TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

Who says musicals are dead? Well, probably anyone who's seen this year's  Annie  that's over the age of 10. But I'd like to make a case for the art that is, at least, attempting to come back to life! Rob Marshall, the director of Into the Woods , essentially revitalized the genre with 2002's Chicago , an adaptation of the stage play. It took home the Oscar for Best Picture, beating much better films like The Pianist and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers . It also won the ancient Golden Globe category of Best Comedy/Musical, which has nominated such hilarious classics like Pride & Prejudice , My Week with Marilyn and The Tourist . It turned out to be a fluke for the genre, until Marshall again tried to wow us with Nine , a box-office failure. It wasn't until 2012's Les Mis , (which I saw twice!) that really excited people and brought theater geeks and casual film fans alike in drove to the box office to watch Hugh Jackman steal bread and hear Russel ...

Stop motion is one of the most rigorous, time consuming methods of animation ever, if you've ever seen the little, slight detail put into one of those features, it's jaw dropping.  One of my personal favorite films (not just of stop-motion, but of all time) is Wes Anderson's "Fantastic Mr. Fox."  You see every little ripple of clothing that was moved just an inch, to make it appear like these dolls or moving.  Other brilliant instances of this work are "Coraline," "Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit," and "Corpse Bride."  They're short, but only because it can take up to a year to shoot a simple five minute shot.  Take note that every movie I've listed has either won or been nominated for Best Animated film at the Oscars.  It's quality entertainment. Now add in there actually coming up with funny gags, characters worth investing in to, and having a positive message for kids, though I think a more adult...