NinadeL

Charles Dickens' Bambillionth version of "A Christmas Carol." It's a tax on the globalization of the Smurf Village. It is nice, but it's a far cry from the Belgian Middle Ages. But of course, I do appreciate the combination of the new 3D with the old 2D concept.

Belgian comics, series, and films have two superstars, the first is Tintin's father Hergé and the second is Peyo, the author of the Smurfs, who is a generation younger. As a kid, I loved the "Smurfin!" LPs and of course the series, and it was interesting to watch the blue boom... I'm yet to watch the new movies, but I'm putting the comic albums up there with Asterix and Tintin. Shortly before the Smurfs, Peyo drew the amusing medieval adventures of Johan and Pirlouit and the adventures of Poussy the cat. And it was from Johan that the whole smurf village later split off in 1958. We can see what such incidents looked like in the film The Smurfs and the Magic Flute (1976). Meanwhile, the first stand-alone "The Black Smurfs" comic book was released in 1963. Three years later, Smurfette made her first appearance and the rest is history. In retrospect, I'm glad that even after all these years, the original Smurf series is still watchable and quite entertaining for adults. It would be a shame to bury such a phenomenon in the archives.

The stories of boys and girls from the first grade during the old empire provide a sometimes very cruel insight into the relentless logic of childhood games and the challenging clash with the adult world. The environment of urban poverty is not the childhood ideal where the boys can form their character. Fortunately, a mild and wise teacher oversees their crises and the most significant diversion for the whole group is an encounter with the expressive magician Karafa. Adult viewers will interpret the references to the founding of social democracy in their own way; fortunately, this storyline remains hidden from the children.

A classic series about a little boy with a tuft and his faithful dog. Or Tintin and Snowy the dog. The series has great pacing, respects the comic albums down to the smallest detail, and the whole thing is a wonderful homage to the dynamic 20th century. One can perhaps only regret the unfulfilled challenge of adapting the opening adventure from the land of the Soviets...

If we know this is an Asylum production and Traci Lords is starring as Dejah Thoris, we know what we're getting into. The first A-list treatment of "A Princess of Mars" came three years later under the title John Carter, so there are no issues. Asylum also does quite well to introduce the world of E. R. Burroughs' century-old saga. And anyone who knows the ABC or Dynamite comics is a winner.

I resisted the John Carter phenomenon for many years, but the beauty of Dejah Thoris is immense, and in the Dynamite comics, it's also an enjoyable read. It was thus necessary for me to watch the film that was released for the 100th anniversary. The opening scenes, admittedly, are not great, and the introduction to the complex plot unfolding on several levels is not entirely successful. But once this predecessor to Superman and Star Wars rolls into one, it's awesome. The excitement of a pre-World War I future, the fascination with the unsuspected possibilities of craters on Mars - all these aspects are there for the taking and entice us.

The 37th Disney Feature Film Similarly to how I was upset about the Disney version of Tinker Bel, I have to praise Tarzan. With all love and respect for Burroughs, Disney's Tarzan is a wonderful affair. It was a real challenge because for Tarzan to move like a man-animal, no living actor could do that. An animated film was therefore the ideal choice. They also came up with a different portrayal of the relationship within Tarzan's animal family with the mice, and even Jane was done well without having to be the classic damsel in distress, which I very much applaud. Overall, the animation is excellent, the songs are by Phil Collins, and the whole thing makes more sense than most of the adaptations we've seen since 1912. I'm quite looking forward to the whole direct-to-video trilogy.

In Season 2, the Borgias truly become the family of which legends speak. The naive, cute Lucrezia becomes a cunning, almighty young lady. Cardinal Cesare will do anything for the love of his sister and the respect of his father. The papacy must be protected at all costs. The unbelievable is becoming reality. Of course, there are problems within the family as well. But what really impressed me was the pride of the Sforza family. Their Catherine (played by Gina McKee) doesn't have many comparisons to other women in historical sagas. Not even with another character to whom McKee lent her face, the erratic Irene Forsyte... I'm quite looking forward to the conclusion of this series because creeping evil in sheep's clothing has its own qualities. Although, the heretic of Florence is done too. Will it be Machiavelli’s turn?

I've never intended to watch every fashionable historical series, but it's not out of place to change the storyline of one format or another from time to time, and I always keep Showtime series in mind as a better choice. But what is a real surprise is the work of Neil Jordan, who remains for me an inscrutable filmmaker. I still love his Interview with the Vampire, but most of his other work has very different strengths and appeals to different audiences. So does The Borgias now belong to the parade of such titles as High Spirits, The Crying Game, Breakfast on Pluto, and Byzantium? If we were to analyze this, we would probably conclude that the invisible thread of those first turbulent years of the papacy under Alexander VI is the theme of the bastards. This is a traditional theme for Neil, to work on material about those on the margins of society, about their ambitions and feelings. Through this lens, then, it's a slam dunk. I can therefore recommend all 3 series full of renaissance morality, fashion, and desire.

The 34th Disney Feature Film Victor Hugo really isn't appropriate Disney material. The attempt at funny moments in the dramatic story, where the tragic character of Quasimodo becomes a modern-day King Kong... that in and of itself is a problem. It continues with the incomprehensible story of Esmeralda, a gypsy girl who is loved by three men at once. The mentality of medieval Paris and its pursuit of crazy fun for at least one day a year then enters into this nonsensically-sketched situation... We cannot accept the Disney story of "Quasi," where cute animals represent "cute" gargoyles. Frollo is a character completely out of place, and the songs are from a different genre. Perhaps the quality of the animation is fine, but it's a futile effort. I'd probably prefer the second part, which went straight to video, because only in this form does it really matter anymore. A terrible experience.