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Kevin Hart

DC League of Super-Pets: Pup, Up and Away

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They may be super but they’re not heroes yet.

Set in Metropolis, DC League of Super-Pets tells the story of Krypto the Super-Dog (Dwayne Johnson), Superman’s fearless Kryptonian pup and his best friend since childhood. Together, they are a powerful and (almost) unstoppable crime-fighting duo, ready to stand up to the most fearsome of villains. However, when Superman (John Krasinski) and the rest of the Justice League are kidnapped by a surprising foe, Krypto must assemble a pack of newly-powered pets to save the day. As Krypto tries to whip them into shape, these rookie heroes—Ace the Hound (Kevin Hart), PB the pot-bellied pig (Vanessa Bayer), Merton the turtle (Natasha Lyonne) and Chip the Squirrel (Diego Luna)—may be powerful but can they work with their new leader?

While the live-action films tend to take themselves more seriously, DC League of Super-Pets has no such concerns. Directed by Jared Stern, Super-Pets is fueled by goofy silliness, making it an entertaining entry into the DC Universe. Somehow, Stern manages to walk the line between both honoring and satirizing the source material. For example, John Williams’ iconic theme underscores Superman’s heroism, yet there’s also a subtle arrogance about him that stems from over-confidence. As such, Stern playfully mocks the Kryptonian while never causing us to lose respect for him. This type of sardonic humour flows throughout Super-Pets, engaging kids and parents alike. (In fact, there’s even some deep cut references for those who are paying attention, such as a shout out to Orwell’s dystopian Animal Farm.)

Though, what truly makes Super-Pets special is some strong work from its performers. Anchored by the real-life friendship of Hart and Johnson, Super-Pets features some delightfully over-the-top performances from its cast. Diego Luna, Vanessa Bayer, Daveed Diggs, Olivia Wilde, Jameela Jamil, Ben Schwartz and a joyfully pompous John Krasinski are all more than game for the film’s fast and frenetic tone yet still manage to bring emotion to their characters. (Also, I did not realize that I needed a Keanu Reeves-led Batman film until today. Make that happen WB.)

Though, amidst the all-star cast, the true stand-out remains its villain. Voiced by Kate McKinnon, Lulu the guinea pig (Don’t call her a hamster!) is an absolute delight as the sinister, all-powerful ‘beast’. With her team of monstrous guinea pigs behind her, Lulu yearns for world domination with maniacal aplomb. McKinnon has always been at her absolute best when she is allowed to go completely over the top and this works particularly well for the fiendish Lulu. 

Beneath the super action, Super-Pets is really a film about trusting others. Having been best friends since childhood, Superman and Krypto have an incredible relationship. They are always there for one another, willing to sacrifice themselves for each other whenever called upon. However, as Supers begins to settle down with Lois lane, Krypto becomes jealous. If Lois moves in, he fears that it will drive a wedge between the super buddies. Believing that he’ll be pushed aside, Krypto struggles to believe that his relationship with Superman is strong enough to survive this perceived interloper. 

In the same way, Krypto also seems to struggle to trust the abilities of his new super team. As each one of them grows in their powers, he sees the potential that they have yet, when push comes to shove, he still wants to do things himself. He believes that the responsibility to save humanity (and pets) lies with him and he refuses to put them in harm’s way. While some may think this is noble, it very much stems from his own sense of pride. For Krypto, heroism and arrogance are blended together in a complex mixture that taints his ability to lead. However, as he begins to humble himself and trust in the abilities of others, so too does he begin to understand what it takes to truly be a friend, both to Superman and his fellow Super-Pets. 

Although DC League of Super-Pets exists outside of the cinematic canon, one almost wishes they’d connect in some way. There’s an infectious joy within the film that manages to bring these characters to life in an entirely new way. 

DC League of Super-Pets is available in theatres on Friday, July 29th, 2022

GIVEAWAY: Digital Copy of JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL

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When Spencer goes back into the fantastical world of Jumanji, pals Martha, Fridge and Bethany re-enter the game to bring him home. But the game is now broken — and fighting back. Everything the friends know about Jumanji is about to change, as they soon discover there’s more obstacles and more danger to overcome.

To enter, tell us your favourite video game film and why. For a bonus entry, like or share the post on Twitter, Facebook and/or Instagram.

The winner will receive a digital copy of Jumanji: The Next Level on iTunes.

All entries must be completed by 11:59pm on Thursday, March 26th, 2020.

To hear teenFish’s episode on JUMANJI, click here.

teenFish#8 JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL

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Welcome to teenFish, a podcast series that lets teenagers speak about media that matters to them in their own voice. Hosted by Daniel Collins (Infinity Warm-Up), teenFish airs every month and invites local youth to engage the truth and lies of the shows and films that excite them.

When Spencer decides to re-enter the world of JUMANJI, his friends follow in order to save him from the dangers inside. However, when glitches in the game push the boundaries of their experience, the team is forced to take a hard look at themselves in order to decide who they really are and what they’re capable of. This month, Daniel and Jacob delve into JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL to talk about finding our identity, purpose and reconnecting.

You can also stream the episode above on podomatic, Alexa (via Stitcher), or Spotify! Or, you can download the ep on Apple Podcasts or Google Play!

Secret Life of Pets: One Furry Community

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slop1In director Chris Renard’s (Despicable Me franchise) latest film, The Secret Life of Pets, a community of diverse and quirky animated animals unite to save the Jack Russell terrier Max (Louis C.K.) when Max’s territorial nature forces him into confrontation with his master’s new dog, the shaggy mongrel Duke (Eric Stonestreet). When Animal Control gets involved, Max and Duke find themselves fighting for their lives, even as separate groups of animals hunt for the two  as well.

The film ultimately proves the axiom/moral that we don’t really know someone until we’ve understood where they come from and what they’ve been through. We see how friendship and community matter, in a world that rejects us and struggles to accept us for who we are. Still, The Secret Life of Pets is best understood through its menagerie of animal personalities and the comedians who voice them.

slop3One of the biggest characters in personality if not size is Kevin Hart’s Snowball, a wild white rabbit who leads the revolution for animal freedom. We understand that he was once magical (a magician’s assistant that is) and lost his mind when his owner abandoned him. He wants to wreak havoc on humanity while seeking revenge, but he’s just… crazy.

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Elsewhere, we meet Lake Bell’s Chloe, my personal favorite for a funny scene where a refrigerator gets cleaned out by her inability to stop eating. The animation of what the tabby cat is really thinking when her owner is away is just priceless, and certainly how cats really think! But this is truly and ensemble.

slop4Dana Carvey plays a wise old bassett hound who helps Gidget (Jenny Slate’s white Pomeranian) find her lost love – the unknowing Max. Max’s friends include the pug Mel (Bobby Moynihan) and the budgerigar Sweetpea (Tara Strong), but there’s a diversity in the other animals, from Albert Brooks’ red-tailed hawk Tiberius to the Himalayan cat Reginald (Steven Coogan). All of these actors (and comedians) provide ample entertainment value, but the animation by Illumination Entertainment literally makes the film memorable.

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On Universal’s special features for the home media on Blu-ray and DVD, we hear from the actors about their characters in “Animals Can Talk” and learn more about the pets through “All About the Pets” with Hart, Stonestreet, and trainer Molly Mignon O’Neill, and “Hairstylist to the Dogs” with Stonestreet and groomer Jess Rona. “Hot Dog Sing-a-long” will help kids and adults join Duke and Max in singing in the sausage factory. Behind the scenes, fans can unpack “The Humans that Brought You Pets,” where producers Chris Meledandri and Janet Healy, and directors Chris Renaud and Yarrow Cheney, share how they made the film.

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Fans of the film will also appreciate the “Best of Snowball” feature, but the three new mini-movies will probably win everyone’s highest praise. (Only on the Blu-ray, fans can check out “How to Make an Animated Film” and the filmmakers’ “Anatomy of a Scene.”) While “Mower Minions” aired as a short prior to The Secret Life of Pets while in theaters, “Weenie” and “Norman Television” are additional bonuses.  There’s a special bonus on the making of those mini-movies as well, just for good measure.

A strong package that includes the clever, funny film and this many features, The Secret Life of Pets will entertain adults and kids – whether you like animals or not!

Ridealong 2: Brotherly Love?

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Ice Cube and Kevin Hart are back in the sequel to Tim Story’s 2014 cop comedy, Ride Along. James (Cube) is on the hunt for bigger and bigger criminal fish to fry, when his soon-to-be brother-in-law, Ben (Hart), steps in to save the day – and, in the process, gets James’ partner (Tyrese Gibson) shot. Soon, they’re headed out on the tail of Benjamin Bratt’s Miami crime lord, Antonio Pope, just days before Ben will wed James’ sister, Angela (Tika Sumpter). Of course, it may all end well, but it’s bound to be awfully hilarious in the process.

Mix in a little Kim Jeong as Pope’s hacker, and we have the makings of Lethal Weapon 2 with Joe Pesci’s Leo Getz. Not only do Cube and Hart’s characters not exactly get along very well, but now they have an unreliable witness who is full of hijinks himself. It’s funny watching these three dance around – more awkwardly than beautifully – but it’s definitely funnier than Get Hard.

Fans of Cube (now, not necessarily during his NWA days) and Hart will eat this one up. There are a number of things to laugh about in the trailer (“I can’t feel my face”) but there’s something that plays well between Cube’s stoic robot like brother intent on disliking his sister’s beau and Hart’s manic Napoleonic complex. [If we consider it long enough, we might find ourselves believing that the two are only playing themselves… but that’s the beauty of being in character.]

This is ultimately a buddy film about a mismatched pair. No, they might not love each other, but they will only survive if they work together. Yes, Cube’s James is trying to hold Hart’s Ben back, thinking he’s not good enough, too inexperienced, and not mature enough. He’s the old school keeping the new school down (ironically). On the other side, Ben is so sure that he’s being held down that he sees enemies even where he should see friends. He wants James to accept him, but he’s not necessarily willing to put in the work.

Ride Along 2 won’t win any Oscars, but it will push us to consider how we hold others back – or how we try to scale the ladder without really growing. There’s a time and a place for everything, says Leviticus, and for James and Ben, the time for growing is now.

Ride Along 2 – Free Blu-ray Copy!

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The brothers-in-law are back! Ben (Kevin Hart; Get Hard, The Wedding Ringer), a recently graduated police rookie, now aspires to be a detective like his soon-to-be brother-in-law, but James (Ice Cube; 22 Jump Street, Barbershop) still doesn’t think that he has what it takes for the job. He reluctantly takes Ben with him to follow up on a lead in Miami. Plans for a quick trip go awry when their unorthodox policing gets them into a compromising situation that threatens to derail a major case… and Ben’s upcoming wedding day. Also starring Ken Jeong, Benjamin Bratt, Olivia Munn and Sherri Shepherd. The dynamic duo of Cube and Hart renew their comedic connection in this bigger, better, and funnier sequel!

Between now and April 26, comment on the post below with your favorite Ice Cube or Kevin Hart film for a chance to enter! You must be eighteen or over to win. 

Oscars, Diversity & All That Jazz Part II

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birthofanationThe last time I offered my $0.02 regarding Oscars 2016 was to defend the Academy and their choices.  Now, it is time to look at the other side of the argument.  But I still don’t think that the Academy in and of itself is the problem.

A fellow film analyst (BTW…that’s my official title.  I’m an analyst – NOT A CRITIC!) posted an article bemoaning the number of “slave” movies getting released.  Another article showed up in The Hollywood Reporter asking why the heck Black films have to be about MLK while White ones can be about mop inventors in order to get Oscar cred?  And lastly, several current Academy members have expressed their opposition to the controversial rules and membership changes designed to reflect more diversity. Here are my thoughts on that:

If Spike and Jada want to complain about anything, it SHOULD BE  the lack of greenlight power by studios for Black dramatic projects. Notice I said BLACK DRAMATIC PROJECTS. They have no issue greenlighting comedies. Heck, there are so many Black comedies pumping out each year that I’ve grown disillusioned with them all.  

Point of reference, see the invasion of Kevin Hart and Tyler Perry upon our movie screens. We get it, Mr. Studio Head!  We shuck.  We jive.  We make y’all laugh with our Ebonics and blah-blah-blah.  But, to quote the motto of my first writing gig “3 Black Chicks” – WE ARE NOT A MONOLITH!  

Best Man HolidayBlack audiences are as diverse as any other.  But you’ll never find that out unless you’re willing to give our diversity a chance.  Yeah, we can make you laugh.  Yeah, our hip-hop flow is cool. Yeah, we look to our icons of the past to remind us of the hope that the dark past has brought us.  You’ll even let us make a rom-com or a few dramedies (i.e. The Best Man Holiday). But where’s the project about Black lawyers?  Where’s the Black cop patrolling the streets trying to stop the next serial killer?  

Heck, we’ve only just got our first crop of Black suspense dramas in the last two years (Addicted, No Good Deed, The Perfect Guy – those last two on the list opened at #1, BTW).  The answer…

In the race for supremacy at the worldwide box office, the mindset is that Black films don’t make money overseas.  Comedies may pick up some loose change.  But dramas don’t stand a chance.  Can Hence the Hart/Madeathon at the multiplex. I’ve been saying this one for twenty years now. Why won’t Denzel and Sam or Sam and Will or Denzel, Will & Don Cheadle collaborate on a drama project? Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp will collab with any star out there. If Denzel did it, it would most certainly put butts in seats! Same goes w/Spike and Tyler. Instead of taking shots at each other in the news, collaborate! Spielberg & Lucas used to do it. Why can’t they?  

Which leads to ANOTHER issue: which one of the major (and minor) studios would be willing to fund such a “super project” featuring a legion of Black superstars?  And should they fund said project, will Oscar voters even give it a chance?  According to the THR articles, several dissenting voices who have the power of the ballot feel that Black films (Straight Outta Compton, Selma) simply aren’t good enough to win Oscar.  By who’s standard?

Selma 3The ruling class of pretentious and older LA/NYC folks who are entitled to judge what films are good or not?  The “inferior” SELMA brought its audience to tears and a tremendous ovation – complete with the gist of the crowd sitting through the entire closing credits – at the theatre I saw it at…which is THE BIGGEST movie theatre in all of Los Angeles.  Same thing happened at the same theatre during SOC.

Meanwhile, a few miles up the road in Burbank, I witnessed two Best Picture nominees – Terrance Malick’s The Tree of Life and The Coen Bros.’ A Serious Man – receive RESOUNDING boos as their credits rolled.  Audiences pondered out loud how those two films even were deemed worthy of Best Picture qualification.

So does the majority get to define the standard of what is good?  Is the anger of those Academy voices and their supporters their way of saying that Black folk have no idea on how to define a quality film?  It’s interesting to note that over the past few years of Sundance, Black cinema has made its presence known at the festival.  This year is no exception with Nate Parker’s The Birth Of A Nation sweeping the top two awards and scoring a $17.5 million dollar buy from Fox Searchlight.  And, yet, the trolls on the interweb took that info and have already deemed next year’s Oscars “The Affirmative Action Awards.”

birthofanation2Which makes me wonder: even if Black directors make films so awesome that their greatness and awards cred can’t be denied, will it even matter?  After all these cries for DIVERSITY, does the ruling class even give a care?  Do they want their cinema representing all facets of the world at large – with a rainbow of colors, layers, textures and diverse experiences on screen?  Or are they perfectly content in their vanity and arrogance?  I posed this same question once in another Christian-based film circle.  My pressing of that question ultimately led to my excommunication with the organization itself.

We will see where all this ends up.  Maybe Spike and Jada are right.  Maybe those persnickety Oscar voters will allow a rainbow coalition of seats at the nominees and winners circle.  Only God knows.

But I’m still watching the show…and will BOO my head off if Mad Max Death Race 2015 wins the whole thing!