Archive for the 'Animation' Category

Ratatouille

Published
by
Chalupa
on July 21, 2008
in Animation, Comedy, Family, Fantasy and France
. 0 Comments

I’m usually not a very big fan of animated films, not because they’re animated, because the story lines are usually very much geared towards children.  Fortunately I have internet friends like ReelFanatic who give me good recommendations on what’s out there.

Ratatouille is a story about a country rat with refined tastes for food who suddenly finds himself lost and in the heart of Paris.  Away from his family, he must find his own way and ends up trying out his culinary skills at a once renowned restaurant.

I immediately loved this movie from the start.  There’s plenty of seriousness with some comedy thrown in.  Remy, the country rat, befriends a human and Remy is able to prove to his family that not all humans are bad.  I would have to say one of my favorite parts was the cooking challenge at the end, but I won’t say anymore to spoil it for anyone who hasn’t seen it.

I’d have to say this one if fun for the whole family,  and I don’t mean it in the “fun for only the kids” kind of way.

Rating: ★★★★★

Persepolis

Published
by
nathanshorb
on July 5, 2008
in Adolescence, Animation, Autobiography, Based on a graphic novel, Coming of age, Foreign, French and War
. 1 Comment

Persepolis is the animated film adaptation of the autobiographical graphic novels of Marjane Satrapi. It’s her coming of age story, living through the turmoil, wars, and revolts of Iran in the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s

Simply put, it’s a lovely little film that really catches the viewer’s attention. Its animation is simple but thoroughly heartfelt and extremely effective. While few of us have lived through wars, seeing our relatives fight for their beliefs and die in the process, we can somehow relate to this story, perhaps because it’s told so candidly. The innocence of childhood, the ups and downs of adolescence, and trying to make sense of it all in adulthood are something each of us experience. Satrapi has said that this was one aim of the film, to show how much of growing up is a universal experience.

In the process of the film, though, we are treated to a little bit of a history lesson of the country of Iran. And while you don’t get all the ins and outs of the history, it makes you eager to learn a bit more.

My only complaint is that the storytelling at times seemed too fragmented. It felt rushed, each segment was brief before jumping to the next event at hand. Satrapi, obviously, is a talented and poignant storyteller, and I would have appreciated a more in-depth, detailed look at some parts of the story

So, this film comes highly recommended. It’s an enlightening and personal story that is absolutely beautifully told. I hope more animated works like it start coming our way.

Rating: ★★★★½

WALL•E

Published
by
nathanshorb
on July 2, 2008
in Animation and Sci-fi
. 0 Comments

By now you’ve probably heard about this little movie WALL•E, so I won’t fill you in on its plot. Similarly, there are plenty of great reviews being written about it out there, so I won’t take the time to craft a full review. Instead, I’ll say this…

WALL•E is a film worth your while, not necessarily because it’s entertaining and enjoyable, but because it’s bold and risky storytelling completed with the utmost of excellence. The critics are absolutely raving, but it’s not because the kids are staying entertained for 90 minutes. WALL•E is new, completely unique, a milestone in American animation, both troubling and endearing, not to mention full of meaning.

I can’t say I loved it. There were some slow spots, some moments I just couldn’t get into, and that would have been all the more true if I were under the age of 10. Because of its genre and premise, it just simply will not be as accessible as the wildly imaginative world of Monsters, Inc. or the underwater excitement of Finding Nemo. And yet, accessibility aside, I could sit and discuss this story for hours. That’s what makes it an important film.

And like any risky story, it’s a little controversial. Accusations in the blogosphere are calling it liberal, left-wing, politically charged, envrionmentalist, anti-consumerist, global warming propaganda. After seeing it (always a good thing to do before criticizing), I’m forced to simply wonder: what were so many of us doing in high school English class? How are we so utterly inept at handling stories and their themes?

But anyway, thanks, Pixar, for contributing so significantly not just to the world of animation, but also to, more notably, the world of film.

Rating: ★★★★½

Appleseed: Ex Machina

Published
by
Chalupa
on March 11, 2008
in Action, Animation, Anime, Based on a comic, Based on a graphic novel, Conspiracy, End of the world, Foreign, Future, Japan, Martial Arts, Sequel and War
. 1 Comment

This is my first-ever sponsored review. I haven’t done anything like this before. If you’ve never heard of Appleseed: Ex Machina before, you should know it’s an Anime sequel to Appleseed. This film does come from Japan, but the Region 1 DVD release has been dubbed into English. Directing this film is the legendary Shinji Aramaki. I say legendary because this man has been very influential in the world of animation and the drawing of cartoon machines. This guy worked on the drawings and designs of the first Transformers toys, MASK, the Genesis series, and Fullmetal Alchemist. Producing this film is John Woo of action and martial arts fame.

If you know anything about Anime, you know it’s a style of animation from Japan. John Woo happens to be from China. The two of them working together, in a creative manner, is nothing short of amazing due to the long history of being at odds that their two countries have. The fact Woo is involved leads a lot of credibility to the project and puts the film on the radars of many potential fans. Even though Woo is known for his fight scenes, there’s the element of emotion that many miss. The emotion and depth to the characters and story turns a film like this from being just eye-candy into a truly wonderful work of art. You’ll definitely see his influence in scenes where slow motion, creative fighting styles and lots of bullets are used.

The word Anime is really just an abbreviation of the English word animation and has its roots in Japanese Manga. Anime is traditionally hand drawn, but computer animation is becoming more and more common. Having majored in computer science as an undergrad, I know a tiny bit about the work and processing power it takes to make cartoons and animated films. The 3-D animation is this film is nothing short of amazing. Everything looks so realistic from the body movements, facial expressions, fully animated jaws, backgrounds, sceneries and landscapes. The visual aspects of this film are breathtaking.

I haven’t seen the original film, Appleseed, so I may be a little clueless to the story. I think this is a good thing when it comes to a review because I have no pre-conceived notions of what’s happening. Ex Machina takes place in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic world. At some point in the past there was a global, non-nuclear war which took out pretty much everything. Olympus is a Utopian-like city where peace and order stand with the help of its elite fighting force, the ESWAT. This isn’t the only city in the world though. There are still other countries and governments. There are also three types of people: humans, cyborgs, and bioroids. I’m going to assume you already know what humans and cyborgs are. Bioroids are clones, genetic copies, of real people made with the best technology available. They also lack some of the bad qualities that seem to contribute to the not-so-great aspects of humanity.

The three main characters are Deunan, a human, Briareos, human turned cyborg, and Tereus, a bioroid that is a copy of Briareos when he was human. I’m sure you’re already imagining the drama between the main trio. Deunan and Briareos were partners back in the day and continued to be after he was severely injured and turned into a cyborg. As far as I can tell, they exist in the original film. In Ex Machina we find ourselves in another classic, Confuscist battle of good versus evil; there are organized terrorist attacks trying to bring down the peace and order of Olympus.

In the midst of peace talks between all the countries and governments of the world, humans and cyborgs are being turned into mindless zombies. These remotely controlled drones are being made to massively attack anything of strategic value in the city. At first it is thought the cyborgs are just susceptible to rogue, controlling frequencies, but humans are being affected too. Are Deunan, Briareos, and Tereus susceptible to this mind control? Will they be able to take down a terrorist mastermind that makes Dr. Octopus look like a distempered man-child? Well, I couldn’t really tell you or I’d be ruining the movie for you.

I highly recommend this film. I think it will be dearly loved by existing Appleseed fans. It is a great addition to the already wonderful Anime genre and there’s enough story, action and drama to keep everyone else wanting to find out what happens next. Rent it or buy it, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Rating: ★★★★½

Upcoming Review - Appleseed: Ex Machina

Published
by
Chalupa
on March 3, 2008
in Action, Animation, Anime, Based on a comic and Sci-fi
. 1 Comment

I’ve recently been contacted about writing a review for a new Anime movie called Appleseed: Ex Machina. It’s a sequel to Appleseed which came out in 2003 and was released in the US in 2004. Here’s a trailer, a short synopsis and some high-quality pictures (Appleseed: Ex Machina - #25, Appleseed: Ex Machina - #17, Appleseed: Ex Machina - #2) if you’re interested. I should have a review up in the near future.

APPLESEED: EX MACHINA

In the year 2133, a war killed off half the population of Earth, plunging the world into chaos and despair. In OLYMPUS, a utopian city-state and the last true bastion of culture and civilization, the ESWAT police force holds the peace. The two star members of this Special Ops team are Deunan Knute and her cyborg partner Briareos. Their relationship is threatened when the government reveals a prototype combat clone, named Tereus, who is a clone of Briareos. However, a strange electronic virus begins turning citizens into violent zombies and the trio must team up to track down the terrorists behind this brutal attack before it tears the peaceful utopia apart.

This sequel to the 2003 smash hit, based on the best-selling manga by Masamune Shirow, uses mind-blowing, cutting edge CGI and was produced by action-king John Woo.

Appleseed Ex Machina arrives on DVD, HD-DVD, and Blu-Ray March 11th, 2008.

Madame Tutli-Putli

Published
by
Chalupa
on February 25, 2008
in Animation, Canada, Foreign, Puppets, Short, Stop-motion and Trains
. 0 Comments

I don’t think I would have watched Madame Tutli-Putli if I hadn’t noticed it was nominated for Best Animated Short Film last night while watching the 2008 Oscars. Besides being animated and a short, this film is also done with stop-motion and utilizes puppets or marionettes.

The story line was kind of confusing. There’s no dialog, but there is a soundtrack/score to it. We start off seeing a woman waiting at a train station with a huge pile of suitcases and stuff. Next thing we know, she’s on the train and every time she looks up, we are introduced to more people in the train car with her. Eventually it’s nighttime and some weird guys board the train and things get really strange. I figured there had to be some sort of message to this because everything seemed pretty symbolic. I found this description on IMDB.

Madame Tutli-Putli boards the Night Train, weighed down with all her earthly possessions and the ghosts of her past. She travels alone, facing both the kindness and menace of strangers. As day descends into dark, she finds herself caught up in a desperate metaphysical adventure. Adrift between real and imagined worlds, Madame Tutli-Putli confronts her demons and is drawn into an undertow of mystery and suspense. The National Film Board of Canada presents a stunning, stop-motion animated film that takes the viewer on an exhilarating existential journey. The film introduces groundbreaking visual techniques and is supported by a haunting and original score. Painstaking care and craftsmanship in form and detail bring to life a fully imagined, tactile world unlike any you have seen. Jungian thriller? Hitchcockian suspense? Artistic tour de force? The Night Train awaits you. Written by courtesy of National Film Board of Canada

Hopefully I’ll be able to see some of the other shorts. I wouldn’t say shorts are always great just because, however, they usually pack a punch if they’re done well. They don’t have 90-120+ minutes to beat around the bush while getting their point across.

Rating: ★★★½☆

Transformers

Published
by
Chalupa
on July 11, 2007
in Action, Adventure, Animation, Based on TV Series, Based on a comic, Sci-fi, Technology and Thriller
. 0 Comments

I don’t have a whole lot to say about Transformers. I used to watch the cartoon as a kid, but wasn’t fanatical about it. I’m also not opinionated enough about the cartoon to rip apart the movie for minuscule inconsistencies. Yeah, so Optimus Prime has some flames painted on the side and Megatron didn’t turn into a gun fired by Starscream. Big deal. The movie was still action packed and entertaining.

For me, I don’t know if this would have been absolutely necessary to see on the big screen. I’m sure some would heartily disagree with that, but this would have been the same experience for me on my television. I still suggest catching it sometime.

Corpse Bride

Published
by
Chalupa
on April 4, 2006
in Animation, Black Comedy, Comedy, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Romance, Stop-motion and Wedding
. 0 Comments

Once again I was amazed and awed by the brilliance of Tim Burton. This man is awesome. Have you ever seen a picture of him? If not you should bust out google. It’s always interesting to see what people really look like.

I could really see some people not wanting to watch this movie simply based on previews and media. In fact, I just got my mom to watch Edward Scissorhands over the weekend and she loved it. I think she was actually surprised she even liked it. So I told her she needs to watch this one too. Yes it’s dark and dreary, but the movie is really good. Tim Burton is just really really good at dark and dreary movies that don’t turn out to be The Exorcist or Nightmare on Elm Street. This guy is talented.

The music is wonderful as always. Just wonderful. In fact, there’s even an option to play the movie without the dialogue in the special features of the DVD. This would definitely be worth checking out if you’ve already seen the movie.

One awesome part of this movie is the fact it takes place in Victorian England. The colors are drab. The clothes are tight and uncomfortable. Children are seen and not heard. There are arranged marriages. Nobody is happy.

Then you have the underworld where bright colors abound. Music is fun, jazzed and happening. People are allowed to drink and be merry. But everybody is dead. A bit of a paradox, right? So there’s two people arranged to be married that have never met each other. This could be really horrible but the two characters are probably the only two ‘normal’ people in town. Unfortunately, Victor accidently marries the Corpse Bride while practicing his vows and is then dragged into the underworld. Well, I won’t ruin the whole plot for you, but I will say, “WATCH THIS!”

Kung Fu Hustle

Published
by
Chalupa
on November 11, 2005
in Action, Animation, Comedy, Crime, Fantasy, Foreign, Independent, Martial Arts, Philosophical and War
. 0 Comments

I never really knew what to think of this movie when I saw previews for it and when it was in the theater. A couple friends of mine said it was really good, but I sorta forgot about it. Well I put in on my Netflix list and low and behold, I gave it a 5/5 rating.

The only way I can describe this movie is to say it combines some of the surrealness of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and House of Flying Daggers with some of the martial arts of The Matrix, Hero and previous movies, along with a touch of the hilarity I’ve come to know as the one and only, Jack Black along with a dash of Looney Tunes. Confusing? I hope so. I’m trying to entice you to go out and actually watch this.

This movie starts off innocent enough with an all well too familiar story of a gang oppressing the poor and helpless. However, it’s the way that the silent heroes unmask themselves and save the day that makes this movie unique and oh so cool. What starts out as a small grudge between one gang and a small community soon turns into something much bigger as long retired masters step up to the plate and a long-ago locked away criminal is brought out as a trump card. Yes, this certain aspect is a lot like Boondock Saints.

Even though this movie is full of revenge, violence, grudges, and the poor and weak being trampled upon, there is still redemption. True Kung Fu is not about big muscles and kicking the crap out of people. In fact it has so much more to do with balance, continuity, peace and not having to fight. This goes so much against our high school gotta-impress-the-ladies and prove our alpha-maleness mentality.

The special effects in here were awesome. A lot of wire-acrobatics were employed along with blue screens and CGI. All of it seemed very appropriate to me. None of it came off as cheesy and over the top. There was even a very obvious reference to Bruce Lee’s greatness when the heads of the Axe Gang are being warned to step off. I loved it!

One other thing I’d like to highlight is the use of Chinese music in this film. So many foreign films these days use Western music when it just doesn’t seem to fit. Kung Fu Hustle uses only Chinese music played on the traditional instruments. It just fits so well with everything.

If you haven’t been able to guess already, I highly recommend this film. So get out and watch it if you haven’t seen it already.

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

Published
by
Chalupa
on July 6, 2005
in Action, Adventure, Airplane, Animation, Based on a comic, Based on a short film, Mystery, Neo Noir, New York, Sci-fi and Thriller
. 0 Comments

Here’s another one that was recommended to me by several and I finally saw. This was a very interesting breed of sci-fi-ish movie. It ended up being a lot different then I was expecting. I liked it though. It was kinda cool what they did with the lighting and the whole feel of the film. Then there would be parts where planes were flying over a map and you actually saw the map. I know it’s nothing special, but I thought it looked cool.

Even though I enjoyed this movie, I wouldn’t give it an A+ either. I’d have to give this one a B- at best. Definitely something to see, but not something to necessarily watch over and over.