Set in the city of Beaverton, we are introduced to Mabel Tanaka (voiced by Piper Curda as a teenager and Lila Liu as a child), who spends her youth with her kind Grandmother (Karen Huie). Through her influence, Mabel learns to love the land and relate to the fauna of the area, especially a colony of beavers. It is an idyllic upbringing and leaves a lasting impression.

After losing her Gran, she is adrift until she is given a cause by the actions of the town’s mayor, Jerry Generazzo (Jon Hamm). He plans to destroy her favourite habitat to build a freeway overpass. After he drains the pond and drives out all the wildlife, the heartbroken teenager is given a cause to pursue and a galvanising purpose. This involves Mabel taking over the operation of a robot beaver and becoming part of the colony.

The message of the value of indigenous life forms is presented in an entertaining and less obtrusive way than most films of this ilk. Humour is used successfully and often to give the work a less strident tone. Mabel’s heritage is also used in a subtle and accessible way. The film’s success derives from a broadminded approach that puts entertainment first yet weaves in a message of value without the usual insolent approach.
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The underwater worry this time is Bob’s desire to become a big guy so he can ride a roller coaster at a local amusement park. When he grows to the required height and is admitted onto the ride, his bravery leaves him and sends him on a quest to become a swashbuckler. Even though these are well-trodden lanes, it’s still presented with such innocence that the appeal endures.

As the journey progresses, we meet a progression of weird and wonderful characters, even the bad guy, in this case, the Flying Dutchman (Mark Hamill), is presented as a somewhat friendly foe. Relying on an impressive colour palette and an outlandish sense of presentation, the journey is never less than fun.

Filled with lysergic laughter and more than a few ribald moments, The SpongeBob world is one of inclusion and the relationships presented are based on acceptance and not being afraid of being yourself. With the current reality being about as bleak as memory serves, trading that for a cartoon land filled with humour, laughs, and love sounds like time well spent.
Rob Hudson
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Denji worked as a Devil Hunter for the yakuza, trying to pay off the debt he inherited from his parents, until the yakuza betrayed him and had him killed.

As he was losing consciousness, Denji’s beloved chainsaw-powered devil-dog, Pochita, made a deal with Denji and saved his life. This fused the two together, creating the unstoppable Chainsaw Man.

Now, in a brutal war between devils, hunters, and secret enemies, a mysterious girl named Reze has stepped into his world, and Denji faces his deadliest battle yet, fueled by love in a world where survival knows no rules.
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The story is completely bonkers as it involves stitching a dog’s head to a human cop’s body to create a super cop. The only problem is they forgot to inform the budding Doctor Frankenstein of the particulars and the title character can only communicate via barking.

If the dog is the good guy, you have to know the baddie will be a cat and in this case, it’s Petey voiced by Pete Davidson. This malevolent feline is a perfect fit for the slacker ethic that Davidson does so well. It makes for an arch enemy that resides more in the comic vein than the outright evil category.

With its individual look and irreverence towards the stock standard ethos of “If it’s got animated animals it must be super cute and cuddly”, Dog Man impresses with an identity that is far from typical for films of this genre. There is much to enjoy for kids of all ages.
Rob Hudson
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With help from his junior colleague Reno Ichikawa, Kafka hides his identity while striving towards his life-long dream of passing the Defense Force exam and standing at Mina’s side. But when a mysterious intelligent Kaiju attacks a Defense Force base, Kafka faces a crucial decision in a desperate situation…

The omnibus film Kaiju No. 8: Mission Recon features an action-packed recap of season one and a new original episode, Hoshina’s Day Off.

(Hoshina’s Day Off) A day off… a rare day of peace for the Defense Force. After spending so long training, Reno has forgotten what he’s supposed to do with free time. He sees that Hoshina is up to something with his own day off, and decides to go on a mission to tail him with Iharu! But then things go in an unexpected direction…
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Over a decade has passed since a pathway called a “gate” which connects this world and another dimension suddenly appeared, and people with superhuman powers called “hunters” have been awakened.

Hunters use their superhuman powers to conquer dungeons inside the gates to make a living, and Sung Jinwoo, a hunter of the lowest rank, is considered the Weakest Hunter of All Mankind. One day, he encounters a double dungeon, a high-level dungeon hidden inside a low-level one.

In front of a severely wounded Jinwoo, a mysterious quest window pops up. On the verge of death, Jinwoo decides to take on the quest, which makes him the only person who can level up.

Solo Leveling -ReAwakening- will be released in Aussie cinemas December 5!
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