Review: ‘Captain America: Brave New World,’ starring Anthony Mackie, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Carl Lumbly, Xosha Roquemore, Giancarlo Esposito, Liv Tyler, Tim Blake Nelson and Harrison Ford

February 12, 2025

by Carla Hay

Harrison Ford and Anthony Mackie in “Captain America: Brave New World” (Photo by Eli Adé/Marvel Studios)

“Captain America: Brave New World”

Directed by Julius Onah

Culture Representation: Taking place in the Washington, D.C. area (and briefly in Mexico), the sci-fi/action film “Captain America: Brave New World” (based on Marvel Comics characters) features a racially diverse cast of characters (African American, Latin, Asian and white) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: Sam Wilson (also known as Captain America) and his allies get into conflicts with new opponents who are on quest for world domination, including the monster Red Hulk.

Culture Audience: “Captain America: Brave New World” will appeal mainly to people who are fans of the movie’s headliners and superhero movies that are utterly formulaic.

Red Hulk (played by Harrison Ford) in “Captain America: Brave New World” (Photo by Eli Adé/Marvel Studios)

It’s almost obscene that so much money was spent on “Captain America: Brave New World” and yet this superhero sequel has so little innovation, wit or visual style. The characters are bland in this underwhelming story. “Captain America: Brave New World” (which had a reported $180 production budget) might have been impressive in 2008, when the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) launched with 2008’s “Iron Man.” However, there have been so many great advancements in the MCU since then, “Captain America: Brave New World” is most definitely a stumble backwards.

Directed by Julius Onah, “Captain America: Brave New World” has five credited screenwriters: Onah, Rob Edwards, Malcolm Spellman, Dalan Musson and Peter Glanz. It seems to be a case of “too many cooks in the kitchen,” based on the results in this substandard screenplay. The film editing is choppy, which means the filmmakers didn’t know how to make this meandering story any better.

The good news for people who’ve grown tired of trying to keep up with all of the MCU spinoff series on the Disney+ streaming service: You don’t really to see the Disney+ limited series “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” to understand what’s going on in “Captain America: Brave New World.” As already shown in 2019’s blockbuster MCU movie “Avengers: Endgame,” Steve Rogers (played by Chris Evans) retired and passed on the Captain America title and shield to a reluctant Sam Wilson (played by Anthony Mackie), also known as superhero Falcon.

In “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” Sam mentored Joaquin Torres (played by Danny Ramirez), a U.S. Air Force first lieutenant who is an eager young protégé to Sam. After Sam officially became the next Captain America, Joaquin got the title of being the new Falcon. “Captain America: Brave New World” shows Joaquin as the Falcon. “Captain America: Brave New World” co-screenwriter Spellman was the showrunner for “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.”

In the beginning of “Captain America: Brave New World,” Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (played by Harrison Ford) is an elderly former U.S. Army general who has recently been elected President of the United States. In 2008’s “The Incredible Hulk” (the second MCU movie), the role of Thaddeus Ross was previously played by William Hurt, who died in 2022. Thaddeus is a widower and a warmonger who is estranged from his daughter Dr. Betty Ross (played by Liv Tyler) because Thaddeus became an enemy of Betty’s then-boyfriend Dr. Bruce Banner, also known as the Incredible Hulk, a giant green monster superhero.

Meanwhile, a very early and messy scene in “Captain America: Brave New World” takes place in Oaxaca, Mexico, where Sam and Joaquin do an exposition-dump dialogue so they catch viewers up to speed about their respective new superhero roles. Sam mentions that his new Captain America suit was a gift from Wakanda. (For people who don’t know, Wakanda is the African birthplace of superhero Black Panther.)

In a poorly constructed fight scene, Sam and Joaquin save members of a Catholic church in Oaxaca. It’s where the heroes encounter the villain Seth Voelker, also known as Sidewinder (played by Giancarlo Esposito), who leads a mercenary group called Serpent. Some fighting ensues between the heroes and villains. Sidewinder appears and re-appears in different parts of the movie, which doesn’t really know what to do with Sidewinder.

Sam and Joaquin then go to Baltimore, Maryland, where they meet up with elderly widower Isaiah Bradley (played by Carl Lumbly), who is described as “the forgotten Captain America.” Isaiah is a bitter recluse, who tells Sam and Joaquin that the U.S. government imprisoned Isaiah for years and conducted illegal experiments on him. Sam and Joaquin have been invited to a gala event at the White House and invite a reluctant Isaiah to accompany them at this event, which has officials from various countries in attendance.

Sam shares Isaiah’s skepticism about governments and the belief that superheroes should not work for any government. However, Sam and Joaquin are admittedly star-struck and flattered that they are President Ross’ invited guests at this event. President Ross uses the event to show off that the U.S. has possession of Adamantium, which is described as “the world’s most versatile element.” The Adamantium, which looks like a slab of mineral rock, is in a glass display case.

During President Ross’ speech, Isaiah suddenly takes out a gun, shoots the glass display case, steals the Adamantium and shoots at the Secret Service agents who are trying to capture him. It doesn’t take long for Isaiah to be captured, but he insists he blacked out during the shooting and has no memory of knowledge of why he committed these crimes. Sam believes Isaiah and sets out to prove his innocence.

And there’s yet another villain in the story: Samuel Sterns (played by Tim Blake Nelson, reprising his role from “The Incredible Hulk), a disfigured scientist who holds the key to the story’s big mystery. Samuel’s role in this formulaic movie fails to be menacing enough to create an effective sense of danger. He mainly just sits around in a lab and occasionally goes on rants.

The rest of “Captain America: Brave New World” can be figured out from watching the trailer, which reveals too much. Although many viewers already know that Thaddeus is going to turn into the supervillain Red Hulk, other viewers won’t know that, but the movie’s trailer reveals it anyway. And because Tyler’s name is listed on the movie’s poster as one of the movie’s headliners, no one should be surprised to see the Betty Ross character in “Captain America: Brave New World,” even though her appearance is really just a brief cameo. Another character cameo appearance that should come as no surprise to anyone who knows about “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.”

Mackie and Ramirez have a fairly convincing rapport as friends and work colleagues Sam and Joaquin, but the dialogue they’re given is so trite, it weakens the quality of the movie. Ford has played gruff and stern U.S. presidents in other movies, and he’s really just doing another version of those presidential characters in “Captain America: Brave New World.” The only difference is that his character turns into a CGI-created giant monster, with mediocre visual effects.

The female characters with the most screen time in the movie are secondary sidekicks. Ruth Bat-Seraph (played by Shira Haas) is an Israeli-born former Black Widow operative, who was trained in the notoriously brutal Red Room. Ruth, who is the top security advisor to President Ross, has only three facial expressions in the movie: scowling, pouting and emotionally disconnected. There are fight scenes where short and thin Ruth takes on several armed men at once who are twice her size. And even though Ruth doesn’t have superpowers, these ludicrous-looking fight scenes are all supposed to be believable.

Leila Taylor (played by Xosha Roquemore) is the leader of President Ross’ Secret Service detail. She’s given even less to do than Ruth. Leila mostly just stands around with worried expressions on her face. Her purpose in the movie is to warn President Ross not to do something that he’s going to do anyway. Leila is an example of how the movie squanders opportunities to make supporting characters more interesting.

“Captain America: Brave New World” might satisfy viewers who worship anything that Marvel puts out, but the consistent quality that Marvel movies and TV shows had in the 2010s has now become hit or miss in the 2020s. Even the “Captain America: Brave New World” end-credits scene is boring and not worth watching because it adds nothing important as a preview of what could happen in subsequent MCU stories. Captain America: Brave New World” isn’t an actively terrible movie, but it’s a terribly disappointing film on many levels.

To put it bluntly: “Captain America: Brave New World” will be remembered for being the movie that confirms what was already widely reported: Thaddeus Ross asks Sam to assemble an Avengers team, also known as the MCU’s real cash cow. In that sense, “Captain America: Brave New World” is just a placeholder movie and not an essential or noteworthy breakthrough for the MCU.

Walt Disney Pictures/Marvel Studios will release “Captain America: Brave New World” in U.S. cinemas on February 14, 2025.

Review: ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,’ starring Harrison Ford, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Antonio Banderas, Karen Allen, Toby Jones, Boyd Holbrook, Ethann Isidore and Mads Mikkelsen

June 29, 2023

by Carla Hay

Ethann Isidore, Harrison Ford and Phoebe Waller-Bridge in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” (Photo courtesy of Lucasfilm)

“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”

Directed by James Mangold

Some language in German and Greek with subtitles

Culture Representation: Taking place in 1969 (with some flashbacks to the 1940s), in various parts of universe, the action film “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” features a predominantly white cast of characters (with some people of African, Middle Eastern and Latino heritage) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: American hero Indiana Jones fights Nazis, as he tries to regain possession of a powerful time-travel artifact called the Archimedes Dial that has been stolen by his British con-artist goddaughter. 

Culture Audience: Besides appealing to the obvious target audience of “Indiana Jones” franchise fans and Harrison Ford fans, “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” will appeal primarily to people who don’t mind watching formulaic action movies that lack original ideas.

Mads Mikkelsen in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” (Photo courtesy of Lucasfilm

“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” should be renamed “Indiana Jones and the Long-Winded Cash Grab.” It’s an overstuffed pile-on of formulaic action, insipid dialogue and ripoff ideas. It’s an utter failure of originality. And with a total running time of 154 minutes, only the most die-hard Indiana Jones fans will feel like this repetitive film is worth the very long ride that over-relies on Indiana Jones nostalgia instead of doing something truly bold and creative with this franchise.

Directed by James Mangold, “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is the fifth movie in the “Indiana Jones” series, which began with 1981’s “Raiders of the Lost Ark”—still the best movie in the franchise—which was about an American hero battling against treasure-stealing Nazis. “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is the first “Indiana Jones” movie that isn’t directed by Steven Spielberg. The screenplay for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” was co-written by Mangold, Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth and David Koepp. The movie had its world premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.

“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” begins somewhere in Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II, with a very misguided action sequence that lasts for about 15 to 20 minutes. The sequence shows a middle-aged Indiana “Indy” Jones (played by Harrison Ford, with de-aging computer imagery in these scenes) fighting off Nazis with his longtime British friend Basil Shaw (played by Toby Jones, also de-aged in this sequence), who is an archaeologist and an Oxford University professor. In this sequence, Indiana does things such as fight Nazis on the roof of a moving train. Basil has been captured by the Nazis. But of course, Indiana is able to rescue Basil.

Indiana and Basil want to get a hold of the Archimedes Dial, an artifact that is believed to have the ability to open time portals. The Nazi contingent is led by Colonel Weber (played by Thomas Kretschmann), who is in charge of stealing valuable art and artifacts from Nazi-occupied countries and sending these treasures to Germany. One of the star subordinates of Colonel Weber is Dr. Jürgen Voller (played by Mads Mikkelsen, also de-aged in the 1940s scenes), who comes across Indiana Jones in the battle over the Archimedes Dial.

While still on top of the moving train, Indiana finds himself at the mercy of Jürgen, who has a gun and demands that Indiana Jones hand over the Archimedes Dial. Indiana abides by this request, and Jürgen escapes by sliding down a nearby pole. The conclusion of this fight immediately looks phony, because if this fight had happened in real life, a ruthless Nazi such as Jürgen would have immediately killed Indiana and Basil after getting the dial. But there would be no “Indiana Jones” sequels if that happened, so expect Indiana Jones to escape death again and again in unrealistic action scenes.

Another glaring reason why this sequence is very misguided is that it will make viewers wonder, “How long is this movie going to show a younger (fake-looking) Indiana Jones instead of the senior citizen that Ford is in real life?” It’s an example of how “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” relies too heavily on nostalgia. This high-energy action sequence will only just remind people of how the earlier “Indiana Jones” movies from the 20th century are better than the “Indiana Jones” movies released in the 21st century.

After this overly long trip down memory lane of how Indiana Jones used to look, “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” fast-forwards to the year 1969, when Indiana Jones is a cranky, bitter old man. He’s an archaelogy professor at Hunter College in New York City. He’s on the verge of retiring after teaching at Hunter College for the past 10 years. And he lives alone, because he’s separated from his wife Marion (played by Karen Allen), who met him in the story depicted in “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” explains later why Indiana and Marion have separated. (Hint: She left him.)

Someone who shows up unexpectedly in one of Indiana’s class sessions is Helena Shaw (played by Phoebe Waller-Bridge), who is Basil’s daughter. Helena is also Indiana’s goddaughter. She’s looking for the Archimedes Dial, which is believed to have been lost over the French Alps. As shown in the opening sequence, Jürgen thought he had the Archimedes Dial, but somehow Indiana fooled him by giving him only half of the dial. Indiana really kept the other half of the dial. Basil (who is deceased in 1969) lost the other half, so now Helena wants to find both halves.

The rest of “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is about this quest, which includes a lot of bickering and backstabbing from the very annoying Helena, who is a con artist. Of course, we all know how this is going to go in the end, since Helena has the story arc of “Can this con artist be trusted? Can this con artist be redeemed?” Another question that comes to mind when watching Helena is: “Can this con artist get any more irritating?”

And once again, the Nazis (this time, neo-Nazis) are on the hunt for the Archimedes Dial too. Jürgen has another identity hiding his Nazi past. He’s now a physicist named Dr. Lehrer Schmidt, who works in the United States’ outer-space program. Jürgen/Lerer has a generic right-hand man named Klaber (played by Boyd Holbrook), who zips around cities on motorbikes as if he thinks he’s a Nazi version of James Dean. Jürgen/Lerer also has a henchman named Hauke (played by Olivier Richters), who also does a lot of the dirty work.

Along the way, Indiana Jones encounters a CIA operative named Agent Mason (played by Shaunette Renée Wilson), who is undercover as a Black Power militant. It’s just a sorry excuse for the movie to have Agent Mason say the word “cracker” as a racist term used to describe a white person. It takes entirely too long for Agent Mason to figure out that Klaber is a Nazi who is working undercover as U.S. law enforcement. This isn’t spoiler information, since the trailer for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” clearly shows that Klaber is one of the villains.

A former excavator named Sallah (played by John Rhys-Davies), an old friend from Indiana Jones’ past, used to live in Cairo but is now a taxi driver in New York City. (And you know what that means when the movie has inevitable chase/action scenes in New York City.) Sallah shows up in the movie to check off more nostalgia boxes for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” Antonio Banderas has a cameo as Renaldo, a sailor/fisherman who gives advice to Indiana on how to find an expert diver in Greece. It’s a role that really just celebrity stunt casting.

“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” recycles the formula of giving Indiana Jones an adolescent male sidekick, who is a smart alecky motormouth. Qe Huy Quan had that role in 1984’s “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” the second movie in the series. Shia LaBeouf had that role in 2008’s “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” the fourth movie in the series. And in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” Ethann Isidore has that role, as Teddy, a bratty teenager who doesn’t trust Indiana at first because he’s a friend of Helena’s. No one seems to question how creepy it is for Helena to be hanging out with a kid this young when he’s not related to her.

The acting performances in the movie are nothing special. Everyone seems to be playing their roles as if they’re video game characters. Expect to see the usual “race against time” action sequences, people yelling at each other, and narrow escapes from death that don’t look realistic at all. One of the more ridiculous action sequences is Indiana riding a horse in a New York City subway station as if he’s in the Kentucky Derby.

Sure, “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is supposed to be an escapism adventure movie. And sure, people can enjoy seeing Ford returning to a character who is way past his prime. And sure, the globetrotting scenes are eye-catching. (The movie was filmed in Morocco, Sicily and the United Kingdom.) But “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is an example of how computer technology cannot replace a good story. Compare “Raiders of the Lost Ark” to “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” to understand why “better filmmaking technology” doesn’t always equal “better filmmaking.”

Walt Disney Pictures will release “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” in U.S. cinemas on June 30, 2023.

2021 Academy Awards: presenters and performers announced

April 23, 2021

The following is a combination of press releases from ABC:

Oscar® nominee Steven Yeun will join the ensemble cast slated to present at the 93rd Oscars®, show producers Jesse Collins, Stacey Sher and Steven Soderbergh announced today. “The Oscars” will air live on Sunday, April 25, 2021, on ABC.

“Surprise! We’re so excited to welcome Steven to the crew, and he completes our Oscars cast. No, really, this is it,” said Collins, Sher and Soderbergh.

The previously announced lineup includes Riz Ahmed, Angela Bassett, Halle Berry, Don Cheadle, Bryan Cranston, Viola Davis, Laura Dern, Harrison Ford, Bong Joon Ho, Regina King, Marlee Matlin, Rita Moreno, Joaquin Phoenix, Brad Pitt, Reese Witherspoon, Renée Zellweger and Zendaya.

Celeste, H.E.R., Leslie Odom Jr., Laura Pausini, Daniel Pemberton, Molly Sandén and Diane Warren will perform the five nominated original songs in their entirety for “Oscars: Into the Spotlight,” the lead-in to the 93rd Oscars. One performance will be recorded in Húsavík, Iceland, and four at the Dolby Family Terrace of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. Hosted by actors Ariana DeBose (“Hamilton”) and Lil Rel Howery (“Bad Trip”), the 90-minute “Oscars: Into the Spotlight” will highlight the nominees’ journey to Hollywood’s biggest night, give fans around the world the ultimate insiders’ sneak peek to the party and, for the first time, bring Oscar music to the festivities. The show will feature a special appearance by DJ Tara. “Oscars: Into the Spotlight” will air Oscar Sunday, April 25, at 6:30 p.m. EDT/3:30 p.m. PDT.  

The 93rd Oscars will be held on Sunday, April 25, 2021, at Union Station Los Angeles and the Dolby® Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and international locations via satellite.  “Oscars: Into the Spotlight” will air live on ABC at 6:30 p.m. EDT/3:30 p.m. PDT. “The Oscars” will be televised live on ABC at 8 p.m. EDT/5 p.m. PDT and in more than 200 territories worldwide.  “Oscars: After Dark” will immediately follow the Oscars show.

ABOUT THE ACADEMY
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a global community of more than 10,000 of the most accomplished artists, filmmakers and executives working in film. In addition to celebrating and recognizing excellence in filmmaking through the Oscars, the Academy supports a wide range of initiatives to promote the art and science of the movies, including public programming, educational outreach and the upcoming Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.

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.

2017 Star Wars Celebration: ‘Last Jedi’ trailer premieres, Harrison Ford appears; watch videos from the event

April 16, 2017

Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and George Lucas at the 12th edition of Star Wars Celebration at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, on April 14, 2017.
Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and George Lucas at the 12th edition of Star Wars Celebration at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, on April 14, 2017. (Photo courtesy of Lucasfilm)

The 12th edition of Star Wars Celebration took place April 12 to 16, 2017, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.

Harrison Ford, who played Han Solo in several “Star Wars” movies, made his first appearance at the event. He was on a panel with “Star Wars” creator/director George Lucas and “Star Wars” actor Mark Hamill (best known for playing Luke Skywalker) celebrating the 40th anniversary of the 1977 “Star Wars” movie. Others who appeared at the event included past and present “Star Wars” co-stars such as Liam Neeson, Ian McDiarmid, Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, Billie Lourd, Billy Dee Williams, Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford. Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, “Star Wars Rebels” executive producer/supervising director Dave Filoni and “Star Wars” composer John Williams.

The teaser trailer for Star Wars The Last Jedi was revealed. The movie is set to be released on December 15, 2017.

It was also revealed that the late Carrie Fisher (who died in December 2016) will not be in “Star Wars: Episode IX,” which will be released sometime in 2019.

The fourth season of the animated series “Star Wars Rebels” will be its last season.

An update was given on the “Star Wars” themed attraction, which is set to open in 2019 at Disney Parks in California and Florida. Among the features: Guests will be able to ride a replica of the Millennium Falcon, as well experience the cantina that was in the 1977 “Star Wars” movie.

The event concluded with a surprise performance from Oscar-winning “Star Wars” composer John Williams and an orchestra.

Here are video highlights from Star Wars Celebration 2017:

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