Stalking
Into the Woods
Review by Ross Anthony

Awesome meanders its way to nearly Awful. That 10-15 minute opening is wonderful! The brisk pace in both editing and music tempo, the fun lyrics, sense of humor, and intertwining of melodies sung from several performers - it's one of the best film set-ups of the year. But, as each of these characters proceeds to act in such selfish ways, there becomes fewer and fewer personalities to route for. And eventually, even the ones we like squander our affection like so many magic beans. In the end, there's no one to love. That said, the baker has a sweet moment of personal growth - albeit a bit cliché, but still very welcomed as the picture lacks any other. Sadly, even that hint of redemption is truncated when the tease of forgiveness is chopped down without further contemplation.

Without that anchor of connection with any one character, and without a clear theme, despite an opening that set up a host of magical possibilities, and despite some powerful performances and beautiful cinematography, the picture eventually falls down, breaks its crown, and the connection with the audience comes tumbling after.

Btw, this is an adaptation of a stage play that I did not see, but may just possibly be required to fill in any of the missing pieces. Also, I greatly appreciated the humor of the "Agony" tune -- that segment cajoled hearty laughter (in a good way). I'm betting the stage play does a better job of distributing this sort of ironic humor throughout -- where, here in the film, I'm thinking it probably simply got lost in adaptation.

-- Books by Author/Illustrator Ross Anthony --


  • Into the Woods. Copyright © 2014.
  • Starring Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Johnny Depp. Directed by Robert Marshall. Disney.

Grade..........................C+ (1/4)


chili4 special olympians
power5 ra hforh radiop
Copyright © 1998-2023 Ross Anthony, Author - Speaker - Solo World Circumnavigator In addition to reviewing films and interviewing celebs at HollywoodReportCard.com, traveling the world, composing great music, motivational speaking, Mr. Anthony also runs his own publishing company in the Los Angeles area. While traversing the circumference of the planet writing books and shooting documentaries, Mr. Anthony has taught, presented for, worked &/or played with locals in over 30 countries & 100 cities (Nairobi to Nagasaki). He's bungee-jumped from a bridge near Victoria Falls, wrestled with lions in Zimbabwe, crashed a Vespa off a high mountain road in Taiwan, and ridden a dirt bike across the States (Washington State to Washington DC). To get signed books ("Rodney Appleseed" to "Jinshirou") or schedule Ross to speak check out: www.RossAnthony.com or call 1-800-767-7186. Go into the world and inspire the people you meet with your love, kindness, and whatever it is you're really good at. Check out books by Ross Anthony. Rand() functions, Pho chicken soup, rollerblading, and frozen yogurt (w/ blueberries) also rock! (Btw, rand is short for random. It can also stand for "Really Awkward Nutty Dinosaurs" -- which is quite rand, isn't it?) Being alive is the miracle. Special thanks to Ken Kocanda, HAL, Jodie Keszek, Don Haderlein, Mom and Pops, my family, R. Foss, and many others by Ross Anthony. Galati-FE also deserves a shout out. And thanks to all of you for your interest and optimism. Enjoy great films, read stirring novels, grow.


Last Modified: Saturday, 25-Jul-2015 11:27:49 PDT