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This Sunday, March 27, the big day is here! The Academy Awards! This year will see a return to the former style of the awards, a big theater with a stage, rather than the spaced out, awkward dinner party that was the awards last year. There will be three hosts this year- Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes and Regina Hall. I guess they figure if they can spread out that thankless job among three people, they might have a better chance of success. We’ll see about that. The Oscars will be broadcast on ABC on Sunday at 7pm or on Hulu Live TV or YouTube TV with a subscription.
As the awards are only a few days away, I will cram in a few more quick reviews for nominated films. Both of these movies are a little older, but I think they’re worth a watch….though you’ve maybe seen one or both by now.
Encanto (available on DVD and Disney+)
Starring the voices of Stephanie Beatriz, María Cecilia Botero, John Leguizamo, and Wilmer Valderrama, the film follows a multigenerational Colombian family, the Madrigals, led by a matriarch whose children and grandchildren—except for Mirabel Madrigal (voiced by Beatriz)—receive magical gifts from a miracle that helps them serve the people in their rural community called the Encanto. When Mirabel learns that the family is losing their magic, she sets out to find out what is happening, and save her family and their magical house.
“Encanto” was directed by Jared Bush and Byron Howard. This is a Disney movie through and through and that means it features several toe-tapping songs! The original songs were written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, the brain behind “Hamilton,” “In the Heights” and the music from “Moana.”
The film is nominated for Oscars for Best Animated Feature, where I think it’s pretty much a lock. It’s also nominated for Original Score and Best Original Song for the song "Dos Oruguitas.” I honestly thought that song was a bit of a snooze fest. The song that has really been memorable and stuck in people’s minds is “We Don’t Talk about Bruno,” which is lots more fun than the nominated tune.
Overall, it’s hard to dislike this movie. It’s typical feel-good Disney fare so there’s not much to be mad at. I didn’t love the songs as much as I like Miranda’s songs for “Moana” however. The “Encanto” tunes are very similar to the style of “Hamilton,” which is an amazing piece of theater but it sort of took me out of this movie by reminding me so much of the play.
Still, the movie has some great themes and a few messages that are actually new to Disney. The character, Luisa, has superhuman strength and looks like a female body builder….a type of female character we’ve never seen in a Disney movie really. It was refreshing, even more so because she feels immense pressure to be perfect. They also dovetail into mental health issues with the character Bruno, a loner who loves his family but struggles to fit in. Good on ya Disney for tackling some of this stuff.
The kids will love “Encanto,” and as an adult, I enjoyed it too, though it wasn’t my favorite Disney movie in recent years.
King Richard (on DVD and rental on various streaming platforms)
If you’re a tennis fan, perhaps you knew the backstory of tennis sister phenoms Venus and Serena Williams. I sure didn’t. I own a tennis racket but have probably used it only a handful of times, because apparently, tennis is a difficult sport and requires time and skill…who knew?!
“King Richard” follows the true story of the early lives and career of Venus (Saniyya Sidney) and Serena (Demi Singleton) even as it primarily focuses on their father, Richard. Richard is played by Will Smith who also produced the film. Other starring roles include Aunjanue Ellis as Oracene "Brandy", the girls’ mother, and Jon Bernthal as Rick Macci, one of their coaches.
The movie starts with Richard coaching the girls on beat up tennis courts in Compton, California and struggling to get professional coaches interested in working with them, especially because he wants them to do it for free. As he faces rejection over and over again, Richard sticks to his guns and his ‘plan’ for his daughters, an actual written document that he often cites. As Venus and Serena start to see some success and break through, they also deal with a good amount of family drama that makes for great film fodder.
This was a passion project for Will Smith and he reportedly was beyond relieved when the actual Venus and Serena Williams gave the film their stamp of approval early on after watching it. They are even billed as executive producers on the film now.
As I have said about other movies this Oscar season, this one at first concerned me since a very-well known actor would be playing a real person. But Smith does it to perfection. In the end I wasn’t seeing Will Smith, the Fresh Prince or Men in Black actor on screen. I saw Richard Williams. And when they showed the real Richard during the closing credits, you can see how similar Smith looked and acted to the real-life man. It just worked. I think Will Smith will be rewarded for that with the Best Actor award this year. He has already cleaned up at various award shows for that portrayal.
Besides the Best Actor nomination, the movie is also nominated for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress for Aunjanue Ellis, Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing, and Best Original Song. I’m not sure it will win any of those, but the film is definitely worth a watch. Like “Encanto,” it’s hard to dislike this kind of “feel-good” stuff.
As always, email me with comments or suggestions for future columns- News@wrightcountymonitor.com
