Steady and JC caught an early screening for Trolls Band Together and were taken back to the boy band craze of the 90s and 2000s. Hear their take on the new film and let us know what you think about the movie in the comments below.

This holiday season, get ready for an action-packed, all-star, rainbow-colored family reunion like no other as Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake return for the new chapter in DreamWorks Animation’s blockbuster musical franchise: Trolls Band Together. 

After two films of true friendship and relentless flirting, Poppy (Anna Kendrick) and Branch (Justin Timberlake) are now officially, finally, a couple (#broppy)! As they grow closer, Poppy discovers that Branch has a secret past. He was once part of her favorite boyband phenomenon, BroZone, with his four brothers: Floyd (Golden Globe nominated electropop sensation Troye Sivan), John Dory (Eric André; Sing 2), Spruce (Grammy winner Daveed Diggs; Hamilton) and Clay (Grammy winner Kid Cudi; Don’t Look Up). BroZone disbanded when Branch was still a baby, as did the family, and Branch hasn’t seen his brothers since.  

But when Branch’s bro Floyd is kidnapped for his musical talents by a pair of nefarious pop-star villains—Velvet (Emmy winner Amy Schumer; Trainwreck) and Veneer (Grammy winner and Tony nominee Andrew Rannells; The Book of Mormon)—Branch and Poppy embark on a harrowing and emotional journey to reunite the other brothers and rescue Floyd from a fate even worse than pop-culture obscurity. 

Featuring Trolls’ signature psychedelic joy-bomb of new and classic pop hits, Trolls Band Together stars a dazzling cast of musical superstars and comedic powerhouses as new franchise characters, including four-time Grammy nominee and Latin Grammy winner Camila Cabello (Cinderella) as Viva; Zosia Mamet (The Flight Attendant) as Crimp; and 12-time Emmy winning drag icon RuPaul Charles as Miss Maxine. 

The returning cast includes Grammy, Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Zooey Deschanel as Bridget; Christopher Mintz-Plasse as Gristle, the Icona Pop duo Aino Jawo and Caroline Hjelt as Satin and Chenille, Grammy winner Anderson .Paak as Prince D, comedian Ron Funches as Cooper, SAG nominee Kunal Nayyar as Guy Diamond and Emmy winning Saturday Night Live legend Kenan Thompson as Tiny Diamond. 

Trolls Band Together is steered by returning director Walt Dohrn and producer Gina Shay, and is co-directed by Tim Heitz (head of story, Trolls World Tour). DreamWorks Animation’s Trolls films—2016’s Trolls and 2020’s Trolls World Tour—have sung and danced their way to record-breaking success, earning an Oscar^® nomination for Best Original Song and fuelingone of the largest and most beloved entertainment brands in the world.

Genre: Animated Action-Comedy

Cast: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Camila Cabello, Eric André, Amy Schumer, Andrew Rannells, Troye Sivan, Daveed Diggs, Kid Cudi, Zosia Mamet, Zooey Deschanel, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, RuPaul Charles, Aino Jawo, Caroline Hjelt, Kenan Thompson, Anderson .Paak, Kunal Nayyar, Ron Funches

Director: Walt Dohrn

Co-Director: Tim Heitz

Producer: Gina Shay

Fifty years has passed since the original film had audiences walking out of their showings and had them reinforcing their faith. Director David Gordon Green and co-writer Danny McBride are fresh off their Halloween trilogy which has some mixed reviews but concluding the Jamie Lee Curtis timeline was rewarding for fans of the original film. Now the duo goes from the most success horror franchise ever to the scariest.

The Exorcist Believer revolves around the disappearance of two young girls. Mystery surrounds their return while supernatural events begin occurring in the days after. What David Gordon Green does best is build the tension in his films which most horror films tend to skip over and replace with your usual jump scares. Something he also succeeded at with his Halloween trilogy. In this regard, his film feels like a horror film from the good old days.

The first half of the film is near perfect. With performances from stars such as Leslie Odom Jr. and the rest of the supporting cast setting up the eerie plot while the musical score elevates every scene beautifully. Ellen Burstyn is a welcoming addition to the story. Her presence feels genuine. Had she been shoehorned in, this half would fall apart completely. Where the film struggles is where even the original had some issues, the exorcism itself.

I say the original struggled due to the fact that there is no blueprint to how this should go. How long it should last, how to depict when we’ve accomplished what needs to be done, or how to keep audiences engaged while reciting Bible verses for what seems like an eternity. The latest film has some interesting elements such as bringing together people from different faiths and backgrounds that all have ideas on how to confront this evil. It’s quite an intriguing premise which makes sense as you begin to understand every culture has written stories about similar situations.

In some cultures it is said that pregnant women are asked for a blessing from Pazuzu for protection. No doubt a nod that was made in the opening scene of the film. While the community battling the demon is an intriguing idea, it never fulfills its potential. The visuals are done well enough but the film needed more action but again, how does one achieve this within an exorcism? That is the challenge. The second half mildly works but the momentum from the first half definitely had subsided.

Many attempts at a worthy sequel have been made but two things are for sure…what scared audiences in 1973 isn’t the same today and to reach that level of horror isn’t possible with modern audiences. The Exorcist Believer can still be considered a success regardless.

In a dystopian Switzerland that has fallen under the fascist rule of an evil cheese tyrant (Van Dien), Heidi (Lucy) lives a pure and simple life in the Swiss Alps. Grandfather Alpöhi (Schofield) does his best to protect Heidi, but her desire for freedom soon lands her in trouble with the dictator’s henchmen. When pushed too far the innocent Heidi transforms into a kick-ass warrior who sets out to liberate her country from the heinous cheese fascists. Mad Heidi is an action-adventure exploitation extravaganza based on the popular children’s book character Heidi and the world’s first Swissploitation film.

Hear our own Bryan Ortiz give his take on this wild and bloody good time!

For more info visit: MAD HEIDI | Watch the movie! 💥