Movie Reviews #62…
Incredibles 2. I’m often a sucker for cartoons and other animated features. I learned to read and write as a pre-schooler “making” my own comic books, and those cartoons sandwiched between Saturday matinee features were a popular pastime as kids (probably my favorite was Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd parodying The Barber of Seville, a classic!).
Animation has changed a lot, and I can’t stand a lot of it. My favorite animated features are the Ice Age series (love the prehistoric squirrel); my least favorite is Frozen (mostly for that annoying song “Let It Go,” but also because I don’t like the cold—Jack London’s short story “To Build a Fire” told this California boy he wouldn’t do well in cold climates, yet here I am living in the NYC area after spending almost thirty years in the Boston area). Minions was good too (not so much the others in the series—I like “origin stories”), and so was the first Shrek.
That’s all a preface to explain why I went to see the movie in question with preconceived doubts. Surprise, surprise! I liked this sequel, maybe better than the first. No stupid or annoying songs; no preachy stuff or political correctness taken to the extreme.
The plot appealed to me too: supreheroes are banned, and the Incredibles family struggles to improve their public image as much as fight the nefarious, demented villain (a nice twist that I anticipated with about 60% probability, but I wasn’t sure). Unlike the Marvel movies (I grew up reading Stan Lee, of course), where I often wish the superheroes are banned (I prefer the DC heroes, unless it’s an origin story), I rooted for Mom & Pop Incredible. I liked Craig T. Nelson as Coach; I like his voice as Mr. Incredible too.
This movie is worth seeing (to be honest, at the time, there wasn’t much competition). As is often the case, kids might not get many of the wink-wink jokes, but there’s enough for both kids and grown-ups to have some movie fun. It’s not Ice Age funny, but better than Ant-Man and Wasp.
***
The Chaos Chronicles Trilogy Collection. This trilogy is my version of Asimov’s Foundation trilogy. Unlike the inimitable Isaac’s, my universe is replete with ETs. Starting with dystopia on Earth and in our solar system, the reader heads off to the stars to encounter ET cultures and some strange collective intelligences. Humans have their problems, and not just with ETs. Dystopian, militaristic, and paranormal sci-fi awaits you. (The first book in the trilogy is included here; it might remind you of where humanity might be heading right now, which is why it’s dystopian, of course.) This bundle is on sale now at Smashwords—you’ll pay only $2.99 versus the $5.99 retail price during the month of August—just use the coupon code on checkout. (Of course, even $5.99 isn’t a bad price for three full novels of sci-fi adventures.) Great for summer reading!
In libris libertas….
