DVDizzy Forum

Well, I did what I should have done first; searched some on the internet, and it seems like it is true after all, according to Jim Hill:

http://jimhillmedia.com/blogs/jim_hill/ ... n-dog.aspx

"First the bad news: Yes, the rumors you've heard are true. Chris Sanders -- the man who wrote & directed "Lilo & Stitch," Disney's traditionally animated smash from the summer of 2002 -- was forced off of his follow-up project, "American Dog." Which was originally supposed to be WDFA's big release for 2008."

Ahem ... American Dog directed by Chris Williams?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0397892/

If you click Chris Williams' name on IMDB, it will say that he worked on story for Mulan and The Emperor's New Groove.

So if this is true, that means that American Dog may not be getting scrapped, just a director change.

http://jimhillmedia.com/blogs/jim_hill/ ... n-dog.aspx

Some news about the new director Chris Williams, and his devastating changes.

All I have to say is ichabod said it best: "If this is true, John Lasster needs to die!"

every leader has their good and bad choices. with pixar's winning streak, John kinda has earned the right to a few miss steps here and there. first cars (in my opinion), and now this.

compair this to eisner. as long as he learns from these mistakes in the future he's still a great leader.

Kyle wrote:every leader has their good and bad choices. with pixar's winning streak, John kinda has earned the right to a few miss steps here and there. first cars (in my opinion), and now this.

compair this to eisner. as long as he learns from these mistakes in the future he's still a great leader.

True, but to be an effective leader, he's also going to have to be willing to experiment, as opposed to retredding the same basic ideas every other movie.

If supposedly rumours that Lasseter was not a fan of Sanders or Lilo and Stitch to begin with, I think it's hardly surprising then he was canned.

But the think that most upsets me about this supposed change in direction is that all the quirk of the original plot has been lost. I mean a TV star German Shepherd called Bolt that thinks all the tricks he does in the show are real? Hello! How can anyone not see that is essentially the EXACT same plot as 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure?

Jerry Beck over at CartoonBrew.com has a quote from Leslie Hough (co producer of 101 Dalmatians II), which reads:

"Our film “Dalmatians II” features a German Shepherd deluded by his own stardom named Thunderbolt. In our version Patch, the puppy, is Thunderbolt’s biggest fan and has memorized all the episodes of his show. When I first heard about American Dog, I thought the story was similar, but now it is too close for comfort...Disney is welcome to rip itself off, but we, the filmmakers of the first film are kind of shocked.”

So even the people who work for Disney are shocked the original quirky sounding American Dog has been rehashed into what is essentially a copy of 101 Dalmatians 2.

Timon/Pumbaa fan wrote:All I have to say is ichabod said it best: "If this is true, John Lasster needs to die!"

Well I warned against Lasseter and the changes he's make from the start. Just because virtually every Pixar film shares the same dynamic and plot, it looks like Disney is getting the same treatment.

Forget that... its Toy Story (with a hint of Toy Story 2)! (Delusion + Reality/Fantasy confusion = Buzz, TV show and Fans = Woody) (and don't forget Male who is confused for a Female = Ladybug from A Bug's Life)

Welcome to Pixar, where any idea is so good, its used repeatedly.

2099net wrote:Forget that... its Toy Story (with a hint of Toy Story 2)! (Delusion + Reality/Fantasy confusion = Buzz, TV show and Fans = Woody) (and don't forget Male who is confused for a Female = Ladybug from A Bug's Life)

Welcome to Pixar, where any idea is so good, its used repeatedly.

and the sig above you reminds me that even meet the Robinson's is doing it with the t-rex and the making fun of his short arms as they did throughout toy story 2.

Kyle wrote: and the sig above you reminds me that even meet the Robinson's is doing it with the t-rex and the making fun of his short arms as they did throughout toy story 2.

And hey presto, the interview Mr Toad links to here with Lasseter implies strongly that the dinosaur is a Lasseter addition.
http://www.ultimatedisney.com/forum/vie ... hp?t=19003

American Dog, which I keep hearing will be getting a title change, is up almost all totally up on reels and ready for a viewing by the top creative honchos at Pixar and DFA. The new continuity was boarded in 2 ½ months, which is moving right along.

http://animationguildblog.blogspot.com/ ... shots.html

Wasn't it going to be "Hollywood Dog" now? This movie worries me. I know having lots of problems doesn't always mean the movie itself will not be good, but...losing Chris Sanders, having the story totally revamped to a Buzz Lightyear-esque thing...it just sounds old to me. I don't know, maybe I'll be surprised.

I still miss the big bunny & the pirate cat. & And the old design of the doggie.

I don't know what to think of this film. I'm afraid it will turn out to be average, below that, or bad, and ruin Disney's new image of turning Walt Disney Animation Studios in the right direction (something they established with MTRobinsons).

Who knows?

I wonder if, besides the new plot, changing the title from "American Dog" to "Hollywood Dog" or whatever other kind of dog, is a good thing...I wonder how people in other countries react to movies with "American" in the title. Since a lot of the world doesn't like America...

the new title is "thunderbolt: the movie"

So the film is now titled "Bolt" and slated for November 2009? What are we getting till then? I've never felt so confused with Walt Disney Animation Studios' schedule. They currently have three films for 2009. "Bolt", "The Princess and the Frog" and "Rapunzel". So next year we get nothing. Great.

Oh, and I'm expecting the Glen Keane-driven "Rapunzel" to fall behind, which is unfortunate, considering it's the film I'm anticipating most from Disney Feature Animation. Truth be told, no one really knows what's going to happen to it at this stage.

Julian Carter wrote:Oh, and I'm expecting the Glen Keane-driven "Rapunzel" to fall behind, which is unfortunate, considering it's the film I'm anticipating most from Disney Feature Animation. Truth be told, no one really knows what's going to happen to it at this stage.

But hey, at least Kristin Chenowith is in it, and that is always a plus!

Holy pumpernickle! Am I developing another crush that isn't Emmy?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!

Julian Carter wrote:So the film is now titled "Bolt" and slated for November 2009? What are we getting till then? I've never felt so confused with Walt Disney Animation Studios' schedule. They currently have three films for 2009. "Bolt", "The Princess and the Frog" and "Rapunzel". So next year we get nothing. Great.

Oh, and I'm expecting the Glen Keane-driven "Rapunzel" to fall behind, which is unfortunate, considering it's the film I'm anticipating most from Disney Feature Animation. Truth be told, no one really knows what's going to happen to it at this stage.

Rapunzel is coming in 2010, wich would give us Toy Story 3 and Rapunzel in the same year.

that is gonna be a great year.

PatrickvD wrote:Rapunzel is coming in 2010.

But do we have rock-solid proof? We keep hearing that it's suddenly moving very slowly in the story department. Then Jim Hill pops up and says that Lasseter and Keane are bumping heads and that the former is threatening to cancel the film. A week later he says that Lasseter wants to make WDFA 2D exclusive, so all future projects must be altered or scrapped, including Rapunzel.

It's so confusing! My current question is: "Does Lasseter like Rapunzel?" and "Is it ever going to reach completion?"

But now, besides that - seriously guys ... we're not going to be seeing a new project from Walt Disney Animation Studios for over 2 years.

That's heartbreaking.

But Walt Disney has released a lot this year:

Bridge to Terabthia
Meet the Robinsons
Rattotouille(sp?)
Underdog

PLUS tons of NEWS!

We also have loads of other summer movies to keep us occupied untill then.