— lifted —

*NOMINATED FOR BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM*

Along with the theatrical release of Ratatouille, Lifted was the ShortFilm that played before it. Although this ShortFilm lacks the emotional depth of Lava, it still manages to make me laugh each time I watch it! Welcome, as we continue to celebrate some of Pixar’s work, in conjunction with the anticipated release of Inside Out.

Gary Rydstrom is a Sound Mixer extraordinaire. He has won 7 Academy Award, interestingly enough he was garnished with two of these most coveted golden statues, with his Sound abilities for Jurassic Park, also for Terminator 2: Judgement Day, Titanic and Saving Private Ryan. Needless to say he is good at what he does, and with his upcoming project, we can expect to hear some amazing Sound Effects for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, later this year.

Gary Rydstrom has worked closely with Pixar, since the beginning, and it’s fitting that he get the opportunity to Direct a ShortFilm of his own. Lifted is about a couple of aliens, Mr. B and Stu. Mr. B is named after all those teachers that always mark there students with a ‘B’, regardless of how good the work is. I think we all had one of those teachers at one point or another. Stu is taking an alien abduction test, because he is an alien, so it’s a thing he needs to know how to do, right? This is a cute and funny story, and worth checking out, it’s sure to make you laugh. Have you ever seen one of those massive Sound Mixing boards, with like, a million and one switches? The ‘switch board’ that Stu is using to abduct was inspired by such Sound Mixing boards, courtesy of Sound Genius Gary Rydstrom.

Gary’s Sound Effects for Lifted are fantastic, and the sound effects are what make this non-dialogue piece so engaging, in addition the animation is elegant. Interesting tid-bit, the aliens form, is based on hair styling gel!

This ShortFilm is relatable because we have all had to go through the process of learning something. It also highlights in a comedic tone the frustration that we all grow through, perhaps, especially through our teen years. Plus we’ve all had to do something, or perform a process, in front of a supervisor or instructor, and we all know how particularly painful that can be. Whenever someone is watching me do something, I can feel my face go tomato red, and sweat beads start to drip down my forehead, and it’s almost guaranteed that you’ll make some sort of silly mistake! So there is a lot we can relate to in the character of Stu, and what he’s going through with Mr. B.

Lifted’s punch moment is touching and memorable. It’s a celebration of the mentor-student relationship, plus who doesn’t want to see the inside of an alien space craft!?

TRIVIA COOKIES: Lifted was nominated for Best Animated Short Film, but did not win.

A toy from one of Pixar’s first ShortFilms, Tin Toy, can be seen under the bed of the unfortunate soul that is being abducted by the aliens, a cool easter egg from Pixar:

— jurassic world —

Jurassic World is enough to get us excited about dinosaurs again! As a fan of Jurassic Park, and a lover of the entire first trilogy, I can truly say that Jurassic World is a great entry to the saga. Although not surpassing in value to it’s original, it comfortably slides past instalments two and three as a serious contender!

Colin Trevorrow, also a fan of the original dino-tale, has graced us with a film that achieves what it sets out to. He has cleverly peppered, sometimes not so obvious, and sometimes right in your face, reminders of what came before. Keeping in mind that this story ignores parts 2 and 3, and acts as a direct sequel to Jurassic Park, he’s managed to create an instant familiarity, that will bring smiles to all fans. My favourite of reminders is a statue of John Hammond in the new park, plus there are some great treats, that will make you recall Jurassic Park, and want to re-watch it! Trevorrow pays his respects, almost in the form of a sweet love letter, and then smoothly moves on to direct a modern version of the park.

I could not be more pleased with the dinosaurs, aesthetically they are amazing, and it’s difficult at times to pick out the animatronics vs CGI. They have crafted the two visual elements to deliver realism, which pays dividends, dinosaurs have never looked this good! Michael Giacchino has lived up to the task, whilst respecting the work of John Williams, but modernising the score. In fact, the first 10mins or so of the film, relies heavily on the score, to set the tone, and set us, the audience, into a place of comfort and familiarity. Once Giacchino has lullabied us into cinematic ease, his score doesn’t overpower or detract. Once the credits roll, and the ‘new’ motif plays, you feel. You feel the score.

Typically I am critical of sound, and the sound mix, especially for blockbuster films that are heavy in sound effects, score and the occasional dialogue. It is far too often that one will drown the other, and the effect, results in a cluster of, ‘meh..’ Jurassic World has been mixed well, and the combination of visual and audible art is best suited for the big screen, this is a film you need to see on the big screen, it’s totally worth it!

There are a lot of characters in this film, and although the plots are easy to follow, there is still a lot happening. The script is tight and dialogue is used well to establish character relationships and not wasted on cliche lines, well not a lot, anyway. The material feels fresh and there is a lot of humour. Chris Pratt delivers again, his aura as Owen resembles a cross between Indiana Jones and Dr. Grant, and manages to maintain his poise well. In addition all the characters mesh well, including Bryce Dallas Howard’s character Claire and Owen, who together basically serve as star leads for this film. Admittedly there are cliche-like instances, but it also manages to remain unpredictable. This is a film that the entire family will enjoy. The cinema we were in was fairly packed, and you could tell everyone was having a blast!

The lines that stand out to me are, “we stick together, for survival.” If there is a message in Jurassic World, this would be it. In addition there are morality issues, brushed on, regarding how ethical the whole thing is, but in new ways, more relevant ways, which I won’t spoil for you.

Jurassic World is an entertaining film, and the real stars of this film are the dinosaurs, there are real surprises in store her, real moments of wow! This film is self aware, allowing it to be fun and even silly at times, without over doing. It’s certain to get a laugh out of you, especially from Jake Johnson’s character, who provides a lot of the comical relief. The park is open, and I recommend you visit it!

TRIVIA COOKIE: Chris Pratt was fortunate enough to see the original Jurassic Park on it’s opening day at the cinema, and is one of his favourite films. I bet he’s honoured to be in a Jurassic movie!

The marks the conclusion to the Jurassic Series, for now anyway, I am certain this film will spark a new trilogy. Here are the links to previous reviews:

Jurassic Park

The Lost World: Jurassic Park

Jurassic Park 3