I saw The Cat Returns at a sleepover in my mid-teens and completely forgot until halfway through this viewing, which probably tells you how highly I rate it among Ghibli’s oeuvre. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not terrible by any means-the cat designs are varied and whimsical, the music is decent and there are some lightly humorous moments-but the main character is bland and almost none of the important relationships are developed enough to elicit any kind of response from…
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From Up on Poppy Hill 2011
I haven’t seen any of Goro Miyazaki’s other work, but from what I understand this is by far the best of his films. And if From Up on Poppy Hill represents the absolute peak of his skill as a director…he’s doing just fine. He’ll never reach the astronomical heights his father has (and really, who could?), but Goro proves himself to have competent knowledge of story, character and mood. The relationship between Shun and Umi is very sweet for the…
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Nope 2022
There’s a lot going on in Nope: it’s a cautionary tale about seeking fame for selfish reasons, it’s a send-up of Jaws and critique of how humans treat animals, it’s an homage to classic alien invasion films, it’s a celebration of the oft-ignored black contributions to Hollywood…sometimes it’s almost too much to take in. Themes weave in and out, muddling into a mix that would probably benefit from repeat viewings. But Nope proves that Jordan Peele is here to stay…
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Everything Everywhere All at Once 2022
What a ride. What. A. Ride.
Do you want an incredible cast of legendary Asian actors, including Michelle Yeoh as a compelling lead and Ke Huy Quan in his first film in 20 years? You’ve got it. Do you want homages to everything from In the Mood for Love to Ratatouille? You’ve got it. Do you want some truly wild visuals that gleefully, unabashedly, revel in their insanity? You’ve got it. Do you want the story of a woman confronting…
