In a summer time the place Beavis and Butthead went to house and so many others traversed the multiverse, The Bob’s Burgers Film – now on Hulu and HBO Max – is refreshingly small-scale. However within the context of the endlessly charming, long-running TV collection that impressed it, the film’s HUGE, with a extra dynamic visible palette and murder-mystery plot pushing the ever-loving Belcher household farther exterior the burger-diner than ever earlier than. So this five-times-as-long-as-the-usual-episode film model of Bob’s Burgers positively hits the candy spot for followers’ expectations.
The Gist: SIX YEARS AGO. WONDER WHARF. Solely stuffed animals witness the violence, their mouths frozen agape, eyes empty. PRESENT DAY: Bob’s (voice of H. Jon Benjamin) poops have been free recently, poor man. He’s fretting intestinally as a result of the restaurant mortgage cost is due in per week and so they don’t have any cash. Wait – you do know who Bob Belcher is, proper? The proprietor and head chef at Bob’s Burgers, which he runs together with his spouse, Linda (John Roberts), whereas their three kids, Tina (Dan Mintz), Gene (Eugene Mirman) and Louise (Kristen Schaal) fart round amusingly? They’re the cutest, funniest and doubtless fartiest fam on TV since 2011. They’re tight. Very supportive. Know one another properly. Respectful to one another in a beautiful and really eccentric means. Buncha lovable weirdos, the Belchers.
Anyway, they’re at all times just about broke, so Bob and Linda’s present dilemma isn’t in any respect atypical. Ditto for the children, who get subplotted earlier than the larger plot pulls ’em away: Tina, as obsessive about boys’ butts as ever, desires lispy doof Jimmy Jr. (additionally Benjamin) to be her summer time boyfriend. Louise has an existential disaster about her omnipresent bunny-ears hat after a merciless schoolmate calls her a child, making us marvel if this film would possibly allow us to see her unhatted for the primary time ever. And Gene simply desires to siiiiinnnnnggggg; particularly, he’d like to see his band, the Itty Bitty Ditty Committee, play the Octa-Wharfiversary, a weeklong shebang celebrating eight many years of the Surprise Wharf, the neighborhood sub-Coney Island pier amusement park. The financial institution simply instructed Bob and Linda they will’t have an extension for his or her mortgage cost, so that they bear all the way down to promote quite a lot of burgers through the celebration, and hopefully not lose the restaurant and find yourself residing out within the alley with the raccoons.
What Films Will It Remind You Of?:The Simpsons Film, Beavis and Butthead Do the Universe, The SpongeBob SquarePants Film, and so on. However no animated-series-to-cinema adaptation is prone to surpass South Park: Larger, Longer and Uncut for probably the most massive laughs.
Efficiency Value Watching Listening to: Larry Murphy is at all times and perpetually the Bob’s Burgers MVP. He makes Teddy – a fix-it man and burger junkie who’s the oddest and strangest of wierd unusual birds, however in a splendidly light means – one of many best supporting comic-relief characters on TV, within the Corridor of Fame with Newman, Mrs. Ochmonek and Larry, his brother Darryl and his different brother Darryl.
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Memorable Dialogue: Bob laments his gross lack of luck as soon as the sinkhole turns into a “crime gap”:
Bob: I don’t assume they fill in crime holes in a short time.
Gene: Crime gap.
Bob: Gene.
Intercourse and Pores and skin: None.
Our Take: The enjoyment of Bob’s Burgers, in episodic or cinematic kind, is its tonal perfection and kind-spiritedness, its not-quite-dead deadpan, warmly eccentric characters and skill to churn amusingly inconsequential battle out of its easy premise: Household of working-class restaurateurs barely will get by. The Bob’s Burgers Film doesn’t actually elevate the stakes – apart from hinging on an premature demise; godspeed, pricey carnie Cotton Sweet Dan – however broadens the scope a bit, de-flattening the Belchers’ environment with complicated 3-D photographs, dropping them into greater set items (e.g., the Fischoeders’ secret clubhouse) and even throwing in a automotive chase. Which is, after all, one of many extra ridiculous automotive chases you’ll ever see.
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However that’s about as bold because it will get, which is simply high-quality. We don’t want the Belchers to enterprise too far exterior their small, idiosyncratic world, nor do they should danger their lives to put it aside. To not reveal an excessive amount of, however there’s a scene the place they’re trapped in a decent, darkish spot and all hope appears to be misplaced, and the tiny treasure of the second is when Linda, clad in a bikini stretched over a poofy hamburger-mascot costume, simply desires to carry her children’ fingers. Such is the emotional generosity of the collection, the muse beneath its endearingly kooky comedy.
The movie stays true to the TV components, bringing in acquainted recurring characters for cameos and deploying its signature loony musical bits. The latter are expanded, and key elements of the plot, with a catchy early quantity, “Sunny Aspect Up Summer season,” establishing particular person character conflicts, a center one fairly entertainingly set in a travel-trailer commune dubbed Carnieapolis, and a late one functioning because the narrative of the speaking killer, whose spiel is drawn out to ludicrous lengths. However that’s as satirical because the film will get, which can be simply high-quality. Bob’s Burgers by no means strives to be topical or edgy – now we have The Simpsons for that, nonetheless – preferring to maintain its universe microcosmic, whether or not on TV or on the cinema.
Our Name: STREAM IT. I’ve gone this complete overview with out making a single meals analogy for The Bob’s Burgers Film. That was deliberate. And that’s how a lot respect I’ve for this excellent franchise. Let this film open your eyes to the tiny Bob’s Burgers world, or additional enrich your appreciation for it.
John Serba is a contract author and movie critic primarily based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Learn extra of his work at johnserbaatlarge.com.
GLADIATOR II is Director Ridley Scott’s long-awaited return to Ancient Rome. General Maximus and Lucilla’s son, Lucius, returns to Rome as a gladiator. He’s intent on exacting revenge against the Roman general who killed his wife in a battle in another land. However, the general is now married to his mother and is involved in a plot to overthrow the evil twin emperors now ruling Rome.
GLADIATOR II is an exciting, spectacular, sometimes inspiring adventure. It has some great dramatic twists that propel the movie’s message promoting liberty over tyranny. In the end, the hero rallies the people against the tyranny of the two emperors. The movie also has a Christian character who heals the wounds of the gladiators. He makes a reference to forgiveness and salvation in one scene. However, the movie has lots of strong action violence, including some very bloody scenes. GLADIATOR II is more historical fiction than historical drama. It’s not historically accurate. Also, a male character makes a lewd joke about sometimes having homosexual relations. Finally, there are references to Roman pagan beliefs. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises extreme caution.
(BB, PP, ACAC, C, Pa, FR, Ho, L, VVV, S, N, A, M):
Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements:
Strong moral worldview supports liberty and general republican virtues against imperial tyranny, plus a Christian character is a former gladiator who has become a physician who binds up the gladiators’ wounds and befriends the hero and speaks about forgiveness and salvation in one scene, with some Roman paganism/hedonism and hero has dreams of his recently dead wife getting on the boat with the ferryman to the afterlife, and the evil twin Roman emperors dress effeminately, and another villain jokes about having been with men as well as women in one scene;
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Foul Language:
Two “d” words (one is old-fashioned);
Violence:
Some very strong such as a bloody beheading in the arena, and lots of strong violence such as lots of sword fighting, gladiators fight off a bunch of vicious baboons, Roman armada storms a walled city with lots of war violence, woman shot with an arrow and plunges off wall onto sandy and rocky beach, many people hit with arrows, gladiators fight off another gladiator riding a large charging rhinoceros, gladiators fight a sea battle in the Coliseum, bloody murder, etc.;
Sex:
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No sex scenes, but the evil twin Roman emperors dress effeminately, and another villain jokes about having been with men as well as women in one scene (these things seem to reflect the decadence that was Ancient Rome), and two scenes of marital couples kissing;
Nudity:
Some upper male nudity images in battle scenes and gladiator scenes;
Alcohol Use:
Some wine drinking;
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Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse:
No smoking or drugs; and,
Miscellaneous Immorality:
Revenge but it’s overcome by forgiveness and sacrifice, gambling on gladiator battles.
GLADIATOR II is Director Ridley Scott’s long-awaited return to Ancient Rome, in a story about General Maximus and Lucilla’s son, Lucius, returning to Rome as a gladiator, intent on exacting revenge against the Roman general who killed his wife in a battle in another land. GLADIATOR II is an exciting, spectacular, sometimes inspiring adventure with some great dramatic twists and a message promoting a libertarian republic over tyranny, but it has some very strong violence and doesn’t strive for total historical accuracy, so extreme caution is advised.
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The movie opens with Lucius as a young, high-ranking, married soldier in the North African kingdom of Numidia, the Roman Province which later became the home of St. Augustine. A Roman general named Acasius leads a Roman armada against the capitol city on the shore. The city is no match for the Romans. They soon overrun the city and take Lucius prisoner after Acasius orders an archer during the battle to shoot his wife who was firing arrows from atop the city’s walls.
Lucius is turned into a gladiator, who’s bought by a former gladiator named Macrinus. Macrinus is a clever man who’s ingratiated himself with the Roman elite, including the twin emperors, Geta and Caracalla. Macrinus takes Lucius to fight in the Coliseum in Rome.
Lucius swears revenge against Acasius. He’s determined to find a way to kill the man who killed his wife. His mother, Lucilla, as the daughter of a respected former emperor, is still part of Roman royalty and watches the gladiator battles from the royal box. She recognizes the mannerisms of his father in Lucius, who’s going by his adopted Numidian name. Years ago, Lucilla had sent her son away, to hide him from people in Rome who would like to kill the son of General Maximus, who’s in the line to become Emperor. Now, however, Lucilla also happens to be the wife of General Acacius, the man who Lucius wants to kill.
Lucilla meets secretly with her son. However, Lucius is angry she abandoned him and sent him away. So, he refuses to acknowledge her.
Meanwhile, her husband, General Acacius, is sick of the ruthless war mongering of the twin emperors. He’s actually consorting with other dissidents, who are intent on overthrowing the twin emperors. Lucilla and her friend, Senator Gracchus, secretly support the General’s rebellion.
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These conflicts eventually come to a head, leading to an exciting finish.
GLADIATOR II is an exciting, spectacular, sometimes inspiring adventure. It has some great dramatic twists that propel the movie’s message promoting liberty over tyranny. In the end, the hero rallies the people against the tyranny of the two emperors.
That said, some may feel that the intensity of the first movie, which centered on the conflict between Russell Crowe’s heroic general and Joaquin Phoenix’s ruthless Emperor, is lacking. The sequel transfers that intensity to Paul Mescal as the young hero, Pedro Pascal as the General, and Denzel Washington as the ambitious and devious businessman.
Some of GLADIATOR II is historically accurate. However, the movie condenses the history of the twin emperors, including the dates of their deaths, which happened years apart. Also, Lucilla actually died in 182 AD, well before the timeframe of this movie. So, GLADIATOR II is more historical fiction than historical drama.
GLADIATOR II has lots of strong action violence involving battles between armies and gladiators. For example, there’s the big battle in the beginning and gladiator contests involving vicious baboons, a gladiator riding a large rhinoceros, and gladiators on two ships engaged in a sea battle inside the Coliseum. Some of the violence is very strong and bloody, and some of it is tragic when favorite characters die.
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Finally, one character in the movie makes a lewd joke about having intimate relations with women and occasionally a man.
Satya Dev’s upcoming heist drama, Zebra, is set for a grand release tomorrow, with the actor expressing high hopes for its success. Kannada star Daali Dhananjaya plays a pivotal role alongside Satya Dev.
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To build anticipation, the makers recently released a sneak peek and hosted a special show for a select audience. The latest update reveals that the film’s runtime has been set at 164 minutes (2 hours and 44 minutes), which may feel a bit lengthy for a heist thriller. It remains to be seen how well the film engages its audience.
The movie also stars Priya Bhavani Shankar, Sathyaraj, Amrutha Iyengar, and others. Produced by OldTown Production and Padmaja Films Private Limited, the film’s music is composed by Ravi Basrur, known for his work on KGF.
Directed by Amber Sealey. Starring Phoebe-Rae Taylor, Jennifer Aniston, Rosemarie DeWitt, Luke Kirby, Judith Light, Emily Mitchell, Michael Chernus, Courtney Taylor, Catherine McNally, Kate Moyer, Maria Nash, Jeff Roop, Sharron Matthews, Kim Huffman, Ian Ho, Gabriela Francis, Gavin MacIver-Wright, Maya Lee O’Connor, Nicholas Fry, Miley Haik, Lauren Plech, Nylan Parthipan, Pip McCallan, Isaak Bailey, Christian Rose, Cristiano Buchanan, Anabelle Dietl, and Mia Burke.
SYNOPSIS:
Melody Brooks is navigating sixth grade as a nonverbal wheelchair user who has cerebral palsy. With the help of some assistive technology and her devoted allies, Melody shows that what she has to say is more important than how she says it.
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Born with cerebral palsy, Melody Brooks (played by Phoebe-Rae Taylor, also born with that condition and unquestionably a significant key to the authenticity on display) is a nonverbal wheelchair user. She is also knowledgeable with ambitions and has a lot to say, but she is limited to communicating through a board attached to her wheelchair tray (a slight, realistic touch that most films about disability seem to ignore the existence of for some inexplicable reason) containing a chart of basic sentences, thoughts, feelings, and moods for simple expression.
Directed by Amber Sealey (from a screenplay by Daniel Stiepleman and based on the novel by Sharon M. Draper), Out of My Mind mainly works because it understands that giving Melody a Medi-Speak device (an electronic tool that reads off whatever is prompted, while also coming with preprogrammed basic phrases and sentences, read aloud in the usual generic computerized voices) won’t entirely solve the problem if everyone from the school faculty to her friends and immediate family vary in their struggles to listen to those words. The issues raised stem from society and the education system, not the disability itself. That’s not to say electronic voice communicators are useless. A voice is a voice, and her father Chuck’s (Luke Kirby) reaction to hearing her daughter “speak” for the first time in which he lets the waterworks flow is a heartstrings-pulling moment that doesn’t ring false.
However, even he sometimes misses the point and gets so caught up discussing what’s best for Melody with his wife, Diane (Rosemarie DeWitt), that they both end up ignoring her in the heat of the moment. He does happen to be the more forward-minded of the parents, as fearless as his daughter is about enrolling into a standard 6th-grade class rather than overachieving in special education. If expectations are already met, why not raise the bar? That alone feels like a mantra most disabled people already live by, consistently feeling the need to prove themselves to able-bodied people who can’t even be bothered to learn that they don’t have to talk to someone in a wheelchair with an awkwardly kind, pitiful tone. Nevertheless, Diane is the helicopter parent raising justifiable concerns over ostracism and bullying.
As for the speaking device, what Melody chooses to say first is equally moving, as it encapsulates and sums up the frustrations and misunderstandings she has felt, even from her family, her whole life. It’s also important to point out that the film isn’t vilifying the parents; caring for a disabled child is tricky, will wear anyone down, and inadvertently cause those miscommunications, or lack thereof. Despite one or two powerful scenes of them standing up for Melody, whether it be from an ablest school system (including a teacher played by Michael Chernus who is technically qualified at the job but is immensely punchable when it comes to his ableism and treating Melody’s classroom presence as a distraction and nuisance), the film primarily sticks with her perspective, sprinkling in some inner thoughts using the voice of Jennifer Aniston.
It’s a device used sparingly, thankfully not overdone. As for why Jennifer Aniston, Melody loves watching Friends, but one is eager to know if that’s also a choice from the book or one encouraged by Phoebe-Rae Taylor. From little details such as classroom desks placed too close together for wheelchairs to fit through the aisles, classmates feeling an awkward pressure of losing “cool” status if they are caught giving friendship a chance with Melody, and grossed-out glances her way as eating messier foods becomes, well, messy to her face, the film understands the pitfalls of public and social disabled life. Again, maybe that’s already in the novel or screenplay, but it can’t be overstated enough that when filmmakers cast disabled actors, it comes with extra layers of authenticity and insight.
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Remember that this is still a Disney+ production, so the material has a sanitized, sentimental feel while broadly playing every narrative beat. Once a nationwide quiz competition comes into play, the narrative’s focus shifts there, perhaps too much, even if it still explores Melody’s othering by some of her peers and that enraging teacher. Bluntly put, it all becomes too plot-focused and even contrived. Feel-good songs also repeatedly pop up to remind viewers that the material will never get too challenging. However, a film is sometimes so well-meaning and educationally beneficial that such saccharine material is worth overlooking. Out of My Mind offsets that with a huge heart and a dignified, optimistic, touching performance from Phoebe-Rae Taylor.
Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews, follow my Twitter or Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com
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