Alvin's Adventures in Pop Culture

Downton Abbey – Movie Review

“Welcome back to Downton Abbey”. This feature film’s return to our favourite castle in the English countryside is fan-service of the best kind. It’s almost as if the successful and beloved show (I’ve watched the series through three times already!) never ended — or at least kept going while off the air. Everyone is back,…

2019 Summer TV Binge-watching

While summer used to be about taking a break from TV and watching blockbuster movies, counter-programming on Netflix, Amazon and other streaming channels have made this summer more about some fun shows. While I enjoyed myself some Avengers and Spider-man action early on, over the last month there’s been a new series to binge-watch each…

Spider-man: Far From Home – Movie Review

I’m not sure whether it was the European locales, or another fresh performance by Tom Holland as Spider-man, that had me most looking forward to this movie. Having the kids from Spider-man: Homecoming head to London, Venice, Prague, Berlin, etc. for their class trip may have seemed unrealistically extravagant, but how else do I get…

Toy Story 4 – Movie Review

I didn’t expect Toy Story to keep going, but having enjoyed this fourth installment, I’m thinking that the franchise could probably continue indefinitely. This time around, we pick up the tale of Woody, Buzz, and the others after they’ve been with new child, Bonnie, for a while (long enough for Bonnie to neglect Woody and…

Mamoru Hosoda: A New Japanese Animation Master

One of the joys of the TV off-season is the opportunity to catch up on movies. Recently, I spent five evenings binge-watching the works of new Japanese master animator, Mamoru Hosoda. When it comes to Japanese animated films, most people think of Studio Ghibli, founded by master animator Hayao Miyazaki. Their kinds of movies are…

BBT vs GOT: What’s the right way to end an era?

Spoiler warning: If you have not yet watched the last two episodes of The Big Bang Theory or Game of Thrones, why not?! Even the photos above have probably already spoiled things for you. Nevertheless, you should probably stop reading and go stream the episodes instead, in case you still want some surprise from the…

Avengers: Endgame – Movie Review

It’s no doubt a sign of the hype behind this film that I feel slow for watching it on the second weekend. Man, it has been tough to avoid spoilers! Everyone is very sensitive, asking first if you’ve seen the movie before blurting out plot details, and most internet posts contain the appropriate warnings. Nevertheless,…

Captain Marvel – Movie Review

As excited as I was to get more heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it was more “Guardians of the Galaxy”-style cosmic adventures that I was really anticipating. Captain Marvel’s debut movie started out by dropping us into the middle of her day as a Starforce operative on the Kree homeworld of Hala (very far…

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World – Movie Review

After three movies and three TV series, the story of Hiccup, Toothless, and the rest of the clan finally comes to an end. While I would have thought that the last movie in the trilogy would have been a huge blow-out, with epic action and similarly epic storylines, The Hidden World is disappointingly ordinary. The…