TOY STORY 4 (Dir: Josh Cooley, 2019).

TOY STORY 4 (Dir: Josh Cooley, 2019).

Since the first movie was released in 1995, the Toy Story franchise has proven to be one of the most robust, not to mention most lucrative, Hollywood franchises of all time. The original film, a Pixar Animation Studios production released through Walt Disney Pictures, was a massive critical and commercial success, spawning a further two equally successful sequels. After the fairly definitive conclusion of Toy Story 3 (Lee Unkrich, 2010), the prospect of a fourth entry seemed to many unnecessary, albeit not entirely unwelcome.

Toy Story 4 reunites Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the gang and introduces new character Forky. Forky, made by the toys' new owner Bonnie from a plastic spork, pipe-cleaners and other discarded items, is determined to throw himself into the trash where he believes he belongs. Determined not to let this happen, Woody places himself in charge of the spork, a decision which results in the pair becoming separated from Bonnie and their pals. As lost toys they encounter the sinister doll Gabby Gabby and her ventriloquist dummy cohorts and Woody is reunited with old flame Bo Peep.

Happily Toy Story 4 is a sequel which lives up to its mighty predecessors. Director Josh Cooley and screenwriters Stephany Folsom and Andrew Stanton have created a movie that is by turns witty, exciting and ultimately moving. Its message is certainly as poignant as others in the franchise and comes with a climax that that seems pretty darn final.

It goes without saying that the computer generated animation in Disney/Pixar's Toy Story 4 is beautiful. Once again, the vocal performances, notably Tom Hanks as Woody, Tim Allen as Buzz, Annie Potts as Bo and Tony Hale as Forky, are exemplary.

This latest episode of the Toy Story saga thankfully does nothing to tarnish what is arguably the most consistent franchise of them all, while its finale suggests that this really will be the last we see of the gang. If this is the case then more's the pity, although Toy Story 4 definitely provides them with a high on which to go out on.

Read an unedited version of this review on my new blog: jinglebonesmovietime.blogspot.com




Movie number 65: The Silent Passenger (Reginald Denham, 1935).

Dorothy L Sayers’ amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey makes his big screen debut in this original story, written by Sayers with screenwriter Basil Mason.

When a man in wrongly accused of murdering his philandering wife’s lover Lord Peter Wimsey steps in to prove his innocence. The action largely takes place on board train from London to Dover and benefits from location shot on actual stations.

Made three years before another great train bound mystery, The Lady Vanishes (Alfred Hitchcock, 1938), The Silent Passenger pales in comparison to the later movie. Yet this slightly creaky thriller actually surpasses its obvious ‘B’ movie origins and really isn’t bad at all. Admittedly, it’s not much of a mystery as the audience know the identity of the murderer from the outset. But its climactic chase through a locomotive repair shop and into the pathway of an oncoming train is genuinely exciting. Peter Haddon hams it up nicely as Wimsey and it has its share of humorous moments as well as minor thrills. It is no classic by any means, but does have an old fashioned charm nonetheless.

ATLANTIS: THE LOST CONTINENT (George Pal, 1961).

Special effects maestro turned director George Pal followed his acclaimed adaptation of H G Wells' The Time Machine (1960) with the mythical fable Atlantis: The Lost Continent.

Out sailing with his father, Greek fisherman Demetrios (Anthony Hall) rescues the shipwrecked Atlantean Princess Antilla (Joyce Taylor). On returning the Princess to the mythical kingdom, Demetrios is imprisoned and forced into slave labour. It turns out the technologically superior Atlantiaeans are a sadistic lot, inflicting punishments on their captives such as turning them into man-beast hybrids. Demetrios rebels, attempting to win the affection of the princess in the process. He then must free the other slaves and exit Atlantis before its inevitable demise.

After the excellent Time Machine, Atlantis: The Lost Continent was seen as something of a disappointment. Actually, the movie is a fun and pretty wild ride but lacks the gravitas of earlier Pal classics such as The War of the Worlds (Byron Haskin, 1953) tom thumb (Pal, 1958) and, as mentioned, The Time Machine.

It features some impressive visual effects, most notably during the empire’s spectacular fall which serves as the movie’s climax. The cast is made up of faces largely unfamiliar to modern audiences, save for maybe John Dall as baddie Zaren and Edward Platt as the sympathetic High Priest Azar. While the performers do a proficient enough job they do get a little lost among the spectacle.

With influences of Jules Verne-esq sci-fi and the then popular sword and sandal movies, Atlantis: The Lost Continent has a somewhat uneasy footing in both genres. As a special effects laden sci-fi adventure it pales in comparison to superior epics Journey to the Center of the Earth (Henry Levin, 1959) and Jason and the Argonauts (Don Chaffey, 1963).

Yet, I have a lot of affection for the movie. If you are fan of George Pal you will definitely enjoy this. Ultimately it is little more than matinee fluff, but it’s matinee fluff on a grand scale.

Read an unedited version of this review on my blog JINGLE BONES MOVIE TIME! Link below.

RIP Cameron Boyce.

ALADDIN (Dir: Guy Ritchie, 2019).

Disney raids its back catalogue once again for their latest remake of an animated classic. Released in 1992, Aladdin (Ron Clements and John Musker) is one of the Disney Studios most critically acclaimed and commercially successful movies. With an excellent musical score, groundbreaking animation and a magnificent performance by Robin Williams as The Genie, it is also a difficult act to follow, not least for Will Smith stepping into the winklepickers of Williams.

This version of the Arabian Nights story of the boy who finds a magic lamp and the genie within who will grant him three wishes sticks close to Disney’s previous telling, although adding a further 40 minutes to its runtime. Surprisingly these extra minutes do not feel superfluous. Jasmine and Jafar both gain a little deeper character development and the Genie gets a love interest. Alan Menken, Howard Ashman and Tim Rice’s song score remains mostly intact with the addition of a new number, ‘Speechless’, co-written by Menken with songwriting duo Pasek and Paul.

Brit Guy Richie seemed an unlikely choice of director but acquits himself admirably with his first family friendly musical fantasy. As do the cast; Mena Massoud as Aladdin and Naomi Scott as Jasmine make attractive leads and Smith is reassuringly great as Genie. Thankfully, Disney cast actors who can also sing and the soundtrack is mercifully free of the auto-tuning that has plagued previous features.

What Aladdin lacks in originality it makes up for in spectacle. This is a very good looking movie with lavish song and dance numbers, exciting action sequences and top line special effects. Does it supplant the beloved animated version? Of course not. But it does hold up as a visually stunning, tuneful, wholly entertaining 130 minutes. While perhaps not as essential as its animated predecessor it is still a lot of fun and well worth a watch.

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THE MAN IN THE SKY aka DECISION AGAINST TIME (Dir: Charles Crichton, 1957).

In 1955 the Ealing Studios were sold to the BBC for use as a production facility. Production of Ealing Films was moved to the MGM British Studios at Borehamwood and a distribution deal with MGM was secured. The deal was short lived; only 6 films were released through MGM and Ealing’s days as a production company were numbered.

The first movie to be released under the new deal was The Man in the Sky, retitled Decision Again Time for US audiences.

Ealing regular Jack Hawkins stars as a test pilot who must make a difficult, life threatening decision when the engine of his aircraft fails. Elizabeth Sellars co-stars as his wife who believes her husband puts himself at unnecessary risk.

Hawkins does well in one of his many stoic action hero roles and is ably supported by a fine supporting cast including Brit acting legends Lionel Jeffries, Donald Pleasence and Megs Jenkins. Charles Crichton, better known for helming comedy classics Hue and Cry (1947) and The Lavender Hill Mob (1951), proves adept at combining highflying thrills with the earthbound familial trails in what might have been an uneasy mix of domestic drama and disaster movie.

The suspense is held to the final reel in this fairly tense and absorbing drama which, while perhaps not quite top drawer Ealing, is still a quality product with much to recommend it. Aircraft connoisseurs will enjoy the location footage shot at Pendeford Airfield and the Bristol Freighter plane which Hawkins pilots.

Check out my blog jinglebonesmovietime.blogspot.com for more reviews of vintage Ealing Studios classics!