Buried Truth of the Maya (2020)

Disney has cleverly managed to dance around the misdeeds of their past by scraping by with an insincere action that does very little to incite any long-lasting positive changes.

I was able to watch the gleefully mesmerizing Disney remake that was Robert Zemeckis’ Pinocchio. I was enthralled by Zemeckis’ iteration. 

The social issues The Half of it takes on are handled well, between the antagonization brought on to Ellie for her race and the conflict that arises from her being gay. Both aspects of her character are built up over the course of the film and don’t seem abrupt or rushed. The film shows racism towards Ellie and her and father in varying levels, from having her schoolmates specifically address her as "Chinese girl” to the fore mentioned way her Dad is treated due to language barriers. The same can be said about Ellie being a lesbian. While she never truly “comes out” in the narrative, that does not undermine her journey of self-discovery from being meaningful. These ideas aren’t thrust upon the viewer in a preachy manor, the scenarios that occur feel believable given the rural setting. The film presents watchers with problems whom those like Ellie may face, and leaves us to sit with them and reflect.

Making Apes begins by looking back at the history of makeup effects in Hollywood, which was revolutionized by Jack Pierce, the person behind Frankenstein (1931) and The Wolf Man (1941)

'The Mad Woman and the Feminist': This Spanish entry for the MiamisFF directed by Sandra Gallego handles a difficult conversation in a smart, memorable way.