I have been waiting for Incredibles 2 since the first one came out. With a few exceptions, I generally love the Disney-Pixar films, and I have always had fond memories of the first. As such, I went to see the double feature in IMAX so that I could see the sequel a day early. Despite a 14-year gap, Disney still delivered the goods with a film that goes in a very different direction than the first, but still holds true to the spirit of the original.

Whereas the 2004 film was a surprisingly dark, mature family drama under the guise of a superhero action comedy, the sequel aims to hit more of that action comedy, and succeeds. Sure, one could argue that the first film is more tonally complex and less predictable, but the sequel is funnier, more exciting, and far timelier. This film is written with our era in mind. What the film lacks in emotional complexity, it makes up for in allegorical representations of today's issues. The villain is very intriguing and relevant. There are strong feminist themes to be found throughout, and the film does a great job of providing great role models for today's youth in that regard. I'd also argue that the film has even more heart than the original. The first film began to develop the family dynamic towards the end, and this film picks that up and dives deep into it. Additionally, I found myself laughing consistently through the film, with plenty of great physical comedy and trope-mocking self-aware humor written into the script.

It's probably not necessary for me to compliment the animation of the film, but I'm going to do it anyway. Pixar has a unique brand of animation that is extremely detailed, and this film delivered. The world was expanded even more with new characters who were designed in a very unique and interesting way. It's also important to note that the film is set immediately after the first, and the sequel's visual style meshes very well with the first when watched back-to-back. The voice cast is great. They obviously wanted this film to happen as much as the fans did, and that shows in their performances. New additions to the cast Bob Odenkirk and Catherine Keener both do a great job in their roles, too, complementing the returning cast extremely well.

Overall, I was very impressed by Incredibles 2. It's the fun time at the movies that we have all come to expect from Disney-Pixar, for any and all ages. Its timely commentary mixed with great humor and exciting action makes it one of my favorite Disney movies of all time.

Incredibles 2
Big Tuna's Rating: A
How Did I Watch It?: In theaters.
Had I Seen It Before?: No.
Would I Watch It Again?: Yes. ​

I got to revisit this film as a part of the double feature being held for the sequel's release, and that was great because I was able to see it in IMAX for the first time. I have always enjoyed The Incredibles, but since I was a lot younger 14 years ago, I never picked up on the darker, more complex subthemes that the film offers.

In one way, the film is a funny fish-out-of-water comedy; in another way, it’s an intense superhero action film; yet perhaps most interestingly, it’s also a compelling family drama featuring full-on identity crises. The film has some very dark parts. It deals with important issues such as depression, genocide, and (implicitly) adultery and divorce. Pixar pulled this off with grace and elegance, with an end product that is family-friendly and will certainly entertain the kids, though somehow still feels worthy of adult viewing. The characters are also extremely sympathetic. All four of the main characters are likable and highly relatable, despite their larger-than-life qualities. Each character has his or her own flaws for the purposes of making the film relate to the audience better. It's almost like sitcoms in that, while the family's story is super unique, they still seem like everyday people. The supporting characters are great too, delivering great comedic relief.

The film also holds up extremely well, even the visuals. It’s probably beneficial that I watched the film on a huge screen with a great projector, but the animation still looked detailed and amazing. One of my favorite parts about Pixar is that they put so much into their world-building, and this was no exception. The execution is also spot-on from the mockumenary opening. You are pulled into the film and never let go because you’re both entertained and invested in the lives of the characters. The voice cast is amazing, too, led by wonderful performances from Craig Nelson and Holly Hunter.

​Overall, I still love The Incredibles. It's a very fun animated superhero film, yet it is still so much more. This film is definitely worth a revisit if you haven't watched it in a while.

The Incredibles
Big Tuna's Rating: A
How Did I Watch It?: In theaters.
Had I Seen It Before?: Yes.
Would I Watch It Again?: Yes.

I was pretty early onto the U.S. Ghibli train, so I really wanted to see Mary and the Witch's Flower, the new film from Studio Ponoc, which was formed by ex-Ghibli animators. I tried the first time my local theater did the event, and it was sold out. I tried the second time, and the theater was closed due to a power outage. I got a third chance, and I knew I couldn't miss it.

The writing of the film was solid, but not anything revolutionary. It's basically a female-driven Harry Potter and I think that's fine. It's a nice little fantasy story that's aimed at children. The protagonist is really well-developed and can be extremely inspiring for young children. I wish there were a little more depth to the antagonists, though. Ghibli always did a good job of teaching a moral lesson through the antagonists, and while there were hints of that in this film, I feel like it could have been stronger. Perhaps it's because of the source material, but I felt like there was a lot of room to grow. The pacing of the film is good, though, with some great action and comedic relief.

The animation of the film is definitely great. I love the anime style of Ghibli, and you can see some of their influence on this film. Still, Studio Ponoc seems to have its own identity, and there are some major stylistic differences. It's not quite as beautiful as some of the Ghibli films, but it's still up there. The most impressive part of the animation was the detailed settings. The extra content talked about how the animators went location scouting, and their detail definitely shows. I saw the film in its subtitled version, and I'm usually very stubborn in that anime films should always be watched in their subtitled format, but I think this may be an exception. The film is set in English, so the dubbed dialogue may have worked. I'm not sure because I didn't see it that way, but I am curious and may need to check that out.

Overall, I really enjoyed Mary and the Witch's Flower. It was a nice, innocent family film that small children will definitely enjoy. It's also beautifully animated in continuation of the Ghibli tradition, although it is still able to hold its own.

Mary and the Witch's Flower
Big Tuna's Rating: B
How Did I Watch It?: In theaters at a special event.
Had I Seen It Before?: No.
Would I Watch It Again?: Yes.

Even though I hadn't read the book, I was still excited enough for A Wrinkle in Time that it ended up in my top 10 most anticipated for 2018. The trailers made it seem like it could be a visually-stunning, thought-provoking piece of science fiction cinema, and I thought Disney could pull it off. Unfortunately, it ended up more like Disney's notorious misfire Tomorrowland in that it was far too ambitious for its own good.

The film is undeniably impressive in its visuals. The costume design and make-up is phenomenal for the witches, working with the wonderful set design to create a fabulous world of fantasy within the film. The cinematography and CGI are also great, capturing this world in a way that is beautiful and aesthetically-appealing. Apart from a few scenes that look a bit too cartoon-like, the CGI has a cool effect. The film's design is particularly successful when it features prevalent geometric shapes and designs that are futuristic and pleasing to the eye.

Outside of the technical elements of the film, there isn't much I can really praise. The plot of the film is way too convoluted. There are many things in the mythology that are just left unexplained, to the point of causing frustration. Some of these things are actual plot holes, others are just things that are confusing or ambiguous for no good reason. The character development was one of the most problematic things for me. The film's intention is obviously one of female and minority empowerment, yet the story is about a young black girl who feels incomplete without her white father? Huh? How does that make sense for minority female empowerment? It doesn't to me. There is also a weird level of romantic tension between the two pre-teens that made me feel uncomfortable watching the film when that obviously wasn't the intention. Part of this is the awkward dialogue and potentially the actors trying to do their best to improve it, but failing miserably. Then, there's the fact that Oprah is the height of a building for a significant portion of her screen time, and Mindy Kaling only speaks in quotes... wait, no. Mindy Kaling doesn't have to speak in quotes now. What? It's just bad on so many levels. It takes what could have worked and makes a true and absolute mess out of it. I couldn't enjoy it. I couldn't understand it (and not in a good way). It's almost unbearable. I really came close to walking out about four times.

Overall, I was thoroughly disappointed by A Wrinkle in Time. There may be some hardcore fans of the book or families with children that still want to see it, and I understand, but I apologize in advance for the pain you are going to face. This film really is not worth your precious time. I really wish I could tesser back in time and tell myself to not see this movie. Even the impressive visuals can't justify the awful script.

A Wrinkle in Time
Big Tuna's Rating: F+
How Did I Watch It?: In theaters.
​Had I Seen It Before?: No.
Would I Watch It Again?:

I purposefully avoided The Boss Baby when it was in theaters because, quite frankly, it looked awful, yet it somehow managed to get an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature. Jon knew just how much I was opposed to watching this film, so it was of course included in the five films which he challenged me to watch as a part of the Take 5 Challenge.

I found this film to be absolutely idiotic to the point of being insulting. It actually just doesn't work as a film. It may please the younger audience at which it was aimed, but it did not do anything for me at all. The story of the film is ridiculously surreal. At some moments in the film, I was questioning if I was hallucinating or that was actually happening on screen. It takes every trope of the generic animated film and somehow makes it worse by turning it to be thoroughly stupid. I believe I may have actually lost brain cells while watching this film. If I had to spend money on it, I certainly would have shed a tear for the waste of my labor that went into paying for it. The humor was unfunny, for the most part. It is predominantly potty humor, and that doesn't work. The rest of the humor also revolves around the central gag of the film, the baby being voiced by a man in his 50's, that wore thin in the trailers. I think that I laughed twice in the film, but both of those were out of shock for how negative of an influence this film would be for children.

I would be lying if I said the film wasn't well-animated. It definitely looks professional with Dreamworks's signature style. There are a few moments that are a little too brightly colored for my tastes, but they still look complex and layered. That being said, the film isn't a good film because it doesn't have a good story. I was also upset by some other elements of the films production, including the butchering of The Beatles' song, "Blackbird". Additionally, the voice cast seems like they are phoning it in for most of the film, especially Jimmy Kimmel and Steve Buscemi, both of whom can be absolutely hilarious with their delivery.

I honestly don't know how or why The Boss Baby got an Academy Award nomination. Sure, this was a weak year overall for animated films, but there were still multiple films that were of a significantly higher quality and enjoyment factor. I don't really recommend anyone watching this film unless if you believe that you have to in order to prove how bad it is for yourself.

The Boss Baby
Big Tuna's Rating: F+
How Did I Watch It?: Netflix.
Had I Seen It Before?: No.
Would I Watch It Again?: No.