Luca
Released on June 18, 2021, and directed by Enrico Casarosa who was nominated for an Oscar for his Pixar short, La Luna, Luca is a Disney/Pixar animated movie about two sea creatures boys, Luca and Alberto, who love everything about the human world. They one day want to get a Vespa which is an Italian motor scooter and travel the world. Luca and Alberto secretly go to town and try not to get caught by the humans who are eager to capture some sea monsters. Will they be able to get a Vespa and have a long-lasting friendship while surrounded by a town who are skeptical of newcomers? You can watch the movie now on Disney+!
In the Heights
In the Heights was released on June 11th, 2021, and is a film version of the award-winning musical in the Heights. This movie was directed by John M. Chu and its music was written by the creator of Hamilton Lin Manuel Miranda. This Movie conveys how tight-knit communities in places like Washington heights interact and live together. The story follows Usnavi and his narration throughout the movie talking about his home Washington Heights, the neighbors, and the overall community is very relatable to those who come from minority dense areas with communities that are depicted in In the Heights.
Fatherhood
A comedy-drama film was directed by Paul Weitz that was based on the memoir “Two Kisses for Maddy: A Memoir of Loss and Love” by Matthew Logelin. The movie was released on June 18, 2021, which was originally scheduled to be released by Sony Pictures Releasing but was sold to Netflix. It’s based on the real-life of Matthew Logelin: a father brings up his baby girl as a single father after the unexpected death of his wife who died a day after their daughter’s birth. The film stars Kevin Hart as the father, the role is quite different from the previous works that allowed him to portray his great acting skills in terms of the emotion that was praised by the audience.
Raya
Disney’s first cartoon film based on southeast Asians was a big hit written by Carlos López Estrada and Don Hall. It takes place in a fantasy world named Kumandra where humans and dragons lived together as allies. That was until monsters that were called Drunns threatened the land causing the dragons to sacrifice themselves. After 500 years they have come back turning everyone into stone. Raya and a couple of friends she makes along the way work together to find the last dragon and get rid of the Drunn for good. This film is rated PG and is a Family/Fantasy film. The audience was pleased that Disney created a film with Southeast Asians as they aren’t represented as much in the animation world.