Nimona was originally being made by Blue Sky studios who are known for Ice Age. After Disney bought Fox they shut down the studio thus cancelling the film. Fortunately, Annapurna Pictures revived the film and it released on Netflix. The film is about a former knight Ballister Boldheart who was framed for murdering the queen and is branded a bad guy. He meets a shapeshifter named Nimona who wants to be his villain sidekick even though he doesn’t want to. Both join forces to find out who framed him. SPOILER: The director being the one who framed Ballister was kind of obvious from the start, even if you didn’t read the book. At least the reveal wasn’t at the very end of the movie like most twist villains.

The biggest positives of this movie are the animation and voice acting. The animation in this film uses a lot of cel shading similar to the Spider-Verse films and Puss in Boots: the Last Wish. It gives the character designs, action scenes, and setting a more cartoonish feel. Speaking of setting I really like the world this film takes place in. It feels like a mix between futuristic and medieval. The voice acting is really good and each one in this movie gives such a tremendous performance.  Standouts include Riz Ahmed as Ballister and Eugene Lee Yang as Ambrosius Goldenloin. The VIP of this film however was the titular character herself Nimona no contest. Chloë Grace Moretz is having such a blast playing this character that has so much energy and life to her.

If this were still a Blue Sky film, I’d say this was there best film and a great swan song for them. It’s beautiful to look at, funny, and touching. I have never read the original graphic novel but after seeing this I might have to find a copy at Barnes and Noble.

Verdict:

+Great animation

+Nimona herself

+Voice acting

+The setting

-Obvious culprit

Score: A

Wes Anderson has slowly become one of my top 5 favorite movie directors. I really love the way he makes films because he has such a unique and specific style that if were shown a random shot from his films and asked to guess who directed it you would say Wes immediately. His recent film Asteroid City takes place in the fictional titular desert town during the 1950s. During a science fair an alien shows up at steals the asteroid that the town was named after and everything descents into chaos. Like most of Wes’s films this film has a huge ensemble cast and everyone is at there A game here. What also gives these characters so much life and charm is the writing. Wes’s writing is incredibly witty, smart and funny.

If Spider-Verse 2 is the best-looking animated film of this year than Asteroid City is the best-looking live action film of 2023. We’s directing also has a great sense of symmetry and mathematical precision while also being simple. Both his directing and the cinematography make the setting feel so immersive and amazing to look at. He’s kind of like a spiritual successor to Stanley Kubrick who also had a unique way of directing. I think what also helps is that I’m a sucker for 50s retro aesthetic. I’m also kind of a sucker for fake rocks, for some reason they look much better than real rocks. Anyone who’s ridden and enjoyed Big Thunder Mountain at Disneyland/Disney World will understand.

Asteroid City is up there with Fantastic Mr. Fox and the Grand Budapest Hotel as one of my favorite films Wes Anderson has done. Everything that makes his films great such as the great directing, writing, acting, and cinematography are all right here. After seeing this I might have to check out Wes Anderson’s other films.

Verdict:

+Cinematography

+Great acting

+Wes’s directing and writing

Score: A