Movies, Mom & Me

• Who's watched: M & G
• Mentions: None
• 
  Commentary:  Mom: Really enjoys this one, although not as much as Monster's, Inc.
    Me: I'm with Mom on this one. It's one of the very few animated movies I can handle, but not my favorite. I often do chores when Mom watches it.
  Update 8/10/21:  As the post implies, I did not watch this movie after Mom died and, when the culling of my collection came around, I was sure I never would, so, to the library it went. As of today, my county library system has many copies of this movie, so if I every get a yen for it ... but, I probably won't.
  Update 11/17/2021:  This post was originally published February 6, 2005. It was one of the accidental deletions that occurred, which is covered in this post.
  Update 5/17/2025:  Once again, I had to move this post. Since I've had so many problems with these transferred posts, this one in particular, I decided to bring it up to the top where it will stay until I enter more movies. I suppose this seems silly to do this for a movie that I long ago passed out of my collection and onto the library, but I'm nothing if not meticulous, yes, sometimes to a fault!
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Dave Foley	Flik	Kevin Spacey	Hopper	Julia Louis-Dreyfus	Princess Atta	Denis Leary	Francis
  David Hyde Pierce	Slim	Madeline Kahn	Gypsy	Bonnie Hunt	Rosie	John Ratzenberger	P.T. Flea
  Brad Garrett	Dim	Richard Kind	Molt	Phyllis Diller	The Queen	Roddy McDowall	Mr. Soil

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 1998
    Directed by John Lasseter.

Labels: animated, dramedy3, kids

# posted by gail @ 17:43    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  Under construction.
    I've known about this movie and have wanted to see it since relatively soon after it came out. It was not available to English-speaking audiences, though, until 1998, and then very hard to find and very expensive to procure. It's still a bit pricey, but much more easily available, and quite a bit cheaper than it was "back then".
    Roger Ebert christened it one of his Great Movies in 2000. In 2018 a fellow movie critic from Roger's site published a tribute to the film's creator, Isao Takahata upon his death that year.
    Isao Takahata was a stunning animator and story teller. You've probably seen several of his productions listed in the tribute linked above. I am really looking forward to absorbing this movie of his.
    More later.
    I will, by the way, be adding an Actor/Role Table later. The movie has been released in at least three English dubbed/and-or subtitled versions and thus requires a bit of tweaking to my usual list, so, give me "a moment", please, to figure out the presentation and to determine which iteration I was able to procure. I won't definitely know which one I've got until I receive the movie, and it won't make it to me until August 5th.
    Update 072924:  The movie arrived today @ 1:45 p.m. via FedEx. Very securely packaged. I'm impressed, and I haven't yet played it. I'll be adding the Actor/Role table, in English, later today. Thank you, Amazon.co.jp!
    

  MOVIE CHARACTERS	Seita Yokokawa	Setsuko Yokokawa	Seita and Setsuko's Mother	Relative's Aunt	Aunt's Daughter	Doctor
  JAPANESE ACTORS	Tsutomu Tatsumi	Ayano Shiraishi	Yoshiko Shinohara	Akemi Yamaguchi	Kazumi Nozaki	Hiroshi Kawaguchi
  ENGLISH ACTORS 1998	J. Robert Spencer	Corinne Orr	Veronica Taylor	Amy Jones	Shannon Conley	Dan Green

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 1998
    Directed by Isao Takahata.

Labels: animated, survival, war3

# posted by gail @ 14:37    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  Under construction.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Michael Sinterniklaas	Taki Tachibana	Stephanie Sheh	Mitsuha Miyamizu	Kyle Hebert	Katsuhiko Teshigawara	Cassandra Morris	Sayaka Natori
  Ben Pronsky	Tsukasa Fujii	Ray Chase	Shinta Takagi	Laura Post	Miki Okudera	Glynis Ellis	Hitoha Miyamizu

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 2016
    Directed by Makoto Shinkai.

Labels: animated, fantasy4, romance6

# posted by gail @ 07:59    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  Under construction.
    Professional critics left a trail of highly ambivalent reviews of this movie. This is one of the reasons I decided to add it to my collection. The other reason is the star-spangled cast, some of whom are mentioned below. Wow! Was this movie chased after by the acting community and the heavy-hitters tended to win out! They clearly had high hopes for it. Which, I think, in the end, is what made this movie so popular.
    More later.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  John Hurt	Hazel	Richard Briers	Fiver	Michael Graham Cox	Bigwig	John Bennett	Captain Holly
  Ralph Richardson	Chief Rabbit of Sandleford	Simon Cadell	Blackberry	Roy Kinnear	Pipkin	Terence Rigby	Silver
  Mary Maddox	Clover	Richard O'Callaghan	Dandelion	Denholm Elliott	Cowslip	Zero Mostel	Kehaar
  Harry Andrews	General Woundwort	Hannah Gordon	Hyzenthlay	Nigel Hawthorne	Campion	Lynn Farleigh	Tab the cat

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 1978
    Directed by Martin Rosen.

Labels: animated, Criterion7, john-hurt, rosamund-pike

# posted by gail @ 16:52    0 comments    email......this post

• Who's watched:  M & G, more than once
  Mentions:  None
  
• 
  Commentary:  Something about the scene in which the invading army comes over a snow ridge. Something else about that "song and dance" number about what it takes to be a man. Something else about it being a Chinese fairy tale. I don't know if Mom likes it for the same reasons I do, but I know she likes it. I've even replayed the "Be a Man" song for her when we are watching it.
    Too, and I don't know if this has anything to do with my enjoyment of the film, when the movie hit the theaters in 1998 Mom and I took my Chandler niece to see it because all three of us were excited about the movie.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Ming-Na Wen	Fa Mulan	Eddie Murphy	Mushu	BD Wong	Captain Li Shang	Miguel Ferrer	Shan Yu

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 1998
    Directed by Tony Bancroft & Barry Cook.

Labels: action3, adventure4, animated, coming-of-age2, father-daughter-dynamics, gender-bender, kids, period6, shared-favorite, suspense2

# posted by gail @ 11:30    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  Under construction.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Peggy Ashcroft	Hilda Bloggs	John Mills	Jim Bloggs	Robin Houston	Radio 4 Announcer
  James Russell	Additional Voice	David Dundas	Additional Voice	Matt Irving	Additional Voice

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 1986
    Directed by Jimmy T. Murakami.

Labels: §5, animated, apocalyptic, goflexC, nuclear, tragedy2

# posted by gail @ 14:31    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  There are so many reasons why I could have missed this film, not the least of which is that I was unfamiliar with the manga series. Suffice it to say, I am ever grateful to the movie gods that I didn't. This evocative film is right up my alley. The animation, as well, is stunning. It roils underneath while observing a startling surface propriety. Just a gem.
    Here's a second review that I found interesting, as well.
  Update 6/2/2022:  This post was originally published on 2/5/2018 but disappeared from public view. I am now reinstating it.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  O-Ei	Erica Lindbeck	Katsushika Hokusai	Richard Epcar	Ikeda Zenjiro	Ezra Weisz	Utagawa Kuninao	Robbie Daymond
  Koto	Barbara Goodson	O-Nao	Courtney Chu	Iwakubo Hatsugoro	Marc Diraison	Kichiya	Kevin T. Collins

  
    The Wikipedia write-up for this film (and manga series) is here.
    Release Date: 2015
    Directed by Keiichi Hara.

Labels: animated, drama5, father-daughter-dynamics, film-art1, haunting1, historical2, period2, spiritual1, women's-movie1

# posted by gail @ 11:03    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  Truth is, I first watched this movie when it was on Netflix and I was in the middle of an at-ends evening and didn't want to do anything, let alone watch a movie that would require mental involvement on my part. I figured this would be a good movie to watch and expected it to be the first in an evening that promised a lot of movie switching. I couldn't imagine I would like the movie or stay with it long. See, I was raised on an island for the bulk of my childhood and young adulthood. I was absolutely positive that Moana would get everything, everything psychological and emotional, anyway, about the island experience wrong. Turns out, I was wrong.
    Despite the fact that it featured yet another wide-eyed, plucky, Disney heroine, the type I loathe, it got a surprising number of island-heart things right. The fear of swimming, for one thing. This was standard on the island on which I was raised. The chickens, Cuban Cocks, to boot. Ye gads! Cuban chickens were everywhere on my home! I wasn't pleased with the protrayal of the Cuban Cock sidekick. I thought he either could have been improved, along the lines of the mini-dragon in Mulan, or dropped altogether from the story. The resolution of the conflict in the movie, which ends with Te Fiti curling up and "going to sleep" as an island was intriguing in light of the legends I'd learned about the creation of my home island. And all the characters were well drawn, particularly Moana and Maui. "Yep," I thought after watching it, "this movie I have to own, even if it is a Disney cartoon."
  Update 2/10/18:  I know, Moana isn't the classic super-hero, but Te Fiti is, and Maui is a demigod with possibilities of becoming a super-hero. By the end of the movie it's easy to wonder if Moana might have turned him around in his tracks through her display or non-super heroism.
  Update 6/2/2022:  This post was originally published on 2/5/2018 but disappeared from public view. I am now reinstating it.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Auliʻi Cravalho	Moana	Dwayne Johnson	Maui	Rachel House	Tala, Moana's Grandmother	Temuera Morrison	Tui, Moana's Father
  Nicole Scherzinger	Sina, Moana's Mother	Jemaine Clement	Tamatoa, Coconut Crab	Alan Tudyk	Heihei, Rooster/Villager #3	Oscar Kightley	Fisherman

  
    Release Date: 2016
    Directed by Don Hall & Chris Williams.

Labels: adventure1, animated, coming-of-age1, drama5, musical1, popcorn-and-soda2, road-movie, super-hero2

# posted by gail @ 10:59    0 comments    email......this post

• Who's watched:  M & G, many times
• Mentions:  *1* *2* *3*
• 
  Commentary:  As I recall, my mentions of this movie speak for both my mother's and my delight in it. Aside from my favorite scene with Bruce the Shark, which I've seen many times, I love being transported by the oceanic graphic environment of the movie, including, and especially, the background ocean music. It is truly one better than the ocean, only because it is so available. Watching the movie is practically like having a virtual experience without the nerve stimulation technology.
    My mother, I should note, usually takes a nap after this movie. Perhaps, she actually lives through it.
  Update 11/17/2021:  This post was originally published February 6, 2005. It was one of the accidental deletions that occurred, which is covered in this post.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Albert Brooks	Marlin	Alexander Gould	Nemo	Ellen DeGeneres	Dory	Willem Dafoe	Gill
  Allison Janney	Peach	Andrew Stanton	Crush	Nicholas Bird	Squirt	Barry Humphries	Bruce
  Geoffrey Rush	Nigel	Vicki Lewis	Deb & Flo	John Ratzenberger	Moonfish school	Bill Hunter	Dentist Philip Sherman

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 2003
    Directed by Andrew Stanton & Lee Unkrich.

Labels: animated, bill-hunter, coming-of-age2, dramedy2, kids, shared-favorite, willem-dafoe

# posted by gail @ 19:14    0 comments    email......this post

• Who's watched: M & G, both more than once
• Mentions: *1* *2*
• 
  Commentary:  My relationship with Harvey Pekar began through a former boyfriend of mine who was a rabid fan of his comics. He introduced me to the wonderful world of adult comics, but, more than that, he was sure I would have an affinity for American Splendor. He was right. He is also long dead as I write this, but, when I watch this movie, I imagine him looking over my shoulder approvingly and say, "I knew this was movie material! I knew they'd make a movie of it!" He did. And he was right.
    Mom 'caught' me watching this the afternoon I purchased it when she was napping. I was surprised that she was as seduced by it as I am. I think his character displays a sensibility that she learned well during her young-to-middle adult years, having been born in 1917.
  Update 11/17/2021:  This post was originally published February 6, 2005. It was one of the accidental deletions that occurred, which is covered in this post.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Paul Giamatti	Harvey Pekar	Hope Davis	Joyce Brabner	Judah Friedlander	Toby Radloff	James Urbaniak	Robert Crumb

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up for this film.
    Release Date: 2003
    Directed by Shari Springer Berman & Robert Pulcini.

Labels: animated, biography2, dramedy2, female-director1, film-art2, hope-davis, me-favorite4, paul-giamatti

# posted by gail @ 18:21    0 comments    email......this post

• Who's watched:  M & G
• Mentions:  None
• 
  Commentary:  This movie is a treat for both of us. My mother is an animation fan, anyway, so she was an easy sell. She often requests this movie when I'm drying her hair, then watches it through to the end. We play the credits at least a couple of times per viewing because she and I both like the theme song (including the fact that it's written and sung by Randy Newman).
    I'm a very hard animation sell, but everything about this movie charmed me, including the concept and its development. I am a devotee of children's literature, anyway (all ages), but animation has never done much for me, even as a kid. Pixar, though, seems to know exactly how to seduce my eye, and I'm a big fan of most of their stuff. I consider this movie one of their most brazen and imaginative. Even so, after Mom died, I donated it to the library. I didn't think I'd watch it again because, well, again, I'm a very hard animation sell.
  Update 5/8/22:  This is a reposting of a previous post dated 2/7/2005 that I managed to recover.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  John Goodman	Sullivan	Billy Crystal	Mike	Mary Gibbs	Boo	Steve Buscemi	Randall
  James Coburn	Waternoose	Jennifer Tilly	Celia	Frank Oz	Fungus	John Ratzenberger	Yeti

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 2001
    Directed by Pete Docter.

Labels: animated, dramedy2, kids, mom-favorite2, steve-buscemi, suspense2

# posted by gail @ 17:17    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  Under construction.
    I haven't yet watched this "Conquest & Rebellion" disk, but here's an explanation of what it contains from a review of the season it accompanies (Season 7) I found on Amazon.com written by commenter "Happy Reader": "BONUS DISC - In a separate disc holder is 'Game of Thrones: Conquest & Rebellion, An Animated History of the Seven Kingdoms.' I found this delightful. Produced in 2017, this starts with the city of Valyria across the sea, 'through magic or sheer will, they mastered the greatest creatures in history.' That is, they had dragons. In 10 chapters, this 45 minute featurette takes you from Valyeria to Dragonstone and right up to the beginning of the first episode of Season 1. You'll recognize the various narrators, all characters in the TV series. This disc has audio options of English, French and Chinese language. And subtitle options of English SDH, French, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, and two others."
    Nothing on Wikipedia about this bonus disc.
    This link takes you to an ad hoc explanation and appreciative review of the contents of this disc with some graphic captures from the program.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Pilou Asbæk	Euron Greyjoy	Nikolaj Coster-Waldau	Jamie Lannister	Aidan Gillen	Petr Baelish
  Conleth Hill	Lord Varys	Harry Lloyd	Viserys Targaryen	Sophie Turner	Sansa Stark

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of Season 7, which this disk accompanied. There is no mention in the article of this disk being included in the package, nor is there a write-up on Wikipedia specifically about this production.
  Update 6/5/2022:  A mention of this animation has finally appeared here in the overall Wikipedia page for the TV series. There's not much, but it is mentioned. Still nothing on the Season 7 Wikipedia page, though.
    Release Date: 2017
    Directed by: Nothing anywhere, that I can find, about who directed this pre-history of the Seven Kingdoms, although Dave Hill is the credited writer. Perhaps, when I watch it, a credit to the director will roll. If that happens, this post will be updated.

Labels: animated, historical4

# posted by gail @ 00:21    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  I confess that I have not yet seen this movie. When I picked it up at Costco I was delighted I was finally able to purchase it, remembering my pleasure in the 1994 (and original) version of this story.
    I haven't yet watched this movie. Suffice it to say, I expected to watch it the day I purchased it. Then, I looked up the Wikipedia article about this version and completely confused myself with the stridently divided critiques of it. While praising the voice acting, critics simultaneously called the movie various versions of "soulless". How is it possible for excellent voice acting to render a "soulless" movie, I wonder? Maybe some critics had a problem with the cgi-animation. Frankly, I love cgi-animation, so, we'll see. Soon.
    Maybe today.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Donald Glover	Simba	Seth Rogen	Pumbaa	Chiwetel Ejiofor	Scar	Alfre Woodard	Sarabi
  Billy Eichner	Timon	John Kani	Rafiki	John Oliver	Zazu	Beyoncé Knowles-Carter	Nala
  James Earl Jones	Mufasa	Florence Kasumba	Shenzi	Keegan-Michael Key	Kamari	Eric André	Azizi

  
    In case you're curious to see what information Wikipedia has to offer about this latest film rendition of the story, here's the link.
    Release Date: 2019
    Directed by Jon Favreau.

Labels: §, adventure2, animated, cgi-animation, coming-of-age1, kids, musical1, royals

# posted by gail @ 09:33    0 comments    email......this post

• 
  Commentary:  (See write-up for Maleficent.) I've never been much for animated movies. When I was a kid I really didn't have what I considered to be needed, the patience for animated movies. My parents caught on quickly. Although it seems that my sisters saw all the animated movies that were available when we were kids in the 60s, there is only one animated movie I'd seen that was made before Pixar started making animated movies (I like more than a few of theirs), and I saw it when I was a kid [Where, I wonder, was I when my sisters were watching movies like Bambi, Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and One Hundred and One Dalmations (the original)?]. That movie was Sleeping Beauty. I loved it. The reason I loved it was because I fell in love with Maleficent (yes, there is even a Wikipedia page devoted to her, such is her power). There were a few other things I liked about Sleeping Beauty: the wand fights with color, the scene in which Sleeping Beauty waltzed with the animals. I even liked that song, which I continue to call "I Know You". Those, though, were all residuals beside Maleficent. Oh! Maleficent! I day dreamed about her. I could quote many of her lines. Somehow, I saw that particular animated feature more than once when I was a kid, despite the lack of movies-in-the-home, just to catch yet another glimpse of Maleficent. So, it should come as no surprise that I bought this movie when I bought Maleficent: the beginning and the continuation of my love affair with Maleficent. My niece, with whom I share a love of all things drama, including movies, told me a few days ago that the ABC TV series Once Upon a Time has begun to incorporate Maleficent. Lucky for me, it's on Netflix. I'm on my way ...
  Update 2/9/18:  As I was re-editing this write-up, I thought it would be fun to include some of the more interesting, and many, reviews of Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent. One, in particular, is from 1959, the Los Angeles Times. I hope to keep an eye out for links in this post that will surely go dead, but don't hold your breath!
    In the table below you'll note the category "Voice/Perf Actor". "Perf" stands for "Performance. I was going to ignore this split until I noticed that many of the Performance Actors are recognizable actors outside of this movie. Gave new meaning, to me, for Disney animation.
    

  Voice/Perf Actor	Role	Voice/Perf Actor	Role	Voice/Perf Actor	Role	Voice/Perf Actor	Role
  Mary Costa/Helene Stanley	Princess Aurora	Bill Shirley/Ed Kemmer	Prince Phillip	Eleanor Audley/Jane Fowler	Maleficent	Verna Felton/Frances Bavier	Fairy Flora
  Barbara Jo Allen/Madge Blake	Fairy Fauna	Barbara Luddy/Spring Byington	Fairy Merryweather	Taylor Holmes/Hans Conried	King Stefan	Verna Felton/Jane Fowler	Queen Leah
  Bill Thompson/Don Barclay	King Hubert	Dallas McKennon	Owl/Diablo	Marvin Miller	Narrator	Hans Conried	Lord Duke

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 1959
    Supervising Director: Clyde Geronimi.

Labels: adventure1, animated, drama5, fantasy2, me-favorite1, popcorn-and-soda2

# posted by gail @ 20:49    0 comments    email......this post

• Who's watched:  Watched and bought this movie AMD
• Mentions:  None
• 
  Commentary:  Although this movie was released before Mom's death, I didn't watch it until after she died, when it became available for rental. On first watching I determined that I wasn't particularly interested in owning it, even though it was entertaining. I wasn't impressed by the story. I did, however, find myself keeping the movie for several days and re-viewing the music segments, some of which I found captivating, and playing it in the background because I found that the reproductions of the songs by various artists added flavor to the compositions. I still resisted owning it, though, until I stumbled across a severely marked down copy. I don't find it an adequate substitute for The Beatles, but it's an interesting and informative adjunct.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Evan Rachel Wood	Lucy	Jim Sturgess	Jude	Joe Anderson	Max	Dana Fuchs	Sadie
  Lynn Cohen	Grandmother Karrigan	Dylan Baker	Mr. Carrigan	Carol Woods	Gospel Singer	Harry Lennix	army sergeant
  James Urbaniak	Manager Bill	Bono	Dr. Robert	Eddie Izzard	Mr. Kite	Salma Hayek	Bang Bang Shoot Shoot Nurses

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up for this film.
    Release Date: 2007
    Directed by Julie Taymor.

Labels: animated, audio-visual, drama6, dylan-baker, fantasy2, female-director1, film-art1, musical1, period3, romance1, spectacle1

# posted by gail @ 11:59    0 comments    email......this post

• Who's watched:  M & G
• Mentions:  None
• 
  Commentary:  We've owned this movie for almost exactly a year, now. I'm not surprised there are no mentions of it in any of the journals. Last year, during a period when my Christmas Spirit was fairly high, I bought this movie on the strength of a recommendation of a friend who, knowing how much Mom likes Christmas and movies, thought she'd love this one. Last year, though, both of us were underwhelmed by the movie. Although it's only 100 minutes, Mom said, at the end, "Well, I'm glad that's over. It seemed to go on forever."
    I wasn't particularly thrilled with the animation. I remember seeing the first movie made in this style of animation, a science fiction piece in which Ed Harris was one of the stars. There was something disturbing for me, watching a movie whose intent was to be so animated it appeared to be real and yet wasn't. It was this same effect that bothered me about this movie.
    Interesting to me that Roger Ebert loved this movie. Of course, on his behalf, Mom and I aren't children. Perhaps that's the problem with us. Except that, neither of us don't like movies designed for children. We both, for instance, love Pee Wee's Playhouse. Oops! Maybe that's the problem!
    At any rate, we decided to put it in our "to be traded" pile. Every time I accessed the pile during the ensuing year, though, I left this movie alone. I decided to try it on Mom this year, just in case, before I took it in for trade. This was a good decision. We decided to watch it last night. I told Mom we were watching it with an eye to whether or not we would keep it. I don't know whether she remembered this. What I do know is that she was thoroughly involved in the movie, this time. It even kicked off what I expect will be a Thanksgiving weekend of watching all our holiday movies (which are few, at this time). I was still so distracted that I chose to perform chores and advance Thanksgiving dinner prep. But, Mom was thoroughly satisfied; so, I guess it's a keeper; and now I'm entering it on our list.
  Update 7/31/21:  Well, obviously, we didn't keep this forever, or, perhaps (I don't recall), I didn't keep it forever. I probably chucked it to the library after Mom died, but, frankly, I don't remember. I might have traded it in during the two years left of Mom's life.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Tom Hanks	Hero Boy	Nona Gaye	Hero Girl	Peter Scolari	Billy the Lonely Boy	Eddie Deezen	Know-It-All
  Michael Jeter	Smokey/Steamer	Leslie Zemeckis	Sister Sarah/Hero Boy's Mother	Dylan Cash	Boy on Train	Brendan King	Pastry Chef

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 2004
    Directed by Robert Zemeckis.

Labels: animated, Christmas, pseudo-cgi-animation, tom-hanks

# posted by gail @ 11:14    0 comments    email......this post

• Who's watched:  M & G
• Mentions:  *1*
• 
  Commentary:  Again, I'm not a fan of animation, but this pulled me in when the shot of the zebras on the plain, at the beginning of the movie, dissolved into the shot of ants carrying leaves along a tree branch; or vice versa, I'm not sure which way the shot dissolved. At any rate, I find it very entertaining. So does my Mom. It has, though, been awhile since we've seen this one.
    Here's a link to a site called "The Lion King World Wide Web Archive - The Unofficial Fan Resource". It's grown quite a bit since I last visited it (I'm writing this on 7/31/21). It's very well done, very up-to-date and loaded with all kinds of stuff related to The Lion King franchise and fandom.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Matthew Broderick	Simba	Jeremy Irons	Scar	James Earl Jones	Mufasa	Moira Kelly	Nala
  Nathan Lane	Timon	Ernie Sabella	Pumbaa	Robert Guillaume	Rafiki	Rowan Atkinson	Zazu
  Madge Sinclair	Sarabi	Whoopi Goldberg	Hyena Shenzi	Cheech Marin	Hyena Banzai	Jim Cummings	Hyena Ed

  
    If you're in the mood for a quicker take, here's a link to the Wikipedia article about this particular movie.
    Release Date: 1994
    Directed by Roger Allers & Rob Minkoff.

Labels: adventure3, animated, coming-of-age1, kids, musical1, royals, shared-favorite, whoopi-goldberg

# posted by gail @ 12:43    0 comments    email......this post

• Who's watched:  G
• Mentions:  *1* *2*
• 
  Commentary:  Now, this is my idea of a comedy! I laughed and laughed all the way through this thing, and then was stunned at the end! I never think to watch this movie when Mom's awake. I don't know if she'd like it or not. She surprised me with her devotion to My Dinner with Andre so, you never know. If she ever sees it, I'll be sure to report.
    Roger Ebert reviewed this movie twice. His initial review is linked in the title to this post. He reviewed it again when he christened it as one of his Great Movies.
    

  Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role	Actor	Role
  Wiley Wiggins	protagonist	Eamonn Healy	self	Ethan Hawke	self	Richard Linklater	self

  
    Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
    Release Date: 2001
    Directed by Richard Linklater.

Labels: animated, dream1, fantasy3, film-art2, me-favorite3, pseudo-cgi-animation, satire2

# posted by gail @ 07:22    0 comments    email......this post