Moviefone Editorial

Tag: benjamin-bratt

  • Disney and Pixar Announce ‘Coco’ Sequel

    'Coco 2' logo. Photo: Disney/Pixar.
    ‘Coco 2’ logo. Photo: Disney/Pixar.

    Preview:

    • Pixar is developing a ‘Coco’ sequel.
    • Disney CEO Bob Iger made the announcement to shareholders.
    • Directors Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina are back.

    It seems to be the way of things these days that for every big Disney announcement spree targeted at fans –– at a Comic-Con, say, or especially the company’s D23 events –– there’s at least one with business entirely on the studio’s mind.

    So it was with the news that Pixar –– an arm of the Disney empire alongside sibling production companies Lucasfilm and Marvel –– is developing a sequel to tear-jerking 2017 hit ‘Coco,’ as the overall CEO Bob Iger made first mention of it at a shareholders’ meeting.

    vbvnXFhmbTpMe1MnOPWZV3

    Here’s what Iger told shareholders about the status of the new movie:

    “While the film is just in the initial stages, we know it will be full of humor, heart and adventure. And we can’t wait to share more soon.”

    It’s hardly shocking that Pixar might look to score again with the sequel to one of its popular titles –– after all, last year’s ‘Inside Out 2’ was a gigantic success and while the animated team is testing original waters again with this year’s ‘Elio,’ the strategy still seems to be leaning on catalogue titles with built-in audiences.

    Related Article: Best Pixar Animation Movies of All Time!

    What was the story of ‘Coco’?

    A scene from 'Coco'. Photo: Disney/Pixar.
    A scene from ‘Coco’. Photo: Disney/Pixar.

    Despite his family’s baffling generations-old ban on music, Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez) dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt).

    Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the stunning and colorful Land of the Dead following a mysterious chain of events. Along the way, he meets charming trickster Hector (Gael García Bernal), and together, they set off on an extraordinary journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel’s family history.

    The voice cast also included the likes of Alanna Ubach, Renee Victor, Jamie Camil, Alfonso Arau, Herbert Siguenza, Gabriel Iglesias and Edward James Olmos.

    The movie made $210.4M at the domestic box office, and $814.6M worldwide, with $189.2M of that offshore cash from cinemagoers in China.

    On the kudos front, it won two Academy Awards for best animated feature and best original song (‘Remember Me’). The movie also won a Golden Globe for best motion picture, animated, a BAFTA for best animated film, and Critics’ Choice awards for best animated feature and best song (‘Remember Me’).

    It’s perhaps not surprising as to why Disney and Pixar decided to start work on a follow-up.

    Who is working on the ‘Coco’ sequel?

    A scene from 'Coco'. Photo: Disney/Pixar.
    A scene from ‘Coco’. Photo: Disney/Pixar.

    ‘Coco 2’ reunites the team behind the original film, including Oscar-winning director Lee Unkrich and co-director Adrian Molina.

    Oscar-winning producer Mark Nielsen (who also worked on the likes of ‘Toy Story 4’ and the aforementioned ‘Inside Out 2’) will produce.

    What will the story be for the ‘Coco’ sequel?

    A scene from 'Coco'. Photo: Disney/Pixar.
    A scene from ‘Coco’. Photo: Disney/Pixar.

    We do have to take our cynical glasses off for a moment; after all, it’s entirely possible that Unkrich and Molina had cracked a solid story for a follow-up before ‘Inside Out 2’ tore through the box office and weren’t simply ordered to find something that worked so as to serve up an exciting corporate announcement.

    Yet it’s tough to figure out where the narrative might go and how Miguel would feature. Of course, the team can cast a new youngster if the character is still boy, and the majority of the adult cast would be fine to return.

    But ‘Coco’ itself wrapped up wonderfully with the revelation about Miguel’s family (and the news that de la Cruz wasn’t quite the heroic idol he always made himself out to be), plus a heartfelt, lovely send-off for Ana Ofelia Murguía’s Mamá Coco that left few eyes dry.

    So will Miguel learn more lessons from the Land of the Dead? Might the place where spirits go come under threat? That’s all a big question mark for now.

    What else is happening with Disney and Pixar?

    'Zootopia 2' Photo: Disney.
    ‘Zootopia 2’ Photo: Disney.

    On the movie front, Disney’s live-action take on ‘Snow White’ is now in theaters, though suffering from some very mixed reviews.

    Next up is straight-to-Disney+ title ‘Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Road Trip,’ due out on March 28th.

    That’s followed on the big screen by live-action remake ‘Lilo & Stitch,’ due on May 23rd.

    After that, we have Pixar’s aforementioned animated ‘Elio’ (also directed by Adrian Molina), which lands on June 20th.

    Sequel ‘Zootopia 2’ lands on November 26th in the prime Thanksgiving slot, while ‘Freakier Friday’ is out on August 8th.

    And this list doesn’t even encompass the Lucasfilm (just ‘Andor’s second season this year) or Marvel efforts headed our way.

    When will ‘Coco 2’ be on screens?

    As Iger said, it’s very early days, and nothing else has been announced about this new movie. Given the usual production time of animated movies, we doubt it’ll be out much before 2027, and even that seems ambitious (but you’ve got to think that 10 years after the original is a good shout).

    A scene from 'Coco'. Photo: Disney/Pixar.
    A scene from ‘Coco’. Photo: Disney/Pixar.

    List of Pixar Movies:

    Buy Pixar Movies on Amazon

    jtoM6BGZ

  • TV Review: ‘Poker Face’

    Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale in 'Poker Face.'
    Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale in ‘Poker Face.’ Photo by: Evans Vestal Ward/Peacock.

    Premiering with its first four episodes on Peacock on January 26th, ‘Poker Face’ marks Rian Johnson’s latest successful stab at the mystery genre.

    The filmmaker, who made his name with Sundance sensation ‘Brick’, has often tackled mysteries in his work, most notably with the two ‘Knives Out’ movies, in which Daniel Craig’s smart sleuth Benoit Blanc uncovers dastardly deeds among spoiled rich folk (in the 2019 original) and weird influencers (in last year’s follow up).

    Along with an abiding affection for Agatha Christie and other mystery writers, Johnson has often professed his love for TV series such as ‘Columbo’, where Peter Falk’s scruffy, genius detective first befriends and then unmasks killers.

    Adrien Brody as Sterling Frost Jr. in 'Poker Face.'
    Adrien Brody as Sterling Frost Jr. in ‘Poker Face.’ Photo by: Phillip Caruso/Peacock.

    ‘Poker Face’ channels the latter, featuring Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale, a casino worker with a special gift—she can tell when people are lying. She can’t always figure out exactly why they’re lying, but she knows a falsehood, which has made her an enemy of the gambling boss, represented by casino boss Sterling Frost Jr, played perfectly by Adrien Brody in the premiere.

    Despite his casino magnate father wanting Charlie away from the tables, Frost convinces Charlie that they can scam one of the “whales” (a big gambler who is now running private poker games from his suite) at the establishment with a rigged game. It all falls apart when Charlie’s friend Natalie (Dascha Polanco), a member of the housekeeping team, catches the whale with something illegal and goes to her boss, who has his enforcer Cliff Legrand (Benjamin Bratt) to kill the whistleblower and her deadbeat husband.

    An impressive pilot sets out the show’s stall, introducing us to Charlie’s world––she lives in a trailer near the casino and tries to stay out of trouble––and then shattering it in the wake of her figuring out what really happened to Natalie. The resulting, potentially lethal blowback sends Charlie on the run, trying to stay one step ahead of Cliff, who is sent to find and silence her.

    Benjamin Bratt as Cliff Legrand in 'Poker Face.'
    Benjamin Bratt as Cliff Legrand in ‘Poker Face.’ Photo by: Karolina Wojtasik/Peacock.

    Thus the basic premise of the show, which finds Charlie traveling from place to place and stumbling upon liars, cheats and murderers wherever she goes.

    As with ‘Columbo’s basic format, ‘Poker Face’ shows the audience exactly how the murder of the week went down before spinning the clock back a couple of days to reveal how Charlie came to be involved. And then it gets down to the meat of the series, to show Charlie investigating and then solving the murder.

    In a neat twist, her own fugitive status means that the stories never get wrapped up in a neat bow with Charlie able to call the police. Doing as much as she can to stay off the radar (even getting money from an ATM is fraught with the risk that Cliff will be able to track her down), she accepts odd jobs, which leads to her being drawn into the mystery.

    Rian Johnson, Creator and Executive Producer of 'Poker Face' at the Hollywood Legion Theater on January 23, 2023.
    Rian Johnson, Creator and Executive Producer of ‘Poker Face’ at the Hollywood Legion Theater on January 23, 2023. Photo by: Jesse Grant/Peacock.

    Because of that trick of showing how the murder plays out, ‘Poker Face’ falls into the category that’s less whodunnit and more “howcatchem”––Charlie rocking up and figuring out what’s really going on. Though the crimes are frequently ridiculous, there are still stakes to be found. And no one is coming to this show for gritty, overinflated “realism” as peddled by so many case-of-the-week shows cluttering up network television. It also looks great––no doubt helped by some of Johnson’s cinematic team crossing over. The mix of classic style and modern sheen works.

    Charlie moving on each week like David Banner on TV’s ‘The Incredible Hulk’ means that Johnson and co. (he wrote and directed the pilot but worked on the series with showrunners Nora and Lilla Zuckerman) can rely on a rich field of guest stars.

    Across the first six episodes provided for review, the stories include one set amongst a punk rock band (anchored by Chloe Sevigny as the bitter lead singer who is trying to tour again after working for years at a home improvement store), another at a care home for the elderly whose resident roster boasts the likes of former revolutionaries with a score to settle played by Judith Light and S. Epatha Merkerson. A highlight is an episode featuring Tim Meadows and Ellen Barkin as actors looking to revisit their glory days whose shared resentment just might turn deadly.

    Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale in Peacock's 'Poker Face.'
    Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale in Peacock’s ‘Poker Face.’ Photo by: Karolina Wojtasik/Peacock.

    Lyonne has found a fertile creative ground in TV, between the likes of ‘Orange is the New Black’ and, more recently, the time-twisting ‘Russian Doll’. ‘Poker Face’ represents her latest captivating turn, playing Charlie with charm and intuition. Despite the constant specter of death (and the threat to her own life), she keeps it fun and light, proving to be a more than disarming anchor for the stories.

    Though we’ve all gotten used to serialized shows being held up as the gold standard in the age of “prestige TV”, Johnson and his team definitely find something new in a seemingly old format. Procedural it may be, but ‘Poker Face’ is anything but a bluff. It’s more like a winning hand.

    Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale in 'Poker Face.'
    Natasha Lyonne as Charlie Cale in ‘Poker Face.’ Photo by: Karolina Wojtasik/Peacock.

    ‘Poker Face’ receives 8 out of 10 stars.

    pvRpLBfm
  • Every Illumination Movie, Ranked

    Every Illumination Movie, Ranked

    Universal

    Illumination is small but mighty. The animation studio, which was started in 2008 by Chris Meledandri, the former head of 20th Century Fox Animation and Blue Sky Studios, makes animated features that routinely over-perform (“Minions” made more than $1 billion worldwide). What makes this even more impressive is how cheaply Illumination produces their movies; they cost a fraction of what similar movies at Disney or Pixar do. Their latest film, “The Secret Life of Pets 2,” opens this weekend (we didn’t get to screen it before publishing this post), which is set to continue their string of box office smashes. And in honor of this accomplishment, we’re ranking all of their previous films.

    9. ‘Hop’ (2011)

    Universal

    “Hop” is many things: loud, annoying, and only partially animated. It stars Russell Brand as the son of the Easter Bunny, who wants to follow his dreams of being a professional drummer, leaving all of his holiday-related duties by the wayside. Snooze. What makes this even more bizarre is that Illumination didn’t even provide the animation, with the visual effects work instead provided by the now defunct Rhythm & Hues. This discrepancy is even weirder considering that the Easter chicks were a clear attempt to replicate that minions magic. Illumination’s first attempt at a holiday classic was more like an exaggerated face plant.

    8. ‘Minions’ (2015)

    Universal

    No.

    7. ‘Despicable Me 2’ (2013)

    Universal

    “Despicable Me” was a mostly delightful surprise, so it was quickly turned into a franchise and much of that initial magic (along with the surprise) disappeared just as quickly. Beset by production woes, including the last-minute exit of Al Pacino, who had already voiced most of his lines as the villain but left due to unforeseen “creative differences.” (Benjamin Bratt, who replaced him, had to sync up his recordings to the animation that had already been done for Pacino’s line-readings), “Despicable Me 2 ” comes off as limp and uninspired.

    6. ‘Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch’ (2019)

    Universal

    Illumination returned to the world of Theodor Geisel for this mystifying retread of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (simplified as just “The Grinch”). There are a number of head-scratching decisions that went into “The Grinch,” most notably hiring Benedict Cumberbatch but having him do a stiff American accent instead of his velvety British purr. (Also by saddling him with a motivational backstory that mostly involves him being hungry.) Other baffling choices include having Pharrell deliver awkward narration and having wiseacre rapper Tyler the Creator cover the iconic theme song. It might not be as painfully bad as the live action Jim Carrey version (the extremely Danny Elfman-y score by Danny Elfman helps) but it’s close.

    5. ‘Despicable Me 3’ (2017)

    Universal

    While not a total reinvention of the wheel, this is a serviceable sequel that benefits from its weird obsession with 1980s pop culture and a genuinely deranged performance by “South Park” mastermind Trey Parker as a former whiz kid turned super-villain. But other than that, it’s same old, same old in the “Despicable Me” product factory, with a bunch of minions running around and some semi-inspired set pieces. “Despicable Me 3” gets points for trying to up the scale in a meaningful, sophisticated way but doesn’t quite understand that bigger isn’t necessarily better.

    4. ‘The Lorax’ (2012)

    Universal

    One of the more underrated Illumination entries (and one of the least successful), the company’s very first Dr. Seuss adaptation is one of their best. Adding a fair amount of dimensionality (as well as up-to-the-minute environmental commentary), “The Lorax” features a bunch of winning performances (most notably Danny DeVito as The Lorax) and some faithful, Seussian design work, and packages it in a way that doesn’t feel cloying or confrontational. Instead, it’s a peaceful fable about the dangers of mistreating the earth, packaged and produced for maximum enjoyment.

    3. ‘The Secret Life of Pets’ (2016)

    Universal

    The first “Secret Life of Pets” is a cute, funny, charming movie that becomes somewhat lessened when you realize that the plot (cooked up by a bunch of Illumination regulars) so closely resembles the first “Toy Story” that Pixar should have sued. Somewhat tarnished by its lead vocal performance (by a since-replaced Louis CK), the movie is certainly energetic and somehow overcomes its own stylistic limitations (Illumination productions occasionally look as cheap as they are). Major points should be added for Kevin Hart’s portrayal of a tiny white rabbit.

    2. ‘Despicable Me’ (2010)

    Universal

    This is it. The movie that started it all. (Illumination didn’t even own the animation studio yet.) A mixture of Charles Addams-style black humor and gags straight out of a 007 film, “Despicable Me” introduced the world to vaguely Eastern European bad guy Gru (Steve Carell) and, much to society’s detriment, his gaggle of yellow, androgynous underlings the minions. Sadly, the imagination and heart that made the original film such an unexpected treat would wear thin in subsequent installments, but with the right creative team it could potentially be restored. Just, please, enough with the minions.

    1. ‘Sing’ (2016)

    Universal

    Unequivocally the greatest Illumination accomplishment, this low-key classic features a bunch of anthropomorphic animals as they audition for a big time talent show. (The fact that they are animals has almost no bearing on the story but the animators occasionally have fun with the conceit.) Illumination productions often default to juvenile gags (like the Grinch always wearing tight white underwear) or saccharine sentimentality (something that even threatened the original “Despicable Me”), but “Sing” is carefully modulated, offering humor that never feels too childish and genuine, relatable emotions (Reese Witherspoon is an overworked pig mom, Taron Egerton is a gorilla with daddy issues, etc). Part of what makes “Sing” such a blast is that it comes from a singular point-of-view, writer-director Garth Jennings, one half of the brilliant music video directing team Hammer & Tongs, who understands both how to handle the characters and the accompanying visual flourishes. For once, knowing that an Illumination sequel (again handled by Jennings) is on the way is something to be met with excitement, not dread.