Arts
Wednesday, September 9, 2020 — 11
You’re not too old to enjoy
Candace Flynn’s return
Take yourself back to the
summer of 2007. Tiger Woods
was at the height of his career.
The first iPhone had a triumphant
release. I went to a week of
summer camp and returned with
a couple hundred mosquito bites.
And in August, Disney Channel
previewed an animated show
called “Phineas and Ferb.”
As
someone
who
started
watching the show early on,
“Phineas and Ferb” was one of
my longest-running influences.
It ran from 2008 until 2015 and
consisted of four seasons with
over 30 episodes each, plus a few
hour-long specials and a feature
length Disney Channel film in
2011. The show itself may have
been set (somewhat hilariously)
over the course of one summer,
but for many of its watchers it was
an entire childhood.
I watched the show consistently
through elementary and middle
school, always finding joy in the
silly jokes and catchy songs. In
2015 when I heard that the show
was ending, I cleared my schedule
so that I could watch the finale,
even though I hadn’t watched
the show in a year or two. And
when the show went on Netflix a
bit later, I found myself watching
every episode — enjoying the ones
I had missed, and rewatching the
ones I had recorded and watched
repeatedly in 2011 but loved all the
same.
As I have watched “Phineas and
Ferb” over the years, regardless of
whether I was 10 years old or 20,
I have always enjoyed it. I kept
expecting myself to be “too old”
to watch the show, and yet that
age has never come. This is one
of the things about “Phineas and
Ferb” that sets it apart from most
animated shows aimed at kids: It’s
truly enjoyable for all ages. It’s a
show that is brightly colored and
silly enough to keep kids engaged,
but also filled with jokes that hit
differently with age. Creators Dan
Povenmire and Jeff “Swampy”
Marsh, along with their team
of writers, somehow found the
perfect comedic balance of silly
punchlines and deep social and
self-awareness. I have never seen
another show master breaking the
fourth wall in quite the same way,
but it’s delightful every time they
pull it off. Plus the show is rife
with pop culture references that
span across the decades, riffing on
everything from ’80s pop stars to
the “Twilight” movies.
Of course there are also the
songs, which are fun, endlessly
catchy and occasionally become
cultural phenomena — there’s
an entire generation who knows
exactly what an “aglet” is, and
anyone who says they don’t know
the words to “Gitchee Gitchee
Goo” is probably lying. So this
brings us to “Candace Against
the Universe” (2020), the first
return to “Phineas and Ferb” —
other than the crossover episode
in Povenmire and Marsh’s “Milo
Murphy’s Law” — since the show
ended.
If I’m being honest, Candace
(Ashley Tisdale, “Scary Movie
V”) is probably one of the least
likable
“Phineas
and
Ferb”
characters. There’s an episode
in “Phineas and Ferb” season
2,“Split Personality,” where one
of Phineas and Ferb’s creations
split Candace into her “essence,”
which consists of only two parts:
her obsession with Jeremy and
her one-track determination to
bust her brothers.
Despite this, she isn’t entirely
one-dimensional.
The
thing
that has always struck me about
Candace,
especially
as
I’ve
gotten older, is the way that she
creates her own misery — she’s so
wrapped up in her negativity and
single-minded motivation that she
is unable to enjoy her own life. The
first “Phineas and Ferb” movie,
“Across the Second Dimension,”
is primarily focused on Phineas
and Ferb’s relationship with Perry
after they find out about his role
as a secret agent; this film offers
an intriguing chance to focus on
Candace.
“Candace
Against
the
Universe” starts with an opening
song that does three main things:
it reestablishes the world with
quick reminders of some of the
boys’ more memorable creations,
it weaves in a series of incredibly
clever lyrics that made me realize
how much I had missed this show,
and it tells us how miserable
Candace is from her summer of
failure. She feels overshadowed
by her brothers when all she
wants to do is feel special (don’t
we all), and feels like the universe
is acting against her (don’t we all).
And then, somewhat suddenly,
she gets abducted by aliens, and is
faced with a chance to be special
after all.
From
some
perspectives,
“Candace Against the Universe”
is a classic story: girl wants to
feel special compared to genius
brothers, girl gets abducted by
aliens, brothers go to rescue girl,
girl and brothers fight together
against aliens and learn some
important lessons along the way.
The film’s plot is chaotic at times,
but that’s the first rule of watching
“Phineas and Ferb”: Suspend your
disbelief, and give it the benefit of
the doubt. The film, and the show,
are animated for a reason and can
mess with the rules of time and
space within this animated world
of infinite possibilities.
The
film
is
even
more
remarkable, however, when you
realize that the majority of it was
made in the middle of a global
pandemic. Production continued
even as the creative team was
completely isolated: The cast
recorded their lines individually
from home, and the animation
team coordinated between three
different
overseas
animation
studios to create the film. When
taken in that context, “Candace
Against the Universe” is all the
more impressive.
What grounds the film is the
familiarity throughout. Almost
the entire cast was able to return:
Tisdale as Candace, Vincent
Martella
(“Everybody
Hates
Chris”) as Phineas, Alyson Stoner
(“Cheaper by the Dozen”) as
Isabella, Maulik Pancholy (“30
Rock”) as Baljeet, Povenmire as
Dr. Doofenshmirtz, and many
more, with David Errigo Jr.
(“Milo Murphy’s Law”) as Ferb
since Thomas Brodie-Sangster
(“The Maze Runner”) was unable
to reprise his role. There are
the same delightful moments of
self-awareness and fourth wall
breaks, and the same brand of
hilarious and toe-tappingly fun
musical numbers. There are long
and silly bits that are borderline
slapstick, but there are also jokes
requiring societal context that
are much funnier for adults than
kids. And all throughout there are
references and running bits from
the show that put a smile on the
face of any “Phineas and Ferb”
fan.
For many of the jokes, it’s
impossible to tell whether it’s the
stupidest thing ever thought of or
the most brilliant. For example,
a running gag centers on the
idea that the aliens that abduct
Candace
occasionally
explode
from the waist up — and that the
sound it makes when they explode
sounds like “Candace.” That in and
of itself is a lot to take in, but after
some research I found out that the
voice of those “Candaces” is none
other than Tiffany Haddish. The
fact that Tiffany Haddish is in this
film and is actually billed as “The
Sound Someone Makes When
They Explode From the Waist
Up” sent me into a three-minute
stunned silence.
But
balancing
silly
and
ridiculous without tapping into
flat-out stupidity is what “Phineas
and Ferb” has always been good
at. Things like the alien leader
being named Super Super Big
Doctor (Ali Wong, “Always Be
My Maybe”) or this film hinging
on a device called a “chicken-
replace-inator” are exactly what
I expected, and wanted, from this
film.
There’s
certainly
a
predictability to the movie, but
you have to remember two things:
one, that it is technically for kids
even if it doesn’t always feel like
it, and two, that predictability
is what the show operated on
for eight years. Every episode
of Phineas and Ferb had a
formula: Phineas and Ferb make
something cool, Doofenshmirtz
makes an inator, Candace tries to
bust her brothers, Perry defeats
Doofenshmirtz,
the
inator
inexplicably helps with cleaning
up Phineas and Ferb’s latest
creation, Candace fails at busting,
they eat pie, and there’s a song
somewhere in there. What makes
the show unique is that, even with
this formula, every episode feels
different and exciting. That is
impressive, and it’s what makes
“Phineas and Ferb” so special.
Unfortunately, we don’t get the
endless summer that “Phineas
and Ferb” have been enjoying
since 2007. School is coming back,
in the strangest way we’ve seen
yet, and there’s a lot happening
in the world that needs to be
acknowledged and paid attention
to. Still, I enjoyed being able to
put myself back into that endless
summer, even if it was just for 86
minutes of funny jokes, hilarious
songs, heartwarming moments
and familiar characters. It’s a
lovely story about family — I’d be
lying if I said the reconciliation
between
Candace
and
her
brothers didn’t make me tear up
a little — and it’s a return to the
“Phineas and Ferb” that I love
while finding ways to expand
the world a little more. For me,
this was the perfect movie to
be watching in my bedroom
in the middle of a Michigan
thunderstorm in the middle of a
global pandemic. Maybe it’s not,
as Phineas might say, the Best
Movie Ever, but it’s exactly what it
should be. And so if anyone wants
to know: “Aren’t you a little old to
be watching a “Phineas and Ferb”
movie?” Yes, yes I am. But who
cares?
KARI ANDERSON
Daily Arts Writer
DISNEY
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
‘Sputnik’ is a familiar, yet
moving, sci-fi thriller tale
‘Desert One’ offers glimpse
into the Iran hostage crisis
In Russian, “Sputnik” means
“fellow traveler.” The Soviets
used the term for their early
Cold War satellites, perhaps
to give the ships a sense of
community, or offer a friendly
invitation to extraterrestrial
life
(if
they
happened
to
speak Russian). In the 2020
film of the same name, a
Russian spaceship picks up a
“fellow
traveler,”
sometime
in the 1980s. Sadly for the
cosmonauts, this Sputnik is
anything but friendly.
The
easiest
movie
to
compare
“Sputnik”
to
is
1979’s “Alien.” In both films,
parasitic
extraterrestrials
prey
on
terrified
humans.
Both also have riveting female
leads. Ellen Ripley’s “Sputnik”
counterpart is named Tatyana
Kilmova, played by Oksana
Akinshina (“Quiet Comes The
Dawn”).
Like
Ripley
in
“Alien,”
Tatyana
bravely
meets
every
horrendous
situation
thrown her way and puts the
inadequate,
cowardly
and
power-hungry
men
around
her
to
shame.
There
are
wounds behind her steeled
eyes, and Akinshina’s layered
performance makes the movie
worth watching twice, even
once one knows the truth
about her character.
“Sputnik,”
like
“Alien,”
is also rooted in the sci-fi
genre’s
existentialist
roots
that trace all the way back
to
Shelly’s
“Frankenstein.”
While the aliens are scary and
mysterious, the finely-drawn
human characters are what
bring viewers to the edge of
their seats, clutching the arm
rests with tears in their eyes.
From the first scene, this
film’s focus on character colors
its science fiction elements,
because the viewer cares about
who they affect. Viewers don’t
even see the creature until
almost 30 minutes in. More
importantly,
in
the
alien’s
single “appearance” before its
reveal, the camera stays on the
astronauts’ horrified reaction
to something lurking outside
their tiny spacecraft. As they
tremble and stare, wide-eyed
and slack jawed, one does not
need to see the Sputnik to
know that it doesn’t come in
peace.
When the monster is finally
revealed, it comes with a
twist that yanks the film
out of “Alien’s” shadow in a
startlingly touching fashion.
While the twists are best left
to the screen, one sublime
moment is when the alien,
laying on the floor, curls
around a baby rattle. It was
hard to decide whether to
shudder or to cry.
The creature is no computer-
generated
plot
device
or
excuse for jump scares. While
immaculate on a technical
level,
it
is
both
revolting
and disgusting to watch this
realistic parasite go about its
slimy, predatory habits; the
alien, like Tatyana, is also
wrapped in thematic layers. It
makes the characters question
their
lives,
relationships
with others and place in the
universe. Human nature is
explored
through
bloody,
imaginative twists and turns
right up until the credits.
“Sputnik”
differentiates
itself from “Alien” (and its
inferior sequels and imitators)
by taking place on Earth, at a
Soviet research center. The
juxtaposition
of
the
drab
late-Soviet aesthetic with the
gooey interstellar monster is
an original, arresting palate. It
is almost instantly clear that,
while the alien is no ET, the
cold industrial environment
certainly isn’t helpful, either.
It’s interstellar entropy versus
the Iron Curtain.
The
emotionless
authoritarians
function
similar to how Ash did in
“Alien,” attempting to control
the uncontrollable alien. To
paraphrase Ian Malcolm from
“Jurassic Park,” they are too
busy thinking about what they
can do to think about what they
should do. Thankfully, like in
“Park,” “Alien,” “King Kong”
and all the other great monster
movies, these exploitative fools
get what’s coming to them. It’s
absolutely thrilling.
“Sputnik”
follows
in
the
footsteps
of
iconic
science fiction films while
simultaneously
pushing
the
genre
forward.
Even
Ridley Scott, who directed
the
original
“Alien”
and
returned to the series with
2012’s
“Prometheus”
and
2017’s “Alien: Covenant,” has
never quite achieved this. It’s
genuine, thoughtful science
fiction that’s both escapism
and
an
opportunity
to
contemplate humanity and its
capacity for love and violence,
friendship and tyranny.
Movie theaters in Michigan
are shuttered, the fall semester
is already chaos and things
just look like they’re going to
get worse. So, fellow travelers
through
2020’s
very
real
horrors, why not take a break
with an unusually cute alien
parasite, some Russians and
a strong female lead? There
are worse ways to spend one’s
time.
ANDREW WARRICK
Daily Arts Writer
In
her
most
recent
documentary, Academy-Award
winning
filmmaker
Barbara
Kopple (“Harlan County, USA”)
takes an apolitical yet not
impartial look at the human
challenges of combat. “Desert
One” is the story of a failed
rescue mission, told by the men
who, in the words of their British
colleagues, “had the guts to try.”
In 1979, when revolutionaries
took 52 Americans hostage in
the Tehran embassy, President
Carter did everything he could
to avoid taking military action.
Kopple does a cursory job of
setting the stage for this crisis
but covers the main points. In
the decades after a 1953 CIA
coup shifted power to the Shah,
outside voices preaching about
a theocratic state fomented
a revolutionary spirit among
Iranians (particularly college
students). The Shah’s military
overreach
and
oppressive
leadership was unwelcome, and
the U.S. was seen as his enabler.
Iranians wanted the Shah gone
and would have liked the U.S.
to go away with him. When the
Shah was finally ousted, and
particularly following the Shah’s
hospitalization in New York
City, anti-American sentiments
grew.
Students stormed the US
embassy compound in Tehran
and took scores of hostages.
Ayatollah Khomeini, wanting
the Shah returned to Iran so
that justice may be exacted,
tried to use these hostages as
leverage. Carter was unwilling
to extradite the Shah, and the
days began to pass. Months
later,
with
little
movement
regarding the hostage situation,
Carter acquiesced to military
action. The Pentagon’s plan was
“simple.” The operation would
be conducted from an airfield
off the coast of Oman. Under
the cover of night, a number of
planes and helicopters would
land in Tabas, Iran, before
entering Tehran to extract the
hostages. However, that’s not
quite how it came to pass.
I’ll leave the details of the
bungling to Kopple, who tells the
story better than I ever could,
namely
through
interviews
with the surviving members
of the Special Operations team
who landed in Tabas, Iran in
April of 1980. We hear firsthand
accounts of what went wrong
and why. Visually, the story is
told with vivid graphic-novel
style illustrations. This film is a
captivating tale of hope, loss and
regret.
Kopple’s
interviewees
represent an impressive variety
of
perspectives
(hostages,
soldiers,
decision
makers,
bystanders, etc.) from both the
Iranian and American sides
of this crisis. These diverse
perspectives
tend
to
share
one
common
denominator:
emotionality.
The
personal
tolls taken by this endeavor
are presented in such a way as
to supersede the political and
tactical.
Consequently, the truth is
watered down. Kopple’s focus
on the men “in the room”
comes at the cost of any account
of
historical
and
cultural
circumstance.
Further,
by
failing to properly represent the
intricate and nuanced cultural
politics of the 1979 Iranian
Revolution, America is portrayed
as a victim. Any student of
history will know that this is
rarely the case. American greed
for oil, the motivation for much
of our meddling in this region,
was of course omitted from this
story. That the American troops
took hostages (albeit for less
than 24 hours) in the process of
rescuing hostages, is mentioned
but glossed over. Instead, we see
video of American flags burned
and American corpses defiled.
Oh, and do beware, the viewer is
given no warning before images
of charred, naked bodies, frozen
in infinite agony appear on
screen.
GREENWICH ENTERTAINMENT
ROSS LONDON
Daily Arts Writer
Read more online at
michigandaily.com
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