Each year around this time, Omaha’s Memorial Park hosts a concert and fireworks show on its bucolic, sloping lawn ensconced in midtown Omaha.
Bridget and I sometimes go towards 10 p.m. for the fireworks, listening to the last few songs performed by the headliner. In years past, we watched the fireworks from my parent’s home near Crossroads Mall.
This year, Bridget won two VIP passes from Baxter Volkswagon La Vista's Facebook page. This allowed us to sit in folding chair seats close to the stage, get a pass to park in the lower level of UNO's parking garage (Lot T), and have access VIP portable potties (hint: they’re like the regular portable potties in the park, just inside the gated VIP area). Baxter reps also came around to distribute bottles of water, handheld fans, and glow sticks (although we went in search of the glow sticks ourselves, not realizing they'd be brought to us).
A few of our friends — Jill, Arlen, Andy, Jason and Jolene — also won VIP passes.
The bands performing were The Confidentials (a local act), Bostyx (a Boston/Styx tribute band), and Starship. Survivor was originally slated to play, but were replaced at the 11th hour by Bostyx (which turned out to be a good act). The fireworks display was sponsored by Woodmen of the World. It seemed a tad bit shorter this year than in years past, but was still a lot of fun to watch. (And the music accompanying the fireworks was fun, Bridget noted.) There was one kind of scary moment. As we walked towards the parking garage, we heard an explosion. We weren't sure where it came from, or what it was. When we descended the stairs to the lower level of the parking garage, there was a lot of smoke and some commotion. Bridget spoke with a UNO security guard, who said that someone had set off a firework in the garage. He didn't see it himself, but the vehicle in question was pointed out by several other folks, and he talked to the people and basically told them to knock it off.
Some idiot set off a large firework in the lower level (Lot T) of the @unomaha parking garage. In case @meanstreetsoma got reports of an explosion near the Memorial Patk concert -- that's what it was.
— Bridget Weide Brooks (@bridgetabrooks) June 30, 2018
Her tweet was retweeted by the Mean Streets Omaha Twitter account. (Yes, I know it has a typo in it. Twitter needs an edit feature.) Parking is always an issue for the concert, and even with VIP parking, it took more than 40 minutes to exit the parking garage and get home (usually a 7-minute drive).
The Fourth of July is probably my favorite holiday — I really enjoy this time of year.
I dunno if any of you have noticed, but there has been a trend the past few years of releasing a movie with a patriotic theme — based on true events — in wide release during the month of January.
The latest participant in this trend is the movie “12 Strong” — released Jan. 19, 2018.
“12 Strong” recounts the story of the first U.S. Special Forces team — “Green Berets” — sent to Afghanistan in the weeks following the 9/11 attacks.
The team — Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA) 595 — is led by Capt. Mitch Nelson (Chris Hemsworth). Nelson was set to take on a “staff duty” assignment prior to 9/11 under Lt. Col. Max Bowers (Rob Riggle), but twists his way back into command of ODA 595.
ODA 595 is ordered to team up with the Northern Alliance in an attempt to take down the Taliban and Al-Qaeda. The Northern Alliance leader is Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum (Navid Negahban).
The relationship with Gen. Dostum is uneasy at first. But disparate soldiers forge a bond as they attempt to thwart enemy forces, and help Dostum capture Mazar-i Sharif.
The movie is based on the non-fiction novel “Horse Soldiers” by Doug Stanton.
In the course of events, the men of ODA 595 have to take to horseback with their Northern Alliance comrades — the most practical way to move around the mountainous terrain in the region.
I wasn’t all that familiar with the story of the “Horse Soldiers.” The first I heard about Operational Detachment Alpha was a reference in former special operator Jack Carr’s novel “The Terminal List” (read my review) about another team with the 5th Special Forces Group called “Triple Nickel” (ODA 555).
I didn’t see “12 Strong” in the theater. The reviews were somewhat tepid. I watched it this week on Blu-ray.
I must say, I enjoyed the film.
While “12 Strong” doesn’t have the visceral intensity or emotional impact of “Lone Survivor” and “American Sniper,” it is an interesting story.
The cinematography is gorgeous (the film was shot in New Mexico, like “Lone Survivor”).
There are also some solid performances.
I wasn’t sure how Chris Hemsworth would be in this role (he’s almost become synonymous with his portrayal of Thor), but he did a good job of playing a confident leader who had spent a career training, but lacking in any sort of significant combat experience.
Michael Shannon was solid in his portrayal of Chief Warrant Office Hal Spencer — a veteran soldier who was set to retire, but who re-ups and goes to bat on behalf Nelson Lt. Col. Bowers. Shannon is one of today’s “under the radar” character actors, and he did a fine job in his supporting role.
I’m not familiar with the previous work of Navid Negahban, who played Gen. Abdul Dostum, but his portrayal of the crafty veteran fighter might be the movie’s most intriguing character.
There is a featurette on the “12 Strong” Blu-ray highlighting the creation of the monument that was erected in honor of the “Horse Soldier’s” heroic efforts in the aftermath of 9/11.
“America’s Response Monument” — subtitled De Oppresso Liber — is a bronze statue of a Green Beret mounted on horseback carrying an M4 rifle.
The statue is in Liberty Park (overlooking the National September 11 Memorial & Museum).
If I ever make a trip to New York City, I definitely plan to see the monument.
One of the more enjoyable moments in the film was when the team was being airlifted in a Chinook helicopter to the combat zone, and the men launch into a rendition of “The Ballad of the Green Beret.”
When I was a kid, my dad rented “The Green Berets” at Applause Video here in Omaha for us to watch. Not only did that movie make me a fan of John Wayne, it created a fascination in my psyche as it regarded the United States military and the men and women who serve to protect our country.
While “12 Strong” might not be the greatest military-minded movie out there, it is interesting, and worth a watch.
When I have the opportunity, I like to write blog posts about people in Nebraska doing creative things.
One such individual is Ryan Olsen. Olsen is a local filmmaker (based in Lincoln, NE) who is putting the final touches on his short film “Say Goodbye, Grace.” The film, according to the description on IMDB, is about a “tough-as-nails detective investigating the murder of an old friend. But can she accept the chilling, life-changing truth at the end?"
The reason I’m familiar with the project is because Bridget’s brother Sean (who died in 2017) will appear in the film (you can watch the embedded version of the film — that is on Olsen’s YouTube channel — at the end of this post).
NIFP (Nebraska Independent Film Projects) recently hosted Olsen at their June meeting at Turbine Flats In Lincoln (building pictured below). The filmmaker discussed the “Say Goodbye, Grace” project — from the film’s early inspiration to the complexities of production.
As a kid, Olsen loved “spectacle” in film. “Star Wars” and “Godzilla” were early influences (he still collects Godzilla movies — especially on VHS cassette).
(Side note: I remember seeing some of those old Godzilla movies on Saturday mornings in the early 1980s at the now-defunct Park 4 in La Vista, NE.)
Olsen is drawn to movies that have movement. He likes action and color. He recalled drawing a re-creation of the “Return of the Jedi’s” climactic space battle on large sheets of newsprint (his parents bought him the paper on large rolls that he could tear off, instead of more traditional copier paper).
The first film Olsen watched that “put him in his place” was Tim Burton’s quirky goth comedy “Beetlejuice.” He was enamored with the opening title sequence — something he mentioned that he watches time and again. The vivid imagery and movement in “Beetlejuice” was fun and exciting.
The idea of movies that take place "in a community, in a city, in a state, in a world" appeals to the filmmaker. Olsen said he mimicked that feeling a bit in “Say Goodbye, Grace” — the world is not just a handful of people... it’s so much more.
Creativity has been a constant in Olsen’s life. The Kearney native used to do a comic strip in his hometown paper called “Humor.” He shared with us a Godzilla film he made as a child featuring Play-Doh creatures and Party Poppers for effect.
When Olsen saw the movie “American Beauty” before college, he was drawn to the notion that film didn’t have to be “extravagant or crazy.” He decided to go into film studies in college because he wanted to learn how good film was constructed — as opposed to just focusing on the mechanics of using film cameras, lighting, sound, etc.
One of his earliest “pro gigs” was as a production assistant on the low-budget movie “Pirates of the Great Salt Lake” in 2004 — he made $200 for three weeks' work. In the intervening years, he has crafted a whole slew of promotional videos for small businesses and organizations in the Lincoln area — including this 2016 ad for a bar called “The Hot Mess”:
He showed us a YouTube clip of director James Cameron from a 2010 SBIFF panel discussion. Something Cameron said was particularly enlightening for Olsen: “Don’t waste a lot of time studying the problem by looking at how other directors did it. You’ve got to get out there and get busy. It’s that simple... you’re trying to inject yourself into a process that is ongoing — with or without you. So, grab a camera... make some stuff, make a film. Make a film, cut it together. The tools are here, readily available... put your name on it — now you’re a director, everything after that, you’re just negotiating price.”
This sentiment has inspired Olsen’s attitude regarding filmmaking.
Olsen funded “Say Goodbye Grace” with a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter:
He was fortunate enough to find a man in Lincoln who had conducted a successful Kickstarter campaign for $40,000 to fund a board game. The man shared his secrets with Olsen — and instilled the notion that you had to present information on your Kickstarter page "as if it’s already in progress."
One-sheet poster artwork was commissioned early on to give his project a sense of legitimacy. Olsen created all the supporting graphics for Kickstarter and social media, created crew profiles, and sketched out storyboards.
On the campaign page, he broke down how the money raised would be spent — including detailed pie charts and graphs. Olsen ended up raising more than $9,000 total from 124 “backers.” (Full disclosure: Bridget pledged $34 for “The Missing Citizen” level and will have her photo on a “Missing Person's” photo that appears somewhere in the film.)
One pro-tip from Olsen about Kickstarter: Try to raise 1/5 to 1/4 of your overall goal in first 24 hours — it shows prospective backers there are other people interested.
The board game creator also advised setting up appropriate “reward tiers” on Kickstarter — with emphasis on digital rewards over physical rewards (digital rewards are more cost-effective to fulfill).
Olsen did five months of promotion before the Kickstarter campaign was launched.
He put up ads everywhere, posted on social media, and made “Kick Cards” with information about the Kickstarter campaign.
At this point, he says he was doing 90 percent of everything — location scouting, cast, crew, Kickstarter, rewards, and writing. He says, “I was 100 percent committed and slowly losing my mind.”
On April 2-3, 2016, Olsen held cast auditions at the Hilton in Downtown Omaha. My brother-in-law Sean was one of those who auditioned. Sean worked in various media capacities during his adult life, so acting was a new interest for him.
Sean showed up at the auditions posing as a homeless man (he rolled around in some trash — illustrating a nascent “method actor” strategy for landing acting gigs). Someone escorted Sean on set — where he talked with Olsen about ideas to promote the film.
Olsen said my brother-in-law was always there to help.
“Say Goodbye, Grace” was primarily shot in the Lincoln area and at a container field in Omaha. Olsen also hired out people to film drone shots in the Pacific Northwest (where the film is set).
The film was shot over nine nights in 2016.
Olsen said he’s very excited for the film to be all said and done.
“Whenever I make a film, I’m all about the subtlety,” he says. “The sounds in the background — I am all about environment and atmosphere. I learned that from [director] David Lynch.”
He has infused his early love of color into the film. “I’m a big color guy,” he says. “Color needs to speak volumes.”
He also tried to add in different symbolic elements to “Say Goodbye, Grace.” Olsen analyzed a number of patterns and styles he saw in different films. He says, “a city during the day and a city at night are different things. In [the movie] ‘Alien,’ daytime is always rainy and nighttime is always windy. In Black Bay [the fictional location of ‘Say Goodbye, Grace’], it’s always foggy during the day and clear at night.”
As is the case with productions such as Olsen’s, everything didn’t go according to plan. He wasn’t able to film as many of the 23-page script’s pages per day as he had initially planned (despite a talented cast and crew). He ran out of money because of how meticulous his vision was — so he saved up money for his two reshoots.
He had a “scene premiere” at the 2017 Prairie Lights Film Festival (and hopes to enter the completed film this fall).
Olsen likes to do his own editing. “I have to edit my own stuff,” he says. “There is something about taking it and putting it all together.”
(He noted that he and his editor, Drake Tucker, have gotten to know each other really well over the past two years.)
Olsen and the crew have been working on the sound engineering in recent weeks. Music will be recorded at the end of July, and the film will go out for color corrrection that month as well.
“Sound and color are two more weapons you can used to assault your audience,” he says.
Olsen told NIFP he’d be willing to make a repeat visit to a monthly meeting — once the film is complete — for a screening and discussion of “Say Goodbye, Grace.”
He told Bridget and I after the presentation that he was still working on setting up a screening in Omaha.
Ryan Olsen’s company is called POW! Productions. You can learn more about his business — and the film “Say Goodbye, Grace” — at his website at http://www.powproductionsllc.com.
It’s hard to believe it has been a quarter century since the original “Jurassic Park” was released in theaters. At the time, the visual effects were truly groundbreaking, the concept incredibly novel (thanks Michael Crichton), and the overall impact that of “Jaws” (the JP movies are essentially the fruition of the “Land Shark” character from “Saturday Night Live” lore).
As was the case with the “Jaws” franchise in the late 70s and early 80s, “Jurassic Park” is a property that deals largely with The Law of Diminishing Returns. The box office numbers continue to be robust, but it is often hard to recapture past glories with high concept films.
Regardless, I dutifully see the “Jurassic” movies the same way I did the “Jaws” franchise.
Why, you might ask?
Because they are silly rollercoaster rides that entertain (despite ample amounts of ridiculousness).
The latest entry in our dino-powered saga is “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” — a follow-up to 2015’s “Jurassic World.”
One thing no one has ever convincingly explained is why it seemed like a good idea to develop another dinosaur-laden theme park after the events documented in the first three films.
But it doesn’t really matter so much.
You have to check your brain at the door when you see a “Jurassic” movie. I enjoyed “Jurassic World” in 2015.
I know I’m going against critical opinion here, but I think I enjoyed “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” even more than its predecessor.
“Fallen Kingdom” isn’t groundbreaking. Nor is it particularly original.
Be that as it may, director J.A. Bayona keeps things moving. The likable cast does a good job with the material given.
“Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” takes place three years after the incident in “Jurassic World.” Isla Nubar — home to the abandoned dinosaur theme park — is also home to a now-active volcano.
The movie begins with a group of mercenaries who are trying to collect DNA from the remains of the Indominous Rex — located at the bottom of the lagoon on Isla Nubar. The team members are attacked by two dinos — escaping by the skin of their teeth — but the lagoon gate is left open.
Meanwhile, back in the United States, the federal government is trying to decide whether or not to rescue the dinosaurs that remain on Isla Nubar — before the volcano erupts. Based on the testimony of Dr. Ian Malcolm (an underutilized Jeff Goldblum), the U.S. Senate decides to stay out of things.
Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) has started a dinosaur protection non-profit to try and save the critters from destruction. She is eventually approached by private interests (funded by Benjamin Lockwood, played by James Cromwell) who want to rescue the dinosaurs and place them in an island sanctuary (no one explains whether or not that will include flying dinos like Pterodactyls, but I digress...).
Claire agrees to return to Isla Nubar (she was previously in charge of ops at Jurassic World). Of all the dinos trapped on the island, they are most concerned about locating Blue — our favorite trained velociraptor.
So Claire heads to out to recruit Jurassic World’s former “velociraptor whisperer” Owen Grady (Chris Pratt).
From here, the newly assembled team heads out to Isla Nubar for a rendezvous with a group of game hunters led by a man named Wheatley (Ted Levine, who played Captain Leland Stottlemeyer on one of my favorite detective series "Monk").
As is the case with the “Jurassic” movies, nothing is at all cut and dry. Claire and Owen are double-crossed and soon learn the dinosaurs are being rescued in order to auction them off as “weapons.”
If you don’t spend too much time analyzing things, “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” is a fun ride.
There is a deadly new creature for our heroes to contend with — a genetic dino hybrid called an “Indoraptor.”
We are even treated to a surprisingly entertaining dinosaur blood transfusion.
Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are once again affable in their roles — with Pratt adding bullet points to his “Indiana Jones reboot” resume (seriously, I’d like to see him in that role).
(One could argue that this movie should be called “Raiders of the Lost Dinosaur”).
With audiences becoming increasingly fickle as it regards blockbuster-type movies, it is hard to know where the reception for “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” will fall.
I liked it. I’d watch it again.
I’m also looking forward to the movie titled “The Meg” which comes out later this summer (it is about the hunt for a 70-foot shark thought to be extinct — based on the pulpy 1997 thriller by Steve Alten).
Be sure to stay through the end credits of “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” to see an “easter egg” at the end...
I remember a simpler time when the world of Archie Comics was mindless fluff — innocent stories with cheeseball humor geared for young kids.
Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, and Jughead Jones have come a long way since the days when I read the comics. That fact couldn’t be more evident than it is in The CW series “Riverdale.”
When the first season debuted in early 2017, it definitely had a noir-ish vibe — copious amounts of mood lighting and an endless supply of fog.
What started out as a darker version of teen dramas like “Dawson’s Creek” and “Beverly Hills, 90210” has shrugged off all sense and sensibility, veering into the world of pulpy mystery and slasher films.
(Two of the biggest teen idols of yesteryear — Luke Perry and Molly Ringwald — are also featured in the series.)
Riverdale is a world where murders are a common occurrence... being a member of a dangerous biker gang is a badge of honor... teens drink and hop into bed on a whim... school seems like an afterthought... there’s a serial killer on the loose referred to as “The Black Hood”... and the Riverdale High cheerleaders are called “The River Vixens”...
“Riverdale’s” writers amped up the mayhem in the second season. The overall effect is a hot mess, but oddly compelling just the same.
It’s a world where ginger-headed teen Archie Andrews (K.J. Apa) — the Richie Cunningham of the comic book universe — starts a vigilante gang called The Red Circle and ends up entwined in a shady plot to take control of the town.
Our protagonists act as amateur sleuths throughout the various story arcs. An old copy of "The Nancy Drew Secret-Code Activity Book" — that Betty (Lili Reinhart) liked as a child — figures into the puzzle:
At one point in season 2, teen socialite Veronica Lodge (Camila Mendes) says to her mother, “Are you and daddy trying to turn Riverdale into Gotham City?”
There are subtle (and not-so-subtle) references to Stephen King. The local penitentiary is called “Shankshaw,” and the students of Riverdale (in an entertaining episode called “A Night to Remember”) put on “Carrie: The Musical.”
I don’t know if “Uncle Stevie” has watched “Riverdale” or not, but it seems like a show he would have talked about in his “Entertainment Weekly” column back in the day.
The show is tied together with narration by Jughead Jones (Cole Sprouse) — each episode appears to be a “chapter” in some faraway novel Jughead is writing.
If you are considering diving into the binge-able world of “Riverdale,” then heed this advice: Check your brain at the door of Pop’s Chock’Lit Shoppe and enjoy the ridiculous milkshake for what it is.
The first two seasons are currently streaming on Netflix. Season 3 debuts Oct. 10 on The CW.
I had the opportunity to read my first Tom Clancy novel (“Patriot Games”) in the spring of 1989 as part of a high school literature class assignment. I quickly became a fan of the author’s techno-thriller stories, and went on to read “The Hunt For Red October” and “Clear and Present Danger” that summer... and have kept reading the “Clancyverse” novels ever since.
(I even had the opportunity to see Tom Clancy speak in person at Omaha's Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum in the fall of 1990).
In the intervening years, fans got to see Clancy’s novels get adapted for the big screen, and even saw the author attempt to develop a story for TV (“Op Center”).
When I saw Paramount’s “The Hunt For Red October” at Cinema Center on March 2, 1990, I thought Alec Baldwin was solid in the role of CIA analyst Jack Ryan. It’s a shame things didn’t work out for Baldwin to return for future movie installments.
(Clancy's commentary track on the Blu-ray of "The Sum of All Fears" is pretty interesting.)
Sadly, Clancy died on Oct. 1, 2013. I was wondering if anyone would attempt another Clancy-based reboot for the big screen.
It appears the future for filmed Clancy stories is in the burgeoning realm of streaming.
Amazon is bringing the first season of “Jack Ryan” to its video platform on August 31. The series has already been renewed for a second season:
They have tapped John Krasinski to play the titular role. I think he could be fantastic playing bookish government analyst Jack Ryan. If the full trailer (which dropped on June 11) is any indication, it should be a terrific series.
The territory they’ll be exploring in the first season looks fairly topical for today (dangerous terrorist waiting to wreak havoc on the western world). I do hope — in true Clancy style — that the show will weave multiple threads together to create a large, geopolitical scenario for Ryan to be embroiled in.
I’d also like to see characters John Clark and Domingo Chavez (and their anti-terrorist team “Rainbow Six”) included in the series.
It will be interesting to see how the show turns out. The Amazon series “Bosch” (based on the novels of Michael Connelly) is one of my favorite programs these days (Titus Welliver is perfect as Hieronymous “Harry” Bosch in the series).
It’s obvious the creators of “Jack Ryan” have taken liberties with their source material (that's to be expected). Regardless, I have high hopes for the series.
Those episodes — which focused on the history of the “Star Wars,” Barbie, He-Man, and G.I. Joe toylines — served as fascinating time capsules of childhood archaelogy (especially for children of the 70s and 80s).
As iconic as those brands have been in playtime lore, the toy industry is fertile ground for more “adventures in toy telling.”
That brings us to the second season of “The Toys That Made Us” — the latest four episodes debuted on Netflix on May 25. Each episode runs about 45 minutes in length.
Season 2, Episode 1: Star Trek
While the “Star Trek” franchise might not possess the same mystique as “Star Wars,” I grew up playing with the toys. I had a cool fold-out U.S.S. Enterprise bridge playset (with dolls of Captain Kirk & Co.) made by a company called Mego.
We learn about Mego in this documentary -- and its colorful CEO Martin Abrams (who passed on a “Star Wars” toy license). We get insight into the popular AMT model kits of Star Trek ships (one of my favorite kits to build as a kid — you could customize it with decals from any of the other Constellation-class ships featured in the original series). We also see the myriad of toys completely unrelated to the show that merely had “Star Trek” branding slapped on them.
Season 2, Episode 2: Transformers
There is “more than meets the eye” when it comes to Hasbro’s “Transformers” line that was introduced in the 1980s. Believe it or not, the Transformers brand actually had its beginnings when Hasbro licensed the G.I. Joe brand to Takara (a Japanese toy company) Takara was trying to find a way to make military toys interesting for a Japanese audience — in bizarre fashion the soldiers “transformed” into the early beginnings of what would become Transformers.
We learn about Hasbro bringing the transforming robots to the United States and how Marvel helped name and write the iconic backstory for the toys.
There a a number of interesting nuggets here. For example, reason Optimus Prime was killed off in the animated 1986 “Transformers: The Movie” was because Hasbro felt they had to “kill off” the 1984 toy line in order to sell the 1986 line.
Season 2, Episode 3: LEGO
From its humble beginnings as a wood toy maker during the Great Depression to its ingenious plastic brick “system,” LEGO has been through a number of changes throughout the years.
I loved “A LEGO Brickumentary” when it was released in 2014. “The Toys That Made Us” manages to shed new light on the toy brand. We are treated to some interesting details, like the fact that Samsonite (the luggage company) owned the early U.S. rights (which expired in the early 1970s).
LEGOs “automatic binding bricks” (as they were originally known) became a hit because of the tubes on the bottom side of the pieces.
The company fell on hard times in the early 2000s, and the Danish brand was almost sold to another toy company during that era.
I owned many of the city sets in the 1980s (including the Fire Station and the Exxon Gas Station) and I had a number of the space sets of that era (including “Alpha-1 Rocket Base”).
Season 2, Episode 4: Hello Kitty
This is one of my wife’s favorite brands. In fact, we currently have a Hello Kitty ice pack in the freezer. The main question with Hello Kitty is whether or not it is a toy.
I’m not sure, but I learned a lot about Sanrio’s adorable feline (which, apparently, is not a cat, but actually a little girl). The company employed a term called “kawaii” in selling the brand in the United States (which is some sort of voodoo-like, cuteness quotient Hello Kitty possesses).
While you might not be all that familiar with some of the brands featured in “The Toys That Made Us,” it is a interesting show to watch.
For me, the highlights in the second season were the "Star Trek" and "LEGO" episodes (because I played with those toys as a kid, and still enjoy those toys today).
I hope that Netflix commissions more seasons of “The Toys That Made Us.” (I’d love to see an episode focusing on Playmobil at some point down the road.)
This clip of Brian Volk-Weiss from the New York Daily News has the show's creator talking about the series, as well as his love for the toys he grew up with in the 1980s:
“This is the most beautiful miracle I’ve ever seen...” — Vanellope von Schweetz
I’ve gotta admit, I haven’t been terribly excited about the animated fare Hollywood has been dishing out in recent years.
Some animated movies have been far too serious for their own good (“Inside Out” and “Zootopia” come to mind), veering into “message movie” territory. They set aside the silly joy that movies like “Toy Story” and “Shrek” had back in the day and feel unnecessarily manipulative.
The first “Wreck-It-Ralph” movie was fun — taking viewers inside the world of videogames with a story that was lighthearted and amusing (with a nice dose of nostalgia thrown in).
This Thanksgiving we get the sequel titled “Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It-Ralph 2”...
Now, I don’t really know what the movie will be about (other than the obvious), and I don’t really want to know what exploits await Ralph and Vanellope after they are transmitted via wi-fi router to the internet.
I’m mainly excited that Vanellope — who shrugged off the title of “princess” in the game Sugar Rush — gets to meet the assortment of Disney princesses in “Wreck-It-Ralph 2.”
It isn’t a secret that “Tangled” is one of my favorite Disney animated films — and highly underrated, in my opinion. I'm happy we’ll get to see (non-brunette) Rapunzel on the big screen again this November.
(I watched Disney’s “Moana” for the first time last month, and was surprised how much I liked it.)
We also get some “Star Wars” action in this “Wreck-It-Ralph 2” trailer (since Disney owns everything we know and love...)
See for yourself... check out the latest trailer for “Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It-Ralph 2” (coming 11/21/2018):
