CAPSULE REVIEWS: The 2020 Academy Award nominees for Best Animated Short

They may not get much attention when they’re not made by Disney and not appearing in front of their animated tentpoles, but the artistry and creativity is alive and well in the field of animated short films. This year’s five nominees for the 92nd Academy Award are some of the most stark and unique entries I’ve seen in the years I’ve been able to cover the annual best. Below are my capsule reviews of this year’s final five for Best Animated Short. Naturally, my niche of life lessons are included. Like the documentaries and live-action shorts in other Oscar categories, the animated films are presently collected in a single program to watch on the big screen at Landmark Theatre locations nationwide, including the three venues here in Chicago.

MOVIE REVIEW: Troop Zero

To rightly thumb its nose at the historically warped expectations of young ladies, Troop Zero may not be high-minded cinema. What it is, however, is high-hearted entertainment. That calls for trite covered in treat. Put this movie in front of any girl, hell, any kid period, that’s been demeaned about their differences or forced to conform to supposed societal standards. Let them watch this movie, smile, and stitch their own sash or freak flag to be proud of.

2020, 4 STARS, MOVIE REVIEW, Independent Film, StreamingDon ShanahanJanuary 22, 2020Comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Clemency

All the while, here is Alfre Woodard staring holes through the most leaden armor. If the Oscars were to come calling, and they should if they had any sense, it would be Alfre’s first nomination in 37 years (Cross Creek) and her first leading one. Her hefty performance steps deeper into the accumulating difficulties that have come to beset the unflappable leader she portrays. Her character has to show collapse, but the performer never falters her requirements. Alfre is beyond compelling in taking on all of the destructive darkness this character envelopes around us all.

2019, 2020, 4 STARS, Film Festival, Chicago Film Festival, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanJanuary 10, 2020Clemency, Alfre WoodardComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Just Mercy

There is a certain steadiness to Destin Daniel Cretton’s new film that pushes back those gaudy tendencies. Its central real-life figure Bryan Stevenson is not the firebrand type most legal movies typically adore and request. Played by Michael B. Jordan, in a fitting and matured leading role for the muscled actor, Stevenson is not made to be something he is not. His real-life story and iron will principles are not smudged just to show a little pizzazz for the sake of pizzazz.

MOVIE REVIEW: Parasite

Zoinks, does this movie have vigor! For those folks who constantly lament that there is nothing original and interesting to watch anymore in this multiplex marketplace of creative bankruptcy, look no further than the minor challenge of following Korean subtitles. The sly guile simmering behind the decadence of Parasite exceeds any trope one thinks that possible assign to this film. This is your jaw-dropper. This is your water-cooler winner. This is the one that will keep people talking for a long time.

2019, 5 STARS, Film Festival, Independent Film, Foreign Film, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanDecember 31, 2019Parasite, Bong Joon-hoComment

MOVIE REVIEW: The Two Popes

They may “play for the same team,” if you will, yet there is a rhetorical battle of divine wills and egos. Sizing each other up, there is zero agreement between the two, who could not be farther apart philosophically, politically, or personally. But, to see the respect, oh my, the respect, being shared is like a balm of hopeful covenant all its own. Powered by two impeccable performances, there is truly something marvelous to see these powerful men reach a true “meeting of the minds.” The Two Popes is available now streaming on Netflix after a brief theatrical run.

MOVIE REVIEW: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Diving deeper beyond the basic “something that is final” meaning, the dictionary of this galaxy describes “finality” as “conclusiveness,” “decisiveness,” or “an ultimate act, utterance, or belief.” J.J. Abrams’ massive space opera follows his own The Force Awakens and Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi to aim so very badly for those traits. In many peaks of scope and emotion, his movie achieves such finality. In others, overindulgence and disarray put question marks on the value or vindication of all this promised fulfillment.

MEDIA APPEARANCE: "Marriage Story" Spoiler Lounge content for "CinemaJaw" podcast #450

Here’s some newly-released follow-up bonus content my recent guest appearance on the CinemaJaw podcast, hosted by fellow Chicago Indie Critic members Matt Kubinski and Ryan Jagiello. When we recorded our reviews of Marriage Story a month before its Netflix debut, we entered spoiler territory for a segment to save for later. Well, later is now with Marriage Story going strong in its award season. In this new episode of CinemaJaw recorded at the glam headquarters of Cards Against Humanity, come for the Jumanji and Star Wars talk and stay for the Marriage Story “Spoiler Lounge!”

MOVIE REVIEW: 1917

Kinetically engineered to simulate real-time, 1917 moves with a propulsive momentum like no other film of 2019 and no other combat flick of recent memory. Its velocity matches the unyielding pull of war itself. That compelling force defines a soldier’s moral sense of duty and keeps a man watching, trekking, running, fighting, and downright surviving. 1917 is all about that pull and concentrates its adrenaline into a relentless experience that will strafe your senses, from the hairs on the back of your neck to the fidgeting nerves that bounce your toes.

2019, 5 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanDecember 10, 2019AMC River East 21Comment

REWIND REVIEW: Where'd You Go, Bernadette

Anyone who seeks to own this version of The Lion King is doing so with a “how did they do that?” curiosity. The technical brilliance is its biggest selling point. That interest is answered very well by this disc release. Unlike its Pixar and Marvel offerings, Disney compiled a legitimate look into this re-imaginings wholly revolutionary bells and whistles. This movie will look gorgeous on your high-end television at home.

2019, Home Media, MOVIE REVIEW, Video on Demand, VIDEO REVIEW, DISC REVIEW, 2 STARSDon ShanahanDecember 1, 2019Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Feelin' Film" podcast for "The Peanut Butter Falcon"

Twice in a month! On the heels of their monumental three-part 200th episode special (covering the true Indiana Jones trilogy), I returned to the Feelin' Film Podcast to close out the 100s with an underrated and underseen gem that all three of us loved. For Episode #199, Patrick Hicks, Aaron White, and me discussed the high values and movie merits of The Peanut Butter Falcon starring Zack Gottshagen, Shia LeBeouf, and Dakota Johnson. Earning five-stars from all three of us, this road movie stands as one of our favorites from 2019 that we hopes gains in appreciation and acclaim with time.

MOVIE REVIEW: Marriage Story

There is an old adage used by married people, kind of passive-aggressive burn really, that says “you can’t tie your shoes without me.” In a pithy way, the saying speaks to the symbiotic relationship between the partners for even the smallest things. While it may not always come down to shoelaces, there is a given and even understood level of dependency in marriage. That is until such dependency becomes harmful. In one of the finest films ever on the matter of divorce, Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story challenges the breakdowns of resiliency and vulnerability that push this painful process.