FROZEN II

Release Date: Malaysia, 21 Nov 2019
Genre: Animation

Running Length: 1:43

Cast (voices): Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Josh Gad, Jonathan Groff, Sterling K. Brown, Evan Rachel Wood

Director: Jennifer Lee, Chris Buck

Screenplay: Jennifer Lee

As I am preparing to review FROZEN II, the only thing that is repeatedly pounding my head right now is:

"Into the unknown, into the UNKNOWN, into the UNKNOOOoooOOoooWN. Ahh Ahh Ahh Ahhhh~"

Several years have passed since the incidents from the first movie. Elsa (Menzel) is the ruler of Arendelle. However, there is an unknown voice calling her to leave Arendelle for the mysterious enchanted forest in order to save her kingdom from an unknown threat. Yes, I am aware there are two "unknowns" in one sentence. And so, Elsa and her sister Anna (Bell), Anna's boyfriend Kristoff (Groff), Sven the moose and Olaf (Gad) leave Arendelle and set out to travel to this mysterious forest to make things alright again.

There is just something about excessive singing in an animation that will bore me to tears. I never grew to like it. Probably that's why I've never really developed a liking for the performing/theatre arts. That was probably why I couldn't connect with Frozen when it first came out in 2013.

Hence after impacting a whole generation of kids with "Let It Go" and all things Frozen, I was very hesitant to watch the sequel. But I braved myself and decided to step into the unknooooown to check it out anyway. 

Let's get the songs out of the way first, shall we? Musically, the songs here are not as "catchy" compared to the first one but the one song that really stood out for me was, yep, "Into The Unknown" (personally, I prefer Panic! At the Disco's version compared to Menzel's). Overall, there is a certain 'Broadway' feel to the list of songs here. Not sure if it's because the characters in the movie delivered them with gusto or it's the composition or just both.

As for the plot, I must say I'm glad the filmmakers didn't rehash it from the first movie. The themes explored here are more mature. However, that doesn't mean it's better as it's not as focused as the first one. There are themes of politics, save the environment, growing up and a handful more. It's a bit of a mess, really. 

Visually, it does move the bar, if only by a little (I'm comparing to the recent animations and not the first Frozen). Some scenes are beautiful to watch as it's photo-realistic but still maintain the animated touch. The scene where Elsa ran towards the dark and stormy ocean, coupled with the heart pounding soundtrack, is a sight to behold. 

All in all, I'm glad Frozen II is not a cash grab and the writers took time to extend the arc of some of these characters and expand the Frozen universe. Oh, and Olaf provides just enough comic-relief here to be not irritating.

RATING: 7/10

THE LION KING (2019)

Release Date: Malaysia, 17 June 2019

Genre: Animation / Adventure

Running Length: 1:58

Cast (Voices): Donald Glover, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Beyoncé, James Earl Jones, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, John Oliver, Alfre Woodard

Director:  Jon Favreau

Screenplay: Jeff Nathanson, based on a story by Brenda Chapman

Disclaimer: This review is based on these facts: (i) I've watched the original 1994 classic and (ii) I am not in favour of Disney re-doing its classics into live-action. If you've not seen the original, perhaps you would have a different experience altogether.

So, I decided to catch it anyway hoping that it would bring a new freshness. And here's the verdict:

I totally disliked it. 

Before I tear this movie apart, let's start off with the positive aspects of the movie. The one thing that really stood out for me is the triumphant "animation". The movie's photorealistic jungles and animals of Africa can be easily mistaken with an episode of National Geographic or Planet Earth. In the opening act where we are introduced to little Simba, I literally exclaimed out loud "Eeee..SO CUTE!!!" Yes, it's that believable. The technical achievement here is ground breaking.

And that's about it of what I like about the movie. Now let's get to the dislikes.

Eventhough it's visually realistic and stunning, there are drawbacks. You see, I can accept it when the animals are singing and acting all human-like in the hand-drawn original but in a state of "reality" like this 2019 version, there is a disconnect when perfectly rendered animals start speaking and singing. I just find this very difficult to accept. As a result, it was distracting to me. 

And speaking of speaking, there is something off with the voice talents here and I can't put my finger on what's wrong. James Earl Jones is back as the booming voice of Simba's I'm your father; Mufasa. But somehow, the majesty and glory of Mufasa is missing when he speaks in this version. The only voice talent that matches to the 'T' is Seth Rogen as the warthog Pumbaa. He was born to play Pumbaa. 

As for the scenes, it's a shot-for-shot recreation of the original. WHY?!! Yes, I get it that some scenes are sacred and shouldn't be altered such as the signature opening "Circle of Life" sequence and one of the most disturbing and saddest scene ever committed to the history of Disney animation (it still is in this version), but they could have at least changed up some scenes to inject some freshness to it.

As for the classic score and songs, they did update it but this 2019 version is simply terrible. The only memorable ones are when Pumbaa and Timon sing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" and a laugh-inducing song referencing another Disney classic

All in all, I was bored throughout this 2019 Lion King. This is an obvious cash-grab from Disney. Unfortunately, audiences will still flock to the cinemas (it debuted and ruled at the North America Box Office at USD 185 million!) and will fill Disney's coffers to overflowing. This only means one thing: more classics being converted to live-action. You know what they say - new generation, new money. 

RATING: 5/10

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 3 (THE HIDDEN WORLD)

Release Date: Malaysia, 31 Jan 2019

Genre: Action / Adventure / Animation

Running Length: 1:45

Cast (voices):  Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Cate Blanchett, Craig Ferguson, F. Murray Abraham, Gerard Butler, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Kristen Wiig, Kit Harington

Director:  Dean DeBlois

Screenplay: Dean DeBlois based upon the "How to Train Your Dragon" book series by Cressida Cowell 

In this last installment of the How to Train Your Dragon series, I went in with some anxiety anticipating for the worst. If you followed part 1 and 2, you would have realized that the series creators take risk. 

In the first one, our heroes Hiccup (Baruchel) and Toothless lost their leg and tail wing respectively. And in Part 2, as Hiccup finally found his mother, his father dies! 

So, going into HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 3, I had all these thoughts in my mind, "Does Toothless die?" , "Does Hiccup die?", "Do Hiccup and Astrid get married?" 

Well, all I can reveal for now is that the character arc (the transformation or inner journey of a character over the course of a story) of both Hiccup and Toothless is complete in an emotionally satisfying way. 

With Hiccup as head chief now, he and Toothless (being the alpha dragon) safeguard their island and keep everyone safe, both humans and dragons. However, there is a new threat to this peaceful dragon utopia where the villagers are forced to make a decision to vacate their village.  

Meanwhile, Toothless has fallen in love with another dragon, a Light Fury. 

This is where Hidden World soars. It's such a delight to see the courtship of this cute couple, from a clumsy mating dance to a no dialogue high-flying sequence official date across the clouds and beautiful "magic hour" cinematic landscape. It's one of the most beautiful and heart warming sequence for me ever created using animation.  

The visuals in this movie is stunning and accompanying score is just perfect.  

The villain (Abraham) in this installment is also much more memorable than Part 2. I swear his demeanor and voice sounded so much like John Lithgow. 

Speaking of the non-verbal, there is this powerful moment somewhere at the end where Hiccup and Toothless communicates without any words. Such an emotional scene.   

How to Train Your Dragon 3 is a fitting ending. Much better than part two, whereas the first one was still the best. 

RATING: 8/10

CHRISTOPHER ROBIN (Malaysia, 16 Aug 2018)

Genre: Family / Adventure / Animation

Running Length: 1:44

Cast: Ewan McGregor, Hayley Atwell, Bronte Carmichael, Jim Cummings, Brad Garrett, Nick Mohammed

Director: Marc Forster

Screenplay: Alex Ross Perry, Tom McCarthy, Allison Schroeder based on the characters from Disney's Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne & E. H. Shepard

What's this movie about?

CHRISTOPHER ROBIN is a fresh take on the classic Winnie The Pooh. It tells the tale of a grown up and middle-aged Christopher Robin (McGregor) who has left the Hundred Acre Woods many years ago. He has long forgotten his friends Winnie the Pooh and co. The adult Christopher is now struggling at work and has neglected his family, and it's up to Pooh and gang to "save" him.

Highlights!

• The "soft toy" approach to the creation of Pooh and gang. Rather than the bright yellow and red T-shirt Pooh or the colourful orange with black stripes Tigger we are all familiar with, the filmmakers chose a blend of live action (real stuffed toys) and CGI in the creation of the creatures. This I reckon is a genius move. By making them look like well-used and worn out soft toys, audiences would be able to connect at a deeper level to these characters because of its lifelike appearance. So, when we see Pooh waiting daily in the hope for Christopher Robin to return to Hundred Acre Woods one day, I could actually feel his abandonment.        
• The seamless integration between Pooh and gang with the humans. There is this heart-warming extended sequence where adult Christopher reconnects with Pooh; he feeds Pooh with honey and tucks his friend into bed. Those tender moments really gave me the feels.  
• A visual delight. The cinematography is just so beautiful to watch especially Hundred Acre Woods.

Lowlights

• The film failed to make a film for both adults and kids. It just couldn't find its balance between a midlife-crisis drama and children’s film. The end result felt unfocused. 
• The performances of the cast. McGregor, Atwell and kid Carmichael were OK but the rest of the cast came across as more "cartoon" than Pooh and gang.   
• The debatable decision to make Christopher’s furry friends visible to other people instead of just being confined to the figments of his imagination.  

In summary

For me, the first half of the movie was much more enjoyable than the second half. Perhaps it had more focused. Nevertheless, it's a delight to watch Pooh and gang in action while nodding in agreement to Pooh's "tao of wisdom". 

RATING: 7/10