Tag Archives: Animated

The Boy and the Heron (Kimitachi wa Dō Ikiru ka, 君たちはどう生きるか) – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A heartbreaking and devastating exploration of grief set to a beautiful backdrop and wacky characters.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid to see this film.

Mahito walks through grass.

The Boy and the Heron Review –

When you look at the great animation studios of history, one name does tend to stand out, so much so that we wrote a whole article about The Beauty of Ghibli. For a long time, we thought that there would be no more films because creator Hayao Miyazaki had retired. However, it seems like Miyazaki-san does not like to take it easy, and it means that we get another of his movies, and who am I to disagree?

So to set the scene, Mahito Maki (Soma Santoki/ Luca Padovan) is a young boy during WW2 who is haunted by the day he watched as the hospital with his mother inside burned to the ground. He has not really had a chance to process this when his father Shoichi (Takuya Kimura/ Christian Bale) marries his late wife’s younger sister Natsuko (Yoshino Kimura/ Gemma Chan) and moves into her estate in the countryside, where a Grey Heron (Masaki Suda/ Robert Pattinson) pays a particular notice to the new arrival.  

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TV Review – Rick and Morty: Wet Kuat Amortican Summer

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TL;DR – A perfectly fine episode that leans into its Total Recall premise, but not a whole lot else.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this episode.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a post-credit scene.

an Attribute Slider

Rick and Morty Review –

Since we last checked in with Rick and Morty in Air Force Wong, Rick (Ian Cardoni) met his nemesis Prime Rick (Ian Cardoni) after teaming up with Morty (Harry Belden) and Evil Morty (Harry Belden). Covered in blood, Rick reached a resolution to the main narrative arc driving him since the start of the season. Which asks the question, where do you go after that?

So to set the scene, Summer (Spencer Grammer) has spent quite a lot of time doing chores for Rick so that she could earn a doodah. In this case, an Attribute Slider lets her tweak her Strength, Charisma, Dexterity, and Intelligence. The only problem is that Morty wants in on this, and after a tussle and a fall into the pool, we get a Kuato situation. We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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TV Review – Rick and Morty: The Jerrick Trap  

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TL;DR – This is another perfectly safe episode that does not go as far as it could have.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this episode.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a post-credit scene.

Warning – Contains moments that may cause distress.

Jerry enters Rick's Lab.

Rick and Morty Review –

Last week’s How Poopy Got His Poop Back ushered in a new era for Rick and Morty and gave us a pretty okay episode. It’s not bad, but it’s not standing out, either. The question I had was this choice they made for just the first episode, or is this foretelling where the rest of the season is going? And I think we are at the latter.


So to set the scene, Jerry (Chris Parnell) is frustrated because one of the neighbours said they didn’t have his rake way too quickly, meaning they have his rake. Rick (Ian Cardoni) replies with one of his usual dismissive remarks. But this time, Jerry does not let it lie. He chastises Rick for not using his brain as much as he could. Incensed, Rick demands they swap brains to see who is the worst off, but not in a Freaky Friday way. Well, Rick cannot handle being in Jerry’s body for three seconds and ‘removes himself from the equation’, and Jerry has no way to control his new gadgets and crashes into the ceiling. This is not a good day for Rick’s computer (Kari Wahlgren). We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Star Trek: Lower Decks: Caves – TV Review

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TL;DR –  A charming clip of friends stuck in a cave.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Star Trek: Lower Decks Review –

As Season Four of Star Trek Lower Decks progresses, I have been genuinely joyful about how the shake-up of promoting the team has let the show evolve its dynamic. But never one to shy away from a good reference. This week, we get not one but two deep cuts as we dive into the world of Star Trek caves.

So to set the scene, we open on the planet of Grottonus as the USS Cerritos orbits above. It has been an age since they were promoted, and for the first time, the old lower decks team of Boimler (Jack Quaid), Mariner (Tawny Newsome), Tendi (Noël Wells), and Rutherford (Eugene Cordero) have all been put on the same away mission. Mariner is ecstatic right up until she discovers that it is a “cave mission”. Everyone else loves caves, but like clockwork, there is a tremor, and the away team is trapped. We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.       

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TV Review – Rick and Morty: How Poopy Got His Poop Back  

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TL;DR – While not a revolutionary episode, it wisely knew that bringing the gang back was the right thing to do as we step back into this universe.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this episode.

Ghost Robot.

Rick and Morty Review –

We have a new season of Rick and Morty, a show I have both loved and become frustrated with in almost equal measures. They take wild swings of greatness that leave you awestruck and then follow it up with the most asinine story imaginable. However, we are entering its post-Justin Roiland era, so it is time to see if that changes the game or not.

So to set the scene, it is the first cold open of Season Seven, and suddenly, there is Mr. Poopybutthole (Jon Allen). Reversing his usual appearance at the end of the season, it is a deep despair as things have not gone well with his life. It has gotten so bad that Beth (Sarah Chalke) has put her foot down, and Rick (Ian Cardoni) must do something about Poopybutthole. Well, it is time to round up the team for an intervention. I just hope no one forgot a birthday. And is that Hugh Jackman (Hugh Jackman)? We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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We’re Back! – A Dinosaur’s Story (1994) – Exploring the Past

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TL;DR – A fascinating time capsule to the early 1990s, which might feel as far in the past as the dinosaurs featured. 

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no Post-Credit Scene.

Disclosure – I paid to watch this film.

Looking at a past Earth.

We’re Back! – A Dinosaur’s Story Review –

I always like plugging in gaps in my knowledge when it comes to cinema, especially when it hits one of those topics that I am deeply passionate about. Well, if you have dived into our site before, you will know that I love dinosaurs, and as someone who grew up in the 1990s, I thought I had watched all the tentpole dinosaur films from that era. Well, this week, I was reminded that this was not the case, and that was something that I had to fix pronto.

So to set the scene, Captain Neweyes (Walter Cronkite) and his assistant Vorb (Jay Leno) have a plan to bring dinosaurs from the past to the present and make them sentient. Thus Rex (John Goodman), Woog (René Le Vant), Dweeb (Charles Fleischer), and Elsa (Felicity Kendal) are ripped from their time and brought to the future. So many children wish to meet a dinosaur, and Neweyes has chosen to grant that wish, which is when he kicks the dinos out of his spaceship to parachute to New York City below.     

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A delightful romp of a film, stunning in its animation, and engaging in its story.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid to watch this film.

The team looks at a video.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem Review –

While you try to avoid it, you can’t help but walk into a film with preconceptions, especially when it adapts to a work with a long history. When you hear Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg’s take on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, that immediately brings an idea of what the film might look like. I might have walked into here with preconceptions, but I walked out with a new respect for the animated work of the artists here.

So to set the scene, Baxter Stockman (Giancarlo Esposito) was working in a lab trying to create his own family using mutation. But before he could complete his work, TCRI tracked down his lab, and Cynthia Utrom (Maya Rudolph) ordered an attack. Stockman was killed in the commotion, but not before one of his creations could save their siblings, and one of the vials of ooze slips into the sewers and finds some baby Turtles. Fifteen years later, Michelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr.), Leonardo (Nicolas Cantu), Raphael (Brady Noon) and Donatello (Micah Abbey) live with their adoptive father, Splinter (Jackie Chan), running errands in secret. They long to be more part of the Human world, but when a new villain called Superfly (Ice Cube) starts stealing supplies, new opportunities and dangers are around the corner.    

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Star Trek: Lower Decks: Twovix – TV Review

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TL;DR – Not all the story worked, but jumping back into this world was still a delight.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
The USS Cerritos approaches the Star Base.

Star Trek: Lower Decks Review –

After a stellar final season of Star Trek: Picard and a stunning follow-up season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, surely there is nothing left of Star Trek in 2023 … right? Well, hold on to your horses because Lower Decks is back and committing to changing one of its core features, changing the tone of the show … okay, not that much.

So to set the scene, the USS Cerritos has been sent on its most secretive mission so far. No one knows why they have been sent to this starbase until the lights turn on and everyone witnesses the joy that is the USS Voyager [Insert theme song here]. They have to escort the now museum ship to its permanent resting place. This should be a breeze, but Jack Ransom (Jerry O’Connell) lets Brad Boimler (Jack Quaid) know he is up for a promotion, just as long as he fails spectacularly. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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The Monkey King – Movie Review

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TL;DR – While not all of this story works, it is like lighting striking when it does.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

The Monkey King poses in front of a setting sun.

The Monkey King Review –

Of the great works of human canon, few contenders have had the impact of the Journey to the West. It has had adaptions across every form of media and multiple interpretations worldwide. My first experience with it was watching Monkey Magic on SBS in the afternoon as a kid, so I enjoy seeing when they can reinterpret the story in new ways.


So to set the scene, the world was in balance for generations under the watchful eye of Budda (BD Wong) and the immortals under the leadership of the Jade Emperor (Hoon Lee). That is, until one day, a monkey is born from a rock that can shine light from his eyes. This is a world full of rules and order, but The Monkey King (Jimmy O. Yang) does not follow the rules. He is an entity of chaos, of recklessness, such as stealing the Grand Column from the Dragon King (Bowen Yang) and ignoring the advice of the elder Monkey (James Sie). He wants to be an immortal, so how do you do that? Well, you defeat 100 demons. Cue the montage scene. But on demon 100, things don’t go to plan.

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Nimona – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A delightful tale of two misfits that find each other when they need them the most.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

Nimona shapeshifts into a Whale

Nimona Review –

Very rarely does a cancelled film get a second chance at life, even less so with animation, but this is what we are getting today. Coming back from the dead with an interesting animation style and a story that takes no prisoners.   

So to set the scene, a long time ago, there was a kingdom at peace, but there was a monster waiting to attack, and attack it did. A glorious hero Gloreth defeated the monster and put in place champions to make sure this never happened again. One thousand years later and the new knights are about to be knighted, where generations of tradition are being put aside as a commoner Ballister Blackheart (Riz Ahmed) might become the champion over other nobles, including Gloreth’s own descendant Ambrosius Goldenloin (Eugene Lee Yang). But when Ballister’s blade was bobby trapped, and the Queen (Lorraine Toussaint) is killed, he has to go on the run when he comes across his biggest ally or trap in the shapeshifting Nimona (Chloë Grace Moretz).  

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