Film Junk » Animation

Kevin Smith Announces Jay & Silent Bob’s Super Groovy Cartoon Movie

Sean — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:38:07 +0000

Last week Kevin Smith held a live podcast and interactive Q&A in Toronto that was simulcast to movie theatres across North America called Kevin Smith: Live from Behind. As you might expect, the Q&A featured some new information about upcoming projects from Smith, one of which was his hockey movie Hit Somebody (which he plans to debut in hockey arenas across Canada), and the other was a brand new movie called Jay & Silent Bob's Super Groovy Cartoon Movie. Unbeknownst to me, there had been a brief mention of this film in the SModcast Pictures press release from last month, but it stated only that it would be "a blend of live action footage and R-rated animation." Smith confirmed this fact during Live From Behind, although he did not reveal a heck of a lot more. The details are still pretty scarce, but according to Smith, they are aiming to have Jay & Silent Bob's Super Groovy Cartoon Movie premiere at the Midnight Madness program at this year's Toronto International Film Festival. That would seem to indicate that the project is already in production, especially since animation can take a lot longer to complete than a low budget film. Movie Buzzers also reports that the movie is partially being developed by Jason Mewes, and that the live action elements will include Smith and Mewes in their superhero outfits, most likely as Bluntman and Chronic. If you ask me, it sounds like it could end up being something in the vein of Rob Zombie's The Haunted World of El Superbeasto, which seemed kind of cool but ultimately ended up getting mixed reviews. I'm also guessing that Steve Stark, the guy who does The SModCo Cartoon Show (previously known as SModimations 2D) will be involved, and that it will feature the same art style. I was a fan of the short-lived Clerks animated series back in 2000, and I'd still like to see what else Smith could do with the medium, particularly if it's rated R. On the other hand, if this project is mainly the brainchild of Jason Mewes, that could be a bad sign. What do you think, are you interested in Jay & Silent Bob's Super Groovy Cartoon Movie?

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Rango Takes Top Prize at 2012 Annie Awards

Sean — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:27:03 +0000

As we all know, a year without a strong Pixar movie is a year where other studios have a rare opportunity to get some recognition for their own animated features. Since Cars 2 was not even nominated for an Academy Award this year, we've now got DreamWorks and Paramount battling it out against a couple of smaller foreign productions. However, while the Academy Awards are what most of the world uses to judge the best animated film of the year, industry insiders typically look to the Annie Awards instead. In the past, DreamWorks has had their fair share of success at the Annies (How to Train Your Dragon won out over Toy Story 3 last year, while Kung Fu Panda upset Wall-E in 2008), but this year, newcomers Paramount and ILM have taken the title for Rango. Go figure! It's probably not a huge surprise that Rango won Best Animated Feature, especially you when you consider that these awards are generally a little more technical and Rango's tech was pretty damn impressive. However, the question remains: is Rango is now more likely to win the Oscar as well? Not necessarily. Many of the other Annie Awards were spread out to other films, and Jennifer Yuh Nelson took home the directing award for Kung Fu Panda 2. Heck, even The Adventures of Tintin picked up a couple of awards. Check out the full list of winners after the jump.

Best Animated Feature: “Rango”
Best Animated Special Production: “Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Masters”
Best Animated Short Subject: “Adam and Dog”
Animated Effects in an Animated Production: “The Adventures of Tintin”
Animated Effects in a Live Action Production: “Transformers: Dark of the Moon”
Character Animation in a Feature Production: “Rio”
Character Animation in a Live Action Production: “Rise of the Planet of the Apes”
Character Design in a Feature Production: “Rango”
Directing in a Feature Production: Jennifer Yuh Nelson, “Kung Fu Panda 2”
Music in a Feature Production: John Williams, “The Adventures of Tintin”
Production Design in a Feature Production: “Kung Fu Panda 2”
Storyboarding in a Feature Production: “Winnie the Pooh”
Voice Acting in a Feature Production: Bill Nighy, “Arthur Christmas”
Writing in a Feature Production: “Rango”
Editing in a Feature Production: “Rango”
Winsor McCay Award: Walt Peregoy, Borge Ring, Robert Searle
June Foray Award: Art Leonardi
Special Achievement Award: Depth Analysis

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The Pirates! Band of Misfits Alters Scene After Complaints from Leprosy Groups

Aaron — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 13:50:48 +0000

You wouldn't think that anyone would kick up a fuss over an animated film like Aardman Animation's The Pirates! Band of Misfits, but in this day and age apparently no movie is beyond scrutiny. In this situation, however, the criticism doesn't come from a parental group or any other usual source. Instead, leprosy groups like Lepra Health in Action and the International Federation of Anti-Leprosy Associations have taken issue with a particular scene that was featured in the film's trailer. The scene in question shows the Pirate Captain boarding a ship and demanding gold from its crew only to be told, "Afraid we don’t have any gold old man, this is a leper boat," after which a shipmate's arm falls off. The leper groups complained that the scene could "aggravate the discrimination and stigma experienced by sufferers of the disease." Aardman has agreed to change the scene out of respect for those who are affected by leprosy. In response to Aardman's decision, Lepra Health in Action was delighted that the studio amended their film and commended them for their sensitivity. While it's nice that the situation was resolved... should it really have been a big issue to begin with? At the risk of sounding insensitive and politically incorrect, do studios always need to bend when a fringe group throws a complaint their way? Unless you're talking about the safest film possible in terms of content, there's nearly always going to be something that a group of people can point to as offensive in some way. All I'm saying is that it can be a slippery slope. At any rate, The Pirates! Band of Misfits will hit theaters on March 30th, fortunately with no lepers picketing theaters in protest!

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Disney’s Beauty and the Beast 3D Trailer

Sean — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 17:30:32 +0000

Try to contain your excitement folks, it's another 2D trailer for an upcoming 3D film! Something tells me this is going to continue to be one of the hardest things about selling audiences on 3D: you have to get them into the theatre before you can actually show them the visuals from your upcoming movie. Not that I necessarily think Disney's re-releases are relying on the 3D conversion to get people to see them. They are clearly being marketed as classics that need to be revisited and introduced to a new generation, and that approach seems to be working quite well for them. Following up on the success of The Lion King 3D, Beauty and the Beast is Disney's next classic to be upgraded to three dimensions. It is the only animated film ever to be nominated for Best Picture prior to the introduction of the 10 nominee system in 2009. It didn't win, but it's still arguably the peak of Disney's animated feature output. Do you plan to see this on the big screen again (or for the very first time)? Beauty and the Beast hits theatres on January 13th; check out the trailer after the jump.

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Brave Trailer #2

Sean — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 18:50:11 +0000

Disney has released the full theatrical trailer this week for Pixar's 2012 entry, Brave, which is being directed by Mark Andrews (Violet) and Brenda Chapman (The Prince of Egypt). I liked the initial teaser trailer quite a bit, but somehow this ones seems like a step backward to me. If I didn't know ahead of time that it was a Pixar film, I'd probably assume it was from DreamWorks just because of the Shrek-esque Scottish brogue and character designs reminiscent of How to Train Your Dragon. Personally I'm a lot more excited about the other Disney CG film coming out in 2012, Wreck-It Ralph, but maybe you will disagree. Brave features the voices of Kelly MacDonald, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Julie Walters, and Kevin McKidd, and it hits theatres on June 22, 2012. Check out the new trailer after the jump and see what you think.

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Kristen Stewart in Talks for Akira Remake

Sean — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 18:22:19 +0000

In case you weren't already apprehensive about the upcoming live action remake of the anime classic Akira, Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures seem to be doing just about everything they can to give fans of the original film even more to worry about. Jaume Collet-Serra (Unknown, Orphan) took over the director's chair when Albert Hughes left the project, and although no casting choices have been officially announced as of yet, Garrett Hedlund (Tron: Legacy) is said to be nearing a deal to play the lead role of Kaneda. Now it looks like Twilight star Kristen Stewart may be joining the cast as well. While they obviously need to make the movie appeal to a mainstream audience, will they end up alienating the hardcore fans at the same time? The news of Kristen Stewart's potential involvement was originally reported by Twitch and later confirmed by Deadline. She would play Kei, a young revolutionary who falls for Kaneda and helps him in his quest to locate Tetsuo and prevent him from destroying Neo-Tokyo. Ezra Miller (We Need to Talk About Kevin) is rumoured to be under consideration to play Tetsuo, while Gary Oldman and Helena Bonham-Carter have been offered the roles of Colonel and Lady Miyako respectively. I don't necessarily think Kristen Stewart would be a horrible choice to play Kei, but I do think it's unfortunate that there are so few young actresses in Hollywood right now that are considered bankable. She has already proven that she can do more than just play pouty Bella, but I'm still waiting for something to about this project to grab me. At least the supporting cast is sounding solid. What do you think, would Kristen Stewart be a good fit for Akira or is this just another sign that the project is doomed?

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ParaNorman Trailer

Sean — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 20:19:50 +0000

Under normal circumstances, an animated movie about zombies probably would not hold much interest for me. However, a stop motion animated film about zombies from the same studio who did Coraline... well, that's a bit of a different story. Granted, this movie is not directed by Henry Selick, who left Laika back in 2009, but it does look like it has a lot more potential than, say, the 2008 CG-animated film Igor. By setting the entirety of the first teaser trailer to Donovan's "Season of the Witch", it would seem that they are aiming for atmosphere over cheap gags. I'm still not too keen on that title though. ParaNorman is about a young boy named Norman (voiced by Kodi Smit-McPhee) who can talk to dead people. When his small town is attacked by zombies, his strange talent suddenly puts him in a position to be an unlikely hero. The movie is directed by Chris Butler and Sam Fell (The Tale of Despereaux, Flushed Away), and the voice cast also includes Casey Affleck, John Goodman, Leslie Mann, Anna Kendrick, Jeff Garlin and Christopher Mintz-Plasse. ParaNorman hits theatres on August 17th, 2012; check out the first trailer after the jump and see what you think.

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Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax Trailer

Sean — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 13:47:27 +0000

The first trailer has arrived online this week for yet another adaptation of a Dr. Seuss classic. Following in the footsteps of the highly successful Horton Hears a Who!, Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures have opted for a CG-animated take on Seuss' environmental fable The Lorax. The movie features the voices of Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, Ed Helms, Betty White and Danny DeVito, and is directed by Chris Renaud and Kyle Balda (Despicable Me). The story revolves around a young boy who lives in a world where trees no longer exist. He sets out on a journey to discover what happened to the forest, and along the way meets the Once-ler who is chopping down the trees, and the Lorax, who fights to protect nature. Like most movies based on Seuss' stories, they will clearly have to stretch out the plot with a fair amount of their own ideas, but the visuals certainly look pretty Seuss-tastic. The Lorax hits theatres on March 2, 2012; check out the trailer after the jump and see what you think.

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Akira Remake is Officially Happening, Garrett Hedlund to Star?

Sean — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 13:37:29 +0000

Back in 2007 and 2008, studios suddenly started picking up the rights to tons of classic anime titles with the intention of creating big budget live action remakes. Ghost in the Shell, Cowboy Bebop and Akira were all among the ones optioned, and yet now a few years later, none of these seem to be any closer to getting made. It remains to be seen whether the relative failure of both Speed Racer and Dragonball had anything to do with it, but nevertheless, some of these projects still remain in active development. This week it appears that Akira has finally gotten the official go-ahead from Warner Brothers and will start shooting next year. Can this possibly end up being the blockbuster that the WB is hoping for? According to Variety, Warner Brothers are happy with the new, leaner budget that Orphan director Jaume Collet-Serra brought with him when he was hired to replace Albert Hughes back in July. The movie was reportedly being budgeted at over $200 million at one point, and has since been brought down to a more reasonable $90 mil. Now that the movie has an official greenlight, casting is expected to begin shortly as they are aiming for a late February / early March start. Keanu Reeves was rumoured to star at one point but ended up passing on the project, and now word on the street is that Garrett Hedlund (Tron: Legacy) will likely take the lead role of Kaneda. Certainly he is a more affordable choice and has experience headlining a big sci-fi film, but his general blandness could be a bit of an issue. It also seems likely that this will be yet another movie accused of whitewashing its cast, but I'll leave that to the folks at Racebending.com. What do you think, can Akira be done as a live action film, and is Garrett Hedlund an acceptable choice to star?

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Disney Planning Four More 3D Re-releases in 2012 and 2013

Sean — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 12:58:49 +0000

While it should come as no surprise that a proven Disney classic would perform well on the big screen again, I don't think anyone expected the 3D re-release of The Lion King to be quite as big as it has been over the past month. The movie topped the box office two weeks in a row (going head to head with Brad Pitt, no less) and has earned $80 million so far despite competition from a flood of critically acclaimed new releases. Now this week Disney has unveiled plans for four more similar re-releases, two of which are traditionally animated films and two of which are Pixar flicks. Is re-releasing old movies quickly becoming the new Hollywood remake? I think I'd be okay with that, although there are a lot of people in the movie industry who probably won't. According to a press release from Disney, the following movies will receive limited theatrical engagements starting on the dates listed below:

Beauty and the Beast – January 13, 2012
Finding Nemo – September 14, 2012
Monsters, Inc. – January 18, 2013
The Little Mermaid – September 13, 2013

The re-release of Monsters, Inc. is obviously timed to help promote the prequel, Monsters University, which will also hit theatres on June 21st, 2013. Alan Bergman, the president of The Walt Disney Studios had this to say:

"Great stories and great characters are timeless, and at Disney we're fortunate to have a treasure trove of both... We're thrilled to give audiences of all ages the chance to experience these beloved tales in an exciting new way with 3D – and in the case of younger generations, for the first time on the big screen."

Are you excited to get the chance to see these movies on the big screen again? Would you be more excited if they weren't in 3D?

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Eddie Murphy to Voice Hong Kong Phooey Movie

Sean — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 19:29:43 +0000

Just when you thought Eddie Murphy's career might be taking a tentative step back in the right direction with Brett Ratner's Tower Heist, along comes news that he is slumming it yet another low brow family film (which also happens to be produced by Ratner). It was announced this week that Murphy will be voicing the title character in the upcoming big screen adaptation of the Hanna-Barbera cartoon Hong Kong Phooey. As you can probably guess, it will not be fully animated but rather another live-action / CG hybrid in the vein of Alvin and the Chipmunks, The Smurfs, and fellow Hanna-Barbera creation Yogi Bear. Alcon Entertainment founders Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove had this to say about the announcement:

"We could not be happier that Eddie Murphy will star as Phooey. There is no overstating his contributions to cinema, and to such enduring stars of family entertainments such as Shrek and Dr. Doolittle. We look forward to watching him re-imagine yet another classic character."

Hong Kong Phooey was a fairly short-lived Saturday morning cartoon that aired from September to December of 1974. The main character is a dog who works a mild-mannered police station janitor but with mystical powers transforms into the "number one super guy", fighting crime with the help of The Hong Kong Book Of Kung Fu and his pet cat Spot. Hong Kong Phooey was voiced by Scatman Crothers in the original cartoon. Let's face it, Eddie Murphy has made a ton of money voicing Donkey in all of the Shrek movies over the past decade, and if he can get more work like that, he's going to take it. On the bright side, the movie will be directed by direct-to-video sequel master Alex Zamm (Inspector Gadget 2, Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2, Dr. Dolittle: Million Dollar Mutts), who also directed the classic Carrot Top film Chairman of the Board. What could go wrong?

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The Smurfs 2 Already Has a Release Date

Sean — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 17:17:05 +0000

This god awful trend of live-action / CG hybrid family films seems guaranteed to continue for the foreseeable future as Sony has already greenlit a sequel to The Smurfs and given it a release date. The movie has generated $135 million in just two weeks, and while it's not expected to become quite as big as the Alvin and the Chipmunks movies (did you know that The Squeakquel made $443 million worldwide?!), it's certainly going to turn a nice profit for them. The Smurfs 2 is aiming to be another summer blockbuster, and it is scheduled to hit theatres on Aug. 2nd, 2013. As much as people like to complain about these films, they have clearly taken over as the entertainment of choice for parents who are looking to take their kids to the theatre. They feature enough live action stars to keep the parents happy and enough goofy animated characters with funny voices to keep the kids amused. Plus they often mine franchises that parents are familiar with from their own childhood. In the case of The Smurfs, it is also the global appeal of the brand that probably led to the sequel being greenlit so quickly. Are you surprised by the success of The Smurfs? Are you offended? Let's just hope they go to Hollywood for the next one.

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