Catnip Reviews: BUSTER KEATON, SMURFS & ULTRAMAN ARC

Snack-sized opinions from the frisky felines at Free Kittens…

THE BUSTER KEATON SHOW (Blu-ray) - Until this 2-disc set arrived, I wasn’t aware Buster Keaton even had a TV show. Perhaps some of you were unaware, too, since it wasn’t particularly successful and many episodes have since been lost. However, this set has dug up and restored nine of them, which is kind of a bittersweet viewing experience. On one hand, here’s a silent movie legend decades removed from his glory days, and it shows. He never took to talkies too well, and some of these episodes see him sadly trying to erase the passage of time. On the other hand, some of his greatness still shines through on occasion…a reminder that, at one time, nobody was funnier. Also included are a couple of episodes not previously available, as well as Buster’s appearances in other shows, but the best bonus kibbles are two of his silent shorts from the early twenties. Far from Buster’s greatest work, but from a historical perspective, it’s well worth checking out. (1949-50/332 min/Liberation Hall). 

KITTY CONSENSUS: 😼😼😼

SMURFS (Blu-ray) - “Isn’t Rihanna in that?” asked my 21-year-old daughter, Lucy, as she passed through the room while I was watching this. “Yeah,” I ruefully replied before tapping the blurb on the box, “Rihanna is Smurfette.” That was the extent of Lucy’s interest, but she used to watch this stuff as a kid. A reboot I didn’t know anyone was asking for, Smurfs is yet-another cynically assembled, pop song-laden product with Rihanna and a huge cast of well-known actors lending their voices (and marquee value). Since the average five-year-old probably doesn’t give a damn who these people are, I’m not sure why they went to all the trouble. While there are a few interesting animated bits, this is one of those movies that you pop into your machine to keep the wee ones amused while you do something else.  (2025/90 min/Paramount). 

KITTY CONSENSUS: 😺

ULTRAMAN ARC (Blu-ray) - And you thought Disney knew how to milk a franchise…Ultraman has been kicking around since 1966, when the first series aired in Japan. Since then, there have been dozens and dozens of TV shows, miniseries, movies, games, comics, manga and trading cards. And yours truly has never seen a single frame until now, with this 2024 series, Ultraman Arc. Since this type of science-fiction is not my bag, I’m kinda going-by-feel here when it comes to any recommendation. From the characters to the lore to the action itself, most of this was lost on me, like attending a party where you know none of the guests. But since it appears to be aesthetically identical to other recent series, I suspect it’ll please fans of the franchise. If you count yourself among them, dig in. This 4-disc set features 25 episodes, as well as a full length Ultraman Arc movie, The Clash of Light and Evil. Additionally, it comes with a card that can apparently be played with an Ultraman card game. (2024/700 min/Mill Creek). 

KITTY CONSENSUS: 😼😼

Revisiting SMALL SOLDIERS in 4K

SMALL SOLDIERS (4K UHD SteelBook)

1998 / 109 min

Paramount

Review by Princess Pepper😼

If you’ve never read The Gross, by Peter Bart, it’s a fascinating analysis of several films released during the summer of 1998…the production, marketing and box office performance. Diving deep into the competitive nature of the movie business, it reads like a detailed, play-by-play chronicle of a sporting event. More specifically, a marathon with winners, losers and those in between. For movie fans with additional interest in what makes Hollywood tick, the book is lightly recommended.

One of the films discussed in detail is Small Soldiers, which was projected to be a big hit, though it didn’t quite turn out that way. Bart touches on why the film failed to catch-on with the intended family audience, but I didn’t really need the book to understand why it didn’t become another Gremlins, even with Joe Dante in the director’s chair.

The comparisons to Gremlins are warranted, with a similar premise that sees a line of action figures, the Commando Elite, wreaking havoc after being programmed with military software. Small Soldiers even has its own Gizmo in the form of Archer (voiced by Frank Langella), the leader of benevolent monsters created as the Elite’s enemies. They’re targeted by Major Chip Hazard (voiced by Tommy Lee Jones), who could be seen as the movie’s Stripe. Caught in between are a couple of young teens, Alan (Gregory Smith), and his crush, Kristy (Kristen Dunst, who was just starting to make a name for herself). 

The similarities pretty much end there. Though probably mismarketed as a “family” film to begin with (which many critics, including Bart, pointed out), what ultimately made Small Soldiers destined to be comparatively “forgotten” today is that it coasts almost entirely on its concept. Technically, it’s very well made, with imaginatively created non-human characters (designed by Stan Winston) and excellent CGI for the time. Additionally, much of the violent action is exciting and - because of its small scale - fairly amusing.

Kitty cameo.

But revisiting Small Soldiers decades later is a reminder that little is particularly memorable about it beyond the visuals. Considering Joe Dante’s reputation for infusing oft-kilter humor, in-jokes, quirky characters and cartoon anarchy into his work, the film is surprisingly straightforward…just an action film that happens to involve kids and toys. A few of the director’s unique humorous touches shine through here and there (his cache of favorite character actors; references to past pop culture), but it mostly feels like Dante was a director-for-hire and afforded little creative input.

Elsewhere, the story moves along at an efficient pace, though there aren’t any real surprises (even if one hasn’t seen Gremlins). And while it boasts decent performances by a solid cast, the film never takes advantage of their unique talents. Having Tommy Lee Jones voice Chip Hazard is basically just stunt casting, as the character could’ve been played by any competent voice actor. However, I did appreciate the in-joke of gathering the surviving actors from The Dirty Dozen to play soldiers under Hazard’s command.

None of this is to say Small Soldiers is a bad movie. As slick, high-concept family entertainment goes, there have been plenty (before and since) that are far worse and a lot stupider. During that summer of 1998, so extensively documented by Bart's book, the movie may not have lived up to expectations, but surely it struck a chord with many young viewers who enjoyed the mayhem (I don’t subscribe to the claim that the film was too traumatizing for children). 

So for some, there’s a bit of nostalgic value to be had with this release. Small Soldiers debuted on Blu-ray only four years ago and this upgrade to 4K offers an overall better image, though the 5.1 audio is exactly the same, as are the perfunctory bonus features. But the coolest part is the SteelBook packaging, which features a colorful variation of the original promotional artwork. 

EXTRA KIBBLES

4K, BLU-RAY & DIGITAL COPIES

MAKING-OF FEATURETTE (Blu-ray)

BLOOPER REEL (Blu-ray)

IF (4K) Has Good Intentions

IF (4K UHD)

2024 / 104 min

FROM PARAMOUNT

Review by Stinky the Destroyer😽

If nothing else, IF (Imaginary Friends) has its heart in the right place. Written and directed by John Krasinski, it’s a sincere attempt to create something atypical of the big-budget family film that usually cleans up at the box office. Sweet-natured, sentimental and surprisingly low-key compared to, say, Despicable Me 4, it’s a movie loaded with good intentions and difficult to completely dislike.

On the other hand, the film is never fully engaging, despite an appealing blend of live-action and animation to tell its story. It’s about 12-year-old Bea (Cailet Fleming), who moves into her grandmother’s apartment while her father (Krasinski) is in the hospital awaiting heart surgery…the same hospital where her mother died of cancer five years earlier.

Bea also sees a few strange creatures lurking in the same apartment building. Following one of them upstairs, she meets Cal (Ryan Reynolds), the caretaker of numerous imaginary friends (aka, IFs). He’s trying to place them with new children after their old ones have since grown up and forgotten about them. For reasons not made quite clear, Bea is able to see them, too. And when finding new kids for the IFs keeps failing, it’s her idea to hook them back up with the old ones, even though they’re now adults who need their memories jogged.

"Just bear with me. Get it? BEAR with me?"

We meet a variety of creatively rendered IFs, including lumbering & lovable Blue (Steve Carrell), and Blossom (Phoebe Waller-bridge), a ballerina butterfly. There are also scores of others, all voiced by an unbelievably huge cast of A-list actors. Sure, it’s stunt casting, but trying to identify which celebrity is voicing each character might be a fun game for parents to keep their attention from wandering.

Speaking of wandering, for a movie aimed primarily at children, IF takes a long time to get rolling. When it finally does, the film is still frequently meandering and features little in the way of genuine conflict. That’s not to say a movie has to be loaded with visual and narrative fireworks to keep kiddos amused. But despite the consistently congenial tone, likable characters and some whimsical moments, IF is a movie without any emotional highs or lows…not even any bad guys. 

Still, IF is a cute, innocuous film that features good overall performances and charming animated characters that look wonderful in 4K. With easy-to-grasp themes and a complete absence of low-brow humor, it’s the true definition of a family-friendly film. But an air of detachment hangs over the entire thing, which ultimately keeps it from being something special…maybe even to its intended audience.

EXTRA KIBBLES

FEATURETTES - The Imagination Behind IF features numerous interviews and behind-the-scenes footage; Giving IFs a Voice is about the ginormous voice cast; Imagining Imaginary Friends focuses on the various animated characters; Blending the Real and the Imaginary is about how live action and CG animation are combined; Tina Turner Forever! is self-explanatory if you’ve seen the movie (RIP, Tina).

ACTIVITY - How to Draw Blue from IF.

DIGITAL COPY