Category Archives: Madeline Sharafian

2020 Films, Adventure, Angus MacLane, Animated, Children, Chris Pratt, Dan Scanlon, Disney, Fantasy, John Ratzenberger, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Lee Unkrich, Madeline Sharafian, Octavia Spencer, Pete Docter, Rosana Sullivan, Tom Holland, Tracey Ullman

Onward-2020

Leave a comment

Onward-2020

Director Dan Scanlon

Starring Tom Holland, Chris Pratt

Scott’s Review #1,164

Reviewed July 23, 2021

Grade: B+

An emotionally satisfying adventure film that the whole family can enjoy, Onward (2020) feels fresh and inventive while still employing some standard plot points.

Pixar/Disney sure knows how to churn out animated features with a nice message and a family sensibility.

There is also plenty of diversity that delivers an inclusive feeling, so hugely important in the modern age.

Kids are impressionable and learn so much from the films they watch, so this quality brought a smile to my face in an otherwise enjoyable experience.

The film also celebrates non-traditional families, showing that not having a traditional mother and father and a pet dog doesn’t make you strange or unworthy of love and understanding.

Onward is not entirely outside the box, however, and is careful to lure in the mainstream middle America audience. Still, some progressive treats mix well with a robust brotherly adventure tale.

Though the title, Onward, doesn’t stick in my mind very long, the film itself does.

I may have even shed a tear or two during the heartfelt finale.

Teenage elf brothers Ian and Barley (voiced by Tom Holland and Chris Pratt) embark on a magical quest to spend one more day with their deceased father, who loved magic. Their journey is filled with cryptic maps, overwhelming obstacles, and discoveries like any good adventure.

But when their Mom (voiced by Julia Louis-Dreyfus) finds out her sons are missing, she goes into mother lion mode and teams up with the legendary manticore (voiced by Octavia Spencer) to bring her beloved boys back home.

The lead character, Ian, is a sixteen-year-old boy with growing pains and vulnerabilities that immediately make him likable. He is eager to make friends but awkward about doing so.

It is suggested that he has no friends coming to his birthday party, but it’s unclear why not. Ian is also a nervous driver, terrified of traversing a busy freeway.

He is an ordinary kid whom the audience can see in themselves or a former self of years gone by.

His brother, Barley, is the opposite. He is fearless and doesn’t care who he befriends or what people think of him. His outrageous vehicle, named Guinevere, is a rebuilt van.

Think the mystery mobile from Scooby-Doo.

The crux of Onward is about relationships. At first, we assume that the big payoff will be between Ian/Barley and their father. While that happens, a surprise blossoms along the way, and instead of a standard father/son dynamic, we get a brother/brother one.

This is a treat and conveys a dual message. Never take for granted a loved one already in your life because one day they may be gone.

I enjoyed the adventures of Ian and Barley mostly because I just knew that some reunion would occur between the boys and their father. Their gift of a day spent with their father was marred by the fact that only his bottom half was visible, but I suspected we would eventually see the rest of him.

Avoiding complete predictability, only one of the boys gets to interact with his father as the other looks on longingly.

I enjoyed this element quite a bit as it avoided cliché and offered raw emotion.

Speaking of diversity, two gay female police officers appear in one scene, and a suggestion that some of a motorcycle gang of pixies might be gay is also noticed. Again, this is important for child viewers to be exposed to.

Another win is the animation itself- look at the cover art above for proof. With gorgeous purple and blue colors, the nighttime scenes work exceptionally well with a bright and luminous look that I adored.

A slight miss was that the boy’s mother never got to reunite with her dead husband, and their relationship was treated as merely an afterthought. The featured plot was that the brothers missed their Dad. A reunion between husband and wife would have been nice.

With a tender and emotionally satisfying conclusion, this cemented my appreciation for Onward (2020). There may be a tad too many car chase scenes and a couple of hokey plot ploys, but the film has a lot of heart that shines through.

Oscar Nominations: Best Animated Feature

2020 Films, Adrien Merigeau, Animated, Erick Oh, Gísli Darri Halldórsson, Madeline Sharafian, Michael Govier, Shorts, Will McCormack

Oscar-Nominated Animated Short Films-2020

Leave a comment

Oscar-Nominated Animated Short Films-2020

Directors Madeline Sharafian, Adrien Merigeau, Will McCormack, Michael Govier, Erick Oh, Gisli Darri Halldorsson

Scott’s Review #1,135

Grade: A-

Having the honor of being able to view the five short films nominated for the 2020 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film at my local art theater was pretty amazing.

Especially in the year of Covid! Far too often dismissed as either irrelevant or completely flying under the radar of animated offerings, it is time to champion these fine little pieces of artistic achievement.

On par with or even superseding the full-length animated features, each of the five offers a vastly different experience. Still, each offers either inspired or hopeful messages or dark, devious, and edgy stories.

The commonality this year is that there are no similarities.

The overall tone is dour, except for one cute short featuring a rabbit and a peculiar look at the everyday life of Icelandic people.

Below is a review of each of the shorts.

Burrow-2020 (USA)

A darling story, Burrow tells the tale of a young rabbit who tries to build the burrow of her dreams, becoming embarrassed each time she accidentally digs into a neighbor’s home.

By far the safest of the five shorts, and the most hopeful, the experience is pleasant and comical as the rabbit’s exuberance and joys are infectious.

I got a real sense of community and warmth seeing the rabbits and other creatures pull together and form a communal bond rather than living in separation.

It’s an inspiring and wholesome story.

Grade: B+

Genius Loci-2020 (France)

One night, Reine, a young loner, sees the urban chaos as a mystical oneness that seems alive, like some guide.

Genius Loci is dark and depressing and challenging to understand, but my takeaway was one of mental illness and the struggle to face daily life.

Reine appears to either live with someone or have a child, but it’s difficult to determine. Reine sees the world through watercolors and muted shapes, which is quite beautiful to experience, but the plot is tough to define precisely.

I used my imagination.

Grade: A-

Opera-2020 (USA)

Our society and history, which are filled with beauty and absurdity, are experienced with Opera, the oddest of the bunch. At merely nine minutes, it’s a short piece, but intriguing nonetheless.

It is a single, comprehensive image of various activities within a pyramid shape, meant to represent the history of the world and daily life. There are tons of windows showing different activities. Oddities, such as a brothel and someone being fed plate after plate of food, are featured.

This one is also open to much interpretation, as so many events can be seen.

Grade: A-

If Anything Happens I Love You-2020 (USA) (Won)

If Anything Happens I Love You, produced by Laura Dern, describes the aftermath of tragedy, as two grieving parents journey through an emotional void as they mourn the loss of a child.

This short will make the tears flow, if not a downright sob, and is my favorite of the group. The viewer is aware that the parents have lost their ten-year-old daughter, but not how until close to the end. We wonder how death occurs.

The timeliness makes it the most powerful in a time of school shootings and constant gun control battles. Yes, it’s depressing but necessary.

Grade: A

Yes-People-2020 (Iceland)

As someone with a deep affection for Iceland and fortunate enough to have visited the country, I was thrilled to see it represented.

One morning, an eclectic mix of people face the everyday battle, such as work, school, and dish-washing. As the day progresses, their relationships are tested and ultimately their capacity to cope.

Besides Burrow, Yes-People is the only one to include some humor, and the boozy housewife and her fat working husband are my favorites.

Joyous is also the couple who have loud sex for their neighbors to hear. Clever is how the word “yes” can be meant in so many tones and textures.

It’s a short slice of life, offering a glimpse into people’s ordinary lives.

Grade: A-

2017 Films, Angus MacLane, Animated, Anthony Gonzalez, Benjamin Bratt, Best Animated Feature Oscar Winners, Cheech Marin, Children, Comedy, Dan Scanlon, Dave Mullins, Disney, Drama, Edward James Olmos, Fantasy, Gael García Bernal, John Ratzenberger, Lee Unkrich, Madeline Sharafian, Pete Docter, Trevor Jimenez

Coco-2017

Leave a comment

Coco-2017

Director Lee Unkrich

Voices Anthony Gonzalez, Benjamin Bratt

Scott’s Review #737

Reviewed April 4, 2018

Grade: B+

Winner of the 2017 Best Animated Feature Academy Award, Coco is an exuberant and colorful affair filled with marvelous lights and a Mexican cultural infusion that serves the film well, making it feel robust with diversity and inclusion.

The overall theme of family, traditions, and musical celebration is apparent, making for good razzle-dazzle with lots of upbeat songs and dance.

Mixed in is a lovely inter-generational theme, where older folks are respected, something lacking in today’s real world.

Miguel Rivera is a twelve-year-old boy living in Mexico with his extended family, including his elderly great-grandmother, Coco, who is sadly suffering from intermittent dementia.

Through flashbacks, we learn that Coco’s father (Miguel’s great-great-grandfather) was an aspiring musician who abandoned the family for greener pastures.

Subsequently, the Rivera clan banned all music in favor of a modest shoe-making business.

As Miguel realizes his passion for music, he conflicts with his family, who have other aspirations for the young man. Miguel embarks on a fantastic journey to the magical and somewhat frightening land of his deceased ancestors, coinciding with the festive Day of the Dead celebration, a tradition of Mexican culture.

There he realizes the true nature of his great-great-grandfather’s sudden departure.

Coco is a film that can be enjoyed by all family members and is structured in just that way. The blatant use of multiple generations greatly appeals to the idea of blending the family unit.

Pixar successfully sets all the correct elements in place for a successful film, and the well-written story only adds layers. The film is quite mainstream, yet appealing to the masses.

Perhaps very young viewers may become frightened by some of the skeleton-laced faces of Miguel’s ancestors in the other world where he visits. Still, these images are somewhat tame and mixed with vibrant colors and extraordinary production numbers.

These images are undoubtedly meant to entertain rather than be scary and the creatures possess a friendly vibe.

Having viewed the film on an airplane traveling cross-country (admittedly not the best way to watch a film), the lovely and touching musical number “Remember Me (Lullaby)” entranced me, so much so that I was moved to tears right on the plane.

How’s that for effectiveness?

The emotional level reached via this song impressed me immensely about Coco, even when the story occasionally is secondary to the visual or musical elements.

In fact, the story began to lag slightly until the aforementioned big musical number came into play. The song really kicked the action into high gear emotionally, and I became more enamored with the characters and their connections to one another.

Miguel and his relatives’ love became more apparent, and the conclusion is pleasing and satisfactory.

A slight miss in the film, corrected midway through, is Miguel’s bratty and entitled nature. He heaves sighs when he does not get his way, which seems more apparent early on and was quite the turn-off—at first, I did not care for the character, yet I knew I was supposed to.

Thankfully, the character becomes the hero of the film and ultimately a sweet, likable character. I pondered, “Is that what kids like these days?”

Pixar does it again, creating a family-friendly experience with a positive yet non-cliched message of belonging, forgiveness, and the importance of family connections that feels fresh.

In current times of divisiveness, especially with immigration and other cultures being attacked, how appropriate is it to experience Coco (2017), a feel-good yet not contrived project?

Oscar Nominations: 2 wins-Best Original Song-“Remember Me” (won), Best Animated Feature Film (won)