Chilly winds are setting in. It’s a good time to bundle up on the couch with family. And the best way to enjoy is with some escapism. With Disney hitting it out of the park, let’s check out what going on over at their streaming service.
The Book of Boba Fett is the latest from creators Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni within the Star Wars Universe. Picking up after the events of The Return of the Jedi, we see Fett gain skills while managing his supremacy. Not for the uninitiated, some prior knowledge of the films is needed. We last saw Boba and Fennec, who is played by Ming-Na Wen, in The Mandalorian. For those looking for a cute Baby Yoda though they are in short supply here.
The show works on the same logic as the aforementioned, episodic in nature. Whereas The Mandalorian was more of a lone gunman western, The Book of Boba Fett is at its core a crime drama/adventure set on a distant planet. Much like The Sopranos or The Godfather, we are given a series of gamesmanship between warring factions. Hopefully Jon and Dave will pay off the flashbacks as to where this engaging central character came from.
Over on the Marvel side of things, Eternals dropped just recently on the platform. Being of curious nature, my want to see what divided people caught my attention. And it is easy to see why. Directed by Chloe Zhao, fresh off her Oscar win for Nomadland, this is Marvel’s most ambitious entry but also its most confounding. Clocking in at two hours and thirty-six minutes, the plot meanders from the past and the present in order to set up the stiffest of superhero protagonists ever.
The cast in impressive: Selma Hayek, Angelina Jolie, Gemma Chan, Kumail Nanjiani. The list goes on, but unfortunately so does the exposition. There is nothing for them to do but act stoic in the face of, admittedly, impressive cinematography and amazing special effects. Their place as immortal beings sent to Earth to help develop humankind, very 2001 in scope. But it is that very lack of emotion that kills any potential drive to see these characters again. “With Tony and Steve gone, who will lead The Avengers?” one asks. No one here I am afraid.
Who is this movie for? Certainly not for children, case in point the Lego sets I have seen in stores are few compared to other entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Even as an adult I was baffled by how heady this film was. Was it for Academy voters? Only time will tell on that front.
One movie that was made for everyone though was Encanto. Disney’s latest animated feature is gorgeous from each end of the frame. Every nook and cranny of the screen is filled with dazzling colors and spectacle. Imparted to us is the story of the family Madrigal, in visual and in music. Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote all the songs and they are catchy. From the show-opener to each individual character song, you can see why Disney is the master of honing good Broadway talent in these projects. You can see these being adapted quite well for the stage.
Taking much of its ideas for magical realism from Colombia, the writers and directors weave a tale of an enshrined home within the forests. Protected from the outside, the main family has been gifted powers that can help the community. All except for Mirabel who is left without one. But as the story progresses, we learn that burdens are placed on all, gifted or not.
A beautiful fable that takes place in an enchanted home that’s a character in its own right, Encanto is fun for the whole family with a moral at its center that is truly timeless. From the beginning I had a smile on my face all the way up until the end. I implore you to watch it; five, ten, even twenty times! Happy Viewing, Readers.
