Teen Titans Go the Movies: Yes…It is Shockingly Decent

    Every once in a while there’s a film that comes out where you may hear the title and just cringe uncontrollably, a film that you just hear it on a surface level and you cannot see how it could possibly be anything other than completely awful. A film adaptation of Teen Titans Go was one of those films, a movie based on a TV show that’s average at best and obnoxious at worst, there was no way there movie wasn’t going to be anything other than a massive dumpster fire. However, through a surprisingly decent script, a unique style and an over-all emphasis on just being a fun entertaining film, Teen Titans Go to the Movies actually ends up being a decent movie, not great, but over-all a better experience than it has any right to be.

     The story is focused on the Titans noticing how nearly every major Superhero has their own movie and because they’re superheroes, they feel they are worthy enough to have to own movie with big special effects and epic story. However, when an evil villain named Slade threaten the Titans’ chances of being in a film and ruining the world, it’s up to the Titans to essentially stop Slade and make sure their movie goes as smoothly as planned. For a kids movie like Teen Titans Go, the plot isn’t a full priority; in fact the plot itself might be too simplistic. There’s not a lot of story and incredibly deep messages here that one would expect from something like a Pixar movie. Teen Titans Go makes it clear that the movie isn’t trying to be anything that deep and impactful, it’s just trying to have fun, but the question is where does this movie cross the line? Teen Titans Go is known for its humor, however it more so suffers from being incredibly obnoxious and trendy where they have an over reliance on typical lacking jokes that are seen in the worst of kids related media. Stuff like obvious fart jokes or jokes of characters trying to rap and act cool which this film isn’t completely free of those moments and it’s definitely where the movie is at its weakest. But for as lacking Teen Titans Go can be as a show, it has elements of that make it a little more entertaining and clever with some good use of meta humor, unique changes in art style and also just being a decent wacky time at some point, which fortunately the film actually encompasses more so when the show is at its best. The film takes no time to take itself seriously and just manage to be an eccentric and crazy film for practically every moment, and it may not work for some but it has enough good jokes that can be more than chuckle worthy than one would initially expect and that’s what makes it a rather enjoyable film to watch. When a joke doesn’t land at all, sometimes immediately after, they have a joke that land, and even for it being hit and miss, it does hit pretty well at various points. The plot doesn’t have too much going for it and even suffers from a villain twist that is so predictable, even the main antagonist of Incredibles 2 would be complaining about how easy it is to find out the twist, but the film luckily isn’t as fixated on the plot enough for that to be as big of a concern. Even the twist itself while incredibly predictable does have a rather humorous little payoff that makes up for the fact that the film is rather predictable. It’s a movie that’s predictable in story but also unpredictable in what it does and for that, it gets some respect for being nothing more than a crazy fun romp.

     A movie that isn’t fixated on plot still has to have characters to make up for it, and the characters in the film are okay for what they are. Yes, they are still nothing that much likes the original Teen Titans, but they are exaggerated versions and for what they’re worth, they can be enjoyable. They come across as a little crude and a bit jerky compared to other leading characters in the past, to the point where they end up getting away with stuff that any normal movie would make them unredeemable. But what makes them a little bit more tolerable is the fact that they are outlandish character types that aren’t meant to be seen as sympathetic as they are just characters to be wacky and humorous to watch due to their characters being so hyperactive to the point where it’s amusing to witness. What truly helps and something that’s even strength of the show is that all of the original cast appears and do a really good job of portraying the more exaggerated versions of these characters. Scott Menville, Greg Cipes, Hynden Walch, Tara Strong and Khary Payton, all do some excellent voice work as Robin, Beast Boy, Starfire, Raven and Cyborg, giving a more comedic performance of the original characters. Being a film there is more characters to it than who we’re used to and Go adds some new characters to the mix. Main line DC characters appeared in small cameo roles voiced by major celebrities and they all do a fun job making jabs at various jokes of DC characters with their performances, the highlight being Nicholas Cage as Superman, given the whole history behind the actor and the character himself. The true character to really take note is Slade, who is of course different and not as ridiculously dramatic as the original character, but a very fun parody of the original character. Instead of being voiced by Ron Perlman, he’s voiced by Will Arnett, and Arnett is fantastic in the role of Slade. He takes the element of manipulation that the original Slade does in Teen Titans, but makes it more over the top and ridiculous, but in the universe of this movie, it works fairly well. Teen Titans Go uses its characters in a more comedic fashion, but does a fairly okay job at making them a little more likable despite being wacky.

     From the surface of it being a film based on a TV series, it doesn’t seem like the animation looked like that much of an improvement over the original show. It still seems like the same flash animation from the show just on a bigger screen, and lacks the shadows and improvement we see in something like The Simpsons or SpongeBob movie. On the surface it seems like it, but when watching it unfold, it is much more visually impressive than one would expect. Granted, there’s nothing truly groundbreaking about the animation, but there is an improvement when it comes to fluidity and background, and the film goes so wild with its animation it is appealing to look at. The real highlights of the film’s improvement of animation is when it switches art styles that are actually very impressive and creative to watch, from some switching to eliminating the style of older DC Animated movies to some very clever Disney parody, Teen Titans Go to the Movies actually manage to make some artistically creative stuff and even if it’s not the most impressive of the medium, it is incredibly nice to see another 2D Animated film on the big screen regardless.

     When dreading a movie like Teen Titans Go the Movies, it is actual rather nice to see that some effort was put into a film that was expected to have no effort put into it what so ever. It is far from a masterpiece and definitely isn’t a game changer in Animation, but it is an enjoyable film that knows how to have fun with itself. Even if you aren’t a fan of the series, it actually has elements that redeem itself by being a bit more clever and interesting than it had any right to be. Unlike a Disney remake where if it succeeds we just get more of the same crap, there is an element of if Teen Titans Go succeeds, it can open for new possibilities of good movies based on better TV shows, more 2D Animation in theaters and even a return of the original Teen Titans. If there isn’t any proof that those might be more of a reality than one would think, the mid-credits scene is definite proof, which anyone who sees this film must stay till then to witness a credits scene that even Marvel couldn’t make as good. A movie that has a midcredits scene so shocking and amazing, the film shouldn’t go unnoticed, which helped makes Teen Titans Go the Movies not a bad time and definitely could have been worse.

Sorry to Bother You: The Most Unique and Bizarre film in years

     Once in a while there’s a film that comes along that actually stays true to the cliché statement made by critics of, “This film is unlike anything you have ever seen”. Never did that statement accurately described a movie than Boots Reilly’s Sorry to Bother You. It is a film so bizarre, so stylize, so not like anything else playing in a theater at the moment that it is incredibly hard not to appreciate on some level.

    The film centers around a man named Cassius Green, someone who is down on their luck and wants to make sure they have a stable career to make his life better. He ends up getting a job through a call center and ends up becoming a massive success due to the many strange techniques he uses to get others to appreciate him. The film has a simple concept on the surface, but it ends up being higher concept than one would expect. It has a lot of odd more fictionalized elements than one could expect and it makes for an incredibly different experience in the first two thirds but it’s not without its incredibly smart commentary. The film does an excellent job making a statement on Working Class and how much they are taken advantage on, but rather than being incredibly preachy and just beating a dead horse, it actually doesn’t kill that horse and uses it to its advantage by creating a narrative that’s unpredictable. By the third act of this movie, it goes from being a smartly written comedy with a big style to it, to a film that just goes flat out surreal and odd. However, it makes for one of the most fascinating twists that everyone has to see to believe and what really stands this movie out, even if you know that the movie has an odd turn by the third act, it’s an odd turn that catches even the most psychic of movie goers off guard. It makes for one of the most of the most bizarre experiences that unlike anything you would ever see, but that’s why you might want for a movie, a new experience that gives you something unlike anything else and Sorry to Bother You succeeds at that big time.

     Outside of the story itself, what truly makes Sorry to Bother You such a unique experience is the fact that Boots Reilly created a film that is visually amazing. Boots Reilly has created film that is shot and edited amazingly with edits that are so smoothly and unique and shots that look so bright and colorful, that aesthetically speaking the film has so much style to it, it’s hard not to appreciate all the visual flare that appears on screen. Every single shot creates a grounded yet also out of this world take on reality that fits in with the film’s outlandish tone. It certainly has a lot of visual nods to both recent indie films to classic blockbusters and does it in a way that’s creates something entirely new and Boots Reilly excelled that perfectly.

     Along with the editing, cinematography and over-all directing making the film a joy to watch, the film also does an excellent job with characters and theme. The main character of Cassius Green is very likable, being a down on his luck but ambitious person that’s willing to take some risks but also trying to make it so he has a comfortable living situation. Lakeith Stanfield makes it so this character is brought to life very well and he definitely has a variety of emotions in the film. The rest of the cast also do a great job with conveying the film’s themes of class struggles and doesn’t feel extremely preachy about it, in fact it does an excellent job showcasing how these characters react to certain big situations and creates for an excellent social commentary. There are even some social commentary on race as well with the whole element of the “white voice” that comes into play with Cassius job and it’s not only very humorous with actors like David Cross and Patton Oswald giving great performances, but also very intriguing way of talking about a racial commentary. The only issue is that while the voice thing does become a big part of the film, by the third act, it’s essentially forgotten about and doesn’t tied into the plot as much as other things. This is due to the film’s strange twist which is a clever commentary but more than that, just makes the film completely unpredictable, and makes the audience care even more about what will happen to the characters of this film. It’s an overall neat experience to witness characters like this and social commentary so impactful in a film that’s just so unique and outlandish.

   Sorry to Bother You deserves to be seen as a movie that takes risks and becomes a unique experience. It’s certainly one of the cleverest movies released in a long time. It is definitely one that not everyone will get behind, but the fact that a movie that’s so new and refreshing comes out like this, it has be seen by anyone who is searching for a new experience in film. A film will so much style, detail and distinctiveness like this deserves to be appreciated on many levels.

Hotel Transylvania 3: Average but an Enjoyable Conclusion to a Consistently Fun Series

    Animation can be a game changer, but a lot of the time there tends to be animated movies that gear more to entertain and be a fun time more than anything else. No recent series of film has accomplished this more than the Hotel Transylvania series. Each film consistently has a motif of the intention being simple fun and the third continues with that by being a very simple and fun movie for kids.

     The third in this trilogy centers on Dracula and the rest of his gang going on a cruise to help make Dracula less upset about his life at the moment. While on the cruise, Drac ends up encountering with a lady who falls for and the film basically becomes a character falling in love with someone despite not sure if this character might be all who he/she seems. On the surface, the plot seems rather basic and a little lacking, which to the film’s disadvantage; this does feel like it’s starting to lose a bit of steam with its story. There are not a whole lot of surprises in terms of story as it falls victim to the typical vacation and love story triangle, so it becomes a very predictable movie in a lot of regards. However, the Transylvania movies weren’t known for their stories, but more so their fun sense of humor and the film does still retain that tradition. A lot of the jokes make this film very amusing, even when there are a decent amount of misses, there’s enough chuckle worthy moments that makes it a fun experience to watch. And for what it is worth, the characters also make up for the film’s plot shortcomings, while we don’t get as much development or heart to them compared to the first film, we get to see them be their fun selves and even some development between the main characters that’s a joy to watch, even if the film still does have its faults on having jokes that feel a little trendy much like the previous films. Hotel Transylvania 3 does feel light on story, but it does make up for it with still being consistently good from the series is known for.

     What adds to the film’s good sense of humor is not so much the writing, even though it does have some fun play on words, but more so the animation. The film has great animation being the typical stylized cartoon aesthetic we’ve gotten from Gennedy within the past two films. Every single character is animated so well being very eccentric with the way they move but also incredibly expressive with how they react to all the various things that happen throughout the film. It’s a fun movie to watch based on the expressions of the characters alone, even if we don’t see all of them in action as much. Plus, another thing to note is that set piece wise, the film looks like a bit of an improvement compared to the previous two from an animation perspective. Mainly in textures which look much more refined than how they did previously and also just the set pieces in general being appealing to look at from a plane controlled by gremlins to a Vegas style version of Atlantis. It is a pretty looking movie to watch and while it won’t be the most artistically impressive movie to see all year, it’s enough of an enjoyable visual spectacle that you can see a lot of joy the animators had with creating this movie.

     Of course an animated film with so many expressive characters like this one, they deserve to be highlighted for sure, and while nothing too deep with these characters again, they do manage to be enjoyable to watch. Dracula is easily the most developed making his character with him dealing with a situation more similar to what his daughter went through in the first film, just with the roles reverse, and it does make the character a bit more grounded to see him understand his daughter more so. Plus, Adam Sandler is again, very good in the role. Even considering when he’s now an infamous actor now a days, his voice of Drac is much more humorous than most of his live action roles with his voice being much more unique and not as obnoxious as his other current roles. The other cast of characters do a fine job as well, however most of them aren’t regulated too much else outside of some witty side moments with one another, with the highlight being Steve Buscemi’s werewolf character having a rather hilarious realization about being away from his kids just to relax. The only other character to mention is the new ones which do have a lot of merit to them, with Ericka being a very eccentric but also developed character in terms of her relationship with Drac, despite going the route you think it goes. But what stands out even more is her great grandfather, who is easily one of the most entertaining characters of the entire film, being so insane that it’s amusing to see him so angrily animated throughout most of his time on screen. The film still isn’t the deepest with its characters, but it gives you just enough to where you find some satisfaction with them if you’ve been following the franchise from the beginning.

     In the end, this film won’t win over anyone who has previously disliked the Hotel Transylvania films and it is weaker than the previously two, but it has enough cute moments, decent character writing and also great animation to be seen by anyone who liked these movies. It’s flawed and weak on story, but there’s enough there to keep you entertained for a good hour and a half.