So sad to see many of the upcoming films planned by Pixar:
Finding Dory
The Incredibles 2
Cars 3
Pixar used to make unique films with moving stories that could stand on their own. But now it's Disney that makes unique films each year and Pixar has to spend half their efforts on sequels. Films that are often of poor story quality; Cars 2, Monsters U.
Pixar is turning into DisneyToon-2. And they seem to have as much control over their own fates as DisneyToon. At some point, it will no longer make economic sense for Pixar to have their own studios. And then Pixar will be rolled into Disney. Only the name will be left for branding and marketing purposes. Unless Pixar gets spun off to have more creative freedom I don't see a way to stop the decline.
Update
I wasn't expecting so many people to see this short post. So let me add another point. Disney already has a second unit for handling sequels and spinoff films, DisneyToon. Pixar doesn't. Pixar has to do both the new original movies and handle to sequels that Disney demands. Pixar really needs it's own version of DisneyToon. As it is, Pixar is having to spend half their focus on the sequels.
Showing posts with label Disney. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Disney. Show all posts
Monday, March 24, 2014
Frozen (2013, Disney)
Frozen is a huge hit for Disney. It has currently made a billion dollars. Recent Disney films Tangled and Wreck-It-Ralph were better in my opinion. I'm not saying it's horrible. It just lacked that special wonder of the great Disney films. Because Frozen is focused more on being what it's not, a princess film.
Frozen, of course, is a go-girl, self- rescuing princess film. It stands in rebuke of all those waiting on a male savoir Disney princess films. It could have been ground breaking. 40 years ago. My biggest fault with the film is that it was so focused on being pro-girl that it failed to do justice to the story.
The relationship between the two princesses, Elsa and Anna, is the heart of the story. And the only part of the story with any real emotional component. All the other characters are cut outs who lack souls or imagination. And in the rush to be pro-girl, Disney did to the males exactly what they used to do to females: it relied on negative stereotypes.
Hans is the evil man out to take away all the princess holds dear. He's your basic frat boy rape culture cliché. Kristoff is a loser who will do anything a pretty girl asks of him. The comic relief Olaf snowman is a stoner. And the Duke of Weselton is your basic Jewish miser. The only positive male in the story is the King and he's killed off early on.
The basic lesson to girls watching Frozen is that men are evil and out to get your stuff or they're tools that can be used to get what you want just by giving them a big smile. I contrast that to the Hunger Game films which show how men and women can work together based upon their strengths and weakness as individuals.
As for the plot it is clearly written to spec. The spec being "Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need" by Blake Snyder. The person most responsible for the boring predictable blockbuster action films. In Frozen they just replaced the males with females and added a veneer of male bashing.
As for the visuals, it was stunning. It shifted between cartoonish and hyper real seamlessly. Disney has internalized all the work that went into Tangled and managed to recreate the same feel for about half the price. But visuals can't save a cut-out action flick sexist musical from itself.
2/4 stars.
Frozen, of course, is a go-girl, self- rescuing princess film. It stands in rebuke of all those waiting on a male savoir Disney princess films. It could have been ground breaking. 40 years ago. My biggest fault with the film is that it was so focused on being pro-girl that it failed to do justice to the story.
The relationship between the two princesses, Elsa and Anna, is the heart of the story. And the only part of the story with any real emotional component. All the other characters are cut outs who lack souls or imagination. And in the rush to be pro-girl, Disney did to the males exactly what they used to do to females: it relied on negative stereotypes.
Hans is the evil man out to take away all the princess holds dear. He's your basic frat boy rape culture cliché. Kristoff is a loser who will do anything a pretty girl asks of him. The comic relief Olaf snowman is a stoner. And the Duke of Weselton is your basic Jewish miser. The only positive male in the story is the King and he's killed off early on.
The basic lesson to girls watching Frozen is that men are evil and out to get your stuff or they're tools that can be used to get what you want just by giving them a big smile. I contrast that to the Hunger Game films which show how men and women can work together based upon their strengths and weakness as individuals.
As for the plot it is clearly written to spec. The spec being "Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need" by Blake Snyder. The person most responsible for the boring predictable blockbuster action films. In Frozen they just replaced the males with females and added a veneer of male bashing.
As for the visuals, it was stunning. It shifted between cartoonish and hyper real seamlessly. Disney has internalized all the work that went into Tangled and managed to recreate the same feel for about half the price. But visuals can't save a cut-out action flick sexist musical from itself.
2/4 stars.
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Quick Hits from 2013
I've been very busy with life and not able to post recently. But I did manage to take in some of the summer films.
I got to see From Up On Poppy Hill in the theaters. Which turned into a financial disaster for GKIDS and Ghibli. I'm not at all surprised to see that Ghibli has linked a new deal with Disney for US distribution. I actually enjoyed the GKIDS adaptation. It was funny how they ducked the incest taboo in the translation.
Monster's U was written to action movie spec. It was predictable and trite. It added nothing to the original. It's an example of everything that is wrong with Pixar these days. I found it sad. 1.5/4 stars.
Planes turned out to be the second best performing movie in DisneyToon's history after Return to Neverland. This was another spec film. The CG was middle of the road and the characterization is poor and full of archetypes. But I actually enjoyed it. For the intended audience of young boys it succeeds. 2/4 stars.
In the rentals department I've only picked up Epic. Which I was pretty disappointed with. Clearly a cookie cutter, by the numbers, CG film. I found it boring. Pretty but airheaded. 1.5/4 stars.
I'm still waiting for the first 2013 film to wow me.
I got to see From Up On Poppy Hill in the theaters. Which turned into a financial disaster for GKIDS and Ghibli. I'm not at all surprised to see that Ghibli has linked a new deal with Disney for US distribution. I actually enjoyed the GKIDS adaptation. It was funny how they ducked the incest taboo in the translation.
Monster's U was written to action movie spec. It was predictable and trite. It added nothing to the original. It's an example of everything that is wrong with Pixar these days. I found it sad. 1.5/4 stars.
Planes turned out to be the second best performing movie in DisneyToon's history after Return to Neverland. This was another spec film. The CG was middle of the road and the characterization is poor and full of archetypes. But I actually enjoyed it. For the intended audience of young boys it succeeds. 2/4 stars.
In the rentals department I've only picked up Epic. Which I was pretty disappointed with. Clearly a cookie cutter, by the numbers, CG film. I found it boring. Pretty but airheaded. 1.5/4 stars.
I'm still waiting for the first 2013 film to wow me.
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