My Ever Changing Thoughts on the new Pete’s Dragon: 4-D Sneak Peek in the Parks

When they first announced that they would be doing a remake of Pete’s Dragon I was excited.  I’m generally not a fan of remakes –except for when they have a chance to really improve on the originals.  I don’t think classics should be remade. When Hollywood remakes Classic movies they general fail.  You end up walking out of the movie thinking “I should have just watched the original”.  This was the case with Psycho and Halloween.  I would never want to see a remake to one of my favorite movies like Raiders of the Lost Ark or Ghostbusters ( yeah I know),  but something like Pete’s Dragon is perfect to remake.   It is the kind of movie that makes you wonder what they could do with it with today’s technology.

The original Pete’s Dragon from 1977 was a fun, silly live action/Animated musical with a 2-D animated Dragon.  The story is basically Mary Poppins with a Dragon instead of a nanny.  

The 2016 Remake brings the Dragon into the modern era of CGI.  Gone are the songs and instead we get a great cast of quality actors and an amazing looking CGI Dragon.

When the original Teaser Trailer dropped---I was lukewarm on the remake.   It was such a short teaser that I couldn’t imagine how the movie would turn out.  It looked like a young Tarzan boy story.  Instead of being excited about the film I thought  “Maybe they screwed it up”.

As the summer went on long  more trailers begin to appear that make it look like a more magical worthy of a remake film.   I was starting to get a little excited again and I started looking forward to the Disneyland Parks sneak peek that would begin airing in July.  

The sneak peek has now turned this into a must see movie.   Like previous sneak peeks with the exception of Alice Through the Looking Glass (which fell as flat as the movie)  this sneak peek only enhanced my wanting to see the film.  My original concerns about the plot are now gone.  Robert Redford will be amazing.  Elliot the Dragon looks like the perfect mix of Dragon with a touch of the old animated version.  It would have been a bad idea to make a traditional Dragon---they stayed true to the original Elliot in their updated design.  The sneak peek has a great scene with Elliot flying around with Pete that was epic in the 4-D theater.   The movie looks like a fun and touching action packed version of the original.  ET with a Dragon.    I’m now confident that I’ll love the film.  

I wouldn’t even want to guess how it will do at the box office however.   I was shocked at how much money The Jungle Book Live Action film made…..yet the Alice sequel to a billion dollar original film bombed and BFG died despite supposedly being good.   Will people show up in droves to this new Pete’s Dragon.

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The Mouse Minute: A Star Wars Update #1: 5 Cool Star Wars Items that Dropped in the last couple of weeks

It was a Star Wars filled couple of week.  Here are 5 cool Star Wars things that have dropped in the last couple of weeks.

1.  New Star Wars Land concept artwork is now up on the fences where Big Thunder Ranch used to be.      Here is a photo of that artwork.
   

   
   Here is a photo of Star Wars Land itself –I took from the Parking lot during a recent trip to the park
   

   
2. Thrawn is Back: Grand Admiral Thrawn makes his return to the Star Wars Universe and is canon once again.  Announced during the Rebels panel at Star Wars Celebration Europe and seen in the trailer for Rebels Season 3.      Thrawn was featured in the book series by Timothy Zahn that keep Star Wars alive for fans after Return of the Jedi.   A fan favorite that many fans of the EU were upset about when Disney bought Star Wars and rebooted the Book Universe.   Now he is back as a character in Rebels and the crowd at Celebration went crazy over the news.

Here is the Trailer for Season 3 that also brings Wedge into the series.  

3. Did I mention Thrawn is back:  If you weren’t already excited enough about Thrawn being back in Rebels---he is also coming back in a book written by Timothy Zahn as well.  So excited to Zahn will do with him in the new canon.

 

4.New Rogue One Footage:  Another thing coming out of Star Wars Celebration was a new behind the scenes featurette. 

A 3 minute long behind the scenes glimpse at the movie that revealed some new creatures and a few action shots.

 5. The Young Han Solo is finally officially announced.   We all new this news already –but now it is official. 

Alden Ehrenreich will be the dude with the Wookie co-pilot.

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(Disney Animated Movie Review #13 ) Finding Dory 2016 9 out of 10

Finding Dory 2016  9 out of 10

It took 13 years for a sequel for Finding Nemo to get made.    Finding Dory hit the box office waters at just the right time.  In about a month at the US box office it has already made over 445  Million dollars at the box office and is already the number 1 Animated Movie of All time at the Domestic box office.   It is the biggest US release of the year passing Captain America: Civil War.   The sequel's story is derivative of the original film in that it involves a search for family.  This time around however Dory the blue fish with short term memory loss actually starts to remember her family which kick starts an adventure to find them.   It is covering familiar ground –but the addition of new characters and a new setting keeps things fresh.  

The Setting

The setting of the original was the Great Barrier Reef.   This time around we get to visit the Californian coastline (I know these little fish taking the EAC with the Sea Turtles all the way across the ocean is ridiculous just go with it) and the Monterey Marine Park.   The setting is terrific.  The Marine Park gives the film a bunch of great environments to play around in.  The scene where the Ocean Seas exhibit is revealed is a stunning piece of animation.  The film looks gorgeous.

The Story

Dory with the help of an Octopus named Hank tries to remember where exactly she is from in search of her parents.    Meanwhile Marlin and Nemo are trying to find her after she is taken to the aquarium by some humans.   The story –just like in Finding Nemo is about family and the willingness to do anything for family.   Dory faces challenges in order to find her long lost folks.  Marlin and Nemo risk their lives to make sure Dory is okay –because they consider her family.  Finding Dory is an action packed fun adventure that has funny moments and sentimental moments that the entire family will enjoy.  

The Characters

The returning characters are great of course.  I was a big fan of the original film Finding Nemo.  It is one of my favorite Pixar films.  The chemistry between Albert Brooks as Marlin and Ellen as Dory was excellent in the original film.   This movie is all about Dory and her character is once again great.  Baby Dory has to be one of the cutest characters ever.    Crush one of my favorite characters had a small scene –but was excellent again as well (check out Turtle Talk with Crush at the Disney parks for more of Crush).    The introduction of Hank the Octopus (voiced by Ed O’Neill) was also terrific.  Some other new characters that add a new flare to the adventure include a couple of Seal Lions and a Whale Shark and Beluga Whale. 

The Visuals

The visuals were absolutely incredible.  Pixar somehow always finds a new way to step up its game and again they absolutely knocked it out of the park again.  

In Summary:   If you liked Finding Nemo then you will like Finding Dory.   It is more of the same and it has been long enough, just that like the Force Awakens where although it touched on similar themes.

It is a great family film.

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Festival of the Lion King: A Must See at Animal Kingdom

If you are visiting the Animal Kingdom the Festival Lion King show is a must see show.  I was excited to share this gem with my family on our last visit to the park and everyone was impressed.

The show features a mixture of music, dance, an animatronic puppetry (see the giant Elephant above)

The costumes are colorful and the fun vibe in the theater is contagious.

It is like the Lion King parade that they used to have in Disneyland if it took place inside a theater.


           Among the entertainment was a cool fire knife dance.

The songs from the Lion King are incredible and the singers in the show are great.

In addition to the singing there are the Tumble Monkeys which gives the show an acrobatic flare.

Here are the Tumble Monkeys ---goofing off with Timon.

The Finale includes a combination of all the songs and a flying bird acrobat swinging around the stage.  What makes the show a must see is the music from this classic animated feature.  It makes the show feel timeless.

Definitely check it out when you go to the Animal Kingdom

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Disney/Pixar Animated Short Reviews: #78 Entombed 2016 9 out of 10

Entombed  2016   9 out of 10

Mickey and Minnie go on an adventure in the one of the latest cartoon in the new Mickey Mouse cartoon series.  This cartoon is an action packed Indiana Jones style fun house ride.  Minnie ends up stumbling into the Treasure Room right off the bat like Daphne in Scooby Doo. She then proceeds to set off a bunch of booby traps that Mickey must negotiate in his search to find her and the treasure.   It is a fun action packed cartoon from start to finish.  The visuals inside the tomb brought me back to Raiders of the Lost Ark and the traps Mickey had to deal with were great.  At times it felt like the game Dragon's Lair with Mickey barely avoiding each trap.

The cartoon can be found on the Disney Channel and Disney Online.

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Quick Thoughts on the Haunted Mansion Comic Book

I really wanted to love The Haunted Mansion Comic Book from Marvel’s Disney Kingdoms comic book line.   I truly did.   

I had enjoyed the Seekers of the Weird comic book.  That comic utilized the concept art that at one time could have been the Museum of the Weird .  I had no expectations other than excitement to see some of those concepts come to life.   

The Haunted Mansion however is so classic that with it comes high expectations.  That is one of the reasons the Haunted Mansion film wasn’t a favorite of many Disney and Haunted Mansion fans.   I guess I was just expecting too much.   Reading the first issue of the Haunted Mansion comic book I felt like it was more just an awkward tour of the Mansion than a story I was interested in. 

The main character is an outsider teen whose Grandfather  (The only person he feels he can relate to)  has passed away.    He is lured to the Mansion by the spirit of Madame Leota to help save the spirits (including his Grandpa’s) from the sway of an angry vengeful  ghost of a Sea Captain.   The story just feels like it is lacking to me.   Love it or hate it , the feature film starring Eddie Murphy had a much better storyline.   This comic feels derivative of the Seekers of the Weird to a certain degree.   The main character wandering into the Mansion and starts describing things from the ride outloud.    I thought that I would at least love the comic based on the artwork alone,  but I’d actually rather just revisit the Making of the Haunted Mansion book by Jason Surrell that contains the concept art for the attractions than what is in this comic book.    The plotline of the reluctant, oddball teen having to help his dead relative  storyline just isn’t doing it for me.  I feel like it just missed the mark.   I wished I had loved this comic.   But I feel like I’m unsure whether I want to read the next issue.

I don’t blame the writer or the artist of the comic book—for my lack of interest in it.   I truly believe that my problems with it lay in my own inflated ideas and expectations.

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Alice Through the Looking Glass 2016 6 out of 10 (Disney Family Film #5) Alice in Wonderland 2010 8+ out of 10 (Disney Family Film #6)

Alice Through the Looking Glass  2016 6 out of 10

Looking at the box office results I wonder whether anyone really asked for a Sequel to Alice in Wonderland from 2010?   The first Alice was pretty much a complete story. The fact that the movie made over a Billion dollars worldwide I'm sure Disney thought there was a calling for a second trip to Wonderland.

Wonderland itself is an amazing place that is a visual delight to explore so why not return to this magical place.  Apparently in 6 years everyone forgot about Alice and Wonderland.   After 4 huge blockbuster films in a row that included The Force Awakens (over 2 Billion)  Captain America  (1.1 Billion so far) and both The Jungle Book and Zootopia surprisingly nearly a Billion as well---I'm sure when Alice staked out Memorial Weekend release date --they thought  it was a sure thing.    So where did it go wrong????

Maybe that is a question for a later date---because from even though I didn't see it as a must see sequel or even necessary for that matter the numbers from the first one would say otherwise.

James Cameron maybe you  should be worried about your Avatar sequels???

The movie itself

I had mentioned when I saw the sneak peek that this was one of the first films that the sneak peek in the parks didn't make me excited to see.  My stepdaughter wanted to go so off to the movies we went.  Something was different on this trip to Wonderland. 

Tim Burton didn't actually direct this one and maybe that had something to do with it.  It felt like Jaws 2 when compared to the original Jaws. All the same actors were back --but it just didn't click this time.  

It definitely wasn't the visuals.  Wonderland looked amazing on the big screen was again.   I think the problem was in the story.  The original Alice did a clever job of making it Alice's returning to Wonderland as a 19 year old girl.  It touched on many of the elements that made the books and the Disney animated feature so great with a Tim Burton twist.   The sequel to me was lacking in a story that made good use of Wonderland as a setting.  This time around we literally get a story about Time (played by Sasha Baron Cohen).  Alice returns to Wonderland again and gets involved in a Time Travel story searching for the Mad Hatter's family. 

It was just and odd choice and felt at times like it was more suited for a Spy Kids movies instead of Alice in Wonderland. 

The best scene of the movie was probably when Time was questioning The Hatter at the Tea Party about where Alice was.

The movie was okay --but it just wasn't magically like the first one.

Alice in Wonderland 2010   8+ out of 10

My stepdaughter wanted to watch the original Alice (from 2010) later that night, because she was too young to remember seeing it. 

In comparison to its under performing sequel this Alice was magical.   From the moment Alice runs away from her engagement party and follows the White Rabbit down the rabbit hole you are transported to the fun and amazing world of Wonderland.  Tim Burton was the perfect director to capture Wonderland on screen. The strangeness of this universe perfectly matched his visual style. Sure this Wonderland was a little different than the animated version since it ends with Alice battling the dreaded Jabberwocky. This version of Wonderland was both familiar and fresh at the same time.  

The sequel just seemed like maybe they didn't really have a good idea to make returning to Wonderland worthwhile ---but did it anyway because it seemed like a sure thing box office wise.....    Maybe Disney can learn from this before jumping into Maleficent 2 and Jungle Book 2  which both seem unnecessary.

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