Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014)

Planes (2013) was a surprisingly endearing and clever film with an array of appropriately cast characters. Fire & Rescue returns with the core players (Dane Cook, Brad Garrett, Teri Hatcher, Stacy Keach), using the same underdog formula from the first. This time Dusty Crophopper must adapt when his racing prowess is endangered. Cook is still relatable and down-to-earth as ever, his voice giving humor to mere perfunctory exposition. A change of scenery of course comes with new characters and while they all sufficiently embody their roles, they don't live up to the range of flamboyant and colorful personalities from the first. But the amount of adventure has not only increased but intensified with many beautiful and thrilling feats of endangerment.

3 pick up trucks out of 5

CORALINE [2009]

Acclaimed stop-motion director Henry Selick brings Neil Gaiman's dark fantasy children's novel Coraline to the big screen with flourishing passion.
Beautifully designed sets & characters and wonderfully set up shots keep the eyes in complete awe as we're whisked away into a twisted Narnia In Wonderland sort of world.  Unfortunately the dull voice acting, flat dialogue and boring characters make for a rather long journey at times.  The character of Coraline is a bratty little bint, so it makes it hard to care what happens to her or anything that surrounds her life.  It pains me to say this as I am a huge fan of both Gaiman and Selick's work and was eagerly anticipating this film but in the end it feels like a bit of a misfire that needed a bit more work on the script to truly give it the heart the story deserves.

3 boring Mark Ryden paintings out of 5