26 | July | 2021 | Movie Reviews 101

The True Don Quixote – Quirky

Director: Chris Poche

Writer: Chris Poche (Screenplay) Miguel de Cervantes y Saavedra (Novel)

Starring: Tim Blake Nelson, Jacob Batalon, Ann Mahoney, Morgan Roberts, Brandon Stacy, Lucy Faust

Plot: Tim Blake Nelson (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs) is a man who’s safe and comfortable and bored to death with his life. In his state of despair, he looks to classic stories for inspiration. Awakened by the tales of yore, he anoints himself as Don Quixote to find adventure, fame and glory that will make his life worthwhile – all while never leaving his one-mile square neighborhood.

Runtime: 1 Hour 24 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The True Don Quixote starts when mild-mannered man who sees everything he loves taken away, which will see him have a break while reading believing he is in fact the real Don Quixote (Nelson) who roams his neighbourhood looking for a squire in Sancho Panza (Batalon) as the pair get caught up in the middle of misadventures.

Thoughts on The True Don Quixote

Thoughts – The True Don Quixote is a quirky comedy drama about a man that is broken in life, turning to a fictional figure to help him through the events filled with the denial of what this is doing to him. The story does turn the different stories of the legendary Don Quixote into the modern world, one that could be everyday life situations. The reality of this story does show how people will be let go down a road that seems unstable, which will also show how some people will come to help them. Tim Blake Nelson does fully commit to this role, which is the highlight of the film, despite the fact it is over the top as it is intended to be. The weakness in the film does come from not knowing anything from the real Don Quixote and the stories the figure might well have been through.

Signature Entertainment presents The True Don Quixote on Digital Platforms 2nd August

Final Thoughts – The True Don Quixote is an extremely quirky movie.

We are under Z because of the small Steve Zahn appearance.

Director: Cal Brunker

Writer: Bob Barlen, Cal Brunker (Screenplay) Tony Leech, Cory Edwards (Story)

Starring: (Voice Talents) Brendan Fraser, Rob Corddry, Ricky Gervais, Jonathan Morgan Heit, Jessica Alba, Sofia Vergara

Plot: Astronaut Scorch Supernova finds himself caught in a trap when he responds to an SOS from a notoriously dangerous alien planet.

Tagline – Earth’s greatest secrets are about to break out!

Runtime: 1 Hour 29 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Verdict: Fun Little Animation

Story: Escape from Planet Earth starts as we meet two alien brothers, Scorch is the macho brave heroic figure on the planet, while Gary is the smart one that always manages to get Scorch out of trouble. When the two clash after the latest mission, Gary refuses to help Scorch on his latest mission, which sees him get caught on Earth.

Gary decides to go and rescue his brother, only to discover a bigger problem that Scorch finds himself in, where Gary leads the rescue of other alien species being held by humans at Area 51.

Thoughts on Escape from Planet Earth

Characters – Scorch is the big strong heroic alien that the species sees as an ideal, even though he is a clumsy fool, he rushes in head first usually needing someone else to save him, this sees him clash with his brother and end up getting captured. Gary is the smart one of the two, he always helps his brother out, despite having the insecurity of not being seen as much of a hero of his brother. He decides to risk everything in an attempt to save his brother, where he gets to be the hero for the first time. General Shanker is running Area 51 with his own plan for holding different aliens, while Gary and Scorch’s own species have their own dramas back on their home planet.

Story – The story follows two brothers from a different planet that are going through their own problems, one being the hero of the world, while the other does the work behind the scenes, with then refusing to work together, only for them to realize they need each other to complete the missions at hand. This does show the importance of family, the consumption of greed of power and learning to work together will always get the best results. The story does have plenty of heart, without being one of the most original with the ideas being put into it.

Adventure/Comedy/Sci-Fi – The adventure takes the aliens to Earth, a world they haven’t been to before, one where they need to learn from, with the comedy coming from the different alien creations, the sci-fi side of the film shows us that life could be out there on every planet.

Settings – The film does create the typical settings you would imagine, with the evil laboratory and the colourful open world.

Animation – The animation in the film looks great without every looking weak, with the style adapting to the slapstick used through the film.

Scene of the Movie – The escape

That Moment That Annoyed Me – Too generic.

Final Thoughts – This is a fun enjoyable animated movie that gets laughs when needed and brings the heart required from the story.

Overall: Enjoyable Comedy.