A Look Back at Lilo & Stitch (2002)

 

With the remake around the corner it's time to look back at the beloved animated original.

Lilo & Stitch is an animated sci-fi comedy that was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation with Buena Vista Pictures Distribution distributing. Chris Sanders & Dean DeBlois both wrote and directed.

The story is, after escaping his exile sentence Experiment 626 lands on Earth and plans to hide there. He's soon adopted by orphan sisters Nani & Lilo and Lilo names him Stitch. At first Stitch just wants to use the sisters as a way to stay hidden, but he soon begins to bond with them. But what he doesn't know yet is there's two other aliens who've landed on Earth and they intend to recapture him.

• Negatives

I've got nothing.

• Mix

The only thing that needed more work were the villains. While they have entertaining moments and some characteristics, their character depth isn't nearly given as much development as characters like Nani, Lilo, and Stitch.

• Positives

One good thing about this is the pacing. Some areas did get slow but a majority of the runtime goes by smoothly.

Now to write about the great stuff. One being the humor. Some of the comedy does have slapstick and it was funny. But I found a lot of the dialogue to pretty hilarious. There's one line from Jumba where he says, "His destructive programming is taking effect. He will be irresistibly drawn to large cities, where he will back up sewers, reverse street signs, and steal everyone's left shoe". I don't know why but that last part got a big laugh out of me. 😆

My next praise goes to the music. I actually forgot how beautiful the music was. We get a beautiful mix of Elvis Presley songs and Alan Silvestri's score. It worked perfectly with both comedic and emotional beats. Along with the great writing, the music is perfectly impactful.

Then there's the animation. As a kid I liked the way it looked, and now as an adult I find it gorgeous. The Hawaiian backdrop is beautifully made and the vibrant water color visuals even more so. I just couldn't help but get immersed into this style.

The last thing I'll praise is the story. It's just so heartwarming. The cornerstone is Lilo and Stitch. Lilo is a lonely girl who's not only struggling with her parents death, but also feelings of grief and struggling trying to fit in. Then there's Stitch. His sole cause is to destroy and at the beginning he's having the time of his life doing just that. But once he's in Hawaii and that one thing he was created for is taking away, he now has to find a new purpose. When they first naturally things don't go so well, but as the movie goes on they bond. Lilo never once saw Stitch as a monster but as a potential friend and teaches him about family and loyalty through small tender moments. Stitch in return stops seeing Lilo as a way to avoid capture, and seeing her as family and being able to defy his programming. We also get a great story with Nani. While she's also saddened by the death of her parents, she knows she has to step up and take care of her sister Lilo. But she's under stress both from parenthood, financial strain, and social worker Cobra Bubbles keeping constant tabs on her, which in return gives her the fear that she might lose Lilo/the only family member she has left. It's very realistic and gut punch. Because of this the story is a greatly told tale of family, hope, and showing any outsider can find a home.

Guys, Lilo & Stitch is awesome. It's one of Disney's best of their more modern classics and I was very happy to get a chance to review it even if nobody is excited for the live-action remake.

My final rating is, Great.

So that's all for now. Come back on Saturday, May 24th, for my review of well, the live-action Lilo & Stitch remake. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Final Destination: Bloodlines Review

 

Finally, the newest Final Destination has finally arrived!

Final Destination: Bloodlines is a supernatural horror movie and the sixth installment of the franchise. New Line Cinema, Practical Pictures, Freshman Year, and Fireside Films produced with Warner Bros. Pictures distributing. The story is written by Jon Watts, Guy Busick, and Lori Evans Taylor with Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein directing.

The story is, a young college student named Stefani Reyes is having what she assumed were nightmares going back to 1969 to a building collapsing and killing everyone including her grandparents. She soon learns this is actually her grandmother's premonition and finds out Death is coming to kill her family who weren't supposed to exist in the first place. Now, Stefani and her family must find a way to survive.

Initial Reaction

When I found out about this I was immediately hooked. Cause I really enjoy the Final Destination movie, they're great turn off your brain fun. Well The Final Destination aka Final Destination 4 was lackluster, but one, two, three, and five are entertaining. I was so pumped for this I actually watched those previous movies leading to this. So yeah, safe to say I was really really excited for Bloodlines.

Cons

I've got nothing.

Middle Ground

One mix bag is the humor. Now all of the dark comedy was great. There were many times when me and the audience laughed at that. One moment I remember is a scene had a female-led rendition of B.J. Thomas' song "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head". Some of probably have a good idea why that's darkly funny, but for someone of that don't, go see the movie. You'll understand why. But the stuff I wasn't really getting into was the more meta stuff. It wasn't bad, it was just okay. Another mix is the performances. Some of the cast are pretty good, others can be a little melodramatic. But I think the biggest one people are gonna talk about is Tony Todd's final performance as William Bludworth/his last on-screen performance before sadly passing away. Tony isn't in the film that long but what we did get from him was great. Not only in a sense for his character, but he gives out a short but beautiful speech about life. He gave us a heart warming send off. So thank you Tony Todd. It's tragic you're no longer with us, but I hope you're at peace.

Pros

Let's start by praising the pacing. If there's top five reasons why people like these movies, it's because they're a breeze to get through. Every Final Destination movie goes by quickly and doesn't overstay its welcome. And Bloodlines is no different. The movie goes by fast but we got plenty of story. The next credit goes to the effects. While it is a slight bummer that not every single thing is done practically. The effects were still really good. Then there's the family dynamic. Now usually this film series focuses on survivors who are friends or become friends. Now there was nothing wrong with that. It worked, but it was refreshing to have the characters be an actual family. It added a new layer, we explored something new, and even had a couple of good emotional moments. Now this franchise is all about the kills. The gory, Rube Goldberg kills. So how were they this time around? Well fans I can safely say you're not gonna be disappointed. There's plenty of great and creative kills throughout the movie. The biggest highlights were the opening Skyview Tower premonition scene and an MRI machine death. So yeah, the kills are fantastic.

The wait for this was worth it. Sure I had some issues, but at the end of the day I had a blast with Bloodlines.

My final rating is, Good.

Boy that was a fun time. So that's all for now. Due come back on Thursday, May 22nd, for my A Look Back at review of 2002's Lilo & Stitch. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Road to Superman (2025) - Man of Steel Review

 

Alright, back to my favorite Road to series. And we're back with one of my many favorite Superman films too.

Man of Steel is a comic book movie based on the DC Comics' iconic character Superman. It's as a reboot to the Superman films series and the first installment of the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). Production was done by DC Entertainment, Legendary Pictures, Syncopy, Peters Entertainment with Warner Bros. Pictures also helping with production as well as doing distribution. Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer wrote the story with Zack Snyder directing.

The story is, just before the planet Krypton was destroyed, Kal-El was sent to Earth as a baby. As he grew he started to realize he's not like everybody else. Soon, he travels the world saving people in secret. But when another surviving Kryptonian named Zod comes to Earth and plans to terraform it into a new Krypton, Kal-El must step out of the shadows and save his adopted home.

• Negatives

I've got nothing.

• Mix

My only gray area with the movie is the pacing. The first half can very much drag. Mainly because we do jump back and forth with flashbacks to Clark's childhood. Thankfully as the film goes on the speed does pick up and it starts to become a breeze to get through.

• Positives

Let's start off with things people can agree on and then I move to opinions that I imagine you'll find controversial. First thing is Han Zimmer's score. It's pretty tough to praise this because any positive praise has pretty much been given. Zimmer's score is emotionally heavy and epic. I've watched this at least six times and I still can't help but hum along to "Flight". That bit of music makes me feel like I can fly.

Then there's the action. The action is jaw dropping. I loved it! And one thing I've come to love whether it'd be flight, super speed or fighting, it's you can almost feel and see the physicality.

Now I'll move onto the performances, more specifically from Henry Cavill and Michael Shannon. First Henry. Now I've heard a lot of people complain about Henry being stoic, but that was the point. This is a very stoic Clark because he's trying to figure things out. So it'd make sense Henry Cavill would act like that. But Henry does have and nail a lot of the more vulnerable moments. Hell one of he's best moments is when he's angry and he's punching Zod all while saying "You think you can threaten my mother!" It's a small moment but it was great acting from Henry. Then there's Michael Shannon as General Zod. Shannon was fully committed to the role. He perfectly nailed Zod's unyielding ruthlessness and focus on his mission to resurrect Krypton, but also added a lot of quiet emotional depth as well. And he's especially amazing when goes all feral.

My next praise will be to oh what a surprise, Zack Snyder's directing. It's basically my same old praise. He makes shots visually stunning . His camera work is dynamic and his images are breathtaking. Many of those frames did become iconic to Superman. Some creators have even outright said they were inspired by Snyder's style. These shots alone 👇🏻 are great and they're not even scrapping the top of the iceberg.

Now here comes my biggest controversial opinions, starting with the gritty tone. I know people hate the gritty tone, but people! You have to understand something. Superman needed a newer tone. Snyder and co. couldn't copy the tone from the Donner/Reeve films. They tried that in 2006 with Superman Returns and guess what? It bombed. People showed back then they didn't want a tone from 1978. They wanted something different! And Man of Steel provided that. The tone is actually handled very well. And the thing is the movie's just gritty and that's it. It's not overtly dark like everybody tries to make it out to be. Besides, you know those comic books that everybody on social media talk about, the source material that they supposedly love oh so much? Well a lot of the best Superman stories are gritty and throw away the "big blue boyscout" shtick. Hell! I reviewed one of them not too long ago! Kingdom Come. That story's gritty and I always see it on the top five best Superman stories. So yes, the gritty tone is actually a good thing.

The next and last controversial opinion I have is about the story. Despite the initial slow start, the story is really good. We've got great world-building with how Krypton works. What their society is like and a lot of the technology. But the best part were the themes. Two things touched upon is identity and belonging. Throughout a good portion of the film we witness Clark struggling to figure out who he is. Him discovering his alien heritage, why he was sent to Earth, and even why his birth is such a big deal. Then he wants to figure where he belongs in this world. It was quite a great hero's journey. There was also the writers tackling destiny and choice. The movie highlights the clash between Superman's decision to become a protector and Zod's predetermined fate of being a warrior/protector of Krypton and only Krypton. These themes added great layers to the movie and I loved it.

While I wasn't blinded to some flaws, I still really liked this movie. It was the modern Superman I was waiting for.

My final rating is, Great.

It was so much fun revisiting this. But that's all for now. Come back on Saturday, May 17th, for my review of Final Destination: Bloodlines. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Is It True? - Super Smash Bros. is a Kid's Imagination

 

Man, it's been awhile since I did one of these. So in case you don't know, Is It True? is where I breakdown fan theories and decide if well, if it's true. With that out of the way let's get to it.

What is Super Smash Bros.?

Super Smash Bros., or as it's often shorten to Smash Bros. or Smash, is a platform fighting game where a variety of Nintendo characters or video game characters created by other creators fight one another. What separates this game from other fighting games is the characters fight on platforms and try to knock each other off after giving the opponent tons of damage from numerous attacks.

The series started in 1999 with the game called, well, Super Smash Bros. After that huge success the series got four more games afterwards. Those being Melee, Brawl, for Nintendo 3DS/Wii, and the latest installment being 2018's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. And while there's been some speculations and hopes from fans, as of writing this there's been no announcement for a Super Smash Bros. 6.

The Theory

The theory got started because in the intro to the first game from 1999, we're greeted with a giant hand with the background looking like a bedroom. The theory would later gain more traction because some fans have pointed out a lot of these stages could be a child's creativity. There's also the fact the crossovers of unrelated franchises from Nintendo to Sega to Capcom to something in-between coming together for a fight is something kids would do by having a mix of different toys in their made up adventures.

Which yeah that makes sense. I mean come on. How many of you have made your Justice League figures fight your Power Rangers? I know I did. 🙋🏻‍♂️

Is The Theory Believable?

Well the theory only shines in the first game, because that one did have a toy and bedroom setting. The theory also crumbles because the later games would have far more cinematic and complex stories. An example being in Ultimate with the World of Light. There's also the fact themes would get darker and also include more realistic elements.

So is the theory plausible? Well there's evidence that says otherwise but, it is pretty wholesome. This is a theory that let's us look back at those fun childhood memories of playtime. So even if this isn't confirmed by either Nintendo or the creator himself [Masahiro Sakurai], it's still a fun one to think about.

I had a lot of fun here, but now it's time to move to the next post. So come back on Thursday, May 15th, for my return to the Road to Superman (2025), with my review of Man of Steel. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Wick is Pain Review

 

Gotta say, wasn't expecting a John Wick documentary to happen this year. Buy hey, at least it's a pleasant surprise.

Wick is Pain is a documentary that's produced by Thunder Road Pictures and distributed by Lionsgate, and directed by Jeffery Doe.

The documentary explores the John Wick franchise. Through both never before seen footage and interviews with Chad Stahelski and Keanu Reeves, we get to see how this small indie film became the newest and biggest franchise.

Initial Reaction

Much like Room 237 I was hesitant to review this. Because much I'm not a documentary guy. Sure I've watched plenty of them but up until Room 237, I've never reviewed them. But people liked my first documentary review so I'd figured I try it again. Also this documentary is about the John Wick films. One of the best modern day franchise to grace film.

Cons

I've got nothing.

Middle Ground

Let's get into how this gives some good insight. Firstly, we get a lot of behind the scenes. We see how Chad Stahelski & David Leitch started off a stuntmen, how those two became friends, when/how they befriended Keanu Reeves, their flip book during the beginning stages of production on the first movie. The movie is also a celebration of stuntwork. It shows how the stuntmen & women were just as much as a big part of the franchise's success as much as the directors, actors, and writers are. It's glorious glossy Hollywood behind the scenes. But the documentary was also no afraid to get personal. They mentioned how Keanu's previous attempts at action movies (those attempts being Man of Tai Chi & 47 Ronin) were failures, how sometimes Chad & David would be at each other's throats, how Chad's marriage was falling apart, and Keanu talking about the physical pain he would be going through and also showing footage of that pain. Now that was all good but at the same time they could've put more. What I mean and this is a huge example is they spent a lot of time focusing on the first movie, but the second through fourth movie's behind the scenes were kinda sped up. I get it, the first was the one that started it all but the others were also huge hits. I guess maybe they didn't want it to feel overly long but if that was the case they could've done a docuseries. I would've been down for that and I'm pretty sure Wick fans would've loved that too.

Pros

One aspect to that's good is the quality. The editing is great fast cuts and he shows a very polished look at the action scenes and how they were worked. The last thing I'll praise is how much of a love letter this is. Fans will eat up all of the hard work everybody put into the films not only as a way to be see as serious filmmakers, but because of how much they cared about the people who are going to be seeing these movies. I also think aspiring filmmakers can learn something. Cause even though I slightly criticized how they fast forward with the sequels, we still get plenty of information about all of the challenges that went on. We get creative challenges, logistical challenges, and of course the financial struggles.

Despite some flaws Wick is Pain still offers a lot of enjoyment and gives quite a few insightful stories about the film series's production.

My final rating is, Good.

Okay that's a wrap. Come back on Monday, May 12th, for a my fan theory segment called, Is It True? For that I'll be tackling a theory on Super Smash Bros. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Road to The Naked Gun (2025) - The Naked Gun (1988) Review

 

With the newest Naked Gun movie coming out in August, it's time for me to make yet another Road to series.

The Naked Gun (or as it's officially titled, The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad) is a crime action comedy and the first installment of the film series. Paramount Pictures both produced and distributed. David Zucker directed and wrote alongside Jerry Zucker, Jim Abrahams and Pat Proft.

The story is, after his partner was shot, clueless detective Frank Drebin sets out to find the culprit. His investigation soon leads him to a plot to turn innocent people into assassins. Now not only does Frank need to stop this plot but find out who's behind it.

• Negatives

I've got nothing.

• Mix

The only mix bag is some outdated material. First everyone breath a sigh of relief, I haven't gone woke or PC. What I mean by outdated is the movie sometimes does have some references that aren't timeless. They're very much meant for the 80's. It's not too bothersome because you can just brush them off and enjoy the rest of the movie. So this is one of those gray areas that can be forgiven.

• Positives

The first thing I'll praise is the pacing. The runtime is an hour and twenty-five minutes and that had to be the quickest hour of my entire life. This is just a breeze to get through and the movie never looses this high energy and best of all, doesn't overstay its welcome.

The next aspect is the cast. They are phenomenal. Leslie Nielsen is perfect. He's confident even though his character is really stupid. And when rewatching this it reminded me how much sad it is he's no longer with us. Now while Nielsen is great he also had a strong supporting cast as well. Priscilla Presley and George Kennedy are great supporting characters and work perfectly with Nielsen, and Ricardo Montalbán brings the best kind of campy fun.

The last praise I'll give is the comedy. The team of David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker (often times abbreviated as ZAZ) brought a wonderful bunch of absurdity, rapid-fire jokes, gags, slapstick, and greatly spoofed the cop drama. But there's also some great dialogue as well. Like how Frank compliments about a "nice beaver".

While some might find aspects to be outdated I absolutely love The Naked Gun. I had fun from beginning to end and I'm so glad I revisited this in preparation for the newest movie.

My final rating is, A MUST WATCH!

So that's all for tonight. Now I've got two things. One, if this is possible, come back on Saturday, May 10th, for my review of the documentary, Wick is Pain. But if I can't do a review for that, then come back on Monday, May 12th, for a brand new Is It True?, where I tackle a fan theory regarding Super Smash Bros. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Thunderbolts Review

 

Thunderbolts (or as it's stylized Thunderbolts*, by the way at the end the asterisk is finally explained) is a comic book movie based on the Marvel Comics' team with the same name. It serves as the 36th film in the MCU and it's produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The story is written by Joanna Calo and Eric Pearson with directing done by Jake Schreier.

The story is, Yelena, John Walker, Taskmaster, and Ghost were set up to kill each other so the manipulative CIA director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine has no loose ends. But after surviving her plot and befriending a test subject named Bob, this unlikely alliance sets out to expose her. But as their mission goes on, something is going on with Bob and it's a far bigger problem than Valentina.

Initial Reaction

Now this movie wasn't on my most anticipated list because I'm not a Thunderbolts fan. But after seeing some TV spots I decided to give the movie a chance.

Cons

I've got nothing.

Middle Ground

Let's start off with the pacing. This does take a while a to get started, mainly during the first act. Thankfully when everything is set up, acts two and three going by quickly. Then there's the credit scenes. Now the post-credit is good. It hypes you up for the next big movie, but the mid-credit scene is stupid. It's just a joke about Red Guardian (Yelena's dad) trying to convince a woman to buy cereal because he's on it along with the rest of the team. So here's how you're plan should go. Bathroom break for the mid-credit scene and go back for the post-credit. Then there's the aspect of character. Now Yelena and Bob get great character development. We really get to know what they're going through. John Walker (who by the way did nothing wrong! So MCU writers and wannabe pundits on social media, stop trying to convince us otherwise!) also gets something for his character, whether it's adding something to his backstory or giving him some entertaining moments. But others aren't given as much care. Bucky, despite being featured in a lot of marketing, is sidelined and his arc of taking down Valentina isn't given that much attention. And Ghost doesn't get much of anything. She just kinda there, okay she does do that one awesome thing to that fake Taskmaster but other than that, she's not given much. As for Valentina, she's a very one dimensional villain. Her character is kinda saved by Julia Louis-Dreyfus' charisma, but it still felt like the writers could've done more.

Pros

The first thing I'll credit is the action. Yes is very it's very good, got great sequences and choreography, but my biggest praise is the practical side. Yes we do get CGI, but a lot of this movie is more focused on stunts, some long takes, and shockingly enough practical effects! I was beginning to think Marvel Studios didn't know what those were anymore. Alright enough of me being dick. Let's move on to the other biggest strength, that being the performances from Florence Pugh and Lewis Pullman. Pugh does great with dry humor but she really shines with moments of emotional depth. With Pullman, he adds vulnerability to the movie. He was really good whenever the Bob's mental issues were tormenting him. These two shined in this. But my biggest praise goes for the depth. Now I agree with it being surface level, but you know what? I prefer that off some of the other MCU movies were it seems more comedy was the focus than telling a story. Looking at you Thor: Love & Thunder! So I enjoyed the movie took its time touching on themes of depression, loneliness, trauma, redemption and doing it with sincerity even if it's not the deepest. Because at the end of the day it was refreshing and added something grounded.

Thunderbolts isn't by any means perfect, but I came out of this liking it a lot more than I thought.

My final rating is, Good.

That's all for now. Come back on Monday, May 5th, for the first part of The Road to The Naked Gun (2025) with my review of the original 1988 film also titled The Naked Gun. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.