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When Hayao Miyazaki announced that 2013’s The Wind Rises would be his “final” film, many suspected that an artist of his caliber would eventually return to create again if given the chance.

Release Date: 07/14/2023 Runtime: 124 minutes Director: Hayao Miyazaki Rotten Tomatoes: 97% iMBD: 7.6/10 Where to Watch: Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video, Fandango at Home, Google Play Movies, YouTube

Ten years later, the legendary Japanese animator, known for classics like Spirited Away, Castle in the Sky, and Princess Mononoke presented us with perhaps his definitive work. This new magnum opus combines the finest elements of his previous films into something sure to be considered the greatest Hayao Miyazaki film of all time.

In the story, eleven-year-old Mahito loses his mother in a hospital fire during World War II

His father soon remarries—his late wife’s sister—moving them to the countryside where he can apply his manufacturing profession to the war effort and support his family as they welcome a second child. Behind their new rural home looms a strange, abandoned tower, and around the pond on the estate grounds flies a mysterious heron.

When his new mother enters the forest in the delirium of pregnancy, the entire estate goes searching for her. Only Mahito knows that the path to finding her leads into the tower.

The heron lures Mahito inside, and he soon finds himself in a dreamlike world that would make L. Frank Baum and Lewis Carroll proud

Unlike The Wizard of Oz or Alice in Wonderland, this narrative leads Mahito into a “world of the dead”—not in the morbid sense typical of Western mythology, but a beautiful realm where spirits migrate between planes of existence. From there he finds himself embarking on an adventure deeper into the world of dreams and death, where he ultimately learns to come to terms with the loss of his mother.

Like the greatest fairytales and childhood fantasies, The Boy and The Heron navigates its mythological story with a dream-logic familiar to anyone who’s plumbed the landscapes found in the deepest sleep.

What sets this film apart from similar narratives—in addition to its uniquely Shintoist approach to mythology—is the masterful cinematography and animation displayed across every frame

From beginning to end, this film showcases a master and his team working at the peak of their craft. It’s a childhood adventure on par with other classics in the genre, sure to take audiences of all ages on a journey they won’t soon forget, and one that begs for a second viewing by the time the credits roll.

About our Admit One Author

Isaac Frankel is a freelance writer and content creator specializing in reviews and analysis of cinema, interactive media, and mythological storytelling. He was raised in Prescott, AZ, wrote his first non-fiction book in 2013 after graduating from Tribeca Flashpoint College with a degree in Game & Interactive Media Design, and currently produces content for the YouTube channel: Off Screen.

More of his work and current projects can be found at www.isaacafrankel.com.

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Boom. Crack. Crunch. That’s the nature of Trigger Warning, starring an in-form Jessica Alba as an active-duty Special Forces commando, Parker, who comes to her hometown after her father’s demise. Alba performs throat-slashing, bone-crunching stunts in some supremely well-executed action sequences. In one scene, after saving her male friend, Spider (Tone Bell), she quips, “Sup! Damsel in distress.” There is a lot to like in this action thriller, even though it occasionally suffers from some convenient writing and perhaps has a protagonist who’s almost invincible.

Director: Mouly Surya

Cast: Jessica Alba, Anthony Michael Hall, Mark Webber, Jake Weary, Gabriel Basso

Streamer: Netflix

We first see Alba’s character, Parker, as she is in mid-combat, trying to take down terrorists. Parker, who has an espionage background, suspects that there might be foul play around her father’s death. The truth about it unravels around all the mayhem. The violence is not all about the gun. In an impactful stunt scene, after her rifle is knocked down, she coolly grabs a knife and stabs him in the heart. Soon enough, we understand where she got the knife from, and why there’s some poetic justice being dispensed as she wields it to threaten intruders, slash tyres, and more. For the first half hour, the film maintains an aura of suspense about the protagonist’s personality and motives, but once the cat gets out of the bag, the rest of the film, even if with enterprising stunt scenes, turns into a routine revenge thriller.

Once perpetrators get identified around the halfway mark, it’s just a matter of scores being settled. It’s here that the convenient writing proves to be a bit of a dampener. We learn early on that Spider is good at cyber-hacking, but later, how this skill comes in handy isn’t exactly a great moment. A bigger issue perhaps is how Parker is invincible. Even when unarmed and handcuffed, no enemy can truly dominate her. This means that when she does slide out of tough spots, it’s not exactly a surprise.

All said, Trigger Warning does have quite a bit going for it. The writing, for instance, ensures that Parker isn’t just fighting a personal battle. Her resistance is also for the greater good of the country, resonating with her values as a soldier. So, even if it’s a film with flaws, Jessica Alba’s stunt dynamism is eye-catching. If you are considering checking this film out, just remember that it’s about a protagonist that shoots first and asks questions later. 

We need to talk about the critic reviews for The Acolyte. Critics and audiences have been at war for years.

Audiences usually accuse critics of being either out of touch or biased because they tend to downplay the quality of popular movies and shows. On the other hand, critics have a reputation for assigning ridiculously high scores to content audiences could not care less about.

I usually defend the critics even though I rarely agree with their opinions because audiences have a ridiculously warped perception where this topic is concerned. First of all, audience and critic scores are not quite as divergent as online conversations suggest.

Check Rotten Tomatoes. You might be surprised to learn that most shows and films have similar audience and critic ratings. Generally speaking, audiences and critics like the same things. Those significant differences people obsess over only emerge in rare instances.

Unfortunately, those are the cases audiences highlight because they concern highly publicized films and shows. But even if those differences were more common than the evidence suggests, you can’t accuse critics of being ‘out of touch with the public’ because they are not paid to be ‘in touch’ with anyone.

Are some critics biased? Definitely, but they are the minority. That said, the divide between critic and audience scores for The Acolyte is astounding. Right now, the show has a critic rating of 85 percent and an audience score of 14 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Naturally, some people blame the abysmal audience score on review bombing.

That term refers to a situation where large groups of people assign a negative score to a movie or show without watching it because they want to make a point. You can’t dismiss the review bombing allegations because a rabid section of the Star Wars fanbase continues to express its desire to destroy The Acolyte’s reputation online because of the social and political messages it peddles.

But even if you eliminated the trolls, the show’s audience score would most likely peak at 30 percent. In that regard, I would expect the critic rating to settle in the 60s, showing that critics are not blind to The Acolyte’s weaknesses, but they also appreciate subtle strengths such as the acting and production values.

An 85 percent rating is pure madness. It says that critics absolutely love a productthat audiences completely despise, and that does not make sense. You expect to see that sort of discrepancy with artsy indie projects that critics typically swoon over, not big-budget shows that are explicitly designed to appeal to mainstream audiences.

Before you argue that Rotten Tomatoes does not accurately reflect the critical response to this show, no one cared about The Acolyte. In fact, viewers initially rejected the show because of the lackluster trailers.

Remember Episode 3 from a week ago? Diehard Star Wars fans nearly rioted because it supposedly broke Star Wars canon by hinting at Mae and Osha’s immaculate conception. Casual fans like me don’t care about Star Wars canon. We thought the episode was boring.

And critics? They had early access to the episode and praised it as one of the most mind- blowing 35 minutes of Star Wars they had ever seen. Clearly, something is amiss. It is almost like audiences and critics are watching two different shows. I can’t help but wonder whether the online conspiracies are correct and Hollywood critics are only impressed by The Acolyte because of the diverse cast.

If you argued that the presence of minority characters (black female leads, Asian Jedi, lesbian witches, etc) was actively swaying their opinions, I would have a difficult time disputing your claim.

I agree that art is subjective and some viewers have genuinely enjoyed The Acolyte thus far; however, the drastic difference in audience and critic scores shows that Disney (and Lucasfilm) took a wrong turn somewhere.

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