There’s a little movie coming out soon, you might have heard about it. Toy Story 4 opens Friday, June 21 and there’s a way to catch some of the gang on the road and out in the wild. The Toy Story 4 RV Summer Road Trip Party is a one-day event that’s stopping in Alpharetta at Avalon from 3-7.
The Toy Story 4 RV will have a chance to meet Forky and get
a photo with him. This will be the only chance to meet Forky in-person, unless
you’re headed to a Walt Disney theme park. Bring the cameras, set the googly
eyes to roll and save this photo for those year-end cards that’ll be sent out
in December.
There will also be some carnival games including “There’s a Snake in My Boot” snake toss and “To Infinity and Beyond” rocket ring toss. Plus, it’s got that Toy Story 4 vibe that you’ve been feeling since the sequel was announced. Also, we’re giving away passes to the Atlanta sneak preview of Toy Story 4.
The Toy Story 4 RV Summer Road Trip Party is free. All you
have to do is go, be happy, channel your inner spork or Forky, snap a pic, play
some games and it’ll shake up the Summer Tuesday afternoon quite nicely. This
is one day only in Alpharetta at Avalon from 3-7.
There are a couple of things every year that our family
earmarks and looks forward to each season. For the boys and I MomoCon has been
on that list for the past four years. They’ve loved every minute of it but always
left with the same question, “When can mom come with us”? This year the
schedules aligned and mom was able to attend MomoCon with us.
It’s important to point out that she’s not really into comic books, anime, cosplay, roleplay or video games. She enjoyed going to MomoCon because of how much fun the kids have had in previous years. Our boys are 9 and 7, they’ve seen a couple movies in the MCU and don’t know too much about anime, other than dad used to live in Japan and has some copies of that magazine in his office.
What they and the parents that I spoke with enjoyed about MomoCon is the atmosphere. During the daytime it’s great for all ages, has cosplay that is out of this world, but still OK for those younger audiences. Granted, there were some creepy clowns that gave out kids the willies, but they were the exception and even those costumes weren’t graphic in nature.
There were many instances of families that cosplay together;
some as young as little geeklings who were being pushed around in a stroller or
carried by mom or dad. Our two boys stayed for five hours the first day and
four hours the second day and had a different, but equally fabulous experience
each time.
They love the game area. There is every board game in the world at MomoCon for you to check out and play while you’re there. We started to play a Super Mario themed version of Trouble before the boys got distracted by some costumes and wanted to walk around. A couple hours later we came back through the gaming area and played Jenga.
Right beside that area is the video game area. This year it
was broken up into classic arcade games and Asian video games. When it came to
playing the games they were all in about the classic games. However, with an
eye towards the future they spent more time watching the Japanese console games.
They were peppering me with questions about how to play them, but I kept
referring them to one of the multitudes of people who were lined up to dance,
pound drums or touch cubes as quickly as they could.
Our kids are also 100% down with Con protocol when it comes
to vendors. They should touch nothing, ask lots of questions if they’re
interested and compliment those who are cosplaying near the tables. The merch
was jammed with all manner of KPOP, Japanese manga, anime and statues that
pronounce their enthusiasm towards it.
And it was all 100% family friendly. We heard worse language
on the train to the event than we did at MomoCon. There are some night time
events that skew towards college ages and up, they’re certainly a bit more risqué,
but well past the bedtime of a 9 year old. Perhaps it’s something that they’ll
enjoy in 10 years when they’re in higher education.
MomoCon happens in Atlanta ever year over Memorial Day
Weekend. It’s the friendliest con for families that you’ll encounter because it
has the real cosplay that elementary and middle schools will recognize, without
the gore or sexuality that might populate other cons.
Twice a year, each year I get insomnia for a couple of nights. It’s due to the spring or fall allergies and I just can’t sleep. This year the spring incarnation of this sleepless paradise snuck up on me and my usual cadre of new science-fiction books were nowhere to be seen. Close to the nightstand was Extraordinary Birds by Sandy Stark McGinnis. From the cover it didn’t seem like the kind of book I would seek out, but you know how the saying goes. True to form, Extraordinary Birds completely defied my expectations and left me concerned, hopeful and wondering if December really is able to fly.
Extraordinary Birds starts out with December, a teen aged girl talking to herself. She’s also high up in a tree.
First thought: she’s suicidal, this book isn’t for me.
However, just as I think that we learn that her foster
mother is talking to her and trying to convince her that she is not able to
fly.
Second thought: she’s a superhero-this book is like Glass and she’s the Samuel L. Jackson character.
No, it turns out that December has done this before. She’s
bounced from foster home to foster home and believes that she has the physical
ability to fly like a bird. It’s just that her bird parts haven’t developed or
her mental processes haven’t broken through the plane that allows her to
transcend what most believe is a reality.
However, her penchant for frustrating foster homes has
broken another potential forever home and she’s dispatched to live with Eleanor.
She seems like a nice lady, but December has been through this rodeo before so
she’s just biding her time until she’s 18 or her bird lady parts develop,
whichever comes first.
Eleanor is a different type of foster parent. She gives
December her space, allows her to develop her own personality and lives on
farm. Eleanor also volunteers at an animal rescue organization.
Third thought: Eleanor brings out December’s inner
superpowers.
No, just stop I told myself. Extraordinary Birds lives up to the first name in its title because it plays things very close to the vest and does not go for the cheap story line. This is a well paced and beautifully told story about growing up, being slightly different and trying to figure out the world.
Fourth thought: this is an aviary version of The Breakfast
Club.
No, just stop and reread the third thought I had to remind myself. This is a great book that made me not want to go to sleep, despite my insomnia. Alas, true to form, I read for about two hours and then fell asleep with a book on my chest. However, this session of insomnia was different; I didn’t mind not sleeping as I was in good company.
The lessons and morals in Extraordinary Birds will be
appropriate for upper elementary school readers. Most likely its sweet spot are
those middle school readers who want to get lost in a great book about growing
up and learning about how to navigate those mental images and feelings that you
think nobody else will understand.
Toy Story 4 is easily one of the most anticipated films of 2019. Forky is just the character that’s needed right now. It’s true to the way that kids play. Any parent or child will attest to the fact that there is always one homemade toy that manages to work its way into the inner circle of the toy coven. The sneak preview of Toy Story 4 is happening Tuesday, June 18. If you want to win a pair of passes to this movie event and be one of the first ones (outside of Disney brass or Hollywood) to see it, here’s what you need to do.
How to enter: Leave a comment in the blog post letting us know what your favorite toy was growing up. We have 15 pairs of tickets to give away to this sneak preview.
This sneak preview of Toy Story 4 is in Atlanta on Tuesday, June 18 at Atlantic Station. We’ll email the winners with complete details so that you’ll be able to plan accordingly. This giveaway will end on June 14 at 9PM. Important: this giveaway is for passes to the sneak preview. You’ll need to arrive early in order to secure your seat as everybody and their brother wants to see Toy Story 4. This showing will be 100% full.
In an alternate
universe Disney PIXAR hasn’t made it acceptable, nay, enviable for an animated
feature to be accepted as high entertainment for the entire family. Back then
times were simpler, toys were toys and not used as characters to make us ugly
cry in movie theaters in front of our children who aren’t sure why we’re crying
during a film about toys. In that
universe, The Secret Life of Pets 2 is high craft and the sort of entertainment
that kids and adults will equally enjoy. Alas, in this universe, The Secret Life of Pets 2 is the sort of kid-only
entertainment that those in elementary school will enjoy to ridiculous levels.
Were it not for the presence of Rooster, voiced by Harrison Ford, as the cranky, old time dog who lives on the farm the film would’ve felt like a direct-to-DVD release. It’s not that Ford is entirely the Dwayne Johnson of this film. It’s that the character he portrays is a needed counter balance to the rest of the characters.
The Secret Life of Pets 2 is a hodgepodge of a movie that
has three loosely connected plots that eventually come together. Older
audiences or those that saw the first one will recognize the format and outlay
of how the different ones are constructed and can already place how they’ll
come together. At times the film felt like a series of sketches, more akin to a
Saturday Night Live five-minute bit, than a feature length film and the three
story vignette set up doesn’t help this vibe.
There is the dog trying to learn to be a cat. The dogs that are
riding in the car. The humorous Captain Snowball kind of breaks free from this
mini-story feeling, but only for a minute.
It’s almost like they had the joke of something happening and then wrote
the story around each bit. Also, ‘feature
length film’, is a bit of a stretch for The Secret Life of Pets 2 as it only
clocks in at one hour and twenty six minutes. We have a rule of thumb that if a
movie can’t hang in there for 90 minutes and be entertaining then it’s not
worth being made. To that end, this film utterly fails our test.
As disappointed as we were with the film, our kids, aged 9
and 7 did like it. They liked Captain Snowball, enjoyed the action sequences
and laughed at the parts that they should’ve laughed at-that were all shown in
one of the trailers that have been released.
Parents: it’s OK. You don’t have to enjoy every film that your children like. My parents sure didn’t like The Apple Dumpling Gang, but I did and that’s OK. However, the later didn’t cost $80 million to produce. And, The Apple Dumpling Gang has earned $37 million since its 1975 release. Let’s presume that it had a $3 million production cost (which is impossibly high) and that film still has yielded an amazing amount of return. The Secret Life of Pets 2 will not see that amount of return as a percentage or in actual profits, in 35 years.
It’s also worth noting that producers couldn’t have kept Louis
C.K as the voice of Max due to the pressure that they would’ve faced. However,
Patton Oswalt has a needier, more dependent characteristic about his
performance that was immediately noticed by me and other adults. Louis C.K’s
version was smarmy and lovable, where as Oswalt’s was more apt to whine and be
annoying.
Some audience members will identify with the independence
and lessons that are taught in the film. We saw them, but they were all
encompassed by Rooster, who did so with fewer words and more humor. The Secret
Life of Pets 2 is great for kids, but those over 12 will want to wait until
they can stream it.
It’s new comic book day and we heard something interesting
this week that made us think. The premise of their post was the term ‘all age
comics’ or ‘all age comic books’ shouldn’t be used. They posited that, in its
truest form, an all age comic book is something that can be enjoyed by any age.
There are middle school readers, emerging readers and many different levels
that can further make that term more confusing.
For the record, what we list here on the post are comic
books or graphic novels, in which, some of them will be OK for kids as young as
three or five. In the podcast we’ll break down the ages that are best for each
of the books that we’re highlighting. Here in the post we’ll also mention the
youngest age that would enjoy or for whom the book would be appropriate.
So ‘technically’ all of the comics that you see here aren’t
all age comic books. We will provide guidance and presume that you won’t give
your kids a Vampirella issue and have them be on their way. Now, over in the podcast
we’ll chat about some nice Disney releases, DC Superhero Girls, Science Comics:
Cars and more. For now, here are three comics that will interest readers as
young as 7.
Disney/PIXAR Toy
Story 4
This is the graphic novel adaptation of stories that happen
before and after the events in Toy Story 4. It won’t offer any spoilers about
the film, but it’s the same characters that you know, love and will most likely
do the ugly cry that you’ll try to hide from the kids this summer.
Marvel Action
Avengers #5
Marvel Action Avengers is one of the go-to action/superhero
comic out there today. It captures the action, fun and imagination of comic
books that will appeal to readers who are 7 and up. This is action that is age
appropriate and fun for all, yet being A-OK for those younger elementary aged
fans. It’s classic stuff that you’ll save so that your kids can read it in 30
years.
Star Wars
Adventures #22
Star Wars Adventures is a close second to being a go-to all
age comic book. First off, you have to like Star Wars or science-fiction. If
you like either of those then this is one of your go-to comic books. There is
action and humor in this Star Wars series, so if you like your Star Wars all
Force and no humor, this might not be for you. However, if you’re 7, like
action, want a basic primer on the Force and are down with meeting any and all
people in the Star Wars universe this is for you.
Cheese and entertainment can be kindred spirits. When
combined at the right percentages magical entertainment can be had. Summer has
the potential for high quality cheese, or popcorn fare that manage to entertain
audiences at some level for two hours. Godzilla: King of the Monsters manages
to achieve levels of varying entertainment in the latest incarnation of one of
Japan’s most famous exports.
What it gets right
It quickly establishes that these events happen after 2014’s
30th anniversary film, with a pair of scientists who are either vengeful
or concerned for humanities existence. They’ve developed a machine that might
have the ability to speak to the monsters, but do they really know what their
machine is telling them?
The two scientists are credible and not annoying, with the later being a major thing that some disaster/monster get wrong, much like the balance of cheese and entertainment.
If you want
monsters you got em
When you see a Godzilla film you expect monsters and
Godzilla: King of the Monsters gets the monster pacing down perfectly. After
the requisite establishment of why the scientists are doing what they’re doing
it’s all monsters all the time, until the humans get in the way.
We quickly get to see Rodan, Gidorah and the big lizard
himself very quickly. There are some nice monster battle sequences and the
audience that I saw the movie with responded in kind with cheers and claps when
Godzilla initially appeared on screen and when he came to rally the troops on
subsequent occasions.
The monsters, the cities that they demolish, swim through, set on fire or explode are well executed and make older Godzilla fans easily forget about the cheesy sets that became the hallmark of earlier films.
Bradley Whitford as Dr. Stanton, along with Thomas
Middeletch as Sam Coleman were standout actors in their roles. They had enough
depth to let us know why they were there, in addition to providing most of
film’s lighter or humorous moments.
What it gets wrong
At times the balance of cheese to entertainment is perfect, while at other times it way off balance. Unfortunately most of those times are with Millie Bobby Brown, who is the daughter of said aforementioned scientists. Her part in the movie is weakly flushed out, yet is so heavily depended on for most of the dramatic shift point that it all but stops the film when she enters the screen. It’s not her fault and she’s built up lots of audience good will due to Stranger Things, but this is not the feature film breakthrough that she’s looking for.
The mythos of Godzilla knows who it’s trying to win over and
what it’s trying to accomplish. Alas, in this new age of
comedy/monster/science-fiction/Universe building film it’s gotten confusing. Is
Godzilla an anti-hero of the nuclear age? A hero against people inadvertently
helping the bad kaiju? The film tries to throw a curve ball into the mix with
an ‘eco-terrorist’ who is set upon setting humanity back the blah, blah, shut
up and let the monster fight. That is exactly what you’ll be thinking.
If I hear one more
Skull Island reference…..
The first Skull Island (See also: King Kong) reference was
cool. The second one was over. By the time the end credits rolled and we see
cave images-and about 20 (no exaggeration here) more references to Kong, we get
it. There will be a sequel and more monster universe building.
The Bottom Line
It’s mildly entertaining, but we wanted more. If the film
had taken a chance and spent more time on the script then audiences would’ve
thanked it more. The film also would’ve gotten more cash, earned more goodwill
towards Godzilla vs. Kong and been able to push this universe forward. Instead,
you’ve got a lukewarm film that will please audiences, but will require much
more to push them towards this universe building scheme that they’ve planned.
For our family The Secret Life of Pets was one of the most surprisingly fun times at the movies in recent memory. It took a simple premise, blew it into the absurd and still managed to bring it all together for an incredibly entertaining movie. The Secret Life of Pets 2 hits theaters on June 7, but if you live in Atlanta you can get a family 4-pack of tickets to the sneak preview on June 4. I know, summer, free movie and an all but guaranteed fun time for the family-count us in.
This is the tenth animated feature from Illumination. They have a signature brand of slight irreverence and subversive humor. Max has life changes because his owner has a baby now. Queue in a family trip to a farm,intolerant cows, hostile foxes; a veteran farm dog Rooster (Harrison Ford, making his animated-film debut) and you’ve got the makings for a fun, well-rounded time at the movies for ages 7 and up. Oh, of course Snowball is back, except this time he has a superhero complex.
This Atlanta sneak preview of The Secret Life of Pets 2 is Tuesday, June 4 at 7PM. To enter to win just RT this or leave a comment below. There are 8 four-packs of tickets to give away. Winners will have the complete details sent to them on Friday, May 31.
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