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How to Catch Peter Rabbit 2

Ed Sum
(the Vintage Tempest)

For more information, please visit the official website.

Coming to PVOD in Canada
Rent it at home July 2!

Not everyone will have seen Peter Rabbit 2. This film may have hopped, skipped or jumped past certain theatres and purists (those who know the source material by Beatrix Potter) are more likely to pass this film series up than try to watch. I enjoy this modern update as it introduces him to a new generation where he’s not quite as rascally as Bugs Bunny and nor is he a Winnie the Pooh.

Thomas McGregor (Domhnall Gleeson) is more or less considered this bunny’s (voiced by James Corden) handler. This film picks up from where the last left off. He married Bea (Rose Byrne) and she proves Pete is “marketable.” Her children’s books about the rabbit are popular enough to get the attention of a huge publisher. She’s being courted to sell the rights so that the bigwigs can send the bunny to places akin to how a certain beagle has become huge for Apple TV. This other series no longer has the same quality as Charles Schultz‘s works.

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Will the Chase Ever End in Tom & Jerry, The Movie?

Sadly, this film adds nothing to explain why Tom and Jerry have endured over the years.

Tom & Jerry (Official 2021 Film Poster).png

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Playing at select theatres (where open) & HBO MAX

SPOILER ALERT

Let’s face it, Tom the Cat can’t catch Jerry the Mouse no matter how hard he tries. Over the decades, these miscreants of their animal genus should be ashamed of themselves. Not even their own kin look kindly at them. Well, maybe the rodent might fare better. The two are rivals. The early cartoons are often about one trying to annoy or outsmart the other.

Their antics can’t carry a movie, and the shorts from long ago are far more effective than any feature length attempts. Those pieces are essentially Mack Sennett slapstick comedies, and the reason we love to watch them is that observing others beat up on one another is therapeutic.

Life is not a bed of roses either. The star is Kayla Forester (Chloë Grace Moretz), out of work and needing a new job. She’s certainly a smooth operator and fibs her way into a hotel management position, and pretty soon these cartoon characters get involved.

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Is Live Action Bubblegum Crisis Vapourware?

My guess is that we have too many similar movies where realizing Bubblegum Crisis is just not not viable

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

The time is right for a Bubblegum Crisis live-action film. The digital special effects needed to pull off such a tale is at a state where people in power armour suits look believable and the robots they are supposed to fight–cyborgs (known as Boomers in the lore)–can look terrifyingly real. Alita: Battle Angel is the perfect example. But where is it?

Since the early part of this decade, nothing has materialized. IGN’s article stated, “Production houses from Singapore, Japan, Australia, Canada, China and the UK will work together on the $30m movie, with a 2012 release planned.” Many years have passed since then, and perhaps the reason nothing has happened is that either the technology is not quite there or they could not find the right performers to play the seminal characters of Sylia Stingray, Priss Asagiri, Linna Yamazaki, and Nene Romanova.

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Finding a Touch of Shakespeare in Disney’s Christopher Robin

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

After seeing Disney’s Christopher Robin, I have to buy The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh to watch all over again. Part of my youth was spent fondly seeing these cinematic classics of the Silver and Bronze Age. In the live action front, it will forever be TRON. In the animated world, it’s a tie between three works: Winnie the Pooh, The Great Mouse Detective and The Sword in the Stone. The themes behind all these works are nearly the same, and it defines why I enjoy Gargoyles. I followed a significant portion of Disney Afternoon’s programming even as I was older, and the New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh always brought out the child in me. This series did not share the same gravitas as the films, but I still had to watch it. It was food for the brain as I did my homework.

Part of the appeal of this newest entry is the nostalgia invoked. The introduction is also very sentimental. Good ol’ Pooh Bear is given an update. They are stuffed dolls than actual animals and I am sure a massive merchandising revamp is coming. With this franchise completely reimagined, I am wanting to play with them much like Robin once did. Funko POP beware, you now have a worthy challenger to the button-eyed empire. I find these new imaginings just as appealing as the Disney which introduced me to them.

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It’s Alive! Fullmetal Alchemist is Alive on Netflix

To see this live action version of Fullmetal Alchemist on Netflix is a must but the performances are a mixed bag.

Fullmetal Alchemist Poster

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Watching a retread of a favourite anime as live action can be hit or miss. The earliest I have seen is Lone Wolf and Cub (1972) which introduced me to the genre. This series of films were awesome. The Guyver (1991) was cheesy and Space Battleship Yamato (2010) was one that barely worked. That piece was difficult to compress an epic story arc into one movie. Netflix’s version of Death Note (2017) can not compare to the Japanese productions decades prior. It did not have enough meat. To see this live action version of Fullmetal Alchemist on Netflix is a must.

I have read the first few books, and the tightened narrative and visual design had me captivated. With thanks to current CGI rendering technologies, Al simply looks fantastic. Not every bit of the digital action is top-notch. In later parts, when audiences are staring at armies of the undead, the realism takes a dive and I could swear I’m watching The Mummy Returns all over again.

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Adding a Li’l Spookiness to Christmas Eve

ghost_stories_for_xmas_600 Winter chills can mean deathly thrills for the horror entertainment enthusiast. Just what does Christmas mean for them? There’s plenty of products to choose from, and this list is going to look at what’s truly ghostly to really send shivers done one’s spine. Some history and family friendly watches are also offered.

Ghost Stories for Christmas

Originally broadcasted on BBC One between 1971-78, and revived in 2005, this program hosts a wide collection of shorts by notable authors like, to name a few, M.R. James with “Whistle and I’ll Come to You” and Charles Dickens with “The Signalman.” Although Dickens was the writer who brought the tradition of telling ghost stories back to the fore on Christmas Eve, this fascination by the public with the supernatural during this season existed long before his contribution. The tradition for enjoying a spooky tale at this festive time may trace its roots to as far back as the 16th century, with Christopher Marlowe making references to spirits in his play The Jew of Malta (1589), in Act II, Scene 1 where the character Barabas states:

Now I remember those old women’s words,
Who in my wealth would tell me winter’s tales,
And speak of spirits and ghosts that glide by night
About the place where treasure hath been hid:
And now methinks that I am one of those;
For, whilst I live, here lives my soul’s sole hope,
And, when I die, here shall my spirit walk.

Thankfully, the British Film Institute has packaged the seminal episodes of this series into a video release. Fans interested in the film version can purchase this item through Amazon or look at the original works in this M.R. James collection, “Count Magnus and Other Ghost Stories (The Complete Ghost Stories of M. R. James, Vol. 1)“

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