The ThawedCast: Conversations About Animation

Philip and Jodi discuss 2010's 'TRON: Legacy,' the long-awaited sequel to 1982's 'TRON' starring Jeff Bridges as a plucky computer programmer who gets sucked into the computer world. This seminal "legacy sequel" from Joseph Kosinski, who would go on to direct the 2022 mega-hit 'Top Gun: Maverick,' also stars Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn and centers around Kevin's son Sam, who lost contact with his...

Wes Anderson's genre-bending, fourth wall-breaking new film 'Asteroid City' features a colorful cast collected in a remote desert setting. The government research hub of Asteroid City has few permanent residents but plays host to a science convention honoring the achievements of brilliant young minds. Suddenly, a quarantine befalls Asteroid City, and whether or not this eclectic congregation is al...

Philip and Jodi discuss the latest film from Christopher Nolan and Universal Pictures, 'Oppenheimer,' documenting the Manhattan Project and the life of its co-leader and chief researcher, J. Robert Oppenheimer. Oppenheimer would earn the nickname "Father of the Atomic Bomb" and later "American Prometheus" as the person most responsible for the creation and testing of nuclear weapons, of which only...

Bridget, Lara, and Philip discuss 'Barbie' from Warner Bros. and Mattel. This motion picture phenomenon is directed by Greta Gerwig and stars Margot Robbie as Barbie, or "Stereotypical Barbie" as distinguished from all the other Barbies in Barbieland. Ryan Gosling plays her Ken, who exists to impress Barbie but often goes underappreciated. We follow Stereotypical Barbie as she starts feeling sensa...

'Nimona' is an animated film released by Netflix on June 30, 2023. It was produced by Annapurna Pictures and the animation team formerly of Blue Sky, the studio behind 'Ice Age' (2002) and 'Spies and Disguise' (2019) and a casualty of the Disney/21st Century Fox acquisition. Nimona is set in a world of futuristic technology combined with medieval chivalry and opens on the televised knighting cerem...

'Elemental' is the new film from Pixar Animation and Walt Disney Studios, directed by Peter Sohn. Philip and Bridget discuss the new film all about two characters who are of two opposite extremes. Ember is a being made of fire who comes from an immigrant family and Wade comes from the city's long-established water community. Their conflict blossoms into a potential romance as they discover the way...

Philip and Jodi are joined by 'The Little Mermaid'-superfan Lara Akal to review the 2023 'The Little Mermaid' from Disney. This film reimagines the 1989 Disney animated original in live action with a fresh cast and additional songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Alan Menken returns to score and Howard Ashman's legendary lyrics have been revived once again for an ambitious encore. This latest adaptation of...

Philip and Elliott discuss the latest release from Marvel Studios, 'Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3' written and directed by James Gunn. The Guardians must race to save the life of one of their members after a surprise encounter with an agent of the High Evolutionary, a maniacal scientist and warlord with aims to create a perfect utopia under his control. Follow The ThawedCast: Conversations Abou...

Jodi, Bridget and Philip discuss the new Max Original animated series ‘Fired on Mars’ available on HBO Max. Jeff Cooper is a graphic designer for the tech giant Mars.ly, and has recently been transferred to their corporate offices on planet Mars. He awaits the day when he can finally start a new life with his partner Hannah, who is scheduled to arrive the following year. Jeff’s life is thrown into...

Philip and Bridget talk about season 3 of Lucasfilm's 'The Mandalorian' on Disney Plus. This season finds Din Djarin and Grogu searching for the Living Waters of Mandalore. Din believes he can work with his fellow Mandalorians to restore their homeworld and reunite their people. The disgraced Bo-Katan Kryze is one of the few people who can lead a fractured Mandalore, but first she must earn the tr...

'The Super Mario Bros. Movie' is the record-shattering 2023 film adaptation of the beloved 'Super Mario Bros.' video game franchise from Nintendo. Philip, Bridget, and Alex review the new animated release from Universal Pictures and Illumination, delving into the whimsical fantasy of the Mushroom Kingdom along with New York City plumbers Mario and Luigi, whose epic adventure finds them face-to-fac...

Bridget, Jodi and Philip review the Oscar-winning 'Everything Everywhere All at Once,' a wild visual spectacle from directors Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert and A24 Films. Released in April 2022 in the United States, 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' features a Chinese immigrant couple struggling to keep up with the pressures of their laundromat business. During a visit to the local IRS office, E...

Jodi, Bridget and Philip review the 2022 'Pinocchio' adaptation from renowned filmmaker Guillermo del Toro and Netflix. Filmed using stop-motion puppetry, del Toro co-directs with Mark Gustafson a film that reflects the signature dark whimsy of del Toro's earlier films, unafraid to delve into heavy symbolism involving war and loss. The wartime setting is punctuated by numerous colorful characters...

Jodi, Bridget and Philip review and discuss the 2022 animated film 'The Sea Beast' from Netflix. Walt Disney Animation Studios veteran Chris Williams writes and directs on a film that follows in the footsteps of his past efforts including 'Bolt,' 'Big Hero 6,' and 'Moana.' 'The Sea Beast' offers epic adventure on the high seas where we follow the crew of the 'Inevitable,' the greatest hunters of t...

Philip and Bridget discuss a variety of pop-culture topics including AI art being sold at conventions, free shipping, the gig economy, and the pressures of standardized education. The rapid movement of commerce via online and tech-based innovation has been a source of tremendous excitement since the advent of the Internet, but eventually the excitement wears off and people necessarily adapt to a m...

The first entry in the now-ubiquitous 'Sonic the Hedgehog' film franchise starring James Marsden and Jim Carrey, with Ben Schwartz providing the voice of the classic Sega mascot, 'Sonic the Hedgehog' was released in early 2020 to an enthusiastic audience. The movie managed to win over a younger crowd who had inherited the legacy of the 90s icon, and it generally appealed to longtime fans of the se...

'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish' is the sequel to 2011's 'Puss in Boots' and is the sixth film in the 'Shrek' franchise from DreamWorks Animation. Philip and Bridget discuss this new theatrical release, the studio's 43rd feature, and measure it up against today's cinematic landscape. 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish' finds the literary hero Puss reckoning with his potential demise. The dashing rogue's...

Philip and Bridget discuss 'Strange World' from Walt Disney Animation Studios. The Walt Disney Company celebrates its 100th anniversary and its feature animation division's 61st animated film, coinciding with a new castle logo redesign to celebrate the centennial milestone. With a premise pulled from pulp novels of the early twentieth century, 'Strange World' places viewers in the mysterious Victo...

Philip is joined by his sister Samara and her husband Elliott in discussing the new 'Star Wars' series on Disney+, 'Andor'. This live-action sci-fi drama details the origin of Cassian Andor, co-protagonist of the 2016 film 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' about the mission to steal the Death Star plans from the evil Galactic Empire. Cassian finds himself a reluctant participant in a nascent rebellio...

Jodi, Bridget, and Philip return to the world of 'Enchanted' in its sequel 15 years in the making. Set around a decade after the original film, Giselle and Patrick have a child of their own, the infant Sofia, and Morgan is entering her senior year of high school. They move from their Manhattan apartment to the idyllic suburb of Monroeville, but Morgan (and to a lesser extent Robert) is unhappy wit...

Jodi, Bridget, and Philip discuss the seminal 2007 Disney animated/live-action hybrid 'Enchanted,' from director Kevin Lima. This film would usher in the post-Rennaissance era of the Disney Princess which saw a soft revival with 'The Princess and the Frog' and truly exploded with CGI hits like 'Tangled' and 'Frozen.' Amy Adams portrays Giselle, a beautiful princess hidden away in the countryside o...

Philip and Bridget discuss ‘Zootopia+’ from Walt Disney Animation Studios, the six-part anthology set in the world of the film ‘Zootopia’ from 2016. Other topics in this this episode include ‘Grogu and the Dust Bunnies’ from Lucasfilm and Studio Ghibli, Taylor Swift’s ‘Midnights,’ and future ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ spin-offs. Follow The ThawedCast: Conversations About Animation: twitter.com/t...

Philip, Bridget and Alex discuss 'Wendell & Wild' from 'Coraline' and 'Nightmare Before Christmas' director Henry Selick. Released October 2022 on Netflix, the film stars Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele respectively as the eponymous duo Wendell and Wild, two mischievous demons in the service of arch-demon Buffalo Belzer. The film was originally conceived by Henry Selick with additional writing...

Bridget, Alex and Philip have a general chat about animation, entertainment and pop culture news and topics. Come hang with the ThawedCast in this laid-back episode containing everything from the upcoming 'Super Mario Bros.' movie to celebrity encounters. Also each co-host has his or her own Mandela-effect moment, so there's also that. Follow The ThawedCast: Conversations About Animation: twitter....

Alex, Philip and Bridget put out an APB on 'Monster House' from 2003, directed by Gil Kenan, about a villainous house that eats people (and dogs)! This edgy horror-comedy for kids is the perfect balance of kid-friendly intrigue and clever, tongue-in-cheek dialogue from the animation house behind 'The Polar Express.' Having made the tonal shift from Christmas to Halloween, Robert Zemeckis' ImageMov...