Change Your Image
seanparkerfilms
Lists
An error has ocurred. Please try againReviews
Bluey: Camping (2019)
It's all about the ending.
A brilliant episode that teaches an important lesson about the good things in life that will eventually pass us by - it's a very honest "nothing lasts forever" message, but with a huge helping of "but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy things while we've got them."
The whole episode is a very enjoyable watch, but it's secretly a very meticulously crafted setup to make the final two seconds land... and oh boy, does it LAND. The episode makes its bittersweet point, and then gives us something truly special, unexpected, and life-affirming to button it all up.
I just got out of a bookstore where I was browsing for my two year old daughter (who loves Bluey). I leafed through a Bluey book that had a character reference section, and just seeing Jean Luc pop up in it was enough to immediately make me misty-eyed, and I haven't seen this episode in many months. And it didn't stop. By the time my wife and I had arrived at the smoothie shop next door several minutes later, I was just about into ugly-crying territory. THAT'S how good this episode is.
"Camping" remains one of the very best offerings of this utter gem of a show.
Wendell & Wild (2022)
A spooky, sumptuous, somewhat messy delight.
Henry Sellick's first stop-motion animated film since 2009's beloved Coraline, Wendell & Wild melds beautiful artistry and a very funny script co-written by Jordan Peele.
The plot follows Kat, a young orphan shipped off to a private Catholic school for troubled girls, struggling with guilt over her perceived responsibility for her parents' tragic deaths. She also happens to be a Hellmaiden, able to summon the roguish demon brothers Wendell & Wild (played hilariously and to pitch perfection by comedy duo Key & Peele). They arrive in the land of the living to try and set up their lifelong dream project of running their own demonic funfair. Much chaos ensues.
I went in a bit blind on the story and wasn't sure what to expect, but Wendell & Wild might be the best stop motion film made since Coraline, or possibly just barely edging past it. Kat is a terrific protagonist, bucking trends and delivering more personality than all of LAIKA animation's somewhat milquetoast leads put together. There's a lot of artistic inventiveness on display, and the script is (for the most part) incredibly strong.
The film has only a couple downsides, which were a bit baffling considering the quality of the rest. Some of the scenes were a bit muddled, with events only making sense long after the fact (a particular sequence with an octopus and a glowing drawer left me scratching my head). The final act, while lots of fun, also feels like it's hastily wrapping up as much as it can in too short a time, with the credits rolling only moments after a bombastic finale - when it really, really could have used a couple more minutes to wind down with a nice epilogue.
This is a film that giddily enjoys keeping way more plates in the air than most films can get away with, and it results in a somewhat messy structure that makes it hard to tell who the main antagonist even is at any given moment, which seems to shift around wildly from scene to scene, from a gigantic Satan-like figure, to a pair of corrupt businessmen, to the titular brothers themselves, to a personal struggle against inner demons - before finally picking a clear lane in the last act. You just never know what direction the story is going to zig and zag to next, which is ultimately more of a strength than a weakness. Wendell & Wild is just as much a supernatural mystery film as it is an adventure/comedy, so viewers should be prepared to do a bit of sleuthing and not have anything spoon-fed.
This is not exactly a film for young kids, sporting heavy themes and a few dark moments, but it isn't that much scarier than Laika films like ParaNorman or Kubo and the Two Strings, only barely earning its PG-13 rating. Any kid that can handle The Nightmare Before Christmas (also directed by Sellick) should be OK with this.
Even with a few nitpicks holding it back, I give this film an easy 8/10. If you're an animation fan, you owe it to yourself to check this out... it's one of the most delightful and creative films in the entire stop-motion medium.
Tune Out (2019)
Heartwarming, joyful, a bit weird, a little janky, and made with 100% pure love.
Let's get this out of the way: Tune Out is an ultra-low budget indie movie that's like a beloved car held together with duct tape and hope. But oh, what a charming vehicle it is.
The story delightfully meanders through the lives of several different groups of characters, but eventually centers on Leonard, a man suffering dementia who happens to be a musical savant, and a trio of young musicians who become his new family. Through the power of music, they help Leonard remember who he was. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there's a number of wonderful tearjerker moments -- some of which should make even the most jaded of filmgoers happy-cry.
There's also a lot of strange, hilarious, and occasionally baffling creative choices sprinkled throughout that won't be to everyone's taste, but give the film so much of its charm and unique identity. Tune Out eats convention for breakfast and gleefully oscillates between grounded drama to silly farce, all with an earnest conviction that's so key to making it all work. Considering that the lead is a lovable, kooky character suffering mental decline, this actually feels quite fitting, as though the story we're seeing may be filtered through his offbeat point of view.
Despite the lack of resources, the film looks great and is made with genuine artistry. The score is filled with many lovely melodies, the autumnal-golden color palette is a treat for the eyes, and the story's anchored by enjoyably heartfelt performances (even if not everyone is at the same level of professional training).
It's wonderful to see a microbudget film beat the odds and pull off a plot that's as moving as it sets out to be. Patient viewers who are willing to overlook a couple rough edges (and give it the 15 or 20 minutes needed before it really sets into its groove) will get a lot of this. I give it an enthusiastic recommendation, especially since it's freely available on YouTube. So give it a watch! Unless you're some kind of mean ol' crank who never has any fun, I highly doubt you're going to regret it.
Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020)
A hilarious, pulse-pounding hootenanny of the highest caliber.
I don't like reading other reviews when forming an opinion, but glancing at the ones here... jeez. IMDb users sure are flinging a lot of shade at this "woke, anti-men PC" flick.
Well, that's a bunch of bull and makes me question how many of those reviewers have even seen it. For one, the film makes no big deal at all out of its heroes' genders, but two... egads, the action! How could one watch this movie and not gush about the blisteringly inventive choreography? I lost track of how many fights there are, but there are a few prolonged setpieces that got the very small crowd at my theater hollering like it was a packed house.
Some fights remind me of a very darkly humorous take on Jackie Chan's work, and honestly, I'd say it has some of the most entertaining fight scenes I've seen since his 80s Hong Kong heydey.
The soundtrack is another standout, and the film is often quite in sync with it (akin to Baby Driver), which made for some really groovin scenes. And I can't end this review without mentioning Ewan McGregor, whose madcap, unhinged performance as a gangster who just wants to have a really good time is an absolute delight. He lights up the screen and owns every second he's in.
I'm not the biggest fan of comic book movies (I've seen everything from Marvel and a couple DC films), but Birds of Prey is one of the most fun times I've ever had in a theater. Count me interested in anything Cathy Yan makes going forward... doubly so if it's another action-comedy.
Tomorrow, Maybe (2017)
A moving and endearing tale. One of Portland's best.
This indie film is an understated gem... a touching story with real dramatic stakes and just the right amount of levity. The three central characters are wonderfully rich, and the love and conflicts they share with each other are believable, heartbreaking, and inspiring all at once.
Unlike many microbudget indies, you won't be constantly reminded of its DIY nature throughout. The production values are quite high, with a perfect pace, beautiful score, and striking visuals. Looking forward to watching again now that it's on Prime.
Au Pair, Kansas (2011)
Smart, unconventional and heartwarming.
I saw Au Pair, Kansas at "Action on Film" this year and thought it was the highlight of the entire week-long fest. Even though it looked like a pretty worthwhile film from the trailer, I was still surprised by how much I enjoyed it -- and it being made on a budget never crossed my mind.
The story is wonderfully unconventional, constantly surprising you with inspired moments that really hit the mark. And even though the projection conditions at AOF were less than ideal, the cinematography was clearly amongst the most absolutely gorgeous stuff you'll likely see in this budget range, certainly holding up against (and surpassing) many mainstream releases.
I appreciated the respect the script has for an intelligent audience -- clichés are thrown out the window to the point where I almost never could predict what would happen next, yet it always managed to feel like a natural (and often touching) outcome. There's a few spots that didn't resonate fully, and sometimes the slightly more goofy aspects come at odds with the more somber material, but it works far far more than it misses. The end result is a film that I really can't say I've seen anything quite like. As a filmmaker myself, there are a few things I can learn from pieces like this.
Seek it out! It's charming, funny and heartwarming. If this is JT O'Neal's first feature-length outing as a writer/director, I hope we get the chance to see many more.
Lost Time: The Movie (2003)
Bad Idea
This movie is positively awful, and there was absolutely no reason for them to make Red Trousers (the documentary about Hong Kong stuntmen) be so centered around it. This film was basically a nonstop "fight after fight" style movie, with a throwaway plot as an excuse for action scenes. Unfortunately, even the fights aren't well done or interesting, because they are so heavily edited that it it becomes very hard to follow them. The acting is also very bad, especially from Robin Shou, who tried to be a bit to involved in the making of the film, being the lead actor and director, and possibly holding other crew positions.
This is pretty inexcusable, because the film seemed to have somewhat of a budget (except for the PlayStation quality computer animation), and the stuntmen involved were very talented, though they aren't given enough of an opportunity to show off the best of their abilities. I must admit that it did have some entertainment value to it though, and it was pretty unintentionally funny.
"Lost Time" may be a horribly bad attempt at action-cinema, but at least it's short.