Tag: animation

Review: ‘Scoob!,’ starring Will Forte, Frank Welker, Zac Efron, Amanda Seyfried, Mark Wahlberg, Gina Rodriguez and Jason Isaacs

May 16, 2020

by Carla Hay

Daphne (voiced by Amanda Seyfried), Velma (voiced by Gina Rodriguez), Shaggy (voiced by Will Forte), Fred (voiced by Zac Efron) and Scooby-Doo (voiced by Frank Welker) in “Scoob!” (Image courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures)

“Scoob!”

Directed by Tony Cervone

Culture Representation: Taking place primarily in California’s Venice Beach and other parts of the universe, the animated film “Scoob!” has a predominantly white cast of characters (with a few African Americans, Asians and Latinos) representing the middle-class.

Culture Clash: A villain is out to kidnap Scooby-Doo, the lovable, talking Great Dane that’s the best friend of one of the four young people who’ve started a detective agency called Mystery Inc.

Culture Audience: “Scoob!” will appeal primarily to fans of the original “Scooby Doo” TV cartoon series and to people who are looking for lightweight animation for entertainment.

Dick Dastardly (voiced by Jason Isaacs) and Scooby-Doo (voiced  by Frank Welker) in “Scoob!” (Image courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures)

People who loved the original “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” TV series should brace themselves if they see the animated film “Scoob!,” because the uncomplicated charm of the TV show has been turned into a overly busy, often-mediocre film that has a serious identity crisis. The “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” TV series was essentially a detective show, with each mystery solved at the end of each episode. The “Scoob!” movie tries to be too many things at once—a comedy, a mystery, a superhero story, a supernatural horror movie and a sci-fi adventure. But the worst change in the “Scoob!” movie is that Scooby-Doo and the four young detectives at the heart of the “Scooby-Doo” series are split up for most of the “Scoob!” movie.

“Scoob!” begins with showing how the talking Great Dane known as Scooby-Doo ended up with his best friend Shaggy. In the bohemian beach city of Venice, California, a homeless Great Dane puppy is being chased by a bicycle cop and hides out in a mound of sand on the beach. It just so happens that a lonely boy named Norville “Shaggy” Rogers (who’s about 9 or 10 years old) is nearby on the same beach and discovers the dog.

Shaggy names the dog Scooby Dooby Doo. And when the bicycle cop catches up to the dog, Shaggy convinces the cop that he’s the dog’s rightful owner. Shaggy takes Scooby home with him, and they become fast friends. As a token of their friendship, Shaggy gives Scooby a dog collar with a tag engraved with the initials “SD” on it.

Shaggy’s favorite superhero is Blue Falcon, who has a canine sidekick named Dynomutt. Shaggy keeps action figures and pictures of them in his room. Shaggy is such a fan that, for Halloween, he dresses up as Blue Falcon and Scooby as Dynomutt. While they’re out trick-or-treating, some kid bullies steal Shaggy’s candy and knock him  and Scooby down on the sidewalk as they run away.

It’s here that Shaggy and Scooby first meet the three young people who will become their close friends: brawny Fred, compassionate Daphne and brainy Velma. For their Halloween costumes, Fred is dressed as a knight in armor, Daphne is dressed as Wonder Woman and Daphne is dressed as Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Shaggy mistakes Daphne for trying to be someone in a “Harry Potter” movie.

Fred, Daphne and Velma offer to help Shaggy after seeing him get knocked down, but he says the only things that are bruised are his “ego and tailfeathers.” (This line is one of the many signs that this movie was written by adults who can’t write realistic kids’ dialogue.) As soon as Scooby and this quartet of new friends start to bond, they encounter their first big mystery together, as they enter what’s rumored to be a haunted house.

They’re immediately terrorized by a menacing ghost in the house. Instead of running away (which is always Shaggy’s inclination), they band together to fight the ghost, which turns out not to be ghost, but a thief who has kept a houseful of stolen electronics and appliances stashed there. And, of course, when he’s arrested, he snarls that he would’ve gotten away with it if it weren’t for those meddling kids. It’s the first real mystery solved by the four friends and Scooby.

Fast forward about 10 years later, and the four friends are now in their late teens/early 20s. They’ve started a detective agency named Mystery Inc., and are trying to figure out how to raise money to keep the business going. While they have a meeting at a diner, Velma (voiced by Gina Rodriguez) thinks that they should find investors.

And lo and behold, Simon Cowell (voiced by the real Cowell) randomly shows up unannounced at the diner, sits down at the table, and says that he’s willing to invest in the detective agency—but only if they get rid of Shaggy and Scooby, since Cowell thinks they’re useless. Cowell cynically adds, “When you get in trouble, friendship won’t save the day.”

Shaggy and Scooby are so insulted, that they don’t wait around to hear how Fred (voiced by Zac Efron), Daphne (voiced Amanda Seyfried) and Velma react to Cowell’s ultimatum to get rid of Shaggy and Scooby. Leaving in a huff, Shaggy and Scooby end up at a bowling alley, where they encounter bowling balls and bowling pins that turn into minion-like robots with chainsaws for hands.

The robots chase Shaggy and Scooby around a bowling alley. Just then, a blue light beams down. It’s the Falcon Fury spaceship owned by Blue Falcon (voiced by Mark Wahlberg) and navigated by pilot Dee Dee Skyes (voiced by Kiersey Clemons), who rescue Shaggy and Scooby from the robots. Dee Dee tells Shaggy and Scooby that the robots are from a villain called Dick Dastardly (voiced by Jason Isaacs).

While on the ship, Shaggy meets his hero Blue Falcon. The superhero is really a guy named Brian who’s taken over the Blue Falcon superhero persona from his retired father, and he hides his insecurity by putting up a blustery brave front. Dynomutt (voiced by Ken Jeong) has the power to extend his neck to great lengths and he’s a loyal and enthusiastic sidekick to Blue Falcon.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, Velma has found out through research that Dick Dastardly is wanted by authorities for stealing archeological artifacts from Peru (including a giant skull of a dog) and for taking genealogical records of dogs from the Global Kennel Club. It’s pretty easy to figure out at this point that Scooby is the target of Dick Dastardly’s evil plans. But why? The movie answers that question, but there’s a lot of filler action, as the movie zigzags from genre to genre the way that the characters zig zig from Earth to outer space.

“Scoob!” has four screenwriters—Adam Sztykiel, Jack C. Donaldson, Derek Elliott and Matt Lieberman—and the whole movie gives the impression that the screenplay had “too many cooks in the kitchen.” It tries to be a comedy, but the jokes aren’t very good. When one of the characters calls athletic Fred “a poor man’s Hemsworth,” Fred asks, “Chris or Liam?” And the “mystery” in the movie is very easy to solve, even for young children who might be watching.

As for the animation, when there are Pixar movies in the world, many other animated films look inferior in comparison. The best action sequences in “Scoob!” are with the fearsome Cerberus (the three-headed hound of Hades), which has to do with the supernatural horror aspect of this messy film. There’s a chase scene through an abandoned amusement park that ramps up the action, but nothing in this movie is awards-worthy.

Although the actors do a good job with the screenplay that they’ve been given, it seems as if the Blue Falcon character was added to the world of Scooby-Doo just to jump on the bandwagon of superhero movies and to create a possible cinematic universe with various Hanna-Barbera characters. And the celebrity cameo from Cowell just seems weird and out of place. Cowell’s son Eric even has a voice role in the movie. (Did someone on the “Scoob!” filmmaking team owe Simon Cowell a favor?) Tracy Morgan has a cameo as Captain Caveman on Mystery Island, but his wacky character is very under-used in a script that needed more originality instead of a derivative superhero subplot.

And since Shaggy and Scooby are separated from Fred, Daphne and Velma during most of the movie, this estrangement ruins the original appeal of the “Scooby-Doo” series, which is all about the teamwork and camaraderie between this lovable dog and his four human friends. Another travesty: Mystery Inc.’s 1970s-style van the Mystery Machine is literally destroyed in the movie, which is an apt metaphor for how this movie wrecks the spirit of the original “Scooby-Doo” series. If “Scoob!” had stuck to a well-crafted story about a good mystery that needed solving—instead of trying to be too many things to too many people—then it would have turned out to be a much better movie.

Warner Bros. Pictures released “Scoob!” on digital and VOD on May 15, 2020.

Review: ‘The Wolf House,’ starring Amalia Kassai and Rainer Krausse

May 15, 2020

by Carla Hay

“The Wolf House” (Image courtesy of KimStim)

“The Wolf House”

Directed by Cristóbal León and Joaquín Cociña

Spanish and German with subtitles

Culture Representation: Taking place in Chile, the animated film “The Wolf House” tells the story of a woman named Maria, who has escaped from a cult of German religious fanatics, and the house that comes to life after she finds refuge there.

Culture Clash: The nightmarish story of Maria’s isolation in the house has various hallucinations where she is sometimes at odds with entities in the house that morph into other beings.

Culture Audience: “The Wolf House” will appeal primarily to people who like avant-garde animation.

“The Wolf House” (Image courtesy of KimStim)

To understand the experimental animated film “The Wolf House,” it’s better that people know in advance that the movie is inspired by the story of Colonia Dignidad, a real-life cult founded in in 1961 in Chile by a German fugitive Paul Schäfer, who ended up being a convicted child abuser. Not knowing this historical background for the film will leave viewers very confused over the point of this often-incoherent movie, which has striking visuals but lacks a well-written storyline.

“The Wolf House” has a movie-within-a-movie concept, since the it’s supposed to be “found footage” of a propaganda film made by a German colony in Chile and narrated by a man called Wolf (voiced by Rainer Krausse), whose voice is heard at the beginning and at the end of the film. Viewers can assume that Wolf is the cult leader, based on he says in the movie’s last scene.

During the course of the movie, the story is told of a young woman named Maria, who lived in the community but was punished for letting three little pigs escape. She was kept in solitary confinement for 100 days and 100 nights until she escaped into the woods and hid in an isolated house.

“The wolf is coming,” Maria says. “But he will not catch me.” When Maria  (voiced by Amalia Kassai) begins speaking, she takes over the narration of the majority of the movie that shows what happens inside the house while she’s hiding.

What takes place inside the house is like a fever dream, and it’s up to the viewers to interpret what could be real and what could be Maria’s imagination. The entire movie plays out like a psychedelic, nightmarish fairy tale. Just like Lewis Carroll’s Alice who went down the rabbit hole, Maria in “The Wolf House” experiences her own version of a weird and confined alternative world.

Maria asks for help with food, shelter and water—and a tree comes to life to help her. In the house, she finds two pigs, which she names Pedro and Ana. She gives them water and notices that they have human hands. Small animals also give Maria an apple as a thank you gift. Ana and Pedro eventually morph into two human children, with Pedro as a boy who’s younger than Ana. In “The Wolf House,” Kassai also voices the characters of Ana and Pedro.

Maria reads a book to Pedro called “The Dog and the House,” which is about a disobedient dog who jumped out of a window and was never found again but is presumed dead since the wind brought back the smell of the dog’s broken bones and other injuries. The book is an obvious parallel to what Maria might experience, and it serves as a warning/cautionary tale to anyone else who might think of escaping the cult.

The quirky animation of “The Wolf House” was shot frame-by-frame with digital photography. The ever-morphing characters were presented in two ways: (1) as animated puppets made out of paper, cardboard, masking tape and paint and (2) as animated drawings on the walls of the house. Nothing really stays still in the house, and all is not what they seem to be. Walls and furniture can turn into body parts; people can emerge from different objects; and human characters can change their physical size and hair color, or can morph back and forth into animals or other different things.

When Maria is feeling safe and comfortable, she speaks in Spanish. When she’s feeling angry or threatened, she speaks in German. It’s a clear metaphor for her true self being a Spanish-speaking Chilean, while she takes on the persona of her German cult tormenters when she’s having negative thoughts.

When Maria thinks of humans in degrading terms, they’re visualized as pigs. And when Pedro and Ana morph from being Latino-looking children into blond-haired German-looking children, it’s a metaphor for Nazi-like conformity that gives preference to Aryan-looking people. These types of metaphors in “The Wolf House” are why the movie has a deeper meaning if audiences know in advance that the disturbing history of Colonia Dignidad is the basis of “The Wolf House” screenplay.

“The Wolf House” directors Cristóbal León and Joaquín Cociña wrote the screenplay with Alejandra Moffat. The script seems to be an unfocused secondary priority that just goes with the flow of whatever strange visual effects that the filmmakers wanted to infuse throughout the story. However, the art direction from León, Cociña and Natalia Geisse succeeds on a much higher artistic level than the movie’s script. There are some truly unique images that make “The Wolf House” a treat for people who might be interested in a more avant-garde alternative to Laika animated films.

For people who don’t have the benefit of knowing what inspired “The Wolf House,” the visuals might be enough to hold an audience’s interest. Unfortunately, Kassai’s narration, which has a whispering sing-song tone, can be extremely grating after a while. “The Wolf House” is definitely not a family film (since children will not understand the movie at all), nor is it a mainstream film for adults. Ultimately, the movie’s concept needed to better articulated in its writing, and “The Wolf House” probably would have been better off as a short film.

KimStim released “The Wolf House” in select U.S. virtual cinemas on May 15, 2020.

Review: ‘Trolls World Tour,’ featuring the voices of Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Rachel Bloom, Sam Rockwell, Anderson .Paak, James Corden and Kelly Clarkson

April 12, 2020

by Carla Hay

Poppy (voiced by Anna Kendrick) and Branch (voiced by Justin Timberlake) in “Trolls World Tour” (Image courtesy of DreamWorks Animation)

“Trolls World Tour”

Directed by Walt Dohrn and David P.  Smith

Culture Representation: This animated film sequel to 2016’s “Trolls” has a racially diverse cast (white, African American, Latino and Asian) voicing characters based on troll dolls.

Culture Clash: The trolls live in different territories based on the music of their lifestyles, and the queen of the rock territory wants to take over everything.

Culture Audience: “Trolls World Tour” is a family-friendly film that will appeal mostly to kids, adults who young at heart and people who like a variety of hit songs.

Barb (voiced by Rachel Bloom) in “Trolls World Tour” (Image courtesy of DreamWorks Animation)

On Broadway, there are jukebox musicals that string together a plot in between the performance of hit songs. And now, the jukebox musical trend has reached animated films with “Trolls World Tour,” which is a showcase for some original songs but mostly retro hits from various genres of music. This sequel to 2016’s “Trolls” packs in even more stars in the voice cast than its predecessor movie. The result is an energetic and vibrant ride that is utterly predictable but should be a crowd-pleaser for its intended audience.

Even though the plot of “Trolls World Tour” is pretty simple, there are five people who are credited with writing the screenplay: Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger, Maya Forbes, Wallace Wolodarsky and Elizabeth Tippet. The large writing team for this movie is also a reflection of the huge increase in the size of the “Trolls World” voice cast, compared to the first “Trolls” movie. Walt Dohrn, who co-directed “Trolls” with Mike Mitchell, returns as a director on “Trolls World Tour,” but this time with David P. Smith as co-director. Dohrn voices several of the supporting characters in both movies.

Viewers of “Trolls World Tour” don’t need to see the first “Trolls” movie to understand what’s going on in this sequel, but it helps if more of a backstory is needed for the two central characters in both films: Princess Poppy (voiced by Anna Kendrick) and her best friend/love interest Bark (voiced by Justin Timberlake). In “Trolls,” Bark (who tends to be overly pessimistic) became a reluctant ally and then eventual best friend to Poppy (who tends to be overly optimistic) in the Trolls’ quest to defeat the sad and angry creatures known as Bergens, whose goal was to make everyone in the world as miserable as they are.

In “Trolls World Tour,” the chief villain is Princess Barb (voiced by Rachel Bloom) a rocker girl who leads the Trolls whose music of choice is hard rock/heavy metal. Ozzy Osbourne is perfectly cast for the voice of King Thrash, Barb’s father. Barb’s goal is to have rock music take over all six territories in the Troll Kingdom. Each territory represents the music that embodies the Trolls’ lifestyle in each territory.

The other five territories represent the music genres of pop, techno, country, funk and classical. In the beginning of the movie, Barb and her minions arrive in a fleet of sharks to take over the techno territory. She takes a valuable guitar string from the Techno trolls and then she and her army of rock Trolls then move on to conquer the next territory.

When news of the invasion hits the pop territory, Poppy thinks that Barb has good intentions to unite all of the Trolls. But her father King Peppy (voiced by Dohrn) reveals a secret from the Trolls’ historical past: The Trolls almost had a civil war over their different tastes in music, so the music territories were created so Trolls who liked the same genre of music could live together in harmony. Each territory was bestowed with a magical guitar string that has the power to control that territory.

Barb is on a mission to collect all six of the magical strings to put them on a guitar. Once the guitar has the six strings on it, she’ll play an “ultimate power chord” that will give her and rock music complete control over all the Troll territories. Since “Trolls World Tour” is an animated jukebox musical, Barb belts out several rock songs along the way, including Scorpions’ “Rock You Like a Hurricane,” Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” and Heart’s “Barracuda.”

“Trolls World Tour” has several jokes about clichés and criticisms that go with certain music genres. The movie pokes fun at pop for being simple, repetitive “earworm” music. Rock is parodied for attracting low-life burnouts who wear mullets or mohawks and do “devil horn” signs. Country music has a stereotype of being full of sad songs and fans who act like rednecks or country bumpkins.

Classical music is labeled as “boring.” Techno gets criticism for its artists not playing “real” instruments. And funk (whose territory is populated with African American voice actors) calls out rap and pop for over-using funk samples. The original song “It’s All Love (History of Funk)” is a clap back to all the music that lifted funk riffs to make hit songs and funk artists not being paid properly for these samples.

Not for nothing, George Clinton (co-founder of Parliament-Funkadelic, one of the most-sampled groups of all time) is cast as new Trolls character King Quincy, who rules the funk territory Vibe City with Queen Essence (voiced by Mary J. Blige). The funk royals have a son named Prince D, voiced by hip-hop star Anderson .Paak, who performs the original song “Don’t Slack” with Timberlake in the film.  And returning Trolls character Cooper (voiced by Ron Funches) from the pop territory finds out that he has a connection to the funk territory.

“Trolls World Tour” once again has Poppy convincing a reluctant and wary Branch to go with her to help stop the chief villain before it’s too late. “Trolls” characters that are also in “Trolls World Tour” are loyal Biggie (voiced by James Corden) and wisecracking Guy Diamond (voiced by Kunal Nayyar), who provide some of the comic relief in the film

But there are so many new characters in “Trolls World Tour” that the movie could feel overstuffed for people who have short attention spans and might have trouble keeping track of them all. Guy now has a son named Tiny Diamond (voiced by Kenan Thompson). Delta Dawn (voiced by Kelly Clarkson) is a sassy, big-haired redhead who is a singer and leader of the country music territory.

Also in the country music territory is Hickory (voiced by Sam Rockwell), a multitalented and brave cowboy who befriends Poppy, much to Branch’s chagrin. Branch has been trying to tell Poppy that he loves her but is afraid to do it, so he gets jealous when it looks like Hickory is winning Poppy’s admiration. Hickory is the biggest standout new character in “Trolls World Tour” since he and his “yee-haw” can-do personality get a lot of screen time.

Some other supporting characters in the movie are the bounty hunters that Barb hires to help her track down the elusive pop guitar string that Poppy has in her possession. The bounty hunters are smooth jazz musician Chaz (voiced by Jamie Dornan), a clarinet-playing Kenny G type who plays hypnotic music that gets on people’s nerves. The other bounty hunters are musical groups representing reggaeton, K-Pop and yodelers. J Balvin has a cameo as the reggaeton leader, and his song “Mi Gente” is in the movie.

There are several familiar hits that get the medley treatment in “Trolls World Tour,” including Spice Girls’ “Wannabe,” Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch’s “Good Vibrations,” Psy’s “Gangnam Style,” Baha Men’s “Who Let the Dogs Out” and LMFAO’s “Party Rock Anthem.” Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” has the lyrics reworked with the word “trolls” replacing the word “girls.” Dierks Bentley’s song “Leaving Lonesome Flats” (written for “Trolls World Tour”) is featured in a country music segment. And an electronic-dance music concert in the movie’s opening scene has the DJ playing Daft Punk’s “One More Time.”

“Trolls World Tour” music directors are Timberlake and Ludwig Goransson, the musician who won an Oscar and a Grammy for the “Black Panther” score, as well as Grammys for co-writing and producing Childish Gambino’s “This Is America.” Timberlake and Goransson co-wrote and produced the majority of the original songs in “Trolls World Tour,” such as the ballad “Perfect for Me,” “Don’t Slack” and “Just Sing (Trolls World Tour),” which is the movie’s obvious signature anthem. The music is very catchy, but won’t be as huge as Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop The Feeling!,” the Oscar-nominated song from the first “Trolls” movie.

In its plot about Barb the villain trying to make all the Trolls conform to the way she wants them to be, “Trolls World Tour” has a message that people can live peacefully while respecting each other’s differences. It’s a message that comes wrapped in a lot of musical numbers and action sequences, but it’s something that audiences can take to heart. And along the way, some people might learn more about music genres that they might have previously dismissed because of certain prejudices.

Universal Pictures/DreamWorks Animation released “Trolls World Tour” for rental only on digital and VOD on April 10, 2020.

Review: ‘Onward,’ starring the voices of Chris Pratt and Tom Holland

March 6, 2020

by Carla Hay

Ian Lightfoot (voiced by Tom Holland) and Barley Lightfoot (voiced by Chris Pratt) in “Onward” (Image courtesy of Disney/Pixar Animation Studios)

“Onward”

Directed by Dan Scanlon

Culture Representation: Taking place in a magical world (where almost everyone has an American accent), the main characters of the animated film “Onward” are mythical creatures, but there are some human characters with minor supporting roles.

Culture Clash: A recurring theme in the movie is the conflicts between modern customs versus the magical customs.

Culture Audience: “Onward” is a family-friendly movie that will appeal to anyone who likes an adventurous and heart-warming story.

Ian Lightfoot (voiced by Tom Holland) and Barley Lightfoot (voiced by Chris Pratt) in “Onward” (Image courtesy of Disney/Pixar Animation Studios)

“Onward,” the first original film from Disney’s Pixar Animation Studios since 2017’s “Coco,” won’t be winning any Oscars as “Coco” did, but it’s a solid animated film that will be a crowd-pleaser for people of various generations. The movie (directed by Dan Scanlon who wrote the screenplay with Keith Bunin and Jason Headley) spends most of the film as a Pixar version of a video game. The story is simple and straightforward, involving the main characters doing a series of challenges to get to a coveted treasure item. It isn’t until the last 15 minutes that “Onward” packs an emotional punch that shows the movie is a little deeper than a typical animated film.

In the beginning of the movie, which is narrated by teenage elf Ian Lightfoot (voiced by Tom Holland), viewers learn that the world he lives in used to be filled with magic. But then modern technology took over, and magic became a antiquated custom that has been forgotten by numerous people in the world.

Ian lives with his kind and loving mother Laurel Lightfoot voiced by Julia-Louis Dreyfus) and his goofy older brother Barley Lightfoot (voiced by Chris Pratt). Laurel, who is a widow, has a “good guy” boyfriend named Colt Bronco (voiced by Mel Rodriguez), a centaur police officer. Ian and Barley’s father Wilden Lightfoot (voiced by Kyle Bornheimer) died when Ian was a bay and Barley was about three years old. Ian is about to turn 16, while Barley is 18 or 19. (His mother Laurel mentions that Barley is taking a “gap year.”)

Barley isn’t in school and he doesn’t seem to have a job, so he spends a lot of time at home being the kind of brother who often annoys Ian, who is studious and socially awkward. The two things that Barley is passionate about the most are his beat-up purple van that he’s named Guinevere and his encyclopedic knowledge of historical traditions in magic that hardly anyone around him seems to care about.

Barley also seems to be living in a “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure”/”Wayne’s World” time warp, because he dresses and acts like a playful metalhead, just like those movies’ characters of Bill and Ted and Wayne and Garth. Guinevere is also decked out like something out of the late ’80s/ early ’90s, with the bumper stickers to prove it. Ian is often embarrassed by Barley, because he thinks of himself as intellectually superior to Barley, whose behavior is sometimes like a hyper puppy.

In one scene that shows the tension between the two brothers, Ian has worked up the nerve to ask some of his classmates to his upcoming 16th birthday party. He’s delighted when they say yes. But when Barley shows up at Ian’s school, he embarrasses Ian so much that Ian tells his classmates that the party has been cancelled. What Ian doesn’t tell his classmates is he doesn’t want them to be around Barley, who would be at the party.

For Ian’s birthday, he gets a wizard’s staff that his father Wilden had set aside for Ian to get specifically when Ian turned 16. He uses the staff to make a wish to bring his father back to life for 24 hours. But something goes wrong during the spell, and only the lower half of Wilden’s body (from the waist down) has come back to life. The upper half of his body exists but is invisible.

And so begins Ian and Barley’s race against time to find the magical item that will fully transform Wilden Lightfoot back to his normal self. The item that has the power to do that is a rare, mystical gem that’s hidden. For most of the film, Ian and Barley go off on a frantic quest to find the gem in time before their father disappears when the sun comes up. Just like a video game, they have to complete a challenge to get to the next level in the puzzle that will led them to the gem.

Along the way, they meet a lively group of characters, most notably the sassy Manticore (voiced by Octavia Spencer), also known as a restaurateur named Corey. She’s the owner of Manticore’s Tavern, where she has gone to reinvent herself as a “respectable” member of society after having a wild past. Ian and Barley also encounter a biker gang of pixies that clash with the two brothers.

Meanwhile, the story takes on a “Weekend at Bernie’s” vibe when Ian and Barley have to dress the upper half of their father’s body, including making him wear sunglasses, so that they can see him better. Ian and Barley lead him around by a leash-like belt that’s wrapped around his waist. At times it looks a little creepy, but it’s all played for laughs. In his half-body state, Wilden can’t see or talk, but apparently he can hear sometimes. It’s a plot hole that has to be overlooked in order to enjoy this movie.

The visual effects in “Onward” are perfectly fine and much better than most animated films. But compared to other Pixar movies (such as the Oscar-winning “Toy Story” movies, “Up,” “Finding Nemo,” “Inside Out” and “The Incredibles”), “Onward” is on the lower end of the quality scale. And although “Onward” covers a lot of the same ideas that other “race against time” fantasy/adventure stories have done before, near the end of the film, one of the brothers does something slightly unpredictable that affects how he feels about his family. It’s a tear-jerking moment that a lot of viewers won’t see coming. And it wouldn’t be a Pixar movie if there isn’t a scene that’s meant to make people cry.

Disney/Pixar Animation Studios released “Onward” in U.S. cinemas on March 6, 2020.

UPDATE: Because of the widespread coronavirus-related closures of movie theaters worldwide, Disney will make “Onward” available on digital and on Movies Anywhere, as of March 20, 2020, and on the Disney+ streaming service, as of April 3, 2020.

Review: ‘The Call of the Wild’ (2020), starring Harrison Ford

February 21, 2020

by Carla Hay

Harrison Ford in "The Call of the Wild"
Harrison Ford in “The Call of the Wild” (Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios)

“The Call of the Wild”

Directed by Chris Sanders

Culture Representation: Taking place primarily in Alaska during the 1890s Gold Rush era, the action-adventure film “The Call of the Wild” has a predominantly white cast that represent the working-class and middle-class whose lives are touched in some way by a very lovable and determined St. Bernard/Farm Collie mix dog.

Culture Clash: The characters have conflicts over greed for gold, as well as ownership of the dog.

Culture Audience: “The Call of the Wild” is a family-friendly film that will appeal to fans of Harrison Ford and people who love dogs.

Omar Sy in “The Call of the Wild” (Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios)

“The Call of the Wild” takes Jack London ‘s classic 1903 novel on which it based and turns it into live-action/animated hybrid adventure story with moments that are heartwarming, heartbreaking and unapologetically sentimental. The story, which takes place during the 1890s, centers on a St. Bernard/Farm Collie mix dog named Buck, who teaches the humans quite a few things about bravery and emotional intelligence. Harrison Ford receives top billing in the movie, but viewers who don’t know the book’s original story should know that his John Thornton character is mainly in the latter half of the story, although his voiceover narration is throughout the film. The movie keeps most of the plot points the same as the original story, but there are also some changes from the novel.

When viewers first see Buck, he’s living a pampered life in Santa Clara, California, with Judge Miller (played by Bradley Whitford), his wife Katie (played by Jean Louisa Kelly) and their family. Buck is playful and mischievous—so much so, that he ruins the family’s Thanksgiving dinner by trashing the table and eating the entire Thanksgiving feast. Judge Miller gets angry but he’s a kind dog owner who doesn’t abuse his pet.

One night, Buck is stolen by a man who sells the dog to an abusive sailor, who hits Buck with a club and keeps him confined. There are scenes of animal cruelty that might be a little disturbing to very sensitive viewers. Buck is on a ship that is headed to Alaska. Through ingenuity, luck and a will to fight, Buck escapes his cruel owner and finds himself homeless in Dawson City, Alaska. He is taken by an old man, who doesn’t treat Buck much better than the sailor, so Buck runs away again.

While Buck is escaping, he runs into a gold prospector named John Thornton (played by Ford), a recluse who’s come into town for errands. Buck finds John’s harmonica on the street, and John is struck by how intelligent the dog seems to be. Unfortunately, Buck’s old man owner catches up to Buck and he’s back in captivity again.

Buck is eventually taken to a dog pound, where he’s bought by Perrault (played by Omar Sy), a French Canadian who runs a dog-sled service that delivers mail. Perrault immediately warms up to Buck, but his jaded assistant Francoise (played by Cara Gee) isn’t too fond of the dog at first. (In the novel, the dog-sled operators were two men named Perrault and Francois.) Perrault makes Buck part of the dog-sled team, which is lead by an arrogant alpha male Siberian husky named Spitz. The rest of the dogs are of various large-sized breeds.

The dog-sled work is grueling, especially when it’s in the snow, but Buck is a quick learner and he makes friends with the rest of the dogs, except for Spitz. For example, there’s a scene where Spitz makes the other dogs wait for him to finish drinking water from an icy lake, but Buck takes his paws to break open the ice to create a new place where the dogs can drink without waiting for Spitz.

It’s worth mentioning that the CGI visual effects for the animals start off looking very unrealistic, but they get better during the course of the movie. The animals have very humanistic facial expressions and movements, so don’t expect this movie to be completely realistic. You also have to suspend disbelief at some of the superhuman stunts that Buck is able to do. However, the movie doesn’t go too far with the human characteristics for the animals—the animals don’t cry, walk like humans, or talk in human languages—so overall the ways that the animals are presented are mostly realistic.

Whenever there’s an action movie that takes place near a frozen body of water, the inevitable happens: Someone falls through the ice into the water. This happens to Francoise, but of course Buck is there to rescue her and save her life. Her attitude toward Buck starts to change after that incident. She begrudgingly admits to Buck that she underestimated him and that he’s impressed her the most out of all of the dogs in the pack. And wouldn’t you know, Spitz is off in the distance seeing this bonding moment and gets jealous, so he later starts a fight with Buck, leading to a showdown over who’s going to be the alpha male of the pack.

Because the trailers for “The Call of the Wild” make the movie look like it’s only about Buck and John, viewers who don’t know the book might be surprised to see how much of the movie is about Buck’s time in the dog-sled pack. It’s a pivotal part of the story in the novel and the film, because it’s the first time that Buck experiences being part of a dog pack. It’s also the first time he becomes in touch with his wild instincts that originate from the wolves who are ancestors of domesticated dogs. (When Buck uses his primal instincts, he sees a vision of a black wolf with glowing eyes )

So how did Buck end up with John? Buck and the sled team get a new owner named Hal, a greedy, insufferable fop who’s the most abusive owner yet for Buck. Hal wants the dog pack to take him, his sister Mercedes (played by Karen Gillan) and Mercedes’ passive husband Charles (played by Colin Goodell) on gold mining expeditions. Hal beats and starves the dogs into submission. If you love animals, this part of the film is hard to watch, even if you know the animals aren’t real.

Luckily, when John encounters the gold-digging trio and the mistreated dog pack, he rescues a severely malnourished and injured Buck. Hal leaves with the rest of the pack. (What happens to Hal and the dog pack in this movie is different from what happens to them in the original novel.) John takes Buck back to his small and sparse cabin in the woods and nurses the dog back to health.

John lives simply, and his gruff exterior masks a lot of emotional pain. He’s the type of prospector who isn’t looking for gold to get rich. At one point, he tells Buck that all a man needs is enough money “to buy groceries for life.” And it’s easy to see why he feels a strong connection to Buck, because Buck has also experienced a lot of pain.

During Buck’s time with John, Buck meets a pretty female hinterland wolf with white fur, and she introduces him to her pack, which readily accepts Buck, and he spends more and more time with them. (This is where the movie takes a sharp turn from reality, because in real life, a domesticated dog would be attacked and probably killed by a pack of wild wolves.)

It’s during this time that John (who talks to Buck like a human) reveals what happened in his past that’s made him a such a recluse: He had a son who died (it’s not mentioned how he died), and the grief over his son’s death led to him being estranged from his wife. It’s implied in the movie that John left his wife, they’re now divorced, and he let her keep their marital house and everything in it.

John is also a heavy drinker—and this is where the humanistic qualities of Buck are really shown in the movie—the dog scolds John for drinking too much, whether it’s by Buck hiding John’s flask of alcohol or making disapproving noises when he sees John drinking too much. Yes, Buck is not only an incredibly resourceful dog, apparently he’s also an addiction counselor/interventionist too.

Whenever there’s a movie about the wild, wild West, there also seems to be an obligatory scene with a bar fight. That moment comes when John is drinking at a bar and he gets sucker-punched by Hal, who’s angry at John because the dog pack ran off, thereby putting a severe damper on Hal’s gold-digging excursions in the rough terrain. Of course, Buck comes to the rescue when John is attacked. John fights back too, and Hal is thrown out of the bar. Do you think that’s the last we’ll see of Hal in this movie? Of course not.

The rest of the movie is about the bonding time that Buck and John spend together when John decides to take the adventure trip that he and his son had planned before his son died. “The Call of the Wild” is the first movie with live action for director Chris Sanders, who previously directed the animated films “How to Train Your Dragon,” “The Croods” and “Lilo & Stitch.” Fans of the “How to Train Your Dragon” series might see some similarities in the “man’s best friend” theme in both movies and how the animals take on human mannerisms.

There have been other “The Call of the Wild” movies, but this is the first to have this type of CGI animation for the animals. For the most part, it works well, even if the action sometimes look cartoonish because of what some of the things these animated animals do that real animals can’t do. However, this version of “The Call of the Wild” (whose screenplay was written by Michael Green) keeps the story’s message of resilience and friendship intact and treats it with respect. It’s a timeless message that will resonate even with changes in movie technology.

20th Century Studios released “The Call of the Wild” in U.S. cinemas on February 21, 2020.

UPDATE: Because of the widespread coronavirus-related closures of movie theaters worldwide, 20th Century Home Entertainment has moved up the digital release of “The Call of the Wild” to March 27, 2020.

Review: ‘Dolittle,’ starring Robert Downey Jr.

January 17, 2020

by Carla Hay

Robert Downey Jr.  and parrot Polynesia (voiced by Emma Thompson) in “Dolittle” (Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures)

“Dolittle”

Directed by Stephen Gaghan

Culture Representation: Set primarily in the United Kingdom, this dramatic adventure movie’s live-action characters are nearly all white; the voice actors portraying the animated animals are a racially mixed cast; and the social classes range from working-class to royalty.

Culture Clash: A reclusive doctor with the special power to talk to animals reluctantly goes on a journey to find a rare medical cure, and faces obstacles that include more than one villain.

Culture Audience: “Dolittle” will appeal primarily to fans of children-oriented entertainment who don’t mind if the visuals are much better than the storytelling.

Dab-Dab the duck (voiced by Octavia Spencer), polar bear Yoshi (voiced by John Cena), parrot Polynesia (voiced by Emma Thompson), Dr. John Dolittle (played by Robert Downey Jr.), ostrich Plimpton (voiced by Kumail Nanjiani), Tommy Stubbins (played by Harry Collett) and gorilla Chee-Chee (voiced by Rami Malek) in “Dolittle” (Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures)

It’s not really a good sign when a major-studio film headlined by an A-list movie star is released in January, the month that’s a notorious dumping ground for bad movies. Universal Pictures must have known that “Dolittle” was going to be a dud, even with star Robert Downey Jr. coming off his major hot streak in the blockbuster superhero “Avengers” and “Iron Man” movies. (“Avengers: Endgame,” Downey’s 2019 movie that was released before “Dolittle,” now holds the record as the world’s biggest box-office movie hit of all time, ending the 10-year reign at the top held by “Avatar.”) “Dolittle” isn’t a terrible film. It’s just a terribly generic film in an era when we’ve been bombarded with kids-oriented movies that have talking animals.

By making “Dolittle” an action-adventure film, “Dolittle” director Stephen Gaghan, who wrote the screenplay with Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, tried to do something different from previous “Dolittle” movies. The original 1967 “Dr. Dolittle” film, starring Rex Harrison and a cast of other Brits, was a musical adapted from Hugh Lofting’s “Dr. Dolittle” book series. The three “Dr. Dolittle” movies from 1998, 2000 and 2006 were slapstick American comedies—the first two starred Eddie Murphy as the title character, and a third film was an ill-conceived flop starring Kyla Pratt, who played Dolittle’s daughter in the first two Murphy-starring films.

Gaghan’s “Dolittle” goes back to the original United Kingdom location, during the mid-1800s era of a young Queen Victoria (played by Jessie Buckley), who has come down with a mysterious illness. During the film’s animated opening sequence, viewers see that veterinarian John Dolittle once led a happy life taking care of animals with his beloved wife Lily (played by Kasia Smutniak), who died tragically.

Fast forward seven years later, and Dr. Dolittle has become a cranky hermit who has neglected his hygiene (he’s so unkempt that a mouse has been living in his beard), as he lives with his animals on his estate that’s essentially an animal sanctuary. The filmmakers have made Dolittle a Welshman, so it might take a while for some viewers to getting used to hearing Downey speak in a Welsh accent that sounds a little too pretentious for a movie where most of his co-stars are animated talking animals. This is a kids’ movie, not Shakespeare.

Tommy Stubbins (played by Harry Collett), a boy from the small village of Puddleby-on-the-Marsh, is an orphaned misfit who lives with his aunt and uncle. Tommy loves animals, and is therefore uncomfortable when he’s forced to go hunting with his uncle. When Tommy accidentally shoots a squirrel while hunting, he decides to take the injured animal to the mysterious Dr. Dolittle, even though the doctor has a reputation for being a curmudgeon. Instead of being afraid of Dolittle’s menagerie of wild animals, Tommy is fascinated and finds out that he has a knack for communicating with animals too. Affected by Tommy’s presence, Dolittle cleans himself up, as he notices that Tommy sees him as a role model and possible mentor.

It isn’t long before Dolittle gets another visitor: Queen Victoria’s attendant Lady Rose (played Carmel Laniado), who arrives with orders to bring Dolittle to Buckingham Palace to give medical aid to the queen. Dolittle has a big incentive to save the queen’s life, because his property has been loaned to him by the queen, and if she dies, he will lose the property.

While at the palace, Dolittle has an awkward reunion with a former school rival: royal physician Dr. Blair Müdfly (played by Michael Sheen), who is jealous of Dolittle’s talent and acclaim. Müdfly is such an over-the-top villain that he practically twirls his moustache and gnashes his teeth. And there’s another antagonist in the story: the ambitious Lord Thomas Badgley (played by Jim Broadbent), who will inherit the throne if Queen Victoria dies. (At this point in her life, Victoria is not married and has no children.)

Dolittle determines that the best cure for the queen’s life-threatening illness is fruit from the Eden Tree on Eden Tree Island, because this fruit is said to have magical powers. (How biblical.) Tommy has essentially decided that he doesn’t really want to go home, so he tags along on Dolittle’s voyage, with Dolittle’s numerous animals in tow as they set sail on a ship called the Water Lily.

Now, about the animals. The problem with “Dolittle” is that there are too many of them in this film. If you’re someone with a short attention span, good luck trying to keep track of all the talking animals. The “Madagascar” movies (another animated series with a variety of wild animals that talk) worked so well because the animals were in a relatively small group and their personalities were so distinct. In “Dolittle,” the personalities of most of the animals tend to blend together in a crowded mush, with the notable exception of the parrot Polynesia (voiced by Emma Thompson), a dutifully efficient assistant/caretaker with a whip-smart attitude. Polynesia holds a special place in Dolittle’s heart because the parrot used to be owned by Dolittle’s late wife Lily.

The other animals in this mixed-bag menagerie are Chee-Chee (voiced by Rami Malek), an insecure gorilla; Dab-Dab (voiced by Octavia Spencer), a maternal, scatterbrained American Pekin duck; Plimpton, a nervous osctrich (voiced by Kumail Nanjiani); Yoshi (voiced by John Cena), a polar bear who hates the cold, loves adventure, and often bickers with Plimpton; Betsy (voiced by Selena Gomez), a kind giraffe; Kevin (voiced by Crag Robinson), the injured squirrel that was accidentally shot by Tommy and who has a cheeky sense of humor; Tutu (voiced by Marion Cotillard), a fearless fox with leadership qualities; and Mini (voiced by Nick A. Fisher), a baby sugar glider that’s constantly curious.

Meanwhile, other talking animals include brainy dog Jip (voiced by Tom Holland), a long-haired Lurcher tasked with guarding the queen; Humphrey (voiced by Tim Treloar), a whale that helps navigate the Water Lily; James (voiced by Jason Mantzoukas), a nervous dragonfly; Barry (voiced by Ralph Fiennes), a Bengal tiger with mommy issues and a grudge against Dolittle; Don Carpenterino (voiced by David Sheinkopf), the leader of an ant colony; Army Ant (voiced by Matthew Wolfe), Don’s sidekick; and Dragon (voiced by Frances de la Tour), guardian of the Eden Tree.

As for other human characters, there’s also Pirate King Rassouli (played by Antonio Banderas), who lives on Monteverde Island, one of the stops along the way to Eden Tree Island. Banderas hams it up as yet another adversary to Dolittle and his crew. Large ensembles can work for well-written, live-action films geared to adults. But when it’s a mostly animated film geared to kids, the movie can come across as too cluttered for its own good.

“Dolittle” certainly has an impressive cast of acting talent. It’s too bad that so many of the characters are bland. Furthermore, Chee-Chee (the gorilla that’s a visual standout) is a missed opportunity, since the character was miscast for its voice. Malek sounds more like the minature “Frozen” snowman Olaf than a massive gorilla. The Chee-Chee character needed an actor with a deeper voice to better reflect the gorilla’s intimidating physical presence. Former wrestling champ Cena, who’s the voice of Yoshi the polar bear, would have been better in the role of Chee-Chee.

Although the characters in this movie are very underdeveloped, the compelling visual effects (overseen by visual effects supervisors Nicolas Aithadi and John Dykstra) are the most entertaining aspect of the film. Young children who are dazzled by visuals should enjoy “Dolittle” for the movie’s colorful ambiance, even if they won’t remember most of the movie’s animal characters weeks after seeing this film. (Don’t expect there to be a high demand for “Dolittle” toys.) More mature viewers might get easily bored with this movie, because it wallows in a lot of mediocrity that wastes this talented cast.

Simply put: “Dolittle” is not the kind of movie that people looking for high-quality entertainment will rush to see multiple times while it’s in theaters. We all know how this movie is going to end anyway.

Universal Pictures released “Dolittle” in U.S. cinemas on January 17, 2020.

 

 

 

Review: ‘Weathering With You,’ an animated romance from Japan

January 15, 2020

by Carla Hay

"Weathering With You"
“Weathering With You” (Photo courtesy of GKIDS)

“Weathering With You”

Directed by Makoto Shinkai

Available in the original Japanese version (with English subtitles) or in a dubbed English-language version.

Culture Representation: This Japanese animated fantasy film takes place primarily in Tokyo, with teenagers as the lead characters and adults as supporting characters.

Culture Clash: In this alternate and supernatural world, underage teenagers who live on their own try to find their identities and independence, while sometimes clashing with adults who might try to control or exploit them.

Culture Audience: “Weathering With You” is a family-friendly film that will appeal mostly to fans of Japanese anime and romantic animated films.

“Weathering With You” (Photo courtesy of GKIDS)

“Weathering With You” is an old-fashioned love story wrapped up in a modern setting with futuristic and sci-fi/supernatural elements. This charming animated movie (written and directed by Makoto Shinkai) was Japan’s official 2019 entry for the Best International Feature Film category for the Academy Awards—and it’s almost the polar opposite from Japan’s 2018 entry: the bleak drama “Shoplifters,” which was about a group of thieves from different generations who live together. Interestingly, both movies do have something in common. The central characters are financially unstable people who are living outside the margins of regular society and who find themselves with a surrogate family.

In “Weathering With You,” viewers first see 16-year-old runaway Hokada Morishima on a ship going to Tokyo, where he wants to escape from his remote island home. While on the ship, and after hearing that a major rainstorm is headed that way, Hokada foolishly goes outside during the storm and almost gets swept overboard. He’s saved by a young man, and as a thank you, Hokada buys dinner for the stranger when they arrive in Tokyo. It’s clear from this scene that Hokada is an impulsive risk-taker, but he also has a kind heart.

Because Hokada is underage and doesn’t have any proper ID, it’s difficult for him to find a job. While figuring out where he’s going to get his next meal, a teenage girl who works at a local café takes pity on him and gives him a free hamburger. Hokada eventually runs out of money, and he ends up homeless and living on the street, where he finds a gun in a paper bag and keeps the weapon. That gun will get him into trouble later in the story. Meanwhile, Tokyo and other parts of Japan are experiencing torrential rainstorms.

As luck would have it, Hokada lands a job interview, based on going to an address of a business card he’s found. It’s a small magazine company run by a mysterious widower in his 30s named Keisuke “Kei” Suga, who works out of his cluttered home with his young female assistant named Natsumi. Keisuke and Natsumi report supernatural news stories, and the latest trends they’re chasing have to do with unusual weather-related events. Hokada is hired on the spot to be an assistant/housekeeper. His salary is very low, but he gets a free place to live and free meals as part of his employment.

Shortly after getting the job, Hokada sees the girl from the café being manhandled on the street by a sleazy local club owner, who’s pressuring her to work for him. (It’s implied in the movie but not said out loud that he owns a strip club.) As the club owner and a henchman try to force the girl into the club, and she resists, Hokada intervenes and is punched in the face by the club owner. Hokada then pulls out the gun and shoots it in the air, giving him and the girl a way to escape.

The girl’s name is Hina Amano, and she says she’s 17 and soon about to turn 18. As a thank you for rescuing her, Hina invites Hokada over to her place and makes him lunch. It’s during their lunch date that they both find out that they have something in common: They are living on their own without parental supervision. Hokada confesses that he ran away from home because he thinks living with his parents is too stifling. Hina lives with her younger brother Nagisa (nicknamed Nagi), and she says that the mother who raised them died about a year ago. (Somehow, Hina and Nagisa, who don’t seem to have any other living relatives, have avoided going into foster care.)

Hina also has another big secret that she reveals to Hokada: She’s a “sunshine girl”—a rare “weather maiden” who has the ability to make it stop raining and bring the sun out, simply by praying. Because Hina has recently quit her job, and Hokada wants to supplement his measly income, they both decide to go into business together by offering her weather-control services to the public. They start a website together, and almost immediately, their business becomes a successes, with Nagisa often tagging along when they go to different locations to fulfill weather-changing requests.

But their success comes at a price: According to folklore, the more a sunshine girl uses her weather-changing abilities, the more her body begins to transform from flesh into spirit, until she is supposed to disappear forever into the spirit world. It couldn’t come at a worse time, since Hokada and Hina are starting to fall in love.

Complicating matters, the police (led by the stern Detective Takei) are on the hunt for Hokada, since his parents have reported him missing, and he was caught on surveillance video using the loaded gun in the street fight where he rescued Hina. Meanwhile, Keisuke (who’s depressed and has a drinking problem) has secrets of his own about his family that end up affecting his relationship with Hokada.

If you’ve seen Studio Ghibli films, then you’ll probably know what to expect for this movie’s animation (from production companies CoMix Wave Films and Story Inc.), which has an unfussy but expressive animation style that’s very similar to Studio Ghibli films. The voices of the “Weathering With You” characters are portrayed by different actors, depending on which version of “Weathering With You” that you see. The original Japanese version (with English subtitles) has Kotaro Daigo as Hokada, Nani Mori as Hina, Shun Oguri as Keisuke, Tsubasa Honda as Natsumi, Sakura Kiryu as Nagisa and Yûki Kaji as Detective Takei. There’s also a U.S. version, with the dialogue dubbed in English, that has Brandon Engman as Hokada, Ashley Boettcher as Hina, Lee Pace as Keisuke, Alison Brie as Natsumi, Emeka Guindo as Nagisa, Riz Ahmed as Detective Takei.

“Weathering With You” won’t be considered a major Oscar-winning Japanese animation classic, such as director Hayao Miyazaki’s “Spirited Away,” but “Weathering With You” is still a better-than-average modern animated film. Although “Weathering With You” includes serious social issues about homelessness and the hazards of messing with the environment, ultimately this is a sweetly sentimental film where the biggest messages are about taking life-changing risks for true love.

GKIDS released “Weathering With You” for special sneak-preview screenings in select U.S. cinemas on January 15 and January 16, 2020. “Weathering With You” arrived in wider release in U.S. cinemas on January 17, 2020. The movie was originally released in Japan in 2019.

2019 New York Comic Con: Anime Fest returns for second consecutive year, relocates to Hudson Mercantile

July 15, 2019

by Carla Hay

(Image courtesy of Anime Fest)

For the second year in a row, New York Comic Con has partnered with Anime Expo to create Anime Fest, which will take place on the same days as New York Comic Con 2019 in New York City: October 3 to October 6. Anime Fest is a separate event that will be held at Hudson Mercantile, a change in venue from the 2018 Anime Expo, which was held at Pier 94. New York Comic Con takes place at various locations in New York City, but the main hub is at Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The good news is that Hudson Mercantile is much closer to the Javits Convention Center than Pier 94.

New York Comic Con badge purchases are not required to attend Anime Fest, and vice versa, but separate tickets are required for most Anime Fest offerings. However, the first floor of Hudson Mercantile will be  Anime Fest headquarters, which will be New York Comic Con badge holders and Anime Fest ticket holders alike. According to Anime Fest, this community hub will have “interactive and immersive experiences and opportunities to connect with other fans.”

Panels announced so far for Anime Fest 2019 include those featuring voice actor Charlet Chung (“Overwatch); Veronica Taylor (“Pokémon,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”); and Christopher Sabat and Sean Schemmel  (“Dragon Ball Z”).

 

2019 Daytime Emmy Awards: ‘The Young and the Restless,’ ‘General Hospital’ win big

March 20, 2019

by Carla Hay

Daytime Emmy Awards

 

“The Young and the Restless” (Photo by Art Streiber/CBS)

With seven prizes,  including Outstanding Drama Series, CBS’s “The Young and the Restless,” was a top winner for the 46th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, which were presented at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in California on May 5, 2019. The Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards (for mostly technical categories) took place at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium on May 3, 2019. The Daytime Emmys website had a livestream of the ceremony, which was hosted by Mario Lopez and Sheryl Underwood.

ABC’s “General Hospital” was also a big winner, taking six awards. Most of the prizes were in the Drama Series categories for actors and actresses, with “General Hospital’s” Daytime Emmys this year going to Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (Maurice Benard); Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (Max Gail); Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Vernee Watson); Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series (Hayley Erin); and Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series (Patricia Bethune).

For digital series, Amazon Prime Video’s “After Forever” won the most Daytime Emmys, with a total of five, including Outstanding Daytime Digital Series.

Other winners of Daytime Emmys this year were “CBS Sunday Morning” for Outstanding Morning Program; “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” for Outstanding Talk Show Entertainment; “Rachael Ray” for Outstanding Talk Show Informative; “Family Feud” for Outstanding Game Show; and “Valerie’s Home Cooking” for Outstanding Culinary Show.

In addition, Judge Judy Sheindlin and Chef Jacques Pepin each received a Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Daytime Emmy Awards are presented to individuals and programs broadcast in the United States from 2 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the previous calendar year.

The 46th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards was a presentation of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Both of this year’s shows were led by executive producer David Michaels (NATAS senior VP of daytime) and executive producer David Parks of Ignition Entertainment.

Here is the complete list of winners and nominees for the 2019 Daytime Emmy Awards:

*=winner

Outstanding Drama Series

The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)
Days of Our Lives (NBC)
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)*

Outstanding Digital Daytime Drama Series

After Forever Amazon Studios)*
The Bay: The Series (Amazon Studios)
Giants (YouTube Premium)
The New 30 (YouTube TV)
Youth & Consequences (YouTube Premium)

Outstanding Culinary Program

A Chef’s Life (PBS)
Barefoot Contessa: Cook Like a Pro (Food Network)
Cook’s Country (PBS)
Eat. Race. Win. (Amazon Prime Video)
Giada Entertains (Food Network)
Lidia’s Kitchen (PBS)
Valerie’s Home Cooking (Food Network)*

Outstanding Game Show

Family Feud (SYNDICATED)*
Jeopardy! (SYNDICATED)
Let’s Make a Deal (CBS)
The Price Is Right (CBS)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (SYNDICATED)

Outstanding Legal/Courtroom Program

Couples Court with the Cutlers (SYNDICATED)
Judge Judy (SYNDICATED)
Judge Mathis (SYNDICATED)
Lauren Lake’s Paternity Court (SYNDICATED)*
The People’s Court (SYNDICATED)

Outstanding Lifestyle Program

Ask This Old House (PBS)*
George to the Rescue (NBC)
Home Made Simple with Laila Ali (OWN)
Naturally, Danny Seo (NBC)
This Old House (PBS)

Outstanding Travel and Adventure Program

Born to Explore with Richard Wiese (PBS)
F2 Finding Football (YouTube Premium)
Jack Hanna’s Into the Wild (SYNDICATED)
Ocean Treks with Jeff Corwin (SYNDICATED)
Rock the Park (SYNDICATED)
Samantha Brown’s Places to Love (PBS)*

Outstanding Morning Program

CBS Sunday Morning (CBS)*
CBS This Morning (CBS)
Good Morning America (ABC)
Today Show (NBC)

Outstanding Morning Program in Spanish

Café CNN (CNN en Español*)
Despierta America (Univision)*
Nuestro Mundo (CNN en Español)
Un Nuevo Dia (Telemundo)

Outstanding Talk Show Informative

Access Live (SYNDICATED)
The Dr. Oz Show (SYNDICATED)
Rachael Ray (SYNDICATED)*
Red Table Talk (Facebook Watch)
Today Show With Kathie Lee & Hoda (NBC)

Outstanding Talk Show Entertainment

The Ellen DeGeneres Show (SYNDICATED)*
A Little Help With Carol Burnett (Netflix)
The Real (SYNDICATED)
The Talk (CBS)
The View (ABC)

Outstanding Entertainment Program in Spanish

Destinos (CNN en Español)
Dr. Juan (Univision)
El Gordo y la Flaca (Univision)
Six Dreams (Amazon Prime Video)*
Suelta la sopa (Telemundo)

Outstanding Entertainment News Program

Access (SYNDICATED)
DailyMailTV (SYNDICATED)*
Entertainment Tonight (CBS)
Extra (SYNDICATED)
Inside Edition (CBS)

Outstanding Special Class Series

Close Up With The Hollywood Reporter (SundanceTV)
Lucky Dog with Brandon McMillan (CBS)
Mysteries & Scandals (Oxygen)
To Life: How Israeli Volunteers Are Changing the World (Freeform)
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors (PBS)*
Working in the Theatre (AmericanTheatreWing.org)

Outstanding Special Class Special

The 91st Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (NBC)
Light in the Water (Logo TV)
A Long Road to Freedom: The Advocate Celebrates 50 Years (Here TV)
Quiet Heroes (Logo TV)*
Super Soul Sunday: Oprah’s Book Club: Freedom After 30 Years on Death Row (OWN)

Outstanding Special Class – Short Format Daytime Program

Blank Wall Overhaul (Bluprint)
Food Interrupted (Facebook Watch)
Momsplaining (Ellen Digital Network)
Treatment Box “Opioids” (Truth)*
Watchtower (YouTube.com)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series

Jacqueline MacInnes Wood, as Steffy Forrester
The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)*

Marci Miller, as Abigail Deveraux DiMera
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Heather Tom, as Katie Logan
The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)

Maura West, as Ava Jerome
General Hospital (ABC)

Laura Wright, as Carly Corinthos
General Hospital (ABC)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series

Maurice Benard, as Sonny Corinthos*
General Hospital (ABC)

Peter Bergman, as Jack Abbott
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Tyler Christopher, as Stefan DiMera
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Billy Flynn, as Chad DiMera
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Jon Lindstrom, as Ryan/Kevin Collns
General Hospital (ABC)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Kassie DePaiva, as Eve Donovan
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Linsey Godfrey, as Sarah Horton
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Martha Madison, as Belle Black
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Beth Maitland, as Traci Abbott
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Mishael Morgan, as Hilary Curtis
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Vernee Watson*
General Hospital (ABC)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

Max Gail, as Mike Corbin*
General Hospital (ABC)

Bryton James, as Devon Hamilton
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Eric Martsolf, as Brady Black
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Greg Rikaart, as Kevin Fisher
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Dominic Zamprogna, as Dante Falconeri
General Hospital (ABC)

Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series

Hayley Erin, as Kiki Jerome*
General Hospital (ABC)

Olivia Rose Keegan, as Claire Brady
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Victoria Konefal, as Ciara Brady
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Chloe Lanier, as Nelle Benson
General Hospital (ABC)

Eden McCoy, as Josslyn Jacks
General Hospital (ABC)

Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series

Lucas Adams, as Tripp Dalton
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

William Lipton, as Cameron Webber
General Hospital (ABC)

Kyler Pettis, as Theo Carver*
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Garren Stitt, as Oscar Nero
General Hospital (ABC)

Zach Tinker, as Fenmore Baldwin
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series

Philip Anthony-Rodriguez, as Miguel Garcia
Days of Our Lives (CBS)

Patricia Bethune, as Nurse Mary Pat*
General Hospital (ABC)

Wayne Brady, as Dr. Reese Buckingham
The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)

Kate Mansi, as Abigail Deveraux
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Thaao Penghlis, as Andre DiMera
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Digital Daytime Drama Series

Jade Harlow, as Lianna Ramos
The Bay The Series (Amazon Prime Video)

Vanessa Kelly, as Journee*
Giants (YouTube.com)

Liana Liberto, as McKenna Brady
Light as a Feather (Hulu)

Shanti Lowry, as Yolanda Rodriguez
Bronx SIU, UMC (Amazon Prime Video)

Liz Vasset, as Dr. Gillian Hunt
Riley Parra (Tello Films)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Digital Daytime Drama Series

Mitchell Anderson, as Jason Addams
After Forever, Amazon Prime Video

Kristos Andrews, as Pete Garrett
The Bay The Series (Amazon Prime Video)

Kevin Spirtas, as Brian Stone*
After Forever (Amazon Prime Video)

Brian White, as Jimmy Blue
Bronx SIU, UMC (Amazon Prime Video)

Wayne Wilcox, as Ray
Only Children (Vimeo.com)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Digital Daytime Drama Series

Crystal Lee Brown, as Tamera
Giants (YouTube.com)

Erin Cherry, as Brenda*
After Forever (Amazon Prime Video)

Cady Huffman, as Lisa
After Forever (Amazon Prime Video)

Carolyn Ratteray, as Caitline Priest
Riley Parra (Tello Films)

Briann Tju, as Alex Portnoy
Light as a Feather (Hulu)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Digital Daytime Drama Series

Ameer Baraka, as Darius
Bronx SIU, UMC (Amazon Prime Video)

Brandon Beemer, as Evan Blackwell
The Bay The Series (Amazon Prime Video)

Wil Lash, as Scott Taylor
Anacostia (YouTube.com)

Sean Samuels, as Ade
Giants (YouTube.com)

Terrence Terrell, as Kwasi Asamoah*
Giants (YouTube.com)

Outstanding Guest Performer in a Digital Daytime Drama Series

Sean Patrick Flanery, as Ty Garrett*
The Bay The Series (Amazon Prime Video)

Anita Gillette, as Frannie
After Forever (Amazon Prime Video)

Lou Diamond Phillips, as Martin
Conversations in L.A. (Amazon Prime Video)

J. August Richards, as Andrew Prescott
Giants (YouTube.com)

Kelsey Scott, as Sadiyah Siobahn
Giants (YouTube.com)

Outstanding Interactive Media Enhancement to a Daytime Program or Series

92nd Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (NBC)
Ask the StoryBots (Netflix)
Crow: The Legend (Boabab Studios)*
Esme & Roy (HBO Family)
Space Explorers (Felix & Paul Studios)

Outstanding Daytime Promotional Announcement – Topical

American Ninja Warrior Junior (Universal Kids)
The Ellen DeGeneres Show (SYNDICATED)
Lifetime’s 24th annual Stop Breast Cancer for Life Campaign (Lifetime
The Star Wars Show (YouTube.com)*
The View (ABC)

Outstanding Daytime Promotional Announcement Brand Image Campaign – Network or Program

Black History Month (Nickelodeon)*
Nickelodeon: 2017 Black History Month Campaign (Nickelodeon)
DreamWorks Spirit Riding Free (Netflix)
Nickelodeon: Pride Month (Nickelodeon)
Nickelodeon: Women’s History Month Campaign (Nickelodeon)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Preschool Children’s Series

The Big Fun Crafty Show (Universal Kids)
Dino Dana (Amazon Prime Video)
Miss Persona (YouTube.com)
Sesame Street (HBO)*
Snug’s House (Universal Kids)

Outstanding Short Format Children’s Program

Canticos (Nickelodeon)
Nick Jr. Bloc Party: Quest for the Golden Cube (Nickelodeon)
Nick Jr. Color Song: RED (Nickelodeon)*
Sesame Street (HBO)

Outstanding Children’s or Family Viewing Series

American Ninja Warrior Junior (Universal Kids)
Chicken Soup for the Soul’s Hidden Heroes (The CW)
Odd Squad (PBS)*
Top Chef Junior (Universal Kids)
The Who Was? Show (Netflix)

Outstanding Original Song in a Children’s or Animated Program

“For One and All”
Disney Sofia the First (Disney Junior)

“Elena of Avalor”
Fallin’ Like a Rock (Disney Junior)

“Making a World With My Friend”
Peg + Cat (PBS)

“The Thrill of Invention”
Peg + Cat (PBS)

“You’re All Number One Tonight!”
Peg + Cat (PBS)

Outstanding Education or Informational Series

Mind Field (YouTube Premium)
SciGirls (PBS)
Weird But True (National Geographic Kids)*
The Wildlife Docs (ABC)
Xploration Outer Space (SYNDICATED)

Outstanding Preschool Children’s Animated Series

Ask the StoryBots (Netflix)
Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood (PBS)*
Elena of Avalor (Disney Junior)
Esme & Roy (HBO Family)
Tumble Leaf (Amazon Prime Video)

Outstanding Children’s Animated Series

Disney Mickey Mouse (Disney Channel)
Hilda (Netflix)
The Loud House (Nickelodeon)*
Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Nickelodeon)
Welcome to the Wayne (Nickelodeon)

Outstanding Special Class Animated Program

Crow: The Legend (Baobab Studios)
DuckTales: The Shadow War! (Disney Channel)
Paw Patrol: Mighty Pups (Nickelodeon)
Tumble Leaf Halloween Special (Amazon Prime Video)
Watership Down (Netflix)

Outstanding Performer in a Children’s, Family Viewing or Special Class Program

Bill Cobbs, as Mr. Hendrickson
Dino Dana (Amazon Prime Video)

Bret Green, as Preston Wainwright
The Inspectors (CBS)

Michela Luci, as Dana
Dino Dana (Amazon Prime Video)

Edward Norton, as Gary the Electronics Salesman
Ask the StoryBots (Netflix)

Kimberly Persona, as Miss Persona
Miss Persona (YouTube.com)

Hanna VandenBygaart, as Vera
ReBoot: The Guardian Code (Netflix)

Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program

Jay Baruchel, as Hiccup*
Dragons: Race to the Edge (Netflix)

Bob Bergen, as Porky Pig
Wabbit – A Looney Tunes Production (Cartoon Network)

Chris Diamantopoulos, as Mickey Mouse
Disney Mickey Mouse (Disney Channel)

Mark Hamill, as Old Jir, Caz
Kulipari: Dream Walker (Netflix)

Marieve Herington, as Tilly Green
Big City Greens (Disney Channel)

Ruth Negga, as Mother
Angela’s Christmas (Netflix)

Outstanding Performer in a Preschool Animated Program

Eric Bauza, as Fozzie Bear, Bunsen Honeydew, Mr. Statler
Muppet Babies (Disney Junior)

Steve Buscemi, as Saloso
Elena of Avalor (Disney Junior)

Devan Cohen, as Daniel Tiger
Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood (PBS)

Ben Diskin, as Gonzo, Rizzo
Muppet Babies (Disney Junior)

Olivia Manning, as Dazzle
Butterbean’s Café (Nickelodeon)

Outstanding Culinary Host

Valerie Bertinelli, Host*
Valerie’s Home Cooking (Food Network)

Giada De Laurentiis, Host
Giada Entertains (Food Network)

Catherine Fulvio, Host
A Taste of Ireland: Ballyknocken Cookery School (Recipe TV)

Pati Jinich, Host
Pati’s Mexican Table (PBS)

Molly Yeh, Host
Girl Meets Farm (Food Network)

Outstanding Daytime Talent in a Spanish Language Program

Guillermo Arduino, Senior Correspondent
Encuentro (CNN en Español)

Raul De Molina, Host
El Gordo y la Flaca (Univision)

Raul De Molina, Co-Host
El Gordo y la Flaca (Univision)

Elizabeth Hernandez Curiel, Correspondent
El Gordo y la Flaca (Univision)

Gabriela Natale, Host
SuperLatina with Gaby Natale (VME TV)

Alejandra Oraa, Host*
Destinos (CNN en Español)

Outstanding Game Show Host

Wayne Brady, Host
Let’s Make a Deal (CBS)

Chris Harrison, Host
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (SYNDICATED)

John Michael Higgins, Host
America Says (Game Show Network)

Pat Sajak, Host
Wheel of Fortune (SYNDICATED)

Alex Trebek, Host*
Jeopardy! (SYNDICATED)

Outstanding Host in a Lifestyle, Children’s or Special Class Program

Monique Coleman
Gimme Mo (Discovery)

Mo Rocca
The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation (CBS )

Jeff Corwin
Ocean Treks With Jeff Corwin (SYNDICATED)

Samantha Brown
Samantha Brown’s Places to Love (PBS)

Rob Strasberg, Treger Strasberg
Welcome Home (The CW)

Outstanding Informative Talk Show Host

Hoda Kotb, Kathie Lee Gifford, Hosts*
Today Show With Kathie Lee & Hoda (NBC)

Steve Harvey, Host
STEVE (SYNDICATED)

Dr. Mehmet Oz, Host
The Dr. Oz Show (SYNDICATED)

Kellie Pickler, Ben Aaron, Hosts
Pickler and Ben (SYNDICATED)

Rachael Ray, Host
Rachael Ray (SYNDICATED)

Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host

Kelly Ripa, Ryan Seacrest, Hosts*
Live with Kelly and Ryan (SYNDICATED)

Adrienne Houghton, Loni Love, Jeannie Mai, Tamera Mowry-Housley, Co-Hosts
The Real (SYNDICATED)

Julie Chen, Sara Gilbert, Sharon Osbourne, Sheryl Underwood, Aisha Tyler, Hosts
The Talk (CBS)

Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sara Haines, Sunny Hostin, Meghan McCain, Abby Huntsman, Co-Hosts
The View (ABC)

Wendy Williams, Host
The Wendy Williams Show (SYNDICATED)

Outstanding Drama Series Writing Team

The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)
Days of Our Lives (NBC)
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)*

Outstanding Drama Series Directing Team

The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)
Days of Our Lives (NBC)
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series

Days of Our Lives (NBC)*
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Art Direction/Set Decoration/Scenic Design for a Drama Series
Days of Our Lives (NBC)
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)*

Outstanding Lighting Direction for a Drama Series

Days of Our Lives (NBC)
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)*

Outstanding Drama Series Technical Team

The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)*
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Multiple Camera Editing for a Drama Series

Days of Our Lives (NBC)
General Hospital (ABC)*
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Live and Direct to Tape Sound Mixing for a Drama Series

The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)*

Outstanding Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series

Days of Our Lives (NBC)*
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Original Song – Drama

“You’re the One”*
The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)

“Goodbye”
Days of Our Lives (NBC)

“More Love”
Giants (YouTube.com)

“Beat of Your Heart”
Giants (YouTube.com)

“How Could a Life Feel So True”
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Costume Design for a Drama Series

The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)
Days of Our Lives (NBC)
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)*

Outstanding Hairstyling for a Drama Series

The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)
Days of Our Lives (NBC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)*

Outstanding Makeup for a Drama Series

The Bold and the Beautiful (CBS)
Days of Our Lives (NBC)*
General Hospital (ABC)
The Young and the Restless (CBS)

Outstanding Writing in a Digital Drama Series

After Forever (Amazon Prime Video)*
The Bay The Series (Amazon Prime Video)
Conversations in L.A. (Amazon Prime Video)
Giants (YouTube.com)
Light as a Feather (Hulu)

Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation – Winners

Kal Athannassov, Character Designer Crow: The Legend Baobab Studios*

Alan Bodner, Production Designer Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventures Disney Channel*

Cody Gramstad, Production Designer Crow: The Legend Baobab Studios*

Yizhou Li, Character Animator Tumble Leaf Amazon Prime Video*

Brian Woods, Background Designer Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventures Disney Channel*

Kevin Wotton, Storyboard Artist Spirit Riding Free Netflix*

Outstanding Casting for an Animated Series or Special

Duck Tales (Disney Channel)
Elena of Avalor (Disney Junior)*
Esme & Roy (HBO Family)
Muppet Babies (Disney Junior)
Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure (Disney Channel)
She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (Netflix)

Outstanding Writing in a Preschool Animated Program

Ask the StoryBots (Netflix)*
Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood (PBS)
Disney Doc McStuffins (Disney Junior)
Fancy Nancy (Disney Junior)
Peg+Cat (PBS)

Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program

Angela’s Christmas (Netflix)
Hilda (Netflix)
The Loud House (Nickelodeon)
Tales of Arcadia: Trollhunters (Netflix)
Wild Kratts (PBS)

Outstanding Writing in a Children’s, Preschool Children’s, Family Viewing Program

Dino Dana (Amazon Prime Video)
Odd Squad (PBS)*
Odd Squad: World Turned Odd (PBS)
Sesame Street (HBO)
The Who Was? Show (Netflix)

Outstanding Writing Special Class

The 2018 Rose Parade Hosted by Cord & Tish (Amazon Prime Video)
The Ellen DeGeneres Show (SYNDICATED)*
The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation (CBS)
The Royal Wedding Live With Cord & Tish (HBO)
To Life: How Israeli Volunteers Are Changing the World (Freeform)

Outstanding Directing in a Digital Drama Series

After Forever (Amazon Prime Video)*
The Bay The Series (Amazon Prime Video)
Conversations in L.A. (Amazon Prime Video)
Giants (YouTube.com)
Light as a Feather (Hulu)

Outstanding Directing in an Animated Program

The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (Amazon Prime Video)
Crow: The Legend (Baobab Studios)*
Hilda Netflix
Tales of Arcadia: Trollhunters (Netflix)
Watership Down (Netflix)

Outstanding Directing in a Preschool Animated Program

Ask the StoryBots (Netflix)*
Fancy Nancy (Disney Junior)
Nella the Princess Knight (Nickelodeon)
Peg+Cat (PBS)
Tumble Leaf (Amazon Prime Video)

Outstanding Directing in a Children’s, Preschool Children’s or Family Viewing Program

Dino Ana (Amazon Prime Video)
Free Rein (Netflix)
Mech X-4 (DisneyXD)
Odd Squad (PBS)*

Outstanding Directing in a Single Camera Lifestyle/Culinary/Travel or Educational and Informational Program

1st Look (NBC)*
Joseph Rosendo’s Travelscope (PBS)
The Pioneer Woman (Food Network)
Samantha Brown’s Places to Love (PBS)
Weird But True! (National Geographic Kids)

Outstanding Directing in  a Multi Camera Lifestyle/Culinary or Educational and Informational Program

America’s Test Kitchen (PBS)
Cook’s Country (PBS)
Home & Family (Hallmark Channel)
The Kitchen (Food Network)*
Milk Street (PBS)

Outstanding Educational and Informational Program

Furze World Wonders (YouTube Premium)
The Kitchen (Food Network)
Milk Street (PBS*)
Nick Stellino Storyteller in the Kitchen (PBS)
Trisha’s Southern Kitchen (Food Network)

Outstanding Directing in a Talk Show, Entertainment News or Morning Program

The Ellen DeGeneres Show (SYNDICATED)*
A Little Help With Carol Burnett (Netflix)
The Real (SYNDICATED)
The Talk (CBS)
The View (ABC)

Outstanding Directing in a Game Show

Family Feud (SYNDICATED)*
Jeopardy! (SYNDICATED)
Let’s Make a Deal (CBS)
The Price Is Right (CBS)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (SYNDICATED)

Outstanding Directing Special Class

The Gymkhana Files (Amazon Prime Video)
Team United – Behind the Scenes: Superherooes (YouTube.com)
Time for Ilhan (Fuse)*
Watchtower (YouTube.com)
Working in the Theater (AmericanTheatreWing.org)

Outstanding Art Direction/Set Decoration/Scenic Design

Dino Dana (Amazon Prime Video)
The Ellen DeGeneres Show (SYNDICATED)
Prince of Peoria (Netflix)
The Talk (CBS)*
Tomorrow’s World Today (Science Channel)

Outstanding Main Title and Graphic Design for a Live Action Program

DailyMailTV (SYNDICATED)
Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade (ABC)
Prince of Peoria (Netflix)
Six Dreams (Amazon Prime Video)*
The Who Was? Show (Netflix)
Outstanding Main Title and Graphic Design for an Animated Program

The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (Amazon Prime Video)
Hilda (Netflix)*
Little Big Awesome (Amazon Prime Video)
Tales of Arcadia: 3Below (Netflix)
Watership Down (Netflix)

Outstanding Lighting Direction

Dino Dana (Amazon Prime Video)
The Ellen DeGeneres Show (SYNDICATED)
The Inspectors (CBS)*
Rachael Ray (SYNDICATED)
The Talk (CBS)

Outstanding Technical Team

American Ninja Warrior Junior (Universal Kids)
CBS This Morning
The Ellen DeGeneres Show (SYNDICATED)
Jeopardy! (SYNDICATED)
The Price Is Right (CBS)*
Sesame Street (HBO)

Outstanding Cinematography

The Gymkhana Files (Amazon Prime Video)
Mech-X4 (DisneyXD)
The New Legends of Monkey (Netflix)
Tumble Leaf (Amazon Prime Video)*

Outstanding Single Camera Editing

1st Look (NBC)
Eat. Race. Win. (Amazon Prime Video)*
Giada on the Beach (Food Network)
The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation (CBS)
The Who Was? Show (Netflix)

Outstanding Multiple Camera Editing

Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade (ABC)
Let’s Make a Deal (CBS)
The Price Is Right (CBS)
Sesame Street (HBO)*
Top Chef Junior (Universal Kids)

Outstanding Sound Mixing

Annedroids (Amazon Prime Video)
The Gymkhana Files (Amazon Prime Video)
The New Legends of Monkey (Netflix)
ReBoot: The Guardian Code (Netflix)
Sesame Street (HBO)*
Six Dreams (Amazon Prime Video)

Outstanding Sound Mixing in an Animated Program

Angela’s Christmas (Netflix)
Crow: The Legend (Baobab Studios)
Tales of Arcadia: 3Below (Netflix)*
Tales of Arcadia: Trollhunters (Netflix)
Watership Down (Netflix)

Outstanding Sound Mixing in a Preschool Animated Program

Beat Bugs: (Netflix)*
PAW Patrol: Mighty Pups (Nickelodeon)
Rusty Rivets (Nickelodeon)
The Stinky & Dirty Show (Amazon Prime Video)
Vampirina (Disney Junior)

Outstanding Sound Editing for a Live Action Program

Dino Dana (Amazon Prime Video)
The New Legends of Monkey (Netflix)
Sesame Street (HBO)
Six Dreams (Amazon Prime Video)
The Who Was? Show (Netflix)*

Outstanding Sound Editing – Animation

Big Hero 6: The Series (Disney Channel)
Lego DC Comic Super Hero The Flash (Amazon Prime Video)*
Tales of Arcadia: 3 Below (Netflix)
Tales of Arcadia: Trollhunters (Netflix)
Watership Down (Netflix)

Outstanding Sound Editing in a Preschool Animated Program

Beat Bugs: All Together Now (Netflix)
Elena of Avalor (Disney Junior)
Let’s Go Luna! (PBS Kids)
The Stinky & Dirty Show (Amazon Prime Video)
Vampirina (Disney Junior)*

Outstanding Music Direction and Composition

Disney Mickey Mouse (Disney Channel)
Elena of Avalor (Disney Junior)
The Loud House (Nickelodeon)
The Tom & Jerry Show (Cartoon Network)*
Watership Down (Netflix)

Outstanding Musical Performance in a Daytime Program

CBS This Morning Saturday (CBS)
Ashley McBride
“Girl Goin’ Nowhere/American Scandal”

LIVE With Kelly and Ryan (SYNDICATED)
Lindsay Stirling
“Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy”

Pickler and Ben (SYNDICATED)
Ben Rector
“Old Friends”

The Real (SYNDICATED)
Adirenne Houghton, Israel Houghton
“Secrets”

Today Show (NBC)*
Cast of the Band’s Visit
“Answer Me”

Outstanding Costume Design/Styling

The New Legends of Monkey (Netflix)*
Odd Squad (PBS)
Sesame Street (HBO)
The Talk (CBS)

Outstanding Hairstyling

Free Reign (Netflix)
Live With Kelly and Ryan (SYNDICATED)
The Real (SYNDICATED)
The Talk (CBS)*
The View (ABC)

Outstanding Makeup

Aliens Ate My Homework (Netflix)
The Price Is Right (CBS)
The Talk (CBS)*
The View (ABC)
Walk the Prank (DisneyXD)

Shameik Moore, Jake Johnson and ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ team untangle secrets of their groundbreaking movie

October 6, 2018

by Carla Hay

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Jake Johnson, Lauren Velez, Shameik Moore, Brian Tyree Henry Bob Persichetti and Peter Ramsey at the “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” panel at New York Comic Con in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Sony Pictures)

The animated film “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” was one of the most talked-about revelations at the 2018 edition of New York Comic Con in New York City. Not only were fans given a huge surprise treat by seeing the first 35 minutes of the film before the panel discussion took place, but those in the audience who saw the sneak preview were also raving about it. Simply put: “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (which opens in theaters on December 14, 2018) has the makings of being an award-winning hit.

The movie also represents the first time on the big screen that Spider-Man will be played by characters other than Peter Parker. The main Spider-Man in “Into the Spider-Verse” is Miles Morales, a half-Puerto Rican, half-African American high schooler from Brooklyn, who almost reluctantly becomes the masked webslinger under the mentorship of Parker. The trailers for the movie indicate that Morales’ love interest Gwen Stacy will also take on the persona of Spider-Gwen, plus there are other variations of Spider-Man in this movie’s alternate universe. (No spoilers here.)

After getting rapturous applause following the sneak preview, several members of the “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” team took to the stage for a discussion panel. They included Shameik Moore (voice of Miles Morales); Jake Johnson (voice of Peter Parker); Lauren Velez (voice of Rio Morales, Miles’ mother); Brian Tyree Henry (voice of Jefferson Davis, Miles’ father); producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller; and directors Bob Persichetti and Peter Ramsey. Here is what they said:

Christopher Miller, Phil Lord, Jake Johnson, Shameik Moore, Lauren Velez, Brian Tyree Henry, Bob Persichetti and Peter Ramsey at the “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” panel at New York Comic Con in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Sony Pictures)

Phil and Chris, how did you get involved in “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”?

Lord: When Sony came to us and said, “Wouldn’t it be cool to do Spider-Man as an animated movie?” And the first thing we thought was, “Yeah, that would be awesome to see a comic book come to life, but wouldn’t it be the seventh Spider-Man movie? It would have to feel like something super-fresh.” So we said we wouldn’t want to do it unless it was Miles Morales’ story.

Miller: It seemed like they really wanted us to do this, so we could make some demands. And so, we used the fact that this story had been told a lot of times to our advantage, because the expectation now is, “How can we do it differently?”

The visuals are stunning. Peter and Bob, can you talk about the visual approach and how the story is set in Brooklyn?

Ramsey: As Phil said, this was a chance for us to really lean into a medium that was made for Spider-Man … How can we take advantage of a medium that has been visually expressive for so many years and tie it into the original source material? And so, we started to lean into flash frames and visuals that are really reminiscent of drawings, but we had to figure out a way to do it with a computer, which is its own giant task.

And then separately, we’ve seen the Peter Parker story. We know. We haven’t seen the Miles Morales story. Brooklyn is such a character. There are so many things that were born out of New York: hip-hop, graffiti, Miles. How do we view the movie with a character that is the city? Each borough has its own flavor.

Persichetti: The great thing for us, as filmmakers, is that the stars all kind of lined up, and we were in a situation where we had producers/creators—Phil [Lord]  and Chris [Miller]—who had a vision, and a studio that said, “You can do that,” even though they didn’t know what we were going to do.

Every step along of the way, everyone on the team pushed as far as they could into his idea of using animation to be more expressive, be like a comic book, honor the original source, and to try to bring New York 2018 to life in a way that everybody in the audience can understand, so everyone can go through this experience in Miles’ shoes. Hopefully, we got it right.

Ramsey: And I think the secret was we didn’t tell them how bold of a visual approach we were going to take until it was too late to change it.

Jake Johnson and Shameik Moore at the “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” panel at New York Comic Con in New York City.   (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Sony Pictures)

Shameik, what was it like to inhabit the Miles Morales character?

Moore: I can relate to the upbringing we’re looking at. I’m not actually Latino, but I feel the spirit. I’m very excited. When I was younger and I first saw Miles Morales, I was like, “Dude, there’s a black Spider-Man out there.”

I wrote it down in a journal filming this movie called “Dope.” I said, “I am Miles Morales. I am Spider-Man.” And two years later, I got the opportunity, with these guys. We made an amazing movie. It really is a crazy thing.

Jake, what can you say about the Peter Parker character in “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”?

Johnson: It’s Peter Parker at 40. Peter Parker who’s a little chubby. Peter Parker who’s a little depressed. I just saw [the movie] this morning. It’s just so exciting, and I’m fired up to be in it.

Jake, how would you describe the relationship between Peter Parker and Miles Morales?

Johnson: They become partners in crime. They become unlikely friends. There’s a little bit of “The Karate Kid.” They end up needing each other to get out of a situation, and they become friends along the way.

Bryan Tyree Henry at the “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” panel at New York Comic Con in New York City.   (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Sony Pictures)

Brian, how would you describe your Jefferson Davis character as Miles’ father?

Henry: It reminded me of my father. I was raised by my father for … most of my formative years—junior high through high school—puberty, mostly. My father was a Vietnam vet, and there was this kid he was trying to raise. Looking at the [the movie], I was like, “Oh, that’s what he was going through!” I didn’t think I was that bad, but I was off the chain!

There is nothing more important to me than to see a black boy and his father. We’ve seen the single mom trying to bring up a teenage boy to be a man, but it’s really nice to see … Miles Morales has both of his parents. He’s bilingual and raised in Brooklyn. His mom works in a hospital, and [his father] is a cop.

He had a damn good upbringing. We made a good man! It’s important for everyone to see that Miles is part of that. It was very important for me to be part of that, to be someone trying to raise [Miles] right and make him a decent man … And to play the husband of Lauren Velez? I jumped at the chance. Our son is the bomb! It’s an honor to be on this panel with all these creators. And Miles is “dope.” See what I did there?

Shameik Moore and Lauren Velez at the “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” panel at New York Comic Con in New York City.   (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Sony Pictures)

Lauren, can you talk about your Rio character, who’s Miles’ mother?

Velez: This is my first animation [project] ever. I had no idea what to expect at all. I’m floored by everything. I’m floored by the storytelling, the visual style. Is that animation? Look at the depth of that. So much if it is beyond what I expected. I really have the most amazing family.

My son [Miles] is so dope and my husband is amazing. I’m the daughter of a cop [in real life], and seeing this [movie] made me think so much of my own family and growing … [Miles] doesn’t come from a broken home. He comes from a real stable, professional parenting environment and parents who want the best for him, and want him to achieve his highest potential. That’s why they’ve sent him away to a school that is better for him but is still diverse; he’s not completely away from his world. All of that I thought was so important.

And the bilingual aspect of it. I’m Nuyorican, and I think Miles is such loving, wonderful son on the cusp of manhood. I feel like [Rio] supports him in moving toward being the man she wants him to but still wants to nurture him and hold on to him and take care of him. I think, secretly, she thinks his art is so dope, and she supports that.

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