The Status of the Animated Film

[Elladorine]

Huh. I really don't get all the accusations of the character designs and such looking alike between the different CG films and studios, but ok. And no offense; I do realize it's all just opinion but I can't believe how negative the subject has already become in this thread . . . I for one am pretty excited to know that animation is becoming embraced by general audiences once again. And as much as I love Disney, I'm glad they're no longer the only studio to attract a sizable audience. People outside the industry that aren't even animation enthusiasts are actually talking about films like Rio, How to Train Your Dragon, Kung Fu Panda, Despicable Me, etc. in a positive light simply because they find them entertaining.

[Disney's Divinity]

And when they *do* have a story with a little more thought put into it, it's the age-old 'outsider becomes hero', like you see in HTTYD.

I blame '90s Disney for making that the norm for animated films these days.

[Rose Dome]

Disney Geek wrote:

but rather than trying to tell timeless and charming stories, they are apparently sticking to their same old formula ([fart jokes + pop culture references] x A Listers = Film)

I think there are a few notable exceptions to this formula outside Disney/Pixar:

Horton (20th century Fox)
Wallace and Gromit The curse of The Were-rabbit (Aardman/Dreamworks)
Coraline (Universal)
Corpse Bride (Warner Brothers)
9 (cannot remember what company)
Chicken Run (Aardman/ Dreamworks): admittedly not very recent.

People may not all like and appriciate these movies equally high, but you cannot charge these with using fart jokes + pop culture references etc.

I was only talking about Dreamworks when I mentioned fart jokes and pop culture references

[estefan]

DreamWorks has actually really calmed down on that front. Pop-culture references were practically non-existent in the Kung Fu Panda flicks and How to Train Your Dragon. And the only ones I spotted in Megamind were ones to the Obama posters and Donkey Kong. I think in recent years, Shrek Forever After might be the only DreamWorks production to have a fart joke and even then, it might make sense in context (though somebody will have to remind me. The last couple of Shreks were so forgettable).

[The_Iceflash]

And as much as I love Disney, I'm glad they're no longer the only studio to attract a sizable audience.

I'm not. Especially when the studios attracting the sizable audiences (aside from Pixar) are releasing pure drivel and audiences love it!

People outside the industry that aren't even animation enthusiasts are actually talking about films like Rio, How to Train Your Dragon, Kung Fu Panda, Despicable Me, etc. in a positive light simply because they find them entertaining.

Except that those films, especially Kung Fu Panda, Despicable Me, etc try to be cool and hip and are the epitome of what I don't want in an animated film.

[BelleGirl]

Look at it this way: there are very many life-action movies produced each year and just a few of these are really good and will be remembered and rewatches for decades. Today there are more competitors in the field of animated movies then ever before. It's inevitable that few of them are real gems and the rest is average fare at best. Animtion fans should be glad the genre has become so popular. I still remeber the time that such a thing as an animated film was one Disney every tow or three years or so..

[Elladorine]

Sometimes I swear Disney fans think Disney should be the only studio allowed to do animation.

And as much as I love Disney, I'm glad they're no longer the only studio to attract a sizable audience.

I'm not. Especially when the studios attracting the sizable audiences (aside from Pixar) are releasing pure drivel and audiences love it!

While it's all opinion of course, I'd hardly call most of the films I've mentioned in this thread pure drivel.

People outside the industry that aren't even animation enthusiasts are actually talking about films like Rio, How to Train Your Dragon, Kung Fu Panda, Despicable Me, etc. in a positive light simply because they find them entertaining.

Except that those films, especially Kung Fu Panda, Despicable Me, etc try to be cool and hip and are the epitome of what I don't want in an animated film.

Ouch. I might agree about the "try to be cool and hip" part if you were strictly speaking of films like Mars Needs Moms, but to be fair, I haven't bothered even with that one yet. And while everyone's entitled to their opinions (as I keep repeating), what you don't want in an animated film does not represent what everyone else should or shouldn't want. Even if you don't care for Dreamworks' sense of humor (which varies from film to film), at the very least you have to admit that the Kung Fu Panda films are visually striking. Besides, there are reasons they've resonated with audiences beyond just the little kids: adults like the humor, the characters, the story, the action, the visuals.

And as for Despicable Me, here's something a highliy respected director from both Disney and Dreamworks (who had absolutely nothing to do with the film) had to say about it: <i>"And from sheer brilliance in story telling, Despicable Me should get more recognition. I have watched that movie ten times, and I watch it till the end every time. That's what I go to the movies for. A great journey, and a great story. Well done."</i> Anyone know who I'm quoting?

Animtion fans should be glad the genre has become so popular. I still remeber the time that such a thing as an animated film was one Disney every tow or three years or so..

Apparently the issue is that we have a lot more Disney fans around here than we do animation fans. But I totally agree with you of course, I remember those days as well.

[UmbrellaFish]

And as for Despicable Me, here's something a highliy respected director from both Disney and Dreamworks (who had absolutely nothing to do with the film) had to say about it: <i>"And from sheer brilliance in story telling, Despicable Me should get more recognition. I have watched that movie ten times, and I watch it till the end every time. That's what I go to the movies for. A great journey, and a great story. Well done."</i> Anyone know who I'm quoting?

Chris Sanders! Chris Sanders!

I just had to catch that. I will give my thoughts on the subject of this thread later.

[Elladorine]

Chris Sanders! Chris Sanders!

I just had to catch that. I will give my thoughts on the subject of this thread later.

[Elladorine]

Thought of this thread again while watching Despicable Me with the kids* the other night . . . even let them stay up a little extra late to finish it. They're admittedly a little spoiled when it comes to entertainment, so it's pretty rare for them to sit still for an animated movie because they've "seen it all."

I've heard people accuse Gru of being a pretentious character but I still maintain that he's pretty bad-ass.

I asked the kids what they'd like me to bring for the week and they listed off The Corpse Bride, Coraline, The Incredibles, Rio, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Kung Fu Panda, and Despicable Me. And I'm trying to talk them into seeing The Lion King at the theater but they're shrugging it off because they've already seen it on DVD (I'll keep trying though). And for the record, they can't stand the Chipmunk movies and they can't roll their eyes hard enough over The Smurfs; the 11-year-old says that those are the ones that try too hard to be hip and cool.

Regardless, it's so much more fun to watch films like these with kids that enjoy them just as much as I do, if not more.

*Not mine, I'm just the babysitter

[ajmrowland]

after reading luke's scathing review if DM, i've kinda found a few irksome things about the movie.