A Tale of Two Adaptations
‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ and ‘Avatar the Last Airbender’ back in thespotlight
By Janie Walenda
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It was the age of falling in love with excellent children’s media, it was the age of heart-crushing horrible live-action adaptations. 2000s kids really had it all.
“Percy Jackson and the Olympians” and “Avatar the Last Airbender” mirror each other throughout their history. Both debuted in ...
‘Inside Out 2’ provides powerful insight to a unique generation
By Esther Fultz
This review contains spoilers for “Inside Out 2.”
Like many people in my generation, I grew up on Pixar films - “Toy Story,” “Cars,” “Monsters Inc.” - you name it. But if I had to choose my favorite movie, I probably would have said “Inside Out.” The film was released in 2015, but for some reason, I didn’t watch it until early in college when I was studying to be a social worker and it immediately captivated my attention. The film engages young ...
From controller to silver screen: Amazon Prime’s “Fallout” and the rise of television gaming adaptations
By Ben Konuch
Imagine this: it’s 2007, and you’ve just heard that your favorite video game is getting a movie adaptation coming to theaters soon! If you’re imagining accurately, your reaction might be a groan of frustration or a panicked clutching of your non-existent pearls. After all, why should you be excited for another movie studio to fundamentally misunderstand a video game you love?
By 2007, Hollywood had shouted loud and clear that it was incapable of capturing the fun of ...
‘12 Angry Jurors’ tells a riveting story of justice and duty
By Sophia Monastra
You file into the small jury room. In front of you is a long wooden table surrounded by chairs. The lights above hum, and in the corner stands a cooler of water. The trial has dragged on for six days. You’re tired, the room is hot, and you want to go home. As you and the rest of the jury make your way to the chairs, someone walks over to the window and cracks it open.
In this room, you and eleven other people will decide the fate of a boy accused of murdering ...
“Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” is lukewarm at best
By Janie Walenda
What do you want out of a “Ghostbusters” movie? Personally, I am here for the theme song and to see a bunch of goofballs fight ghosts. By this forgiving metric, “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” is a success. But in a film that is stuffed to the brim with characters and side plots galore, it’s hard to find any concrete thing that the film excels at. It’s certainly a weaker entry than its predecessor, “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” which stands as one of the best ...
‘Monkey Man:’ blending cultural representation with brutal revenge
By Ben Konuch
“In this city, the rich don’t see us as people. To them, we’re animals.”
(Editor’s note: “Monkey Man” is a mature film that contains moments of intense violence and grapples with adult themes such as human trafficking, religious persecution and attacks on LGBT minorities. The author of this article notes that some of these topics and the way they are presented may not be for everyone, but for some, there is great worth in asking its questions. The film is not ...
What makes the first half of “Shogun” so special?
By Ben Konuch
“Why is it that only those who have never fought in a battle are so eager to be in one?”
When the first adaptation of James Clavell’s influential 1975 novel “Shogun” premiered as a miniseries in 1980, it took the television world by storm. “Shogun” not only aimed to capitalize on Clavell’s highly successful story of death, deceit and culture set in feudal Japan, but to bring the story to the small screen in a way audiences had never seen before. The crafting ...
‘Unsung Hero’ fosters a strong character-audience connection and prompts contemplation about your faith
By Esther Fultz
Have you ever been in a situation where you felt like everything that could possibly go wrong did? To be completely honest, I felt like I did last week when I left my phone at home and misplaced my Macbook charger at the same time and as a result missed a coffee date with my friend. If you can relate to this, the beginning of “Unsung Hero” depicts a situation you could consider similar - just a little more intense.
When talent manager David Smallbone’s career takes ...
‘X-Men ‘97’ embraces and elevates the original series
By Janie Walenda
Before the times of live-action cinematic universes, superhero stories were ruled by the worlds of animated cartoons. In the 90s, Batman, Spider-Man and the X-Men all received iconic cartoon series that are still beloved today. While cartoon superhero shows are still being made, they’ve certainly taken the backseat to live-action blockbusters. “X-Men ’97,” a continuation of the animated series that started in 1992 and ended 27 years ago, makes a compelling ...
‘The Bad Batch’ season three kicks it up to a 99
By Janie Walenda
Within the past several years, whatever focus the Star Wars franchise may have possessed has been on the period of time after the rise of the Empire and before the events of “A New Hope.” Past successes like “Rebels” and “Rogue One” led to newer projects like “Kenobi” and “Andor,” as well as the follow-up to “The Clone Wars,” “The Bad Batch.” Together these stories paint a picture of the rise of the Empire and its totalitarian grip on the galaxy. ...
