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Rhyme and Reason

~ Poetry Meets Film Reviews

Rhyme and Reason

Tag Archives: Comedy

Dust Bunny (2025)

13 Friday Nov 2026

Posted by sgliput in Movies, Poetry, Writing, Reviews

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Action, Comedy, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller

Cognizance is confidence,
And knowledge makes a fellow brave.
But thinking one knows everything
Is the surest path to an early grave.

I know monsters are not real,
But should monstrosities exist,
My believing has no bearing
Once I’m in the monsters’ midst.
____________________

MPA rating: R (for violence but honestly it should be PG-13)

When people complain about there not being any original movies anymore, it’s a sign that they simply aren’t paying attention. While franchises may be Hollywood’s bread and butter, plenty of gems fly under the radar, and Dust Bunny is a prime example. Written and directed by TV maestro Bryan Fuller, the film is hard to categorize, towing the line between action, horror, fantasy, and family film to create a remarkably stylish and confident directorial debut.

Imagine if Roald Dahl wrote a dark fantasy in the John Wick universe. That comes close to describing Dust Bunny, wherein foster kid Aurora (Sophie Sloan) keeps having her families disappear, and she insists they were eaten by a monster under her bed. She eventually turns to her mysterious neighbor (Mads Mikkelsen), a hitman who can surely kill it for her, but they are soon beset by killers from without and a creature from below.

Part of the appeal of this genre mixing is that the characters think they are in different movies, so to speak. Aurora is entirely convinced that monsters that swim through the floorboards like a furry shark are real, while her new friend (known only as Resident 5B or Intriguing Neighbor) is equally convinced that she simply has a wild imagination and that his own wacky and ruthless world of contract killers is the true cause of her family troubles. In time, they bond over their loneliness and seek to protect each other, even as the fantasy and noir clash in deadly chaos, and Mikkelsen and Sloane have a great winking chemistry with each other, both well aware they know more than the other.

Another aspect I love is the production design, which I think was criminally snubbed for an Oscar nomination. The apartment building is an Art Nouveau time capsule from Hungary, and the ornate sets and dynamic wallpapers really give the film a unique and whimsical character. The costumes are also a stand-out, colorful and evocative of 1960s styles without ever specifying a time or place. So much of it is simply fun to look at, and there’s a chicken-butt lamp that made me laugh just seeing it.

In short, Dust Bunny is a strange delight, a showcase of hitmen and monsters and Sigourney Weaver firing guns in her heels. It also feels like a prime candidate for introducing older kids to darker themes; despite its R rating, much of it plays like a family film with zero profanity and little blood, though there are still mature elements like cutting up a body offscreen. With Hannibal and now this film, Mikkelsen and Fuller have a strong partnership, and I certainly hope they can collaborate on more projects like this.

Best line: (Intriguing Neighbor) “Monsters aren’t real.”
(Aurora) “Yes, they are. Don’t pretend.”
(Neighbor) “Grown-ups don’t pretend.”
(Aurora) “Grown-ups pretend not to be afraid, but they are… all the time.”

Rank: List-Worthy

© 2026 S.G. Liput
799 Followers and Counting

The Sheep Detectives (2026)

11 Wednesday Nov 2026

Posted by sgliput in Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Comedy, Family, Mystery

Sheep will follow;
Sheep will herd;
Sheep will heed a foolish word.

Sheep will do
What sheep have done
Since lamb was craved and wool was spun.

Sheep are stupid;
Sheep forget,
Sheep have not proved different… yet.

Sheep are one
Collective noun;
A sheep might not let us down.
_____________________

MPA rating: PG

A murder mystery involving sheep could have easily been simplistic and trite, especially coming from the director of Minions, but it’s a special pleasure when a film rises to be far better than it has any right to be. Based loosely on the German novel Three Bags Full, the film stars Hugh Jackman as English shepherd George, who enjoys reading mystery novels to his flock, voiced by an ensemble of famous names, including the clever one Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), the one with a good memory Mopple (Chris O’Dowd), the loner Sebastian (Bryan Cranston), and the eldest Sir Ritchfield (Patrick Stewart, may he rest in peace). When George is unexpectedly killed one dark and stormy night, Lily leads the effort to solve his murder and lead the hapless human policeman (Nicholas Braun) to the truth.

I have always had a soft spot for 1995’s Babe, with its gentle bucolic charm and talking animals, and The Sheep Detectives feels very much like its successor. For one thing, it’s hilarious, the limited knowledge base of a sheep serving to poke fun at various human concepts, and though the sheep themselves are less real than the animals in Babe, the CGI is seamless and thoroughly convincing to make them feel just as true as the human characters. The voice work is a laudable contributor to that as well, with Louis-Dreyfus and O’Dowd especially navigating a range of emotions with their voices.

Beyond the charm of talking sheep, lovely scenery, and a solidly written mystery that I won’t spoil, the film explores surprisingly nuanced themes of mortality, prejudice, and willful ignorance. It’s a cute gag when the sheep choose to forget a mildly irksome experience early on, but it carries more weight later when they are faced with facts that are too hard to bear and must decide if even pain and grief can be worth remembering. I could see this being a rather heavy introduction to the reality of death for some kids, but it’s handled gracefully.

Mixing cute animals with unexpected pathos is a winning combination, and every aspect of the film contributes to a thoroughly satisfying and delightful tale. Until Wildwood, The Sheep Detectives was solidly my favorite film of the year, and I still consider it an instant family classic.

Best line: (Sebastian, about not forgetting George) “Justice. It means the good should not be harmed by the bad. The weak should not be harmed by the strong. And a friend should never be forgotten. George showed me justice once. He deserves it in return.”

Rank: Top 100-Worthy

© 2026 S.G. Liput
798 Followers and Counting

If You Were the Last (2023)

08 Sunday Nov 2026

Posted by sgliput in Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Comedy, Drama, Romance, Sci-fi, Streaming

When stuck in close proximity
With someone of the other sex,
There’s always possibility
That you-know-what will follow next.

It all depends on what you’ve got,
Your vibes and personalities…
Or if your partner’s super hot
And not one for formalities.

When paired with only time and us,
What follows is on fate and luck:
We just might hate each other’s guts
Or find the joy in being stuck.
___________________

Rating: TV-MA (likely a strong PG-13 for sex and some language)

I have come to set my expectations low when it comes to streaming-only romance films, which so often end up as little more than Hallmark wannabes. So it was a pleasant surprise to find If You Were the Last is a real winner, if only you have a Peacock subscription. Joining the ranks of films about astronauts stranded in space, even directly referencing The Martian, the film thrives on the natural chemistry between Adam (Anthony Mackie) and Jane (Zoȅ Chao).

The leading pair are the only survivors of a botched space mission that left their ship stranded in orbit around Saturn. Three years have passed as they attempt to fix the navigation computer while maintaining their life support and food supply, and their friendly professional rapport has gradually warmed into deep fondness and quite possibly more. They eventually chat frankly about the reasons for and against a sexual relationship, such as the fact they are married but also likely never to be rescued, and the lines between survival and love become harder to define with time.

Mackie and Chao have charm to spare, and Angela Bourassa’s script effortlessly allows their complementary personalities to bounce off each other in the repartee, like their commentary on certain movies. And while their cute behavior can sometimes seem too flippant given their plight, it’s clearly necessary as a way to deal with monotony and despair. In some ways, their ship seems comfortably prepared with food and entertainment for an extended stay, but things worsen gradually in ways which simply can’t be rectified, such as the death of their only goat or the corruption of a beloved music file. The future is not guaranteed, so how should the time remaining be spent?

Even so, this is not a deeply serious take on space isolation, as evidenced by the charming diorama-style depiction of their ship in space rather than more realistic effects. But it hits a likable balance of tones, boasting a unique scenario that allows two people to bond over their close proximity and shared stakes and see just how much they need each other. It’s a shame If You Were the Last is behind a single subscription barrier because it’s a rom-com deserving of wider appreciation.

Rank:  List Runner-Up

© 2026 S.G. Liput
799 Followers and Counting

Fackham Hall (2025)

07 Saturday Nov 2026

Posted by sgliput in Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Comedy, Period piece

May it never be said
That humor is dead
While the people of Britain
Have yet to be smitten.
_________________

MPA rating: R (mainly for language)

I have a soft spot for the zany, joke-a-minute parodies of the 1970s-80s, the likes of The Naked Gun, Young Frankenstein, and Spaceballs. It’s not as if the genre died since, but they generally became more crass and less funny with every attempt. It takes skill to make a spoof that works as a member of the genre it’s satirizing, and Fackham Hall manages to hit that sweet spot of both fondness for and ridicule of period drama.

Set in Depression-era England, the film focuses on the Davenport family of the titular estate. Lord Humphrey (Damian Lewis) and his wife Prudence (Katherine Waterston) are eager to marry off at least one of their daughters to cousin Archibald (Tom Felton) so as to keep Fackham Hall in the family, much to the chagrin of one such daughter Rose (Thomasin McKenzie). Meanwhile, a sneaky pickpocket named Eric (Ben Radcliffe) gets hired as a hall boy, falling in love with Rose and becoming one of many suspects when Lord Davenport is discovered killed, dead, and yes, murdered even.

While it’s an obvious send-up of the likes of Downton Abbey (which I admittedly have not seen) and various murder mysteries, Fackham Hall has wit to spare, thanks to the comedy chops of writers the Dawson Brother, Patrick Carr, and Jimmy Carr, the latter of whom plays a riotous vicar who can’t seem to notice periods in the sermons he reads. Rarely did a minute pass without multiple giggles, whether it be the family referring to their butler Cyril as “Cyri” (a la the AI assistant) or recreating “Who’s on First?”-style confusion with an inspector named Watt. And the sight gags were outstanding, whether it be Rose reading the scandalous One Shade of Grey, an only half-printed newspaper about a national ink shortage, or Eric literally dodging the title card on his bike.

Between Fackham Hall and the latest Naked Gun, it’s been nice seeing the resurgence of good parody flicks. The film also serves as proof that Thomasin McKenzie can do comedy just as well as her past dramatic roles, and even now, I can’t help but chuckle at the plethora of wordplay or one hilarious death scene in particular. While it has its fair share of off-color or low-brow humor (as evidenced by the euphemistic title), I consider Fackham Hall a modern comedy classic.

Best lines: (the Inspector, upon his arrival) “Inspector Robert Watt. I’m here regarding the murder of Lord Davenport.” (Cyril) “I’m afraid you’re too late. Someone’s already done it.”
and
(Archibald) “Ah, Rose, how did you sleep?” (Rose) “By lying on my bed and closing my eyes.”

Rank: List-Worthy

© 2026 S.G. Liput
799 Followers and Counting

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024)

03 Saturday May 2025

Posted by sgliput in Movies, NaPoWriMo, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Action, Comedy, Family, Sci-fi

(I’m catching up after the fact, but for Day 15 of NaPoWriMo, the prompt was for a six-line poem characterized by simple language and enthusiasm, so I focused on the film itself this time.)

I played the games when I was young.
I guess I’ll go watch the movie. Looks fun.
It’s not as if I’ve been waiting for this,
But all my friends saw it. I don’t want to miss
The tragic backstory, Jim Carrey’s full glory, ooh, that scene was peak!
Shut up, I’m no geek….
______________________

MPA rating: PG

It honestly feels like a minor miracle that the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise has translated to the big screen as well as it has. It seemed as if it would be a bomb on arrival after the poorly received initial design for the title character, but three live-action movies and a streaming show later, it’s proven to be remarkably fun. In this third outing (did I never review the sequel? Guess not.), a powerful black and red hedgehog called Shadow (Keanu Reeves) is freed from decades-long imprisonment and embarks on a spree of vengeance, leading Sonic (Ben Schwartz), Tails (Colleen O’Shaughnessey), and Knuckles (Idris Elba) to team with the non-shockingly not dead Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey) to bring him down.

While the Knuckles series got rather dumb as it dragged out, the movies have found the right secret sauce for Team Sonic, with Sonic’s quippy super-speed antics bouncing well off of Tails’ earnest tech support and Knuckles’ headstrong aggression. Add in a self-serious straight man in the form of Shadow, a villain very much in the mold of Mewtwo from Pokémon, and the film is able to find a surprising balance between silly action and emotional stakes. It also helps that James Marsden and Tika Sumpter as Sonic’s adoptive parents are given more to do this time, while Jim Carrey pulls eccentric double duty as both the returning mad scientist Ivo Robotnik and his even madder grandfather Gerald.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 gives every indication that this franchise has the potential to keep getting better, with yet another character from the games teased at the end for a sequel. One dance scene between the Robotniks will no doubt go down as one of Carrey’s finest and most hilarious moments and well worth his return from retirement. And though there’s nothing revolutionary about the plot or themes, the overall entertainment value makes this a film to please nostalgic nerds and present kids alike.

Best line: (Shadow) “The light shines, even though the star is gone.”

Rank: List Runner-Up

© 2025 S.G. Liput
809 Followers and Counting

It Happened One Night (1934)

01 Thursday May 2025

Posted by sgliput in Movies, NaPoWriMo, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Classics, Comedy, Romance

(For Day 30 of NaPoWriMo, the prompt was for a poem about hearing a band or song throughout one’s lifetime. Based on a scene from this film, I went with the classic “The Man on the Flying Trapeze,” so the poem can be sung to that tune.
This might be the end of the month, but I’ve missed I think three days so I’ll be catching up before calling it quits.)

Remember that song we sang on the bus
When life was just you and me and not us?
My voice was drowned out by the crowd (‘twas a plus),
But yours, like a bell, had me reeling.

I hear it, years later, but clearly
To the sound of cans dragging behind.
The bouquet had been thrown, and we weren’t on our own,
And we sang with our voices combined.

Oh, we warble it still on the road all the time,
And though my voice borders on audial crime,
You still sound as sweet as you did in your prime.
So one more time, honey, with feeling!
_________________________

MPA rating: Approved (G-level)

Another Oscar-season showing from TCM, It Happened One Night is still fondly regarded today as a Frank Capra classic, so I was curious if the Best Picture winner of 1934 would hold up and, for the most part, it does. Claudette Colbert plays spoiled heiress Ellie Andrews, who elopes against her father’s wishes and then goes on the lam as he puts up a reward for her return. She is found by beleaguered newspaper reporter Peter Warne (Clark Gable), who helps her in exchange for covering her story, and the two gradually grow closer along their travel misadventures. Both actors also won Oscars, as did the screenplay and Capra as director.

Any film this old is going to be somewhat dated, but the banter between Peter and Ellie feels more natural than a lot of other repartee from the era, like the flowery dialogue of Double Indemnity or the pretentious quips of The Philadelphia Story. It’s fun to watch the beauty Colbert humbled by the travails of being on the road, while Gable bears the bulk of the film’s charm on his back, proving it was second nature for him to play an appealing rogue even five years before Gone with the Wind. From the running joke of “the walls of Jericho” to Colbert’s famous hitchhiking scene, the film stays amusing without going silly with its screwball comedy, and I was surprised by a scene toward the end that was blatantly borrowed by Spaceballs, a testament to its influence. While I didn’t think It Happened One Night rose to the level of greatness I’ve seen critics ascribe to it, it’s an excellent early rom com that further proves the talents of Gable and Capra.

Best line: (Ellie’s father Alexander, to Peter) “Do you love her?”
(Peter) “A normal human being couldn’t live under the same roof with her without going nutty! She’s my idea of nothing!”
(Alexander) “I asked you a simple question! Do you love her?”
(Peter) “Yes! But don’t hold that against me, I’m a little screwy myself!”

Rank: List Runner-Up

© 2025 S.G. Liput
807 Followers and Counting

Spellbound (2024)

29 Tuesday Apr 2025

Posted by sgliput in Movies, NaPoWriMo, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Animation, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Musical

(For Day 28 of NaPoWriMo, the prompt was for a poem about “music at a ceremony or event of some kind,” like for instance a birthday.)

“Happy Birthday!” everyone sang.
The sound of unity in my ears rang.
Everyone loved me, at least for a song
That needed more verses to feel at all long,
And oh, how I wished, as the candles were blown,
That mom would stop yelling and put down her phone
And dad would stop cursing and pointing his finger,
That both would just stay as a smiling singer
And love me enough to not hate one another.
Not too much to ask for a father and mother.
I knew what would happen but blew all the same.
Then maybe the candles would carry the blame.
_____________________

MPA rating: PG

Sometimes a film so clearly wants to be like its predecessors that you have to at least admire the effort that went into its earnest attempt. Mary and the Witch’s Flower comes to mind in trying to live up to Studio Ghibli’s legacy, while Skydance Animation’s Spellbound aspires to be like the Disney princess musicals of yore. It certainly has a pedigree with producer John Lassiter, director Vicky Jenson of Shrek, and songs by the great Alan Menken. In it, Princess Ellian (Rachel Zegler) of the fantasy kingdom of Lumbria desperately tries to keep secret from the citizens that her royal parents (Javier Bardem, Nicole Kidman) have been transformed into animal-like monsters running amok in the palace. Seeking the help of two magical Oracles (Nathan Lane and Titus Burgess as an unspoken gay couple), Ellian takes her parents on a dangerous journey to transform them back to humans.

Spellbound has a lot of great ideas to its credit, particularly in the world-building, from a waterfall used as a massive gate to a desert that turns to quicksand under cloud shadows or a tunnel where sounds become projectiles. The songs are quite good too, though still don’t hold a candle to Menken’s best work, and the voice cast is on point, especially Zegler’s original spunky princess role and John Lithgow as her long-suffering adviser/sidekick. 

But it’s hard to escape the feeling that Spellbound is a pale imitation that needed more fleshing out to avoid its own plot holes, like how the monster king and queen escape the palace when their cages are left open yet had been free to wander the palace for months before that. And then there’s the message that makes itself known rather late in the runtime, clarifying the monster situation as a metaphor for divorce and saying many of the right things for a resolution while not diving deep enough to make it land emotionally. Spellbound is a valiant effort, often funny, cute, and imaginative, but its muddled tone and oversimplified lesson keep it from rising to the level of its forerunners.

Best line: (Queen Ellsmere, to her daughter) “The best thing about us is you. And it always has been.”

Rank: Honorable Mention

© 2025 S.G. Liput
807 Followers and Counting

Here Today (2021)

25 Friday Apr 2025

Posted by sgliput in Movies, NaPoWriMo, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Comedy, Drama

(For Day 24 of NaPoWriMo, the prompt was for a poem about “people making music together,” ideally with a reference to another poem or song, so I took a comedian’s metaphorical view.)

Music can sound like many things,
Beyond the range of voice and strings.
To Andrew Lloyd Webber, the yowls of cats;
To Dracula, ‘tis the shrieks of bats;
To Beethoven, a silent dream;
To Pollock, friendship with a theme;
To writers, their pithier paragraphs;
But in my case, it’s laughs.

I’ve trained my ear here over the years,
And many a friend has shared premieres:
A generous bellow is melody mellow,
And chuckles transport me more than any cello;
A snicker is symphony; cracks, a cornet;
And two people cackling’s like a duet.
I’ve been a conductor of smiles, my dear,
A banter-and-beam balladeer.
________________________

MPA rating: PG-13

Directed and co-written by Billy Crystal (alongside SNL writer Alan Zweibel), Here Today is my kind of film, the sort that critics acknowledge as pleasant while criticizing its sentimentality. Well, maybe I’m just sentimental because I thoroughly enjoyed it! Crystal plays aging comedy writer Charlie Burnz, who is trying to hide his developing symptoms of Alzheimer’s from his coworkers and estranged children. Through a serendipity of spite and epinephrine, he builds an unlikely relationship with a singer named Emma (Tiffany Haddish), who becomes the friend and confidante he needs most right now.

Crystal still boasts an effortless comic touch and manages to mix it with deep pathos as his character feels his life, his work, his memories of love slipping away. I’m generally not a fan of Haddish’s loud-mouthed comedy, but she reins it in somewhat while remaining an endearing contrast to Charlie. (It’s neat knowing they became real-life friends too.) There’s some awkward uncertainty over whether their bond will veer toward romance, but thankfully it stays meaningfully platonic.

Along with some nice cameos, Here Today has several great scenes that could be deemed corny with the right cynicism, like Charlie’s flashbacks to his wife, his epic comedic meltdown during a live show, or Emma’s impromptu singalong at a bat mitzvah, but I like to keep my cynicism low enough to enjoy a film like this. Its release sadly suffered from the lingering pandemic slump, but, in my book, Here Today is another charmer to Billy Crystal’s credit.

Best line: (Charlie) “I’m writing something, and I have to finish before my words run out.”

Rank: List Runner-Up

© 2025 S.G. Liput
807 Followers and Counting

It’s What’s Inside (2024)

22 Tuesday Apr 2025

Posted by sgliput in Movies, NaPoWriMo, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Comedy, Horror, Netflix, Sci-fi, Thriller

(For Day 21 of NaPoWriMo, the prompt was for a poem describing an abnormal version of an event as if it’s normal, so I took an outsider’s view of a wild party.)

The neighbors had another party last night.
I saw from a distance and rolled my eyes.
I got a nice view of each head light
As all of the guests rolled in.
It didn’t take long for the hahs and guffaws,
The drunken cheers and smoky highs.
They probably broke some local laws,
But, hey, I was used to the din.

And then, as usual, the screams began,
The frenzied shrieks of “Eek, he’s dead!”
It must be some weird game they plan
For when the tension loosens.
Threats were yelled and shots were fired, 
But I just tried to go to bed.
I checked in the morning, sore and tired.
More cops… what a nuisance….
________________________

MPA rating: R (for frequent language and brief violence)

I’ve always been fascinated with the idea of body swaps; when I was growing up, they always made for especially fun cartoon episodes (and you’d be surprised at how many there are). So a film with multiple body switches at its core had my interest from the get-go. A group of seven college friends reunite after eight years for a pre-wedding party at a remote mansion. To their surprise, an estranged pal of theirs named Forbes (David Thompson) shows up as well, bearing a mysterious device and inviting them to play a game in which they all trade bodies and then must guess who is who. When an accident leaves, shall we say, fewer bodies to go around, chaos breaks out as their weird fun transforms into competing self-preservation.

It’s What’s Inside gets a lot of mileage out of its uniquely trippy take on a timeworn concept, even if it can be confusing to keep the ensemble cast straight as they swap bodies and sometimes lie about who they really are. There’s initial interest from the idea of being one’s own friend temporarily and how that can affect one’s self-esteem and ambitions, but, once the shoe drops, the second half is a twisting whirlwind of intrigue and backstabbing that makes for a wild ride. I had some reservations about the ending, though, particularly how one character is punished excessively for more of an interpersonal offense, but It’s What’s Inside was still a fun watch exploring the dangers of body-swapping.

Rank: List Runner-Up

© 2025 S.G. Liput
807 Followers and Counting

The Wild Robot (2024)

15 Tuesday Apr 2025

Posted by sgliput in Movies, NaPoWriMo, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Animation, Comedy, Drama, Dreamworks, Family, Sci-fi

(For Day 14 of NaPoWriMo, the prompt was for a poem describing a place in terms of the animals and natural sounds, so I thought of a certain humanless island from a recent animated film.)

The island was peaceful, no humans as kings,
Serene with the sounds of dying things.
Nature was spinning the circle of life
That ends with a cry and then silence.
The ocean was beating its breast on the rocks,
As the yelp of a whelp and the laugh of a fox
Echoed through trees as indifferent as death,
So soothing (ignoring the violence).

The geese were declaring their edge over ducks,
The does were all teases outrunning the bucks,
The woodpeckers gifted headaches to the squirrels,
And nothing was likely to change.
But then a new creature came, bringing new noises,
The whirring of servos, the shock that a voice is,
No fur and no feathers, just a fool metal jacket,
A new kind of racket, exciting and strange.
________________________

MPA rating: PG

My favorite film of 2024, The Wild Robot is further proof that DreamWorks can match and even surpass Disney at its best. Based on a 2016 children’s novel by Peter Brown, the first in a trilogy, this animated adventure set in the future sees an unprogrammed robot, ROZZUM Unit 7134 or “Roz” (Lupita Nyong’o), wash up on an unpopulated island full of unfriendly wildlife. Seeking some meaningful service to offer, Roz stumbles into the care of a baby gosling eventually named Brightbill (Kit Connor), raising it with the aid of a crafty fox (Pedro Pascal) and gradually weaving herself into the ecosystem in a way none would have guessed.

The early scenes of Roz exploring the island, before she is able to communicate with the animals, bring to mind the beginning of WALL-E, near-wordless storytelling at its finest. And once she does make contact, the film is surprisingly candid about the dog-eat-dog nature of nature, slipping in some darker-than-expected humor for a kids movie. The film’s emotional core lies in Roz’s connection to Brightbill, a poignant bond of adoptive motherhood that is likely to draw out tears from the tenderhearted, especially when backed by Kris Bowers’ moving, instantly iconic score.

The animation is also a sheer joy to behold, a gorgeous watercolor style that puts other 3D animation to shame with its warmth and natural detail, and, although I quite enjoyed Flow too, it’s a crime that this didn’t win the Best Animated Feature Oscar. Nyong’o brings an excellent balance of robotic coolness and burgeoning emotion as the voice of Roz, while Pascal is a special delight as the wise-cracking fox she befriends. And did I mention the score? It still gives me goosebumps.

It’s true there’s nothing particularly new about The Wild Robot’s themes, borrowing from the likes of The Iron Giant and Wolf Children, and the latter half has some holes (the exciting climax feels a bit pointless by the end). But this fable of a robot learning humanity even without humans around is exceptionally well-crafted otherwise and will always hold a special place in my heart. I’m skeptical whether the planned sequel can match it, but I hope so.

Best line: (Roz) “Sometimes, to survive, we must become more than we were programmed to be.”

Rank: List-Worthy

© 2025 S.G. Liput
805 Followers and Counting

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