TheRetroCritic

As the Justice League gets ready to finally unite in DC's latest crossover, Marvel delivers its third Thor movie: a neon-lit campy roller-coaster ride through the galaxy that sees the God of Thunder lose his beloved Mjolnir hammer and much more. The trailer for Thor: Ragnarok promised a colourful Flash Gordon -style fantasy epic with tons of over-the-top action, larger-than-life characters and a rocking soundtrack. Taking a page out of Guardians Of The Galaxy , this was set to be the inter-galactic adventure we wanted to see from Day 1. The good news is that Marvel wasn't lying and we got exactly what we expected: a ridiculously fun, action-packed comic-book sci-fi romp which should please the fans and effortlessly entertain everyone else. Chris Hemsworth has a lot of fun (perhaps too much fun?) as Thor and, even though he's much more bumbling than he probably should have been, he remains charming and likeable throughout. The plot sees Hela (Cate Blanchett), the Godde

I play through the first level of the TaleSpin  TGfx-16 game.

I talk a bit about the new DuckTales .

Based on the DuckTales TV series and Carl Barks' comics, this feature-length animated adventure was released near the end of the show's run and, although it didn't perform well enough to guarantee further instalments, it was pretty well received overall. TV shows, animated or otherwise, tend to be hit-and-miss when adapted for the big screen so Disney probably shouldn't have banked too much on DuckTales The Movie unless they had something very cinematic to deliver. The film follows Scrooge McDuck, Launchpad, Webby, Huey, Dewey and Louie as they travel to the Middle East in order to recover Collie Baba's treasure. From this synopsis alone, you can probably guess how the rest of the film goes as this 1001 Nights homage sees the kids get a hold of an Aladdin -style lamp before getting its Genie to grant them wishes. Throw in an evil sorcerer (voiced by Christopher Lloyd) who can turn into animals and you've got yourself this movie. The main focus is the kids

Director Joe Johnston brought The Rocketeer to life in this Disney film from 1991 starring Bill Campbell and Jennifer Connelly. While it was critically well received, it didn't earn quite enough at the box-office to guarantee a sequel but it's still seen as something of a cult gem. Created in 1982 by comic-book writer/artist Dave Stevens, The Rocketeer is a homage to classic serial heroes: an all-American good guy with one special ability, fighting against cartoonishly evil villains. The ability in question being a jetpack which stunt pilot Cliff Secord (Campbell) finds with airplane mechanic Peevy (Alan Arkin) when a bunch of gangsters steal it from Howard Hughes (Terry O'Quinn). Cliff uses the rocket pack to save people and fight back against those looking to harm him but this puts his girl Jenny Blake (Connelly) and others close to him in great danger. The main antagonist being Neville Sinclair, a popular Hollywood actor (played by a scene-stealing Timothy Dalton)

Pixar's big 2016 release was Finding Dory , yet another sequel to another one of their most popular movies. This time, it's forgetful Dory's turn to be found (figuratively speaking) somewhere beyond the sea, as she sets out to reconnect with her estranged parents. Initially, a follow-up to Finding Nemo sounded like little more than another Cars -style cash-in but, watching the film, you quickly realise that its core plot actually does have potential. The idea that someone could forget their own parents is a heartbreaking one so Dory's journey does have some emotional weight to it. Dory being kind of a one joke character in the original film, it makes sense for this sequel to show the negative impact her short term memory loss has had on her life rather than constantly make light of it. Against all odds, this movie makes us care about Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) and her journey into the unknown. The action takes us to a Seaworld-style setting where our fish heroes are w

My thoughts on Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales .

While Zootopia was the bigger non-Pixar animated hit for Disney in 2016, Moana was still a considerable success both at the box-office and with audiences who praised the stunning animation and its South Pacific setting. As the big "Disney Princess" movie of the year, complete with flashy musical numbers and cute animal sidekicks, Moana was a much more traditional Disney animated feature than Zootopia so had the latter failed to deliver, this would have no doubt been the studio's sure-fire hit. It is surprising, frankly, that the film was not given a Summer release considering its sunny, exotic setting as that might have actually given it a bit of a boost. Story-wise, the film follows Moana (voiced by Auli'i Cravalho), daughter to the chief of a small Polynesian island, who finds herself stuck with the responsibilities of being the chief's heir until she is compelled to leave the island in search of a way to stop its inexplicable curse. She encounters demigo

Following  Ratatouille , Pixar tackled the science-fiction genre with WALL-E , the story of a big-eyed little robot stuck all by himself in the middle of a post-apocalyptic Earth until he meets an unexpected visitor. This was Pixar's boldest concept since Toy Story as a good portion of the film is basically silent save for music and sound effects. The human characters don't show up until much later and when they do, they never steal the focus from WALL-E or his modern robot love interest EVE who is sent to Earth, we soon find out, to look for any source of vegetation. The world the film depicts is one overcome by garbage due to the environment having crumbled under the weight of industry and commercialism. Incidentally, the weakest aspect of WALL-E is probably its environmental message, which isn't exactly subtle, but it is admittedly done quite well in that it gives the characters something to fight for and presents a uniquely comfortable yet lazy and ultimately grim

I n this 73rd episode of  The Big Rewind , we review   Alien: Covenant ,   talk about  Ghost In The Shell and play Ridley's Believe It Or Not . CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE EPISODE Email us here if you have any questions, requests or contributions:  bigrewindpodcast@gmail.com Or simply comment below :) Oh and you can also find us on  iTunes ,  Stitcher ,  Soundcloud  and  Player FM  where you can subscribe to the podcast and download every episode thusfar! @TheRetroCritic #TheBigRewind retrocriticblog.blogspot.com thebigrewind.blogspot.com youtube.com/TheRetroCritic youtube.com/Cablogula

Loosely based on real events, Cool Runnings was a surprise hit for Disney back in 1993 and it's still one of the most beloved sports movies out there. The story of the first Jamaican bobsled team charmed audiences with its lighthearted tone, likeable cast and Olympic spirit. The film introduces us to the main players as they fail to qualify for the Olympics as sprinters and decide to team-up in the hope of making it to the Winter Games as bobsledders. They hire the help of has-been champion coach Irv Blitzer (John Candy) who, like everyone else in town, doesn't believe in them at first but soon realises they might actually stand a chance. The idea that everyone in Jamaica would be literally laughing out loud at the thought of a bunch of guys putting together a bobsled team is not all that convincing, especially in the over-the-top way the film portrays that. Granted, the lack of ice in Jamaica and the bobsledders' inexperience would no doubt prompt some skepticism but

I talk about Disney's latest live-action remake Beauty And The Beast .

Another year, another Disney live-action adaptation of one of their most beloved animated classics. This time, it's Beauty And The Beast 's turn with Emma Watson taking on the role of Belle and Dan Stevens as the Beast. It's been a hit-and-miss road for Disney with even its best remakes being just about average and still very much inferior to the originals. The Jungle Book may have killed at the box-office but it failed to capture the charm of the old film so this new outing, with the tons of CGI the trailers promised, looked like more of the same. The film opens with a ball taking place in the Prince's castle when an Enchantress in disguise shows up and puts a spell on him and everyone there. The expanded yet well-handled sequence leads us to more familiar territory as Belle is introduced and a big musical number follows. These first few minutes set the tone for things to come: some parts of the story are stretched longer, other parts are pretty much shot-for-sho

Steven Spielberg directs this live-action adaptation of Roald Dahl's timeless story in a film that may not have done all that well domestically but was a success everywhere else. The Summer release may not have been a good fit for what seemed like more of a Christmas-friendly film but it did OK. The BFG stars Mark Rylance in the titular role and follows young orphan girl Sophie (Ruby Barnhill) as she is taken by The Big Friendly Giant one night because she knows about his existence and can never reveal it. On paper, this may sound like a somewhat creepy synopsis but the film couldn't be sweeter as Sophie and The BFG become friends and the latter shows her where dreams literally come from. Unfortunately, some man-eating giants who live nearby start sensing a human in the vicinity and The BFG fears for Sophie's safety. The motion-capture and visual effects used to bring the giants and their world to life are impressive and make something like Jack The Giant Slayer look

One of the 90's big ideas, among others, was to adapt animated shows into live-action feature films. From The Flintstone s to Inspector Gadget , it didn't matter how obscure or unadaptable the source material was as long as an attempt was made to cash-in on its name somehow. Leslie Nielsen was therefore cast as Mr. Magoo , the old man with poor eyesight who very nearly misses fatal accidents thanks to pure luck. Nielsen, while not really looking much like the character, was a solid choice since, even in the worst movies, he can usually get a laugh. The film opens appropriately by showing you a short Magoo cartoon but as soon as the live-action part starts, you'll be wishing the cartoon had kept playing. This should have been an easy project: give Leslie Nielsen some funny lines, follow him as he goes around causing mayhem all around him. And yet, right off the bat, it's impossible to hear Nielsen's incessant ramblings due to an annoying over-the-top score under

Before Disney decided to remake all of its classic animated films in a big way, the studios turned to theme park rides for inspiration (as you do) and picked one of their oldest and most popular to adapt into a big budget feature film. And so we got Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl . The 2003 supernatural swashbuckler would, of course, become a significant success and spawn several sequels but we really didn't know what to expect from this first instalment. The pirate genre hadn't exactly been a hit in a while, if ever, so this was a risk for Disney. Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Gore Verbinski, The Curse Of The Black Pearl was by no means a cheap, small scale project but the risk paid off in the end. The plot sees Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley), the daughter of a wealthy Governor, help rescue young shipwrecked pirate Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) during a sail. She finds a golden medallion around his neck and decides to keep it. Ye

I talk about Disney's latest remake Pete's Dragon .

This year, Disney had a surprise hit with CG-animated feature Zootopia , a buddy-cop movie set in a modern metropolis populated by animals. We follow Judy Hopps, a determined bunny police cadet who moves to the big city to start her career. On paper and from the early trailers, Zootopia really didn't seem like much with the whole animals-acting-like-humans thing having been done many times before. Watching the film, however, you realise that the marketing just didn't pick the right angle to sell this one. Instead of going for a generic approach, why not couch the film in a Lethal Weapon -style 80's cop movie type of thing? Judy (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin) is one of the most endearing animated characters Disney's created in a while and just when her overwhelming positivity starts to get a little much, she has to deal with the cruel real world and Nick, a sarcastic fox con artist. Judy is first dismissed by the police force as a meter maid because of her small size

Another month, another Disney remake... An update on the 1977 musical, Pete's Dragon sees a young child named Pete wander into the woods after his parents perish in a car crash and a friendly green dragon he calls Elliot takes him under its wing: years later, the inhabitants of a nearby town finally find Pete. Not that they were looking... The original Pete's Dragon may not have enjoyed quite as much praise as, say, Mary Poppins over the years but it remains one of Disney's most charming live-action films to date so a remake would certainly need to get Pete and his dragon right. Fortunately, the film achieves just that as young Oakes Fegley gives an appropriately wild performance as Pete and Elliot, while looking hairier and more dog-like, is still pretty adorable. Their friendship is once again the heart of the story and it still works. The big difference with this remake, however, is that Elliot isn't so much Pete's dragon as he is just a random

Here's the video version of my Pete's Dragon review.