The Carmel Valley Life | Author Archives

Movie Review – Trolls: Trolling for Cash

Perry Chen’s movie review of Trolls: Trolling for Cash by DreamWorks Animation. “Once upon a time, in a happy forest, in the happiest tree, lived the happiest creatures the world has ever known: the Trolls.” Trolls are tiny fluorescent-haired creatures who live in a culture saturated with manic festivity. Their antithesis, the gargantuan puke-colored Bergens, […]

January 10, 2017 / No Comment / Read More

Perry’s Previews Movie Review – Kung Fu Panda 3

February 12, 2016 No Comment

Kung Fu Panda 3 begins with a scene of the late Master Oogway (Randall Duk Kim), the wise old tortoise who served as former master of the Jade Palace and singlehandedly created the art of kung fu, now peacefully meditating below a peach tree in the spirit realm. Appearing for the first time since the first […]

Local Movie Critic Reviews “Inside Out”

July 15, 2015 No Comment

Ever wondered why people act and feel the way they do? Meet the emotions: Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger, and Disgust, five emotions that everyone has, determining each individual’s unique personality and behavior. In particular, the plot of Pixar’s new release Inside Out takes place in the brain of the 11-year-old girl Riley Anderson. Each of […]

Local Kid Food Critic Reviews “Tender Greens”

May 1, 2015 No Comment

Many people dislike the unhealthy aspects of fast food, but also hate the idea of emptying their wallets only to receive tiny portions at a fine restaurant. As a pioneer in the restaurant industry, Tender Greens is smashing down the barriers of two distinctions in dining once thought to only operate in mutually exclusive niches. […]

San Diego Movie Review: Big Hero 6

January 15, 2015 No Comment

I have to admit, I went in a bit biased the first time I saw Big Hero 6, but I was pleasantly surprised to find a film boasting quality more than what I had expected. After a pretty bland year in animation for Disney, loosely based on the identically named graphic novel series was quite […]

San Diego Movie Review “Interstellar”

January 2, 2015 No Comment

If you’re looking for a place to find a real San Diego movie review? Well, here’s the place. Today we’ll review Interstellar. In the near future, Earth’s oxygen is beginning to run out and humanity has devolved into a farming society in the new IMAX sci-fi film Interstellar, directed by Christopher Nolan (Inception). Natural resources […]

San Diego Movie Review: The Book of Life

December 11, 2014 No Comment

The animated movie “The Book of Life” begins when a school bus arrives at a history museum, full of rowdy, mischievous children. An experienced female tour guide leads the students on a secret tour, and tells them about the most famous Mexican legend of all time, written within the magical book of life. The main […]

The Boxtrolls – Movie Review & Filmmaker Interviews

October 29, 2014 No Comment

The story begins in a Victorian-era town called Cheeseridge, which holds a terrifying secret. Small, blue, humanoid creatures clad in cardboard boxes called boxtrolls emerge from the sewers every night to snatch up children and gobble them up to fuel their mountains of bones and rivers of blood. At least…that’s what the townsfolk believe. In […]

Perry’s Preview Movie Review – Rio 2

May 14, 2014 No Comment

Rio 2 is a vibrant musical comedy animation from Blue Sky, and a sequel of the first Rio. The story revolves around Blu and Jewel, the last two surviving Blue Sphinx Macaws left in the world, and their 3 rowdy children. The two are polar opposites: Blu is a quiet, apprehensive pet who knows how […]

Perry’s Previews Movie Review – The Wind Rises

April 8, 2014 No Comment

Ever since he was a young boy in Japan, Jiro dreams of flying and designing beautiful airplanes, inspired by the famous Italian airplane designer Caproni. Growing up with an obsession for engineering, Jiro joins a Japanese aviation company and becomes one of the world’s most radical and accomplished airplane designers. He spends decades attempting to design the fastest and […]

Movie Review & Press Junket Interviews – “Free Birds”

January 2, 2014 No Comment

What if your species was on the holiday menu every year? Wouldn’t you want to do something about that? In the new animated movie “Free Birds,” Reggie the turkey (voiced by Owen Wilson) has always dreaded Thanksgiving, seeing members of his flock taken away to be cooked for dinner. But, his radical ideas make him […]

Local Kid Movie Critic Reviews “Frozen”

December 16, 2013 No Comment

In the new Disney animation “Frozen,” Elsa and Anna are two inseparable sisters and are both the young daughters of the wise and noble rulers of the Scandinavian kingdom called Arendelle. The older daughter Elsa was born with the power to create snow and ice with magic energy that appears instantly from her fingers. One […]