Verbal Diorama

Shrek and Fiona, fresh off their 'happily ever after', are invited to a Royal Ball in celebration of their marriage. It's being held, far far away in the kingdom of Far Far Away, by Fiona's parents, the King and Queen of Far Far Away, aka Mum and Dad. But hold on to your boots (Puss), because Shrek, being an actual ogre, faces a bit of a challenge fitting in with the royal family—especially when t...

In 1992, US President George H.W. Bush famously remarked, during a speech at the Annual Convention of the National Religious Broadcasters, that the American family needs to be “a lot more like the Waltons and a lot less like the Simpsons.” The longest-running American animated series, longest-running American sitcom, and the longest-running American scripted primetime television series, both in se...

Speaking of a family with gifts, young Norman Babcock happens to be able to speak to the dead, making him a social outcast to humans, but also probably the only person who can stop zombies rising from their graves... ParaNorman 's unique approach to horror allows it to explore serious societal issues through animation, and creatively blends animated horror with heartfelt themes of acceptance and u...

Welcome to The Family Madrigal , and the Surface Pressure hiding underneath the perfect façade of a magical family with wonderful gifts - everyone except Mirabel. Who probably wonders " What Else Can I Do ?" on the regular, when her Abuela seems to blame her for everything. All Of You probably know the intergenerational trauma this movie perfectly depicts, but it's also a movie that took the time...

There's Nobody Like U, Turning Red . Turning Red is a ground-breaking animated film, rightfully kicking off Animation Season 2025 in style, with magical puberty front and centre, that addresses the universal struggles of adolescence through the story of Mei Lee, a 13-year-old girl caught between her familial obligations and her burgeoning independence. Domee Shi's feature-length directorial debut...

Before we learn how all about the history and legacy of a modern Christmas classic, let's recite the "Code of the Elves," shall we? Number one; "Treat every day like Christmas." Number two; "There's room for everyone on the nice list." Number three; "The best way to spread Christmas Cheer, is singing loud for all to hear." Just for those listeners on Santa's nice list, the enduring appeal of Elf l...

Looks like you've found yourself on Santa's Naughty List! How the Grinch Stole Christmas isn't just a beloved holiday classic; it’s a deep dive into the complexities of acceptance, compassion, and the true spirit of Christmas, that also contains a Mean One! From Dr. Seuss's iconic original story to its 1966 animated version and the 2000 live-action adaptation featuring Jim Carrey, the Grinch's tra...

Perennial Christmas classic Lethal Weapon redefined the buddy cop genre with its festive setting, unique characters and the undisputed chemistry between Mel Gibson and Danny Glover. Shane Black's screenplay combined humour and action and made it a benchmark for future action films, and Richard Donner's direction brought a skilled touch to the film's pacing and storytelling. Unlike other buddy cop...

Before I begin, I notice that Chancellor Jarnathan is not present...? I'm back from an extended break, deciding to do an episode on Dungeons & Dragons , and its fifty-year history and legacy as the most popular TTRPG in the world. Easing myself back into podcasting slowly, then, because it's safe to say nothing has impacted geek culture like Dungeons & Dragons , since its debut i...

Halloween has a complex and multifaceted legacy, intertwining themes of fear, adolescence, and societal commentary. The exploration of the concept of the 'Final Girl,' epitomized by Laurie Strode, played by Jamie Lee Curtis. Laurie’s character represents resilience and survival, challenging traditional gender roles often depicted in horror films, and her casting was just a simple publicity stunt r...

There's a curse at Camp Crystal Lake. It's going to be a Long Night at Camp Blood. Except that didn't turn out to be the title of this movie. The original Friday the 13th cleverly subverts horror tropes by making the killer a middle-aged mother, capitalizing on the fears associated with the number 13, as well as the success of Halloween in 1978. Betsy Palmer's portrayal of Pamela Voorhees, who onl...

40 years ago, slashers took a terrifying turn, when Wes Craven suggested that we could not only be haunted by our nightmares, but also die from the creatures within them. Craven's creation of Freddy Krueger stemmed from a haunting childhood memory that inspired the character - called Fred Krueger in this movie only - and the true unexplained deaths of Cambodian immigrants who randomly died in thei...

Horror icon Chucky was originally created by UCLA student Don Mancini, evolving from a script originally titled ' Batteries Not Included ' which then became ' Blood Buddy ', where the character was named Buddy. Potential lawsuit with Hasbro aside, Buddy would eventually become Chucky; the movie was eventually renamed Child's Play , and would become a ground-breaking horror film that successfully c...

Bill & Ted creators Ed Solomon and Chris Matheson, along with stars Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves, always assumed Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey would be the last time anyone would see Bill S. Preston Esquire and Ted Theodore Logan together on the big screen ever again. Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey hadn't done the business of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure , and so all four men went the...

Verbal Diorama: It’s hip, it’s now , it’s wow and how?! After the huge success of both Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 , Sam Raimi wanted to finish his Spider-Man trilogy with a bang. Originally planning to have Sandman and the Vulture, along with a non-New Goblin Harry Osborn against Peter Parker's newly adored Spider-Man, plans would evolve somewhat as time passed, with Avi Arad instead wanting fan...

Batman Forever , for all its neon grandiose spectacle, was purely created as the anthesis to Batman Returns . While retrospectively, Batman Returns is seen as one of the best Batman movies, the backlash around the movie's dark, violent and sexual nature led to parents revolting, and Warner Bros scrambling to make Batman family-friendly again. Enter Joel Schumacher, a guy with a strong movie making...

After Steven Spielberg took the reins for both Jurassic Park and The Lost World: Jurassic World , it was time for some fresh meat for Jurassic Park III , which was the first to not be directed by Spielberg and not be based on a Michael Crichton novel. Jurassic Park III would start to have problems early, though. The original script was thrown out five weeks before filming was due to start, with th...

Bong Joon-ho’s dedication to making Snowpiercer , and making it his way, is as always a true testament to his greatness as a director, and a visionary director at that. You don’t start something in 2005 and take seven years to develop it if you don’t have that passion for the project. In many ways the scale and scope of Snowpiercer led Bong to want to make smaller films - his next film would be Ok...

Hollywood cinema has often featured Native American men in Westerns as brutal, hypermasculine barbarian warriors, and Native American women as hyper-sexualised or a quiet subservient. They'd also often be portrayed by white actors in brownface. How remarkable that a Predator prequel aimed to set this injustice right? Despite not being of Native American descent, director Dan Trachtenberg and write...

From the depths of the Mexican jungle, an elite team of special forces are sent in to rescue hostages, but unbeknownst to them, they're the ones who are being hunted. Predator , originally known as Hunter, was a spec script by brothers Jim and John Thomas that was slid under the door at 20th Century Fox, and ended up being sold without an agent or a lawyer. While its premise changed slightly from...

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is beloved by fans of the franchise, and lauded as the best Star Trek movie, with Khan himself as one of the standout villains, and Spock's sacrifice and resulting death as an emotional high point. That wasn't always the case though. In fact, Spock's death was leaked to fans during production, and fans were not happy, even resorting to sending death threats to produ...

Starting life as a skit for the VH1 Fashion awards, Derek Zoolander would become an international sensation, and be vying for his fourth consecutive VH1 Male Model of the Year. It's an impressive feat for a man as ridiculously good-looking as he is. Inspired by the success of Austin Powers , the idea was to make a feature length movie out of Derek's life and successes, but filming during the 2000...

Cloverfield , or one of its many other names, was greenlit in a shroud of secrecy, and that secrecy continued throughout production. Actors were auditioned without even being told what they were auditioning for, just that it was a new untitled J.J. Abrams project, and the Abrams name was enough to whet the appetites of not only the actors involved, but also the general public. After a teaser trail...

Remember when action movie heroes didn’t have to think and just beat up a load of bad guys? Jason Bourne heralded the change when The Bourne Identity came out in 2002, and heroes became as vulnerable as they could be dangerous. It was a troubled production, led by Doug Liman, who fought for years to get the rights to the material, and get the movie made in his own chaotic and frenetic directorial...

Roland Emmerich is not known for being an auteur director, but he is known for his disaster movies; the most defining and well-known of which is Independence Day . A movie that was almost called Doomsday . Can you imagine celebrating our Doomsday every 4th of July? A movie called Independence Day , released around Independence Day 1996, was never going to be anything other than a spectacle of Amer...