Toy Story 2 Review

Synopsis
While Andy (John Morris (voice)) is away at Cowboy Camp, his mom (Laurie Metcalf (voice)) has a yard sale. While rescuing a toy from being sold, Woody (Tom Hanks (voice)) gets stolen by Al (Wayne Knight (voice)), a toy collector and owner of Al’s Toy Barn. In Al’s apartment, Woody discovers he is a rare toy and part of The Round-Up Gang, along with Jessie (Joan Cusack), Stinky Pete (Kelsey Grammer), and Bullseye. Meanwhile, Buzz (Tim Allen (voice)) and the rest of Andy’s toys go on a rescue mission to retrieve Woody before Andy returns home.

Review
I make no point in hiding that Toy Story is one of my all-time favorite films and was instrumental in shaping my childhood. It tells a great story, the characters are relatable, and the computer animation was groundbreaking. It’s almost impossible to think that a sequel could hit just as many emotional strings. But by George, John Lasseter and his crew at Pixar managed to do just that, creating a Toy Story sequel that is almost almost (almost) as good as its predecessor.

In 1999, Pixar was still growing, still proving themselves as fantastic, emotional storytellers. They came out strong with Toy Story in 1995then kept the momentum going in 1998 with their sophomore film, the good not great A Bug’s Life. When it came to their third outing, they returned to the characters that got them started. What I think really makes this work, like any good sequel really, is that it doesn’t retread the previous movie. Instead, it builds on it, telling a unique story that honors the first and expands the world it inhabits. We get to meet Al and explore Al’s Toy Barn, previously only seen in the Buzz Lightyear commercial. More toys are seen, like Barbie, Zerg, and the rest of the Round-Up Gang. But most importantly, it teaches a new message.

Toy Story was about friendship, getting past your differences, and understanding one another to become closer. Toy Story 2‘s message is about accepting that things change, or eventually will change, and you have to accept that and make the most out the time you have. This cleverly expands on the concept of the first movie and will be expanded even further in Toy Story 3. Not only is it a sequel in name and chronology, it is a sequel in story. Pixar you clever bastards.

Another film series I have mentioned over and over that has had a big impact on me was the original Star Wars trilogy. There are a ton of Star War references in this film. I recognized a few when I was younger but there are more than I realized after watching it more recently. That’s so cool! Mixing two of my favorite things it the best.

Another thing about the story I got a kick out of was meeting another Buzz Lightyear. This time, Buzz got to experience what the rest of Andy’s toys went through when joined the group in the previous film. I love seeing the changing of roles and Buzz needing to deal with himself.

The Toy Story films could almost be considered ensemble films. Kid don’t have only one or two toys. No, they have many. For as many characters there are that are returning, Jessie and Pete, the two biggest (speaking) new characters, get plenty of development. Jessie is my favorite of the two. She has so much spunk and energy it’s hard not to smile along with her. But underneath all that playfulness, she has a rich past that is slowly and effectively unfolds as the film moves along. Until only recently, I didn’t realize Kelsey Grammer voiced Stinky Pete. Is voice work is tremendous! I want to see him as animated villain again.

It’s hard to imagine a sequel to one of the most beloved and emotional animated films living up to its predecessor, but Toy Story 2 comes awfully close. This is a sequel that does everything right: A fun, new story that honors what has been told before while expanding on it, a great message that young and older audiences can relate to, and outstanding new additions to the cast that are well fleshed out. In terms of sequels, you can’t do much better than Toy Story 2.

Rating
4.5/5

Also read my reviews for Toy Story and Toy Story 3.

Trailer

Cast & Crew
John Lasseter – Director / Original Story
Ash Brannon – Co-Director / Original Story
Lee Unkrich – Co-Director
Pete Doctor – Original Story
Andrew Stanton – Original Story / Screenplay
Rita Hsiao – Screenplay
Doug Chamberlin – Screenplay
Chris Webb – Screenplay
Randy Newman – Composer

Tom Hanks – Woody (voice)
Tim Allen – Buzz Lightyear (voice)
Joan Cusack – Jessie (voice)
Kelsey Grammer – Stinky Pete (voice)
Don Rickles – Mr. Potato Head
Jim Varney – Slinky Dog (voice)
Wallace Shawn – Rex (voice)
John Ratzenberger – Hamm (voice)
Annie Potts – Bo Peep (voice)
Wayne Knight – Al (voice)
John Morris – Andy (voice)
Laurie Metcalf – Andy’s Mom (voice)
Estelle Harris – Mrs. Potato Head
R. Lee Ermey – Army Sarge (voice)
Jodi Benson – Tour Guide Barbie / Barbie on Backpack (voice)
Jonathon Harris – Geri the Cleaner
Joe Ranft – Weezy (voice)
Andrew Stanton – Evil Emperor Zerg (voice)
Jeff Pidgeon – Green Aliens (voice)

Lightning Review: Punisher: War Zone

This review was originally posted by Natasha from Life of This City Girl for her Marvelous Mondays feature.

Synopsis
Six years ago, Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson) and his family were enjoying a family picnic when they witnessed a mob hit, resulting in the death of his wife and two kids. Now he is the Punisher, slowly eliminating the crime families of New York City. When he kills the head of the Cesare family, he is succeeded by Billy ‘The Beaut’ Russoti (Dominic West). When Castle catches up to Russoti, he traps Russoti in a glass cutting machine, leaving him disfigured. Russoti takes the name “Jigsaw” and sets on out on a quest of revenge against the Punisher.

Review
I really enjoy 2004’s The Punisher starring Thomas Jane, but I felt its PG-13 rating held it back. The Punisher is a violent character who needs the freedom to be as brutal that the R rating allows. Punisher: War Zone takes full advantage of the upped rating. Every kill is gruesome (and almost artistic), very fitting for the character and world he inhabits. The violence feels almost over the top, acknowledging that its source material as a comic book, but never becoming too ridiculous. It is a good mix that few movies can pull off. Although, it can be difficult to be serious when your main villain’s primary motivations for revenge against the main character is because he ruined the villains face (there was a thing about the Punisher killing his crime family but hey, his looks were important to him).

Ray Stevenson does well as the Punisher. His presence is intimidating and he easily pulls off the toughness of the character. Thomas Jane showed more of Punisher’s calculating and strategist side, whereas Ray Stevenson’s Punisher shows the Punisher’s military training and violent combat side.   The story moved pretty quick and part of that was because it skipped Frank Castle’s transformation into the Punisher. Instead, he was already established as the Punisher for five years. His history was told through exposition, very similar to The Incredible Hulk. I like that it took that route because his origin is fairly simple and didn’t need to be retreaded again, especially only a few years after the previous Punisher movie. Punisher: War Zone embraces the violence of its comic book origins and shows a more graphic and ferocious Punisher than previous films that makes for a pretty entertaining afternoon popcorn flick.

Rating
3/5

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Lexi Alexander – Director
Nick Santora – Writer
Art Marcum – Writer
Matt holloway – Writer
Michael Wandmacher – Composer

Ray Stevenson – Frank Castle
Dominic West – Billy / Jigsaw
Doug Hutchison – Loony Bin Jim
Colin Salmon – Paul Budiansky
Wayne Knight – Micro
Dash Mihok – Martin Soap
Julie Benz – Angela
Stephanie Janusauskas – Grace
Mark Camacho – Pittsy
Romano Orzari – Nicky
Karem Malicki-Sanchez – Ink
Larry Day – Agent Miller
Ron Lea – Captain Ross
Tony Calaabretta – Saffiotti
Carlos Gonzalez-Vio – Carlos
TJ Storm – Maginty

Jurassic Park Review

Review #81

Synopsis
Archeologist Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and archeobotonist Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern) are invited by John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) to visit Jurassic Park, Hammond’s unique prehistoric wildlife preserve, along with choatition Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum), and Hammond’s grandchildren (Joseph Mazello and Ariana Richards). When systems start failing across the park, Grant and the other guests must survive on an island where dinosaurs are roaming free and causing havoc on the island.

Review
Jurassic Park holds a special place in my heart. Not only because it was the first PG-13 movie my parents let me watch before I was 13 (rebellious, I know), but because it was one of the first movies I would watch over and over again. After viewing it more recently, I realized I had missed several of the finer points of the story when I was younger. I guess the kid in me just enjoyed watching dinosaurs come to life, like most young boys dream of. Even today that is one of my favorite parts about this movie, but now I appreciate more of the nuances of the story, as well as the fantasy of living dinosaurs.

At the time, computer-generated imagery (CGI) was still in it’s infancy. Several movies had dabbled with the it previously, but nothing really substantial. However, Jurassic Park completely embraced the up-and-coming technology, revolutionizing it, leading to the flashy and spectacular effects we see today in blockbusters like Avatar, The Avengers, Pacific Rim, and the recently delayed Jupiter Ascending. And despite being twenty years old, the effects don’t look dated. It looks almost as good as effects you would expect to see today. An amazing feat considering it is one of the earliest films to use CGI.

Before CGI became the predominant method for special effects, animatronics were used. I think this movie is a perfect example of how to use animatronics correctly, and is the pinnacle of the technology (which is funny considering it also ushered in the age of CGI). If the movie had been done completely with CGI, the dinosaurs would not have come life as well as they did. That is one of the reasons Steven Spielberg is my favorite director, because he understood how to use both CGI and animatronics side-by-side.

The Tyrannosaurus Rex is largely featured in the marketing for Jurassic Park. However, the “big baddies,” if you will, are the velociraptors. From the very first scene, literally, they are set up as smart, cunning, and dangerous. First, a worker gets pulled into the cage and eaten. Then Alan Grant (Sam Neill) talks about how they are pack hunters. Later, the characters go to the raptor cage and they discuss how “they don’t want to be fed, they want to hunt.” Then there is a break away from the velociraptors to focus on the T-Rex, but there is a mention about the character causing the power outages knowing not to shut down the power to the velociraptor cage. So finally, when the velociraptors appear on screen, it is well established how deadly they are. It was a fairly slow process, but it did well to establish the threat they possessed.

To me, a movie’s soundtrack and score is very important. It can almost tell you how to feel more than what is happening on screen can. John Williams, my all time favorite film composer, writes a great and memorable soundtrack. But honestly, what would you expect? Everything the man writes is fantastic. His score for Jurassic Park is up there as one of my favorite film scores. I mean, try not to become filled with emotion and wonder and awe when John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) says “Welcome to Jurassic Park” and Williams’ Jurassic Park theme starts playing. Go ahead, I dare you.

Some movies have one character who is just fun to hate. In this film, that would be Jeff Golblum’s Ian Malcolm. He’s annoying and obnoxious, but he has a charm to him that I don’t think many other actors other than Goldblum could portray so well.

One thing that surprised me about this movie is how funny it can be. It is by no means laugh out loud funny, but every now and then someone says something that made me smile or even chuckle a little. Even though it wasn’t much, this small amount of humor prevented Jurassic Park from becoming too serious or dark.

Here is your daily fun fact. Several times throughout the movie, Lex Murphy (Ariana Richards) refers to herself as a “hacker,” even correcting her brother (Joseph Mazello). Back in the day, the term “hacker” didn’t have the negative meaning it usually is said with today. Instead, it meant someone enjoyed exploring computers as a hobby. This included building, modifying, and creating either hardware or software or both. There is your little slice of knowledge for the day. Don’t say I never did anything for you.

Jurassic Park is special to me because it was one of the first movies I really go into. When I was younger, I enjoyed it because of the action and the fantasy of dinosaurs roaming the Earth once again. As I grew older, I started to appreciate it for the story as well. A mix of revolutionary CGI and amazing animatronics give this movie a unique look and feel, truly bringing prehistoric creatures back to life. From the beginning, velociraptors are set up as a dangerous threat, so when they are finally shown on screen, the danger they pose has already been established. John Williams’ Jurassic Park theme is very emotional and one of my favorite movie scores. Although not laugh out loud funny, there is still humor throughout the film that prevents the movie from slipping into a dark tone. No matter how old I get, I will never lose the sense of wonder I felt when I first watched Jurassic Park and believing that, despite this being a piece of fiction, dinosaurs once again roamed the Earth.

Rating
5/5

Trailer

Cast & Crew
Steven Spielberg – Director
Michael Crichton – Screenplay / Novel
David Koepp – Screenplay
John Williams – Composer

Sam Neill – Dr. Alan Grant
Laura Dern – Dr. Ellie Sattler
Jeff Goldblum – Dr. Ian Malcolm
Richard Attenborough – John Hammond
Bob Peck – Robert Muldoon
Martin Ferrero – Donald Gennaro
Joseph Mazello – Tim Murphy
Ariana Richards – Lex Murphy
Samuel L. Jackson – Ray Arnold
Wayne Knight – Dennis Nedry