Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory Review

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory


Release Date: 9th December 1971 - Australia


Production Companies
Wolper Pictures Ltd.

The Quaker Oats Company


Genre: Family/Musical/

Fantasy

Rating: G

Runtime: 100 minutes


Budget: $3,000,000

Box Office Gross: $4,620,469 (Worldwide)


Plot Summary

After years of being a recluse in his factory, Willy Wonka astounds the world by announcing that he hid five golden tickets in his chocolate bars. Five lucky people will get a tour of the factory, learn all the secrets of his delicious sweets and win a lifetime supply of Wonka chocolate. Nobody deserves the prize more than Charlie Bucket, whose family is so poor that they can only buy one chocolate bar as a treat, and it is unlikely that they will buy enough bars to find one of the five golden tickets. The magic happens when Charlie finally finds the last golden ticket, and he, along with four other but somewhat odious children, gets the chance of a lifetime to explore his factory.

However, mild disasters

befall each of the children,

and Charlie must overcome

the odds and get the brass

ring.

Cast
Gene Wilder - Willy Wonka
Peter Ostrum - Charlie Bucket
Jack Albertson - Grandpa Joe
Julie Dawn Cole - Veruca Salt
Denise Nickerson - Violet
Beauregarde
Paris Themmen - Mike Teevee
Michael Böllner - Augustus Gloop
Roy Kinnear - Mr. Salt
Leonard Stone - Mr. Beauregarde
Nora Denney - Mrs. Teevee
Ursula Reit - Mrs. Gloop

Diana Sowle - Mrs. Bucket

Aubrey Woods - Bill

David Battley - Mr. Turkentine
Günter Meisner - Mr. Slugworth

Peter Capell - The Tinker

Werner Heyking - Mr. Jopeck

Peter Stuart - Winkelmann

Dora Altmann - Grandma Georgina (Uncredited)

Victor Beaumont - Doctor (Uncredited)

Pat Coombs - Henrietta Salt (Uncredited)
Tim Brooke-Taylor - Computer Operator

(Uncredited)

Frank Delfino - Auctioneer (Uncredited)

Stephen Dunne - Stanley Kael - Second

Newscaster (Uncredited)

Walker Edmiston - Mr. Slugworth (Voice)

(Uncredited)

Michael Gahr - Reporter in Germany

(Uncredited)

Michael Goodliffe - Mr. Teavee (Uncredited)

Kurt Grobkurth - Mr. Gloop (Uncredited)

Shin Hamano - Japanese Candy Store Owner

(Uncredited)

Jack Latham - First Newscaster (Uncredited)

Franziska Liebing - Grandma Josephine

(Uncredited)

Gloria Manon - Mrs. Curtis (Uncredited)

Ed Peck - FBI Agent (Uncredited)

Bob Roe - Peter Goff (Uncredited)

Madeline Stuart - Madeline Durkin

(Uncredited)

Ernst Ziegler - Grandpa George (Uncredited)

Rudy Borgstaller - Oompa Loompa

(Uncredited)

Malcolm Dixon - Oompa Loompa

(Uncredited)

Rusty Goffe - Oompa Loompa (Uncredited)

Ismed Hassan - Oompa Loompa (Uncredited)

Norman McGlen - Oompa Loompa

(Uncredited)

Angelo Muscat - Oompa Loompa

(Uncredited)

Pepi Poupee - Oompa Loompa (Uncredited)

Marcus Powell - Oompa Loompa

(Uncredited)

Albert Wilkinson - Oompa Loompa

(Uncredited)

Crew
Director - Mel Stuart
Based on the Book "Charlie and the

Chocolate Factory/Screenplay - Roald Dahl

Screenplay - David Seltzer (Uncredited)
Producers - Stan Margulies and
David L. Wolper

Casting Director - Marion Dougherty

(Uncredited)
Art Director - Harper Goff
Costume Designer - Helen Colvig
Director of Photography - Arthur Ibbetson

Camera Operator - Paul Wilson

Production Manager - Pia Arnold

Assistant Directors - Wolfgang Glattes

and Jack Roe
Musical Numbers Staging - Howard Jeffrey

Special Effects - Logan Frazee
Film Editor - David Saxon

Associate Editor - Melvin Shapiro

Sound - Karsten Ullrich

Sound Editors - Charles L. Campbell

and Roger Sword (Uncredited)

Re-Recording - Richard Portman
Music Conductor and Arranger -

Walter Scharf
Music and Lyrics - Anthony Newley
and Leslie Bricusse


Awards

1972 Academy Awards
Best Music, Scoring Adaptation and Original

Song Score - Anthony Newley, Leslie Bricusse

and Walter Scharf (Nominated)


Review
This classic is not dull-witted but simplistic yet satisfying, aimed at children with a sweet tooth, both for their brains and tummies. That's what WILLY WONKA & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY is renowned as being. It is a family musical that has every flavour. I grew up with this 1971 version, first watching it on DVD at ten. It left me with nightmares about what happens when someone does something naughty and disobeys the rules like those four nasty kids. I won't tell you what those kids have done as I don't want to give a spoiler alert. Over the years, I understood that this film intends to show young audiences that bad choices have consequences, as Roald Dahl did in the original book.

WILLY WONKA is not only proud and sweet because of its highlighted songs. It's known for its good nature and well-written story. It could have been called Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, just like the original novel, because it places Charlie in the spotlight as the lead hero rather than the title character, played by Gene Wilder.

The famous actor Gene Wilder easily fulfils the role of Wonka, complete with crazy colourful attire suitable to his chocolate factory world. Wilder performs his Wonka with flair and a nice blend of mania and control. I don't care what some people think of the character as a grim psychopath. He's supposed to be eccentric or sarcastic. Wilder captures the wit of Wonka's character. It's a pity none of the child actors got into film careers after WONKA. For example, the actor who played Charlie instead became a veterinarian. Some other child stars switched from cinema to TV to avoid typecasting. I bet you didn't know that Tim Brooke Taylor of The Goodies had a minor role in WILLY WONKA.

When you compare this version to the recent adaptation created by Tim Burton, Mel Stuart got it right. I feel lucky that I picked the better film adaptation of WILLY WONKA.

Don't worry if you have seen the Burton version and considered it an average movie. The 1971 classic is undeniably worth seeing because it's a sweet sensation with "pure imagination".

Star rating: (9/10) Excellent Movie

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How to Train Your Dragon 2 Review

How to Train Your Dragon 2


Release Date: 9th June 2014 - Australia
(Sydney Film Festival)

Production Companies

DreamWorks Animation
Mad Hatter Entertainment

Distribution

20th Century Fox Australia

Genre: Animation/Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 102 minutes


Budget: $145,000,000

Box Office Gross: $621,537,519
(Worldwide) 

Plot Summary

It's been five years since 
Hiccup and Toothless 
successfully united dragons 
and vikings on the island 
of Berk. While Astrid, 

Snotlout and the rest of 
the gang are challenging 
each other to dragon races 
(the island's new favourite 
contact sport), the now 

inseparable pair journey 
through the skies, charting 
unmapped territories and 
exploring new worlds. 

When one of their 
adventures leads to the 
discovery of a secret ice 
cave that is home to 
hundreds of new wild 
dragons and the mysterious 
Dragon Rider, the two 
friends find themselves 

at the center of a battle to 
protect the peace. Now, 
Hiccup and Toothless   
must unite to stand up for 
what they believe while  
recognising that only
together do they have the
power to change the
future of both men and 
dragons. (Source - IMDb)

Voice Cast

Jay Baruchel - Hiccup 
Horrendous Haddock III

Gerard Butler - Stoick the Vast

Cate Blanchett - Valka

Djimon Hounsou - Drago Bludvist

Craig Ferguson - Gobber the 

Belch

America Ferrera - Astrid Hofferson

Christopher Mintz-Plasse - 
Fishlegs Ingerman

Jonah Hill - Snotlout Jorgenson

T.J. Miller - Tuffnut Thortson 
Kristen Wiig - Ruffnut Thortson

Kit Harington - Eret

Randy Thom - Toothless

Crew

Executive Producer/Writer/
Director - Dean DeBlois

Based on Book "How to Train Your Dragon" - Cressida Cowell
Executive Producer - Chris Sanders
Co-Executive Producer - Kate Spencer
Producer - Bonnie Arnold 
Co-Producers - Michael A. Connolly, Doug Davison, Kendra Haaland and Roy Lee
Head of Character Animation/
Story Artist - Simon Otto
Heads of Story - Tom Owens and
Alessandro Carloni
Character Designers - Nicolas Marlet, 
Joseph C. Moshier, Leo Sanchez Barbosa 
and Tony Siruno
Supervising Animator: "Valka" - James Baxter
Supervising Animator: "Drago" & "Astird" - 
Steven Hornby
Supervising Animator: "Eret" - David Torres
Supervising Animators - Jakob Hjort Jensen,
Fabio Lignini, Kristof Serrand and Sean Sexton
Head of Layout - Gil Zimmerman
Visual Effects Supervisors - Dave Walvoord 
and Sean Cole 
Supervising Character Technical Director - 
Kevin Oochs
Computer Graphics Supervisor - Max Bruce
Stereoscopic Supervisors - Willem Drees 
& Phil 'Captain 3D' McNally 

Visual Consultant - Roger Deakins

Supervising Sound Designer/Editor/
Re-Recording Mixer - Randy Thom
Film Editor - John K. Carr
Music - John Powell

Review

Some animated sequels haven't managed to replicate the flair of the original, so I was never hopeful for 'HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 2 (HTTYD2)' and hoping it would not fall into the category of cash-in sequels. During its post release, I was surprised it received unanimous praise but in saying this I still didn't think it would match the magic of the first. The original movie (click here) was a modern-age classic and it could never be surpassed by the second. 'HTTYD2' is a worthwhile sequel which allures everyone for seeing its more technically-crafted animation and the more flight-daring action to impress viewers.

Because of its maturity and darker tone, it feels a little more forced than the first one, but it does have a series of moments to build up the comedy and drama. Fantasy buffs will clearly recognise Cate Blanchett from 'Lord of the Rings' and Kit Harington from 'Game of Thrones' for featuring in the voice cast as two of the newly-written main and supporting characters.

The story wasn't as fun and engaging as the original classic. It expanded differently from its predecessor and I would say it has remained faithful to its fan-base. It's a rather admirable sequel of which I would say that I am overwhelmed of its outstanding quality.

Star rating: (9/10) Excellent Movie

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Vertical Limit Review

Vertical Limit

Release Date: 21st December 2000 - Australia

Production Companies

Columbia Pictures (presents)

Global Entertainment Productions GmbH & Company Medien KG

Mountain High Productions

Distribution

Sony Pictures Australia

Genre: Action/Adventure/

Thriller

Rating: M

Runtime: 120 minutes

Budget: $75,000,000

Box Office Gross: $215,663,859 (Worldwide)

Plot Summary

When his estranged sister Annie gets trapped by a deadly avalanche atop the world's second-highest mountain of K2, former climber Peter Garrett must overcome the elements and rescue her before her time is up.

Cast

Chris O'Donnell - Peter Garrett

Bill Paxton - Elliott Vaughn

Robin Tunney - Annie Garrett

Scott Glenn - Montgomery

Wick

Izabella Scorupco - Monique

Aubertine

Temuera Morrison - Major Rasul

Nicolas Lea - Tom McLaren

Alexander Siddig - Kareem

Nazar

Ben Mendelsohn - Malcolm

Bench

Steve Le Marquand - Cyril

Bench

Roshan Seth - Colonel Amil

Salim

Robert Taylor - Skip Taylor

Crew

Producer/Director - Martin Campbell

Story/Screenplay/Producer -

Robert King

Screenplay - Terry Hayes

Associate Producer/First Assistant Director -

Phillip A. Paterson
Executive Producer - Marcia Nasatir

Producer/Unit Production Manager - Lloyd Phillips

Casting: New Zealand - Diana Rowan

Production Designer - Jon Bunker

Art Directors - Nick Bassett,

Jill Cormack and Kim Sinclair

Construction Supervisor - Neil Kirkland

Set Decorator - Bernhard Henrich

Costume Designer - Graciela Mazón

Makeup Supervisor - Nikki Gooley

Prosthetics Makeup - Bob McCarron

Director of Photography - David Tattersall

Director of Photography: Second Unit -

Fraser Taggart

First Assistant Camera: Second Unit - Adam Clark

and Jason Ellis

Production Manager: Second Unit - Tim Coddington

Second Assistant Director - Jamie Marshall

Second Unit Director/Stunt Coordinator -
Simon Crane

Director/Cameraman: Avalanche Unit -

Steve Kroschel

Aerial Coordinator - David Paris

Aerial Unit Director/Pilot - Marc Wolff

Mountain Rigging Coordinator - Mike Weis

Location Manager/Mountain Safety - Robin Mounsey

Special Effects Supervisor - Neil Corbould

Special Effects Assistant Supervisor - Trevor Wood
Visual Effects Supervisor - Kent Houston

Digital Visual Effects Supervisor: Digiscope -

Dion Hatch

Visual Effects Producer - Tricia Henry Ashford

Model Shop Supervisor: Cinema Production

Services, Inc - Michael Joyce

Director of Photography: Miniatures, Cinema

Production Services, Inc - David R. Hardberger

Composite Supervisor: Digiscope - Grady Cofer

Editor - Thom Noble

Supervising Sound Editor - Dave McMoyler

Re-Recording Mixers - Scott Millan

and Bob Beemer

Foley Artists - Gary A. Hecker and

Matt Dettman

Music - James Newton Howard

Score Recordist and Mixer - Shawn Murphy

Review

VERTICAL LIMIT was chilling but a thrill-packed adventure feature not seen before. It was many years after its release that I saw it. It was in a few DVD stores. Then I borrowed it from my uncle's movie collection with Under Siege 2 to not bore myself. The cold got charged in VERTICAL LIMIT, an exciting movie that gives a feeling of winter, survival and tension. Though, it is, in fact, action with a mix of drama to frame the film and its plot. Some of the filming of its scenes was on location in New Zealand. There is a familiar movie trivia: the director was born in that country, and he alone had his birthplace as one of the picture's locations. The actor I commend the most, Chris O'Donnell, was nicely cast as the main lead. I'm surprised he didn't make his role a fiasco, like playing in the two Schumacher Batman films. Bill Paxton performed a far more fascinating role than his co-stars.

My overall feedback for this movie is positive. Nothing can slow the picture of its massive impact. To say it was overly intense. My recommendation is when you watch VERTICAL LIMIT on the TV screen if you have not seen it already.

Star rating: (7/10) Good Movie

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Transformers: Age of Extinction Review

Transformers: Age of Extinction 

Release Date: 26th June 2014 - Australia


Production Companies 

Paramount Pictures (presents)
Hasbro (in association with)
Di Bonaventura Pictures 
Ian Bryce Productions
Amblin Entertainment (Uncredited)
Platinum Dunes (Uncredited)
China Movie Channel (in association with)
Jiaflix Enterprises (in association with)

Distribution
Paramount Pictures Australia


Genre: Sci-Fi/Action

Rating: M

Runtime: 165 minutes

Budget: $350,000,000

Box Office Gross: $1,104,039,076

(Worldwide)


Plot Summary

Autobots and Decepticons 
are no longer wanted on 
Earth by humans and have 
gone into hiding. As 
humanity picks up the 
pieces, automobile 

mechanic Cade Yeager and 

his daughter Tessa come 

across Optimus Prime. 

However, once a bounty 
hunter learns that the leader 
of the Autobots is still on 
earth, he begins tracking 
him down. (Source - Metro Cinemas)

Cast

Humans
Mark Wahlberg - Cade Yaeger
Nicola Peltz - Tessa Yaeger
Jack Reynor - Shane Dyson
Kelsey Grammer - Harold Attinger

Stanley Tucci - Joshua Joyce

Sophia Myles - Darcy Tyril

T. J. Miller - Lucas Hannery

Transformers
Peter Cullen - Optimus Prime (Voice)

Mark Ryan - Lockdown (Voice)

John DiMaggio - Crosshairs/

Leadfoot (Voices)
John Goodman - Hound (Voice)
Ken Watanabe - Drift (Voice)
Reno Wilson - Brains (Voice)
Robert Foxworth - Ratchet (Voice)

Frank Welker - Galvatron (Voice)


Crew

Executive Producer/
Director - Michael Bay

Writer - Ehren Kruger

Executive Producers - Steven Spielberg, Brian Goldner and Mark Vahradian
Producers - Ian Bryce, Tom DeSanto, Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Don Murphy

Co-Producer/Unit Production Manager - Allegra Clegg
Co-Producer/First Assistant Director - K.C. Hodenfield
Co-Producers - Matthew Cohan and Michael Kase
Casting Directors - Denise Chamian,
Mickie Paskal and Jennifer Rudnicke

Production Designer - Jeffrey Beecroft
Supervising Art Director - Mark W. Mansbridge
Senior Art Director - Sebastian Schroeder

Cinematography - Amir Mokri
Second Unit Director/Supervising Stunt Coordinator - 
Mike Gunther

Fight Coordinator - Garrett Warren

Special Effects Supervisor - John Frazier
Special Effects Coordinators - Matt Hawker, 

Jim Schwalm and Rashmi Salvi

Visual Effects Supervisors - Adhee Chiu and Jeff White

Co-Visual Effects Supervisor: ILM - Pat Tubach
Visual Effects Art Director: ILM - Alex Jaeger

Animation Director - Scott Benza
Animation Supervisor: ILM - Rick O'Connor 
Effects Supervisor - John Hansen
Film Editors - Paul Rubell, Roger Barton and

William Goldenberg
Supervising Sound Editor/Designer - Ethan Van der Ryn

Music - Steve Jablonosky 
Composer: Additional Music - Hans Zimmer

Songs - Imagine Dragons

Review

Years after the Transformers films were produced, I have enjoyed watching and reviewing all of them. First, there was the 1986 animated movie (click here), then came 2007's 'Transformers' where I once gave it a star-rating of 5 out of 5. Again, I reviewed the average but mildly sequel of 'Revenge of the Fallen' and the improved third instalment 'Dark of the Moon' (DOTM). I thought of the latter once as being the series grand finale, I must admit. The director Michael Bay has a hard time of keeping up with the series' issues as he was deeply focused on the movies' visual impact. He had 'TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION' re-modified in a whole new impression for the newly-matured fans. No longer will it be requiring the old human characters from the first three, replacing these human characters with new ones of more subtlety and appeal. The younger hipster fans can only recognise the new transformers from the vintage cartoon of G1 include such fan-favourites like the Dinobots.

In 'AGE OF EXTINCTION', the brand new characters and dark tone helped the movie in gearing to a new generation of hipsters. What I like about the movie is Mark Wahlberg whom is a good actor that performed the part of the mechanic very well. Call me crazy, but I had no idea he was playing the main human in a Transformers film. Having seen a few movies featuring this well-known actor, he proves that he could do a better job of a heroic, interesting type than Shia LaBeouf. The old actor Shia could have just gotten a cameo appearance. Other actors Stanley Tucci and John Goodman (in robot form) also even displayed this equally excessive natural talent in the supporting character leads.

This is the beginning of a new trilogy with brand new characters and such, the new movie 'AGE OF EXTINCTION' is dazzling in accustoming the action and visual spectacles. 'More mature and edgier than 'DOTM', this movie satisfied most of the die-hard fans who were kept in anticipation.

Star rating: (10/10) Best Movie Ever

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Film Guru Lad's Top Movie Villains: Part 2

You just finished looking at Part 1 of my hand-picked dastardly movie villains, haven't you? The list continues with another of my favourite menacing foes I've selected. You have to recognise them with your hate. It's down for two more parts before the final Top 3 of these despised evil characters. Oh, and don't mind the mistake in Ernest Goes To Camp. I was trying to fix it when I accidentally set it to automatic, but it did not stay on its original date.

If you didn't check out the first part of my top evildoers or missed it, please (click here) for your viewing.

(UPDATE: 9/12/19 - I removed Bellatrix Lestrange from this list because she is more of a henchwoman than an actual villain.)

#11. Syndrome (The Incredibles)

The villain Syndrome may

not be the strongest or have any superpowers to make him a supervillain, but he makes up for his drawbacks. He was once a

crazed fanboy of the world's greatest hero, Mr. Incredible and desperately wanted to be his sidekick. Sadly, his idol told him that he only works alone. It left poor Syndrome feeling rejected and led him into life against the supers. Being a technological genius made it easy for Syndrome to build his robotic creations and lure the former supers into danger. Syndrome himself wants to become one. He is the only villain from a Pixar flick I sincerely enjoyed. And none of those villains come close to Syndrome.

#10. The Wicked Witch of the West (The Wizard of Oz)

The first (and only) female villain to appear on my list, The Wicked Witch of the West, deserves her place with the male villains. What makes her evil and terrifying is that she's feared, so the title fits her description, and she wants unlimited power to use for evil. She wants the red ruby slippers that Dorothy Gale from Kansas is wearing. At one point, she even threatens Dorothy that she will "soon get her and her little dog too." She is the only female antagonist I chose in this list.

#9. Hans Gruber (Die Hard)

In real life, criminal masterminds are dangerous compared to terrorists. So you don't want to encounter them, especially if you're a hostage or a surprise witness. Hans Gruber is the first fictional criminal mastermind and exemplifies pure villainy in the first Die Hard film. Several acts he does are worthy of his character, including attempting to murder the people he held hostage. I now consider Hans to be the film's only character I favoured. It gave Alan Rickman a big break in his career.

#8. Lord Voldemort (Harry 
Potter)

Okay, onto one of my

favourite arch-foes. A

dark wizard, the known

example is Lord Voldemort

of the Harry Potter series.

Facially part reptilian, this

could be from Voldemort's

dark magic. He is a half-

blood turning against his

Muggle heritage and

firmly seeks to become

the greatest sorcerer rather than Dumbledore. His former teacher is now his worst enemy. Voldemort does many evil deeds, and the one that takes the cake is his obsession with trying to kill Harry Potter since the young wizard was an infant. Everyone except for Harry and Dumbledore, including his Death Eaters, is too scared to face this dark wizard and is the ultimate villain that no one would dare to speak his name.

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Blended Review

Blended


Release Date: 12th June 2014 - Australia


Production Companies

Warner Bros. Pictures

Gulfstream Pictures

Happy Madison

Karz Entertainment

RatPac/Dune Entertainment (in association with)

Distribution
Roadshow Films


Genre: Comedy

Rating: PG

Runtime: 117 minutes

Budget: $40,000,000

Box Office Gross: $128,006,208 (Worldwide)

Plot Summary

Following a disastrous blind date, single parents Lauren and Jim take their families to a family resort in Africa, where they bump into each other and are stuck sharing the same suite. During their time at the family resort, they began to see themselves through their newfound attraction.

Cast

Adam Sandler - Jim Friedman

Drew Barrymore - Lauren

Reynolds

Bella Thorne - Hilary Friedman

Emma Fuhrmann - Espn

Friedman

Braxton Beckham - Brendan

Reynolds

Alyvia Alyn Lind - Lou Friedman

Kyle Red Silverston - Tyler

Reynolds

Shaquille O'Neal - Doug

Terry Crews - Nickens

Abdoulaye N'Gom - Mfana

Kevin Nealon - Eddie

Jessica Lowe - Ginger

Zak Henri - Jake

Wendi McLendon-Covey - Jen

Dan Patrick - Dick

Allen Covert - 220 Tom (Cameo)

Jackie Sandler - Hollywood Stepmom (Cameo)

Sunny Sandler - Wall Street Stepdaughter (Cameo)

Sadie Sandler - Little League Announcer (Cameo)

Judith Sandler - Little League Announcer's Grandma (Cameo)

Tim Herlihy - Basketball Dad (Cameo)

Jared Sandler - Cute Teenage Boy (Cameo)

Ron Moran - Baseball Dad

Michael Buscemi - Baseball Dad

Alexis Arquette - Georgina (Cameo)

Dale Steyn - Himself

Crew

Director - Frank Coraci

Writers - Ivan Menchell and Clare Sera
Executive Producers - Barry Bernardi,

Allen Covert, Tim Herlihy, Steve Koren,

Steven Mnuchin, James Packer and

Josie Rosen

Producers - Jack Giarraputo, Mike Karz
and Adam Sandler
Co-Producers - Bryan Brucks,

Kevin Grady and Aimee Keen

Animal Trainer - Steve Berens
Production Designer - Perry Andelin Blake
Art Director: Georgia Unit - Alan Au
Art Director: South Africa Unit - Andrew Orlando

Assistant Art Director: South Africa Unit -

Guy Potgieter
Set Decorator: Georgia Unit - Karen O'Hara

Set Decorator: South Africa Unit - Andrew McCarthy

Property Master: Georgia Unit - Timothy S. Wiles

Costume Designer - Christine Wada

Director of Photography - Julio Macat

"B" First Assistant Camera: Georgia Unit -

Clyde E. Bryan

Stunt Coordinator - Grant Hulley

Assistant Stunt Coordinator - Johann Spilhaus

Special Effects Coordinator: Georgia Unit -

Bob Shelley
Special Effects Coordinator: South Africa Unit -

John Smith
Visual Effects Supervisor - Peter G. Travers
Visual Effects Supervisor: Blackginger -

Hilton Treves

Editor - Tom Costain

Supervising Sound Editor - Elmo Weber

Re-Recording Mixers - Tateum Kohut

and Greg Orloff

Foley Artists - Catherine Harper,

Gregg Barbanell and Jeffrey Wilhoit

Music - Rupert-Gregson Williams

Music Supervisors - Kevin Grady

and Brooks Arthur

Vocal Arrangements - Lebo M.

Review

Adam Sandler has had a few disenchantments in his career and is slowly losing popularity. His career started to spiral downward, beginning with Jack and Jill. However, sources might say that the spiral had begun in the 2000s. Every year, he releases another film that people are anxious to see, and then once, it underperforms at the box office or becomes the subject of critical negativity. Fortunately, he brought us BLENDED with much-needed fun and smartly written humour. Co-starred with actress Drew Barrymore, the two have long collaborated in three romantic comedies, including The Wedding Singer and 50 First Dates. However, it appears that Sandler and Barrymore are yet to lose their winning streak of successful rom-com (romantic comedy) accomplishments with this movie.

The movie had some truly incredible moments, emotion, tenderness and humour. Sandler hasn't established this warmhearted feeling like this, which, unlike Click, the other is more of a dramatic comedy and only brings tears to our eyes. There's the display of great acting and unusual chemistry performed by Sandler and Barrymore. Even the supporting cast was top-notch in BLENDED, including the hilarious Terry Crews, who appears in almost every scene he passes through and steals the show.

You'll never miss BLENDED despite not doing well at the box office. I'm giving this simplistic feature a seal of approval. I recommend it to people who have yet to see it.

Star rating: (8/10) Very Good Movie

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Film Guru Lad's Top 10 Animated Movies

When it comes to features, while they often make an impact through live-action, there are those films which are better in animation. Some people consider it to be a form of entertainment that kids can thoroughly enjoy but animation is actually a form of art that has a wide audience. It is undeniable that animation in movies and television has attracted not-so-young and older audiences. Whether it's old fashioned hand-drawn, stop-motion or modern CGI. Here are the top 10 list of animated films I consider to be the greatest of the genre no matter what art-style was used or the plot. You'll notice I haven't included the new Disney hit 'Frozen' which I've never watched or any Pixar feature in any of the ten spots, I'm definitely not featuring 'Frozen', so let it go!

#10. The Simpsons Movie (2007): (Fox)

One of the few modern movies that use the art of 2D animation rather than using the current form of CGI and based on a long-running animated sitcom about a family that makes a lot of high jinks in the town of Springfield. 'THE SIMPSONS MOVIE' is clever with hilarity. It is better than most of the series' recent seasons shown on Channel Ten and Eleven Australia.  

#9. Toy Story 2 (1999): (Disney/Pixar)

Did you think that 'Toy Story 1' or '3' is the best? In my experience, I didn't see the third movie and never was into it because of Ken and Barbie's relationship. I instead went into a revisit with the second movie at my family's Christmas party. Now that you know, it's not as well-known as the third instalment. I believe 'TOY STORY 2' is the best of the three. The best part of the movie would be the opening scene, mainly because of the action and the fitting potential for Buzz Lightyear to have his own spin-off.

#8. Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011): (DreamWorks)

'KUNG FU PANDA 2' is an interesting and silly sequel to the first movie, the movie has highlighted a character-based story and establishes a two-part saga. Likeable and wise, it's still over-the-top hilarious and delves into more character development and adds balance with the dark aspects. I raise the vote for 'KUNG FU PANDA 2' as the best-animated sequel in the series and getting the most acclaim from the audience.

#7. The Incredibles (2004): (Disney/Pixar)

This film successfully accomplished a perfect blend of laughs and CGI superhero action. The blockbuster 'THE INCREDIBLES' justifies the orientation of the superhero genre for the first time and calls itself a movie with a family of heroes. It seems risky for the animation giant of Pixar and Disney to super-start and collaborate on an original super-hero masterpiece. I'm not going to lie, it ended up being a success and is not like the other previous Pixar bonuses. Bonus points for Jason Lee in voicing the fan-boy turned-nemesis Syndrome. Might I say that Samuel L. Jackson also captures the essence through his portrayal of Frozone?

#6. Kung Fu Panda (2008): (DreamWorks)

Looking for a better DreamWorks film, one that doesn't need references to other films or edgy humour to create laughs. 'KUNG FU PANDA' is awesome and lets the studio better cement itself as one of the all-time greats in producing animated features. With an original sense of laughter and amazing fighting sequences, I feel 'KUNG FU PANDA' has never been matched in its uniqueness a simplicity since 'The Lion King'. It delivered a story that compels and entertains audiences. This feature made no attempt to replicate the work of its predecessor films by DreamWorks.

#5. Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001): (Disney)

I don't care what some people think about 'ATLANTIS: THE LOST EMPIRE', it was an action-packed Disney animated film without any singing. In fact, it has the feel of a Jules Verne classic and an Indiana Jones adventure, brought to life by tremendous visuals and Mike Mignola's design. All of these were put together to make 'ATLANTIS' an exciting and mystifying looking cartoon adventure flick with a sense of being a cult classic in its own right. It's favoured by viewers more so than critics who gave the mixed reviews about the whole picture.

#4. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993): (Warner Bros)

Far from being a cash-in by Warner Bros, 'BATMAN: MASK OF THE PHANTASM' follows the storyline of Batman as we know and has the complexity of an animated action feature. This is one that doesn't need any comic relief except for its main villain The Joker who is funny but menacingly evil. Delving deep into the mythology of the comic book character, the movie 'MASK OF THE PHANTASM' is suitably fast-paced and better than Burton's or Schumacher's Batman flicks. Even fans of the caped-crusader could give it a second chance.

#3. How to Train Your Dragon (2010): (DreamWorks)

Taking the studio DreamWorks into soaring heights with glossy animation and outrageously breathtaking 3D view, 'HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON' is all about the fantasy. For me, I can say, 'TRAIN YOUR DRAGON', conveys the theme of trust between two unlikely companions. Conveniently this is DreamWorks' greatest treasure that is well-appraised equal that of 'Kung Fu Panda'. It pleases the crowd with a lot of extraordinary moments that were unforgettable.

#2. WALL-E (2008): (Disney/Pixar)

'WALL-E' is one of the few animated science-fiction movies to ever succeed at the box office, it is full of breathtaking visual eye candy for the audience and explores the romance between the two main robots. Primarily, the movie's first half is dialogue-free, but it conveys a message about the environmental issues affecting our planet. This is probably the most sentimental movie Pixar made and takes the cake as the best computer-rendering for the animation studio. It is a mesmerising and unique piece of animation cinema that will have long-lasting value.

#1. The Lion King (1994): (Disney)

Truly an ultimate masterpiece for Disney in the 90's animation renaissance and one that I grew up with is 'THE LION KING (TLK)'. While still partially based on Shakespeare's Hamlet as well as being similar to 'Kimba: The White Lion", it has a dash of the right elements and is unique in its way. This includes beautiful epic scenery, talented vocals, heartfelt emotion and a memorable soundtrack are what give its dominance. This film could have been the second nominee for an Academy Award for Best Picture. There isn't a single animated feature from Disney or any other studio nowadays to top 'TLK'. It's one of the studio's better flicks (alongside 'Atlantis') appealing to adults as well as children. This 2D piece of artistic perfection will be remembered for generations to come.

Well, what do think of my top 10 list? What are your favourites? I would love to hear your feedback and hear what you think are the best 10 animated features of all time.

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