animation – Page 23 – The Animation Commendation

Disney Shelves ‘Gigantic’!

I’m sorry, I still can’t believe this news! The upcoming animated Disney Canon film that was set to be released in 2020, Gigantic, has now been shelved! Gigantic, a new musical take on Jack and the Beanstalk, was the upcoming animated Disney film that I was most looking forward to! It was being directed by Nathan Greno and Meg LeFauve and would have featured songs by the Lopezes of Frozen fame. It was supposed to be released earlier in 2018 before being pushed back to 2020. And now, it’s been totally shelved.

Sigh…is anyone else distraught over this news?

My Thoughts: SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE (2017)

In 2011 and 2013, Sony Animation gave us two live-action films based on the Smurfs. Like many films of the same style, all the actors were live-action, but the main characters were animated. And like many of these kinds of films, they weren’t critical successes at all, but made money at the box office!

So when it came time to make a third film based on the Smurfs, they decided to make it a fully animated reboot pretty much ignoring that The Smurfs and The Smurfs 2 ever happened.

The result of that decision is Smurfs: The Lost Village. Read on to know what I thought of it! (Beware, there may be spoilers ahead!)

Continue reading “My Thoughts: SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE (2017)”

‘Peter Rabbit’ Teaser Trailer Debuts!

The teaser trailer for Sony Animation’s upcoming adaptation of Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit stories has debuted.

While I never read the Peter Rabbit stories, I have a feeling that the stories are much more timeless than this teaser trailer seems to show. I really wish they had made this a fully animated film; this live-action/animated hybrid doesn’t seem to work especially with the whole “party theme”. If it turns out to be like Paddington (horrible teaser, but film was well-made), I’ll be happy, but until then, this is all we have to go on.

Peter Rabbit stars Domhnall Gleason, Sam Neill, and Rose Byrne, along with the voice talents of James Corden, Margot Robbie, Daisy Ridley, and Elizabeth Debicki. The film is being directed by Will Gluck and set to hit theaters on February 9, 2018.

What do you think of this trailer? Does it turn you off from seeing the film?

‘Isle of Dogs’ Trailer Debuts!

The first trailer for Wes Anderson’s upcoming stop-motion animated film, Isle of Dogs, has debuted.

The film is about a young boy in Japan who goes in search of his dog who has been sent to a nearby “trash island” where all dogs are sentenced to go to due to overpopulation in the cities.

The story seems interesting enough and Wes Anderson is no stranger to animation having previously directed 2009’s Fantastic Mr. Fox. Isle of Dogs features the voice talents of Edward Norton, Bryan Cranston, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Scarlett Johansson, Greta Gerwig, Tilda Swinton, and Liev Schreiber, amongst others. The film is set to hit theaters on March 23, 2018.

What do you think of this trailer? Are you excited for the film?

Got an Instagram Page!

Hello readers,

So I’ve finally done something that I’ve wanted to do for a long time: I’ve got an Instagram page for this blog!

No, I’m not deleting this WordPress blog; the Instagram page will serve as a companion piece to this blog. What will I be posting on my IG page? Well, I’ll definitely be informing my IG followers of when there’s a new blog post to check out! But, I’ll also be posting certain things ONLY to that IG account that I won’t be posting to my blog, so be sure to follow me on both platforms to get access to it all!

The IG account is the.animation.commendation

I’m looking forward to meeting you all there as well as to making new friends and followers in the Instagram world!

‘Early Man’ Trailer Debuts!

The first theatrical trailer for Aardman Animations’ upcoming film, Early Man, has debuted.

Early Man takes place during the “dawn of time” wherein a tribe of cavemen goes up against a Bronze Age City leader to save their home. The film features the voice talents of Eddie Redmayne, Maisie Williams, Tom Hiddleston, Timothy Spall, Richard Ayoade, and Johnny Vegas, amongst others. The film is set to hit American theaters on February 16, 2018.

While the trailer doesn’t have me super excited for the film, I still am interested in seeing it as it is an Aardman Animations film. Are you all interested in it?

‘The Magic School Bus Rides Again’ Trailer Debuts!

The trailer for the upcoming Netflix reboot, The Magic School Bus Rides Again, has debuted.

The original The Magic School Bus was a classic animated TV show of the 1990s (and my personal favorite animated TV show that I grew up with) and this reboot seems to be following in the same vein. Yes, the animation looks off-putting and some people are upset that the original character of Ms. Frizzle now has a younger sister voiced by Kate McKinnon who will now take over as the lead, but that honestly doesn’t bother me at all. I can’t wait for this show and hopefully, it proves to be a satisfactory reboot.

Also, Lin-Manuel Miranda sings the title song! Is that cool or what? Look out for the show on September 29 on Netflix.

My Thoughts: THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE (2017)

In 2014, The Lego Movie was released to theaters. Most of us scoffed at the idea that they were making a movie about LEGOs, but the movie proved us wrong by having a thought-provoking story, memorable characters, impeccable animation, and just being one of the best animated films of the decade (according to most people)!

The breakout character from the movie though was Lego Batman, voiced by Will Arnett. Lego Batman was somewhat of an exaggerated parody of the Batman character that fit in well with the LEGO universe. Due to his popularity, it was soon decided that Lego Batman would get his own spinoff film. And three years later, we’ve got The Lego Batman Movie! Is it as good as The Lego Movie? Or is it another example of a side character being given his/her own movie which turns out to be incredibly bad? Read on to find out! (Also, there might be spoilers ahead, so you’ve been warned!)

Continue reading “My Thoughts: THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE (2017)”

Voice Actress June Foray Dies at 99!

In incredibly saddening news, the legendary voice actress, June Foray, has died at the age of 99! Ms. Foray (1917-2017) was pretty much the woman of “a thousand voices” being a big name in the business since the 1950s. Some of her more famous roles have been Lucifer in Cinderella, Squaw in Peter Pan, Granny and Witch Hazel in the Looney Tunes shorts, Rocky J. Squirrel in the The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show, Mrs. Featherby in DuckTales, and Grandmother Fa in Mulan. It’s basically impossible to not have heard her voice at all in your life!

She was instrumental in creating the Annie Awards as well as in getting a Best Animated Feature category in the Academy Awards! What makes this even sadder was that she was two months shy of her 100th birthday 😦 . She shall be missed!

For more about her life and legacy, please read this article as well as this tribute.

‘The Star’ Teaser Trailer Debuts!

The teaser trailer for Sony Animation’s upcoming film, The Star, has debuted.

The film deals with the Christian nativity story from the point of view of the animals. The voice cast includes Steven Yeun, Kelly Clarkson, Gina Rodriguez, Keegan-Michael Key, Oprah Winfrey, Tracy Morgan, Tyler Perry, Christopher Plummer, Patricia Heaton, and Zachary Levi, among others.

The Star is scheduled to be released to theaters on November 10, 2017. I personally have no interest in seeing this film. What about y’all? Let me know in the comments below!