December 2019 Movie Trailers

December 13


Richard Jewell

December 20


The Rise of Skywalker

December 25


Just Mercy

1917

"Dumbo" Movie Review: You Will Believe an Elephant Can Fly

Not only is Dumbo Disney's best live-action remake to date but it's also the jewel in director Tim Burton's filmographic crown. And Dumbo himself is the greatest animal character to ever grace a movie screen. I shit you not. Not even Babe or Bambi could outcharm the Jumbo family's baby boy. Dumbo's not the type of film that lends itself to follow-ups -- with good reason. But honestly, I really wanna see more of that little guy. Not since WALL-E has a movie character embodied innocence and purity so completely. Not even the Grinch could hate that floppy-eared little pachyderm.

1941's Dumbo was the Disney classic most in need of an update. An enormous hit upon release, the film actually saved the company from financial ruin (Dumbo's immediate predecessors, Pinocchio and Fantasia, were back-to-back flops). But at a mere 64 minutes, this short Disney smash is nevertheless rife with racism (there's actually a crow -- voiced by a white performer using an exaggerated stereotypically African American accent -- named Jim Crow) and better left in the past. But 78 years later, instead of throwing the baby elephant out with the bath water, the entertainment behemoth has wisely allowed Burton to lengthen the truncated story and clean up its egregious moments of bigotry. The new film even (expertly) uses antagonistic character V.A. Vandevere and his Dreamland amusement park to comment on Walt Disney and his empire's ongoing struggles with diversity as well as the founder and his conglomerate's neverending efforts to monopolize show business (the company gobbled up Marvel, Lucasfilm and Twentieth Century Fox in less than a decade, after all).

Burton retained the crux of the original story: a featured circus elephant (Mrs. Jumbo) gives birth to a baby with oversized ears; the calf is ridiculed and nicknamed "Dumbo" because of his unconventional appearance. However, in a spectacular case of making lemonade out of lemons, Dumbo discovers to everyone's surprise, including his own, that his ears grant him the power of flight -- but only when he's in possession of a magic feather. This ability of course catapults Dumbo from bullied reject to star-attraction. And eventually, he learns that the feather was never necessary and that the magic was inside of him all along. But while the original movie featured the "happy" ending of Dumbo and his mom remaining in the circus with slightly improved treatment, the remake allows the duo to be liberated, returning to the wild where they're warmly received by a new herd.

The term "heart-warming" gets thrown around quite a bit but anyone who's ever had a puppy, a kitten or a heart should find his/her chest on fire before Dumbo even reaches the halfway mark. Cinematically speaking, 2018 was certainly the year of the panther. And as far as I'm concerned, this is the year of the elephant.

An Early Review of "Little"

by John Zenoni

For a good, lighthearted film you need to check out the latest in the genre of ‘body-switching’ films called ‘Little.’ In this case, the main character, played by Regina Hall, doesn't actually switch bodies with anyone but is instead reverted back to when she was much younger and going through what she considers to be the worst time of her life. Regina Hall is great, as well as her employee, played by Issa Rae, but the show belongs to the younger Regina Hall character, played by Marsai Martin. She's a definite scene-stealer and I can see her having a long film career. While it's not the best movie in the world, it's still enjoyable and has quite a few laughs. Definitely a fun film and a break from all the seriousness of everyday life. The audience clapped at the end of the film at the screening I attended so that tells you people enjoyed it!

"Dumbo" Movie Review

by John Zenoni

Ok, here I go...first, the movie is waaaaaay too long. There was too much filler, fluff, just things to make it a 2 hour movie. Second, the acting was corny in so many ways. I'm sorry but the little girl in the film was always ready and on hand with a response and answer to everything and her brother was just basically there. He had no real dialogue. Danny Devito was good but what a waste of talent in Colin Farrell, Michael Keaton and Eva Green. There was no real meat to their characters. I wanted to get some more background on Colin Farrell’s character but there was nothing. 

There were some good scenes and the CGI is amazing I have to admit but the film itself is just a showpiece for that. Tim Burton was at one time a director who could really make you enjoy his ‘magical worlds’ with his images, uniqueness and special effects. But I can see why this movie didn't do as well as expected. It's definitely better than the horrible job he did with a great book, ‘Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children’, but he's gotten way too lost in trying to be so different.