Onward – Review

Disney Pixar Onward – Budget Unknown – 1 hour and 43 minutes

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For his 16th birthday, Ian writes a To-Do List to become a New Me.

• Speak Up
• Learn to Drive
• Invite Friends to My Party
• Be More Like Dad

He is shy and nervous unlike his brother Barley.  Barley loves the game Quest of Yore and historical relics of their ancestors’ magical past.  Barley believes there is a mighty warrior in everyone and he wants Ian to bring his out.  Barley has 3 memories of their dad.  However, Ian has none because their dad, Wilden, died when he was a baby.  After a tough day at school, Ian got nothing on his list accomplished.  So his mom, Laurel, gives Ian something to help.  Before Wilden died, he gave Laurel a gift to give Barley and Ian when they were both older than 16.  Ian and Barley open it to find a wizard’s staff, a Phoenix Gem, and an incantation.  The spell allows them to bring Wilden back to life for one day.  At sunset, he will be gone forever.  Barley tries with all his might to make the spell work but nothing happens.  On a whim, Ian tries and it starts to work.  As Ian continues, the Phoenix gem crumbles.   Barley and Ian see movement in the closet.  The spell worked. However, it only brought the bottom half of their dad back before the Gem shattered.  They decide to hop in Barley’s car, he named Guinevere, and go on a quest to find another Phoenix Gem.  With only 24 hours to bring and see their father, Ian has created a new list of the things he wants to To-Do with Wilden

• Play Catch
• Take a Walk
• Heart to Heart
• Driving Lesson
• Share my life with him

With enough time and magic, Ian hopes to create his memories with his father.

If you have lost a parent, especially your father, bring tissues.  Written, directed, and inspired by Dan Scanlon’s life, this movie taps into the true meaning of family and the memories you create with them.  While the story is heartfelt, the quest is adventurous and awe-inspiring.  Another kernel of truth, that you may overlook, is the film’s representation of losing your history for technological advances.  Their world was magical but it was hard to master.  So they created technology.  Now fairies don’t fly, centaurs don’t run, and manticores don’t go on adventures.  The world has lost who they are just like Ian feels lost without his dad.  Your entire family will fall in love with this story and will leave wanting more.

I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars

There is a mighty warrior inside you. You just have to let it out – Barley

What have I done – Corey

He is terrible – Ian

Are you working hard – Colt

I am a mighty warrior – Laurel

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The Invisible Man – Review

The Invisible Man – Budget of $7 million – 2 hours and 4 minutes

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Cecilia has put her plan into place.  She secretly drugged her husband Adrian, prepared a go-bag, and has her sister, Emily, picking her up.  As Adrian sleeps, she moves the camera, turns off the alarm, and tracks him in bed on her phone.  She hears something behind her and sees her dog whimpering.  Hurt, she tells him he can’t go.  But in a last-ditch effort of defiance, she removes his shock collar. In doing so, she hits Adrian’s car door and sets off the alarm.  She runs over the cement barrier, through the woods and waits for Emily.  As she gets in Emily’s car, she drops the Diazepam she used to drug Adrian and gets in the car.  When Emily starts to question what’s going on, Adrian punches through the car window and starts to pull Cecilia.  Emily drives off leaving Adrian behind.  Adrian finds the bottle on the ground and heads home.  Two weeks later, Cecilia is hiding out in James’s home with his daughter Sydney.  Walking to the mailbox causes Cecilia enormous anxiety.  She knows Adrian is waiting for her to let down her guard.  When Emily comes to James’s home, Cecilia is on high alert.  Adrian knows where Emily lives and could have tracked her to James’s.  Emily tells her to relax because Adrian committed suicide.  Emily shows Cecilia a news article.  Cecilia breathes a sigh of relief.  The next day, Cecilia gets a letter from Adrian’s brother Tom.  Tom is the executor of Adrian’s estate.  Adrian left Cecilia $5 million to be paid monthly in $100,000 installments without income or estate taxes.  Cecilia is dumbfounded by his generosity.  She is ready to start her new life by gifting Sydney $10,000 a month for tuition and other college expenses for a year.  One night, Cecilia gets a feeling that someone is around but sees no one.  She brushes it off and goes to sleep.  Cecilia is awakened to notice her covers on the floor at the foot of the bed.  She pulls the covers but they are stuck on something.  She stares to see footprints appear out of nowhere.  She snaps them and hears something fall to the floor and run.  She screams for James.  She swears someone is there.  James tells her it’s all in her mind.  She should not let Adrian’s memory torment her.  When she goes on a job interview, she misplaces her portfolio and faints.  As she showers, the doctor calls and says she has Diazepam in her system.  She turns and sees the bloody pill bottle she dropped the night she left Adrian.  Then she remembers his threat.  If you leave me, I will find you.  You won’t see me but I will leave something behind to let you know I was there.  While no one else believes her, she knows Adrian has faked his death and found a way to make himself invisible.  And he is terrorizing her.  Can she make anyone else see the truth?

That feeling of someone being in the room, someone watching you, or someone listening to you is a feeling we all know too well.  As the camera pans to an empty spot in the room, you will swear you can see Adrian standing there.  Being invisible allows each attack to be shocking.  This modern twist on The Invisible Man novel is a mix of The Invisible Man movie and Enough (FTC Affiliate Disclaimer).  With strong acting, amazing special effects, and killer designs, the plot feels believable.  It will make your jump in your seat and gasps when Adrian brutally exact his revenge.  There is one surprise that will leave you in awe and put Cecilia on notice.

I give it 4 out of 5 stars

Surprise – Adrian

He’s not out there. I promise – James

I have some news – Emily

He haunted you in life, don’t let him haunt you in death – Tom

You’re a jellyfish version of him – Cecilia

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Seberg – Review

Seberg – Budget of $8 million – 1 hour and 42 minutes

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In May 1968, Jean Seberg sits in first class with her manager Walt discussing her next role.  She has decided to leave Paris, where her husband and son live, to further her acting career in Los Angelos.  As they talk, Jean can hear a man yelling at the stewardess.  Hakim Jamal is angry Betty Shabazz has to sit in a tiny coach.  She is the widow of Malcolm X and Hakim believes she should be treated like royalty.  He has the money for a first-class seat but they won’t allow him to pay for it.  He refused to move from first class until they give Betty a seat.  Jean is intrigued by his stance and wants to know more about him.  As they leave the plane, she sees him put a fist in the air with others from the Nation of Islam.  As the press snaps photos, Seberg stands with them in solidarity.  Jean and Hakim don’t see the FBI is watching them unload from the plane.  Agents Jack Solomon and Carl Kowalski follow Hakim to his home and listen to his evening prayers through planted listening devices.  As they watch and listen, they see Jean’s car drive up to Hakim’s home.  Hakim excuses his parishioners and talks to Jean about the movement and her potential role.  Carl and Jack listen to them start an affair and record every moment.  They take the information to their boss Frank and Frank orders them to look at her history.  They see she has given money to the NAACP and Black Panthers; they label her a sympathizer and start a dossier on her.  They plant bugs in her home, follow her across the globe, and leak her life to the tabloids.  Because of her relationship with Hakim, Jean is now the focus of a COINTELPRO investigation.  FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover wants her neutralized before her fame can bring unwanted attention and sympathy to Hakim’s causes.

It’s disturbing to watch Jean slowly unravel under the scrutiny and lies of the FBI.  She, like many celebrities of the past and present, wanted to do more.  She wanted to be known for more than the characters she played on the screen.  She wanted to use her fame to bring light to the issues she believed were hurting the country.  This movie makes you ask, how far is too far.  At what point does an investigation become predatory.  Was Jean a martyr of her activism or a victim of her government?

I give it 3 out of 5 stars

Change one mind and you can change the world – Hakim

Don’t I have the right to know – Linette

And I’m supposed to be grateful – Dorothy

When people are in love, they’re color blind – Jean

I know what happened to your dog – Jack

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