Chuck's Movie Breakdown

        Hey guys, Chuck here. As many of us know, Disney has been retelling many of their animated classics as live-action films. And, we're getting three more in the years to come with both Snow White and Lilo & Stitch  next year, and Moana in 2026. But, did you know that there were two live-action Disney remakes back in the '90s? It's true. And, one of them was written and produced by the one and only John Hughes. Today, we'll be taking a look at that particular Disney remake: 1996's 101 Dalmatians  starring Glenn Close, Jeff Daniels, Joely Richardson, Hugh Laurie, Mark Williams, Joan Plowright, Tim McInnerny, and John Shrapnel. As mentioned before, this movie was written and produced by John Hughes, and directed by The Mighty Ducks  director Stephen Herek.          So, the movie tells the story of Roger and Anita, as well as their respective Dalmatians Pongo and Perdita. Roger is a struggling video game designer, who is ...

        Hey guys, Chuck here. The Penguin is the most recent series from HBO, and is a spin-off of the 2022 Matt Reeves film The Batman .          The series focuses on Oswald "Oz" Cobb, who is portrayed once again by Colin Farrell. Oz, after the events of the movie The Batman , finds himself in a very interesting position as far as the criminal underbelly of Gotham is concerned. Carmine Falcone is dead, Sal Maroni is still locked up, and there's a power play among the major criminal factions in the city. So, Oz takes on a young protege, Vic, and works in tandem with Sofia Falcone, Carmine's daughter, to reshape the criminal underworld of Gotham.           Now, not only does The Penguin showcase Oz's rise to greater power, but it also showcases a similar uprising for Sofia, who spent years in Arkham after being sent there by her father. And now, with both her father and brother (Carmine's son Alberto) dead, she m...

        Hey guys, Chuck here. I just got back from seeing Wicked , the newest film from director Jon M. Chu, and based on the Broadway musical of the same name. This movie stars Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh, and Jeff Goldblum.          Set in the Land of Oz, Wicked tells the story of a witch named Elphaba, a young woman treated as an outcast by her peers due to her green skin. We also explore her unlikely friendship with another young witch, Glinda, and their journey together at the prestigious Shiz University, ran by the enigmatic Madame Morrible, and their first encounter with the man known as the Wonderful Wizard of Oz.          Okay, so if I'm being completely honest, I initially had very little interest in checking this one out. Despite the fact that I am a fan of The Wizard of Oz , I never saw the original stage version of Wicked . So, I wasn't really set on checking out a film adaptation. But, I ...

       Hey guys, Chuck here. 2017's The Greatest Showman  is a musical film directed by Michael Gracey, from a screenplay by Bill Condon and Jenny Bicks, with songs by La La Land  songwriters Benj Pasek and Jason Paul. The Greatest Showman  stars Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Zac Efron, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Keala Settle, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Sam Humphrey, Eric Anderson, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Paul Sparks, and Fredric Lehne.         The movie tells the story of P.T. Barnum, who was born the son of a tailor. As a boy, Barnum grew close to a girl named Charity Hallett, who was born to wealthy parents, and is sent to finishing school just as she and Barnum get closer. Barnum, after the death of his father, eventually makes a decent living on the railroad, and he grows up and marries Charity, and they have two lovely daughters, Caroline and Helen.         Unfortunately, Barnum's job goes bankrupt a...

          Hey guys, Chuck here. Les Misérables , which was originally a novel by the legendary Victor Hugo, has been adapted to screen and stage in various ways, with the stage musical version by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schömberg being the most notable. In 2012, director Tom Hooper, fresh off his Oscar win with 2010's The King's Speech , brought the musical version of Les Misérables to life on the big screen. The film sports a star-studded cast, which includes High Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried, Eddie Redmayne, Samantha Barks, Aaron Tveit, Daniel Huttlestone, Fra Fee, Killian Donnelly, Hannah Waddingham, Kate Fleetwood, Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter, and Colm Wilkinson.            The movie opens in 1815 France, where we see a group of prisoners pulling a damaged ship into a dry dock for repairs. One such prisoner, Jean Valjean, is released in parole by a guard named Javert. Unfortunately, ...

         Hey guys, Chuck here. And it's been a bit since we last checked in on Jason Bourne. So, let's take a look at the third film in the Bourne series: The Bourne Ultimatum . Directed, once again, by Paul Greengrass, The Bourne Ultimatum stars Matt Damon, Julia Stiles, David Strathairn, Corey Johnson, Scott Glenn, Paddy Considine, Colin Stinton, Daniel Brühl, Joan Allen, and Albert Finney.            So, the movie picks up where The Bourne Supremacy left off, with Jason Bourne evading Russian authorities in Moscow. Some time later, Jason meets with Martin Kreutz, brother of Marie, to explain what happened to her, and what he plans to do next. Back in Washington DC, CIA Deputy Director Pamela Landy reveals a taped confession of Ward Abbott to CIA Director Ezra Kramer, who is still weary in regards to Jason himself.          It's here where we meet a British journalist named Simon Ross, who writes for The G...

          Hey guys, Chuck here. John Carter was a 2012 Disney sci-fi movie directed by Andrew Stanton and based on the John Carter of Mars stories by Edgar Rice Burroughs.          The movie establishes that on Mars, known by the planet's inhabitants as Barsoom, there has been a civil war raging between two cities: Zodanga, which is constantly on the move and leeching the planet of its life energy, and Helium, a powerful city that stands as a powerful seat for all of Barsoom. One day, when cornered by the forces of Helium, the Zodangan leader, San Than, is approached by a trio of pale robed beings known as the Holy Therns, who have utilized a power source known as the Ninth Ray, and have harnessed it into a weapon, passing it onto Sab Than to use to defeat his enemies.         Meanwhile, on Earth, we meet John Carter, a former Calvary man in the Confederate Army, who is searching for a fortune in gold, and is nab...

        Hey guys, Chuck here, and it's been a bit since I last talked about a film by the Coen Brothers, hasn't it? Well, today, I would like to talk about the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou? , which was released in the year 2000, and was written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. O Brother, Where Art Thou?  features a stellar cast, which includes the likes of George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman, Holly Hunter, Stephen Root, Chris Thomas King, Wayne Duvall, Daniel von Bargen, Musetta Vander, and Charles Durning.           The movie tells of an unusual journey across rural Mississippi in the year 1937, which is in the midst of the Great Depression in America. Three convicts named Ulysses Everett McGill, Pete, and Delmar escape from a chain gang, and attempt to hop a ride on a train, only to accidentally fall off. Luckily, a blind old man on a handcar gives them a ride, and tells them of what to expect on t...

        Hey guys, Chuck here, and today we're taking a look at Free Willy . Released by Warner Bros. in 1993, Free Willy was directed by Simon Wincer, produced by Lauren Schuler-Donner, and stars Jason James Richter, Lori Petty, Michael Madsen, Jayne Atkinson, August Schellenberg, Mykelti Williamson, Richard Riehle, and Michael Ironside.         The movie focuses on Jesse, a pre-teen living on the streets of Portland, Oregon, where he gets caught one night after he and a friend spray graffiti in the observation area of the Pacific Northwest Adventure Park. The next day, Jesse is informed by his case worker, Dwight Mercer, that his probation is to clean up the graffiti, and that a married couple named Glen and Annie Greenwood are willing to overlook this recent incident and give him a place in their home.        As Jesse cleans up the observation area, he becomes fascinated with the park's resident Orca, Willy, who was take...

           Hey guys, Chuck here. Throughout the year, I discussed the Ocean's trilogy from director Steven Soderbergh. Today, I wanted to take a look at something different from Soderbergh: an action thriller he directed called Haywire . Showcased at the AFI Fest in 2011, followed by a theatrical release in 2012, Haywire stars Gina Carano, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Channing Tatum, Bill Paxton, Michael Angarano, Antonio Banderas, and Michael Douglas.          The movie opens in a diner, where we meet Mallory Kane, who is approached by a former associate of hers called Aaron, and the two discuss a previous job they pulled in Barcelona, and about another incident she was involved in that happened in Dublin. Aaron then attacks Mallory, and she does her best to defend herself. Luckily, a civilian named Scott helps Mallory, and she takes him to his car, and the two drive off, and she tells him her story.      ...

        Hey guys, Chuck here. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time was a 2010 action movie produced by Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer, and is based on the video game of the same name published by Ubisoft.         Set in the Land of Persia, the movie establishes that the land is ruled by the King, Sharaman, who rules with his brother, Nizam, at his side. In addition, Sharaman has two sons, Tus and Garsiv. But, the gods decided that the King's family isn't yet complete, and one day, King Sharaman witnesses the bravery of a young boy in the streets. The boy, Dastan, has no parents to speak of, and so is adopted by King Sharaman and becomes a Prince of Persia.         Fifteen years later, and Tus, Garsiv, and Dastan, under the counsel of Nizam, learn that the Holy City of Alamut is forging weapons to sell to Persia's enemies. So, Tus and Garsiv stand as a distraction, while Dastan leads his crew of mercenaries to sneak into ...