Georgia Fink:
Although watching movies has been a major part of my day-to-day activities, finishing movies has always been a struggle. That being said, there is one movie that I can always rewatch and complete: “The Lego Batman Movie”. Even if it’s a movie aimed at kids, there is always more to discover every time you watch it. The film has jokes that are funny to all audiences alike, making it so anyone, regardless of their age, can enjoy it. One of these jokes is Batman singing about how he does not pay his taxes in the opening song. It is one of my favorites since it exemplifies how the filmmakers are portraying Batman as a self-righteous jerk in this movie compared to other Batman media where he is a– somewhat– great guy.
Another thing I enjoy about this movie is the allusions to the canon material including references to Nightwing, who is the first Robin Dick Grayson’s eventual alter-ego, and throwbacks to well-loved Batman movies such as “Batman V Superman” and the silly 1960s “Batman” TV show. The movie also doesn’t just stay in the Batman franchise, and ventures into other cinematic universes like “Harry Potter” and “Doctor Who”.
Another very important comedic aspect of the movie is Batman’s relationship with the Joker. The main conflict of the movie is their relationship, as Batman does not see Joker as his greatest enemy, while Joker wants to be recognized for his role as Batman’s rival. This equally toxic and amusing relationship is portrayed as if they were jealous lovers, and it added more comedic value to the movie.This entertaining portrayal of their relationship is one of the best parts of the movie.
Margot Morgan:
Over the summer, I went to see “Inside Out 2”, the sequel to the 2015 Pixar classic. I was expecting just another harmless children’s movie, but it was more than that: I was pleasantly surprised at how “Inside Out 2” takes a deeper dive into the more mature side of the emotions.
As much as I enjoyed it, I feel like there are a few problems with the film. The main issue with the new sequel is that it seems to almost repeat the plot of the previous one. Even though “Inside Out 2” goes further in exploring areas of your emotions/brain that aren’t talked about in the first movie like streams of consciousness and how a brainstorm works, I feel like it overly relied on the familiar territory of the first film in terms of structure. The new emotions may have added a new layer of complexity to the “Inside Out” universe by discussing new emotions, but I feel it copies and pastes from the first film far too much with how quickly the side plots are resolved without drawing out any suspense for proper thematic effect.
Even though the movie isn’t perfect, I appreciate how the movie teaches younger children about mental health issues and how it is okay to feel a range of emotions, including anxiety and depression. Because of this, I would be very interested to see how the plot would continue if there were to be a future third movie.
