Well, that's why I'm perfectly fine with the use of tropes and formulas, so long as the execution is good. I was fine with the majority of Pixar's first 11 films using that formula (and frankly, I hardly noticed), because they were, for the most part, executed very well--they had imaginative and creative ideas and worldbuilding, strong writing, believable characters, and most of the films each explored different thematic elements, which allowed them to set them apart from one another. (Yes, some had issues and were overpraised, but I do feel that, as a whole, they were very strong.)Tangled wrote:I come to this thread and all I feel is nothing besides, "Man, I really loved Zootopia, and I thought it was original and refreshing compared to most other animated movies these days (including Pixar films). Also, most animated Disney movies have horrible trailers. Also, the new Trolls trailer makes that movie seem way more cliche than anything Disney Animation has put out in a long time. Also, I really want to rewatch Animaniacs."
Every piece of media has a formula, since every writer is influenced by whatever he or she finds appealing/thinks the audience will find appealing. The original Star Wars trilogy is a cliche hero's prophecy story, but that doesn't stop it from being one of the most beloved series of all time (and the new Star Wars trilogy seems to be reusing that formula, but I don't care because The Force Awakens was good enough to stand on its own). Filmmakers just keep on building upon what is currently popular, just as how Walt Disney kept on relying on musical fairy tales after Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs became a box-office smash almost 80 years ago.
Similarly, Disney doing The Lion King and releasing Toy Story definitely caused a shift in animated film storytelling, since TLK and TS appealed to people who even disliked the traditional (and, yes, formulaic) fairy tales that Disney was doing beforehand (which is a reminder that, back in 1995, Toy Story was nothing like any other animated film at the time, and it wasn't just because of the CGI). Of course, once you lean the scale one way, it's hard to go back to the way you were before, especially when it seems like people are more receptive to how you are now.
But I don't think the criticism of the formula growing tired is unwarranted--the weakness of most of the post-TS3-Pixar films, along with the addition of WDAS adhering to the formula, has kinda drawn more attention to the format and made it more noticeable IMO. But, for example, even though it incorporated that same formula, I thought Inside Out was one of Pixar's strongest films to date and I loved it to bits, so as long as the execution works, I'm not going to complain about that particular film. But then again, just because it works when executed right, doesn't mean they can't try to diversify their storytelling as a whole either. I never believed that these studios are the director-driven studios that they have claimed to be, but it really just starts to feel by-committee (which we all know is true to a large extent).
And even though I am growing a bit tired of the formula, I generally think WDAS's current 'era' is pretty solid. Nothing has has reached the masterpiece territory of the big four Renaissance films, but BH6 was the only real dud for me, and I thought the rest all had their strengths, to varying degrees (I do think Zootopia is probably the strongest to date, and it's largely because they are able to use the formula in a way that truly benefits the genre and themes of the film). I might get some flack for this, but I think the writing of the current films is generally a bit stronger than the post-LK Renaissance, though on the other hand, I also feel the current films do suffer from slightly more formulaic approach to their storytelling overall, as well as a more samey visual style. (And the visual flair is an area that I feel the post-LK Renaissance and even the early 2000s films really quite excelled at, even above the big four Renaissance films.)
So overall, I find myself caught between both sides of this argument, because I agree with certain aspects of each side of the issue. But in the end, I do think it's time to start using a different approach.
