Joshua M. Hayes Action, Animation, Festival, Sci-Fi

Fantasia 2025: All You Need is Kill

★★★ Japanese sci-fi novel All You Need is Kill has already been adapted into a famous manga and an arguably even more famous blockbuster action flick starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt entitled Edge of Tomorrow. This take lives in the world of anime, punctuated by gorgeous animation and mesmerizing visuals. By this point, the … Continue reading Fantasia 2025: All You Need is Kill

Joshua M. Hayes Animation, Fantasy, Festival, Romance

Fantasia 2025: ChaO

★★★★ Japanese animation is in an entirely different realm than what we see over here from the Western branches. ChaO further proves that originality and bold storytelling come first, with creative visuals following soon after. Its unconventional mermaid romance makes a perfect venue to explore themes of ecological impacts as well as relationship power dynamics. … Continue reading Fantasia 2025: ChaO

Joshua M. Hayes Animation, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Festival, Horror

Fantasia 2025: I Am Frankelda

★★★★ Beautifully realized stop motion animated I Am Frankelda has to be one of the most stunning movies of the year. With imagery that recalls Coraline and The Nightmare Before Christmas, directors Roy Ambirz and Arturo Ambriz do an incredible job at paying tribute whilst paving their own exciting way into the future. At times, … Continue reading Fantasia 2025: I Am Frankelda

Joshua M. Hayes Animation, Drama, War

Blu-Ray Film Review: Grave of the Fireflies

★★★★★ For decades now, I have heard nothing but praise—and warning—about a devastating little masterpiece called Grave of the Fireflies. Now, it comes to gorgeous steelbook format from GKids and Shout! Studios. Directed by Studio Ghibli co-creator Isao Takahata, nothing could have prepared me for the total devastation that awaits. Mere minutes into the runtime, … Continue reading Blu-Ray Film Review: Grave of the Fireflies

Joshua M. Hayes Animation, Comedy, Festival, Horror

Tribeca 2025: Dog of God

★★★★ Latvian animation definitely has a specific type of flavor—though relatively new to Western audiences, last year, Flow won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. At 2022's Tribeca Film Festival, underrated adult gem My Love Affair with Marriage unexpectedly became one of my favorite movies of the year. 2025's Tribeca brings another Latvian oddity along … Continue reading Tribeca 2025: Dog of God

Joshua M. Hayes Animation, Comedy, Family, Sci-Fi

Blu-Ray Film Review: The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie

★★★★★ In the aftermath of WB’s chaotic mishandling of Coyote vs. Acme, the first full-length Looney Tunes animated theatrical movie quietly released. Distributed by Ketchup Entertainment, this gem was sadly overlooked when it hit theaters earlier this year. Now, it comes to Blu-Ray in all its colorful, over-the-top silly glory. As someone who grew up … Continue reading Blu-Ray Film Review: The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie

Joshua M. Hayes Animation, Comedy, Romance, Television

TV Review: Big Mouth – Season 8

Alas, all great things must come to an end. Netflix's longest running original scripted series, the Emmy-winning Big Mouth, finally gets its happy ending. Since 2017, this unique show centered around puberty and Hormone monsters has always been a riotous joy, often reinventing itself by adding more layers to its storied mythology. Inspired by the … Continue reading TV Review: Big Mouth – Season 8

Joshua M. Hayes Animation, Comedy, Family

Film Review: Sneaks

(Written by Intern, Miranda Zampogna) ★ Sneaks, an animated feature directed by Rob Edwards and Christopher Jenkins, cobbles together an impressive cast. Among the sequined collection of stars, Anthony Mackie and Martin Lawrence voice anthropomorphic sneakers in this Toy Story-esque tale. Audiences trek alongside Edson, a high school basketball player, who wins a pair of … Continue reading Film Review: Sneaks