Author: Daniel Denman-Stone

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Entertainment Reviews

The Academy Awards Reviews and Impressions for 2025

Hello, once again, to the Oscars season of 2025! I’ll admit, this year is a nice mix of genres, languages and all-around confusing nominations. As of right now, I’ve only seen two of the ten nominees for Best Picture but I’ll give my overall impressions of the films from their synopses and the things I’ve heard about them. I will do my best to avoid the controversies and politics surrounding certain nominees, and there are quite a few this season and focus primarily on their cinematic merit.

Anora

I have heard of Anora from some posters on the London underground, describing it as “[it] makes Pretty Woman look like a Disney [fairy tale].” According to the synopsis, it is a comedy-drama about a young woman who meets the love of her life who happens to be the son of a rich oligarch. However, their relationship is tested when the parents of the son seek to have the marriage annulled in their home city of New York. From the sound of the narrative, it does sound like something interesting to watch so I’ll try to seek out a way to watch it before the ceremony.

The Brutalist

It wouldn’t be a … Read More

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Reviews

A Rock Star’s Story Told as a Minifig: “Piece by Piece” Review

It’s no surprise to anyone here at The Domain GPCE that I have been a huge fan of LEGO since I was very young. First, it was building the kits, then it was the videogames like LEGO Island, LEGO Racers, and Rock Raiders, and then far into the future, we started getting full-blown movies based on LEGO. When The LEGO Movie hit cinemas, it was a magical experience that made me feel like I was 8-and-a-half years old again and it also made me go out and buy a LEGO kit right after, which achieved the film’s goal in the first place. I also loved the sequel, even if it didn’t catch everyone’s tune like the first one and I stand by The LEGO Batman Movie being one of the best pieces of Batman media that someone can watch. The LEGO Ninjago Movie was a bit more hit or miss, but generally, The LEGO Group doesn’t miss when backing a film project. So when I heard the next LEGO movie, not produced by Warner Bros since the contract ran out, would not be a new narrative but a documentary about music producer Pharrell Williams at his request, my mind was … Read More

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Pop Culture

LEGO Animal Crossing – Kapp’n’s Island Boat Tour (77048): Straight from a Cruise Ship around Japan!

 

 

Here at the Domain, we cover a handful of pop culture topics. While most of my articles are about cinema reviews, I enjoy a video game or two in my spare time. One of the series I keep returning to is Nintendo’s Animal Crossing, especially with Animal Crossing: New Horizons for the Nintendo Switch being the latest release back in 2020. I have also loved LEGO bricks and building kits since I was very young, so when I heard that there would be a collaboration of both, I knew that I would spare no expense to get at least one kit to own.

Animal Crossing, or Doubutsu no Mori (translated literally to “animal forest”), started on the Nintendo Gamecube with a simple premise: start a new life in a village with animals as your neighbors. This was a bit more structured than something like The Sims and the designs of your animal friends’ designs were cute and fun to learn more about their lives as you made the town better for them through tasks and celebrating unique holidays on a full-year calendar. Since its humble beginnings on the Gamecube, the game has evolved to give the … Read More

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Entertainment Reviews

To Be the Next Big Studio, Not the New “Studio Ghibli”: “The Imaginary” Review

We’ve seen a lot of media based on imaginary friends as of late, from the twisted thriller Imaginary (2024) from Blumhouse to the soft, family film IF (standing for imaginary friends) from Paramount, starring Ryan Reynolds and a star-studded cast of voices for the playful figments of young children’s minds. Today, we add a third movie on the themes of constructed companions with Studio Ponoc’s latest animated film, The Imaginary. You might remember Studio Ponoc’s last feature-length project, Mary and the Witch’s Flower, back in 2017, which is often confused for an entry in the acclaimed, twice-Academy Award-winning studio portfolio, Studio Ghibli. Can Studio Ponoc break away from its Hayao Miyazaki comparisons? Let’s find out.

The Imaginary focuses on a young boy named Rudger, an imaginary friend of Amanda, a young girl about the same age. These two have plenty of made-up adventures in the attic of Amanda’s mother’s bookshop and promise they will never forget each other. Rudger soon learns, that as soon as an imaginary friend is forgotten, they are lost forever and his friendship with Amanda is tested. At the same time, Rudger is mysteriously sought after by someone who can see him and may have an … Read More

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Entertainment Reviews

Academy Awards 2024 Clean-Up and Final Predictions

Past Lives

I did get around to watching this film at my go-to independent cinema in London and I’m glad that I did. The story of two South Korean friends, going from childhood friends to online chatmates (anyone remember Skype?) to eventually getting a chance to reunite in person twenty years later was very interesting to experience, especially with the captivating opening shot acting as an “in media res” to start things off. It’s not the most action-packed film, but a solid watch all things considered. I feel like it’s a bit safe to be considered for Best Picture, but a notable nomination for international cinema.

Oppenheimer

Last but certainly not least, my local cinema brought back Oppenheimer amongst all the other BAFTA winners and Oscar nominees, so I took an afternoon to watch it, which I don’t regret at all. This is probably Christopher Nolan’s greatest film and it deserves the nomination wholeheartedly. Everything between the visuals, effects, scene-setting, and narrative is brilliant.

Cillian Murphy does a fantastic job as does Robert Downey Jr.’s performance as Lewis Strauss. The structure was a little hard to follow at first and while the film does need to cover a lot, the … Read More

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Entertainment Reviews

The Academy Awards Reviews and Predictions for 2024

Ah, it’s my favourite time of the year again, the Oscars season! With my new local cinema membership, I hope to catch up on the films nominated for the prestigious Best Picture award. I will admit, being located in the UK, the British equivalent of the BAFTAs is also on my radar, but my heart will always go to the Dolby Theatre in sunny Hollywood, California. Without further ado, here are my reviews, upcoming screenings and predictions for the 2024 Academy Awards!

American Fiction

I haven’t seen this yet, so expect a review to be coming very soon! I did however catch a trailer before watching Maestro at the cinema, and I was very interested in what the story has to tell in the film. The film focuses on a struggling novelist who is frustrated at the Black entertainment industry that profits from tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, he writes an equally outlandish book under a penname which soon becomes a breakout hit, pushing him into the madness that he tries to critique. Provoking, yes, with probably an equal amount of comedy in the situation that this educated writer has found himself settled in.

Quick review: fantastic … Read More

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Entertainment Reviews

A Bittersweet Profile with Tasty Notes: “Wonka” Review

When it comes to Willy Wonka, no one was asking for a prequel, especially after the madness that was Tim Burton’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Who could blame them? Considering that Gene Wilder’s original performance of Rohl Dahl’s candyman and Chocolatier Willy Wonka cannot be topped, this film wasn’t too high on anyone’s list. Still, here we are with Warner Bros. new film, Wonka, starring Timothée Chalamet as the starring character in his youth, about to open his first sweets shop. Once you get through the hard shell, you do see the sweet, gooey centre of something really special.

Wonka is simply described as the story of Willy Wonka’s beginnings, wanting to break into the Gallerie Gourmet with nothing but a handful of sovereigns and a hatful of dreams. Wonka prides himself in the appearance of both a magician and a chocolatier, fusing them to create marvellous scenes and spectacles like chocolates that can make you fly or even bring back memories or feelings of happy times in one’s life. With the assistance of a young girl named Noodle and a rag-tag band of misfits that were tricked into servitude like Wonka, relying on the generosity of others, … Read More

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Entertainment

CONTINUE?: Impressions on “Scott Pilgrim Takes Off”

The following article contains spoilers for Scott Pilgrim Takes Off.

“Scott Pilgrim doesn’t need a sequel!”

“We want a Scott Pilgrim animated series! Why is it anime?”

“Oh goodness, why Netflix?!”

All perfectly good responses to when a press release revealed that an adaptation of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel series Scott Pilgrim would be getting a new, anime/animated series on our streaming screens this year. Frankly, our guts were telling us what road we were going down but did we listen? No. We were blinded by flashy, Japanese-inspired animated trailers and Mortal Kombat references to know what “takes off” really meant. But let me give my credit as a certified Scottaholic before getting into the anime.

Like any good fan, I did start with the graphic novels, absolutely loving the series by the time “Scott Pilgrim Gets it Together,” the fourth volume in Scott’s story. The gaming humour mixed with the action/fantasy was something I didn’t want to put down and following Ramona’s seven evil exes was something I did want to see the conclusion to after everything the couple had gone through. Back when bookstores were still a thing, I had “Scott Pilgrim’s Finest … Read More

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Entertainment Reviews

I Just Saw You In My Dream, Is That Weird?: “Dream Scenario” Review

Dreams are funny little things that our minds play with when the rest of our body is resting or asleep. For some, they might be working over the things that are on their mind during the day. Others, it might be a struggle to face your fears in a place where you aren’t physically in danger. But what if there was someone watching you in your dreams? A24’s Dream Scenario tackles this exact thought with Nicholas Cage being the “man of your dreams” in this dark comedy of limitless possibilities.

Paul Matthews, Cage’s character and the protagonist of this film, is an unremarkable professor who desperately wants his work to be appreciated. For some inexplicable reason, people start seeing Paul’s likeness in their dreams while they are asleep. The news reaches Paul in the waking world and he instantly becomes a viral, Internet-famous celebrity which for Paul is a dream come true to have his own talents recognised in his field of study. Soon, the likeness of Paul in the dreams becomes less of a passive observer and more of a nightmare to his audience of millions, which starts to create obstacles for the real Paul and his family.

Generally, … Read More

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Entertainment

Getting Back In Sync: “Trolls: Band Together” Review

The U.S. Poster for "Trolls: Band Together" with Poppy and Viva.
The U.S. Poster for "Trolls: Band Together" with Poppy and Viva.

I’ll start by saying that I’ve only seen one Trolls movie before this screening of the third movie in the series. With Trolls, it seemed like a fairly inoffensive, kid-friendly jukebox musical, even if they did butcher Gorillaz’ “Clint Eastwood” for one scene. Of course, who didn’t hear “Can’t Stop the Feeling” on the radio when the movie was first released in cinemas?

With the second movie, Trolls: World Tour, the release around 2020 says all that it needs to about why I couldn’t get to the cinema to see it and with home releases, my time was split away from watching another sequel in a kids’ franchise. So, why Band Together? Well, with this movie being the catalyst of *NYSNC getting back together to record new music this year, I figured I’d see how it is for a fun, family-friendly cinema experience. Boy bands bring back a certain nostalgia from my childhood that isn’t easy to ignore.

Trolls: Band Together takes place after the events of the first two movies with a Bergen wedding between Gristle and Bridget, demonstrating the peace between the Bergens and the Trolls. However, the movie focuses more on Branch, the down-to-earth Troll, and … Read More