A bite of Apple

With as many streaming services out there, there is no lack of entertaining content. Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max; should we need yet another?

Well, the last one we would expect is one from the company who redefined the phone and the watch. Back in March 2019, this project’s fruition dropped in an announcement featuring many A-list stars. It was a puzzling proposition. All accounts have been mixed from the beginning in a rather unfair assessment. Netflix has been the home to crowd-pleasing programming, Hulu is an extension of the Fox brand as is HBO Max of Warner Bros. What is Apple’s content identity? Well, from the looks of it, prestige.

As a bid for awards attention, the latest animated film “Wolfwalkers” by Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart is a true gem. The final in their “Irish Folklore” trilogy, this is a gorgeous film flush with autumnal hues. Telling the story of a young girl in 1650 Ireland as her father is trying to get rid of wolves in the nearby woods. She emulates him until she meets another girl from the forest with magical powers to talk to the wolf pack among others. 2D animated films get a lot of flack ever since Pixar gained prominence, which is sad. The storybook fare Moore and Steward bring would have lost its charm in three dimensions. The adorable tale leaps off the screen here, fun for both adults and children. In terms of awards, this deserves all of them. Highly recommended, seek out the first two films “The Book of Kells” and “Song of the Sea” elsewhere.

“Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds” is the latest from documentarian Werner Herzog in association from

volcanologist Clive Oppenheimer. They had worked previously on “Into The Inferno” over at Netflix. Much like that one, the film focuses on a natural phenomenon and how it connects to

human culture; this time meteors. We are treated to disparate tales from aboriginal mythology in Australia to French feudal history to Mexican celebrations. Many subjects are spoken to like a Jesuit priest/scientist, a jazz musician with an interest in micrometeorites, and a Japanese geologist who finds space rocks like Easter eggs in Antarctica. Clive speaks to the

perspective interviewees but it is Herzog’s smooth meditative voice that guides us on this amazing journey.

Now here is the lesser of this smattering of works. “Cherry” comes from directors Anthony and Joe Russo, the

shepherding force behind the biggest film of recent memory “Avengers: Endgame.” Also along for the ride is the recent screen incarnation of Spiderman, Tom Holland. Sounds like a recipe for success, right? Well, they hoped so. The main

problem is the source material, an autobiographical novel by first-time author Nico Walker. Upon reading it, you can’t see the main character as completely sympathetic. Even in the voice over in the film, Holland sounds like a snot-nosed punk in the vein of Holden Caufield. Beginning as a love story about this aimless teen who later enlists in the Army as a medic, we follow Cherry from boot camp to Iraq and back. This all feels more like a pastiche of “Full Metal Jacket” and “Jarhead” than a

genuinely affecting film. By the time we get to his and wife Emily’s life in drug addiction and bank robbing, the remixing of tropes become overwhelming. And more than enough instances do I question the progression of time when I look at Holland’s baby face, Tom Selleck mustache and all.

This is just a taste of what Apple has to offer, not a complete picture. The drama of “Defending Jacob,” humorous “Ted Lasso,” and the horror of “Servant”, there is much more included. Now, “The Mosquito Coast” is dropping Fridays(which I may review later) and more adaptations with Issac Asimov’s “Foundation” and Stephen King’s “Lisey’s Story.” Simply said, Tim Cook plans on some happy viewing.

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