Creativity is a subject that can spark a confident message and can be elaborated on in many ways. Brian and Charles is all about creativity which Brian demonstrates with his robot, Charles. The film’s cinematography feels real and displays painful emotions. The movie deals with finding ways to overcome boredom and loneliness. Brian uses his ability to invent things to cope with his isolation. Brian and Charles has a retro feel and the robot helps enhance the film with positive humor.

The film is solid in its delivery. The writing for the film was done by David Earl and Chris Hayward. Earl also plays Brian in the film and Hayward plays Charles the robot. The film grasps the narration process through the eyes of Brian as he elaborates in fragments about why his life is how it is and about being an inventor. The film follows a standard format before rolling into the more exciting events once there is a clear understanding of what Brian’s goals are. His ultimate invention is Charles which provides him with a new buddy.

Brian is one of those people who experiences melancholy moments. He lives in his quiet home in the mountains of North Wales and has a fascination for experiments and inventions. Because he lacks a social life, he builds Charles which is a robot made from a box refrigerator and a bunch of wires. The bond between Brian and Charles grows strong. Charles has a Stephen Hawking type of voice, and their communication is joyful,endearing, and entertaining. Charles helps Brian gain confidence in himself and helps Brian deal with his depression. Brian and Charles is a film that shows there are endless possibilities for bright lights in life.

In the eyes of Charles, however, I also felt some grief and pain. Charles expresses an enthusiastic interest to see the real world and other countries. Brian doesn’t feel that can happen, becauseCharles is a robot and his invention. The many frustrations between robot and reality for Charles are heartbreaking. Charles creates a sense of security for Brian and helps him cope with his loneliness. The sad part is that Brian can do more than Charles because he is a human and Charles can only do what Brian thinks is best.

The scenery plays a big role in portraying Charles’ feelings of despair. Set on the empty lands of North Wales, Brian and Charles is a film of parallel feelings between the characters as they figure things out against harsh landscape. As the seasons pass in North Wales, the more Charles wants to see the world. As the old saying goes, “Where there is a will there is a way!”

The creativity in Brian and Charles displays faith and positivity for both characters. The film reminded me of how loneliness can feel, and how the connections in our lives help us not feel so alone. In this heartfelt film, Brian used his skill of inventing to create his friend Charles. Three and a half stars.

As a kid I always loved Toy Story, and my fascination has continued and evolved over the years. The Toy Story franchise has consistently delivered astounding entertainment that is family friendly and brilliant. Lightyear is no exception.

The timeline between the original four Toy Story films was appropriate, and they had the right transitions and continuity of the storyline. The franchise also seemed to follow my childhood—and beyond. I was born in 1993 and Toy Story opened in 1995; Toy Story 2 opened in 1999 when I was entering school; Toy Story 3 opened in 2010 when I was in high school; and Toy Story 4opened in 2019, as I entered full adulthood and my movie reviewer career was taking off. Lightyear is a new beginning for the franchise, and it totally wowed me.

Lightyear almost feels like a virtual reality video game taken to new heights. The space setting in the animated format, especially when seen in a large format like IMAX or Dolby Digital, is brisk and clear with amazing direction and animation. I felt like I was in a whole new world of Disney fun, like I was actually in space and part of the new story. And the Buzz Lightyear suit, the dialogue, the fun catch phrases, and the creative nostalgia are all still there.

For the first time Tim Allen is not playing the voice of Buzz. This is of course a big change, since Allen delivered Disney fun that will always be cherished. Chris Evans is now the voice of Buzz Lightyear. Evans also has a great voice for the character, and he continues the classic Toy Storycharacterization of Buzz on his quest to go “to infinity and beyond.”

The setup of the film is that Buzz’s space ranger days have seen some errors and mishaps, and Buzz goes into space with the goal to save the planet from the many evils around it. Those evils including, of course, Emperor Zurg, whose voice is played by James Brolin. This time though, Buzz has a sidekick—an electronic cat named Sox, whose voice is played by Peter Sohn. Their relationship is similar to the relationship between Buzz and Woody, which is one of the reasons that Lightyear still has the Toy Story brilliance and the positive vibe.

Some may argue that the film doesn’t feel the same without Andy, Sid, or some of the other earlier characters. But the story going forward with Lightyear is still pure Disney adrenaline and, after all, Buzz is now in his true environment. The film almost seems at times like Toy Story meets Gravity (2013), but with animated characters, and it sets the perfect foundation for Disney to bring us new adventures and to evolve the Toy Storyfranchise. Though it’s early, Lightyear is one of the best films I have seen this summer. Four stars for Lightyear.

The dinosaurs are back in action, the excitement is high, and the title Jurassic World: Dominion speaks for itself. The film melding the stories of Jurassic Park and Jurassic World has finally arrived. And while it can be an exhilarating adventure at times, Jurassic World: Dominion is not quite the level of exhilaration that I anticipated.

Again, while there is a generous level of excitement, I had to ask myself a few questions. Are the dinosaur visuals still invigorating? Is the storyline grasping my full attention? Or is the reunion of many of the original Jurassic actors the main source of excitement?

Where I found the exhilarating and monumental moments in the film was the reunion with Alan Grant (Sam Neill), Ellie Sattier (Laura Dern), and Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum). Bringing these icons back is what kicks the action into gear. Neill and Dern bring back that classic love for dinosaurs and the whole dinosaur culture in this continuation of the Jurassic World franchise

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In Jurassic World: Dominion, the film picks up from Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom(2018). The characters Owen Grady and Claire Dearing (Chriss Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard) find themselves in a new world where dinosaurs have become the norm. They are everywhere—in cities, zoos, etc. On top of that, there are new experiments on the horizon, and Grant, Sattier, and Malcolm know the keys to the experiments. Unfortunately, the film focuses too much on the reunion of classic characters, versus the plot itself. Jurassic World: Dominion also struggles with its pacing and continuity.

I love films with dinosaurs and monsters, but the originality of the dinosaurs in the Jurassic franchise have decreased over time. And the script is just so predictable, with its good guy/bad guy formula—save the good people from the dinosaurs and the destruction, and the bad guys are not so lucky.

Don’t get me wrong, Jurassic World: Dominion is not a bad movie. It just felt rushed, the classic characters were not integrated into the film very well, and the visuals were not quite up to my expectations. Some fun memories, and it was impressive how Neill, Dern, and Goldblum can still portray their roles. In fact, they provided a bigger rollercoaster for the film than the dinosaurs. Two and a half stars for Jurassic World: Dominion.