Yet another great week where we were not short on films to review; but as the Mission Impossible films have been showing on TV the last couple of weeks’ I thought why not go and check out the new Mission Impossible – Fallout film.

This is the sixth film in the series! I didn’t realize there was so many. This one continues with the same characters as the previous Mission Impossible (MI) film, Rogue Nation, with Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his team including Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames. We also see the return of Ethan’s love interest Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson).  Henry Cavill is introduced to the plot as the tough CIA operator August Walker who is determined to make Ethan’s life difficult.

The problem with action films is that on occasion the plot can be weak and that is true of some of the MI films in the past.  However, this one, “Fallout” shows a new dimension to Ethan; a more sensitive and emotional side of the character. Yet again the MI team are called on to save the world from disaster – but fail!  Oops! Now they have to fix the problem and in the meantime deal with a rogue group of professional terrorists bent on destroying the world.

The good thing about this film, other than the awesome car/motorbike chases around Paris; which actually made me grip the side of my seat and actually lean into the corners with Ethan as he somehow sped around Paris without hitting too many pedestrians whilst driving up the wrong side of the road around the Arc de Triomphe – was the fact that we don’t know who the real bad guy is until the end. This is great, just like the very first MI film – it keeps you guessing.

As I said though we do see Ethan starting to shows cracks in the armour and feeling guilty about how he has let his wife down as he had to abandon her so that she wouldn’t be killed. The plot thickens and moves to London which again has a pretty impressive chase sequence running through buildings on the roofs of London and fantastic cinematography from the Director Christopher McQuarrie (again!).  Plus we all know that Tom Cruise broke his foot in one of the stunts in London. I believe this shot actually made the final cut of the film and we can see him do it and continue to run on it afterwards.

The story line is somewhat predictable – nuclear bombs are going to be detonated unless the team capture them.  But who cares, the stunts are awesome and to think Cruise does a lot of them himself is pretty amazing. The story finishes with the final scene in Kashmir (or New Zealand’s beautiful South Island to be accurate) where Cruise flies his own helicopter in amongst the mountains and valleys.  A great ending and edge of the seat stuff where at some point “maybe” some of the characters get killed? Who knows but I’m not going to spoil it for you but it does tweak the old heart strings at the end (that’s all I’m saying).

If you like action adventure films, car chases and awesome stunts, it’s worth spending the money. It’s definitely another must watch film.

We have already decided that our next must see film which is the ever so anticipated “The Darkest Minds”. Check back in soon for our view on it.

Karamo Brown – “Remember that failure isn’t the opposite of success, but part of it!”

If you haven’t seen the reboot of the new Netflix version of ‘Queer Eye’, you should. One of the best parts about it is Karamo Brown (who is everything Culture related). He has some understanding quotes that he just throws about that really speak to me (like the one above). If you are ever feeling down about yourself I guarantee you’ll feel better after watching one episode of ‘Queer Eye’. But anyway back to the topic at hand.

This week and last, I was feeling quite self-conscious about the work I was producing. Not because it isn’t any good but because there were people all around me that are new to my life and I have no idea what anyone’s standards or expectations are. I was so afraid they would see what I was creating; think I was a failure and crush my dreams. Look, I don’t know any of these people; they are probably all lovely individuals. I am just a doofas who overthinks everything. I was so afraid to be seen as a failure in my peer’s eye and I had decided this before any of them even had a chance to judge or be judged. What I’m saying is that it’s ok to be afraid but do not let it stop you from succeeding. Failure is not the end of the world. Failure is a part of the journey that makes you successful.

If you ever have a moment like I did in the last week or so and you find yourself too afraid to be proud of your own work because you think you might fail. Slap yourself silly! Get out of your head and get out there and change the world! The only person’s opinion you should care about is yours. And always remember, failure is not the opposite of success, but part of it.

Now I know a lot of people, including myself, have and use Netflix. So I thought I might be cool to try and do a Netflix review (at least once a month) as most people can’t always get to the cinema and see the newest releases. I think Netflix is a great alternative to the cinema in many ways. Sure it doesn’t have all the latest movies and tv shows but it has a lot of content that I have always wanted to watch and never got around to actually seeing. It’s a great way to just sit comfortably at home and watch things that you love. Not to mention, the content that Netflix actually produce is usually really good. That’s why I have chosen to talk about the Netflix original film “Extinction” this month.

So I didn’t really know what to expect; unlike many other Netflix originals (e.g. 13 reasons why/Riverdale/etc) I hadn’t really heard of it. I haven’t seen any advertisements pushing this film or social media buzz around it. This made me kind of sceptical and I sort of assumed that maybe it was completely rubbish and not many people liked it. However I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. The premise of the film is “Plagued by dreams of an alien invasion, a family man faces his worst nightmare when a extraterrestrial force begins exterminating Earth’s inhabitants”. That’s all I had to go off and silly old me thought well that seems like a pretty straight forward film. You’ve got a family man who has visions about an alien invasion coming and then it actually happens; will they or won’t they survive?!? Of course it’s not as simple as will they or won’t they survive!! This film has a major plot twist which I didn’t see coming at all. They kept me guessing and I was there trying to figure it out how everything fits together right up until the end of the film. I can’t tell you what the twist is because SPOILERS and well I simply do not want to ruin it for you. I want you to have your own experience like I did. However I can say it is a good twist!

The actors did a good job portraying the characters in this film as well. They had Micheal Pena, Lizzy Callan, Mike Colter, all faces I recognised from other films and tv shows I have watched. However  none of them are massive Hollywood actors/actresses which I felt worked for the film. If they had used a massive actor like Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt it may have taken away from the story the film was trying to tell. Even though this particular character annoyed the shit out of me, I must commend the youngest member of the family little Erica Tremblay who played Lucy. At the mere age of 8 years old, she played a very convincing terrified child. Yes, of course, most of you are just going to sit there and say well all she had to do is cry. I would disagree; an actress, at the young age of 8, had to act completely and utterly terrified and not just by crying all the time. She had to act petrified, she had to act lost, she had to convince the audience that she was actually a normal 8 year old girl in the middle of an alien invasion. Most kids wouldn’t have the maturity to be able to dig so deep and portray the kinds of reactions she did. I think it really hit me how wonderful her acting was when the extraterrestrial came right up to her face and she looked truly terrified. The only reason her character annoyed me was because her character made the same stupid decisions that we have seen children make in most horror/thriller films. I was screaming at the screen when she left the safety of the wardrobe where her mother had told her not to leave just to retrieve her most beloved toy. But hey, these are all cliches that have been used and still work towards the film genres.

Lastly I want to touch on the aesthetic of the film. It was really pleasant to watch this film; not only because of the way the set of this film looked but also the colours that were used. The set was beautiful. I like how the story was actually set in the future of the human race. It is very plausible that we could have the weirdly shaped architectural glass buildings, perfect straight concrete walkways, no traffic and clean monotoned lifestyles. The satisfaction of this future world made the story feel much more believable with all the other elements of the storyline e.g. the possibility of an alien invasion, etc. However this clean and perfect world gave even more of an impact when it was destroy in the fighting that came with the invasion. The contrast between clean, white, perfect city which later turns into rumble, dark wasteland works very well. It also really worked when they introduced colour into the shots. Whether that was actual physical colour within the scene or a lighting choice, it made the whole world seem more sophisticated and futuristic which again made it all so much more believable. It was as if we were looking at an ideal world which we all hope to have in the future.

Unfortunately I can’t say much more without giving away too much. What I can say is that I was pleasantly surprised and I really enjoyed the film both visually and intellectually. Again, I’m not sure why I was surprised because Netflix usually produced really good quality content anyway but I was. If your looking to watch a good new Netflix original film, I would definitely suggest this one. It’s got a bit of everything: Sci-fi, action, thriller, survival, family, alien invasions, blaster guns, etc. Thumbs up from me!

We are back to the cinema next week and will have a review on another new release. We’re thinking “Mission: Impossible – Fallout”….

Ok, so have you ever met someone or had a friend that just creates a lot of drama all the time? Sometimes for no reason at all?? Yes, I have met many of those types of people in the 24 years of my life. Luckily, at the ripe age of 20 I figured out how to deal with the drama queens/kings. CUT THEM OUT OF YOUR LIFE! You can not waste time or energy on people who bring negative vibes to your life. No sir, you actually can’t. It is not worth it. You should respect yourself a whole lot more to not associate with those types of people.

I (finally) figured this out about half way through University. Some of you will say that’s pretty late (I agree), some others will say that’s about normal and then the rest of you probably have no idea what I’m talking about. That’s ok, you will one day and is best to know a good way to deal with them. So how did I learn this “CUT THEM OUT OF YOUR LIFE” trick, it’s a funny story really. I was studying at University but still hanging with the same friends from College. While I was trying to study and progress in my life, some of the said friends from college wanted to continue with the tedious high school bullshit and drama. What was once gossiping and harmless fun was now becoming weekly dramatic fall-outs. “I don’t like that your spending so much time studying, I guess our friendship doesn’t mean anything to you anymore”. Or we have the classic “do you think your above us because you’re a university student now”. Or we just have plain old bitching behind the back which, by the way, almost always gets back to the person so try not to do it.

I spent weeks, months, most likely years having to justify myself and the decisions I made to further my education and ultimately my career to people who were so-called friends. It gave me huge amounts of stress I simply couldn’t deal with; not to mention on top of the stress of university. It just got to the point of where I had no more energy or time to even think about dealing with this week’s drama that I just stopped being friends with them. I put my hands up and walked away.

At first I was scared and terrified that I had lost my only friends. And because I spent so much time with them outside of study, I hadn’t given any time or energy in actually making new friends in University. I was sure that I would be sad and lonely without them. But low and behold, I was fine. I was better than fine, I was great. I was so much happier. I didn’t have to stress about the unnecessary bullshit; I could focus on me and what I wanted. I had the opportunity to go out and do whatever I wanted to do now. I made a new life and I made new friends, better friends, who to this day I am still really close with. We do not bitch or fight or have unnecessary dramas involving each other. We are adults who are trying to figure their way through life. We support one another and the decisions we make. Of course, there are disagreements but we still love each other despite them. They are true friends.

I recently met a new person from my new course that I’m attending. They seemed absolutely fine until, you guessed it, they started an entire drama over nothing. It literally lasted 24 hours. They spent the whole time sulking, giving me the silent treatment and ultimately insulting me even though we only meet last week. I was so uncomfortable and stressed out and I’m only in week 2 of my studies. High school drama always seems to find its way into the most unexpecting areas of life. But now I know how to deal with these types of people and I have asked that person to not engage with me outside of the classroom. It is not worth my mental, physical or emotional well-being. If you ever meet anyone who stresses you or causes you to be unhappy over drama that doesn’t exist, I urge you to try my “CUT THEM OUT OF YOUR LIFE” trick. And if you’re holding on to the fact that you have known them for so long and/or maybe one day it will change; you are dreaming. I know it’s scary and uncomfortable but you should love yourself enough to know your worth more than that. You need to put yourself first. I may have a love/hate relationship with myself but I can tell you now that no one will ever have such control over me in such a way ever again. And I am so much better off for it. Love yourself! Life is too short.

How can I resist ya! Well I couldn’t, I went and watched it the first day it was released in New Zealand. I’m still in love with the first film, I’ve rewatched “Mamma Mia” multiple times. How could I not go and watch this one as soon as it had arrived. And I’ll tell you another thing, I wasn’t disappointed at all.

You really need to have seen the first film to be able to understand this one. For those who have not seen the first film (and you should if you haven’t) let me catch you up to speed. Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) has never known who her father is. She has spent most of her life on a colourful Greek Island with her mother Donna (Meryl Streep). Sophie is getting married and she wants her father to attend her wedding. Luckily, she comes across her mum’s old diary and finds out she has three possible fathers, Bill (Stellan Skarsgård), Sam (Pierce Brosnan) or Harry (Colin Firth). Low and behold, Sophie takes it upon herself to invite them all to the wedding without her mother knowing. The film then launches into a series of hilarious, loving and emotional events revealing Donna’s past with a lot of singing, dancing and all ending up with broken hearts. Donna finally confesses that she doesn’t actually know which one is her father. Sophie decides that she doesn’t need to know which one is actually her biological father and Bill, Sam and Harry decide they would be happy to have 1/3 of her as a daughter. Not to mention this is all being told through the songs of the hit 1970s band ABBA.

Like many sequels, “Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again!” picks up sort of where the last film leaves off. However, it’s about five years after the last film ended and the character of Donna has sadly died since. Again, it very much focuses on Sophie and her personal journey. This time she is trying to figure out whether she should stay and run the hotel in her mother’s honour or leave and build a new life with her partner Skye (Dominic Cooper). Most sequels tend to show progression by moving forward in the story however this film spends the majority of the time looking back into the past. We get to actually see a younger Donna (Lily James) and her travels, how she meet each of Sophie’s dads’ (Bill, Sam and Harry) which lead to her building a life in Greece with Sophie where she stayed until she died. It was so nice to see all the stories they spoke about in the first Mamma Mia film actually playing out in front of us. We get to see the decisions that Donna made but in turn still flashing forward to Sophie and the decisions she needs to make for her own life.

Of course, this is not going to be as good as the first Mamma Mia film but it was a hell of a sequel. We still get to hear all the ABBA classics throughout the film which is so much fun. Also the way this was edited is so good! It was perfectly timed so that the crossover was seamless when jumping from younger Donna back in the 70s to Sophie today. It really enhanced the relationship between the two characters in completely different eras. Because of the seamless editing, there were so many beautiful moments in the films. I laughed, I cried, I sang along. It works really well.

Of course it doesn’t hurt to have a few A list stars appear in the film. They bring Meryl Streep in at the end to do her part and they brought but all the originals (Stellan Skargard, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Dominic Cooper, Amanda Seyfried, etc). You can’t leave out the two crazy aunts (Julie Walters and Cristine Baraski); who are back with their witty humour and knowledge on love, men and life. The biggest star they role in is Cher playing the role of Sophie’s grandmother. Unfortunately, I personally felt like it was a hit and miss. Cher played Cher not Sophie’s grandmother plus she seemed uncomfortable most of the time. However it was pretty spectacular to watch Cher singing ABBA hits. It was a match made in heaven!

I do have to give a special shout out to a new up-and-coming actor, Hugh Skinner. Being that half the film were flashbacks to a young Donna and her past, all the original characters had to have younger versions of themselves also. They were all very well done. There was no one that didn’t pull off their younger versions, however Hugh Skinner is particularly amazing playing a younger Harry as Colin Firth plays older Harry. His mannerisms and characteristics of Harry were so on point and I was rolling about with laughter throughout his performance in Waterloo.

Overall, this film is definitely worth a watch. If you liked ABBA, Mamma Mia or musicals in general then this is the film for you. With a bit of luck I reckon this will be a hit like the first film.

Check in next week for a new film review!!

I don’t have much to rant about for this week; just a quick update. I started school this week. I was terrified. Like honestly, terrified. Somehow, I got myself across town to my first class (not sure how that happened as public transport sends me into massive panic attacks). I was so early I had to wait in the lobby watching everyone else arriving for 40 minutes. At one point I had wound myself up so much that I was pretty much too petrified to move/leave even if I tried. However, I did it! I walked into my first class with a bunch of humans who were most likely also nervous and uncomfortable like myself. But it’s great and so exciting! I’m three days in and I’m enjoying it so much!

It is so easy to turn and run away from things we find difficult. But what kind of life is that! If I did that, I wouldn’t leave my room. I would stay home every day, watch tv and let life pass me by. It might be hard, it might even seem impossible some days but I’m not going to lay down and let everything I have and everything I want and wish for – slip away.

As I touched on last week, you have to believe in yourself and your dreams and sometimes that means making massive life-changing decisions. For me, quitting my job and going back to school was a massive life-changing decision. But I am doing it. I’m venturing into the unknown equipped with nothing but belief in myself and my dream of making films. I’m jumping off the cliff in the hope that somehow I start to fly!

I’ll leave you with a little quote from Mama Ru’s (Ru Paul) hit song “Sissy That Walk” which I try to listen to when I’m feeling low.

“And if I fly, or if I fall. Least I can say, I gave it all.”

Remember to pop back in on Friday night for our weekly film review, this week is on “Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again”.

Ok, for those who don’t know, I am a massive Jurassic Park fan. Whoever it was that thought “ok, let’s take the modern world but let’s see what happens when you reintroduce dinosaurs into it”, was a genius. That concept was completely out-of-this world and so ahead of its time when the first film came out in 1993. Of course like any great concept, the sequels and the remakes keep on coming. Just look at Batman, Spider-Man, Pirates of the Caribbean, Star Wars, Fast and Furious; the list is endless. This film is no exception; Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” is the 2^nd of the Jurassic World films but technically the 5^th instalment of the Jurassic Park series.

Like many sequels it picks up where the last film left off. Of course, we left Jurassic World, another dinosaur park, where the dinosaurs had broken loose and the island is now pretty much become a sanctuary where no humans can really visit. Unlike any of the other Jurassic Park films, the islands’ dormant Volcano has become active and will destroy the island and all the dinosaurs on it. It becomes Owen Grady’s (Chris Pratt) and Claire Dearing’s (Bryce Dallas Howard) mission to rescue the dinosaurs from extinction again.

This review is probably going to be my most negative yet however I didn’t hate the film, let’s get that straight. Let’s start with what is good about it. First and foremost the CGI in the movie is phenomenal. Even though the people in 1993 had such vision for the Jurassic park films, they didn’t have the technology we do today. The CGI is ridiculously good in the film and the dinosaurs look incredibly real that it’s totally believable. I even caught myself questioning whether dinosaurs were in fact extinct because I could see them right in front of me on film. Another element that was great was all the action and stunts in the film. The film has everything you want to see from a Jurassic Park film. Fights between dinosaurs, Fights between humans and dinosaurs, water stunts where you question if they in fact die at the point of the film and lots and lots of running, especially from lava. Obviously it was helped by the CGI, but this film keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire movie. Myself and the people around me at the cinema were jumping in scary moments; becoming agitated in the tense scenes and one kid even said “no sir, I don’t like the look of this” at one stage. The movie is so captivating and thrilling to watch. I, 100%, urge you to see this film just for the CGI, action and stunts alone. You won’t be disappointed in that sense.

What you might be disappointed in is the weak storyline of the film. Now there could be some spoilers ahead so I’m warning you now. I’ll try to keep it as close to the trailer as possible. So yet again we return to the island which has been abandoned by humans because the dinosaurs got free. Yes, we haven’t been in the situation where the dinosaurs are threatened with extinction from an active volcano before but we have seen characters in the past who have tried to get the dinosaurs off the island in a boat. And this is what is happening in this film, the characters are trying to track down all the dinosaurs on the island so they can get them on a boat and safely away from the island which is about to be covered in lava. They focus on one dinosaur in particular, the raptor “Blue”, hence Owen Grady coming back to the island to help find her. It is very important for them to find her as she is the last known alive raptor in the world. As the audience, we think it’s all about trying to preserve a species however it’s not. Spoiler alert, the bad guys have (AGAIN) engineered a new designer dinosaur. This time it is focused on the base gene of a raptor. Here’s my problem again; this has been done before! In the last film, Jurassic World, it was ingenious! Someone was clever enough to put the two scariest dinosaurs together, a T-Rex and a raptor and make a whole new dinosaur. That was amazing! It was awesome! But in this film it’s no big deal. Yes, in this film, it’s more scary; it’s been designed for combat and therefore it’s like a terminator dinosaur that only kills but it isn’t anything new. The greatest part of the storyline is the ending, which I won’t go into because that really will be a spoiler.

Finally, I should say that the actors and actresses in this film are actually really good. I have to give a shout out to them and the wonderful characters they brought to the screen. We get to meet new characters which bring new dimensions and humour to the film. In particular, Justice Smith (Franklin Webb) and Daniella Pineda (Zia Rodriguez) were great new additions. Justice brings this hilarious geeky vibe while Daniella is a kick-ass doctor who takes not shit. Of course we get to see the wonderful onscreen duo which is Owen (Chris Pratt) and Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard). Their fight for survival, intense sexual tension and funny banter are still very much present in this film as it was in the last. A film can have great CGI and stunts but the cast really bring it all together in the end. Without them, it’s just a bunch of realistic dinosaurs running around.

Overall, if you’re looking for a thrilling action film to watch, which is also a classic; you should watch this film. You should also watch this film for the very reasons you watched “The Lost World: Jurassic Park 2” and “Jurassic Park 3”; we wanted to see what happens. However, do expect massive twist and turns in the story because they aren’t many at all.

Check back in next week for a review on Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again!

Yes! The title is incredibly cheesy but it’s true! The older I have gotten the more I find that all those cheesy things your parents say to you while growing up are actually true. I guess they say these types of things to us because they have made mistakes in their lives and hope to pass on a little advice to help us avoid making those same mistakes as well. Well, I didn’t really listen when I was younger but I should have.

As you all know, I have recently left a very stable and comfortable job to follow my own dreams. I got this job a few years ago straight after finishing my BA Honours in University. I was hell-bent on going to work and making money and I didn’t care what it was. My parents advised me against it and encouraged me to follow my dreams and to not waste time because life is too short. I was not having a bar of it though. They were supportive regardless and helped me look for jobs in calling centres, as receptionists, etc. I wanted to work hard, make lots of money and travel. I was fortunate enough to find a personal assistant job that gave me a lot of skills to take forward with me into the future. However, the job took over my entire life; I didn’t really get to travel as I wanted too and it had nothing to do with making films which is what I really want to do with my life. Leaving the job was a hard decision to make because it meant giving up a lifestyle that is comfortable with a regular income to stepping out into the unknown, becoming a student again and having very little money. However, I am very happy that I did it.

My sister was clever enough to learn from my mistakes. She knew the best thing to do as soon as she finished her degree was to do something that actually focused on and had something to do with what she wants to do with her life. She is now overseas working with Disney. All because she is following her dream. She has so many opportunities in front of her and she might even wind up working in China next year. It is just incredible! She is a real inspiration to me and when I saw what she was achieving just because she got out of her comfort zone and followed her dreams, it made me realise what I needed to do.

Thankfully I’m young enough that my few years working in the corporate world is not going to affect me all that much. But do not think that I look at my time in the corporate world as a regret or mistake. As I have said, I learnt so much from my previous job and I have met some amazing people. Inevitably it showed me what kind of lifestyle I could have if I continued in this kind of job. I realised that this was not the life I wanted. I am not a nine to five working gal that’s going to get married and have kids and never leave Wellington. That’s simply not me. But there is nothing wrong with that lifestyle at all. Most people want that lifestyle, I’m just saying that it’s not for me. I want more. I want to travel, I want a career, I want to meet more amazing people all over the world and ultimately, I want to make a difference before my time is up.

The best thing for me now is to go back to school; to learn the skills that will take me forward and progress towards the ultimate goal. I’m ok with that. I’m more than ok with that, I’m so excited to get started. I am so ready for the next adventure. So this is me, finally, plucking up the courage to follow my dream. So from me, a 24 year old girl who’s not a parent, please please please follow your dreams. It is not worth you wasting time on other things when you could be putting all your energy into something that would mean so much more to yourself. And even though you may think that your dream is stupid, please do not let that stop you from trying. No one in this world just thinks “yes, I have got this, achieving this dream will be easy”. Everyone at some point completely doubts themselves and thinks what they want is too hard to achieve. But that doesn’t have to stop you from trying. You only fail if you do not try. So do it. Follow your dreams. You never know what might happen.

I have waited 14 years for this movie and, oh god, it was worth the wait! You cannot even imagine my excitement when I found out they were making this sequel. For those of you who don’t know, and believe me it’s no secret, I am a massive Disney fan! Probably the biggest reason why is because it was a massive influence in my upbringing as it is for many young kids today. I might be in my 20s but kids, step aside! I cried like a baby the first time I saw Mickey and Minnie Mouse the first day we spent in Disney World in June last month; believe me the novelty has not worn off and the magic is still very much alive for me.

This film picks up exactly where it left off in “The Incredibles” and thank goodness because I don’t know anyone who didn’t want to find out what happened with the UNDERMINER!!! So bringing it back, Superheroes are still illegal and it is their mission to change this silly law so that superheroes have a future, a place in society and no longer have to hide their true selves. Surprising enough, Elastic Girl becomes the focus of this film. Whereas we had a lot of focus on Mr Incredible (Bob Parr) in the last film and his work as a superhero; we only really got a glance at Helen Parr (Elastic Girl) as a very protective mother and wife. This film we get to see a whole new ass-kicking side of her who actually enjoys catching bad guys. I guess it’s no surprise in this day and age where we have a lot of feministic themes trying to push through in pop culture that the writer chose to focus more on Helen than Bob. Yes, she’s a mother and a wife and she only wants the best for her family but she is a human being as well. She has wants and needs herself that are separate from her family life and she wants a successful career. Go Girl!

A great comedic element of this film however is the baby, Jack Jack. In “The Incredibles” he apparently had no powers and was the only normal person in the family. Of course, right at the end of the last film, and in the short film “Jack Jack Attack” within the special features on the DVD, we find out that he indeed does have powers, many of them in fact. He actually seems to be the most powerful Incredible family member by far. Of course, no one in the family yet knows about these powers and so there is a hilarious progression throughout the film where the other characters start to find out. We even get to see Edna Mode show a softer, more motherly, side of her character when she finally meets little Jack Jack. From fights with raccoons to dimensional space trips, the discovery of the baby’s powers is a funny touch that never takes away from the overarching main plot.

Not only do we get to see the characters we fell in love with in the first film but we get to meet new ones too. These include Helectrix, Krushauer, Reflux and of course Voyd; being a personal favourite of mine and, I have the feeling, for multiple others as well. It’s so nice to see a mix between the originals and new superheroes; keeping it fresh and new for future generations.

Overall, as I said, the film was definitely worth waiting for. Of course it’s not the original that we all fell in love with and replayed over the last decade but it’s a great way to continue the story and bring closure; we always wanted to know what happened to the Incredibles!Tune in next week for a review on Jurassic World: The Fallen Kingdom. Yay, Dinosaurs!

“Look inside yourself. You are more than what you have become. Remember who you are.” – The Lion King, 1994.

I am using Disney quotes to inspire me on a daily basis at the moment. I just want to take a moment and talk about real life and how confusing it can be.

As explained recently I left my full time job to follow my dream of working in the film industry. At the moment I am in between leaving my old job and starting my new studies (yes, I am going back to school). I have literally nothing to do every single day; no job to go to, no meetings to attend, etc. And while it is great to focus on myself and have time to actually do things for me, I am so bored! I’m driving myself crazy!! Even editing the next Mean Productions video about our USA trip is hard to do right now. I just don’t have the energy to do it.  I am not sure whether it’s because my body needs a break to recover from my hectic old job or whether I’m so bored I just don’t want to do anything.

This is so frustrating however I know it’s because I am lacking structure. I have learnt that I need to plan my days out beforehand so I have goals to achieve every single day. It doesn’t matter if they are big goals or small goals, just something for me to aim for each day. Whether it’s making sure I get to the gym in the morning or setting a goal to edit at least 30 seconds of the video by lunchtime, it doesn’t matter.

You always need to do what is good for you and learn what works for you as well. For instance, some people can work from their bed but I can’t. I tell you, if I tried working from bed I will eventually find myself in a horizontal position and fast asleep. That’s why I went out and bought myself a desk because now I have somewhere to work and study that isn’t going to make me fall asleep. It is literally the only place that makes me focus and work on those goals I have set myself each day.

I’m not perfect, I don’t think anyone is perfect but I think sometimes we have to listen to our bodies and hear what they are saying. Yes, I’m not very driven right now but that’s ok because I’ll get out of this funk soon enough. No, I don’t do well without structure and I have to make daily goals to focus. Life is not either black or white and easy to understand. You need to know what works for you; not what works for others.

I’m just gonna leave this photo of me and Mickey Mouse right here. Let’s try to remind ourselves of the magic and wonder of what it was like to be a kid and how simple it all was back then.