Movie Review: The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A-

Everything you would want from a Mario movie. 

This is not a deep or especially groundbreaking movie, but it is a whole lot of fun and that is exactly what the Mario franchise is all about. I had a smile on my face from start to finish.

The story is quite simple but fits the Mario franchise perfectly. Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Toad all team up to save the kidnapped Princess Rosalina. The story would fit perfectly as the storyline of a Mario game and that is the charm of it. This simple story allows for many delightful set pieces. These set pieces perfectly capture the feel of a Mario game on the big screen. There is such an attention to detail for every environment that the burst with life the same way that the worlds of the games have stayed with us for decades. This is probably Illumination's most visually pleasing film. The storyline itself unfolds at a fast pace and keeps you constantly engaged.   

Like most Illumination films, this one is full of gags from start to finish. What surprised me was just how funny so many of these gags were. I laughed out loud a lot more than I did at the first movie. 

The characters are still the wonderful characters we have loved all these decades, and it is a blast to spend time with them. Getting more Luigi than in the first movie was a pure delight. This movie introduces Yoshi and Fox McCloud to the world of Mario films, and both steal every scene they are in. Both also fit perfectly well into the story and never feel shoehorned in. Bowser Jr. is also an excellent villain. He feels like a surprisingly huge threat to our heroes, and his relationship and idolization of his father make his character feel like a real kid. 

A pure delight to any true Nintendo fan (like me).  

Movie Review: The Pout-Pout Fish

 

Michael's Movie Grade: C

A decent enough kids movie. 

Based on the popular children's book, this film tells the story of a pout-pout fish, who feels like an outsider because he has a face that constantly looks like he is miserable. However, when he accidentally destroys the home of a little fish, who is naturally optimistic and looks for the good in everyone, the two bond and create a friendship that change how he views the world and those around him. 

This is a very basic children's film that tells its story in a very basic way. There is nothing here that you haven't seen a million times before. However, the actual storytelling is pretty decent. The two main characters, while not exactly complex, are quite likable and there is a real sweetness to their friendship that is kind of heartwarming. The character arc for the title character is quite well handled. The way he begins to see the good in others happens gradually and believably. Though this is obviously made on less of a budget than a Pixar or DreamWorks film, the art style is very pleasant and fits the story perfectly. 

This film was based off a short story, and it shows. This film feels like a short film that has been stretched to feature length at times. The action climax especially feels out of place with everything that has come before. There is also a lot of humor here that tries too hard and ends up falling flat. 

This is far from a new animated classic, but it has its charms. 

Movie Trailer: The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

 

Movie Review: Hoppers

 

Note: Like other recent Pixar movies this movie does not have a short film before it. Every time there is not a short film before a Pixar feature, I am extremely disappointed. The short films were often the highlight of going to a Pixar movie for me. These shorts were often times just as great if not better than the features. They helped make going to a Pixar movie feel special to me. 

Michael's Movie Grade: B+

An excellent, if flawed Pixar movie. 

If there is one thing Pixar knows how to do it is how to open a film. The early scenes of this movie with our main character, Mabel as a small girl show Pixar at its best. As someone who had a very close connection with my grandparents and has a love of animals, I felt myself being incredibly moved by these early scenes. While the rest of the movie doesn't completely live up to the beginning, that is a high bar to clear. After this very strong start, the movie still continues to be quite engaging and fun. Much of this is because of Mabel herself. After the excellent prologue, we see Mabel as a 19-year-old college student. Again, it is so easy to see ourselves in her. She is like many of us were at that age. She is impulsive and this impulsiveness causes her to make a mess of things. Yet she is also very passionate and willing to fight for what she believes is right. In some ways we are jealous of her zeal and wish we could be like her again. However, we also recognize her impulsiveness and remember wrong decisions we made because we didn't take the time to stop and think things through. Because her character captures a 19-year-old so well, we immediately grow an emotional connection to anything that happens in this movie. This emotional connection keeps this film grounded even when its story veers into sci-fi territory. 

The basic sci-fi premise of this movie is very clever. While the film itself points out the similarities to Avatar, frankly this movie handles the idea much better than James Cameron's film does. The story telling here is simple more mature, clever and fresh. The story itself moves at a quick pace and never once loses the audience's interest. There is a very strong and fun villain as well. While the action packed climax may go on too long, it is again very creative and entertaining. 

The main problem with this movie is that the humor often falls flat. It feels like the filmmakers are trying too hard to be funny. Instead of funny the comedy can come off as too loud obnoxious.

This film's director was Daniel Chong, who is probably best known for creating the Cartoon Network TV series, We Bare Bears. However, he has worked at Pixar before as a story artist. As a story artist he worked on such Pixar movies as Cars 2 (2011) and Inside Out (2015) (my personal favorite Pixar movie). Since Turning Red (2022), he has been credited as part of the Pixar Senior Creative Team. The movie's writer was Jesse Andrews. This is his second film for Pixar (after Luca (2021)). His non-Pixar films include the live action movies Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015) and Every Day (2018). 

Though it has some flaws, this movie is creative and features the heart that Pixar movies are known for. I strongly recommend this to all Pixar fans.    

Movie Review: GOAT

 

Michael's Movie Grade: C+

An enjoyable but forgettable animated film. 

This movie is pretty much your average underdog sports film only with animated talking animals. This movie may follow every cliché these stories are known for, but the film still works pretty well. The main reason for this is the two main characters. One is Will Harris, a goat, who is told he can't be a roarball (an all-animal version of basketball) player because he is too small. This is your typical movie underdog in many ways. While he is not a complex character, he is a likable one and it is easy to find yourself rooting for him. The other is Jett Filmore, a panther, who is considered a legend yet is afraid as she gets older, she may never actually win a championship. The insecurities this character has are perfectly conveyed and it is hard not to empathize with her fears and anxieties. Despite the action-packed sport scenes and the corny jokes, this movie really comes to life in the quiet smaller scenes between these two characters. One scene where Will takes Jett to the cafe he used to work at has a surprising amount of emotional poignancy to it. The relationship between these characters is very well thought out and actually kind of touching. It grows and changes over the course of the movie in a completely believable way. Because these characters feel real, even though we know how the film will end, the ending still kind of works. 

Like many animated family films today, this movie tries to throw gags at us for most of the film's runtime. As can be expected in this case, some of these gags are quite funny while others fall completely flat. 

I did feel the roarball games themselves were wasted opportunities. This differs from typical basketball as the stages represent various environments and therefore can provide different obstacles for the players. Sadly, this twist on basketball was quite underused. If better utilized this could have given this movie a unique feel that was quite different from your average sports film. 

This is one of those movies that you enjoy watching but, in a few weeks, will forget about.  

Movie Trailer: Toy Story 5

 

Movie Review: Arco

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A

A lovely animated film from France.

This movie takes a familiar sci-fi premise about a time traveler finding himself in a different time and finding a friend from that time to help me get home but it makes this premise feel fresh. This movie achieves this feeling of freshness in multiple ways. One way is that it switches up this premise by making neither of the time periods current. Both of the time periods are in the future, one 50 years from now and the other further in the future. This film also is a rare movie to show a dystopian future that still has a glimmer of hope behind it. Here we are shown hope through the child characters learning from the mistakes of their predecessors, letting us know it is in each new generation's powers to change the future for the better. Speaking of children, this film captures a feeling of childlike wonder magnificently. The futuristic worlds pictured here are very well-realized and engrossing. They also feel like they could have come directly from a child's imagination. A rainbow-colored suit that allows you to fly through time while leaving full sized rainbows behind you as well as robots taking care of the kids while the parents are away sound like ideas that might come directly from a child's mind. This helps bring us back to when we were the same age as the characters and there makes us also revert to a time when we saw the world around us in a more fantastical way. Because of this we buy into the fantasy completely and become completely sucked in. Even the art style, while incredibly detailed has a childlike charm to it. Another reason is just that the story is so well told. This is a film that will pull on your heartstrings. I found myself very moved multiple times and the ending was quite lovely and touching. 

If I had to fault this movie for anything, it is that some of the humor falls flat. However, since this is not a comedy and there is not a whole lot of humor, this is a minor fault.

This is a lovely film that will touch even the greatest skeptics. 

Movie Review: David

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B+

An excellent animated film.

This film follows the life of the Biblical David from childhood to when he became king and serves as a follow-up to the animated streaming series, Young David. The movie is even co-directed by that series' creator Phil Cunningham. However, you do not have to either have seen that series nor be familiar with the Bible stories to enjoy this film. The movie sets up everything we need to know very quickly making it perfectly accessible to everyone. Yet Christians who know their Bible stories, who let's be honest make up about 90% of the film's audience, will be delighted that this movie follows the Bible very closely. This is just what will make it work for non-Christians as well. These tales have endured and inspired for centuries because they are still powerful and effective today. That this film stays close to the source material helps give it much of that power as well. The movie's emotional moments hit hard, and its joyful moments make you cheer. 

For an animated feature not made by a major animation studio, it is amazing how good it looks. There is none of that cheap and off-putting look that has hurt so many well-written but low budget animated films. It may not fully reach the height of Disney or DreamWorks in this department, but it still looks very professionally made. 

As this movie is about the writer of many of the Psalms, it is no surprise that music plays a major role. The songs, written by Jonas Myrin (who has co-written hit Christian songs with such popular Christian artists as Michael W. Smith, Chris Tomlin and Matt Redman), are quite good with pleasant melodies and effective lyrics. They may not be especially memorable, but they do their job very well. Having award winning Christian singers Phil Wickham (who voices David as an adult) and Lauren Daigle in the voice cast, as well as Israeli pop singer Miri Mesika, helps elevate that music in this film. 

This movie does have its flaws though. The side characters (especially David's siblings) are not very well developed and come off as crude and unfunny movie stereotypes rather than actual characters. Speaking of unfunny, this movie has too much really forced humor that just doesn't work. 

Despite these flaws though, this is an excellent film that I hope points towards what lies in the future for animated Biblical stories.  

Movie Review: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants

 

Michael' Movie Grade: B

A really fun SpongeBob adventure. 

This movie is in many ways an extended episode of SpongeBob. That is not to say that the film feels overlong (the hour and a half runtime goes by very quickly) but rather that there is nothing bigger or more cinematic here than in a typical TV episode. Sure, we may be dealing with ghost pirates and spooky danger, but The Flying Dutchman has been one of the series' characters from very early on. While as essentially a feature-length episode it does not reach the heights of the show's early season (which are still hilarious), it is still quite entertaining.

The storyline moves at a quick pace, and its comedic momentum keeps it consistently fun, even when some of the jokes fall flat. SpongeBob's desire to prove himself to be a "Big Guy" is instantly relatable to anyone that has ever been a kid. Meanwhile as silly as SpongeBob and Patrick's antics are, there is a real warmth to their friendship here that gives the film quite a bit of heart. We even get to see a warmer side of Mr. Krabs, which works quite well. The Flying Dutchman works perfectly as a villain here. His over-the-top evilness and how much the character enjoys himself is a pure delight to watch. The Underworld is also a great environment for this film. It is quite atmospheric, and the designs of the various creatures are really creative. 

For such a silly comedy, the humor can be a bit hit and miss at times. There are times when the filmmakers seem to be trying too hard to be funny and it doesn't come off. However, there are also moments that truly made me laugh out loud (the 30 minutes later joke is hilarious). 

As great as SpongeBob, Patrick, Mr. Krabs and The Flying Dutchman are here, the supporting cast is not as strong. Many of the other SpongeBob characters are too sidelined and don't really get to do much. Meanwhile, the new characters simply aren't all that memorable. 

This may not be the best SpongeBob adventure, but it is still a really fun movie. 

By the way this movie is accompanied by a short Christmas-themed film with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. This short is quite smart, funny and just as entertaining as the feature.  

Movie Review: Zootopia 2

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B+

An excellent Disney sequel. 

What really makes this movie work is how it expands on Nick and Judy's relationship. After the events of the last film, they are officially Zootopia's new police team. However all is not well in paradise. It seems there is a lot of friction between them and the two's approach to their police work makes it, so they are not exactly on the same page. This friction is handled incredibly well. It feels very natural and real, just like friction two actual partners would have. The reasons why they are not working well together also reveal a lot about who these characters actually are. This gives us an even greater understanding of these characters then we had in the first film. These are fully fleshed out characters that feel completely real to us in the vein of many classic Disney characters. Underneath the characters' friction with each other, you can still feel how much they love and care about each other. This is even true in the scenes when they are most at odds with each other. How well they work as a team is put to the test here, but their friendship is never in question. I loved this aspect as it made both characters feel completely endearing here.

For a movie where these characters are solving a mystery, the plot actually contains a lot of twists. Some of them I saw coming while others took me by surprise. All of these twists though worked very well making this a fun and constantly engaging ride. 

The humor could be a bit hit and miss ay times. However, when it works it is truly hilarious and there will multiple gags that really made me laugh here. 

  The thing that keeps this movie from being as great as the first film is that it rehashes a lot of story elements from the previous movie. The first movie involved a villain who framed a whole group of animals and created a prejudice against these animals in order to retain power. This second movie features a family of villains doing the exact same thing against a different group of animals. While the message about prejudice and scapegoating is still important, I wish this sequel could have been more original in the way it presented it. 

This movie may rehash many plot points from the first film. However, if you look past that, this is a truly excellent movie with a lot to recommend it. 

Movie Trailer: GOAT

Movie Trailer: Hoppers

Movie Review: Wicked: For Good

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A

A wonderful sequel to a wonderful film. 

The first Wicked was a more lighthearted musical with a few more serious undertones worked into it. In this sequel, those serious undertones are rather in the forefront for a darker and more serious ride. This is even seen in the musical numbers, which are no longer the huge singing and dancing production numbers, but rather more heartfelt ballads. Despite this, the focus is still on the same place as the first movie. This is to say, the focus is on the two main characters. These characters remain the endearing yet complex characters that won our hearts in the first film. This movie goes even deeper into examining these characters. This is especially true of Glinda, who receives everything she ever dreamed of, yet at the price of what she knows is right. This is in perfect contrast to how in the previous movie, Elphaba refused receiving all her dreams because she would have to give up everything she stands for. Glinda though finds it too hard to resist all that she is given, though she is bugged by her conscience. As much as the first film is Elphaba's story, this movie is Glinda's story. Though I loved her character in the first movie, I found myself growing even more attached to her here. There were times, when my heart was simply breaking for her. Yet this movie also does a great job with Elphaba. This film shows the aftermath of her having given up her dreams for her morals. You feel her loneliness her and understand why she can't go back. The scenes between her and her sister are emotionally heartbreaking and make you feel so deeply for her. Speaking of her sister, we see her true colors come out in what are possibly the hardest to watch scenes emotionally. This leads to the origin of one of the main Wizard of Oz characters, which is disturbing but incredibly effective. 

Many critics are stating that the musical numbers aren't as strong here as in the first film. I kind of understand where they are coming from but don't completely agree. In the first movie every song hit masterfully. Here, there are a few songs that are kind of forgettable and not up to the standards expected. However, the best songs in this movie (such as No Good Deed, For Good, Wonderful and As Long as Your Mine) are just as great as any of the songs from the first movie. Of course, regardless of the song, Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande are absolutely wonderful performing them. 

This movie also benefits greatly from wonderful visuals and a great sense of atmosphere. Just like the first movie, this film transports you immediately to the wonderful land of OZ. The whole fantasy world feels so completely real to us and that is the most you can ask for in a fantasy film. The very intelligent and thought-provoking themes about how governments will use scapegoating to keep power is also present here and just as brilliantly used here as in the first movie. 

A must watch. 

Movie Trailer: The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

Movie Review: Sarah's Oil

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B+

An excellent faith-based film. 

This film follows the true story of Sarah Rector, a young 11-year-old black girl, who is given a plot of land that she believes God is telling her oil is on. When she hires a company to check for if there is oil on her land, they try to swindle her out of her land. 

What makes this movie work is that it shows us the ugly side of humanity, while still remaining hopefully about the future. The film never sugarcoats when it comes to racism and human greed. We see the absolute worst of both of them here and some of these scenes can be heartbreaking to watch. Yet this is a movie about how sometimes human decency and kindness can sometimes overcome hatred and greed. We may know that this may not always be the case but knowing it can happen sometimes gives us hope, especially as sadly this kind of hatred and can sadly still exist. 

This movie also benefits from some strong concise storytelling that doesn't waster a moment, as well as some strong acting. While Zachary Levi gives one of his better performances here, it is young Naya Desir-Johnson as the titular character who steals the show. She is so charming, likable and completely believable here that she makes the whole movie work very well. 

I will say though that this movie is very predictable and it is very often that you can see exactly where it is going. There are no surprises in the whole movie. 

Overall, this is an excellent movie. 

Movie Review: Little Amélie or the Character of Rain

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A+

This animated movie from France and Belgium is one of my favorite movies of the year.

This movie falls a little girl from her birth to three years old, with the girl narrating the story for us. 

From this simple premise comes one of the smartest and most insightful films, I have seen in quite a while. Telling this story directly from the point of view from such a young child proved to be a brilliant idea. When you are a child, everything is new to you and because of this, the joyous moments feel more joyful, and the sad moments feel sadder. Very early on, this movie puts us directly in this state of mind. We feel these emotions in that exact same way. There are times when this movie makes us feel the greatest joy at the absolute simplicist of moments such as running through the flowers on a spring day or feeling rain fall down upon you or seeing the ocean. At the same time, you feel great sorrow over the idea of someone you love having to leave. This is one of the most emotional rides I have had in a movie theatre in a long time. All of this is helped by a gorgeous art style that captures how beautiful the world can look to us when we are that young. 

Even if this movie focuses on a young child, its insights into life are very important to anyone any age. It talks about how nothing and no one is truly lost if they live on in our memories. This is a very real and insightful message that helps us with the painful emotions we experience without sugarcoating anything. The message is also told to us in a very intelligent and insightful way, with some truly well-written dialogue.  

As smart and mature as this movie is, it is not one of those artsy animated films that can only be enjoyed by adults. This film is completely approachable to a child of any age, and it is never too early to introduce them to a great work of art.

If you watch this film in theaters, it will be accompanied by a short film, titled Éiru, from the Irish animation studio, Cartoon Saloon. This is a delightful short film that is well written, very creative and full of fantastic artwork. 

Little Amélie or the Character of Rain is a must see for fans of mature, smart and insightful animated films. It is a pure masterpiece.

Scooby-Doo (2002)

 

This 2002 film marked the first live action Scooby-Doo movie and Scooby's first film to be released theatrically. 

In this movie, the Mystery Inc. Gang splits apart after a big fight. Two years later, the entire gang is invited to solve a mystery on a theme park called Spooky Island. However, this proves to be a much more dangerous mystery than the gang has solved before as something truly supernatural is happing here. 

There is a lot to love about this movie. Even the film's biggest distractors must admit that the casting is perfect here. Matthew Lillard (Shaggy), Freddie Prinze Jr. (Fred), Sarah Michelle Gellar (Daphne), Linda Cardellini (Velma) and Neil Fanning (the voice of Scooby) are simply wonderful and are as close as you can ever come to capturing the cartoon character in live action (though Scooby is CGI). They even look like the cartoon characters come to life (again with the exception of Scooby who is CGI). Matthew Lillard was so perfect that he would later become the voice of Shaggy in the cartoons. Another way this film captures the feel of the cartoon is in its sense of atmosphere. The sets are wonderfully atmospheric and gives this movie a unique and fun look that stays with you. These sets are equal parts spooky, imaginative and fun, just like any Scooby-Doo movie should be. The use of lighting also adds a lot to this movie's wonderfully effective look as does location shooting in Australia (much on Tangalooma Island resort in Moreton Island). As well as being very atmospheric this film is quite a bit darker than the average Scooby mystery and features a few legitimately creepy moments. Yet they are not so creepy as to take away from the fun feel. The comedic moments may not always hit but when they do, they can be laugh out loud funny. Even Shaggy's romance with a girl named Mary Jane (Isla Fisher) is quite effective and has a good twist.

The main problem with this film however is its treatment of Scrappy-Doo. I understand that the filmmakers (as well as many cartoon fans) were not a fan of the character of Scrappy and that he is an easy comedic target. However, this simply comes off as too mean spirited and at odds with the rest of the movie. It can even make our main characters seem too unlikable in one scene. If this scene was a cut-away on Family Guy, I could see it being pretty funny. However in an actual Scooby-Doo movie, where we are supposed to like the characters, it is at odds with the rest of the film. Some of the CGI has also dated poorly which is to be expected from a movie from 2002. 

This movie was directed by Raja Gosnell. Gosnell's other directorial efforts include Home Alone 3 (1997), Never Been Kissed (1999), Big Momma's House (2000), Yours, Mine & Ours (2005), Beverly Hills Chihuahua (2008), The Smurfs (2011) and The Smurfs 2 (2013). His work may not be exactly critically praised but it was often very successful at the box office. 

The writer was none other than James Gunn, who would go on to direct the Guardians of the Galaxy films and Superman (2025) as well as the current head of DC Comics' theatrical films. James Gunn would later tell that this movie was not originally made to be family friendly but rather an R rated movie, meant for adults. However, over time Warner Brothers kept pushing for this movie to be more family friendly, preferring a movie kids could go see. James Gunn stated about this, “The first cut was rated R by the MPAA, and the female stars’ cleavage was CGI’d away so as not to offend. But, you know, such is life. I had a lot of fun making this movie, regardless of all that. And I was also able to eat, buy a car, and a house because of it.”

Despite coming out the same summer as Disney's Lilo and Stitch (2002), this movie was a box office success ranking number one at the box office on its opening weekend. Critical reviews were quite poor; however audiences greatly enjoyed the movie, and it is still a favorite of many who were kids at the time. It has even gained a cult like status in recent years. Due to this film's popularity James Gunn stated, “I was offered every movie you can imagine. Like, uh, the Jabberjaw movie, and The Jetsons movie, and the Captain Caveman movie. I was offered tons of money to do all of these things. So, of course, me being me, I chose to write Dawn of the Dead. Go figure out my brain, who knows.”

Though I may not be a fan of this movie's version of Scrappy-Doo, I love everything else about this charmer of a movie. 

Resources Used

https://www.thewrap.com/scooby-doo-was-initially-rated-r-says-james-gunn/

https://www.tangalooma.com/blog-articles/resort-news-blog/2017/spooky-island-the-scooby-doo-movie

Movie Review: Pets on a Train

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B

A really fun animated movie. 

In this movie a raccoon helps a badger hijack a train, thinking that they will just stop it long enough for him to take the food inside to his friends for Christmas dinner. However, when the badger has other more sinister plans, the racoon teams up with a group of pets on board to stop the evil badger. 

This film is simply a lot of fun. It first and foremost works as an action flick. Luckily the action scenes are very strong here with a good sense of tension and excitement. There are even many nods to the ultimate action movie, Die Hard (1988). The movie also works because of the main character. He is very much a lovable little rascal. He often times does the wrong thing, but he always has good intentions. He also (even if he isn't always honest with them), he truly cares about others. The villain is also a lot of fun. The support cast, while not complex, are quite likable as well. The movie also benefits from a storyline that (while familiar) moves at a fast and fun place. 

The comedy is charming. However, it is the type of comedy that is more likely to make you smile than laugh out loud. 

This movie does however suffer from very weak human characters, who are simply too bland. The messaging about the selfishness that is promoted with social media and how the news often exploits people's tragedies is also too on the nose and lacks any actual subtlety. 

A really fun and charming animated action films. 

Movie Review: Soul on Fire

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B

A well-made, if flawed biopic. 

This movie tells the true story of John O'Leary, who has a child accidently set his house on fire and burned himself beyond what anyone would think that he could come back from. He survives and after making it through a struggle with self-doubt, becomes a powerful Christian speaker. 

Though visually this film may resemble a made for TV movie, it is obviously of a high caliber than what is seen on Hallmark or Lifetime. The acting is truly excellent here with not a weak link in the cast. Of course, William H. Macy is a standout as the real-life baseball announcer, who ends up becoming one of the main character's best friends. However, Joel Courtney and James McCracken also wonderful as the main character as an adult and kid. DeVon Franklin steals various scenes in a supporting role as a nurse.  Stephanie Szostak and John Corbett are excellent as the parents and Masey McLain is quite good as the love interest. I came into this film expecting the corny dialogue that is heard in too many Christian movies, but the dialogue was actually quite strong here with most characters talking how people would actually talk in these difficult situations. The writing also does its job as it makes you feel inspired by the story of this character's life. As you should with a feel-good movie, you feel better leaving the theater than you did entering it. 

The movie's main flaw though is that there is nothing cinematic about it. As mentioned before this looks like a made for TV movie rather than something that you would actually see on screen. Yet this is not the only aspect I am referring to when I call this uncinematic. The film simply doesn't follow one of the most important rules in movie making, show don't tell. I understand that the filmmakers' have to condense a person's life to less than two hours. However, this does not excuse brushing aside important plot points with brief bits of dialogue. After one disastrous attempt at talking to a group of girl scouts, we next see our main character having become a mostly successful public speaker. What changed between those time periods is never shown to us but rather the main character mentions it briefly during a conversation. For a movie about public speaking, this major change in the character's life should have been something that we were shown happening. The same thing happens with the character's transition from a party animal to someone who lives for God. Again, we are told about this change but don't see it happen in front of us. Even though this still a good movie, this is a truly major flaw. 

Despite this major flaw though this is a very effective film. It is a feel-good movie that truly makes you feel good. 

    

Movie Trailer: Zootopia 2