Ratatouille Discussion Thread (Previews, Reviews, etc.)

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rexcrk
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Post by rexcrk »

Simba3 wrote:
rexcrk wrote: The biggest disappointment, as silly as this may be, was that I couldn't figure out who John Ratzenberger's character was in this movie :lol: :roll:
This was John Ratzenberger's character, Mustafa:
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Hehe awesome thanks! I saw his name on the IMDb page but I didn't know which one Mustafa was. Thanks again!
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Post by MadonnasManOne »

Well, I am a little shocked. The estimates are in for the weekend, and here is how they pan out:

Friday: $16,500,000
Saturday: $16,800,000
Sunday: $13,900,000

Bringing the three day total to: $47,227,000

Granted, these are the estimates. Could Disney be playing it on the lower side? We'll find out, tomorrow. I guess Anthony wasn't as far off as I thought. I expected to see Ratatouille get the typical Saturday bump, and it really didn't. I don't know what is going on with the Box Office, lately? None of the films released this summer have approached the numbers that were expected. Are people just avoiding going to the theater, and waiting for the films to be released to video? I honestly can't believe that Ratatouille would have the lowest weekend opening since A Bug's Life. With all of the positive reviews, great word of mouth, and good buzz, I had expected to see Ratatouille have a higher opening.
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Post by brownie »

I was a little disappointed when I saw the numbers, but at least it's number one! I also think that the money from the sneak peeks should have been added, because most of the people who were there would have seen it this weekend.

I don't see movies in theaters that often anymore, and I think it has something to do with them being released on DVD a lot earlier (at least in my case). Like, I haven't seen Shrek the Third or Surf's Up just because I'd rather wait a few months to see them on DVD in the comfort of my home. Nowadays I only see movies I've been anticipating: Spider-Man 3, Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End (which I thought was terrible), and Ratatouille. It's been getting a lot of good reviews. I just hope that word of mouth will keep it in the top 5 for the next month.
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Post by Disneykid »

Yeah, it seems box office grosses in general are in a slump this summer. I don't know if it's because people feel overwhelmed by all of the big would-be blockbusters being released week after week, or if they're so accustomed to 3-4 month windows between theaters and DVD that they decided to wait. I think it may be a mix between the two. Either way, it still proves Trelawney's - er - Timon/Pumbaa fan's prediction wrong. Someone needs his inner eye checked. :P

The audience I was with was wildly enthusiastic about the film. Not only were they laughing hysterically at pretty much every gag, but they all even applauded when the credits came up. If all the audiences that went to go see the film this weekend were like mine, then word-of-mouth should give the film some nice legs. I just hope it can break the $200 million mark. As long as it does that, I'll be satisfied, even if that number's significantly lower than other Pixar films. It just hurts me that for the third time, a Shrek movie has outgrossed the Pixar film released the same year. At least there's the Oscars...
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Post by memnv »

I think this was my least favorite of all the pixar films, I will still get the dvd but I was disappointed, it also did not hold te intrest of my 3 year old. he can watch cars 24/7 and not get bored. it was still better than a lot of films, but Idont think it stood up with the pixar name.
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Post by brownie »

See, I thought movies like Cars, Finding Nemo, and even The Incredibles were more boring than Ratatouille (but I personally didn't think any of them were boring enough for it to be a bad thing). Ratatouille was exciting and non-stop, you know? If I was a kid, I'd still love Ratatouille, but I guess I probably wouldn't understand it as much.


And I swear, if Ratatouille loses the Oscar for Best Animated Feature (assuming it will get a nomination :P ), I will be very angry. Happy Feet was not that great. Another movie this year that could possibly be competition is Persepolis (good book, and might be more respected). I haven't even seen any trailers for it, though. If Bee Movie has a good script and is hilarious, it might stand a chance. I have no idea about Coraline.
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Post by blackcauldron85 »

I just came back from seeing "Ratatouille" a second time. It was great again! I even liked "Lifted" a bit more, but I still dislike the ending.
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Post by Jake Lipson »

[quote="brownie"I also think that the money from the sneak peeks should have been added, because most of the people who were there would have seen it this weekend.[/quote]

Ah, but technically that money has already been accounted for. It is industry custom for sneak preview grosses to be folded into another film from the same studio -- in this case, Ratatouille's preview grosses boosted Pirates of the Caribbean's take that weekend. And they can't very well shuffle it OUT of there and into Ratatouille now without looking wierd, can they?

As for the gross -- it's certianly a good start, if unspectacular. But given the conditions of the market right now (and the fact that this one i s by nature a harder sell than, say, Toy Story or The Incredibles), I'm not too worried. I saw it in the sneak preview and then again yesterday and both audiences all seemed to eat it up. I've been telling all my friends to see it for the past two weeks and will continue to do so as long as it remains in theaters. Word of mouth will be strong for this one and I think it's going to be a really strong sleeper hit with long legs (comprable to Knocked Up of late.)
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Post by brownie »

Jake Lipson wrote:
brownie wrote:I also think that the money from the sneak peeks should have been added, because most of the people who were there would have seen it this weekend.
Ah, but technically that money has already been accounted for. It is industry custom for sneak preview grosses to be folded into another film from the same studio -- in this case, Ratatouille's preview grosses boosted Pirates of the Caribbean's take that weekend. And they can't very well shuffle it OUT of there and into Ratatouille now without looking wierd, can they?
I know, but it wasn't added to the Ratatouille gross, right? I was saying that it should have been.
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Post by Anthony »

Well I still consider a $47 million opening weekend to be successful. It doesn't matter if it's the lowest Pixar film opening. I think Ratatouille will prove to have great legs at the box office. As I stated in an earlier post, it still can gain increase from the July 4th holiday, lack of competition for other animated films and all the kids off for summer vacation.

This is a great film and I still stand by it no matter what the gross turns out to be.
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Post by Pluto Region1 »

MadonnasManOne wrote: Oh, no, Anthony. A majority of movies experience a big increase on Saturday, then taper off on Sunday, but, will still remain above their Friday total. This is especially true of movies that are opening. In fact, you can check out the daily chart of any recent movie at BoxOfficeMojo.com, and see that movies almost always get a boost on Saturday, and taper off on Sunday. This is true, even for movies that have been out a while. I'm going to make my bet that Ratatouille will end up in the $52-$55 million dollar range, for the three day weekend.

However, like you, it really doesn't matter to me how much it makes. In the end, it's a great film, and is a success, in my opinion!
Glad to see MM1 is keeping us financially in the loop on the Rat movie totals. As alwys I appreciate your seasoned predictions.... let's hope Rat's Box office totals go into the stratosphere. At least here in Glendale CA, it is very hot today which means they will be selling lots of movie tickets.... I hope to see the movie for the 1st time on Tuesday.

I was at Disneyland on Friday and they had a big Remy and his pal (the fat orange mouse) walking around with a woman dressed as a chef! They were in New Orleans Square and they were signing autograph books and posing for photos with the kids. On Main Street at the Emporium they had one shop window decked out with a scene from the movie - it was very cute! I have never been in the park during an opening weekend for a Pixar film and wondering if it is usual for Disney to put new Pixar characters in the park to promote the film? Of course you usually see Toy Story characters walking around in Fronteirland - but I've never seen a Nemo character or a character from the Incredibles in the park....
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Post by Siren »

I took my daughter to see this today and I must say it was a fantastic movie. I have loved most of Pixar's movies. Cars last year was a disappointment to me. Ratatouille was not. The messages behind it were fantastic. About being honest and true to yourself and your friends. The animation as always was top notch. I love Pixar's art direction. Little things that can go so unnoticed, and yet are so important to the mood.
For instance, a food critic named Anton Ego (get it. A Ton (of) Ego). His room was shown from above and was the shape of a coffin. He himself was the shape of a coffin. And his typewriter looked like it had a skull's face. Little things like that I love. It really fleshed out the character without saying a word.
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Post by slyslayer3000 »

I, too, am quite surprised on its solemn weekend gross. As I ought to know, the film wasn't poorly marketed, nor was it butchered by the critics. And with this low estimated gross so far, I'm starting to discern that Disney•Pixar will suffer in the next few years with their films. Not that I blame Cars, but it seemed obvious that Pixar moviegoers slightly decreased in number after the latter was released. Take Wall•E as another perfect example. I was rather flabbergasted by the teaser trailer. Yes, I know it's just a teaser, but it doesn't look promising and I expect a much lower gross than its predecessors.

Amidst these inauspicious results, I firmly believe that Ratatouille will have strong legs and would be a worthy candidate in the Oscars. I praise Brad Bird for another excellent achievement. Being the number one in the box office as of today, though not completely satisfying, is another success for Pixar. This would be another eminent addition to my DVD collection. The horror shall begin when the Autobots, Decepticons, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Voldemort, and Homer arrive at the big screen.

If the overrated ogre of flatulence defeats the adorable mouse of outstanding cuisine in the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, I'll just kill myself. :P
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Post by Anthony »

slyslayer3000 wrote:If the overrated ogre of flatulence defeats the adorable mouse of outstanding cuisine in the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, I'll just kill myself. :P
I don't think Shrek the Third will even be nominated for Best Animated Feature Film. It has received horrible reviews. Ratatouille is a shoo in for a nomination but not sure if it has enough to win. Don't underestimate the power of Jerry Seinfeld with Bee Movie.
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Post by Simba3 »

Here is an article I found on the weekend box office:

The Top Five

#1 "Ratatouille" ($47.2 million)
#2 "Live Free or Die Hard" ($33.2 million)
#3 "Evan Almighty" ($15 million)
#4 "1408" ($10.6 million)
#5 "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" ($9 million)

After Pixar produced eight films over 12 years and nearly $2 billion in domestic gross alone, Pixar's newest flick, "Ratatouille," raises the question: has the blockbuster animation studio aged like a fine French Bordeaux — meaning it's gotten better and more valuable with age — or like an Auvergne cheese grown stale and a little stinky?

On one hand, the Brad Bird-directed flick about a Parisian rat who dreams of becoming a world-class chef opened to the best reviews of the year, praised by an overwhelming 95 percent of reviews collected at RottenTomatoes.com. On the other, with only $47.2 million over the weekend, "Ratatouille" was the studio's lowest grossing opening since "A Bug's Life" hauled $33.3 million in 1998 — five films ago. It was the second straight box-office disappointment for Pixar after last year's $60 million opening for "Cars."

"Cars," at least, seemed built for the long drive, even if it didn't have the initial horsepower to break records at the starting gun - the NASCAR themed pic eventually motored to an impressive $244 million domestically. If positive word of mouth (and a little help from the July 4 holiday) can push "Ratatouille" close to or past that mark, it'll be a huge success. Wine or cheese? Only time will tell.
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Post by Paka »

Simba3 wrote:Pixar's newest flick, "Ratatouille," raises the question: has the blockbuster animation studio aged like a fine French Bordeaux — meaning it's gotten better and more valuable with age — or like an Auvergne cheese grown stale and a little stinky?
I'm getting so sick of these opening weekend box office discussions. How much? Who won? Who's on top? Good god, like the amount of money a film makes is some sort of objective, hardcore proof of its quality. Image

To me, you can't measure the success of a picture on how many tickets it sells. You can only measure it in how many hearts it changes. ~Hayao Miyazaki
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Post by Simba3 »

Paka wrote:
Simba3 wrote:Pixar's newest flick, "Ratatouille," raises the question: has the blockbuster animation studio aged like a fine French Bordeaux — meaning it's gotten better and more valuable with age — or like an Auvergne cheese grown stale and a little stinky?
I'm getting so sick of these opening weekend box office discussions. How much? Who won? Who's on top? Good god, like the amount of money a film makes is some sort of objective, hardcore proof of its quality. Image

To me, you can't measure the success of a picture on how many tickets it sells. You can only measure it in how many hearts it changes. ~Hayao Miyazaki
Just so you know, I didn't write that. I was simply posting an article I found online about the weekend box office so those forum members who were curious how "Ratatouille" did, in terms of money, could know.
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Post by Paka »

I know you didn't write it - I was just too lazy to designate such in the snippet I quoted. :P

My opinions remains the same no matter who writes this tripe, however.
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Post by Luke »

Paka wrote:Good god, like the amount of money a film makes is some sort of objective, hardcore proof of its quality. Image
Of course it's not. But at the same time, you can't deny that how a movie performs at the box office determines the types of movies that are made.

The dwindling intakes of CGI films on the whole is probably a good thing since it ensures that rather than a glut of films trying to cash in on the medium, we'll only be getting stories worth being told and in that medium. But it kind of sucks when good movies (like <i>Ratatouille</i>, <i>Meet the Robinsons</i>, or <i>Flushed Away</i>) get lost in the shuffle and studios chalk it up to a medium's appeal (or lackthereof) or audience disinterest when in reality scheduling is probably just as likely, if not more, deserving of blame.

I do agree with you that box office numbers are becoming perhaps excessively cited. (I admit I contribute to that trend when I mention a movie's performance in my reviews.) But I think that professional reviews, word of mouth, attendance levels, and eventually awards all have to be considered when determining a movie's "success" and impact.

Oh, and "Wine or cheese?"... that excerpt was particularly horrible in writing and its presentation of facts.
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Post by PatrickvD »

what frustrates me most of all this Box Office importance is that now that Ratatouille isn't doing as good as hoped, people will start shouting Disney buying Pixar was a bad idea.

If Lasseter can create a creative environment at Disney, so that they can then start making films as good as Ratatouille... isn't that more important?

to all the Jim Hills and the other negative nancy's, what are they suggesting here? that we just dump Pixar and invite Michael Eisner back? any other genius ideas?
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