Mini-Review Monday: Walt Disney

Release: September 14-15, 2015

Story: A two-part, nearly four hour documentary that follows the life of Walt Disney from his childhood, to his early days as a struggling animator, and eventually to the head of his own company that he ran with an iron-fist. It’s not always an easy ride. His company struggles early on and even when it succeeds, Disney wants to do more. To the end of his days, he was trying new things. He created the first feature length animated film, he created his own theme park, and he did so much more. We see his achievements and his failures. We see what’s great about good him and what’s horrible. We see the legend and we see the man.

Mini-Review Monday: The Martian

Release: October 2, 2015

Story: A NASA astronaut, Mark Watney (Matt Damon), is stranded alone on Mars after his team of astronauts (which includes actors Kate Mara, Michael Peña, Sebastian Stan, Askel Hennie, and Jessica Chastain as the mission commander) leave him for dead following a brutal storm that forces the astronauts to leave Mars early and head back to Earth. NASA (made up by Jeff Daniels, Sean Bean, Kristen Wigg, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Donald Glover), and quickly Earth, finds out Mark is still alive. Mark is using his NASA training, his knowledge as a botanist, and his unending optimism to survive long enough for a rescue plan to be formulated by NASA. NASA decides to keep the fact of Mark’s survival from his team so they can focus on their long journey home. With problems mounting and supplies running low, even with Mark’s resourcefulness, Mark’s chances for survival look dire and NASA will have to devise a miracle if they hope to bring him home.