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Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland"
Posted 15 years agoSaw Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" yesterday and really liked it. If you like fantasy-adventure movies and Tim Burton's style, then you should definitely go see this movie. Without spoiling anything, I really liked how the story moved along and didn't get bogged down anywhere. In particular, they created some really stunning visual effects but were smart enough not to spend excessive amounts of film time showing off their creations, a mistake that too many special effects movies make. You get to see the characters and the effects in a sufficient amount as the story requires, but no more.
Tim Burton really knows how to make movies like this. He brings such a creative and refreshing tone and style to these sorts of stories. I really like the vision he has for this sort of thing. Oh, and the 3D was excellent. They stayed away from silly over the top 3D gags and instead used the 3D like they did in "Avatar" to create a real sense of depth in the world you're watching.
Of course, people who don't like movies that deviate from the original source material will naturally not like this movie since it definitely takes things in a new direction. I don't hold anything as being sacred so it's fine with me if someone like Tim Burton wants to imagine a new take on an existing story. The new take will either appeal to me or it won't, but there's nothing wrong with people trying new things. In this particular case, I really like the darker mood and greater sense of danger than you find in the original material.
And how times have changed! This movie was released under the Walt Disney brand name when as few as 10 years ago they never would have put that name on a movie as moody and violent as this. They used to reserve the Walt Disney brand exclusively for movies that were the most benign G rated affairs possible. Even toony movies like "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" and "Nightmare Before Christmas" were considered too intense for the Walt Disney name and were released under the Touchstone brand instead (one of Disney's wholly owned subsidiaries). It's interesting to see how standards like this evolve so that they're no longer afraid to call this a Disney movie.
I give this movie two claws up! Go see it!
Tim Burton really knows how to make movies like this. He brings such a creative and refreshing tone and style to these sorts of stories. I really like the vision he has for this sort of thing. Oh, and the 3D was excellent. They stayed away from silly over the top 3D gags and instead used the 3D like they did in "Avatar" to create a real sense of depth in the world you're watching.
Of course, people who don't like movies that deviate from the original source material will naturally not like this movie since it definitely takes things in a new direction. I don't hold anything as being sacred so it's fine with me if someone like Tim Burton wants to imagine a new take on an existing story. The new take will either appeal to me or it won't, but there's nothing wrong with people trying new things. In this particular case, I really like the darker mood and greater sense of danger than you find in the original material.
And how times have changed! This movie was released under the Walt Disney brand name when as few as 10 years ago they never would have put that name on a movie as moody and violent as this. They used to reserve the Walt Disney brand exclusively for movies that were the most benign G rated affairs possible. Even toony movies like "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" and "Nightmare Before Christmas" were considered too intense for the Walt Disney name and were released under the Touchstone brand instead (one of Disney's wholly owned subsidiaries). It's interesting to see how standards like this evolve so that they're no longer afraid to call this a Disney movie.
I give this movie two claws up! Go see it!
FC 2010
Posted 15 years agoI had a great time at FC last weekend. Things went along fairly smoothly considering we were breaking in a new hotel. I was helping out with the FCTV staff and together we captured around 600 GBs of high definition video. Now comes the little matter of trying to edit all that into something cohesive.
We had multiple cameras going for the Critter Olympics, Masquerade and FNL, so we should be able to produce a nice edited show for those. We also have footage of the fursuit parade and from the dances. All of this will be edited and then posted in the coming weeks.
The only real weak point of the convention for me was the FNL show. It was much weaker this year than in the past. It was short with fewer acts, no voting, no awards and frankly lacked the energy it used to have. This is something the con will hopefully address for next year.
It might have been cloudy and a bit gloomy weather-wise during the con, but it didn't rain anywhere near as much as they were originally predicting for that weekend which was good. As such, I managed to get some nice outdoor pictures and video footage which you can see in my gallery. Look for more photos and videos coming in the future.
I'm looking forward to next year's con already.
We had multiple cameras going for the Critter Olympics, Masquerade and FNL, so we should be able to produce a nice edited show for those. We also have footage of the fursuit parade and from the dances. All of this will be edited and then posted in the coming weeks.
The only real weak point of the convention for me was the FNL show. It was much weaker this year than in the past. It was short with fewer acts, no voting, no awards and frankly lacked the energy it used to have. This is something the con will hopefully address for next year.
It might have been cloudy and a bit gloomy weather-wise during the con, but it didn't rain anywhere near as much as they were originally predicting for that weekend which was good. As such, I managed to get some nice outdoor pictures and video footage which you can see in my gallery. Look for more photos and videos coming in the future.
I'm looking forward to next year's con already.
Be in My FC Videos
Posted 15 years agoTime to get ready for making videos at FC! In the past I've just shot footage of whatever happens to be going on and then editing it together, and while I intend to continue doing that, I also want to try making some more elaborate videos at FC this year. To that end I want to establish some simple themes and storylines in them and to do that I'll need some people in fursuit to be in the videos and perform some simple roles. These will be shot in the public areas of the hotel and are just short little things that I can use to tie a larger video together with a common theme. If you're interested in helping and being in a video, then read on!
Most of the shots I need are just short, simple little things, most of which can be shot in under two minutes. As such, there's no preparation needed and none of them requires doing anything strenuous. All the shots should be very easy and hopefully fun. You can do as much or as little as you want. I'm also trying to cast some parts for a longer scene or two. There are other people involved in these, so it will require getting everyone together at a specific time and place. But the shorter scenes can be shot anytime you're free and happen to see me around. I'm fairly easy to spot: look for a guy in a gaudy dragon shirt carrying cameras, and there is a little green dragon that likes to perch on my shoulder so look for that. If I'm not already shooting something, then just come up and let me know you want to do a shot.
I also need around 5 or 6 fursuiters to be in a longer scene. It will take around 10 minutes to shoot, mostly just to explain the scene and then capture it from multiple camera angles. If you can help out with that then please contact me so we can arrange a time.
Thanks!
Most of the shots I need are just short, simple little things, most of which can be shot in under two minutes. As such, there's no preparation needed and none of them requires doing anything strenuous. All the shots should be very easy and hopefully fun. You can do as much or as little as you want. I'm also trying to cast some parts for a longer scene or two. There are other people involved in these, so it will require getting everyone together at a specific time and place. But the shorter scenes can be shot anytime you're free and happen to see me around. I'm fairly easy to spot: look for a guy in a gaudy dragon shirt carrying cameras, and there is a little green dragon that likes to perch on my shoulder so look for that. If I'm not already shooting something, then just come up and let me know you want to do a shot.
I also need around 5 or 6 fursuiters to be in a longer scene. It will take around 10 minutes to shoot, mostly just to explain the scene and then capture it from multiple camera angles. If you can help out with that then please contact me so we can arrange a time.
Thanks!
"Avenue Q" - Finally Saw It
Posted 15 years agoI finally got to see this show tonight. I missed it when it came through San Francisco a year or so ago, but luckily it's showing in San Jose for a week so I was able to catch it this time.
It was a great show and was every bit as funny as everyone had told me. I think most people have either seen this show or know of it, so I won't bother with a description. But here's some interesting information I read in the program:
The music, lyrics and original concept for the show comes from Robert Lopez who also wrote the musical version of "Finding Nemo" that shows at Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park in Orlando. That I didn't know. The "Finding Nemo" show was a real surprise to me. When I first heard Disney was doing a musical stage version of Nemo, I was like WTF??? I just didn't see how that movie would translate to a live theme park show, let alone a musical. But when I got down to Disney World and saw it, it was really good! In fact, I'd say it's about Disney's best theme park stage show yet. Pretty cool that Robert Lopez did both of these. Plus the program also says he's working on a new musical stage show written with the creators of "South Park"! Now that's a show I have to see!!!
Anyway, if you haven't seen "Avenue Q" and like the idea of a satirical stage musical comedy with puppets talking about adult themes, then be sure to catch the show if it arrives in your area.
It was a great show and was every bit as funny as everyone had told me. I think most people have either seen this show or know of it, so I won't bother with a description. But here's some interesting information I read in the program:
The music, lyrics and original concept for the show comes from Robert Lopez who also wrote the musical version of "Finding Nemo" that shows at Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park in Orlando. That I didn't know. The "Finding Nemo" show was a real surprise to me. When I first heard Disney was doing a musical stage version of Nemo, I was like WTF??? I just didn't see how that movie would translate to a live theme park show, let alone a musical. But when I got down to Disney World and saw it, it was really good! In fact, I'd say it's about Disney's best theme park stage show yet. Pretty cool that Robert Lopez did both of these. Plus the program also says he's working on a new musical stage show written with the creators of "South Park"! Now that's a show I have to see!!!
Anyway, if you haven't seen "Avenue Q" and like the idea of a satirical stage musical comedy with puppets talking about adult themes, then be sure to catch the show if it arrives in your area.
Disney's "Princess and the Frog"
Posted 15 years agoSaw Disney's "Princess and the Frog" and it was nice to see a return to hand drawn animation, particularly since it fits this style of story so well. All the extreme squash and stretch that they can easily do with hand drawn animation just works with how they chose to tell this particular story. The songs are fairly good though none seem to be very memorable, at least not for me. Overall, I'd say it's a good movie, but not a blockbuster or even a must-see movie. Very nice visually and fun to watch so I'd put it in the "worth seeing" category. It will be interesting to see what Disney does next with traditional animation now, and also which other studios will try diving back in to 2D animation now that Disney has shown it can still be successful.
And the big movie for this coming weekend is of course "Avatar", James Cameron's $300+ million extravaganza. I plan to see it Monday night and we'll see if it's worth all the money they spent on it.
And the big movie for this coming weekend is of course "Avatar", James Cameron's $300+ million extravaganza. I plan to see it Monday night and we'll see if it's worth all the money they spent on it.
"Fantastic Mr. Fox"
Posted 16 years agoI saw this movie the other day and liked it a lot. You don't see a whole lot of stop motion movies being made these days and this one was good. Though instead of trying to do dazzling shots like they did in "Nightmare Before Christmas", this movie takes a simpler route using only basic camera moves for the most part and a somewhat limited motion on the characters themselves. This actually works quite well in conjunction with the simple nature of the story itself and it all hangs together very well. The sets the characters are in are also very simple and creates a nice storybook type fantasy world. The soundtrack as well is quite simple, usually just a solo instrument to set the mood for the scene. Overall, I liked the art style very much.
The characters are all fun to watch and they're all quite likable. The voices are all excellent and blend together with the characters perfectly. The story itself is fairly simple with a lot of emphasis on humor and wit. The movie is both quirky and very enjoyable and the 90 minutes you're there goes by very quickly. I highly recommend this movie and I think most furry animation fans would like it, particularly those who like foxes.
The characters are all fun to watch and they're all quite likable. The voices are all excellent and blend together with the characters perfectly. The story itself is fairly simple with a lot of emphasis on humor and wit. The movie is both quirky and very enjoyable and the 90 minutes you're there goes by very quickly. I highly recommend this movie and I think most furry animation fans would like it, particularly those who like foxes.
Disney's "A Christmas Carol"
Posted 16 years agoJust a quick note about this movie as I saw it yesterday. Overall, I enjoyed it quite a bit. I saw it on the IMAX screen in 3D and it looked pretty fantastic in that venue. Jim Carrey's performances in the movie are really good, and it's hard to tell it's him since he's not doing his usual Ace Ventura type shtick like he usually does in most movies he's in. Purists probably won't like the movie since it doesn't exactly follow the Dickens story, but I say so what. All the basic plot elements and themes are still there so I don't care if they wanted to try a few new things.
On the technical side, the motion capture and CG characters are really good. In particular, they did a really good job of either capturing or animating the eye movements which is usually the weakest element when they do motion capture. The visuals were all outstanding and I really liked the style and the mood that it set.
While this isn't a block buster movie by any means, I felt it was very enjoyable and worth seeing in the theater. I'd call it a new way to look at an old classic.
On the technical side, the motion capture and CG characters are really good. In particular, they did a really good job of either capturing or animating the eye movements which is usually the weakest element when they do motion capture. The visuals were all outstanding and I really liked the style and the mood that it set.
While this isn't a block buster movie by any means, I felt it was very enjoyable and worth seeing in the theater. I'd call it a new way to look at an old classic.
Where the Wild Things Are
Posted 16 years agoWent to see this movie recently and enjoyed it quite a bit. The surprising part about this movie was that it had more emotional content than I expected and didn't try to pander to little kids. In fact, I think it's one of those movies that kids probably won't get at all. Perhaps the filmmaker's idea is that the kids can just watch the funny looking creatures and not worry about the story so much. And visually, the movie is excellent of course. The costumes and facial effects are all extremely impressive. It's really great that they can create such realistic looking creatures these days.
I recommend this one if you like talking creature movies.
I recommend this one if you like talking creature movies.
Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Posted 16 years agoWent to see "Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" the other night and I'll make a few spoiler-free comments about it here:
Overall, I'd say this movie is good but not great. It has tons of jokes and great gags along with characters that are very entertaining, but the story isn't as strong as I'd like to see and that's where it comes up short. The quality of the story just isn't up the standard set by Pixar and other movies like "Kung Fu Panda". Still, the movie was very funny and entertaining so I did enjoy it even though I was hoping for something better story-wise.
The visuals of course were great looking. I really liked the quality of the animation and the look of the sets. For example, when the big dinos are walking and their foot goes down as they take a step, you can see the flesh in their feet compress and their toes spread out a little as they put their weight down on that foot. The reverse happens when they lift the foot up. Details like that just make it seem all the more realistic and it really reinforces the size and weight of the big critters.
As always, the character design by Blue Sky Studios is great. I really like the look of the dinos, particularly the baby T-rexes which are very cute and down right cuddly looking. The other new characters, Buck and Scratte, are very well done too. All the new characters are appealing and fun to watch in action. Buck in particular is a real scene stealer and very entertaining.
The use 3D in this movie was excellent. CG imagery is perfect for 3D and this movie really looked great in 3D. With ordinary movies, you're just watching a picture on the wall, but throw in 3D and it's much closer to looking through a window into another world. I just really like the added level of reality it adds. And thankfully, they kept the cheesy 3D effects to a minimum. There were only a couple of well placed 3D gags and they mostly just used the 3D to accentuate things and that's how it should be. I highly recommend seeing this movie in 3D if you can.
I still think the first Ice Age movie had the strongest story of the three, so that still remains my favorite. But they definitely packed a lot more gags and jokes into Ice Age 3 than they did for the first two movies and I laughed quite a lot throughout. That doesn't really make up for a weaker story in my opinion, but it does make for a fun movie none the less. If you liked the previous Ice Age movies, then I don't think you'll be disappointed with this one.
Overall, I'd say this movie is good but not great. It has tons of jokes and great gags along with characters that are very entertaining, but the story isn't as strong as I'd like to see and that's where it comes up short. The quality of the story just isn't up the standard set by Pixar and other movies like "Kung Fu Panda". Still, the movie was very funny and entertaining so I did enjoy it even though I was hoping for something better story-wise.
The visuals of course were great looking. I really liked the quality of the animation and the look of the sets. For example, when the big dinos are walking and their foot goes down as they take a step, you can see the flesh in their feet compress and their toes spread out a little as they put their weight down on that foot. The reverse happens when they lift the foot up. Details like that just make it seem all the more realistic and it really reinforces the size and weight of the big critters.
As always, the character design by Blue Sky Studios is great. I really like the look of the dinos, particularly the baby T-rexes which are very cute and down right cuddly looking. The other new characters, Buck and Scratte, are very well done too. All the new characters are appealing and fun to watch in action. Buck in particular is a real scene stealer and very entertaining.
The use 3D in this movie was excellent. CG imagery is perfect for 3D and this movie really looked great in 3D. With ordinary movies, you're just watching a picture on the wall, but throw in 3D and it's much closer to looking through a window into another world. I just really like the added level of reality it adds. And thankfully, they kept the cheesy 3D effects to a minimum. There were only a couple of well placed 3D gags and they mostly just used the 3D to accentuate things and that's how it should be. I highly recommend seeing this movie in 3D if you can.
I still think the first Ice Age movie had the strongest story of the three, so that still remains my favorite. But they definitely packed a lot more gags and jokes into Ice Age 3 than they did for the first two movies and I laughed quite a lot throughout. That doesn't really make up for a weaker story in my opinion, but it does make for a fun movie none the less. If you liked the previous Ice Age movies, then I don't think you'll be disappointed with this one.
Spamalot!
Posted 16 years agoI went to see "Spamalot" last night. It's a live musical stage version of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. As odd as that sounds, it actually works quite well being performed that way. The play has been showing for several years now in Las Vegas after having originally opened in London. The show is now on tour and is presently in San Francisco.
As you can probably imagine, the play is very silly and very entertaining and funny, at least if you're a Python fan. It loosely follows the original movie, but has some new stuff thrown in to keep things interesting. I thought they hit a really nice balance between showing you the scenes fans really want to see live, and changing just enough so you're not quite sure what's going to come next. It's a really nice way to enjoy a new take on a classic.
I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to laugh at silliness for two and half hours. The web site with info is:
http://www.montypythonsspamalot.com
Ni!
As you can probably imagine, the play is very silly and very entertaining and funny, at least if you're a Python fan. It loosely follows the original movie, but has some new stuff thrown in to keep things interesting. I thought they hit a really nice balance between showing you the scenes fans really want to see live, and changing just enough so you're not quite sure what's going to come next. It's a really nice way to enjoy a new take on a classic.
I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to laugh at silliness for two and half hours. The web site with info is:
http://www.montypythonsspamalot.com
Ni!
Star Trek Movie
Posted 16 years agoJust saw the new Star Trek movie today. I won't spoil the plot, but it's a real kick-*ss movie! What an enormous difference from the first Star Trek movie that was a huge bore-fest. I have a feeling that some Star Trek fans won't be happy with everything, but I consider myself to be a pretty serious fan and I liked it. Quite a few in-jokes and references to the original series. I recommend it!
I also saw "Monsters vs. Aliens" a little while back and really liked it. Very fast paced plot, lots of action and lots of gags. Excellent animation and effects. Very well done movie and enormously fun to watch.
Looking forward to the new Terminator movie, the Transformers movie, "Up" and "Ice Age 3." What a great summer for movies! So much better than last year.
I also saw "Monsters vs. Aliens" a little while back and really liked it. Very fast paced plot, lots of action and lots of gags. Excellent animation and effects. Very well done movie and enormously fun to watch.
Looking forward to the new Terminator movie, the Transformers movie, "Up" and "Ice Age 3." What a great summer for movies! So much better than last year.
Dragons & Knights: A Short Video
Posted 16 years agoIf you're a dragon fan then you've got to watch this great epic style short video about two dragons and a damsel in distress. I would love to see the people who made this come up with a feature length story idea some day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVKRkA9Xm8Y
Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVKRkA9Xm8Y
Enjoy!
Anime: Stormy Night
Posted 16 years agoHere's a nice anime movie I stumbled upon by chance. I happened to see some fan art someone here had drawn (unfortunately, I no longer remember exactly where) and I liked the character design enough that I wanted to find out more about the movie. As far as I know, the movie has never been released in North America, nor has it been dubbed into English yet. However, there's wikipedia page for it and I found that it's readily available on DVD as an import as long as you don't mind subtitles.
I really like the art style they used for the movie. It's a combination of hand drawn animation with digital ink and paint and digital compositing against some very lush backgrounds. It's the type of visuals that none of the US movie companies make anymore. I picked up the DVD and I'm quite happy with it.
"Stormy Night" is about a wolf who "accidentally" befriends a goat. Their friendship is then tested throughout the rest of the movie once Gav the wolf finds out he made friends with what should be his dinner. They also have the problem that their respective pack and herd are not at all happy about the situation either. You can draw lots of parallels around this theme of two characters who "shouldn't" be friends, and many will quickly point out other movies like Disney's "Fox and the Hound". Still, I thought the story was well done and felt fresh, and I really like the movie visually.
There was some mention on the wikipedia page about them attempting a theatrical release in the US sometime. Not sure if that will come to pass or not. The movie is heavy on dialog and there isn't much action, so I think it will have trouble with the fidgety kids.
In the meantime, anime fans will want to check this one out as an import if you haven't already seen it. I definitely recommend it.
I really like the art style they used for the movie. It's a combination of hand drawn animation with digital ink and paint and digital compositing against some very lush backgrounds. It's the type of visuals that none of the US movie companies make anymore. I picked up the DVD and I'm quite happy with it.
"Stormy Night" is about a wolf who "accidentally" befriends a goat. Their friendship is then tested throughout the rest of the movie once Gav the wolf finds out he made friends with what should be his dinner. They also have the problem that their respective pack and herd are not at all happy about the situation either. You can draw lots of parallels around this theme of two characters who "shouldn't" be friends, and many will quickly point out other movies like Disney's "Fox and the Hound". Still, I thought the story was well done and felt fresh, and I really like the movie visually.
There was some mention on the wikipedia page about them attempting a theatrical release in the US sometime. Not sure if that will come to pass or not. The movie is heavy on dialog and there isn't much action, so I think it will have trouble with the fidgety kids.
In the meantime, anime fans will want to check this one out as an import if you haven't already seen it. I definitely recommend it.
The Tale of Despereaux
Posted 16 years agoI saw "The Tale of Despereaux" this past week. It's an unusual animated movie, but I liked it. The CG animation was very well done. Lots of detail in all the movements and it just looked great. The easiest way I can describe the look is to say it looks like photorealistic storybook artwork if that makes sense. The basic style is clearly derived from storybook art, but it's like it's enhanced towards the photorealistic realm. The end result is something that's clearly storybook art, but seems real at the same time. I liked it.
The structure of the story is rather unusual as well. There are many characters and the story shifts focus between the lives of the different characters for long periods at a time. In other words, long periods pass without seeing certain characters at all, and then the focus of the story shifts again and we're now following a different character. For example, we don't even meet Despereaux until like 30 minutes into the movie, and he's the hero! :) It's unusual, but it definitely seemed to work for the story since a lot of the story is about how the lives of seemingly unrelated characters all affect one another. It's also odd how little character development there is for most of the cast. Quite a few characters are just "there" without any of their background being filled in at all during the story. The most bizarre is the anthropomorphic vegetable guy. It's never explained where he came from and at the end of the story he's basically forgotten about. Very weird.
The other thing about this movie is that it's heavily dialogue based and doesn't have much action at all. The pace of the movie is rather slow overall, and although I'm usually an action fan, it all seemed to hang together and I never got bored watching it. However, I really have to wonder how well this movie goes over on the actual target audience. I don't see how a young kid with a short attention span is going to handle the lengthy dialogue, lack of action and long periods where we don't see certain characters. It seems to me that kids would just get restless and bored with this movie pretty quickly. I'm pretty sure this fact is going to greatly limit the success of this film overall. It's kind of a depressing story in many ways though everything does work out at the end.
Unusual movie, but like I said, I kind of liked it and it was visually great to watch. If you're in the mood for something that's a real departure from the standard animated movies from Disney, Pixar and Dreamworks, then you might want to give this film a try.
The structure of the story is rather unusual as well. There are many characters and the story shifts focus between the lives of the different characters for long periods at a time. In other words, long periods pass without seeing certain characters at all, and then the focus of the story shifts again and we're now following a different character. For example, we don't even meet Despereaux until like 30 minutes into the movie, and he's the hero! :) It's unusual, but it definitely seemed to work for the story since a lot of the story is about how the lives of seemingly unrelated characters all affect one another. It's also odd how little character development there is for most of the cast. Quite a few characters are just "there" without any of their background being filled in at all during the story. The most bizarre is the anthropomorphic vegetable guy. It's never explained where he came from and at the end of the story he's basically forgotten about. Very weird.
The other thing about this movie is that it's heavily dialogue based and doesn't have much action at all. The pace of the movie is rather slow overall, and although I'm usually an action fan, it all seemed to hang together and I never got bored watching it. However, I really have to wonder how well this movie goes over on the actual target audience. I don't see how a young kid with a short attention span is going to handle the lengthy dialogue, lack of action and long periods where we don't see certain characters. It seems to me that kids would just get restless and bored with this movie pretty quickly. I'm pretty sure this fact is going to greatly limit the success of this film overall. It's kind of a depressing story in many ways though everything does work out at the end.
Unusual movie, but like I said, I kind of liked it and it was visually great to watch. If you're in the mood for something that's a real departure from the standard animated movies from Disney, Pixar and Dreamworks, then you might want to give this film a try.
Madagascar 2 - Funny, Not Bad
Posted 16 years agoI went to see "Madagascar 2" this week and it was about what I expected. I thought it was a pretty good movie, though not great. It was about like the first one, and maybe a little better. This movie is more about the humor and gags than it is about the story. As such, I think I liked "Bolt" better overall though "Madagascar 2" certainly had more jokes. The story in "Madagascar 2" is fairly forgettable and is mainly there to serve as a framework around which to stage the various jokes and gags. It's kind of like watching a Monty Python movie in that regard. The humor is good, so this isn't really a bad thing, though I do prefer stronger stories. The animation was good and I liked the stylized look of the animals that they use. There were also a few well done crowd scenes; the type of thing you can really only pull off with CG.
Compared to other Dreamworks movies, "Madagascar 2" is a big step down from say "Kung Fu Panda", which remains my favorite Dreamworks animated movie so far. "Kung Fu Panda" is far superior both in terms of story and the quality of the animation and CG. I think the "Shrek" movies are better as well. Still, I thought it was worth seeing.
Let's see, Dreamworks' next animated movie is "Monsters vs. Aliens" in March, then there's "Ice Age 3" in July from Blue Sky Studios. Pixar's "Up" is out in May (though it's not a furry movie this time). The first half of '09 should be pretty good for animation fans.
Compared to other Dreamworks movies, "Madagascar 2" is a big step down from say "Kung Fu Panda", which remains my favorite Dreamworks animated movie so far. "Kung Fu Panda" is far superior both in terms of story and the quality of the animation and CG. I think the "Shrek" movies are better as well. Still, I thought it was worth seeing.
Let's see, Dreamworks' next animated movie is "Monsters vs. Aliens" in March, then there's "Ice Age 3" in July from Blue Sky Studios. Pixar's "Up" is out in May (though it's not a furry movie this time). The first half of '09 should be pretty good for animation fans.
Disney's "Bolt" - Worth Seeing!
Posted 17 years agoI got a chance to see Disney's latest CG animated movie "Bolt" this week and I must say I was pleasantly surprised as it was much better than I was expecting. Disney's own movies have had quality problems that kept them in the shadows relative to Pixar's releases, but they're really turning a corner with "Bolt". Clearly, Disney's acquisition of Pixar is paying off for them and I'm sure this helped "Bolt" turn out for the better.
It's easy to draw parallels between certain plot elements in "Bolt" and "Toy Story", but so what. "Bolt" is still a good movie and I'm surprised it isn't getting more attention than it is. It's certainly a very far cry from some of Disney's duds like "Home on the Range" and "Chicken Little".
The technical quality of the animation is top notch, and the action sequence that opens the movie is just plain awesome! In fact, you can watch this right now by going to:
http://www.apple.com/trailers/disney/bolt/
and select "The Chase". If you have a high speed connection, you definitely want to watch this in HD at 1080p. If you like action sequences, you won't be disappointed.
"Bolt" is showing in 3D in select theaters and if you have that option in your area, then I highly recommend it. There's nothing like the perfect clarity of CG imagery in 3D and it really takes the experience beyond just watching a movie on a flat screen.
So if you're a furry fan that likes good old talking animal movies, then go see "Bolt"!
It's easy to draw parallels between certain plot elements in "Bolt" and "Toy Story", but so what. "Bolt" is still a good movie and I'm surprised it isn't getting more attention than it is. It's certainly a very far cry from some of Disney's duds like "Home on the Range" and "Chicken Little".
The technical quality of the animation is top notch, and the action sequence that opens the movie is just plain awesome! In fact, you can watch this right now by going to:
http://www.apple.com/trailers/disney/bolt/
and select "The Chase". If you have a high speed connection, you definitely want to watch this in HD at 1080p. If you like action sequences, you won't be disappointed.
"Bolt" is showing in 3D in select theaters and if you have that option in your area, then I highly recommend it. There's nothing like the perfect clarity of CG imagery in 3D and it really takes the experience beyond just watching a movie on a flat screen.
So if you're a furry fan that likes good old talking animal movies, then go see "Bolt"!
Ice Age 3 Update
Posted 17 years agoJust came across some new information about the third Ice Age movie set to release on July 1, 2009. One of the funnier things revealed is that Skrat gets a girlfriend in this movie. Her name is Skratte. How original.
There's a new trailer out which can be viewed here:
http://www.apple.com/trailers/fox/i.....fthedinosaurs/
Watch the large HD trailer and you can see that they did a really great job on the fur simulation on Skrat and Skratte. I really like the look of the render engine Blue Sky Studios uses.
There's more info on the official movie site here:
http://www.iceagemovie.com/
Looks like the whole gang from Ice Age 2 is back for this round with the addition of Skratte. There's virtually no information about the dinosaur characters, so I'm tending to think they don't have much of a role in the movie other than to chase the main characters. I just hope the T-Rex shown in the teaser trailer is an amusing character in some way.
Also, it looks like the movie will be shown in 3D in at least some theaters. I like that since it's always fun. I hope they show it in Imax theaters as well.
Hope this one is good. I thought the second movie was a bit weak, though it looked really great visually. I guess we'll know in about 7 months!
There's a new trailer out which can be viewed here:
http://www.apple.com/trailers/fox/i.....fthedinosaurs/
Watch the large HD trailer and you can see that they did a really great job on the fur simulation on Skrat and Skratte. I really like the look of the render engine Blue Sky Studios uses.
There's more info on the official movie site here:
http://www.iceagemovie.com/
Looks like the whole gang from Ice Age 2 is back for this round with the addition of Skratte. There's virtually no information about the dinosaur characters, so I'm tending to think they don't have much of a role in the movie other than to chase the main characters. I just hope the T-Rex shown in the teaser trailer is an amusing character in some way.
Also, it looks like the movie will be shown in 3D in at least some theaters. I like that since it's always fun. I hope they show it in Imax theaters as well.
Hope this one is good. I thought the second movie was a bit weak, though it looked really great visually. I guess we'll know in about 7 months!
Vacation Time!
Posted 17 years agoFinally got some time off from work and I'm heading down to Los Angeles to hit some amusement parks and ride some roller coasters! I'll be going to Universal Studios Hollywood, Knott's Berry Farm and Disneyland. I haven't down there in nearly two years, so I'm long overdue. Plus each of those parks has one or more new rides that I haven't ridden yet, so I'm really looking forward to this trip. And it looks like the weather will be really nice as well.
T-Rex: The Restaurant Now Open
Posted 17 years agoThe "T-Rex: The Restaurant" at Disney World in Orlando I mentioned in my journal a couple of months ago (http://www.furaffinity.net/journals.....ox/#jid:419778) is now open for business!
You can view a short video of grand opening in several ways:
On youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1db.....WLE&fmt=18
Or you can download it in high definition: http://www.attractionsmagazine.com/TRex-540p.mp4
Or you can go to the iTunes music store, search for the "Inside the Magic" podcast, then download the video for show 185 (it's free).
The restaurant looks like it's pretty much what I expected it to be. It's run by the same company that does the Rain Forest Cafe, so it's a similar idea except now with dinosaurs!
Looking forward to giving it a try the next time I'm at the parks!
You can view a short video of grand opening in several ways:
On youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1db.....WLE&fmt=18
Or you can download it in high definition: http://www.attractionsmagazine.com/TRex-540p.mp4
Or you can go to the iTunes music store, search for the "Inside the Magic" podcast, then download the video for show 185 (it's free).
The restaurant looks like it's pretty much what I expected it to be. It's run by the same company that does the Rain Forest Cafe, so it's a similar idea except now with dinosaurs!
Looking forward to giving it a try the next time I'm at the parks!
Fun Furry Videos
Posted 17 years agoThought I'd share a few links to some entertaining furry related videos I've come across over time. These are among my favorites:
This first one is called "Help!" and involves a T-Rex meeting a caveman:
http://www.aniboom.com/video/3101/Help!/
"The Nut Job" - why you shouldn't annoy squirrels:
http://media.putfile.com/The-Nut-Job
This one called "The Flower" is a great parody of those sappy 1940s musical cartoons. It's not exactly furry, though the characters are anthropomorphic:
http://www.aniboom.com/video/187178/The-Flower/
More furry is this one showing a great dance routine by a group fursuiters at one of the cons:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XKCRMnSxz4
And of course there's the furry parody of the SNL "My @#$% in a Box" sketch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlxcMLTXa9Y
If you haven't seen the original version, watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhwbxEfy7fg
This next one is my favorite Dragon Booster fan video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fkcil0-GUwo
Happy viewing!
This first one is called "Help!" and involves a T-Rex meeting a caveman:
http://www.aniboom.com/video/3101/Help!/
"The Nut Job" - why you shouldn't annoy squirrels:
http://media.putfile.com/The-Nut-Job
This one called "The Flower" is a great parody of those sappy 1940s musical cartoons. It's not exactly furry, though the characters are anthropomorphic:
http://www.aniboom.com/video/187178/The-Flower/
More furry is this one showing a great dance routine by a group fursuiters at one of the cons:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XKCRMnSxz4
And of course there's the furry parody of the SNL "My @#$% in a Box" sketch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlxcMLTXa9Y
If you haven't seen the original version, watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhwbxEfy7fg
This next one is my favorite Dragon Booster fan video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fkcil0-GUwo
Happy viewing!
T-Rex: The Restaurant
Posted 17 years agoA new themed restaurant is on the way at Disney World in Orlando: T-Rex The Restaurant. As unusual as that sounds, this is real. It's being built by the same company that runs the Rainforest Cafe restaurants, which pretty much tells you what they'll be like. From the press release:
"T-Rex is a unique concept that features dining and retail in an interactive prehistoric environment. The concept is built around water, fire and ice -- guests visiting T-Rex will be greeted with life size animatronic dinosaurs that live among cascading waterfalls, bubbling geysers, a fossil dig site and much more."
Hmm, I wonder if the T-rex will try to eat the guests? No, wait. That's at the other theme park down the road.
The restaurant will be located in the Downtown Disney section and judging from the construction photos I've seen, it looks like it will be located at the opposite end of the shopping area from the existing Rainforest Cafe. I'm sure it will do well as all the themed restaurants on their property are popular.
Construction photos and the full press release can be found here:
http://www.wdwmagic.com/trex.htm
T-Rex is supposed to open this fall.
Now if they'd just build a dragon themed restaurant, then I'll be all set.
"T-Rex is a unique concept that features dining and retail in an interactive prehistoric environment. The concept is built around water, fire and ice -- guests visiting T-Rex will be greeted with life size animatronic dinosaurs that live among cascading waterfalls, bubbling geysers, a fossil dig site and much more."
Hmm, I wonder if the T-rex will try to eat the guests? No, wait. That's at the other theme park down the road.
The restaurant will be located in the Downtown Disney section and judging from the construction photos I've seen, it looks like it will be located at the opposite end of the shopping area from the existing Rainforest Cafe. I'm sure it will do well as all the themed restaurants on their property are popular.
Construction photos and the full press release can be found here:
http://www.wdwmagic.com/trex.htm
T-Rex is supposed to open this fall.
Now if they'd just build a dragon themed restaurant, then I'll be all set.
Kung Fu Panda
Posted 17 years agoWent to see Kung Fu Panda tonight. What a great movie!!! I was really impressed. This is definitely the best animated movie Dreamworks has turned out since the first Shrek movie, and since it has an all furry cast and tons of intense kung fu fighting sequences and a great visual style, I'd think I have to say it's their best CG movie to date!
The story works very well and moves along at a fast clip. They definitely don't waste any time in this movie which I really like. And the CG is simply stunning. With each movie, the technology moves forward and they make use of it to render more and more detail. The fur, fabrics and textures on the all the characters, sets and objects look just incredible, as is the cinematography and lighting. And it looked even more awesome since I went to see it on the Imax screen. It's amazing how crisp the CG looks on that huge screen. If you have the option of seeing on an Imax screen you should definitely go for it.
Other than the Shrek movies, I didn't think the last few Dreamworks CG movies were all that great, but this one easily tops them all.
Speaking of the other Dreamworks movies, they showed a preview of the Madagascar sequel. It looked great visually, though I'm not sure how good the story is. We'll have to wait and see how it turns out.
In any event, if you're a furry animation fan then Kung Fu Panda is definitely the movie for you! Go see it!!
The story works very well and moves along at a fast clip. They definitely don't waste any time in this movie which I really like. And the CG is simply stunning. With each movie, the technology moves forward and they make use of it to render more and more detail. The fur, fabrics and textures on the all the characters, sets and objects look just incredible, as is the cinematography and lighting. And it looked even more awesome since I went to see it on the Imax screen. It's amazing how crisp the CG looks on that huge screen. If you have the option of seeing on an Imax screen you should definitely go for it.
Other than the Shrek movies, I didn't think the last few Dreamworks CG movies were all that great, but this one easily tops them all.
Speaking of the other Dreamworks movies, they showed a preview of the Madagascar sequel. It looked great visually, though I'm not sure how good the story is. We'll have to wait and see how it turns out.
In any event, if you're a furry animation fan then Kung Fu Panda is definitely the movie for you! Go see it!!
Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Posted 17 years agoFurry animation fans take note: I just found out there's some information on the web about the third Ice Age movie that will be coming out next year. It's obviously going to have some dinosaurs in it this time, including a pretty cool look T-Rex:
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y2...../Ice_Age_3.jpg
I would love to see some dinosaurs involved in the story myself. Dragons would be even better of course, but that's not going to happen so I'll happily settle for a rex. Just gotta hope they've come up with a good story. I thought Ice Age 2 was a little weak in that regard even though it had clearly better animation.
Here's the web site for anyone who wants to check it out further:
http://www.iceagemovie.com
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y2...../Ice_Age_3.jpg
I would love to see some dinosaurs involved in the story myself. Dragons would be even better of course, but that's not going to happen so I'll happily settle for a rex. Just gotta hope they've come up with a good story. I thought Ice Age 2 was a little weak in that regard even though it had clearly better animation.
Here's the web site for anyone who wants to check it out further:
http://www.iceagemovie.com
"The Alchemist" - Act 3
Posted 17 years agoFor any Dragon Booster fans out there, Act 3 of "The Alchemist" lost episode has been posted to the fan forum. See my previous journal entry for more information and links.
"The Alchemist" - A Dragon Booster Lost Episode
Posted 17 years agoIf you've never heard of Dragon Booster, it's a sci-fi action-adventure animated series with, of course, dragons. Visit my web site www.Dragon-City.org to learn more about it. If you're a dragon fan who also likes animation, you should really check it out.
The cool thing about the show is that the creators of it are really into supporting the fandom and are appreciative of the fan base. They've participated in Q&A sessions with the fans (which you can read on the web site), and most recently they scripted a special episode just for the fans that goes back in time and fills some of the past history in the story line. This is good since Dragon Booster is a continuing storyline, so all the backstory really counts.
The episode they wrote for the fans is called "The Alchemist" and acts 1 & 2 are now available for your reading pleasure on the Dragon Booster Fan Forum. Click here to read the script. Act 3 will be available sometime within the next month.
If you want to check out the series itself, just about all the episodes are available on youtube.com. To find them quickly, go to the episode list on dragon-city.org to get the episode titles, then search youtube for those titles plus "dragon booster". The episode should come up right away.
Release the Dragon!
The cool thing about the show is that the creators of it are really into supporting the fandom and are appreciative of the fan base. They've participated in Q&A sessions with the fans (which you can read on the web site), and most recently they scripted a special episode just for the fans that goes back in time and fills some of the past history in the story line. This is good since Dragon Booster is a continuing storyline, so all the backstory really counts.
The episode they wrote for the fans is called "The Alchemist" and acts 1 & 2 are now available for your reading pleasure on the Dragon Booster Fan Forum. Click here to read the script. Act 3 will be available sometime within the next month.
If you want to check out the series itself, just about all the episodes are available on youtube.com. To find them quickly, go to the episode list on dragon-city.org to get the episode titles, then search youtube for those titles plus "dragon booster". The episode should come up right away.
Release the Dragon!
