“The Wild Robot” is a good story — one that may have you smiling as you blink away a tear or two. “Am I Racist” features Daily Wire personality Matt Walsh posing as a faux diversity expert in this skewering mockumentary about DEI.
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Wild Robot – In Theaters
When Fink tells his story — one meant to reassure to Brightbill how much Roz loves him — a listening Roz doesn’t quite get the concept at first. And when Fink talks about what Roz feels when she looks at Brightbill, for instance, she feels—
“Crushing obligation,” Roz says.
“Very lucky to be a mother,” Fink amends.
“And I will not leave until I have completed this task, which has delayed me, damaged me and violated my protocols, potentially voiding my warranty!” Roz concludes.
And Roz hasn’t even gotten to the best part yet: the worries, the fears, the regrets. “The Wild Robot” touches on all these parental emotions and more. And the story comes back to the same conclusion that mothers around the world have reached as well: Nothing is more painful. Nothing is harder. Nothing is more beautiful. And I’d never, ever trade it for anything.
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“The Wild Robot” is perhaps more for parents than kids. The messages of parenthood and family here are so strong, so potent, so raw. That said, kids will still find plenty to like about the film, too. It’s funny and sweet and sad and—despite its futuristic, AI-and-talking-animal conceit — real.
Director Chris Sanders (whom we talked with on our podcast) has tackled the subject of family plenty in his previous movies: the difficult father-son relationship we find in “How to Train Your Dragon”; the surprisingly poignant father-daughter relationship in “The Croods.” But “The Wild Robot” may be Sanders’ best film yet. The art is lush and gorgeous and, at times, breathtaking. But the narrative wraps all of its artistic and technical excellence around a warm, beating core.
Fink may say that storytelling is “lying adjacent,” but here’s the funny thing about stories: They sometimes hit closer to truth than straight facts do. In this story of a well-meaning robot and her struggling gosling son, we find hints of what it means to be a parent. To be a child. To be kind. And to be loved in all its messy reality.
Certainly, parents should be mindful of the story’s violence. We do see scenes here that could potentially bother young and/or impressionable viewers. The island Roz and Brightbill inhabit isn’t a safe island — not by a longshot.
But it is a good island. And “The Wild Robot” is a good story — one that may have you smiling as you blink away a tear or two.
Read the rest of the review here. Watch the trailer here.
Am I Racist? – In Theaters
What does it mean to be racist in 21st-century America?
Over the last few decades — but especially in the last 10 years or so — the answer to that question has arguably changed. Where once being a racist meant actively harboring prejudice against someone of a different color skin, these days we hear a lot more talk about institutional racism. To be white, some argue, is to implicitly participate in a system of privilege and empowerment inescapably woven into the fabric of American society and culture. So much so that many, perhaps most, white people don’t even recognize that they’ve been the beneficiaries of centuries of systemic racial inequity—according to those who embrace this all-encompassing worldview.
That’s the argument put forth in the new Daily Wire+ comedic mockumentary “Am I Racist?,” starring that conservative media outlet’s star writer and podcast personality, Matt Walsh.
Walsh’s fake DEI crusader, whom he names “Steven,” is remarkably effective at getting an audience with many of the leading lights of the DEI movement. That said, he also lets us know exactly how he does it: by paying them. It costs the production $15,000 to get an interview with DiAngelo, for instance, who talks about the work she’s done for Netflix, Google and Amazon. (No doubt those companies paid her a lot more than that.) Others likewise cost thousands of dollars to secure on camera.
The point Walsh is trying to make? That being a voice for those who’ve suffered from systematic racism can be a very lucrative business—and that people have a vested interest in perpetuating the inequities they ostensibly address. Indeed, by the end, Walsh has established his own fake business and thus begun making thousands, too, demonstrating how relatively easy it is to translate guilt and victimhood into a viable entrepreneurial enterprise.
Walsh and his filmmaking team also try to demonstrate that there’s no real way to right the racist wrongs addressed. Several people even admitted that there’s no path for a white person to conclude the process of atonement needed because of their race and privilege.
All of these things could, as mentioned above, be a catalyst for deeper conversation about race among those who see the film.
Having said that, a fair bit of crass content sneaks in here, too. We’re hardly in the same content universe as “Borat,” which seems to have at least partially inspired Walsh’s “gotcha” strategy in his undercover exposé. This is a solidly PG-13 movie. But the harsh, bleeped f-words did catch me off guard a bit—as did the man wearing the shirt with a crude reference to oral sex. Those elements might invite parents considering taking younger children to this film to think twice.
Also worth pondering, I think, is the core approach Walsh uses here: going undercover and pretending to be something that he’s not to elicit an unscripted and uncensored response.
Most of those whom Walsh interviews think he’s one of them, because his schtick is pretty convincing. It can make for comedy gold, as the audience at my screening proved, laughing heartily throughout the film. (And, full confession, I laughed some, too.)
But it’s laughter at the expense of people onscreen who generally don’t know that they’re being duped.
It’s easy to argue, perhaps, that these folks “have it coming,” as the old saying goes. Still, the core deception here feels fundamentally meanspirited to me—the kind of treatment that Christians often decry when the tables are turned on us, and we’re on the receiving end of mockery.
And that’s worth talking about, too, as we continue to unpack the historical roots of racism and how we should or shouldn’t respond to them in our families, churches and communities.
Read the rest of the review here. Watch the trailer here.
The Penguin – New series streaming on HBO Max
Set in the same universe as 2022’s “The Batman,” I was curious to see how close “The Penguin” would hew to the PG-13 sensibilities of its progenitor. Unfortunately, the creators of “The Penguin” decided to lean into HBO Max’s often more R-rated tendencies.
Violence saturates “The Penguin.” People get shot, stabbed and strangled; splattering blood often accompanies these violent deeds. Since the spotlight of this show shines on Gotham’s seedy underbelly, nearly every character dwells under the specter of an untimely demise—and many meet that grim fate.
Drug trafficking is an integral part of the story, and it’s the main pathway Oz identifies to become Gotham’s next mob monarch. In fact, Oz is already in charge of a plant that develops a drug called “drops” (a liquid which users drop onto their eyes). There is mention of a new narcotic that could “revolutionize” the drug business.
Sexual content and nudity are also present. Oz interacts with several women who appear to be prostitutes. He also acquires some incriminating photos of a public figure having an affair.
In the first episode alone, we hear nearly 40 f-words and more than 15 s-words. Jesus’ name is abused seven times. God’s name is misused more 10 times, mostly paired with “d–n.” There are additional uses of “b—h,” “a–” and “a–hole,” “h—,” “pr–k,” tw-t,” and “p—y.” A man calls someone a “p-ss ant.” People use the term “frigging.”
(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)
Read the rest of the review here. Watch the trailer here.
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Plugged In is a Focus on the Family publication designed to shine a light on the world of popular entertainment while giving families the essential tools they need to understand, navigate, and impact the culture in which they live. Through our reviews, articles and discussions, we hope to spark intellectual thought, spiritual growth and a desire to follow the command of Colossians 2:8: “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”
Reviews written by Paul Asay, Bret Eckelberry, and Adam R. Holz.
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