“‘Frozen 2’s’ Themes Become Darker Even as the Kid Gloves Stay On”

Hell yeah, a grown-ass man beating up on the adorable kids film, because my HEART is COLD as ICE. Continue reading →

Review: Life, Animated, 2016, dir. Roger Ross Williams

I don’t like to have beef with other critics, but when a critic writes something, anything, whatever, that I find to be grossly inept, or offensive, or cruel, or just plain old dumb, I tend to get my hackles up. Such is the tale of my review of Roger Ross Williams’ Life, Animated, a documentary about … Continue reading →

Review: Zootopia, 2016, dir. Byron Howard, Rich Moore, Jared Bush

Months ago, if you told me Zootopia would win me over on a cardiovascular level, I probably would have ignored you. Yet here we are today, with my glowing review freshly posted over at Paste Magazine. Zootopia is a delight. Even if it didn’t lean hard on its discrimination allegory, it would still be wonderful; it has a great sense … Continue reading →

Review: Big Hero 6, 2014, dir. Don Hall & Chris Williams

“Some superheroes fight evil in the name of justice. Some fight for revenge. Baymax, the incomparably huggy automaton in Disney’s Big Hero 6, fights to help his young ward, teen genius Hiro Hamada (Ryan Potter), as he mourns a devastating personal tragedy. This makes Baymax an outlier of sorts in today’s crop of big screen … Continue reading →

Hi-yo, Jack Sparrow! Away!: First Look at The Lone Ranger

If you haven’t already seen it courtesy of other, more Johnny-on-the-spot sources of Internet film journalism, then I’m happy to give you the first released glimpse of Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp in Disney’s 2013 release, Lone Ranger. From what I’m told, producer Jerry Bruckheimer Tweeted this image just today– which may not be surprising … Continue reading →

Princesses and Arrows: Pixar’s “Brave” Trailer

I always knew I’d end up revisiting the essay I wrote on Pixar and gender roles in 2009; it was always a matter of time. Their projected 2012 release, at the time titled The Bear and the Bow before the lauded studio cut the name down to Brave for those of us who appreciate brevity, caused something of … Continue reading →