I made it halfway into the movie and gave up when Jangle started singing. Not just because he was singing... for all I know he can.
It was because the movie was already showing signs of a weak, phoned in plot and then it just gave up and relied on the audience knowing all the usual kid/Christmas film tropes rather than develop the plot and characters themselves. I mean, if we do that, they said, we won't have room for all the songs.
And it had so much potential! It's visually stunning, full stop. A feast for the eyes. I love Steampunk and I love a magical Christmas movie. The cast couldn't be called diverse but if anyone has a problem with a movie of mostly black actors with a few token white people, well, do I have to say it? I loved it. I see white people all day in my own home and in the mirror so it made a nice change to see other members of the human race get center stage. And Forest Whittaker was utterly delightful as the confused and grumpy inventor. I could have watched him all day. Just him.
And while I don't care for these Broadway style musicals, the first song was promising. The rest (that I heard) reminded me of Frozen. That was not a compliment... Frozen is yet another film where plot and character were sacrificed on the altar of songs... not even very good ones, but very typical ones.
The trouble is, there's a slice of society that looks at you like you're threatening to eat their hamster if you so much as mention that you don't like musicals. People who will forgive any sin of plot failure and character shortcut if there's song and dance numbers. People who think that to crowbar in songs is a reason to make a movie. They ruin a lot of good stories.
Not that this was one. It just didn't take the time to do it. It started tolerably well and went on to interrupt an interesting story with a pint sized Mary Sue and predictable action as well as forced conflict. The toy that was gonna make him rich was a creepy sentient tin matador with a giant ego? Why in the world would anyone, much less everyone, want this irritating toy? But it took a toy like that to punt the plot forward so it must be a matador. Honestly, all the toys I saw were really unappealing.
This film was a wasted opportunity.
It was because the movie was already showing signs of a weak, phoned in plot and then it just gave up and relied on the audience knowing all the usual kid/Christmas film tropes rather than develop the plot and characters themselves. I mean, if we do that, they said, we won't have room for all the songs.
And it had so much potential! It's visually stunning, full stop. A feast for the eyes. I love Steampunk and I love a magical Christmas movie. The cast couldn't be called diverse but if anyone has a problem with a movie of mostly black actors with a few token white people, well, do I have to say it? I loved it. I see white people all day in my own home and in the mirror so it made a nice change to see other members of the human race get center stage. And Forest Whittaker was utterly delightful as the confused and grumpy inventor. I could have watched him all day. Just him.
And while I don't care for these Broadway style musicals, the first song was promising. The rest (that I heard) reminded me of Frozen. That was not a compliment... Frozen is yet another film where plot and character were sacrificed on the altar of songs... not even very good ones, but very typical ones.
The trouble is, there's a slice of society that looks at you like you're threatening to eat their hamster if you so much as mention that you don't like musicals. People who will forgive any sin of plot failure and character shortcut if there's song and dance numbers. People who think that to crowbar in songs is a reason to make a movie. They ruin a lot of good stories.
Not that this was one. It just didn't take the time to do it. It started tolerably well and went on to interrupt an interesting story with a pint sized Mary Sue and predictable action as well as forced conflict. The toy that was gonna make him rich was a creepy sentient tin matador with a giant ego? Why in the world would anyone, much less everyone, want this irritating toy? But it took a toy like that to punt the plot forward so it must be a matador. Honestly, all the toys I saw were really unappealing.
This film was a wasted opportunity.