FILM REVIEW : FINDING NEMO

FILM REVIEW : FINDING NEMO

Winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, Finding Nemo continues the Disney tradition of producing high-quality, blockbuster films that entertain audiences of all ages. Featuring the wonders of the Pixar animation technology, the film is a breathtaking window into the future of animated pictures, with borderline
3-D visual effects and the introduction of original animated film techniques certain to influence future masterpieces. Boasting a slew of talented voiceovers such as Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould, Willem Dafoe, and John Ratzenberger, Finding Nemo is certain to maintain a place in the hearts of children of all ages for generations to come…

The epic story begins somewhere in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Australia. A clown fish named Marlin (Albert Brooks) lives a wonderful life in a peaceful underwater colony of fish and other fascinating sea life with his wife. However, that serene setting is demolished when a vicious predator attacks their home, killing his wife. Distraught, Marlin takes comfort in the egg left behind which grows into his son, Nemo (Alexander Gould).

Because of this early trauma, Marlin is extremely overprotective when it comes to Nemo. He follows a step behind everywhere his son goes, makes Nemo stay in the house whenever possible, and remains quite apprehensive about his son going to school. Marlin’s fears are realized when Nemo is captured on his first day of school and taken away to live in a fish tank on land. Intent on freeing his son, Marlin sets out on a bold and daring quest to retrace the path of the abductor’s boat.

Wandering through the ocean depths, he meets up with Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) – an absent-minded, yet friendly – fish who remains determined to help her new friend recover his lost son. Together, they encounter a pack of sharks and a countless array of diverse and fascinating underwater creatures.

Meanwhile, Nemo is plunged into a dentist office fish tank overlooking Sidney Harbor where he meets a number of new and exciting friends. The other aquatic life, long confined to the tank themselves, initiate Nemo into their fraternity, revealing the history of their attempts to escape. Enlisting Nemo as their point man (or fish), they concoct a number of schemes such as clogging the tank’s filter so they can make a break for it when they’re taken out for the tank cleaning. With the threat of the dentist presenting Nemo as a present to his nerdy niece, the stakes are raised for our young hero and time is of the essence…

Sporting one of the best written animated screenplays of all-time and a breathtaking original score by Thomas Newman, Finding Nemo is a pleasurable affair for both parents and children. The writers pull off an admirable job of combining adult and kid humour throughout the script in such a way that it doesn’t detract from the experience for either age group. With a number of likeable characters, the audience will find itself rooting for Marlin, Nemo, and all their friends to accomplish the task before them. Overall, this is a must-see film for all age groups, not only because of the great story and artful performances, but if anything, simply because the animation is a wonder in-and-of itself…

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FILM REVIEW: BLACK HAWK DOWN

FILM REVIEW: BLACK HAWK DOWN

A “Black Hawk” is a very advanced, expensive and deadly military helicopter and the title of the movie explains what the “goal” of the plot was. Once the one hundred elite U.S. soldiers dropped into Somalia they were almost instantly fired upon. A rocket was actually shot at one of the black hawks while a soldier was preparing to descend to its target but to dodge the missile the helicopter had to jar itself to the left which caused the soldier to plummet to the ground. The movie was very graphic and the language was pretty harsh but then again the material being covered was very harsh itself. When men (and women) began opening fire on the U.S. soldiers it explained everything. Many soldiers were hurt in this battle, and a total of 19 U.S. soldiers were killed.

When the fighting began things looked good for the U.S. They did not have tactical advantage, and they did not have the advantage of having the location they were prepared for even though preparation was intense. They did have the advantage of having a better more advanced, yet smaller artillery and combat training. “Leave no U.S. soldier behind!” said the general, which helps to better explain the title. The soldiers that were alive had to get to the helicopters that had crashed so they could be seen and evacuated. Through radio contact it would be very difficult to let the rescue team let them know where they were because they couldn’t explain where they were due to the fact the aria was new to them. Plus, at the crash sites many Somaliland rebels were looting and ready to fight which only made things more difficult. Rebel ground forces were not the soldier’s only problem, the biggest threat they had were the snipers on the roof tops that were taking out ground soldiers and making it near impossible for helicopters to land for evacuation.

All in all, I thought this was a very good movie. It may have been a bit too long, and a little too gory to my taste, but it brings a much sharper picture of what war is about, and how it works. Actors Josh Hartnett and Eric Bana did a great job of making the movie seem very realistic, and helped to personalize the soldiers so they weren’t just machines.

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