TROLLS 2: WORLD TOUR* (Theatrical Release USA 2020)

 Ben Meyers’ Rating: 4.3|5.0 Starsìììì 

Trolls World Tour—great creativity, terrific concept—is one of those films one might pass by. Don’t do that. This little piece of entertainment becomes more than worth watching. The acting, animation, writing, and high quality presentation  shoot the movie over the top. Be prepared for some terrific musical scoring. 

Film Poster Courtesy of Google Images 

Storyline 

Animated story about a team of trolls who each take their musical strings and go to separate places.  Two Queen Trolls with highly different music missions become interested in regathering the trolls into a harmonious team. 

Additional Thanks 

Thank you to Director Walt Dohrn for directing efforts. Thank you to Producer Gina Shay for making the film possible. Cast includes: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Rachel Bloom, James Corden, Ron Funches, Kelly Clarkson, Anderson Paak, Sam Rockwell, and George Clinton. 

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe? 

Yes. This is great to see and worth watching. Great music from many genres. 

*Also known as: Trolls World Tour

Video Critique Available Here:

 

Ben Meyers

INTO THE WOODS (Theatrical Release USA 2014)

Ben Meyers’ Rating: 3.8|5.0 Starsììì 

Into the Woods—okay watch with a long way to go to achieve quality—has great singing voices but the lyrics are weak, the power of presentation missing, and entertainment value darkly themed without appeal.  The star-studded cast—James Corden, Emily Blunt, Meryl Streep, Anna Kendrick, Johnny Depp—along with new actors like Lilla Crawford and Daniel Huddlestone cannot pull any power out of the overall storyline. The movie lacks intelligence and human spirit. 

Film Poster Courtesy of Google Images 

Storyline 

This fantasy film is a backstory and an imaginary correlation between five Brothers Grimm fairy tales. 

Additional Thanks 

Thank you to Director Rob Marshall for directing efforts. Thank you to Producers Rob Marshall, John DeLuca, Callum McDougall for making the film possible. Cast includes: Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Tracey Ullman, Christine Baranski, Johnny Depp, and Chris Pine. 

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe? 

Maybe. It has its own storyline which is a rewritten form of five Grimm fairy tales with maybe a fresher look at the overdone screening of these stories. But, for the most part, it is not well presented or written. 

Video Critique Available Here:

Ben Meyers 

THE EMOJI MOVIE (Theatrical Release USA 2017)

Ben Meyers’ rating: 3.0|5.0 Starsììì

The Emoji Movie—good concept, great voicing—becomes quickly unrelatable. The main difficulty appears to be the use of the Meh Emoji for filling character cast. While Despicable Me works on every level, the same approach to this story falls flat. There needs to be more thought put into the character development to push this film into the watchable class.

Film Poster Courtesy of Wikipedia

Storyline

Gene (voice of T.J. Miller), an emoji who does not behave in the ‘normal’ manner, becomes targeted by bots determined to eliminate and destroy based upon his unpredictable facial responses.

Additional Thanks

Thank You to Director Tony Leondis for directing effort. Thank you to Executive Producer Ben Waisbren for making the film possible. Additional characters/cast include: Hi-5 (voice of James Corden), Jailbreak (voice of Anna Faris), Smiler (voice of Maya Rudolph), Mel Meh (voice of Steven Wright), Mary Meh (voice of Jennifer Coolidge), Poop (voice of Patrick Stewart), Akiko Glitter (voice of Christina Aguilera), Flamenca (voice of Sofía Vergara), Spam (voice of Rachael Ray), ‘Devil’ Steven (voice of Sean Hayes), Alex (voice of Jake T. Austin), and Addie (voice of Tati Gabielle).

Buy a ticket? Yes? No? Maybe?

Maybe. The concept promises a GREAT movie, but the story falls flat.

Video Critique Available Here:

Ben Meyers