CJSawIt

“Moana 2”

Production Value: 5 / 5
Artistic Value: 3 / 5
Entertainment Value: 4 / 5
Grade: “See It”

“Moana” has a special place in the Disney vault. I consider it one of the most unique of their stories, and it plays a special part in uplifting an underrepresented culture. It has some great songs and some great characters.

Disney sequels are 50/50 for me. You want to see some of these characters again and again. Others not so much. It’s always about the money, whether there is more story to be told or not, right? “Moana 2” has more story to tell, but it doesn’t hold a candle to the original.

It feels like home to see the people of Motunui again. Characters like Moana, Hey Hey and Maui are some of Disney’s better characters lately. Unfortunately “Moana 2” is missing that same magic that the first one possessed. This new one feels like “another day in the life of” rather than an epic adventure with stakes. Remember when Disney cartoons got their own weekly series? It feels a lot like that. An episode. I realize that we’re never really losing any of these characters, but I would like to at least FEEL that we’re in danger of losing something…

…but these are the ramblings of an old movie critic. The target audience is children, and “Moana 2” covers its bases from that standpoint. The colors, characters and (lackluster) songs will all contribute to fun in the seats and the bottom line.

My personal hope is that they will find something more significant to say when they inevitably bring Moana back for round 3.

“Gladiator II”

Production Value: 5 / 5
Artistic Value: 3 / 5
Entertainment Value: 3 / 5
Grade: “Maybe A Matinee”

…and here we are. A project finally saved from the deepest of development hells. The sequel no one asked for and a movie no one needed: “Gladiator II”.

A few things stand out to me after watching this film. It turns out there IS a story remaining to be told in Ridley Scott's Roman Empire. I think the mistake is in how they decided to tell it.

You know you've dropped the ball when the political intrigue and machinations of the Senate are more interesting than the Gladiator battles. That's mostly due to Denzel Washington's portrayal as Macrinus. He's in a different movie than the other cast members (and he's having the most fun). It feels like he was green-screened in after the movie was complete.

Paul Mescal is serviceable as our new Gladiator, though his story arc is nearly IDENTICAL to Maximus’ adventure (with “Lion King” overtones - do what you will with that information).The focus on him versus Macrinus is egregious considering this fact. I feel they aimed to create a juxtaposition with the two characters. The only problem is that the new character is far more interesting.

Was “Gladiator II” entertaining? Yes.

Was it appropriately bloody and violent? Yes.

Should it have been called something other than “Gladiator”? Absolutely.

There were too many callbacks and too much recycled footage to justify full price to me. It's loud and brash and it's built for the theaters but do discount day or matinee at best…

…OR watch the original again. I promise you're not missing much.

“The Penguin”

Production Value: 5 / 5
Artistic Value: 4 / 5
Entertainment Value: 5 / 5
Grade: “Stream It” (Max)

“The Penguin” has achieved something that I never considered possible in the comic genre. It's one thing to take the Batman mythos and “ground” it like Christopher Nolan and his “Dark Knight” trilogy. It's another thing to strip the mythos of almost everything that makes it a comic book and not only pull it off, but ELEVATE the material. Matt Reeves and showrunner Lauren LeFranc have done just that.

Colin Farrell makes this show. Pure and simple. His transformation into Oz Cobb will be the stuff of make-up and acting legend, and there are Emmys and Golden Globes incoming. Guaranteed. I would be remiss if I didn't mention Cristin Milioti's performance as Sofia Falcone. She brings a simmering menace to her role that counterbalances Cobb's tactical cruelty.

There are two ways this particular “The Batman” franchise can go from here. They did a perfect job of maintaining the tone and the integrity of what they created with the first film. This truly feels like an extension of that project in every way. I don't know that you put the Penguin on a back burner for the sequel. It looks like he's now in direct opposition - or at the very least the source of Gotham's new troubles. I also don't know if you make a season 2 and potentially step on an all-timer of a project.

They have some tough choices to make. But judging by the results so far? I trust them to make the right ones. Imagine creating some of the best Batman content while keeping Batman himself to a minimum. Kudos all around.