We often go to cheesy kid movies with our kids out of love for them. We pretend to understand everything they talk about, and to love everything they remotely care about because… that’s the motherly thing to do. Take Assassin’s Creed for example. Do I love Cal Lynch? Uh, well, which one was that again? But, If you ask my son what I think about Assassins Creed? He’ll say, “I love it.” That’s just what we do as parents. We adore our dang kids, and want to find things in common with them. But I have found that my son and I actually DO have something in common. We both enjoy movies! Earlier this month, we got a sneak peek of MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL.
My son loves Syfi, action, and comedy flicks. I love dramas, romcoms, and adventure films. Finding movies that bond our two loves, can be tricky. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, however, left us both on the edge of our seats, eager to see what was going to happen next. The movie itself sent many powerful messages. This twisted fantasy was everything I hoped for (and more).
A formidable queen causes a rift between Maleficent and Princess Aurora. Together, they must face new allies and enemies in a bid to protect the magical lands which they share. In this movie, you will experience bold, cinematic visuals. My son pointed out that the women in the film were “fearless” and “unique,” just how a woman should be portrayed.
The mythology that goes along with the cast’s spectacular performance, fits into the list of Disney Classics perfectly. Angelina Jolie goes above and beyond to not only fit the physical qualities of Maleficent, but she also accurately portrays the emotional qualities of this complicated witch. Through the course of this film, the audience will learn the importance of confidence and individuality. As a 43-year-old woman, I felt unbelievably empowered by the portrayal of all the women in this film. My son witnessing characters like Maleficent, is extremely important to me. Quite frankly, it’s important for the development of all young boys. This film has no damsel in distress, has no woman dependent on a man, and that is what I like and expect to see more of in the future movie world.
BRAVO Disney! This movie is for all the women, and girls ready to be portrayed as the strong heroes that they are. Maleficent: Mistress of evil is now on my list of favorites. I’m so glad I got to watch it with my little guy!
Last week, my daughter and I headed to the Montage hotel in Beverly Hills to meet with the sensational cast of Disney’s, The Lion King. In celebration of the new film, Clarissa and I jammed out to Donald Glover’s and Beyonce’s music on our way up to in the car. Not only because these are our favorite musicians, but they are also the voice talent in this upcoming new film!
Thank you Disney Studios for inviting me to screen “The Lion King” and attend the Press Junket. All opinions are my own.
The talent in attendance were: Donald Glover (voice of “Simba”), Seth Rogen (voice of “Pumbaa”), Billy Eichner (voice of “Timon”), Chiwetel Ejiofor (voice of “Scar”), Alfre Woodard (voice of “Sarabi”), Keegan-Michael Key (voice of “Kamari”), Florence Kasumba (voice of “Shenzi”), Eric Andre (voice of “Azizi”), John Kani (voice of “Rafiki”), JD McCrary (voice of “Young Simba”), Shahadi Wright Joseph (voice of “Young Nala”), Director Jon Favreau, Composer Hans Zimmer, and Lebo M (AfricanMusic Consultant / Performer)
Below are some of my favorite excerpts from last week’s press junket!
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JULY 10: Creator/producer African vocal/choir arrangements Lebo M. and Clydene Jackson perform during the Global Press Conference for Disney’s THE LION KING on July 10, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
A woman dressed in traditional African clothing slowly raised her arms. The room silent stood still, and then a harmonious choir began to sing. It was surreal.
Lebo M and Carmen Twillie surprised the room, by singing some belting recognizable iconic notes, “Circle of Life”. The two moved their feet in sync and their hearts were connected to every lyric they sang. It was mind blowing, and my tears were flowing uncontrolabley…
After this memorable and heartwarming performance, we were introduced to the cast by the moderator. “Just look at this stage. There’s so many names up here. Everyone up here is so accomplished.”
Disney’s upcoming film journeys to the African savanna where a future king is born. Simba idolizes his father, King Mufasa, and takes to heart his own royal destiny. But not everyone in the kingdom celebrates the new cub’s arrival. Scar, Mufasa’s brother—and former heir to the throne—has plans of his own. The battle for Pride Rock is ravaged with betrayal, tragedy and drama, ultimately resulting in Simba’s exile. With help from a curious pair of newfound friends, Simba will have to figure out how to grow up and take back what is rightfully his. The all-star cast includes Donald Glover as Simba, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter as Nala, James Earl Jones as Mufasa, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar, Seth Rogen as Pumbaa and Billy Eichner as Timon, and utilizes pioneering filmmaking techniques to bring treasured characters to life in a whole new way.
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JULY 10: Director/producer Jon Favreau attends the Global Press Conference for Disney’s THE LION KING on July 10, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
MODERATOR: And then how long did you work on the film? Because I saw the footage at Cinemacon two years ago. And then you slowly teased it out to the world and it broke the Internet with 224 million views in the first 24 hours when folks got to see what I got to see two years ago. So how long have you been working on this now?JON FAVREAU: I’ve been working about three years on this one. And a lot of them have been working for the same amount of time. Because they came in back when it was pencils. So it was a huge leap of faith for this fantastic cast we have. And of course musically, Lebo M and Han Zimmer, who were so involved with the first one to trust that it would turn out well. It was a big leap of faith for everybody. And in many cases, they kept coming back and recording again and trying new things, especially with the comedy bits.
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JULY 10: Donald Glover attends the Global Press Conference for Disney’s THE LION KING on July 10, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
MODERATOR:Yeah. I heard your son was very excited to just be able to see it. What did you tell him going into it? You’re like, just so you know, daddy is Simba. DONALD GLOVER: I didn’t tell him anything. I really didn’t. It’s his favorite movie. I was like oh, I’ll just wait until he gets there. But somehow he found out about it, but still didn’t know I was in it. He was just like oh, the one with Beyonce. And then during the movie, he’s like oh, dad’s in it, too. This is great. Bonus. You know.
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JULY 10: Seth Rogen attends the Global Press Conference for Disney’s THE LION KING on July 10, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
Seth Rogan always makes me laugh. He doesn’t even need to try. He’s is just hilarious!
MODERATOR:It’s really amazing. Again, people are going to want it. So Disney, make it happen. Billy and Seth, you guys robbed every scene last night and stole every scene last night. It was completely hilarious. I couldn’t hear a lot of your dialogue, because people were laughing over it. So I just kind of have to ask you guys. How much was you and how much did y’all just pull out as you were going through it? SETH ROGEN: Yeah. Okay. I’ll start. It was a lot of improvisation with Billy. Yeah. And we were actually together every time that we recorded, which is a very rare gift to have as someone who is trying to be funny in an animated film, of which I’ve done a lot, and you’re often just alone in there. And I think you can really tell that we’re playing off of each other. It’s an incredibly naturalistic feeling. And they really captured Billy. That is what is amazing. I would say, he essentially played himself on a TV show for years. And this character is more Billy than that character somehow. It’s like endlessly, it’s remarkable to me how his character specifically makes me laugh so hard.
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JULY 10: JD McCrary attends the Global Press Conference for Disney’s THE LION KING on July 10, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
MODERATOR: Okay, so JD, you grabbed the mic. So tell us about the video game. JD MCCRARY:It was so cool. It’s like watching your favorite movie, but everything, like you’re in it. You’re in the movie. That’s exactly what it was. You did an amazing job with this. So it was me and Shahadi and Mr. Favreau. We put on the headsets, we had these little controller things in our hands, and we could fly. It was like we were Zazu. We were birds. We were whatever we wanted to be. And we saw everything. We saw the Pridelands. We saw Pride Rock. We saw the watering hole. We saw the elephant graveyard. We saw it all, man. And it was so cool, dude. It was so cool.
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JULY 10: (L-R) Actors Eric Andre, Keegan-Michael Key, Florence Kasumba, Billy Eichner, Creator/producer African vocal/choir arrangements Lebo M., Composer Hans Zimmer, actors John Kani, Shahadi Wright Joseph, JD McCrary, Seth Rogen, Alfre Woodard, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Donald Glover and Director/producer Jon Favreau attend the Global Press Conference for Disney’s THE LION KING on July 10, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney)
Disney never disappoints at these junkets, and I always look forward to them. There were many laughs and memorable moments at this press conference. This movie is a wonderful entry into the world of CG photorealism, along with a proper homage to the unseen beauty of Africa!
Last week, Disney’s littlest fans and my favorite Social Media Influencer Mamas celebrated the release of Disney Junior’s new show T.O.T.S. My adorable little nieces and nephews are jumping for joy about this cute new show!
Broadway sensation Megan Hilty, stars as K.C. the Koala (Wicked, 9 to 5, Noises Off) This LA Mama made a guest appearance at Disney Channel HQ, to greet her precious little fans!
About
T.O.T.S. is about the hilarious adventures of best friends Pip and Freddy, a tenacious penguin and a kind-hearted flamingo, who are the only non-stork delivery birds in-training at Tiny Ones Transfer Service (T.O.T.S.). As new members of the esteemed team, these junior flyers must take tender care in transferring baby animals – kittens, cubs, calves, bunnies, puppies and joeys among them – from the nursery to their forever families around the globe.
Disney Chefs served up a “T.O.T.S” themed brunch – complete with music playing and fun T.O.T.S. themed activities. The little ones played and with their sweet mamas and friends. It was sooo darn cute!
This new show is absolutely adorable, and your little ones are going to love it… Watch it with your babies on Disney Junior today!
I am a HUGE fan of Freaky Friday… As a kid, I would run around the house in red spray painted hair, and reenact scenes from the 2003 film starring Lindsey Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis .
Anna (in Tess’s body): I’m old!
Tess (in Anna’s body): I beg your pardon!
Anna (in Tess’s body): Oh, I’m like the Cryptkeeper
My mom would laugh, and even played along. When I heard Disney was producing a new Freaky Friday, I was a bit reluctant to watch it because I loved the 2003 version so much. But let me tell you, this new remake blew me out of the water! Last week we got a sneak peek of the new film before it aired on the Disney Channel, and I can’t get the catchy tunes out of my head.
Thank you Disney Channel for inviting us to see Freaky Friday, all opinions are my own.
Disney Channel’s “Freaky Friday” is a madcap body swap musical comedy about a mother and daughter (Katherine and Ellie Blake) who magically spend a day in each other’s shoes. Katherine and Ellie face a variety of challenges trying to get through the day as each other and ultimately learn a lot about what life is really like on the other side of the generation gap. In the process, mom and daughter navigate relationships, work, school, fitting in, standing out, and getting by all while facing the hard truth of their altered reality.
This Disney Channel Original Movie is the fifth iteration of “Freaky Friday,” but the first in telling the story through music on screen, with the musical numbers progressing the story as well as heightening the emotion of the actions of the story. Adding song and dance to the subtext of each scene, each character’s inner dialogue is emphasized and all the more relatable to the viewing audience. The story and the music gets a message across about empathy — and how the empathy we develop for our parents extends to the rest of the world.
I loved the ethnically diverse cast, a strong girl lead with short hair, and the inspiring entrepreneur mother in in the new film. Did I mention how amazing the music was? My little brother and I danced in our seats. He told me how much he wanted to sing at school because of the Adam’s funny character. Freaky Friday opened up our hearts, and reminded us how much we love performing!
