jandsm5321 Reviews

Wonka (2023)

I'm impressed and think they did a great job.

[9/10 · 22 April 2024]

Since the movie industry has gotten so gross with their content and messaging in movies lately I had my doubts. Surely there was going to be some garbage thrown in... but by the end I was really impressed. I like it much more than the older Wonka shows and would love to see a sequel.

We had a blast with the music and the kids have been singing the songs regularly since we watched it. I didn't realize how broadway it was going to be, but I actually like that about it. It's very silly and over the top in a great way, the scenes and colors go to extremes, like a play tends to do.

We found the villains hilarious like you would find in a melodrama, not crossing into the scary or sinister at all. I think Hugh Grant delivered a great performance as well.

My only complaint was it had a little more potty humor than I care for... which really isn't much compared to the things I don't like about most of the movies released these days.

The Healing Powers of Dude (2020)

It had great potential... but then they turned to the lame Hollywood tropes they can't keep out of teen focused shows.

[3/10 · 22 April 2024]

We originally found the show because we were were looking for things that include the goofy version of Steve Zahn (like Sahara or That Thing You Do).

The description seemed interesting, and it had a good start. The main character was learning to cope with his social anxiety, and it had supporting characters dealing with disabilities or weaknesses of their own. It seemed pretty genuine, validating for people that had such disabilities even. The special effects depictions of having panic attacks felt over the top though.

But sadly after a few episodes the main character, Noah, started making absurd leaps in his progress. It killed the point of the show and made it look way to easy to deal with social anxiety. Then it became evident the writers were pushing him to a place where all the characters could all start obsessing about dating... at 11 years old. It's sad to see the show creators perpetuating the lie that kids they need to be in a physical relationship with somebody to be normal or happy. Sure, by the end of the season they make a brief mention of "maybe I don't need to be dating now" but when you spend so much time focused on the opposite message, that's the message your teaching, not the "moral" you toss in at the end.

So ya, sadly I don't recommend it. Once the writers threw in the love triangle they started pushing the drama to really absurd levels that made no sense... like having the characters make painfully dumb choices. The dad fit right into the "men are dumb" stereotype the movie industry loves to portray. Still it's nice to see a show with parents that are genuinely trying to care for each other and their kids.

Candy Land: The Great Lollipop Adventure (2005 Video)

I am so confused...

[7/10 · 13 December 2023]

Not confused by the movie, but confused about why this exists!

I mean, it's a typical movie targeted at young kids complete with songs and silly humor. I'm sure most little kids would love it with all the colors and candy and such.

My first source of confusion is that it was made in 2005? It really looks like something made in the 70s or 80s, fitting right in with shows like Care Bears, Rainbow Brite, or Dr Seuss. It captures the feel of such movies perfectly. I mean, they must have gone out of their way to make it look like those shows?

The other thing is I can't find much of any info on it. Any wiki entries are very sparse on information, saying little more than "it exists".

I mean, it's not bad at all, but I didn't find much that was really remarkable either.

Nimona (2023)

No idea what they were aming for here...

[3/10 · 11 December 2023]

I guess if the movie was passed between studios it might explain it, but the story just made no sense to me. Like multiple people worked on it individually without actually talking to each other about what the overall point was.

I just kept thinking "Wait, why?" the entire time for the overall story. A lot of their choices didn't make sense, were impulsive, but maybe that was on purpose? I'd go into detail but I don't want to mess with the spoiler tag.

They seemed to put a lot of effort into making the action scenes as extreme as possible. That's cool if that's your favorite part of movies. They mostly just seemed to have the girl "Mary Sue" their way out of any situation they got into and the guy just bumbled along, being your typical incompetent white male in modern movies.

As for the characters... maybe they didn't want to spoil the comic or something? I was left with more questions than answers about the characters stories and motivations. Like I was just watching a random episode in the middle of a series.

Otherwise, the visuals were cool, I'm a big fan of animation generally. There were some funny parts, though I felt the humor was a little too slapstick at times. It's really sad because I was excited to see Blue Sky's last movie project come to life.

My Knight and Me (2016–2017)

Seems like a fun show!

[9/10 · 4 December 2023]

I've only seen the current 3 free episodes on their Youtube channel, and I'd love to see more but haven't found where they air yet...

But I can say I've no idea why this show is getting so many negative reviews. My only guess is from people expecting the cringe and potty humor that is the norm in current TV.

Personally, I like the show. I found it through the original short, 850 Meters and was excited to see it turned into a show, though concerned about the reviews.

I finally found the channel has some full episodes and gave them a try. It's got refreshing, witty, silly humor, and seems to have a focus of thinking outside the box. It's also refreshing to see the main characters learning through failure rather than the current trend of being Mary Sue's, especially the female characters.

I can say I wish the original voice actor from the 850 Meters short kept with the show, but the current voice actor is good. I appreciate that The Knight is actually a good father and not just the idiotic man baby that all men are in shows these days. Yes he's dopey, but he's got his share of good ideas too and it makes a fun character.

I just wish I could actually find where to watch this show, I'd definitely enjoy it with my kids.

Aero-Troopers: The Nemeclous Crusade (2003 Video)

I'm impressed, a fun indie passion project.

[8/10 · 9 May 2023]

First, I'll say I don't really feel like it's the best fit for young kids. It gets a bit scary and violent. It's something I would have loved as a teen though, and if you're interested in the more artistic indie films. Like others said, it's got similar vibes of things like "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" or "9" which are also indie passion projects.

It's some sort of sky world that's being gradually destroyed by a mechanical shark. Survivors of his attacks are saved and recruited on an airship who's mission is to take down this shark. The recruits are given guns and are trained in jobs that you would expect of a naval vessel. There is focus on blood dripping from wounds several times, people die, for that reason I'd not show it to kids.

It's got unique and interesting art, similar to World War 1 era steampunk. I see people complaining about the graphics, but note it's from 2003, only 8 years after Toy Story 1 came out. It's got a similar feel in the animation, but much lower budget. The graphics fit right in with other movies of the era like the old Hot Wheels, Hoodwinked, even Ice Age. It's obvious the animators put a lot of effort into the design though with some pretty cool looking stuff.

It takes itself way to seriously like high fantasy stuff the 70's or 80s. The dialog is often written in poetic styles, using phrases like "methinks" and tons of air and cloud metaphors. It's got a lot of narration, and expected cheesy attempts at flirting when the protagonist meets the girl, etc. So many laws of physics broken, but that's the point of high fantasy stuff. The story is very thin and predictable, with a heavy layer of world building smeared on top to make it sound better.

The director is the one that did Dinosaur Train, which I can see similar vibes in the art style. Mark Hamill actually did the casting, so he was more involved that just a voice actor. I wouldn't be surprised if he was involved in the writing as well.

It's a film that's going to be for specific people, but I think it's worth a watch for those that like these types of movies.

The Great Halloween Puppy Adventure (2012 TV Movie)

Don't... unless you're into weird/bad movies.

[1/10 · 9 May 2023]

The problem is, if you're a parent, you're probably here because you picked up the movie at a thrift sale because had a cute puppy and the word magic... by then it's probably too late.

We did exactly this, our library had it in their old books sale, unopened, so we tossed it on the pile of movies $2 a bag.

The kids were watching the new movies on a Saturday morning and they got about 20 minutes into this one and I was suspicious. This movie did not feel right. The last straw was the comment of "eating candy and pretending it is human flesh" from the weirdly Halloween-obsessed main character. It's like he's got the enthusiasm and obsession of a 5 year old, but add in the fearsome gore that an adult might seek.

I looked up the movie here and found indeed, it's made by a director that makes porn and gory horror movies. The fact that he made a few talking animal movies targeted at kids is suspect. Add in the deceptive marketing on each movie of cute animals that aren't at all in the movie and in my opinion this is an attempt at child grooming. No way the director is just that bad at making kid movies.

Our copy is now in the trash. I'm not interested in letting our kids watch it.

Saving Me (2022– )

What a great show! I sure hope they are making more!

[10/10 · 6 February 2023]

Our family has quite enjoyed it. It's funny, a lot of cool science fiction gadgets, and does a good job at putting the main characters in relatable situations and showing their struggles in overcoming their weaknesses. It's inspirational, leaving me thinking maybe I do need to do a little better.

It's great to have a show that isn't focusing on trying to degrade and shock it's viewers but instead be uplifting, clever, and funny at the same time.

I see why the number of reviews is so low when you have to write a minimum number of letters. It's a fun family show, just go watch it!

The only downside is I have no idea if they will make more seasons or not...

Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014)

I actually quite liked the movie... except for the way they had to write the Lil' Dipper character.

[1/10 · 29 January 2023]

I found the characters to be very fun, the story actually was interesting, waiting to see how characters overcame the struggles they were facing, and the visuals were amazing. It was cool learning about aircraft firefighting techniques, and got plenty intense at the climax of the movie. I would have given the movie an 8 easily.

Except the creeps making kids movies seem to always have to write the female characters that have to throw themselves at men for approval. It's obvious they don't think of women as more than a thing to use, and are hoping girls adopt that idea when they are young. Frankly I think it's sexual grooming to put this stuff in a kids movie.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009)

I'd actually give it a 6 or 7, except...

[1/10 · 29 January 2023]

It's a fun movie, not a bad sequel. It's a little stale at times, the story doesn't quite hold water, but it was fun to watch... so like I said, not bad for a sequel.

The thing that dropped the rating to a 1 was the Amelia character. She would be a prime candidate for bad examples of men writing women. I'm tired of hollywood writing female characters how they wish women would act, rather than being an actual person. It really shows their true colors when they try to turn a female hero into a floosey that just wants to get a man in bed with her, trying to push the image that if you want to be a famous woman, you've got to throw yourself at men. Sadly it's all over the place in movies and I wish people would stop supporting it.

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

The movie was fun, but...

[1/10 · 21 September 2022]

The constant swearing and innuendo feel like it was just added in the script by a giggling middle schooler and was more annoying than actually contributing anything.

On top of that the fact that the stories in these movies don't make sense anymore and are filled with "Why would they do that?" moments. I miss movies having stories that were interesting rather than trying so hard to surprise the audience that they've become completely predictable.

Then there are all the blatant moments inserted just to check the boxes to fit certain political ideologies. At least try to make it relevant to the story if you are going to throw it in.

Bluey (2018– )

What a perfect show!

[10/10 · 24 July 2021]

It's great to see indie studios that still make amazing shows these days when so little of the mainstream shows are even worth watching.

This show is about as close to perfect as I've seen! It's so fun for both us parents and kid. It's inspiring, hilarious, meaningful. It teaches about relationships and some important lessons about emotional processing.

My only complaint is the dad's humor is a bit crude at times for me, but certainly milder than what is considered normal for kid shows.

The Hollow (2018–2020)

To the writers: Tell a story please, don't just preach to the money.

[1/10 · 25 March 2021]

The first season was interesting, but sadly the second season suffered from drastic changes to the characters to fit the demands of the political correctness bullies. That is literally just preaching what they want to hear in order to get their support. It's sad to see good creators sacrificing the quality of their work for this, because that crowd will never support you in the long run. Specifically for the show, the second season the story gets very flat. Just going from one thing to the next, not really progressing as characters or uncovering a story. It feels more like they spend more effort trying to reinforce and justify the character changes they made rather than develop the characters further, while going between scenes that they are making as random as they can.

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018)

It gets a star for cool visuals, but I dont' think it's worth watching.

[2/10 · 23 March 2021]

They put a ton of effort into the visuals, but the story is the standard hollow Disney they use basically every movie these days, including the "make the bad guy look good and the good guy look bad" that they can't seem to get away from.

As for the story, it really seemed they barely gave attention to it. There's no way they missed all the plot holes, it seems they just didn't care to develop the story.

It's too bad really. We enjoy The Little Prince and Ernest and Celestine that Mackenzie Foy stars in and we were looking forward to seeing her have a chance at acting, but the way the movie was written she really didn't get a chance.

Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (2020)

It started awesome... but by the end I don't think it was worth watching.

[3/10 · 23 March 2021]

So I thought the show started out great the first season. Fun art, great music, awesome world building, and an interesting story that kept us guessing at what was going on.

By the second season... they just dump Kipo's past on you right away, which was the main source of suspense in the first season then they never really develop much from there. I mean, Kipo just seems to assume most of it and they never really explain how she suddenly knows what she does.

Eventually the story gets to where it doesn't make any sense, I found myself asking "Why would they do that?" several times an episode. The plot of each episode more felt like the writers were going "Oh, I want to do an episode on this!" rather than developing the story and characters. It felt like they were just trying to check off each idea they wanted to have in there. Then I felt like they just threw in the teen romantic relationship just to try to gain popularity points, though I don't feel like it contributed to the story at all. Really, teens have enough to deal with without media telling them they need to be starting committed relationships as well. Let them figure out life first.

There were some good elements of the last season. A couple of the characters were very well done.

I don't know if the writers were rushed, or just didn't put as much effort into it, but after seeing the whole thing I don't think it was worth it.

Whisper of the Heart (1995)

I was quite surprised!

[10/10 · 17 March 2021]

A friend loaned us a compilation of Ghibli movies since we weren't familiar with them. Some I had heard of, but this one I had not.

I can say I was really surprised by this movie. It's not a genre I usually watch but it's a rare thing to find a movie about relationships that actually depicts developing a healthy relationship rather than just following feelings of attraction and jumping straight into forcing a committed relationship without getting to know each other.

It's so uplifting and too bad such stories are so rare in movies these days.

The Legend of Korra (2012–2014)

Too cheap for me to find interesting.

[6/10 · 23 February 2019]

It's like the creators just wanted to keep building from where the last series left off. Like they thought it would be boring for the characters to start from scratch on their powers, so let's just magically start them the the level of the previous characters.

That left them with little room for character and power development, so they invent new things, and add in lots of crazy powerful things that the characters can just do "because they really wanna" rather than actually having to work and learn.

Then they end up with giant mechs and shooting city destroying lasers out of giant spiritual projections of themselves then all passes quickly due to some little flaw or something so they could end the series on time.

The idea of a 1920s avatar world was cool. It was cool to see how the world's culture had developed, but the characters were more annoying and never developed.

I shake my head at the ending though, just a tacked on afterthought to try to appeal to certain groups of people rather than make any sense in the story. They suddenly want to be in a romantic relationship because Korra paid Asami a compliment that one time?

It's sad they seem to have abandoned the character development completely in favor of wows.

The Dragon Prince (2018– )

The storytelling feels like it has fallen to the mantra of "Drama above all else!"

[4/10 · 23 February 2019]

Honestly, I don't think the show's worth watching. I'm going to spoil a lot to explain my reasons... just so you know, but first a summary of my opinions.

The first season was good. It had good character development while getting to know the characters. You see them overcome trials and prejudices, learning what is right and standing up for it. There were some interesting ideas such as the mute character, the debate about dark magic being wrong even though it can be used for good, or how Ezrin seemed to get vague impressions of animal's feelings.

In season two, all that seemed pushed aside. The story doesn't make any sense anymore. The characters seem to have lost the ability to reason and it feels like the writers are trying to preach as much as tell the story. They're throwing in so many plot hooks the story gets buried. A good story doesn't need a thousand hooks to try to keep the audience watching.

****Spoilers commence**** Ezrin's communication ability suddenly turns to full blown telepathy without explanation. He will have full conversations with animals in mere moments, and it feels like a cheap shortcut and a missed opportunity to develop the character.

They spend a long time at a "Sacred Moon Nexus" that they explain would be doom if the humans ever discover it, yet they bring all kinds of people there and nobody bats an eye. Why bother claiming it's such a special place then drop it like it was nothing?

The kids spend a couple days sailing to get ahead of their pursuers, but they suddenly have the two siblings right behind them. Claudia even says they are "So far off the kids trail" but they're actually just a few minutes walk apart when they run into the red dragon. How did they travel faster than a sail boat while dragging a prisoner on foot?

There is a lot of "I just feel like this is what I should do" rather than actually reasoning about why they should do it, or if it's actually the right thing to do or not.

The dragon king character is full of contradictions. It's supposed to be some special magical character keeping balance or something, yet he forced an entire race to leave their homes because a few people did some bad things. He patrols the border and seems to just murder anybody caught crossing without questions. He even seems unable to do more than roar at people. This is a dictator, not some benevolent king.

The red dragon harassed a town for days for no reason other than to say "I'm tough, fear me! They take one shot at it and it proceeds to kill many innocent people. Yet the humans are portrayed as evil for injuring it. Then when the dragon seems to recognize the dragon prince, he just flies off and leaves it. Shouldn't he just take it with him?

Along with this, so many characters just attack on sight. Sure, supposedly there are prejudices, but doesn't explains so much "Look! a person of a different race! Shoot it!" The fire elves don't even bother talking before attacking. If they're supposed to be this wonderful magical race, why don't they even give a human the benefit of explaining themselves?

Then the evil mage guy just bullies and intimidates people into doing what he wants, and everybody just goes along with it like it's fine. Nobody asks him for proof of why the elves are evil. Nobody bothers to ask him why the elves killed the king when he uses it as a reason for the elves being evil.

Then there's the preaching part. The characters make a lot of long dialogs about ideals that don't help the story and sometimes don't even fit the character.. The character could state their point much more simply. It feels like the writers are just trying to use the show as a chance to push their opinions.

Lastly, there is plenty of content that shouldn't be in a Y7 show. There is tons of fighting, killing. The actual stab or bleeding happens off screen but that doesn't make it any less violent. There is self cutting for spells. There is innuendo like the comment of "Lady justice was wearing clothes? Well that's boring".

If you like watching shows simply for the "I didn't see that coming" factor then this one could be good for you. But personally I couldn't get past all the shortcuts the writers were taking.

Frozen (I) (2013)

Standard Disney Hypocricy...

[5/10 · 24 January 2018]

How can you claim a movie has a good message when 90% of the movie is showing negative ones? When the emotional peaks are pushing harmful attitudes and the healthy morals seem only tacked on as an afterthought?

They spend a lot of time pushing follow your passions no matter what, don't be good, be what you want, etc. It was refreshing to see the brief moment of "love is caring for others" but the idea was only actually demonstrated in a few scenes.

The way the girls are treated by their parents and guardians doesn't make sense at all, how could they go their entire childhood without actually doing anything to try to help the girls? Nobody questioned that keeping someone locked in a room for 20 years might be a bad idea? Else didn't spend any time actually thinking and trying to figure out her powers?

Then throw in the unbelievable villain who goes from a friendly, agreeable guy to a murderer in the space of one scene. I guess it gives the roller coaster ride that people seem to want. Personally I like things to at least have a thread of believability rather than pure shock factor.

They make fun of their own tread of throwing two people into a committed relationship after one adventure but then do the same thing this movie... throwing in a "a while later" message to try to hide it, but it's still displaying the same thing. What's wrong with just leaving characters as friends by the end instead of having to push relationships on everything?

Personally, I'm tired of the Disney formula, and I'm glad more indie studios are getting more of the spotlight.

Tomorrowland (2015)

Had potential, but ended up disappointing.

[6/10 · 24 January 2018]

The trailers looked cool... but it turned out a very different story. I was expecting a cool sci-fi adventure of amazing innovation, etc. Instead it felt to me like just propaganda, promoting Disney and preaching their opinions.

The main character felt shallow, claimed to be smart but sure didn't act smart. It was disappointing how often they had her just acting in dumb slapstick comedy styles. She seemed to just act on how she felt in a very impulsive manner rather than actually reasoning, in standard Disney hypocrisy, claiming to be empowering girls but still belittling them in how they cast them.

They entire time they're pushing how terrible and mindless humanity is, and how we're going to destroy ourselves so nothing matters anyway. I can't call a movie hopeful or uplifting when it spends the entire time being negative then has a brief positive message at the end.

Also, how is taking all the most innovative citizens to live in a different world going to help save Earth? Doesn't the world kind of need those people to help it rather than just sending them to live in a mini-utopia if they're privileged enough?

The last straw for me was the the 50 year old guy being in love with a 10 year old girl... but shes a robot so it's okay...? Or just creepy...

It was close to being an awesome movie for me, but after watching it I can see why it fell flat. If the main character had a little less blind passion and a little more intelligence and they spent less time preaching I probably would have liked it.

The Magic School Bus Rides Again (2017–2021)

Not bad, but doesn't really stand out to me anymore

[6/10 · 24 October 2017]

It lacks the charm of the original shows. The science lessons seem watered down to squeeze in more wow factor and a little politicizing. The kids don't really figure out the lessons anymore but rather are just shown them while the teacher explains. The rest of the world in the show just accepts the magic bus as normal for some reason.

The new Miss Frizzle feels more random than witty. She still makes lots of puns though. The kids don't have personalities anymore. Instead each episode they pick a kid to be the main "lesson learner" that takes something to excess so they can learn about it. It might have something to do with their personality, or it might not.

The technology element they added in is pretty fun, I think the art is good compared to other modern CG cartoons, It's not too bad on it's own as a show. Miss Frizzle still does the Q&A at the end of the show, which is pretty fun.

I don't think it really compares to the original show though. Still I hope they make more and improve on their formula a little.

Pirate's Passage (2015 TV Movie)

A surprisingly good movie! But I'd say it's not for kids...

[8/10 · 2 August 2017]

We had a bunch of indie movies to check out on our Netflix watch list and I was passively thinning them out while working. I started this one and got hooked a few minutes in. By the end, I'm glad the kids weren't around, but I quite enjoyed it.

It's done in a 2D CG animation that seems a little cheap, but done well enough to still look good. The art is still well done, I love the character designs, it very much feels like a labor of love.

The story was interesting as well, I look forward to finding the book as I hear the movie is only loosely based on it. It had enough depth to keep me guessing, but I was able to guess a few plot points (which is my favorite balance for a movie).

As for content, it's mostly the language that I wouldn't want the kids to hear. The parental advisory covers most of it, the lady also uses the word 'bastard' once. I think the themes are a little complex for kids too. It is pirate themed after all. It defends the "honest" pirates that only steal and do minimum damage to get what they need, or breaking the law to accomplish what needs to be done. Thankfully the kid in the story still tries to do what's right without going around the law.

I'd definitely watch it again, and I think it's worth at least seeing it once.