Gary Wolcott's "Mr. Movie" column has appeared in the Tri-City Herald since 1992. The Tri-City native now lives in Portland, Ore., and watches about 250 movies each year. This member of Portland's association of movie critics, Far From Hollywood, believes movies are made to be seen on theater screens and should be seen there and not on television screens. Have a question for Mr. Movie? Click on "Add Comment" below. Mr. Movie has joined Twitter. Follow him here.
His mourning father puts his sons personality in a robot and gives him an arsenal of unique weapons for protection.
Ultimately rejected by dad, the boy goes to the Earths surface and finds friendship and adventure.
Astro Boy is one of the few animated flicks these days actually produced for kids and not adults. Writer/director David Bowers (Flushed Away) and writer Timothy Harris (Space Jam) update the story a bit but keep the1950s and 1960s flavor of the original Japanese characters and the morals of the times. By the way, the 1963 TV series is the grandfather of the animation style that became known as anime.
I have just one complaint. It should have been 3-D. A solid, kid-friendly story with a floating city filled with high-tech gizmos and gadgets needs the extra dimension. It would have been stunning.
Mr. Movie rating: 4 1/2 stars
Rated PG for mild mature themes. It opens Friday, Oct. 23 at the Carmike 12 and at the Fairchild Cinemas 12.
5 stars to 4 1/2 stars: Must see on the big screen
4 stars to 3 1/2 stars: Good film, see it if it's your type of movie.
3 stars to 2 1/2 stars: Wait until it comes out on video.
2 stars to 1 star: Don't bother.
0 stars: Speaks for itself.
A father who took out a restraining order against a 10-year-old boy accused of threatening his son with a knife has reached a deal that will keep the kids at separate schools
Josh Powell told his 7-year-old son he had a "surprise" for him moments before attacking and killing him and his 5-year-old brother, according to the state social worker who was supposed to supervise a visit between Powell and his sons.
Josh Powell told his 7-year-old son he had a "surprise" for him moments before attacking and killing him and his 5-year-old brother, according to the state social worker who was supposed to supervise a visit between Powell and his sons.
35th Annual Portland International Film Festival begins
The 35th Annual Portland International Film Festival has begun. It runs through February 25. For film fans this one is loaded. There are 140 films from 36 different countries — 93 are features and 46 shorts.
Portland isn’t that far from Tri-Cities art film lovers. This entry reviews a few films from the first weekend and Monday. I’ll be posting reviews throughout the series until its conclusion February 25th.
Here’s the premise. Set in the near future, Hugh Jackman is a loser robot boxer working fairs and rodeos with a robot destined for the scrap heap.
More con than kind, Jackman’s Charlie ends up signing the parental rights of his son, Max, over to the boy’s mother’s rich sister to finance his endeavors. He’s estranged from the boy anyway and doesn’t know him at all.
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