Up and More Animated Films '09
I saw Pete Doctor's (Monster Inc.) Up on Monday. It was really fantastic, and I'm glad it didn't disappoint me like the last Pixar movie. And it's the first Pixar flick to have made me cry, on more than one occasion at that!
Minor spoilers below.
There were a few times where I thought it was a bit unbelievable, but like every movie going adventure you've got to have a suspension of belief for the time being. But there was one scene where I was a bit... perplexed. It felt unnecessary when the dogs were... flying planes? I mean, really? It was Ratatouille all over again with the whole hair pulling puppeteering bit. And I really felt the movie could've really done without it. None the less it was fantastic film overall. And my favorite bit was probably the montage in the beginning concerning Ellie and Carl. I never thought I would see the subject of miscarriaging in an American animated movie, let alone a Disney (kinda) film. And blood! Let me tell you, that surprised me. It was realistic-- which was a real selling point to me. One of the best things about Pixar is that they don't treat children like idiots. While everyone else does, which is precisely why this new generation are idiots! I was also pleasantly surprised to see only one or two children in the theater, while the rest of the audience was made up of older teens and adults. It's nice to see animation is starting to be recognized more as just baby sitter cartoons.
But now to the main point of this post. After seeing Up I've ventured again to look for what other animated films I could look forward to this year. At least Coraline and Up are on my Christmas list.
What? Another entry on upcoming animated movies? Why, yes. Yes it is. You can call me obsessed all you want because... it's true.
Images link to their official sites.
Evangelian: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance - 6/27 In JAPAN
Continuing where the previous film, Evangelion 1.0, left off, the paramilitary organization NERV continues to defend the world from the return of the Angels, but the war is beginning to take its toll. In the middle of all this, the somewhat pleasant life Shinji Ikari has found in Tokyo-3 is about to take a drastic turn when a new group of Evangelion pilots, including the fiery redhead Asuka Langley Shikinami, are brought in to assist him and Rei Ayanami in battle. Meanwhile, Misato Katsuragi faces problems of her own as her old flame Ryoji Kaji is transferred to NERV on special assignment, raising mixed feelings between them. And tensions between NERV Supreme Commander Gendo Ikari and the mysterious organization SEELE begin to arise from differing agendas. As everyone tries to adjust to each other, questions are raised, relationships are strained, and an unexpected series of events will bring the coming end of mankind ever closer.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs - 7/1
Manny (Ray Romano), Sid (John Leguizamo), Diego (Denis Leary), Ellie (Queen Latifah), Eddie (Josh Peck), Crash (Seann William Scott) and Scrat encounter a dinosaur population which survived extinction in its tropical paradise, which existed below the thick layers... until now. Meanwhile, Crash and Eddie are up to their usual crazy selves. Manny and Ellie have since become an item and are going to have their first baby, and Manny wants everything to be perfect when his baby arrives. Diego is tired of being treated like a Housecat and ponders the notion that he's being too laid back. Sid is jealous of Manny and Ellie and he starts to wish for a family of his own, so he steals some dinosaurs eggs. But Sid gets captured by a crazed dinosaur, which leads his herd to try and rescue him. While dodging danger and dinos left and right, the herd meets up with a relentless, one-eyed dino hunting weasel named Buck. Scrat also meets a fiesty female squirrel named Scratte.
Green Lanter: First Flight - 7/28
Green Lantern: First Flight finds test pilot Hal Jordan recruited to join the Green Lantern Corps after the death of his predecessor Abin Sur and placed under the supervision of respected senior officer Sinestro. The newly recruited officer of sector 2814 soon discovers his mentor is actually the central figure in a secret conspiracy that threatens the philosophies, traditions and hierarchy of the entire Green Lantern Corps. Hal must quickly hone his newfound powers and combat the treasonous Lanterns within the ranks to maintain order in the universe.
9 - 9/9
9 takes place in a world parallel to our own, in which the very legacy of humanity is threatened. A group of sapient rag dolls, living a post-apocalyptic existence find one of their own, 9, who displays leadership qualities that may help them to survive.
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs - 9/18
The book describes the town of Chewandswallow, where the weather comes three times a day, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and is always food and beverages. The rain is juice and soup, the snow is mashed potatoes, and the wind brings hamburgers. However, floods and storms of food come - creating dilemmas such as the school getting smothered beneath a giant pancake (forcing it to close), a ketchup tornado, and giant meatballs crushing the town. The townsfolk then build sailboats out of huge pieces of bread. They sail to a new place and grow accustomed to buying food in stores.
Astro Boy - 10/23
Set in futuristic Metro City, Astro Boy is about a young robot with incredible powers created by a brilliant scientist named Tenma (Nicolas Cage). Powered by positive "blue" energy, Astro Boy (Freddie Highmore) is endowed with super strength, x-ray vision, unbelievable speed and the ability to fly. Embarking on a journey in search of acceptance, Astro Boy encounters many other colorful characters along the way.
Fantastic Mr. Fox - 11/6
Mysterious at the moment. It's based on the children's book and it's Stop Motion. Intriguing...
Planet 51 - 11/30
The film follows a human astronaut named Chuck (Dwayne Johnson) who lands on Planet 51 thinking he's the first to set foot on it. However, he discovers it's inhabited by little green people who live in a white picket-fenced world reminiscent of 1950s America.
The Princess and the Frog - 12/11
A prince named Naveen from the land of Maldonia is transformed into a frog by the evil scheming voodoo magician Dr. Remy Voodoo. The frog prince asks a princess named Tiana to break the spell by kissing him. However, the kiss doesn't break the spell, but instead turns Tiana into a frog as well. Together, the two of them must reach the good voodoo priestess of the Bayou, Mama Odie, while befriending a trumpet-playing alligator and a hopelessly romantic firefly along the way.
The Illusionist - 12/16 In UK
is the second animated feature film by Sylvain Chomet, the director of The Triplets of Belleville. The film will be based on an unproduced script that the French mime, director and actor Jacques Tati had written in 1956 as a personal letter to his estranged eldest daughter. in collaboration with long term writing partner Henri Marquet between Mon Oncle and Playtime. “It’s not a romance, it’s more the relationship between a dad and a daughter,” says Chomet. The plot revolves around a struggling illusionist who visits an isolated community and meets a young lady who is convinced that he is a real magician.The film will be set in Scotland in the late 1950s.
Minor spoilers below.
There were a few times where I thought it was a bit unbelievable, but like every movie going adventure you've got to have a suspension of belief for the time being. But there was one scene where I was a bit... perplexed. It felt unnecessary when the dogs were... flying planes? I mean, really? It was Ratatouille all over again with the whole hair pulling puppeteering bit. And I really felt the movie could've really done without it. None the less it was fantastic film overall. And my favorite bit was probably the montage in the beginning concerning Ellie and Carl. I never thought I would see the subject of miscarriaging in an American animated movie, let alone a Disney (kinda) film. And blood! Let me tell you, that surprised me. It was realistic-- which was a real selling point to me. One of the best things about Pixar is that they don't treat children like idiots. While everyone else does, which is precisely why this new generation are idiots! I was also pleasantly surprised to see only one or two children in the theater, while the rest of the audience was made up of older teens and adults. It's nice to see animation is starting to be recognized more as just baby sitter cartoons.
But now to the main point of this post. After seeing Up I've ventured again to look for what other animated films I could look forward to this year. At least Coraline and Up are on my Christmas list.
What? Another entry on upcoming animated movies? Why, yes. Yes it is. You can call me obsessed all you want because... it's true.
Images link to their official sites.
Evangelian: 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance - 6/27 In JAPAN
Continuing where the previous film, Evangelion 1.0, left off, the paramilitary organization NERV continues to defend the world from the return of the Angels, but the war is beginning to take its toll. In the middle of all this, the somewhat pleasant life Shinji Ikari has found in Tokyo-3 is about to take a drastic turn when a new group of Evangelion pilots, including the fiery redhead Asuka Langley Shikinami, are brought in to assist him and Rei Ayanami in battle. Meanwhile, Misato Katsuragi faces problems of her own as her old flame Ryoji Kaji is transferred to NERV on special assignment, raising mixed feelings between them. And tensions between NERV Supreme Commander Gendo Ikari and the mysterious organization SEELE begin to arise from differing agendas. As everyone tries to adjust to each other, questions are raised, relationships are strained, and an unexpected series of events will bring the coming end of mankind ever closer.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs - 7/1
Manny (Ray Romano), Sid (John Leguizamo), Diego (Denis Leary), Ellie (Queen Latifah), Eddie (Josh Peck), Crash (Seann William Scott) and Scrat encounter a dinosaur population which survived extinction in its tropical paradise, which existed below the thick layers... until now. Meanwhile, Crash and Eddie are up to their usual crazy selves. Manny and Ellie have since become an item and are going to have their first baby, and Manny wants everything to be perfect when his baby arrives. Diego is tired of being treated like a Housecat and ponders the notion that he's being too laid back. Sid is jealous of Manny and Ellie and he starts to wish for a family of his own, so he steals some dinosaurs eggs. But Sid gets captured by a crazed dinosaur, which leads his herd to try and rescue him. While dodging danger and dinos left and right, the herd meets up with a relentless, one-eyed dino hunting weasel named Buck. Scrat also meets a fiesty female squirrel named Scratte.
Green Lanter: First Flight - 7/28
Green Lantern: First Flight finds test pilot Hal Jordan recruited to join the Green Lantern Corps after the death of his predecessor Abin Sur and placed under the supervision of respected senior officer Sinestro. The newly recruited officer of sector 2814 soon discovers his mentor is actually the central figure in a secret conspiracy that threatens the philosophies, traditions and hierarchy of the entire Green Lantern Corps. Hal must quickly hone his newfound powers and combat the treasonous Lanterns within the ranks to maintain order in the universe.
9 - 9/9
9 takes place in a world parallel to our own, in which the very legacy of humanity is threatened. A group of sapient rag dolls, living a post-apocalyptic existence find one of their own, 9, who displays leadership qualities that may help them to survive.
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs - 9/18
The book describes the town of Chewandswallow, where the weather comes three times a day, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and is always food and beverages. The rain is juice and soup, the snow is mashed potatoes, and the wind brings hamburgers. However, floods and storms of food come - creating dilemmas such as the school getting smothered beneath a giant pancake (forcing it to close), a ketchup tornado, and giant meatballs crushing the town. The townsfolk then build sailboats out of huge pieces of bread. They sail to a new place and grow accustomed to buying food in stores.
Astro Boy - 10/23
Set in futuristic Metro City, Astro Boy is about a young robot with incredible powers created by a brilliant scientist named Tenma (Nicolas Cage). Powered by positive "blue" energy, Astro Boy (Freddie Highmore) is endowed with super strength, x-ray vision, unbelievable speed and the ability to fly. Embarking on a journey in search of acceptance, Astro Boy encounters many other colorful characters along the way.
Fantastic Mr. Fox - 11/6
Mysterious at the moment. It's based on the children's book and it's Stop Motion. Intriguing...
Planet 51 - 11/30
The film follows a human astronaut named Chuck (Dwayne Johnson) who lands on Planet 51 thinking he's the first to set foot on it. However, he discovers it's inhabited by little green people who live in a white picket-fenced world reminiscent of 1950s America.
The Princess and the Frog - 12/11
A prince named Naveen from the land of Maldonia is transformed into a frog by the evil scheming voodoo magician Dr. Remy Voodoo. The frog prince asks a princess named Tiana to break the spell by kissing him. However, the kiss doesn't break the spell, but instead turns Tiana into a frog as well. Together, the two of them must reach the good voodoo priestess of the Bayou, Mama Odie, while befriending a trumpet-playing alligator and a hopelessly romantic firefly along the way.
The Illusionist - 12/16 In UK
is the second animated feature film by Sylvain Chomet, the director of The Triplets of Belleville. The film will be based on an unproduced script that the French mime, director and actor Jacques Tati had written in 1956 as a personal letter to his estranged eldest daughter. in collaboration with long term writing partner Henri Marquet between Mon Oncle and Playtime. “It’s not a romance, it’s more the relationship between a dad and a daughter,” says Chomet. The plot revolves around a struggling illusionist who visits an isolated community and meets a young lady who is convinced that he is a real magician.The film will be set in Scotland in the late 1950s.