first one through the door –
Molly (Kaling), a South Asian-American chemist trying to break into
comedy writing.
As soon as newbie Molly shows up in the
all-male, all-white writers room, they assume she’s there to fetch
coffee. “I wish I was a woman of color so I could get hired with
zero qualification,” whines one of the writers, in a fit of white
male privilege. But while Molly may have little experience, she
brings a ton of brains and fresh ideas to the stale writers’ room.
Mindy Kaling really makes this work. Of course, Kaling certainly knows something about being a woman writer in the male-dominated comedy field, as well as working in television. She works in bits about clueless bosses, slams at diversity hires, and a host of other timely topics. Not every bit works but there are enough of them to garner laughs of enough to keep the movie bouncing along.
While Kaling does her fish-out-of-water
comedy, Thompson mines the film’s more dramatic side. Thompson’s
character is a comedian who seems to have lost her sense of humor.
As charming as she seems in public, she is pretty callous to her
staff. She is a self-absorbed boss from hell dressed in designer
clothes (a little echo from “The Devil Wears Prada”) but Thompson
makes her more than that. Thompson does sport some flashy fashions
and footwear as she terrorizes her staff. After years of ignoring her
writers, she shows up at their meeting demanding material that is
timely and funny. Not wanting to bother to learning their names, she
gives them numbers instead.
Meanwhile Thompson explores other
topics with her character, an ambitious driven woman who forgo having
a family for her career. She lives only for her career – and for
her husband Walter (John Lithgow), a respected academic now in poor
health. The film explores the complications in her long marriage,
with warm, well-drawn performances from both Lithgow and Thompson.
Kaling’s character faces a daunting
workplace where women are not welcome – much less one of color. She
is not only expected to get the coffee but finds the all-male writing
team even use the women’s bathroom. She doesn’t even get a chair at
the writer’s table and has only a corner of a desk. Still, she gets
organized and gets to work on jokes for the monologue
There is potential for some pointed
political humor here but Kaling takes a softer approach, making some
points but backing off from anything truly biting. Kaling makes up
for that with warmth and the kind of bonding scenes between her and
Thompson, in a female version of a bromance (sis-mance? womance?).
They start out not liking but needing each other, and winding up more
like mentor-protege, even friends.
Kaling and Thompson are good in their
scenes together, although their characters are often on dual tracks.
The more affecting scenes are between Thompson and Lithgow as the
long-married couple, working through a rough patch. Kaling bounces
her comedy off the fellow writers, landing some good barbs.
LATE NIGHT’s two-track approach –
comedic and dramatic – to exploring the challenges women face in
the workplace doesn’t always work but it works often enough to make
the film funny and thought-provoking most of the time. Which is
pretty good.
LATE NIGHT opens Friday, June 14 at the
Hi-Pointe Theater, Plaza Frontenac Cinema, and other area theaters.
Less than a dozen weeks into the movie year of 2018, and a couple of flicks squarely aimed at the tots have scored some big box office bucks and surprisingly strong critical praise (that lil’ Paddington Bear, in his second feature adventure, is still at a whopping 100 percent at Rotten Tomatoes). So, the folks at the “mouse house” are eager to jump into the arena, though the smash BLACK PANTHER is from their Marvel Studios branch. Now, this new flick is from their Disney Pictures banner, not Pixar (recent Oscar winner COCO), or Disney Studios Animation (like the previous year’s winner ZOOTOPIA), or even Disney Nature with its “real life” animal extravaganzas. Now many of the Disney Pictures stamped films have been set in the world of sports like MCFARLAND USA (track and field) or QUEEN OF KATWE (chess) or have been big live-action versions of the classic animated features such as THE JUNGLE BOOK and last year’s megahit BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. And then there’s the Jack Sparrow PIRATES franchise (which may never sink). This time they’re adapting a much-beloved piece of children literature, hoping to repeat the box office bonanza from 2005’s first NARNIA outing. We’ll see if a new trilogy can be culled when Disney, along with a lauded film-maker and a true multi-media superstar, brings to life Madeleine L’Engle’s A WRINKLE IN TIME.
The tale’s main character is the brilliant teenager Meg Murry (Storm Reid), the daughter of equally brilliant parents Kate (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) and Alexander (Chris Pine). We first meet them as they prepare for the arrival of Meg’s kid brother Charles Wallace. Mr. and Mrs. Murry have been trying to convince the scientific community that long distance space travel can be accomplished, not with rockets and thrusters, but through the power of the mind to cause a jump, or wrinkle, in the vast distances. Years later, Alexander disappears without a trace, perhaps while proving his theory. Unfortunately this helps makes Meg and now six year-old Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe) outcasts at school, derided by fellow students and teachers alike. One evening, as Kate and Meg discuss the playground altercation that sent Meg to the principal’s office, Charles invites an eccentric adult into their home, a woman he calls Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon). After making several odd statements she disappears. Soon afterward, Meg is befriended by a classmate, Calvin (Levi Miller), who finds her fascinating. Charles leads the two to another friend of his who lives in an old run-down house, the even stranger Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling), a lady who only responds by reciting famous quotes. Soon the two women are joined by a third, the towering (she hasn’t adjusted her size), Mrs. Which (Oprah Winfrey), who tells the children that their father is alive. Their surroundings begin to simmer and quiver as if the fabric of their dimension is unraveling. The three kids, along with the magical trio, burst though their undulating world and arrive on the planet Uriel, a beautiful utopia. Mrs. Which explains that she used a device known as the “terreract” and “tesserd’ them to this place. But papa Murry is not here, rather he’s somewhere far from Uriel, a planet of darkness known as Camazotz. With the help of Mrs. Whatsit’s sometimes beau the Happy Medium (Zach Galifianakis). Meg, Calvin, and Charles Wallace will enter “the Darkness”, face down the “Red-Eyed Man” (Michael Pena), and try to locate their long-lost father.
This fantasy journey is firmly grounded by the compelling confident performance of Ms. Reid in her first (of many, no doubt) starring role. Particularly in the opening Earth sequences, she conveys the pain of being an outsider, yearning to fit in while knowing she may be destined for more than just popularity. The confusion at her new surroundings is all in her eyes and movements, along with her fear, then the hesitation giving way to determination. Later she experiences the first tugs of romance, stirred by Calvin played by Miller as a true “teen dream” right out of Tiger Beat Magazine (it’s still around, really). But all is not perfect, as we see his torments from his perfectionist pop. Plus he eagerly succumbs to the Darkness’s temptation, needing to be rescued by the level-headed Meg. McCabe, as the precocious “third wheel” kid brother has energy to spare, bouncing between obnoxious and endearing within seconds. The movie’s marketing department may be banking on the magical ladies played by some show biz heavy-hitters. Winfrey projects the right amount of gravitas, even as she hovers above at over thirty feet in her first scene (“The Amazing Colossal Oprah”, to borrow a “B” movie classic’s title). Later she provides much-needed plot points while being the stern mother (or the “Moe”) to her flighty sisters. Witherspoon is light, ethereal beauty as Whatsit, playful and odd, but never threatening (when she is lead into the Murry home). Kaling is dream-like, a delightfully dotty aunt as she runs along the fleeing flowers and uses bits of trivia for her dialogue. Galifianakis is a prickly, but endearing “drill sergeant”, putting Meg through her “paces” and trying to unleash her potential. Pena is an affable “genie-like” pixie, who reveals his true colors with frightening glee. Back at the homestead, Pine is a playful and passionate papa, who delights at his children as his peers reject his life’s work. And Mbatha-Raw is a nurturing matriarch, nearly overwhelmed at sole parental responsibilities while mourning the loss of her partner and soul mate. Solid support is provided by MOONLIGHT’s Andre Holland as Meg’s stern, but understanding principal and Rowan Blanchard as the school’s “queen B” who bullies others to hide her own insecurities.
Director Ava DuVernay leaps from the indie world of SELMA into this big budget film fable with a fairly steady hand after a somewhat rocky opening act. The Earth-bound sequences are marred by extended close-ups, making this widescreen epic feel like an old Perry Mason episode. Perhaps this is used to make the other planets seem more expansive, but the tightly framed scenes almost induce claustrophobia. We are given a visual “breather” once the quest begins, but the principle characters are posed and still, drinking in the CGI wonders along with the audience.The landscapes are lovely as are the bizarre creatures, the floating butterfly like flowers and a soaring dragon with leaf-like skin. The three “missuses” have looks that may work in book illustrations, but the intricate design make-up and billowy “tarp”-dresses become distracting and cumbersome (we wonder when one will get entangled and trip). The script becomes far too precious with the odd speech patterns of the mystical trio, and it often feels too preachy as Mrs. Which delivers many platitudes (ready-made for framing) and solemn life lessons (a bit of humor would be welcome). Some of the imagery is refreshingly dark (the demise of “Red” and the “Stepford” plastic suburbia are creepy), but there’s no great sense of danger (oh, for a cackling witch). Meg Murry’s is such a terrific role model for boys and girls, that it’s a shame that her first outing isn’t more exciting. The wee ones may enjoy seeing this “bedtime” tale come to life, but the sluggish pace may cause the older audience to wish they could “tesser” and make another crease to forward through A WRINKLE IN TIME.
WAMG has your passes to see Disney’s A WRINKLE IN TIME.
The film is an epic adventure from visionary director Ava DuVernay based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic, takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.
A WRINKLE IN TIME stars Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Peňa, Storm Reid, Levi Miller and Deric McCabe with Zach Galifianakis and Chris Pine.
A WRINKLE IN TIME opens in theaters nationwide March 9.
Enter for the chance to win FOUR (4) seats to the 2D Screening of A WRINKLE IN TIME on Monday, March 5th at 7pm in the St. Louis area.
Answer the Following:
“A Wrinkle in Time” is the first book in Madeleine L’Engle’s series. What is the name of this series? How many books are there total?
Enter your name, email address and answers in the comments section below.
OFFICIAL RULES:
1. YOU MUST BE IN THE ST. LOUIS AREA THE DAY OF THE SCREENING.
2. No purchase necessary. A pass does not guarantee a seat at a screening. Seating is on a first-come, first served basis. The theater is overbooked to assure a full house.
“These boots are made for walking, and that’s just what they’ll do. One of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you.” In 1966 Nancy Sinatra sang the iconic song and a version is featured in a snappy first trailer for the upcoming all-female heist film, OCEAN’S 8.
Check it out now. This is going to be a fun ride!
The tide has turned and it’s a whole new “Ocean’s” when eight women plan and execute a heist in New York.
Oscar winner Sandra Bullock stars in the title role, alongside Oscar winners Cate Blanchett and Anne Hathaway, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson, Awkwafina, with Rihanna and Oscar nominee Helena Bonham Carter.
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Gary Ross is directing. Ross directs from a screenplay he wrote with Olivia Milch (upcoming “Dude”), with Steven Soderbergh.
From Warner Bros. Pictures, OCEAN’S 8 opens in theaters June 8th, 2018.
From visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love.
Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.
Watch the brand new warrior trailer from Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” which debuted on the “American Music Awards”.
Directed by Emmy(R) winner and Oscar(R) and Golden Globe(R) nominee Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Oscar winner Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, “A Wrinkle in Time” stars: two-time Academy Award(R) nominee Oprah Winfrey, Oscar and Emmy winner Reese Witherspoon, Emmy nominee Mindy Kaling, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Peňa and introducing Storm Reid, with two-time Emmy winner Zach Galifianakis and Emmy nominee Chris Pine.
Produced by Jim Whitaker and Catherine Hand with Doug Merrifield serving as executive producer, the film also boasts an impressive creative team featuring some of the most talented artisans working today, including: Tobias Schliessler, ASC as director of photography, Naomi Shohan as production designer, Oscar(R)-nominee Spencer Averick as film editor, two-time Academy Award(R)-nominee Paco Delgado as costume designer and four time Emmy(R) nominee Ramin Djawadi as composer.
Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ give audiences this first look at OCEAN’s 8 from one of New York City’s most iconic locales: the subway.
The tide will turn as (L-r) Debbie Ocean (SANDRA BULLOCK) attempts to pull off the heist of the century at New York City’s star-studded annual Met Gala.
Her first stop is to assemble the perfect crew: Lou (CATE BLANCHETT); Nine Ball (RIHANNA); Amita (MINDY KALING); Constance (AWKWAFINA); Rose (HELENA BONHAM CARTER); Daphne Kluger (ANNE HATHAWAY); and Tammy (SARAH PAULSON).
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Gary Ross is directing.
Ross directs from a screenplay he wrote with Olivia Milch (upcoming “Dude”), with Steven Soderbergh and Jon Kilik producing, Michael Tadross, Susan Ekins, Sandra Bullock, Diana Alvarez and Bruce Berman executive producing, and Milch co-producing. Filming is taking place in and around New York City.
Collaborating with Ross behind the scenes are director of photography Eigil Bryld (“In Bruges,” “Not Fade Away”), production designer Alex DiGerlando (“Beasts of the Southern Wild,” HBO’s “True Detective”), editor Juliette Welfling (“Free State of Jones,” “The Hunger Games”), costume designer Sarah Edwards (“Tower Heist,” Showtime’s “Billions”), and composer Nicholas Britell (“The Big Short,” “Free State of Jones”).
OCEAN’S 8 is set for release in Summer 2018 and will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, and in select territories by Village Roadshow Pictures.
Production for Disney’s upcoming epic, live-action adventure “A Wrinkle in Time” kicks off tomorrow in Los Angeles starring Oprah Winfrey (“Selma”, “The Butler”) as Mrs. Which, Reese Witherspoon (“Wild, “Walk the Line”) as Mrs. Whatsit, Mindy Kaling (“The Mindy Project,” “Inside Out”) as Mrs. Who, Chris Pine (“Star Trek Beyond,” “Hell or High Water,” “Into the Woods”) as Mr. Murry, Gugu Mbatha-Raw (“Beauty and The Beast,” “Belle”) as Mrs. Murry, Zach Galifianakis (“Birdman,” “ The Hangover,”) as The Happy Medium, André Holland (“Moonlight,” “Selma”) as Principal Jenkins, Levi Miller (“Pan”) as Calvin, Deric McCabe as Charles Wallace, and introducing Storm Reid as the iconic literary character Meg Murry.
Bellamy Young, Rowan Blanchard and Will McCormack round out the highly acclaimed cast.
Directed by Ava DuVernay (“13th,” “Selma”), the film is a reimagining of Madeleine L’Engle’s classic novel that takes Meg Murry, her brilliant brother Charles Wallace and their friend Calvin on an unexpected journey into alternate dimensions on a mission to bring home their father.
“Since Day One, this experience has shimmered with the promise and possibility, the passion and power that only great stories offer,” said DuVernay. “And Madeline L’Engle’s book is a great story indeed. A cool, quirky tale of an imperfect girl on an otherworldly expedition that has been praised and banned, dissected and celebrated the world over for more than 50 years. On behalf of all the filmmakers, artists and craftspeople in our ‘Wrinkle in Time’ family, we are genuinely thrilled by and truly grateful for the opportunity to make this film together.”
First published in 1962, L’Engle’s novel has sold more than 23 million copies worldwide, receiving a recent surge following Chelsea Clinton’s mention during the Democratic National Convention. Winner of the Newbery Prize in 1963, “A Wrinkle in Time” has been translated into 35 languages.
“A Wrinkle in Time” builds on Disney’s strong track record of reimagining classic stories for a contemporary audience, with recent examples including “The Jungle Book,” “Maleficent” and the upcoming “Beauty and the Beast.”
Directed by DuVernay, the film is produced by Jim Whitaker (“Pete’s Dragon”) and Catherine Hand from a script written by Jennifer Lee (“Frozen”). Principal photography will take place primarily in California with two weeks of production in New Zealand.
Ava DuVernay’s creative team also includes director of photography Tobias A. Schliessler (“Beauty and the Beast,” “Mr. Holmes”), production designer Naomi Shohan (“Training Day,” “American Beauty,”), costume designer Paco Delgado (“The Danish Girl,” “Les Miserables”) and visual effects supervisor Rich McBride (“The Revenant,” “Gravity”).
After an extensive search, The Walt Disney Studios is pleased to announce that 13-year-old Storm Reid will play the lead role of Meg Murry in the upcoming Disney live action adaptation of Madeleine L’Engle’s A WRINKLE IN TIME.
Said director Ava DuVernay,”After an extensive search that spanned multiple dimensions, we’re overjoyed to welcome Storm Reid to WRINKLE IN TIME as our beloved “Meg.” Storm is a tremendously talented young actress who embodies the hopes, dreams and spirit of a character much loved by audiences worldwide for generations. I can’t wait to work with Storm as we chronicle Meg’s epic quest, alongside Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon and Mindy Kaling as Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who. Tesser well!”
Reid’s first theatrical film role was in the Academy Award-winning 12 YEARS A SLAVE where she played Emily, and she has also appeared in AMERICAN GIRL: LEA TO THE RESCUE and SLEIGHT, which premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. Most recently, she shot a starring role in Judy Greer’s directorial debut A HAPPENING OF MONUMENTAL PROPROTIONS (2017), alongside Allison Janney, Common and Bradley Whitford. She is represented by Stella Alex from the Savage Agency, Principato-Young Entertainment, and Felker Toczek Suddleson Abramson.
Reid joins a cast which already includes Oprah Winfrey in the role of Mrs. Which, Reese Witherspoon in the role of Mrs. Whatsit and Mindy Kaling in the role of Mrs. Who. The actors shared the official news on Twitter.
The film is directed by Ava DuVernay (SELMA) from a script by Jennifer Lee (FROZEN). Jim Whitaker and Catherine Hand are producing the film, which will begin production later this year.
