Welcome back to Rhode
Island Movie Corner’s annual end-of-the-year list in which I’m counting down my
Top 12 Favorite Films of 2019. This is Part 3 of 4, and at this point, we’re
now halfway through the list. Thus, today we’ll be delving into films #6-4, but
if you haven’t checked out the last two parts of this list, just head to the
links that will be provided directly below to check out the 6 films that I
listed as my Honorable Mentions and films #12-7. And so, without further ado,
let us return to the list…
Well, since Part 2
began with a Disney remake, it’s only fitting that Part 3 starts with another Disney
remake, and while the original Lion King may be my favorite Disney
animated film of all-time, you may be surprised to find that its new CGI
adaptation wasn’t my favorite Disney remake from this past year. Instead, that
honor goes to the remake of my #4 favorite Disney animated film which, just
like the Lion King remake, endured some controversy upon its release.
But unlike The Lion King remake, the controversies surrounding this film
were much more than just the simple debate over its necessity.
While all these recent Disney live-action remakes have
endured tons of controversy from those who question the decision to remake
classic animated films, the live-action remake of Aladdin has probably
been the most controversial of the bunch to date as it was dealt with a lot of
backlash prior to its release for various reasons. First, there was some
controversy over a few of its casting choices, namely Naomi Scott as Princess
Jasmine and Billy Magnussen as one of her potential suitors, Prince Anders.
While Scott does arguably look a lot like her animated counterpart, she technically
isn’t of Middle Eastern descent (in reality, she’s primarily of Indian descent).
However, Magnussen was easily the most controversial casting of the whole film
because while he only appears in a few scenes… he’s still the ‘token white guy’
in a film that revolves around a cast of Arab characters. Another big controversy
emerged during the film’s production when it was reported that several Caucasian
extras were being made-up to look Middle Eastern. For obvious reasons, this
attracted quite a lot of negative press, though Disney would later comment on
the matter by saying that this was only for safety precautions and wasn’t a
dominant aspect of production. But then, of course, the biggest controversy
that this film faced was when a ‘Special Look’ trailer for the film was
released in February 2019. The teaser trailer had already come out in October
2018, and yet, it didn’t really attract any negative reactions since it was one
of those trailers that didn’t really show anything major. But as for this
‘Special Look’ trailer, it gave us our first look of Will Smith as the Genie in
his traditional blue form after previous promo materials showed him in the
human disguise that he adopts for much of the film. And to put it simply, this
first look did not go over well with the internet who, like the initial design
of Sonic the Hedgehog in his feature film, turned it into the butt of many
jokes.
In other words, for about a whole month, Aladdin was
sporting one hell of a negative reputation online, with many predicting that it
would be a straight-up disaster. However, the film’s luck did begin to change,
for the most part, when its theatrical trailer was released in March. As
theatrical trailers often do when compared to teaser trailers, this one gave us
our best look yet at the film. It notably served as the first instance where
both Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott had any spoken lines in the marketing, it didn’t
rely as much on Genie’s blue form in favor of his human disguise, and it was also
a solid showcase of what Will Smith was bringing to the role of Genie. And
while a promo clip of Smith’s version of ‘Prince Ali’ proved to be yet another
source of online controversy due to how a lot of people negatively compared it
to the version from the original, the film ultimately fared okay with critics
upon its release. While critical reception wasn’t great, per se, a lot of
critics did feel that the film turned out to be much better than they thought
it would be going in. But perhaps the most impressive aspect of this film’s
overall performance was how it managed to maintain a consistent run at the
box-office, which ultimately resulted in it joining the billion-dollar club.
Some have attributed this to the fact that several of the films that came out
over the next few weeks after Aladdin’s release ended up being rather
notorious flops at the box-office. At the same time, though, one could also say
that Aladdin managed to maintain its solid run thanks to positive
word-of-mouth which, may I remind you, was something that it didn’t exactly
have up until the release of its theatrical trailer. With all this in mind, I
do genuinely think that it was very impressive that Aladdin managed to
pull this off given all the hurdles that it had to overcome. It also must’ve
been good for director Guy Ritchie who, despite having a considerably long
career in the industry, had just come off a huge box-office flop in 2017 with
the failed franchise starter that was King Arthur: Legend of the Sword.
But with that said, some did find the hiring of Ritchie as
the film’s director rather odd given that he’s primarily known for gritty crime
dramas. However, Ritchie’s also known for having a flashy directorial style, which
does contribute nicely to the film’s action set-pieces (e.g. any instance where
Aladdin traverses through Agrabah to escape from the guards). Overall, Ritchie
does a solid job translating this Disney classic into a live-action context. Like
the Beauty and the Beast remake, it doesn’t make any major deviations
from the original’s plot but many of the new story elements that it does
incorporate are solidly handled, such as giving Jasmine a new best friend in
her handmaiden Dalia. And while I know that a lot of people dinged the film for
its CGI (as I undoubtedly alluded to earlier with all the jokes about Genie’s
blue look), the rest of the film’s production design still feels very much on
point with the original’s visual aesthetic. But, of course, we can’t forget
about Aladdin’s classic soundtrack courtesy of Alan Menken, the late
Howard Ashman, and Tim Rice, which gets an excellent update courtesy of this
remake. All the classic songs from the original return, with some of them
receiving updated lyrics thanks to La La Land and Greatest Showman songwriters
Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. Pasek and Paul also developed two new songs for the
remake; sadly, though, one of them ended up getting cut. The song in question
is ‘Desert Moon’, a duet for Aladdin and Jasmine that was meant to occur during
the sequence where Aladdin is captured by Jafar and escorted to the Cave of
Wonders to collect the lamp. And while it was ultimately cut for time, traces
of it can still be heard throughout the film (where it’s established as being a
melody that Aladdin and Jasmine remember from their childhood) and this lovely
little duet was ultimately released to the public when the film hit the home
video market. Thus, the final film only has one new song, a solo for Jasmine
titled ‘Speechless’. That said, this new song is phenomenal as it perfectly
encapsulates Jasmine’s new character arc in this film (which I’ll be delving
into more in just a little bit).
However, it goes without saying that the most talked-about
aspect of this film was the daunting task of finding someone to play the Genie.
Let’s face it, folks, when people talk about Aladdin, the first thing
that usually comes to mind is Robin Williams’ iconic turn as the pop-culture
spewing magical being with ‘phenomenal cosmic power’. Williams’ performance is
so revered that anyone who stood in for him in TV shows and video games basically
just mirrored his take on the character. Thus, I can only imagine the pressure
that Will Smith must’ve been under as the first ‘truly new’ cinematic interpretation
of the character. But as I’ve said before, I feel that the key to this role is
finding someone who has an unmistakable screen presence, and Will Smith is one
of those actors. Because of this, Smith does, indeed, kill it in the role and
thoroughly succeeds at making this version of the Genie his own. For starters,
Smith makes the wise decision to not utilize Robin Williams’ penchant for impressions,
which obviously set the groundwork for much of Genie’s humor. Instead, Smith
relies on his classic ‘Fresh Prince’ persona, effectively making his Genie
arguably more of a wisecracker than Williams’ Genie was while still maintaining
an excellent friendship with Aladdin. One key aspect to that is how this Genie
consistently emphasizes the dangers of falling victim to the greed that can
stem from all the potential that comes from the idea of three wishes. This then
ties in nicely to the dilemma of Aladdin believing that he needs to maintain
the lie of him being Prince Ali, which means that, just like the original film,
he tells Genie that he can’t use his third wish to free him as promised. And
while the original film just had Genie mad at Aladdin for going back on his
promise, Smith’s Genie takes this in a different direction by reminding Aladdin
of everything that he stands to lose if the truth ever comes out. And if that
wasn’t enough, Genie also points out that Aladdin is the first master he’s had
in 10,000 years that he truly considers as ‘a friend’ and even states that he no
longer cares about Aladdin using his last wish to set him free. In other words,
Genie isn’t mad about all this; he’s disappointed that Aladdin is heading down
the wrong road. Thankfully, though, Aladdin does manage to come to his senses
by the end and, true to his word, sets Genie free so that he can live a human
life married to Jasmine’s handmaiden Dalia.
Because of all this, Smith’s take on the Genie is easily the
best part of this film. However, he is then backed by equally terrific turns by
Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott as Aladdin and Jasmine. Massoud is appropriately
charismatic as Aladdin and the greater emphasis on him nearly succumbing to the
selfish mindset of his new princely status pairs well with the character’s
classic arc of having to learn that the way to win over Jasmine is by being
himself rather than trying to be someone he’s not. But when it comes to the
biggest standout of the film (arguably even more so than Smith, even), that
honor goes to Naomi Scott since Jasmine really benefits from a new
characterization in this remake. Instead of just being stuck in the process of having
to marry a prince by law, this version of the character yearns to become the
first Sultana in her kingdom’s history because of her immense devotion to the
people of Agrabah. However, this idea is rejected by both her father and Jafar,
the latter of whom suggests that’s it better for her to “be seen and not
heard”. This, of course, then paves the way for her new solo, ‘Speechless’,
where she thoroughly rejects this notion, which mainly comes into play when
Jafar appoints himself as the new Sultan after gaining control of the Genie’s
lamp. As she’s being forced out of the palace, she fights back and convinces Hakim,
the head of the palace guards, to maintain his loyalty to her family instead of
Jafar. And while this is ultimately followed by Jafar using his second wish to
become a powerful sorcerer and regain control of the situation, it is still an
empowering moment nevertheless and Jasmine also gets to have a bit more involvement
in the final confrontation with Jafar when she and Aladdin try to escape with
the lamp. By the end of it all, her father relents on his initial aversion to
her desires (which was primarily fueled by how he had been trying to protect
her after the death of her mother) and tells her that she will become the next
Sultan, which also allows her to change the law so that she can marry Aladdin.
Now, to be clear, everything that I just said isn’t meant to be a dig against
Jasmine’s portrayal in the original film because I still consider her as one of
my favorite Disney princesses thanks to everything that Linda Larkin brought to
the role. However, I would argue that this is one of those rare cases where a
Disney remake manages to improve on something from its source material.
In contrast, the one weak link of this film is, sadly, the
new interpretation of Jafar. Going off my review from last May, I don’t
necessarily ‘dislike’ the live-action incarnation of Agrabah’s devious vizier
since Marwan Kenzari does a fine enough job with what he’s given and I do genuinely
like some of the ways in which this version of the story expands upon his character.
Namely, he’s established as someone who used to be a thief like Aladdin but conned
his way into becoming the sultan’s most trusted advisor. However, he doesn’t take
kindly to the idea of ‘being second’, hence his scheme to take over Agrabah.
That’s fine and all, but because the film goes for a more grounded approach to the
character, he doesn’t get the chance to be as memorably over-the-top as his
animated counterpart. Part of this can be attributed to how his loyal parrot
Iago is also heavily subdued in his new characterization; instead of being a
fully talking parrot, this Iago is just a regular parrot who primarily just
repeats what other people say. That said, though, he still manages to get in
some highly effective sarcastic quips here and there, like when he tricks
Prince Anders into trying to pet Rajah, which obviously doesn’t end well for
him. Ultimately, though, this is just a minor setback for what is primarily a
solidly entertaining new spin on this classic installment of the Disney
Renaissance. Just like the remake of The Lion King, this doesn’t mean
that I think it’s better than the original, but like I’ve said before, the fact
that we can still access the original films via services like Disney+ means
that there’s no need to fear of the idea that these remakes are replacing them.
Plus, as I mentioned earlier, I’m genuinely glad that this film managed to do
so well because… again, let’s face it, it was THIS close to being a disaster. With
that in mind, I’m curious to see what they’re going to do with the sequel that
was recently announced since it was confirmed that it wouldn’t be adapting either
of the original film’s follow-ups. Sure, this means that we sadly won’t be
getting a remake of Aladdin and the King of Thieves (which I think most
would agree is one of the best (if not the best) of the infamous
direct-to-video Disney sequels), but it’s nice to know that this sequel is genuinely
making the effort to take things in a new direction when it comes to continuing
this story.
2019 was easily one
of the best years in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s run. Not only did this
year see the fitting conclusion of the franchise’s current arc, but all three of
Marvel Studios’ 2019 theatrical releases managed to gross at least $1 billion
worldwide. This, of course, includes our #5 film, which delivers one of the
most thrilling adventures yet for its iconic title character… and considering what
film it was immediately following in the footsteps of, that’s saying a lot!
Calling Spider-Man’s debut in the MCU one of the most anticipated
moments in the history of the superhero film genre would be a massive understatement.
After years of being absent from the franchise due to Sony’s ownership of the
character’s film rights, a deal was made between Marvel Studios and Sony that
would let the latter retain the rights but give the former creative control over
future Spider-Man films, thus allowing Spidey to officially join the MCU.
And so, Tom Holland’s incarnation of everyone’s favorite web-slinger officially
made his debut in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, which established him
as an enthusiastic protégé of Tony Stark. Now with that said, I’m fully aware that
a lot of people aren’t a fan of this new interpretation of the character given
how closely tied he is to Iron Man… however, it is also worth noting that this
was the second cinematic reboot of the character in less than a decade. Thus, I’d
argue that Marvel Studios made the right decision to not rehash the character’s
origin story that we’ve seen dozens of times at this point. Instead, they set a
unique new path for the character while still acknowledging where he came from
without having to show us him getting bit by a radioactive spider or Uncle Ben’s
tragic death. It also helped that Tom Holland proved to be a fantastic fit in
the role as he perfectly nailed both Spider-Man’s knack for wise-cracks and
Peter Parker’s innocently nerdy persona. This effectively set the stage for his
first solo film, 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, which proved to be yet
another exceptional outing for the MCU in which Peter desperately tried to
prove himself worthy of joining the Avengers before having to learn the hard
way that he’s just a kid in a much larger world of superheroes. Upon its
release, Homecoming managed to be the highest-grossing superhero film of
the year (which is saying something given that it came out the same year as Guardians
of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Wonder Woman) and it ended up taking the #10
spot in my Top 12 list that year.
Holland, of course, would then return to reprise his role in
the two-parter that was Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame which,
simply put, put him through quite the emotional wringer. In Infinity War,
he was finally made an Avenger… before he became one of the many victims of
Thanos’ snap. He was thankfully brought back in Endgame… but then had to
witness the death of his father figure, Tony Stark, up close and personal. Thus,
this sets up the main premise of Far From Home, in which Peter heads off
on a vacation to Europe with his classmates, hopeful that this will give him a
chance to take a break from his superhero responsibilities. Unfortunately for
him, that doesn’t turn out to be the case as he’s forced to help Nick Fury and
Maria Hill deal with a group of beings known as the Elementals that came from
another dimension due to the cosmic implications of the Snap. Sure, Fury and
Hill are shown to have a new ally in Quentin Beck AKA Mysterio, a superhero
from the same dimension that the Elementals came from, but as Peter soon learns,
he’s the only superhero affiliated with the Avengers who can help at the moment
since practically everyone else is unavailable. This perfectly exemplifies the
state of the MCU after the immediate events of Infinity War and Endgame
while also setting up Peter’s big arc in this film in which he must grapple
with the one question that everyone wants to know. Given his considerable
connection to Tony Stark, is he going to be the next Iron Man? It’s a question
that haunts Peter throughout the entire film, especially since tributes to Tony
can be seen in almost every country he visits, which really stresses the fact
that the man who made the MCU what it is today is truly gone.
All the emotional stress that Peter’s under ultimately comes
to a head when Happy Hogan comes to rescue him after enduring one of the worst
beatdowns that he’s ever gotten as Spider-Man. After momentarily lashing out at
Happy about how much he’s screwed up, Peter then relents and, for the first
time in the entire film, truly mourns Tony’s death and how he doesn’t know if
he can be the next Iron Man. It is here where Happy tells him the one thing
that he desperately needed to hear… that he isn’t going to be the next Iron Man
and that no one could live up to Tony Stark’s legacy… not even Tony. Happy then
points out that, despite all the times that his best friend second-guessed
himself, the one thing that Tony never doubted was putting his faith in Peter.
And the way Happy sees it, Tony wouldn’t have made his final sacrifice if Peter
wasn’t around to be there after he was gone. As you might have guessed, this is
easily the most emotional moment in the film and it also helps to illustrate
why it’s perfectly okay to have this version of Peter be closely connected to
Iron Man. Going into Homecoming, there was some concern that since Tony
was going to be in that film, there was a possibility that he would steal the
spotlight from Peter. Thankfully, that was not the case as Tony’s role in that
film was more of an extended cameo while still giving us just enough of our
favorite ‘genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist’. In doing so, it let Peter’s
arc of trying to prove to everyone that he was more than just Iron Man’s apprentice
properly play out. The same situation applies to Far From Home, albeit
without an appearance by Tony for obvious reasons. And to top off this terrific
scene, we have an utterly heartwarming moment where Peter begins to develop a
new suit as Happy watches on with a look of approval. He then proceeds to put
on some music, AC/DC’s ‘Back in Black’, which eagle-eyed fans will recognize as
the first bit of music we ever heard in an MCU film back in the first Iron Man
which, of course, was directed by Happy himself, Jon Favreau. It’s so satisfying
that we can forgive Peter for thinking that it’s a Led Zeppelin song.
As for the rest of the film, Far From Home very much continues
what I’d argue is a recent tradition of the MCU by being a superior sequel to
what was already a fantastic first film. We’ve seen this before with the likes
of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Captain America: The Winter
Soldier, and Ant-Man and the Wasp, just to name a few. Sure enough, Far
From Home is another prime example of this as it takes everything that was
great about Spider-Man: Homecoming and polishes it up even further with
sharper action sequences (thanks in large part to its international setting,
which is used to great effect from a visual standpoint) and a tighter script. As
some of you might recall, my only real issue with Homecoming was that it
felt a little overlong in places to the point where some of its action
sequences felt like they could’ve easily been the finales for other superhero
films. By comparison, Far From Home flows a lot better narratively and
is also quite arguably up there with Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 as one of
the best interpretations of Peter having to balance his superhero work with his
normal life which, in this film, primarily stems from the blossoming romance between
him and MJ. The chemistry between Tom Holland and Zendaya is excellent, and
while MJ doesn’t exactly get as involved in the action as Gwen Stacy did in the
Amazing Spider-Man films, she still benefits nicely from how her role
gets expanded upon here compared to Homecoming. Plus, when Peter tries
to tell her that he’s Spider-Man, she immediately figures it out before he even
says it since it’s “kind of obvious”.
But now let’s delve into one of the best elements of the
film, Jake Gyllenhaal as Quentin Beck AKA Mysterio. Now, despite what I mentioned
earlier about how he’s introduced as a hero from another dimension who’s
helping Peter and company deal with the Elementals… let’s face it, anyone who
has read any Spider-Man comics knows that he’s full of crap. Sure
enough, Beck’s ruse is eventually revealed, effectively establishing him as the
main antagonist. And yet, despite the obviousness of this reveal, the film does
manage to work around this by giving Beck a new characterization that feels
very appropriate in the context of the MCU. Instead of just being a failed
actor turned special effects artist, this version of Beck is revealed to be a
former employee of Stark Industries who developed the revolutionary holographic
system that Tony had shown off in Captain America: Civil War. And to put
it simply, Beck didn’t take too kindly to Tony giving it the unfortunate acronym
of ‘B.A.R.F.’. Thus, after being fired for being too mentally unstable, he’s
now assembled a group of other former Stark employees (including, of all
people, William Riva (Peter Billingsley), that one scientist who got yelled at
by Obadiah Stane back in the first Iron Man) to fool the world into
thinking he’s the next great superhero. He made up both his ‘hero from another
dimension’ backstory and the Elementals and his plans are strengthened further
when Peter entrusts him with glasses given to him by Tony that are linked to a powerful
A.I. system named E.D.I.T.H. (AKA Even Dead I’m The Hero) that commands a line
of drones. Now with all this in mind, I’m aware that many have questioned why
Tony decided to give this unparalleled source of weaponry to a teenager who
clearly doesn’t know how to use it properly, as evident from the sequence where
he nearly unleashes a drone strike on his classmate/romantic rival Brad Davis. And
yes, I’m also aware that this is now the fifth or so MCU villain whose entire
motivations stem from them being wronged by Tony, as was the case with the
likes of Aldrich Killian, Obadiah Stane, and even Peter’s previous cinematic
foe Adrian Toomes.
However, the key thing to take from all this is how brilliantly
handled this incarnation of Mysterio is even if it’s not exactly a completely
comic-accurate version of the character, and of course, a lot of this is thanks
to Jake Gyllenhaal’s outstanding performance in the role. Gyllenhaal’s strong charisma
is on full display throughout, which certainly makes the moments where Beck is
pulling off his elaborate ruse feel genuinely convincing to the unassuming. And
as for the sequences where we see Beck’s naturally unhinged mental state… well,
Gyllenhaal has also proven himself to be one of the best in the business when
it comes to playing characters who aren’t all there mentally. Because of this, he’s
easily one of the most pitch-perfect casting choices in the history of the
superhero film genre, and if you want to talk about one of the best sequences
in the genre’s history, look no further than the scene where he unleashes a massive illusion-based trap upon Peter. This is up there with any magic-based
sequence from Doctor Strange as one of the most visually stunning set
pieces in the history of the MCU, from the army of Spider-Men that spawn from
glass shards and attack Peter to him standing on top of fallen statues depicting
the other Avengers. But if you want to talk about the biggest gut-punch of this
sequence, how about putting Peter right in front of Tony’s grave, Beck
suggesting that he’d still be alive if Peter was “good enough”, and then
unleashing an undead Iron Man on him? I mean… damn! Oh, and to conclude this
little nightmare trip, Beck puts Peter right in front of an oncoming train… the
train wins. But then to contrast that, another excellent sequence is when Peter
is facing down a bunch of drones to get to Beck and utilizes his Spider-Sense
(which is humorously referred to by both Aunt May and Happy as his ‘Peter
Tingle’) to defeat them. This is just another phenomenal sequence when it comes
to the visuals, editing, sound design, etc.
And if that wasn’t enough, this film also sports two of the franchise’s
best post-credits scenes. Now admittedly, many of the recent MCU post-credits
scenes have opted to be humorous codas (e.g. Captain America’s ‘patience’ monologue
from Homecoming) instead of teasing future installments of the franchise
as much as they did back in the day. But with Far From Home, both of its
post-credit scenes opt for the latter approach and deliver two of the most
jaw-dropping twists in recent MCU history. First, we have the mid-credits
scene, where a doctored video that Beck made prior to his supposed death (I say
‘supposed’ because while E.D.I.T.H. tells Peter that it’s not an illusion, I’m
sure I’m not the only one who believes that this doesn’t necessarily mean that
it can’t still be one) is released to the public. In the video, Beck pins his
entire plan on Spider-Man before revealing that Spider-Man’s real name… is
Peter Parker. Cue an appropriate ‘WTF!’ reaction from Peter (which, might I
add, perfectly mirrors Aunt May’s reaction to seeing Peter in the Spider-Man
suit right at the end of Homecoming) and we have a brilliant bit of
set-up for the next film. Spider-Man’s real identity is now out in the open and
he’s about to be in a whole lot of trouble. Plus, this sequence even gives us
one of the best bits of fanservice in recent memory by having the video be made
public by none other than everyone’s favorite irate media personality, J. Jonah
Jameson, played once again by J.K. Simmons for the first time in a live-action
film since Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3. The Daily Bugle may be a
website this time around in accordance with our current times, but it still very
much fits the character, especially if you’re like me and played the recent Spider-Man
game on PS4 where he’s a loud-mouthed radio host.
But then, if that wasn’t enough, we also have the film’s
post-credits scene, which starts out simple enough with Nick Fury and Maria
Hill driving through a city… that is, until they shapeshift and are revealed to
be the Skrulls Talos and his wife Soren from Captain Marvel. They then
proceed to contact the real Nick Fury, inform him of everything that’s recently
gone down, and suggest that it’s time for him to come back. We then cut to Fury
getting up from a beach chair on a simulated beach and walking through a giant
Skrull ship. What does this mean? Well, we don’t know just yet, and given
Marvel’s tendency for complete secrecy when it comes to these films, they’re probably
not going to tell us anything anytime soon. One popular theory is that this is
setting up an adaptation of the comic storyline known as Secret Invasion,
where Skrulls are revealed to have taken the places of numerous Marvel
superheroes. If so, it’ll be interesting to see how the MCU handles this,
especially since most of the Skrulls that we’ve seen so far from the MCU are
nobler in nature compared to what we usually see from their race in the comics.
Whatever the case may be, though, one thing’s for certain; Spider-Man: Far
From Home is a premier installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and a
terrific epilogue to the Infinity Saga. In fact, I can safely say that it’s managed
to break my Top 5 when it comes to the franchise while also becoming my new favorite
Spider-Man film. Going off of what I said in my lead-in to this section,
the fact that it managed to pull all this off despite being the first MCU film
after Endgame (and, for that matter, the first Spider-Man film
after the universally-acclaimed Into the Spider-Verse) is a testament to
the fact that it’s a sharply-written and all-around well-made film.
My pick for Number 4
is a film that admittedly had to overcome a few hurdles prior to its release,
namely all the skepticism that the internet had towards it given the immense
legacy of the films that came before it. And yet, I’d say that it was because
of that very legacy that the film managed to be another smash hit that proved
why the franchise that it’s a part of is one of the all-time greats.
I still remember when this film was first announced all the
way back in 2014. To put it simply, the internet wasn’t exactly thrilled about
this development. In fact, I’d dare say that a lot of people were quite angry
about this. The reasoning behind all their frustrations was quite simple,
really; why even do a fourth Toy Story film when the last one was quite
arguably the perfect conclusion to the adventures of Andy Davis’ toys? And while
I’m sure I’ve established by now that I’m not someone who harps on a film for
being ‘unnecessary’ since I feel that this term has become grossly overused
nowadays, even I have to admit that I totally understand why because… yeah,
2010’s Toy Story 3 genuinely was the end of an era. It provided a wholly
satisfying conclusion to our favorite toys’ relationship with their original owner,
Andy, who gives them away to a young girl named Bonnie so that they can be
given the love and attention that they deserve while he heads off to college.
For those who grew up with the original trilogy, there couldn’t have been a
better ending for these beloved characters, which effectively made Toy Story
one of the rare trilogies where every installment was outstanding and the
third one wasn’t a victim of the dreaded ‘threequel curse’. And that, folks,
was the biggest hurdle that Toy Story 4 had to overcome; the fact that
most people felt that, aside from the shorts and TV specials that Pixar
produced between 2011 and 2014, the franchise had reached its logical
conclusion. However, Pixar soldiered on as they legitimately felt that they had
managed to find another story that was worth telling… and yet, there were still
a few road-bumps that they encountered on the way. Namely, there was a point
where they had to rewrite about 75% of the script, with many of the contributions
that had come from the writing duo of Rashida Jones and Will McCormack being scrapped
due to creative differences. Ultimately, though, Toy Story 4 managed to
prove quite a lot of its critics wrong upon its release as it maintained the
same critical acclaim as its predecessors and was the franchise’s second entry
to reach $1 billion worldwide. It also became the studio’s tenth film to win
the Oscar for Best Animated Feature… even if some Oscar voters wanted to see a
non-Pixar film win the award for once.
Easily the most talked-about aspect of the film going into
it was the return of one of the series’ most iconic supporting characters, Bo
Peep. Prior to this film, Annie Potts’ sweet-natured shepherdess hadn’t had a
major role in a Toy Story film since Toy Story 2 two full decades
ago. In Toy Story 3, it’s established that Bo was one of the various members
of the gang who was given away as the years went on (sure enough, this new film
opens with that very moment). But in Toy Story 4, Woody reunites with Bo
for the first time in several years, and as we soon find out, she’s not the
same porcelain figurine that she used to be. In the years since she left the
Davis home, she’s become an adventurous lost toy who now works to ensure that
other lost toys are taken in by new owners. And while her being written out of Toy
Story 3 was due to concerns over her fragile nature as the porcelain figurine
of a baby lamp (which also explained why she didn’t get too involved in the
plots of the first two films), this has not stopped her from becoming a fully
capable action heroine. Whenever a part of her breaks off, she just laughs it
off like it’s nothing and promptly tapes it back together. Because of all this,
Bo has now been upgraded into being the film’s female lead, and it’s a wonderful
new development for her. And yet, arguably the best part about Bo’s new
characterization is that for all the great things that it does for her, it also
doesn’t betray what came before. In other words, while it’s firmly established
that Bo’s adventures have led to her adopting a new philosophy on what it means
to be a toy, she’s still very much the good-natured gal that we know and love
from the first two films.
Now if there’s one caveat to this new adventure, it’s that,
because of the way that the story is structured, it primarily focuses on Woody,
Bo, Buzz, and the new characters that they meet along the way. As such, fans of
the franchise may be incredibly disappointed to know that this film doesn’t
spend too much time with the rest of the gang. While Woody and company are off
on their adventure, the others are stuck with Bonnie’s family in their RV. This
may have had something to do with the unfortunate passing of Don Rickles, Mr.
Potato Head’s voice actor, in 2017 even though they were able to keep Rickles
in the role via archival recordings. However, regardless if this had any sort
of impact on the production, many of the franchise’s most iconic characters are
still basically relegated to cameos. But at the very least, they’re not
completely ignored and several of them do get to have their own standout
moments here and there. Case in point, they’re responsible for one of the best
running gags in the film when Bonnie’s stuffed unicorn Buttercup suggests that
they get her dad arrested so that the family doesn’t leave town before Woody’s
group comes back. And while this idea is immediately shot down by everyone
else, the plan that they ultimately go with does result in Bonnie’s dad getting
into trouble with the cops (“Dad’s totally going to jail!”). It also helps that
the new characters that they introduce in this film are genuinely excellent. I
mean, let’s face it, folks, the Toy Story franchise has always done a
wonderful job when it comes to the new characters that they introduce in each
film even if they’re just a one-off character who doesn’t return for the next installment
(e.g. Stinky Pete, Ken, Lotso, etc.). Sure enough, Toy Story 4 valiantly
continues this grand tradition.
It all starts with Forky, a hand-made spork figure that
Bonnie makes on her first day of kindergarten who questions why he’s alive and
consistently tries to get thrown into the trash. Yes, the basis behind much of Toy
Story 4’s plot is a living spork’s existential crisis and its
totally brilliant, but through it all, Tony Hale does a wonderful job making Forky
a fully endearing character thanks in large part to his adorably innocent
nature. Then there’s the duo of Ducky and Bunny, a pair of carnival plushies
who get involved when Buzz unintentionally takes their spot as the top prize at
a shooting gallery game. The camaraderie between these two is outstanding
(which makes perfect sense given that they’re voiced by Key and Peele) and the
plans that they come up with to solve a situation are priceless (e.g. two words…
Plush Rush). Bo also gets a fun new sidekick in Pet Patrol officer Giggle
McDimples (voiced by Ally Maki); she may be the smallest character in the
history of the franchise, but that doesn’t stop her from being a delightfully chipper
and all-around badass confidante for our favorite shepherdess. And, of course,
we can’t forget about Canada’s greatest stuntman, Duke Caboom, voiced by the breathtaking
star that is Keanu Reeves. Duke’s backstory is both tragic and hilarious in
that he was abandoned by his owner Rejean just because he couldn’t do the stunt
jumps seen in his own toy commercial. Nevertheless, this is a perfect role for
Reeves, and I won’t lie, Duke is indeed my favorite of the new characters. But perhaps
the most fascinating of these new characters is the one who is initially implied
to be the main antagonist, Christina Hendricks’ Gabby Gabby.
We first meet Gabby Gabby when Woody and Forky end up in an
antique store that Bo’s lamp happens to be in. She is revealed to have a talking
pull-string feature like Woody, but unfortunately, her voice box is damaged.
Thus, she immediately attempts to acquire Woody’s voice box, and when he
escapes from her ventriloquist minions, the Bensons, they proceed to capture
Forky, which puts Woody in quite the pickle since he’s fully committed to getting
Forky back to Bonnie. However, it is through conversations between Gabby and
Forky that we start to understand her motivations. Namely, she’s eager to have
a properly working voice box so that she can be adopted by Harmony, the granddaughter
of the antique store’s owner. And because of Forky’s innocuous nature, he reveals
to her what he knows about Woody since he’s known him his whole life (“Two
days!”), especially his connection to his past owner Andy since Woody
accidentally name-dropped him instead of Bonnie during one of their
conversations. Gabby then uses this information to convince Woody to give her a
chance so that she can experience the same joy that Woody experienced with
Andy. But while he does ultimately agree to help her out and give her his voice
box, her dreams are utterly shattered when Harmony flat-out rejects her.
Luckily for her, Woody manages to convince her that she can find a different
kid, and while the initial plan is to have her get taken in by Bonnie, Gabby
ultimately decides to go to a kid at the nearby carnival who’s gotten lost. And
so, with all that in mind, Gabby Gabby is ultimately not a villain in the same
vein of Sid, Stinky Pete, and Lotso. Instead, she’s just a misunderstood doll
who just wants to experience what almost every toy wants; the joy of being
loved by a kid.
This correlates perfectly to the key theme of Toy Story 4,
which is finding one’s purpose in life. For Woody, his purpose has always been
the simple idea of being there for his owner, but as the film begins, we see
that he must now grapple with the fact that he’s no longer ‘the favorite’. And
yet, when Forky comes into the picture, Woody immediately takes on the
responsibility of ensuring that nothing happens to him since he recognizes how
much Forky means to Bonnie. Thus, it goes without saying that Toy Story 4 hits
just as hard as its predecessors when it comes to its emotional moments. Heck, this
film hits you with the feels right out the gate by showing the exact moment
when Bo was given away, and while Woody does offer to help her stick around,
she resists because she understands that it’s time for her to move on. After all,
she technically wasn’t Andy’s toy; she belonged to his sister Molly, who had
simply outgrown her at that point. And while Bo even offers Woody the chance to
join her, he declines because, as we all know, he was deeply loyal to Andy. It’s
why he accidentally name-drops him instead of Bonnie when talking to Forky;
even after all this time, it’s clear that Woody’s still having trouble moving
on. Aside from that, there’s the previously mentioned character arc for Gabby
Gabby, which triumphantly overcomes the low point of her being rejected by
Harmony by ending on an uplifting note when she decides to go and comfort the lost
kid. Even smaller moments like Bonnie’s uneasiness over starting Kindergarten or
Woody reminding Bo of how her lamp was a great source of comfort to Molly when
she was younger are just as effectively poignant.
But, of course, nothing tops the film’s finale, which was so
devastating that both Tom Hanks and Tim Allen went on record stating how difficult
it was for them to record it. After he and the gang manage to get Forky back to
Bonnie, Woody’s forced to bid farewell to Bo once again. But as he begins to
head back to the RV, Buzz re-assures him that she’ll be okay… except in this
instance, he was talking about Bonnie. And so, Woody decides to stay with Bo
and promptly bids an emotional farewell to the rest of the gang, who also get
to have their moment to reunite with Bo for the first time in years. As the
gang heads off with Bonnie and her family, Rex asks if this means that Woody is
now a ‘lost toy’, to which Buzz responds that he isn’t… not anymore. Really,
there’s not much more that I can add here other than that I feel this is one of
those emotionally cathartic endings that may be bittersweet in many ways but
also quite touching in others. In conclusion, let’s rewind back to what I noted
in the intro to this section where the initial response to a fourth Toy Story
film was based primarily around one question. Was there truly anything left
to say with these characters when the previous film ended the way that it did?
This is something that can honestly be debated until the cows come home, but for
my money, Toy Story 4 managed to deliver in every possible way. Just
like any great Pixar film, it is full of gorgeous animation, fully endearing
characters, and a strong story that’s steeped in emotional poignancy. Because
of all this, it’s safe to say that Toy Story is easily one of the best
animated franchises in the medium’s history. Pixar’s attempts at doing sequels
to their other films may have been hit-or-miss, depending on who you ask, but
they’ve never faltered with Toy Story.
And that concludes Part
3 of Rhode Island Movie Corner’s Top 12 Favorite Films of 2019. Thanks for
following along and be sure to check back in tomorrow for the Grand Finale,
where I honor my Top 3 favorite films from this past year.
