Hugo (Martin Scorsese, 2011)

06Dec11

Ben Kingsley (Georges Méliès), Sacha Baron Cohen (Station Inspector), Asa Butterfield (Hugo Cabret), Chloë Grace Moretz (Isabelle), Ray Winstone (Uncle Claude), Emily Mortimer (Lisette), Jude Law (Hugo’s Father). Screenplay by John Logan. Directed by Martin Scorsese. Rating: U. Running time: 127 minutes. It’s impossible to avoid this, so let’s get it done first and foremost and quickly: just what has happened here? […]

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Tags: 3d, avatar, ben kingsley, chloe moretz, disney, dostoevsky, george harrison, george melies, goodfellas, hugo, hugo cabret, jude law, martin scorsese, narnia, neo noir, pixar, ray winstone, sacha baron cohen, the times

Cars (John Lasseter & Joe Ranft, 2006)

23Sep10

[Voices] Owen Wilson (Lightning McQueen), Paul Newman (Doc Hudson), Bonnie Hunt (Sally Carera). Screenplay by John Lasseter, Joe Ranft et al. Directed by John Lasseter and Joe Ranft. Rating: PG. Running time: 117 minutes. In Cars Pixar take their humanisation of inanimate objects to the extreme: not only are the main characters cars, but everybody […]

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Tags: 1950s america, buzz, cars, dreamworks, john lasseter, pixar, shark tale, the godfather, toy story, up, wall-e, woody

Toy Story 2 (John Lasseter, 1999)

15Sep10

[Voices] Tom Hanks (Woody), Tim Allen (Buzz), Joan Cusack (Jessie), Don Rickles (Mr. Potato Head), Jim Varney (Slinky), Wallace Shawn (Rex). Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Rita Hsiao, Doug Chamberlin and Chris Webb. Directed by John Lasseter, Ash Brannon and Lee Unkrich. Rating: U. Running time: 92 minutes. I never liked this one as a kid, […]

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Tags: andy's bedroom, buzz, buzz lightyear, japan, john lasseter, pixar, toy story, toy story 2, woody

Toy Story (John Lasseter, 1995)

10Sep10

[Voices] Tom Hanks (Woody), Tim Allen (Buzz Lightyear), Don Rickles (Mr. Potato Head), Jim Varney (Slinky Dog). Screenplay by Josh Whedon, Andrew Stanton, Joel Cohen and Alec Sokolow. Directed by John Lasseter. Rating: PG. Running time: 83 minutes. Fun this intense should be outlawed, for fear of driving kids senile in their excitement. Toy Story […]

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Tags: buzz lightyear, john lasseter, little bo peep, nazism, pixar, tim allen, tom hanks, toy story, woody

Up (Pete Docter & Bob Peterson, 2009)

08Sep10

[Voices] Edward Asner (Carl Fredricksen), Christopher Plummer (Charles Muntz), Jordan Nagai (Russell). Screenplay by Bob Peterson and Pete Docter. Directed by Bob Peterson Pete Docter. Rating: PG. Running time: 96 minutes. I’ve got to be careful here. 98% on RottenTomatoes – 100% counting solely the Cream of the Crop – is no mean feat. Up is […]

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Tags: christopher plummer, disney, l'argent de poche, monsters inc, peter docter, pixar, pocket money, rotten tomatoes, toy story, toy story 3, truffaut, up, wall-e

WALL·E (Andrew Stanton, 2008)

05Aug10

[Voices] Ben Burtt (WALL·E), Elissa Knight (EVE). Screenplay by Jim Reardon and Andrew Stanton. Directed by Andrew Stanton. Rating: U. Running time:  98 minutes. Talk about ambition. This is quite a remarkable effort from Pixar. WALL·E is not packed with delightful character after character like most of the production company’s animated gems, instead opting for just […]

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Tags: 2001 a space odyssey, andrew stanton, c3-po, death star, disney, monsters inc, pixar, r2-d2, toy story, wall-e, WALL·E

Monsters, Inc. (Pete Docter, 2001)

02Aug10

[Voices] John Goodman (Sulley), Billy Crystal (Mike Wazowski), Mary Gibbs (Boo), Steve Buscemi (Randall). Screenplay by Andrew Stanton and Daniel Gerson. Directed by Pete Docter. Rating: U. Running time: 87 minutes. If I ever have kids, the only thing they’re definitely getting for Christmas each year is a Pixar movie, and, as Quentin Tarantino would […]

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Tags: billy crystal, communists, disney, mccarthy, metropolis, monsters, monsters inc, nosferatu, pixar, quentin tarantino, steve buscemi, toy story, witchhunt, xenophobia

Toy Story 3 (Lee Unkrich, 2010)

28Jul10

[Voices] Tom Hanks (Woody), Tim Allen (Buzz Lightyear), Joan Cusack (Jessie), Ned Beatty (Lotso). Screenplay by Michael Arndt. Directed by Lee Unkrich. Rating: U. Running time: 103 minutes. Woody, Buzz, Mr. Potatohead, Rex… these are just a few of the adorable characters that throw us right back into our childhoods, and remind us of how […]

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Tags: barbie, buzz lightyear, cannes, improv, ken, mr potato head, pixar, rex, tim allen, tom hanks, totalitarian, toy story, toy story 3, woody, you've got a friend in me