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Film Review – The Lion King (1994)

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

Simba the Brownish Gold Lion

When I was young and carefree, I didn’t really have strong opinions on anything like most media, video games included (and I’ve been a gamer for as long as I remember), or any other media like books, movies, and television shows. In the early 1990s, I did have a slight interest in Disney’s animated films and had seen many in the theaters then, but when The Lion King came out in 1994, refused the opportunity to see it with my family when we visited my late maternal grandparents then. Since then, I hadn’t actually seen the film in its entirety to the point I could remember it, but recently watched it in full on Disney+ to celebrate its thirtieth anniversary.

The film opens with the iconic “Circle of Life” musical number and sequence where the newborn Simba, son of King Mufasa, is presented to the animal population of the Pride Lands. When Simba grows up, his father teaches him about royal responsibilities and preserving the “circle of life,” which connects all living entities. However, Mufasa hypocritically excludes the hyenas from it, with his effeminate younger brother, Scar, conspiring with them to seize the throne for himself. Some of the character names, Scar’s included, create an Aerith and Bob situation, like the main hyenas being named Shenzi, Banzai, and…Ed. Scar’s birth name, Taka, is never mentioned within the film, and a flashback in the future series The Lion Guard shows how he got his namesake facial blemish.

“When we die, our bodies become the grass, and the antelope eat the grass. And so we are all connected in the great Circle of Life…but not the hyenas.”

Young Simba is a bit of a brat, and many musical numbers feel a bit excruciating, such as “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” (which steals a bit from Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5”), and “Be Prepared” (sharing its name with the Boy Scout motto doesn’t help). Scar ultimately tricks his nephew into going into the middle of a gorge while having the hyenas incite a stampede of wildebeests try to kill him, which results in Mufasa rescuing him but being killed himself in the process. Simba is blamed (mostly rightfully) for killing the king, with his uncle telling him to run away, which he does.

Simba eventually encounters the vagrant meerkat Timon and the warthog Pumbaa, who teach him through song “hakuna matata,” the art of not giving a damn, which he masters into adulthood. He rescues the two from his old friend Nala, with whom he falls in love, and who tells him that the Pride Lands has become drought-stricken under Scar’s reign. The film shows no logical explanation as to exactly how they did, with starvation present as well due to the lionesses refusing to hunt, so one could count them among the real villains of the movie alongside Mufasa.

The real heroes of the film.

After a celestial visit from his father, Simba returns to the Pride Lands to confront his uncle, with the rest of the film having plenty of callbacks to the first act. Overall, The Lion King definitely has many positive aspects, including the soundtrack (with exceptions such as a few of the musical numbers), strong voice performances (including James Earl Jones as Mufasa, Jeremy Irons as Scar, and Whoopi Goldberg and Cheech Marin as the hyenas Shenzi and Banzai), and parallels to William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. However, the movie does derive elements from Osamu Tezuka’s Kimba the White Lion, and there are others issues like zero in-film explanation about the climate during Scar’s kingship. Regardless, it’s easily a bucket-list animated film, but as with many others, that’s far from synonymous with “masterpiece.”

The GoodThe Bad
Hamlet, but with lions.
Great voice performances.
Beautiful animation.
Nice ethnic soundtrack.		Some unexplained plot elements.
Borrows elements from Kimba the White Lion.
A few excruciating musical numbers.
Toilet humor.
The Bottom Line
A must-see Disney classic, but not synonymous with “masterpiece.”

Film Review – Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Disney’s Rey of Light

When the long-anticipated first entry of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, The Force Awakens, was released in theaters in 2015, it received widespread acclaim, with many critics calling it “a return to greatness.” However, as a longtime fan of the franchise, I disagree that the series ever “peaked” (an endemic opinion that emerged after the polarizing Prequel Trilogy), given the obvious overlooked flaws in the original films. Nonetheless, I continue to support the multimedia cash cow with my attention and money. The following year came the debut of the spinoff Star Wars film Rogue One, also well-revered, afterward the next mainline Episode, Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

Major Spoilers for The Force Awakens

Despite losing Starkiller Base, a third Death Star in all but name, the First Order rules the franchise’s nameless galaxy, forcing the Resistance to evacuate their main fleet on the planet D’Qar. In a daring move, pilot Poe Dameron leads a solo attack against the First Order dreadnought Fulminatrix, destroying its critical cannons and creating an opportunity for Resistance vessels to escape. However, Dameron’s decision to defy General Leia Organa’s orders and attempt to destroy the entire ship leads to his demotion to captain. This is a significant development as it highlights the ongoing tension and personal struggles within the Resistance, particularly in the aftermath of Han Solo’s patricide by his son, Ben, who still identifies as Kylo Ren.

The film picks up where The Force Awakens left off. On the aquatic world Ahch-To, Rey presents the self-exiled Jedi Master Luke Skywalker with his old lightsaber. The legendary Jedi Knight casually tosses it aside and locks himself in his hut. This moment has sparked intense debates among fans, critics, and even actor Mark Hamill. Luke has been criticized for allegedly losing his character growth from the Original Trilogy. However, one should consider that Kylo was his nephew, his flesh and blood. As I am no stranger to the pain of betrayal from my biological family, I can empathize with Luke’s reaction and understand his decision.

Meanwhile, Supreme Leader Snoke questions his apprentice Kylo’s loyalty to the dark side of the Force and potential to become a worthy successor to his maternal grandfather, Darth Vader. Snoke sees that Kylo has “too much of his father’s heart” in him and disciplines him through various Force powers like lightning. Back on Ahch-To, Rey tries to recruit Luke into the Resistance against the First Order, mentioning that his sister Leia sent her. However, Skywalker insists that the time of the Jedi Order has passed, alluding to their downfall after the Clone Wars. Eventually, the Jedi Master agrees to give Rey a few lessons despite his pessimistic views.

After an attack by the First Order on the vessel Raddus exposes Leia to cold space, the long-necked and lavender-haired Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo, portrayed by franchise newcomer Laura Dern, takes charge of the Resistance. Holdo disdains Poe’s warning that the fleet will run out of fuel, causing the pilot to distrust the new commander. Meanwhile, former First Order stormtrooper Finn, now a full ally of the Resistance, wants to search for Rey and joins one of his admirers, Rose Tico, to seek the Master Codebreaker in the casino city Canto Bight on the advice of Maz Kanata (embroiled in a union dispute) so that they can disable the First Order’s hyperspace tracker.

On Ahch-To, Rey and Kylo briefly communicate telepathically, hinting at a deeper connection between the two characters. However, their interaction is disrupted by Luke, who initiates her first lessons and enlightens her that the Force is not a simple dichotomy of light and dark, as previously believed. Rey uncovers a place beneath the island, steeped in the dark side. Afterward, she continues her conversation with Kylo, who compels her to find the truth of his descent into darkness and the subsequent rift between him and his uncle. When Rey ultimately departs, an old friend visits Luke, who urges him to transcend the past. He delivers the most iconic quote in the Sequel Trilogy, underscoring the film’s profound impact on the Star Wars narrative.

Poe assists Finn, Rose, and BB-8 in visiting Canto Bight on Cantonica, where they encounter trouble with the local police. While in custody, they manage to escape with the aid of the stuttering slicer DJ, portrayed by Benicio Del Toro, who is also a new addition to the Star Wars saga. DJ assists them in infiltrating the Supremacy, disguised as First Order officers. Despite their efforts, they are eventually apprehended, leading to a confrontation between Captain Phasma and the defector Finn. The First Order decimates the Resistance’s fleet, leaving only the Raddus. Poe challenges Vice-Admiral Holdo, who commands the ship’s evacuation to an old Rebel Alliance outpost on Crait, the setting for the film’s climactic battle.

Meanwhile, Rey takes an escape pod from the Millennium Falcon and surrenders herself to the First Order. Kylo Ren escorts her to Supreme Leader Snoke’s throne room, leading to a confrontation reminiscent of Return of the Jedi, where she tries to persuade Kylo to abandon the dark side. The leader of the Knights of Ren grapples with both sides of the Force. The movie culminates in the Battle of Crait, echoing the Hoth battle at the start of The Empire Strikes Back, delivering unexpected twists that conclude the eighth episode on a high note.

As someone who initially didn’t care much for The Force Awakens but believed Episode VIII was an improvement, perhaps the pinnacle of the Sequel Trilogy, my first rewatch solidified that view. Most of the film felt fresh; since I rewatched the movie on Disney+, I saw it in its entirety and could mercifully pause for bathroom breaks. Like its predecessor, the writing is nothing short of intelligent. It has witty banter galore, plenty of homages to the Original Trilogy, and characters on either side of the conflict, predominantly Luke and Kylo, being equally just in their motives. The gray area of the Force receives significant focus as well.

However, while The Last Jedi is nearly perfect, it shares the same issues as its predecessors, chiefly the sheer number of events that occur within the films (for instance, C-3PO no longer has the distinctive arm color he had in Episode VII). No specific trilogy or movie has ever been the main problem with Star Wars; yet, admittedly, creator George Lucas wasn’t entirely foresightful when expanding it into a franchise. Consequently, the numerous spinoff books and television series have had to fill in the gaps between the films, and many remain unfilled. Nevertheless, the second installment of the Sequel Trilogy is a pinnacle of the Skywalker Saga and the series.

The GoodThe Bad
Excellent acting.
Very intelligent writing.
Insightful sociopolitical commentary.
Engaging character growth.
Tons of great homages to the Original Trilogy.
Superb soundtrack and visual effects.		Still a lot of things that occur outside the films.
The Bottom Line
One of the high points of the Star Wars saga.

Film Review – Pinocchio (1940)

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

Pinocchio (1940)

Liars, Lies, and the Lying Puppets Who Tell Them

Italian author, humorist, and journalist Carlo Lorenzini, better known by his pseudonym Carlo Collodi, published his magnum opus, The Adventures of Pinocchio, in serial form for the children’s magazine Giornale per i bambini from 1881 to 1882, and would receive acclaim as one of Italy’s most significant contributions to the worldwide literary zeitgeist, its most translated and widely read after the Bible. It would inspire countless other fiction and adaptations like Disney’s iconic version, its name shortened to Pinocchio, released in 1940, which initially failed at the box office due to the forthcoming Second World War.

The film opens with the Talking Cricket, named Jiminy in Disney’s version and voiced by Cliff Edwards, singing “When You Wish Upon a Star,” which would eventually serve as the studio’s musical motif. Then he narrates the tale of the eponymous puppet, so named for being made of pine, whom poor, elderly woodcarver Geppetto creates and wishes alive upon a star. Pinocchio consequentially animates thanks to the Blue Fairy but retains his puppet form, and she assigns Jiminy as his “conscience,” Geppetto doing his part to raise him and trying to send him to school.

A classic game of cat and…fox

On the way, Pinocchio encounters the effeminate vulpine con artist “Honest” John Worthington Foulfellow and his silent feline companion Gideon, who recruit him into vagrant showman Stromboli’s puppet show. Jiminy fails to emancipate his charge, with the Blue Fairy eventually doing the job after a round with Pinocchio’s untruths that results in her constantly elongating his nose, coupled with her iconic quote, “A lie keeps growing and growing until it’s as plain as the nose on your face.” Afterward, the puppet is on his own and joins a coach of boys en route to Pleasure Island.

The island bears a curse where its visitors, free to engage in vices like vandalism, fighting, smoking, and drinking, turn into donkeys due to making “jackasses” of themselves, with Pinocchio, mid-transformation, escaping with Jiminy’s help and finding Geppetto in the belly of the whale Monstro, from whom they must escape. Overall, Disney’s adaptation is, to date, still one of the strongest; however, there are some dangling threads, like what happens with Honest John and Gideon, and many moments come off as ridiculous today. Regardless, the musical numbers like “Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee” (which serves as a bit of a central theme) are endearing, and aside from endless ruination by past and modern activists, journalists, and politicians, is an iconic piece of animated cinema.

The GoodThe Bad
Still one of the best adaptations of Collodi’s classic.
Great animation.
Decent music.		A lot of moments that haven’t aged well.
Many character fates left unresolved.
Endlessly ruined politically.
The Bottom Line
A must-see among Disney enthusiasts.

Film Review – JFK

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

Back and to the Left

I was largely apathetic and carefree in grade school about the world’s happenings, American politics, and US history until I took my education more seriously, starting in the seventh grade. While I got the general gist of American history during eighth and ninth grades, I discovered well after graduating college that many inconvenient details were absent from mainstream textbooks. I long knew about the assassination of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, with conspiracy theories abounding about his murder, expanded upon through director Oliver Stone’s “controversial” Academy Award-winning JFK, which many film critics consider his magnum opus.

The movie heavily utilizes footage from the 1960s, opening with President Dwight Eisenhower’s farewell speech regarding the military-industrial complex. Then it proceeds to JFK’s assassination proper in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963, by Lee Harvey Oswald (who would himself be killed the same day by nightclub owner Jack Ruby), portrayed by Gary Oldman in Stone’s film during his original material. The music is decent, but the irritating overuse of snare drums, chiefly during the president’s murder, can be pretty annoying. After the first ten minutes, my initial impression of the film was also negative, given lines like, “Goodbye, you sorry bastard! Die!” and conversations like this:

The president has been shot.
Oh no!
They think it’s in the head.

Luckily, this doesn’t indicate the movie’s overall quality, as the second act is better, concluding with Jim Garrison’s (played by Kevin Costner) trial against Clay Shaw (Tommy Lee Jones), where excellent points and observations are made about the iffiness of the Kennedy assassination, only for Shaw to win. I can relate to many of the themes, like Garrison being a crappy husband and father and that “official” government reports shouldn’t be blindly trusted. One thing that irked me about the movie’s reception outside movie critics was that questioning the government was more “controversial” than the film’s racist and homophobic slurs (and sadly, the MPAA thinks saying “fuck” is worse than those, for some illogical reason). Then again, the Woke movement didn’t exist in 1991.

Works on contingency? No, money down!

The acting was okay, aside from lines like those above and the overabundance of allegedly “intelligent” characters, mainly the Southern historical figures and politicians, sounding like dumb hillbillies (you can tell I’m from the South by my voice, but I have the dignity not to talk like that). Aside from the irritating snare drums, the music was mostly good, with the violin pieces being the strongest, particularly during the ending credits (before which comes an epilogue showing the fates of the various luminaries featured in the film). Many great quotes also abound, like “The bigger the lie, the more people will believe it.”

Overall, despite a lousy beginning, some bad writing (including unnecessary gratuitous swearing), and occasional veering off-topic (like Mardi Gras and gay parties), JFK has something for everyone regardless of how they feel about the Kennedy assassination and conspiracy theories, mostly deserving the Academy Awards it received. It’s easily a bucket-list film (but that is far from synonymous with “masterpiece”) and makes excellent sociopolitical commentary about questioning one’s government, even in the face of “official” facts (which often come from people with political agendas). Sadly, given the federal destruction of most documents related to the Kennedy assassination, who the hell knows if we’ll ever discover the genuine, objective, verifiable truth?

The GoodThe Bad
Some of the performances are good.
Ditto the music.
Trial at end is the film’s high point.
Great sociopolitical commentary.		Bad first impression.
Snare drums in music are irritating.
Inconsistent quality of acting.
Sometimes veers off-topic.
The Bottom Line
A bucket-list film with something for everyone regardless about how they feel about the Kennedy assassination.

Avatar: The Last Airbender (live-action)

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

I watched the Nickelodeon television channel religiously when I was growing up but eventually outgrew it and moved on to other things as I transitioned into adulthood and started college. As such, I was in the dark about the network’s new programming throughout the first decade after the turn of the millennium, but I eventually heard of Avatar: The Last Airbender as one of their more contemporary cartoons a few years after it premiered on the channel and concluded after three seasons. It wouldn’t be until well into the following decade that I watched the animated series proper. 

My first exposure to the Nickelodeon franchise was its first live-action adaptation, The Last Airbender, directed by M. Night Shyamalan, previously affiliated with many a supernatural film with surprise twists. I thought it was a decent film, albeit certainly not perfect, even though critics and audiences widely deemed it a cinematic turkey, not solely the fault of Shyamalan, who genuinely liked the cartoon series and wanted to make several films out of the first season, before executive meddling watered down the final product and crammed everything into a single two-hour movie.

Like Disney had been doing the previous decades with their animated film classics, Netflix announced a live-action streaming series adaptation, in the producers’ words, “reimagining.” However, the first season largely follows that of the original series to the letter, albeit with some expansion, focusing on the background before the titular last airbender, Avatar Aang, awakens after a century of frozen slumber. Afterward, he joins others as he attempts to master the four elements while waging war against the adversarial Fire Nation, whose exiled Prince Zuko is especially interested in apprehending Aang.

While I enjoyed the original Nickelodeon cartoon and its respective sequel series, I had a fun time watching the live-action reimagining, which retains the aesthetics of the original and has fitting cast choices, none mercifully nepotistic like in the 2010 film, and stands well on its own. The backstory and mythos are intricate, and there’s plenty of action to keep one from boredom. It’s easily preferable to the live-action adaptation from the last decade, does the animated series justice, and is worth a watch. I will continue to watch it as future seasons are released.

Ben-Hur (1959)

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

A color remake of the 1925 silent film, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s iconic version released in 1959, like its precursor based on Lew Wallace’s epic historical novel, stars the late Charlton Heston as the eponymous Judah Ben-Hur, a wealthy Jewish prince and merchant living in Jerusalem, twenty-five years after the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, with both cities under the jurisdiction of the Roman Empire in the Judaea province. As in the book, Ben-Hur is condemned to galley slavery when loose roof tiles from a building from which he witnesses an imperial procession nearly kill the new governor. 

Three years later, Ben-Hur is a rower for the flagship of Roman Consul Quintus Arrius, who adopts him as his son after a naval battle leaves the two stranded, and the former spends time in Rome, training as a charioteer. The former returns to Judaea, meeting the Magi Balthasar and Arab Sheik Ilderim, who want him to participate in a chariot race before the new Judean governor, Pontius Pilate, although Ben-Hur initially refuses. However, after learning the fates of his sister and mother, he changes his mind, seeking revenge against Messala in the film’s iconic chariot race recreated from the silent film version and loosely done so twoscore later in the podrace of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.

The rest of the film has Ben-Hur returning to Judaea to find his mother and sister, also witnessing the trial and crucifixion of Jesus. Overall, this film easily qualifies as a classic, yet deviates from Wallace’s novel in many ways, like what happens with Messala, the post-chariot race portions involving Judah’s mother and sister, and the absence of the scenes at the beginning of the Three Magi meeting and what happens with the Hurs after Christ’s execution and beyond. Regardless, it stands well by itself and is a significant part of cinematic history that warrants viewership by any cinema buff.

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Written by Union Civil War General Lewis “Lew” Wallace, the first fictional work of literature blessed by a Roman Catholic Pope (Leo XIII), and the inspiration for numerous live-action and animated film adaptations, Ben-Hur opens with the Three Magi: Gaspar the Greek, Melchior the Hindu, and Balthasar the Egyptian, visiting the newborn Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. Twenty-one years later, the Roman Messala and the titular Jewish protagonist, Judah Ben-Hur, have a rivalry, with the latter being sent to galley slavery for life after a tile from a home whence he witnesses a procession nearly kills the new procurator of Judea, Valerius Gratus.

A few years later, Ben-Hur labors as a galley slave aboard a ship commanded by Quintus Arrius, who is fascinated by the young Jew and thus adopts him as his son. In Antioch, Judah sees Messala again and yearns to rival him in a forthcoming chariot race while hearing of a Messiah speaking of a greater kingdom, not of the Earth. The race transpires, but the results are contested, with northern barbarians dispatched to kill the Jew when he finds himself in an empty palace following the games. However, a maneuver involving his falsified demise allows him to escape.

Afterward, Pontius Pilate succeeds Valerius Gratus as governor of Judea, and Ben-Hur seeks his mother and sister, who went missing after the incident that led him into slavery in the first place. He eventually meets the prophesized King of the Jews, witnessing His miracles and returning to his former palace. Throughout the book, Judah befriends Balthasar’s daughter Iras, who talks of an escaped galley slave Jew who murdered others when they reunite. Messala’s fate receives its resolution, Judas Iscariot betrays Jesus, and the Messiah is crucified, having refused the throne of His ancestor David.

While I had read this around a decade ago, it didn’t very well stick with me, but I remembered some elements. However, I enjoyed Ben-Hur more with my recent reread. The historical and geographical tidbits indicate that Wallace did his research, with the names of the Wise Men and their respective countries of origin adding nice touches. I could well relate to the themes, within and without my Christian faith, and while there were many portions I somewhat skimmed, I could still follow the central plot well. Granted, much of the dialogue is awkward, such as “Unclean, unclean!” regarding lepers, but Ben-Hur is a must-read for any Christian book enthusiast.

View all my reviews

Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

Aimed at younger audiences, this animated addition to the Star Wars franchise occurs during the High Republic era, centuries before the Skywalker Saga films, focusing on fledgling Jedi younglings and beginning with six shorts that twenty-five half-hour episodes, divided into two stories each, follow. Throughout the series, the younglings repeatedly encounter a young pilot who goes by the alias Taborr Val Dorn. I highly enjoyed this series, my first exposure to any of the series content occurring in the High Republic era, and the Jedi youngling Nubs is undoubtedly one of the cutest characters in the franchise.

Home on the Range

Posted on by Remy St. Gallen

This 2004 entry to Disney’s animated film canon occurs in the Old West, with wanted cattle rustler Alameda Slim, who can lure along bovines with his hypnotic yodeling, purloining those of Dixon Ranch. The remaining cow, Maggie, is sold to a farm called Patch of Heaven. A local sheriff, Sam, informs its owner, Pearl, that she must pay back a bank in three days, or her farm will go to auction. The cows ultimately decide to pursue Slim for the reward money to save their farm, aided by their fellow farm animals and others.

I’ll admit that given the horrid titular opening theme song, Home on the Range didn’t leave a positive first impression on me. Furthermore, I don’t care for most music that features yodeling of any kind; however, a few like that during the ending credits are pleasant. The voice performances are decent, like Roseanne Barr as bovine protagonist Maggie, Cuba Gooding Jr. as Buck the horse, and Randy Quaid (aside from his singing) as Alameda Slim. Unfortunately, the writing frequently sounds awkward, and some plot beats, like Slim’s yodeling, didn’t sit well with me. Overall, this film ranks below average in my view of Disney’s animated films.