Promotional image for “Moana,” featuring the titular character alongside the demigod Maui, Hei Hei the chicken, and Moana’s pet pig, Pua. Copyright The Walt Disney Company.
The latest film from Disney Animation, Moana is a worthy addition to the Disney canon, combining a respect for the culture of the Pacific Islands while bringing audiences an action-packed and beautifully animated story of self-discovery. This film has a lot of heart and wit behind it, and is the second animated film I’ve seen this year to make heavy and good use of the Hero’s Journey archetype, adding another face to the Hero with A Thousand Faces.
Randy Marsh and other residents of South Park watching the election results. Copyright Viacom Inc.
Just as I thought it would, last night’s episode of South Park lampooned this week’s unexpected election results while keeping to its season-long story arc.
I started this blog back in September with the mission statement of reviewing and celebrating animated movies. As you can tell from three of my previous articles, which cover TV shows like South Park and the recently-revived Young Justice, that statement has changed ever so slightly. I am now expanding my blog to cover animation in all of its forms, from films to television shows to all other kinds of animation. The reason for this is that I love seeing where people can take animation with different mediums, and I can’t limit myself to movies for that animation fix. So, be on the lookout for further articles from Sack, Animated, now on a wider range of topics. The Circle of Life continues to move us all, even my blog.
Sign outside the Hollywood Bowl. Photo by Joey Sack
One of my fondest memories when it comes to a concert-going experience was back in 2011, when my family and I went to Star Wars: Live in Concert at the TD Garden in Boston. The music, being by John Williams and from his iconic score for the first six Star Wars films, was excellent, the audience was filled with fans both young and old, the announcer was a pre-recorded James Earl Jones (the voice of Darth Vader), and the whole event was hosted by C-3PO himself, Anthony Daniels.
Admittedly, though, I have to imagine that I was the only member of my family that felt in place at this venue; my parents didn’t grow up with Star Wars and neither did my siblings (or me, for that matter, but that’s a whole other story), so they probably felt the most out of place with all the orchestral music played against the sounds and sights of the Star Wars universe.
The audience at The Hollywood Bowl. Photo by Joey Sack
Well, after all these years, I now know how my family felt, because it’s more or less how I felt seeing the wonderful Disney’s The Nightmare Before Christmas with Danny Elfman at the Hollywood Bowl this past Friday. Don’t get me wrong. I really like The Nightmare Before Christmas; I’d probably go on record saying that I love it. But I didn’t grow up watching this movie every Halloween, and only saw the film for the first time last year. With all of that in mind, you can imagine how amazed I was this past Friday to see the Hollywood Bowl, with its capacity to hold 17,500 people, filled pretty much to the brim with people singing along while the movie played, the orchestra played along, and many of the original singers (including Danny Elfman himself) reprised their roles for the songs. Continue reading “Disney’s The Nightmare Before Christmas with Danny Elfman at the Hollywood Bowl”
Logo for Kubo and the Two Strings. Copyright Laika Entertainment LLC and Focus Features.
Too often a film is hailed as a masterpiece, whether it’s a classic piece of cinema like The Godfather or a catchy-song-filled animated adventure like Frozen; that kind of acclaim can raise one’s expectations for a film too high, resulting in backlash when a movie is not as good as one would have thought. And while the story of Kubo and the Two Strings may feel familiar at times, its animation style, sound design, characters, and the world it creates more than make up for a somewhat typical story. In short, Kubo and the Two Strings is nearly a masterpiece, and a delight to watch. Continue reading “Kubo and the Two Strings Review: Music to my Eyes and Ears”
