What’s It About

Shrek 5 follows Shrek and Fiona as they raise their teenage children and embark on a new adventure to a magical metropolis called “Further, Further Away”. Shrek, accompanied by his family and Donkey, gets swept up in another whirlwind city journey while trying to navigate parenthood.

WHAT’S IT ABOUT

With their beloved Andy preparing to leave for college, Woody (Kim Seung-jun), Buzz Lightyear (Park Il), Jessie (Ham Soo-jeong), and the rest of the toys find themselves headed for the attic but mistakenly wind up on the curb with the trash. Woody’s quick thinking saves the gang, but all but Woody end up being donated to a day-care center. Unfortunately, the uncontrollable kids do not play nice, so Woody and the gang make plans for a great escape.

MOVIESinMO REVIEW

Some movies will make you laugh; others will break your heart, but every once in a while, a movie will reach into your ribs and move something very deep inside you. Toy Story 3, to me, is one of those movies. Released in June 2010, it came a long time after the previous film in the series, but it didn’t just tag along; it also brought everything to a boil and closed a chapter of the Toy Story saga so powerfully that people of all ages watched the movie with their eyes filled with tears and the lights off. If you think about it, what was most amazing about Toy Story 3 was that a bunch of toys, who were characters in an animated film, was able to express how changing, letting go, and the fear of eventually fading away could have a greater meaning than a lot of people will usually give animation credit for. No ifs or buts about it, they just do. For an inexplicable reason, everything seems straightforward. Andy is preparing to leave for college now that he is seventeen years old. Woody (Tom Hanks) is now sitting amongst some long-forgotten old toys with Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen). Jessie (Joan Cusack) and others are in a box off to their side; they have all been waiting and hoping that someone will eventually reach for them again, having been silent in their wait. There has been so much miscommunication and confusion; the plans were for the toys to go in the attic, but instead, they have gone to Sunnyside Daycare. What started out looking like a wonderful way to live again turned out to be much different than what they had imagined. Having children to take care of gives back some of the meaning the toys once had before they were boxed up. However, over time, things started to change, and the happy picture no longer matched what was happening underneath the surface of the Daycare. Sunnyside, a warm, sunny place, gets plenty of sunshine through the windows. However, power at Sunnyside is not from sunlight but from Lotso, the fake strawberry-scented stuffed bear created to be everyone’s favorite character. Voiced smoothly by Ned Beatty, you can hear strength in Lotso’s drawl; there’s a soft, warm way to say something when you’re sitting on an old porch swing on a hot summer day, but at any moment it will change completely and sound cold, tight, and harsh. When new toys come to Sunnyside, they are randomly thrown into a toddler area where they will be gnawed on and broken in just a few short hours. The quiet areas remain for children who do not ask questions, just obey and follow. Long ago, Lotso was a child’s teddy bear who belonged to a little girl named Daisy. She did love him very much until the day she left him on the curb and didn’t come back. There was a new bear to play with, and now Lotso’s love for Daisy turned to hate. The once open wound became a twisted scar. From there, the roots of bitterness had grown instead of the roots of forgiveness. Lotso created an entire universe that revolves around recreating his pain. Beatty gives every line of Lotso’s dialogue substance and describes how one’s faith can be slowly drained away until only the echo and the edge of the voice is left, and the way the words sound like they have less weight because they once had so much weight as compared to the feeling of being exact; a deliberate and concentrated cruelty developed over the years. Lotso at the incinerator, seeing Woody and Buzz almost get killed to press the stop button, but hesitating, hits like a held breath; silence; no loud screaming; no loud music; just the sound of the empty air where the noise would normally be heard. A glance that settles into cruelty, not out of rage but habit, as if goodness had long ago faded from memory. A fire ignites at the end of Toy Story 3. As they get closer to the fire, with no way to escape, the toys do not leave one another behind. The toys all have their fingers linked together: Woody first, Buzz right behind him, Jessie then. The heat is on them. Their eyes remain wide open. This is how it all ends – together. Here, one image has more power than a hundred pages of text in an area where belonging is the most important thing. The toys face an ending without Andy’s help, perhaps even an empty ending. But still, they hold onto each other, shoulder to shoulder. Without a sound, the film encourages you to feel the weight of this relationship as you walk out of the theatre. Adults go into a film thinking it is just an animation and walk out with their heads down and needing to take a breath. Toy Story 3 avoids despair because the comedy lands well and feels genuine. Only Michael Keaton could portray an outfit-at-all-costs, existential-crisis doll like Ken; he makes Ken come alive as a comedic character. A connection builds between Barbie and Ken, with Jodi Benson providing Barbie with both warmth and comedy. Buzz’s interactions with Jessie, while in Spanish-only mode, become overly dramatic; his movements become like a character in a musical. The overall film is defined by comedy throughout small roles; Wallace Shawn transforms Rex’s nervousness into reality, whereas Don Rickles creates great punch lines from Mr. Potato Head’s dialogue. The way that Mr. Potato Head delivers each line is indicative of the history between the characters. The overall movement of the characters is indicative of how long they have been together, as their movements are very fluid. One moment will feel as though you’ve just come out of a prison cell, the next will be like you’ve entered into a ghost story, and then you’ll find yourself seated across from a person mourning the loss of a friend or family member, but none of those feelings seem out of place together. Outside the window, the jungle gyms look like prisons, and the fences are all covered in jagged edges, as if they could cut you if you touched them. When night falls, that little monkey made out of plastic becomes a stalker from your nightmares. Although there is such an abundance of noise, the film has a knack for knowing when to stop and finding quietness among all of the “noise” – this is another by-product of the story: Andy once had a love for his toys, but has outgrown them as most kids do when they grow older. Woody (Tom Hanks) has a great sadness deep within him and knows that his purpose is to reunite with Andy; however, the story conveys the emotional truth that sometimes letting go of the people or things you love can be harder and, in turn, more meaningful than holding onto them at all. In an industry where perfection is often sought after, Toy Story 3 tells its story with honesty. Not all the loose ends have been tied together. The conclusion is as real life is lived each day, with its bumps and triumphs, and no one can forget the ending’s beauty. The goodbyes are no louder than average. The feeling of the goodbyes is deserved, not forced. The conclusion is not a perfect ending, it is much more than that. It is a proper ending. An ending that recognizes everything that has happened before it, and gives both the characters and audience a fresh start to go on with their lives. In 15 years, when people talk about an animated feature film that influenced their lives forever, they will refer to this film. And that is a huge accomplishment. That is a legacy.

OUR RATING – A DAYCARE 9

MEDIA

• Genre – Family

Street date

• Digital – January 1, 2014
• 3D – November 1st, 2011
• 4K – June 4th, 2019
• Blu-Ray/DVD – November 2, 2010
• Video – 1080p
• Screen size 1.85:1
• Sound – English Dolby Atmos, English Dolby TrueHD 7.1, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
• Subtitles – English, English SDH, Spanish, French

Extras

Core Special Features (DVD/Blu-ray)

• Cine-Explore: A visual commentary track that takes you behind the scenes while the movie plays.
• The Gang’s All Here: In-depth look at the returning characters and voice talent.
• Life of a Shot: An inside look at the technical process required to create some of the film’s most complex scenes.
• Toys!: The team’s research and development process for designing the new plastic and plush additions to the cast.
• Family Play: A look into Pixar’s research into how kids play with toys.
• Deleted Scenes: Featuring alternate openings and discarded subplots.
• Epilogue: Character interviews and a deeper look at the toys’ life with Bonnie. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Exclusive Bonus Features (Ultimate Collector’s Packs)

• Studio Stories: Lighthearted, animated tales from behind the scenes at Pixar.
• Ken’s Dating Tips: Humorous advice from the Toy Story 3 Ken doll.
• The Pixar Short: Day & Night: The acclaimed 2010 animated short film that played in theaters before Toy Story 3.
• Interactive Toy Story Trivia: Multiple features focused on hidden Pixar easter eggs and references

What’s It About

In the late 21st century, an investigator and a member of a feared religious sect are brought together by a murder in a refugee camp.

What’s It About

In “Hexed,” an impulsive and unconventional teenage girl named Billie (voice of Hailee Steinfeld) discovers secret magical abilities which, once unleashed, hurtle her into a spectacle-filled journey out of suburbia and into a vast witch realm called Hexe.

WHAT’S IT ABOUT

Exclusive access to the band’s archives of visual, audio, and written material, as well as the support of the estate of Maurice White and the band members.

MOVIESinMO REVIEW

There are documentaries that celebrate. There are documentaries that dig. And then there is what Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson does, something closer to communion. His third entry in what is quickly becoming the most essential body of Black music documentary work of this generation, Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs. That’s the Weight of the World), is not simply a film about a band. It is a reckoning. A love letter written with both hands, one open in admiration, the other balled into a fist of honest truth. I love Earth, Wind & Fire. They are a part of who I am, as with many Black kids growing up looking for an identity. Those album covers, elaborate, cosmic, layered in Egyptian imagery and Afrofuturist symbolism, were the first pieces of art I studied as a child, long before I had words for what art even was. That personal history makes me both the most and least qualified person to review this film. But it also makes me the exact audience Questlove had in mind. Because this documentary speaks directly to the children of the 1970s and to every generation that inherited that music and was changed by it. This documentary focuses on Maurice White, the drummer, composer, producer, and designer of Earth, Wind & Fire. The film gives Maurice sensitive attention like other music documentaries reserved for people who they love and cannot be touched. Born in Memphis, TN, in 1941, he experienced a childhood broken by poverty, being abandoned by his parents, and also the kind of violence he experienced growing up Black in the Deep South. His mom went to Chicago to find a job, and his father was already gone. Maurice was raised primarily by an older Black woman known to her community as Big Mama. She gave Maurice the stability he needed during a time when the world around him gave him virtually no stability. The early traumas he suffered throughout his childhood greatly affected his ability to live with and through love, unity, and elevation. The documentary does a very good job demonstrating that this is the same man who built a musical empire on love, unity, and cosmic elevation, was also a man who profoundly struggled with each of them. Questlove opens the film with the voice of Barack Obama. That is not a casual choice. It announces immediately that what follows is an act of Black cultural reclamation, a legacy being named, honored, and placed exactly where it belongs. From there, the film traces Maurice’s journey from Chicago’s jazz circuit, where he drummed for Ramsey Lewis, through the formation of Earth, Wind & Fire in 1969 and the band’s explosive rise after signing with Columbia Records in 1972. What followed was one of the most remarkable runs in the history of American music: That’s the Way of the World, Spirit, All ‘n All, I Am, and the singles, “Shining Star,” “September,” “Boogie Wonderland,” “After the Love Is Gone,” “Let’s Groove”, that became permanent fixtures in the soundtrack of Black life. Earth, Wind & Fire is very different from their contemporaries because Maurice White created the band with extreme care and foresight. He didn’t just find himself in the right place at the right time; he spent years and years studying transcendental meditation, adopting a vegetarian diet, and keeping the band off drugs and alcohol. Maurice incorporated astrology, metaphysics, and African spirituality into every aspect of the band’s identity through elements like the kalimba, Egyptian motifs, symbols, and decorative elements, along with the horn arrangements to give the music a timeless yet modern feel. The multiple narrations of the film show that many people believe that when they listen to Earth, Wind & Fire, they are somehow receiving transmissions from both Africa and outer space (an Afrofuturism perspective). The way Questlove presents the legacy of Earth, Wind & Fire in this documentary is as a musicologist with a unique insight and tender understanding of what it was like to grow up with Earth, Wind & Fire. To achieve worldwide success, Earth, Wind, and Fire never watered down their Blackness; they did not code-switch, nor did they tone down their edginess for the sake of crossover appeal. They turned their identity into a weapon of transcendence – and it worked. Maurice White’s vision for the band was to connect with all people about meditation, alignment, and the celestial power of the universe. The vessel that relayed that message was clearly and unapologetically Black. This differentiation at this time is hugely important. However, Questlove has no intention of letting it end there. While often preaching about connection and togetherness, he often ran from conflict instead of walking through it. He paid band members very little for many years. He did not give Songwriters credit for the work they put into making those records come to life. He opened a rehearsal studio in Los Angeles called The Complex and had a big grand opening, but not one member of his band was invited to attend. Phillip Bailey’s voice brought so much of the emotion to Earth, Wind & Fire’s music, and he doesn’t hold back in showing how angry he is in this film, which adds to the credibility of the documentary. We have seen so many other films that celebrate the legend while omitting the truth, and the Black community deserves better than this. In terms of Maurice’s complex personal history, the film is equally confrontational. His long-term partner, Marilyn White, tells a story that reveals how egregiously he cheated on her and acted like it was his right as a star. His son, Kahbran, tells a story about how much he was absent as a father until he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and had to settle down and re-establish a connection with him. Another son, Eden (who was born to a member of Earth, Wind & Fire’s wardrobe team), introduces himself in a humorous way by saying he is “Maurice’s youngest child (that we know of).” It is humorous because of the way he introduces himself; however, the pain behind it is certainly present. Maurice White’s genius and pain were always tied together in some way, so Questlove will not downplay what that connection means. The film’s strength goes well beyond the fact that it is a biographical account. The visual and emotional wealth of the concert sequences is astounding; the way the colors, choreography, and the sound of horns all combine to create an experience that borders on being ceremonial is remarkable. It was said by Lionel Richie that “the concert tours were theatrical productions on the scale of a Broadway show.” Both George Faison (choreographer for The Wiz) and Doug Henning (illusionist) were involved with the show’s choreography and set design. Unfortunately, the same grandiose concepts that built the shows destroyed the touring band’s financial viability. The band was unable to recoup their expenditures from these sold-out arena concerts due to the production costs exceeding ticket sales revenues. Creative vision clearly outpaces the structural support created to sustain it. After Summer of Soul and Sly Lives! (also known as The Burden of Black Genius), Questlove has built a trilogy of three films (Summer of Soul, Sly Lives!) documenting the genius, complexity, and resiliency of the Black experience in film or video with more depth than any film school curriculum can provide.  Questlove’s work requires something that cannot be taught: body-based memory (also known as cultural memory), a musician’s sense of rhythm or time, and love. No one can deny that Questlove is an oracle when it comes to the stories of Black artists through their music; he is not just an archivist preserving these artists’ stories–he is also interpreting those stories by providing a unique translation of the works, showing how these artists were actually builiding their musical legacy, which was developed beneath the glitter, the lights, and the kalimba solos. Questlove’s work demonstrates to Black communities that their music is not only entertainment; it is architecture, and it provides a framework for how to live. Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs. That’s the Weight of the World) is essential viewing, not just for fans of the band, but for anyone who wants to understand what it means to build something transcendent out of trauma, discipline, and love. Maurice White gave the world a sound that still lives in the bones of hip-hop, R&B, and soul music today. His DNA is everywhere. Questlove’s gift is making us hear it again for the first time.

OUR RATING – AN AFROCENTRIC 8

What’s It About

Two women find themselves in a desperate fight for survival when a mountain rockslide leaves them stranded on a fragile plank more than 3,000 feet in the air.

What’s It About

Follows a scuba diver who, while looking for his father’s remains, is swallowed by an 80-foot, 60-ton sperm whale and has just one hour to get out before his oxygen runs out.

What’s It About

Indebted to a feline mob boss, a black cat living in Venice named Nero, begins to question whether he is living the right life as he finds himself forced to forge an unexpected friendship that may finally lead him to his purpose.

What’s It About

When a rogue squad of genetically engineered super soldiers break loose in the desert, a badass Army sniper must unleash hell to protect her young daughter.

What’s It About

Clayface is a body horror story about Rising Hollywood star Matt Hagen’s descent into a horrifying, revenge-filled monster when his face is disfigured by a gangster. As a last resort, Matt turns to scientist Dr. Caitlin Bates, whose scientific ambition transforms Matt’s body into clay, stripping him of his identity and humanity.