Hour 21: A Film and Interactive Media Blog

  Superman (2025) "Your choices. Your actions… That's what makes you who you are." -Superman (2025) Is there such a thing as too much charm? In this case, I don't think so. Superman 2025 blasts on to the big screen with a buoyancy that, by all the estimates of our modern eyes, should not work. Though, this film succeeds with flying colors. In my humble opinion, there is no wrong here. James Gunn’s take on Superman is exhilaratingly entertaining from moment 1. This film is a reminder of a golden age of comics in the best way possible, Superman 2025 should be the definition of wearing your heart on your sleeve in the dictionary. Even still, this film manages to evoke more than just pure delight. It is also an honest exploration of what it means to come to terms with who we truly are. It suffices to say that this film works on all its levels. It may be a bit too saccharine for some, but that sweetness is balanced with real life realities in such a way that the fi...

  Moana (2016) “We were voyagers." “It's called wayfinding princess, and it's not just sales and knots. It's seeing where you're going in your mind. Knowing where you are by knowing where you've been.” “Maybe the gods found you for a reason? Maybe the ocean brought you to them because it saw someone who was worthy to be saved.” -Moana (2016) You know when you think about it, it's delightfully inventive to tell a story about voyaging out into the sea by making water so visually enthralling. To be honest the inventiveness doesn't come from the water itself. It's the sheer artistic flex that is Moana. Joking aside, Moana is a true visual treat, the Disney artists have really outdone themselves this time. Though their skill is not just for show it wonderfully conveys the central theme of setting out on your own path, taking life as it drives you forward., Unsurprisingly this forward momentum can only be achieved if we understand where we are going ...

  Jurassic World Rebirth "No one cares about these animals anymore, they deserve better." "One, two, three, coordinates. Go!" "What do we do now?" -Jurassic World Rebirth Imagine a world where dinosaurs have become routine. A world where these prehistoric creatures have become nothing more than sideshow novelties or expressions of corporate greed. To some this reality does not require imagination. To some, it's just the Jurassic film franchise on any given day. Though, if this sentiment is indeed true, then Jurassic Park Rebirth has achieved something remarkable. What is the phrase, "Life finds a way." The seventh Jurassic film brings us back to the beginning. Not chronologically of course, but back to a time where these marvels of creation are just that, marvels. Jurassic World Rebirth takes away the artifice and places these dinosaurs in nature. Now that's not to say that there isn't any tampering with reality, there cer...

  The Fault In Our Stars: The Charm Filled Wages of Suffering and Pain “All is as it should be. God wishes to see people happy. Where there is hope, there is life.” “It's a good life Hazel Grace.” “It's not over yet.” “But, you of all people know it's possible to live with pain.” -The Fault In Our Stars, 2014 There is an in perceivable quality in The Fault in Our Stars. A quality that reaches far beyond this quirky story of two young romantics as they face the travails of cancer. This something is always there, but we usually don't notice it unless it is missing. it may even come as a surprise, because it adds a sense of realism to a story that is already very real. To put it simply, it is a sense of normalcy. The Fault in Our Stars wonderfully, if that word can be used in this context, infuses a teens battle with cancer with the normalcy of life. Don't get me wrong here, The Fault in Our Stars compassionately understands the seriousness of a cancer diagnosis....

  Me Before You: A Monk, A King and A Disabled Metaphor Fallacy “I know this can be a good life, but it's not my life, it's not even close. you never saw me before, I loved my life. I really loved it. I can't be the kind of man that just accepts this.” “You're not giving it a chance. You're not giving me a chance.” “I don't want you to miss all the things someone else can give you.” -Me Before You, 2016 There is a deeply warranted sentiment in the disability community to not give Me Before You anywhere near the time of day. I couldn't agree more. This film, and the novel it's based on, severely misrepresent disability in all its varied forms. Crafting a story housed in the belief that life is only worth our physical prowess and selfish desires. Me Before You is ableism at Its most tyrannical and suffocating. It seems as if our world wants disability to vanish into oblivion, and Me Before You prolongs that horrific stereotype, with no care for its end....

  From the World of John Wick: Ballerina “But, we all live with the decisions we make” “It is two sides to the same coin, to kill to save.” “In the end, we are who we are.” -From The World of John Wick: Ballerina The John Wick franchise is action cinema at its most streamlined and eloquent. The films are built on the strength of an often overlooked discipline of the creative filmmaking process, choreography. The structure of an action sequence is as much a part of its impact as the stunts or the violence depicted. In fact, now that I think about it, one of this franchise's greatest skills is that it brings out the beauty inherent in these mesmerizing dances of death. The action sequences are the story, and the violence is its thematic core. That's not to say that these films glorify killing, far from it in fact. A consistent counterpoint to John Wick's world of suave assassins, is a desire to escape this world of death dealing, and so it is with Ballerina. Eve's...

  The King of Kings (1927) “I come a light into the world–that whosoever believeth in me shall not abide in darkness." “Truly, this man was the son of God.” “O God–give us back the light.” -The King of Kings, 1927 There is something tremendously mesmerizing about Cecil B. DeMille's silent biblical epic. The King of Kings is at once, a marvelous achievement in cinematic storytelling, and a deeply meditative look at the life of Christ. All, brought on by the techniques inherent in the construction of a silent film. It makes me smile to think that our old friend has returned. Once again, simplicity is the driving force behind the consistent depth of visual storytelling. “The secret impresses no one, the trick you use it for, is everything.” -The Prestige It is generally surmised that movies nowadays have lost their sense of purpose. Wonder has given way to the doldrums of familiarity. In other words, films have lost their luster, because we've become immune to the ma...