• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Film
  • DVD
  • Editorial
  • About ScreenFish

ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • News
  • OtherFish
  • Podcast
  • Give

Michelle Yeoh

Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank – Fast and Furry-ous

July 14, 2022 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

Learning to be a hero can be a funny thing.

Set in a remote village during the age of the samurai, Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank tells the story of Hank (Michael Cera), a struggling young hound who yearns to become a hero. When he’s hired as the town samurai in an area filled with cats, the inexperienced pup finds himself in over his head and in need of a mentor. Enter his reluctant teacher, Jimbo (Samuel L. Jackson), a once-great master who has fallen on hard times. As Hank enters into his contract with Jimbo, soon he must jump into action as a ruthless villain (Ricky Gervais) attempts to wipe their village off the map.

Ricky Gervais as “Ika Chu” and George Takei as “Ohga” in Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank from Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies, Align, and Aniventure.

Although Paws of Fury seems like a carbon copy of the long running Kung Fu Panda franchise, the two storys are very different in their style and execution. Yes, the story of an unworthy animal taking on the role of samurai feels familiar but Fury’s penchant for self-awareness keeps the film fresh. In a lot of ways, the film is as much of a parody of western and samurai films as much as it seeks to emulate them. Fueled by meta-humor and rapid-fire jokes, Fury understands the tropes of the genre and addresses them with a winking eye. (At one point, as the music swells, Hank even pauses to point out that this ‘must be the part of the film for the training montage’.) Although the film may lean too heavily on ‘potty jokes’ in parts—the final battle takes place on a toilet, for example—there’s a surprising sharpness to the film that keeps it entertaining.

Although admittedly some of the performances lack bite (looking at you, Gervais), Fury is anchored by an absolutely fun pairing in Cera and Jackson. Throughout his career, Michael Cera has crafted his own unique style of humour and his self-deprecating nature works well for the inexperienced Hank. Held up against Samuel L Jackson’s no-nonsense Jimbo (a subtle nod to Kurosawa’s Yojimbo), Cera’s ‘fish out of water’ energy brings balance to their performances and there’s some genuine chemistry between the two veterans.

Kylie Kuioka as “Emiko” and Michelle Yeoh as “Yuki” in Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank from Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies, Align, and Aniventure.

At its heart, Fury speaks to the importance of humility. After Hank finally seems to have some success, it goes straight to his ego. Beginning to believe the hype about himself, he insists that he has already achieved greatness. But his inability to see the truth about himself makes him reckless. Missed training sessions and general arrogance causes Hank to make mistakes that potentially damage the same people he’s called to protect. (“Pride comes before a fall,“ warns Jimbo.) As such, Fury recognizes that true greatness begins when we’re willing to own our weaknesses as well as our strengths.

Where Fury succeeds most, however, is in its call to see past the external. Here, almost every character seems to be judged by their appearance (and for different reasons). Because he’s a dog, the people don’t consider Hank to be an appropriate choice for their samurai. At the same time, Emiko (Kylie Kuioka) is not taken seriously by the townsfolk because of her gender and age. (Even Jimbo is largely considered a failure because of his catnip habit and out of shape physique.) In this way, Fury addresses the pain and ignorance caused by racial and gender stereotypes. Due to their own blinders, the citizens of this world refuse to believe that anything—or anyone—different is as good as they are. However, as they begin to see past the appearances of others, so too do they begin to see the value in one another. In fact, they even begin to celebrate each other‘s differences. (For instance, at one point, Jimbo even realizes that he must train Hank to use his unique skills as a dog to be the best samurai that he can be as opposed to his more traditional ‘cat training’.)

Gabriel Iglesias as “Chuck” and Aasif Mandvi as “Ichiro” in Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank from Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies, Align, and Aniventure.

Although it doesn’t have the seriousness or emotional impact of some other recent kids fare, Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank has a fire to it that makes it work. Fast and furry-ous with its humor, the film’s endless stream of silliness and pop culture references keeps the film moving and should delight children of all ages. 

Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank is available in theatres on Friday, July 15th, 2022.

Filed Under: Featured, Film, Reviews Tagged With: Djimon Hounsou, Gabriel Iglesias, George Takei, Kylie Kuoika, Michael Cera, Michelle Yeoh, Paws of Fury, Ricky Gervais, Samuel L. Jackson

GIVEAWAY! Advance Screening of PAWS OF FURY!

June 24, 2022 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

Celebrate #InternationalCatDay with some Fury!

Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank is a fun and furry-ous adventure and we’re giving away passes to see it before it’s released in theatres! Thanks to our friends at TARO PR, we’re giving away family passes of 4 to see Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank in Toronto, Montreal (French and English), Calgary, and Vancouver on Saturday, July 9th, 2022!

DATE
Saturday, July 9th, 2022

LOCATION
Toronto – 10:30am @ Yorkdale Cineplex Cinemas
Vancouver – 10:30am @ Cineplex Cinemas Metropolis
Montreal ENG – 10:30am @ Cinéma Banque Scotia Montréal
Montreal FRE – 10:30am @ Cinéma Starcité Montréal
Calgary – 10:30am @ Scotiabank Theatre Chinook

A hard-on-his-luck hound Hank (Michael Cera) finds himself in a town full of cats who need a hero to defend them from a ruthless villain’s (Ricky Gervais) evil plot to wipe their village off the map.  With help from a reluctant teacher (Samuel L. Jackson) to train him, our underdog must assume the role of town samurai and team up with the villagers to save the day. The only problem… cats hate dogs! Also starring Mel Brooks, George Takei, Aasif Mandvi, Gabriel Iglesias, Djimon Hounsou, Michelle Yeoh, Kylie Kuioka, and Cathy Shim.

Kylie Kuioka as “Emiko” and Michelle Yeoh as “Yuki” in Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank from Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies, Align, and Aniventure.

In order to enter, simply tell us your city, like/share this post on Facebook, Twitter and/or Instagram and tell us the name of the actor who plays Hank!

Winners will receive a family pass of 4 to the pre-screening of Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank on Saturday, July 9th, 2022

All entries must be received by 11:59pm on Wednesday, July 6th, 2022.

#PawsofFury
pawsoffurymovie.com/

Filed Under: Featured, Film, Giveaways Tagged With: Dijon Hounsou, George Takei, Kylie Kuioka, Mel Brooks, Michael Cera, Michelle Yeoh, Paws of Fury, Ricky Gervais, Samuel L. Jackson, The Legend of Hank

GIVEAWAY! iTunes Code for EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE!

June 13, 2022 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

Finally, you can see Everything from home!

Thanks to our friends at TARO PR, we’re giving away 3 iTunes codes for Everything Everywhere All at Once!

When an interdimensional rupture unravels reality, an unlikely hero must channel her newfound powers to fight bizarre and bewildering dangers from the multiverse as the fate of the world hangs in the balance.

In order to enter, simply like/share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and name of Michelle Yeoh’s character in EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE!

Winners will receive a digital code for EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE from iTunes!

All entries must be received by 11:59pm on Wednesday, June 15th, 2022

Filed Under: Featured, Giveaways Tagged With: Everything Everywhere All at Once, Giveaways, Michelle Yeoh

SF Radio 8.25: Mental Health and the Multiverse in EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE

May 20, 2022 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

Truly anything goes in the multiverse. Whether it’s empowering chapstick, googly-eyed boulders and hot dog fingers, EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE unleashes the potential of the concept in its fullest sense, bringing every conceivable universe to life with boundless imagination. However, at the same time, to gaze into infinity is also an overwhelming prospect. This week, Victor Stiff and Victoria McCartney join Steve to talk about dealing with mental health, the healing power of compassion and staring into the Everything Bagel.

You can stream on podomatic, Alexa (via Stitcher), Google Play, Spotify, iHeart Radio or Amazon Podcasts! Or, you can downoad the ep on Apple Podcasts!

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

8.25-Everything-Everywhere-All-at-Once

Filed Under: Featured, Film, Podcast Tagged With: A24, Everything Bagel, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Mental Health, Michelle Yeoh, Multiverse, The Daniels

Everything, Everywhere, All at Once: The First Family of the Multiverse

April 1, 2022 by Seun Olowo-Ake Leave a Comment

Written and Directed by Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once follows the Wang family: Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh), her husband, Waymond (Ke Huy Quan), and their daughter, Joy (Stephanie Hsu), as they try to keep their laundromat business afloat. Only there’s more than that, because in addition to this, Evelyn gets sucked into the multiverse and experiences life through different variants of herself as she avoids an evil entity that’s on the hunt for her.

This movie very much lives up to its name, with each new reality weirder than the last (at one point, we get actual hot dogs for fingers) and, I will admit, it took me a while to figure out what was going on. But it
was interesting to see the development of our main character from the beginning of the movie to the end. Evelyn is very organised and somewhat uptight, a trait it seems that she deems necessary to help her family and their business. When we meet her, she is ordering around the much gentler Waymond, irritated by his apparent “happy go lucky” attitude. Joy is not very interested in spending too much time with her because of how rigid she views her mother to be, and Evelyn does not seem to be too bothered by this. (At least, not bothered enough to do anything about it.) Too busy trying to take care of them and keep the business going, she doesn’t have time to deal with it or even to take a moment for anything else. At its heart, through sausage fingers and ‘talking’ rocks, this film is about a family learning to accept each other.

There are two times in the film where Evelyn clearly expresses that her husband is probably making their situation worse when she sees him talking to people without her and, both times, his conversation with them did the exact opposite. While she’s more practical, his personality allows people to warm up to him, showing grace to him and, by extension, his family.

It’s interesting because typically, the organised, let’s-get-down-to-business types get the job done. However, Everything turns that trope on its head, to the point where Evelyn has to take a page out of Waymond’s book to stop this ‘evil entity’. She wins through the power of love and loving people by trying to understand them, even if they are trying to kill you. In doing this, she is finally able to face her daughter (who perhaps takes the term ‘angsty kid’ to a whole new level) and mend that relationship.

I love that the movie made Waymond more useful to the overall story than we might initially think him to be when we see him. He is quiet and not particularly assertive but the story lets us know that there is power in that as well. I’m one of those quiet types who often kicks herself for not being ‘assertive’ enough so that was personally nice to see.

It is very interesting to see film set in a non-superhero multiverse. Low-key in its approach, I believe that, if the multiverse really did exist, it would be closer to this than what Marvel and DC offer us. Every actor in this is phenomenal (shoutout to Jamie Lee Curtis, who plays a no-nonsense IRS officer) and it is very well shot. So, Everything, Everywhere, All At Once is a great watch, if you’re down for a real trip

(Did I mention that there are characters with hot dogs for fingers in this?)

Everything Everywhere All at Once is available in theatres on Friday, April 1st, 2022.

Filed Under: Featured, Film, Reviews Tagged With: Dan Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Ke Huy Quan, Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu

Mechanic Resurrection – Bringing Jason Statham Back From the Dead

November 30, 2016 by Jacob Sahms Leave a Comment

mechanicresurrection

Mechanic Resurrection isn’t a great film but it doesn’t have to be. As Arthur Bishop, Jason Statham returns to his tough guy, rogue persona after deviating into the villain role in the Fast & Furious franchise and as the comedic foil of Melissa McCarthy in Spy. He’s back in the sequel to the 2011 film which was in itself a remake of Charles Bronson’s Mechanic – and it may be the best Statham we’ve seen in awhile.

While attempting to avoid a nefarious gunrunner out to unearth him, Bishop retires to Mae’s (Michelle Yeoh) island paradise. But he’s soon thrust into the world of a mysterious woman (Jessica Alba) who is part of a plot to bring him back into the assassin business – as he sets out to complete three Herculean tasks.

Mechanic Resurrection is a C+ kind of film, but the loosely connected stunts are solid in their own way. One plot piece involves a glassed-in swimming pool hanging over the side of a skyscraper – it has stellar visuals. There are several more set pieces that make for entertaining moments, but the whole setup is primarily to get Statham out there being Statham.

Special features include “Engineering the Sequel,” a feature on scoring the film, an extra look at the Malaysian prison (the second assassination), a close up with Yeoh, and Statham himself on his outrageous stunts.

Filed Under: DVD, Film, Reviews Tagged With: Charles Bronson, Jason Statham, Jessica Alba, Mechanic, Michelle Yeoh, stunts

Primary Sidebar

THE SF NEWS

Get a special look, just for you.

sf podcast

Hot Off the Press

  • Arctic: Our Frozen World – Baby, It’s Cold Outside
  • Dear Edward: Sitting in Sadness, but Never Alone
  • 80 for Brady: Silly & Sweet and an Absolute Score
  • Erin’s Guide to Kissing Girls: Fresh Take, Same Quest
  • Knock at the Cabin: Knocking on Heaven’s Door
Find tickets and showtimes on Fandango.

where faith and film are intertwined

film and television carry stories which remind us of the stories God has woven since the beginning of time. come with us on a journey to see where faith and film are intertwined.

Footer

ScreenFish Articles

Arctic: Our Frozen World – Baby, It’s Cold Outside

Dear Edward: Sitting in Sadness, but Never Alone

  • About ScreenFish
  • Privacy Policy

© 2023 · ScreenFish.net · Built by Aaron Lee

 

Loading Comments...