The Super Mario Bros. Movie review.

There's probably not a single person who doesn't know Mario, the most popular video game character ever. Along with his brother Luigi, the two have spent decades headlining numerous terrific games across Nintendo's consoles, helping cement them as the Disney of video gaming. So popular were they, they got their own film adaptation in 1993, Super Mario Bros. Unfortunately, that film was a disaster, suffering from a famously hellish production, and burnt audiences so thoroughly, Nintendo never set foot in Hollywood again. Since then, that film has become synonymous with the video game adaptation curse.

But a lot has changed in 30 years. Not only are video game adaptations making greater strides, but Nintendo felt an itch again. What if they could take a stab at another film, made by people who love and respect the series? Enter Chris Meledandri, whose animation company Illumination - best known for the Despicable Me series - impressed Nintendo so much, they've dusted off the overalls for a new Super Mario Bros. Movie, and likely the first of a new franchise.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania movie review.

In the much broader MCU, the Ant-Man films have been some of the lighter, more niche titles in their lineup, usually as a pallet cleanser after the studio's much bigger Avengers titles. The original 2015 film was a lean, entertaining heist movie, owed to original director Edgar Wright's template, and the ever-reliable charisma of star Paul Rudd. It was then followed up in 2018 by Ant-Man and the Wasp, which while lesser than the original, was still entertaining in its own right, and gave co-star Evangeline Lilly her own meaty material to savor.

Fast forward five years, Ant-Man and the Wasp go from pallet cleanser, to the starting dish for Marvel's fifth phase, and second chapter in the Multiverse Saga. While Marvel has had some strong showings recently, its fourth phase was a decidedly mixed bag, with Marvel itself course correcting and reconfiguring projects to prevent burnout, and with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, the studio is set to introduce the saga's overarching villain Kang... It's just a shame that this set up had to feel so exhausting. No exaggeration, Quantumania might just be the worst film Marvel has ever put forth.

Brief thoughts on The Son.

In 2020, French playwright Florian Zeller made his film directorial debut with The Father, a psychological chamber piece based on his play of the same name. Not only do I consider it the best movie of its year, particularly thanks to a career best Anthony Hopkins in the starring role, but one of the greatest film debuts ever made. Naturally, one would be justified for their excitement to see Zeller continue on, as I'm sure many of us were with The Son, the second in a trilogy of plays by Zeller. I was very eager to see this movie, which is why it's heartbreaking for me to say that I really didn't like it. But why exactly? For one, I felt very disappointed as I left the theater... and then as it processed, I became quite angry with it. The Son has some deeply rooted issues to unearth.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever review

Before Infinity War in 2018, Marvel Studios debuted their film adaptation of Black Panther, directed by a fresh off of Creed Ryan Coogler. Starring Chadwick Boseman as the title character's altar ego T'Challa, it was a thoughtful, exciting, and progressive step forward for the MCU driven by its mostly black cast. A cultural milestone, that even severed from the larger universe was still a great movie. It's no surprise then why it was a massive hit with audiences, who gravitated to its characters, as well as the sweeping world of Wakanda. It's also not a surprise that Marvel courted Coogler back for an inevitable sequel with the cast returning.

Unfortunately, tragedy struck before the movie was able to roll cameras. In August of 2020, Chadwick Boseman passed away after his battle with colon cancer, at the far too young age of 43. It was a devastating loss, and amidst the grief, many began to wonder "what becomes of Black Panther then?" Choosing not to recast the role and reconfiguring the sequel from scratch, Marvel and Coogler unveil the sequel, Wakanda Forever, to not only move the world forward, but act as tribute to their late friend. And while understandably a step down from its predecessor, that makes it no less a worthy and strong follow-up with genuine heft.

Lightyear movie review.

In 1995, Pixar burst onto the scene with Toy Story, their first foray into feature length filmmaking, and the first computer animated film in history. It was a groundbreaking film at the time, that even now has aged remarkably well, and is one of those rare films that is actually improved by the existence of its sequels. When even your fourth entry with a talking spork is a great movie, that's the sign of a truly remarkable franchise.

Part of that is owed to the creation of Buzz Lightyear, the cool space ranger voiced by Tim Allen, whose character instantly won over audiences. Almost 30 years later, Pixar has decided to go back to his origins, or at least his inspiration's origins. In-universe, Buzz Lightyear the action figure was modeled after Buzz Lightyear the action hero, the main character of Andy's favorite movie, Lightyear. Pixar's latest film allows us to finally experience that phenomenal blockbuster. I'm happy that Andy loved it so much, but personally, while I quite enjoyed Lightyear, it's hard for me to say it ever touches infinity, let alone goes beyond it.

Jurassic World: Dominion movie review

 My favorite film of all time is Jurassic Park; a stone-cold classic that blended sci-fi fantasy, awestruck wonder, suspense, and horror in a way only Steven Spielberg could. Even he had trouble replicating its success with The Lost World, which went bigger and louder, at the expense of feeling sloppy and bitter. By the time Jurassic Park 3 rolled along, effectively becoming just another monster B-movie, the novelty had worn off considerably. No one's impressed by a dinosaur anymore...

Or so we thought. In 2015, the franchise was revitalized by Jurassic World, director Colin Trevorrow's continuation that recaptured some of the spirit lost between movies, and was an enormous box office hit. It came followed by Fallen Kingdom, which went for darker new avenues, even if it was let down by some stupid lapses in logic. But that movie was clearly a set up to bigger things, which we now see with Dominion, where Trevorrow returns to wrap up both his trilogy, and the original Jurassic mythos. Unfortunately, for what should be a satisfying send-off, what we instead get is a limp finale that doesn't so much roar, as it does whimper off licking its wounds.

In the Heights movie review.

Before making himself a household name with Hamilton, actor/singer/songwriter Lin-Manuel Miranda became a musical theater staple with In the Heights, an ode to his humble roots in New York's Washington Heights, and all the debts, fireworks, and fiestas that came with the barrio. Playing in various stages before debuting on Broadway in 2008, the musical has become a beloved work of art in the years since, winning four Tony's including Best Musical.

A film adaptation had been kicking around since at least November of that year, under various stars, directors, and studios (one of which, unfortunately, being Harvey Weinstein). After all the development limbo, and the COVID-19 pandemic delaying the film's release a full year, we have that film adaptation at last, now under the leadership of Step Up and Crazy Rich Asians director Jon M. Chu. I was fortunate enough to see this movie a month early, and I'm happy to say the wait was well worth it. In The Heights is terrific in every sense of the word, engaging not only as an emotionally fulfilling thematic drama, but as a rousing and joyous spectacle.