Computer Generated Income
Unless you have been under a rock for the past ten years or more, you know about CGI, or “Computer-Generated Imagery”. It has driven the more common two-dimensional form of animation away. Studios do not draw anymore. They create images on their computers.
“Toy Story” was the first CGI feature length film I remember. It was fun to watch the new technology. Tom Hanks, Tim Allen and all the voices were funny. Randy Newman’s songs were great, even if he doesn’t like them.
Even though some of us knew that this was just the beginning (even though Pixar had been around for awhile), none of us expected what was to come.
Pixar continued to produce some great movies with great stories, including “Finding Nemo”, “Monster’s Inc.” and others. Competitors came along with some fun family films including “Shrek”, “Ice Age” and the more recent “Over the Hedge”.
Even independent producers have gotten into the act. Big Idea’s “Jonah” was hilarious, as was Blue Yonder/Kanbar Entertainment’s “Hoodwinked”. It seems that when people began to see the kind of money CGI generated, everyone wanted to climb aboard.
However, if this summer is any indication, it is all downhill from here. My son and I went to see “The Ant Bully” this weekend. For a movie, it made a great storybook Even Nicolas Cage and Meryl Streep could not save this one. Throughout I kept feeling like I had seen better versions of this story before. A nice message of working together to solve a problem has been done before. The visuals were nice, but not amazing. The music was not memorable.
What is disappointing is the level of humor filmmakers drop to when creating a film for young people. At one point an insect apparently bites the villain’s male organ. They leave a little to the imagination, but not much. There are plenty of poop, burp and gas (PBG) jokes. Why are these necessary?
Even Pixar, with their most recent film “Cars”, offers its share of such “brown” humor, but some of the more recent films insist on making nearly every joke center around the toilet.
Disney’s “Chicken Little” had the main character losing his pants early in the film. Did it really add to the film? It is a common nightmare for most people, but why does it have to be brought to life? (For the record, I really liked “Chicken Little” even with its few flaws.)
In my view, upcoming films “Barnyard", “Open Season” and “Flushed Away” look like little more than opportunities for more low humor. I have more hope for “Happy Feet”, but with Robin Williams among the voices, you know what to expect.
Even Pixar’s next movie “Ratatouille” involves 1) rats; 2) food; 3) eating. Sounds like we can expect more PBG as the CGI continues to fill the seats at a theatre near you.
“Toy Story” was the first CGI feature length film I remember. It was fun to watch the new technology. Tom Hanks, Tim Allen and all the voices were funny. Randy Newman’s songs were great, even if he doesn’t like them.
Even though some of us knew that this was just the beginning (even though Pixar had been around for awhile), none of us expected what was to come.
Pixar continued to produce some great movies with great stories, including “Finding Nemo”, “Monster’s Inc.” and others. Competitors came along with some fun family films including “Shrek”, “Ice Age” and the more recent “Over the Hedge”.
Even independent producers have gotten into the act. Big Idea’s “Jonah” was hilarious, as was Blue Yonder/Kanbar Entertainment’s “Hoodwinked”. It seems that when people began to see the kind of money CGI generated, everyone wanted to climb aboard.
However, if this summer is any indication, it is all downhill from here. My son and I went to see “The Ant Bully” this weekend. For a movie, it made a great storybook Even Nicolas Cage and Meryl Streep could not save this one. Throughout I kept feeling like I had seen better versions of this story before. A nice message of working together to solve a problem has been done before. The visuals were nice, but not amazing. The music was not memorable.
What is disappointing is the level of humor filmmakers drop to when creating a film for young people. At one point an insect apparently bites the villain’s male organ. They leave a little to the imagination, but not much. There are plenty of poop, burp and gas (PBG) jokes. Why are these necessary?
Even Pixar, with their most recent film “Cars”, offers its share of such “brown” humor, but some of the more recent films insist on making nearly every joke center around the toilet.
Disney’s “Chicken Little” had the main character losing his pants early in the film. Did it really add to the film? It is a common nightmare for most people, but why does it have to be brought to life? (For the record, I really liked “Chicken Little” even with its few flaws.)
In my view, upcoming films “Barnyard", “Open Season” and “Flushed Away” look like little more than opportunities for more low humor. I have more hope for “Happy Feet”, but with Robin Williams among the voices, you know what to expect.
Even Pixar’s next movie “Ratatouille” involves 1) rats; 2) food; 3) eating. Sounds like we can expect more PBG as the CGI continues to fill the seats at a theatre near you.
Labels: Entertainment
posted by Alexander Dimm | 7:47 PM
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