Reuben Baron

James Cameron tried for decades to adapt Yukito Kishiro's cyberpunk manga "Battle Angel Alita" (also known as "GUNNM"). However the challenges of directing the "Avatar" series resulted in directorial duties for "Alita: Battle Angel" going to Robert Rodriguez, with Cameron staying onboard as a producer and co-writer.

Film scholars have differing definitions of what makes something a "cult film" — there are heated arguments whether once-inarguable cult classics like "The Wizard of Oz" or "It's a Wonderful Life" have now become so mainstream that the "cult" factor is gone, while some will call even major blockbusters like "Star Wars" or "Titanic" cult films on account of their smaller, more obsessive subset of fans. But broadly speaking, the movies most commonly labeled "cult classics" are at least somewhat outside the mainstream. Maybe moviegoers at the time rejected them as bombs, or maybe they were aimed at an alternative niche to begin with, but they're gonna be outré and transgressive either way.

Whether it's presented as metaphysical fantasy, serious science fiction, or some wibbly-wobby timey-wimey thing in between, time travel can be one of the most fun and exciting tropes in fiction. Sometimes the appeal lies in the freedom to have adventures in any possible setting. On other occasions, it's the mechanics of time travel itself that create the drama: is it possible to change the past? If you can change it, would you? Should you?

The first season of "Good Omens" perfectly adapted the cult favorite comedic fantasy novel of the same name by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. Its popularity led to an second season, described as a bridge between the original story and the authors' discussed plans for a never-written sequel book. "Good Omens" Season 2 ended on a heartbreaking note

| About the Author Reuben Baron

"The Mandalorian and Grogu" just feels like a long episode of the TV show (and not in a good way).

"Toy Story 5," coming to theaters on June 19, is now the first "Toy Story" movie (not counting the very different "Lightyear" spinoff) to be rated PG by the Motion Picture Association. While the previous four films received the G rating, this one gets its higher classification "for some thematic elements and rude humor."

"Spider-Noir" is streaming on Prime Video in two different formats: "Authentic Black & White" and "True-Hue Full Color." Films such as "Mad Max: Fury Road," "Nightmare Alley," and

The campy "Masters of the Universe" is full of surprisingly good performances, but it still manages to be mediocre.

It's exciting to see anime getting wider distribution globally all the same.