Keep an Eye Out For: The Tale of the Princess Kaguya

A little late to the party....but wow....just wow...


The Tale of the Princess Kaguya - Official Teaser Trailer from GKIDS on Vimeo.

I personally cannot wait to see this! The North American release is October 17 of this year. Hope you all keep an eye out for it in a theatre near you. Happy Moviegoing folks!

Keep an Eye Out For: Ari Folman's The Congress

Since the 2008 release of Waltz with Bashir, I've been waiting for another Ari Folman Film. When The Congress was announced a year or so back, excitement was immediate. A loose adaptation of Stanislaw Lem's "The Futrological Congress," the film will be part live action and part animation. It'll follow a version of Robin Wright as herself, as she decides to sell her likeness to a movie studio. The rest, as you can imagine, will go from there as she travels within an animated world of wild imagination. To hear that it's now finally been picked up for North American release is quite exciting. Fresh from Cannes Drafthouse together with Films Will Like will be taken care of distribution, which is said to be sometime in 2014.

You can make up your own mind about it and check out the trailer below. But one thing I know is for sure, I cannot wait to see this.



Keep an eye out for it and happy moviegoing folks!

Managing to Amaze Beyond the Grave, a True Artist: Stanley Kubrick

/Film just posted this really amazing animated video of Kubrick's filmography (see below) and it reminded me of something I must recall. I only graduated about a month ago from a film production program.  And one day in my final course my teacher said to an innocent film student passer by and in the most mater of fact fashion "Hey! Do you want to watch one of the greatest movies ever made?" He was of course referring to Kurbrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey,  which we watched in one the purest of forms, 35mm, and with the volume up nice and high! Sure to say this made my entire day and I watched 2001 in the happiest mood I've ever screened it in. 

To honor such feeling only Kubrick can instill. I am posting this little beve of photos that were sent to me that I'd yet to figure out how to present, until now. These were taken in 1949, in Chicago, by Kurbrick on an assignment from Look Magazine. Marvel. Just Marvel. Here are just a select few:

 Full post is here. The assignment was called. "Chicago City of Contrasts." How this man amazes me and it isn't even from old thrills from his past flicks, but from shit I've never seen before. Just can't help but smile. Always a good day when Kubrick is involved.


Here's the video:

Stanley Kubrick - a filmography - from mwoutisseth on Vimeo.


Happy moviegoing folks!

Zemeckis' Yellow Submarine is No More

Just read on /Film that Robert Zemeckis's retelling of Yellow Submarine is no more. Apparently due to the failure and utterly tanked filmed Mars Needs Moms Disney has decided to not continue with the project because of it's use of intensive motion capture. For something that might actually be really awesome have the door closed on it because of some fluff like Mars Needs Moms is sad indeed. This needs to change. Hopefully Zemeckis finds another studio to bring it out and that Disney lack of involvement doesn't scare people away.

Happy moviegoing folks!

The Brave Little Toaster

When I can't remember the last time I watched a film.... it's time for a refresher. Due to recent mention of this movie and with the hard reality of my robotic response "Oh my gosh! I love that movie!" slapping me in the face I figured I needed to dust off the old VHS again and figure out why I like it so much. Yes I have a VHS copy and yes it still works. I know. I just watched it. Either way, I watched the film and these are my notes based on chronology of plot and not personal importance. 


Fuck I love this animation! - It reminded me of the opening credits of The Land Before Time. Another childhood but recently viewed favorite of mine.


The frightening adventure aspect - I figured the reasons I was so enamored with it when I was a child  was because of this main plot point, it was an animated adventure but with these odd frightening moments that kept my child ass seated for 90mins.

Appliances left in an old cottage set to find their "master" - the genius of this story - After my post viewing research did I find out that the film is based on a book by Thomas M. Disch with the tagline "a bedtime story for small appliances" HA! How wonderful! Time to get the book!


Is the Air Condition voiced by  Jack Nicholson? - I found later on IMDB it isn't, but is voiced by Phil Hartman. Who frequently voices on The Simpson as Troy McClure.


The songs is this movie are priceless hilarity - I didn't know it back then cause to me they were just catchy tunes that I would hum and sing part of the lyrics to, but these songs are crazy! When they are singing about finding ways to get back to the master after the For Sale sign is hammered into the front lawn, they sing: "Master is a man of great reflection." Now I know why my parents refused to watch it with me. These weren't catchy Disney tunes but odd off Broadway animation wonders! And then they were followed by weird moments of action like when Blanket is being stuff into a mouse hole by a bunch of mice after the, what I'd like to call, "music of the forest sesh." Yes you could only imagine, what beauties only 80s animation can bring.

The hardware store - This is a prime explain of singing moments that are frightening yet ever so leaning on the edge of creepy I was talking about above. I'll mention again this isn't frightening in a Disney Snow White's running through the woods kinda way but actually kinda creepy and I don't understand why I child would like this. Maybe cause I didn't know what was happening with my small child brain. But anyhow the appliances make it to the city but are found by a little plump man who looks innocent enough. Once at the store the appliances are bombarded by the "city" lamps and forgotten appliances in a pawn shop which are piece and ripped to shreds at the plump mans desires. It's weird and hard to explain. Just take a look below and see for yourself.



Because yes, this movie is grade B film. But it made me happy once and  despite being more aware of the little odds and ends, I still enjoyed watching it now. Just now it's one of those little creepy diamonds in the rough I hold onto dearly in the cinema vault.

P.s. if you are a TBLT fan here's a little goodie for ya! A printable and then fold-able paper Brave Little Toaster!

Happy moviegoing folks!

Things That Make Me Happy: Warner Bros. Gets More Animated

/Film reported on their site today that Warner Bros. is going to be taking from the plethora of animated characters, more and more out of the animation warehouses for development. This excites me to no end! So hence forward this will now be the start of new segment on my blog that I'll call Things That Make Me Happy. Although I've posted things that make me happy many times before it will now just have an official title and tag.  Check out the article from /FIlm here!

/Film says "There’s a live-action/CGI hybrid Bugs Bunny film in the works, and a Pepe le Pew film with Mike Myers planned as the voice of the romantically aggressive little skunk. And now the studio has bought a pitch for a film that would revolve around the ACME Warehouse"

Sounds like so much fun! Can't wait to see how everything turns out. 

Happy moviegoing folks!

Observations on Film Art: One of the Best Film Blogs on the Net

I subscribe to a lot of blogs. Some photo, some journal, some funny, some film. One of my favorite film blogs, though it is written mainly by David Bordwell and Kristen Thompson, is David Bordwell's Observations on film art. These two glorious people were the folk that wrote Film Art: An Introduction, which was my intro to film bible in my first year of Cinema Studies. This morning I came to the newest post, written by Bordwell, named Seduced by structure, and the beginning read:


"If you’re hungry to learn about the ways films can tell stories, a festival provides a feast.  A huge array of narrative strategies is spread out for your delectation. You won’t like every movie you see, but thinking about the mechanics of each one can deepen your experience of it, as well as your appreciation for just how wide cinema’s resources can be. You also get to see how more unusual approaches to storytelling are often imaginative revisions of more traditional strategies." 


*sigh* Sometimes I miss writing papers and doing research. This minor portion of the full post is just so reminiscent of when my days were filled with film theories, discussions and all things wonderfully scholarly about film. I just hope that you have read the above and this has incited your imagination enough to click this link and understand just why David Bordwell's Observations on film art is a must see for any film lover. Definitely one of the happiest moviegoing blogs out there. Check it out here!


Happy moviegoing!

Adaptation of Will Eisner's Contract with God!?

Why oh why? Like damn I'm intrigued, but my intrigue is mostly from worry. In my brain all I can think is "How are they going to screw it up?" I do hope they are very careful with this text, because it is the grandfather of a medium, the graphic novel, that I hold dear to my heart. Please oh please do something stunning, something outstanding. No stars, no celebrity directors, be fresh and innovative. Don't forget Eisner during this because he should be able to teach you a lot about how this material should be handled.

Good luck and happy moviegoing!

Disney's Press Release for Haunted Mansion. Guillermo Del Toro to direct!

Guillermo Del Toro was at Comic-Con and spoke to the fortunate people who could attend about his newly spawned adaptation of Haunted Mansion. He says:

"It is going to be in 3D. And we’re making the Haunted Mansion the most haunted place on Earth. And we are doing it by being true to the spirit and the art and the aesthetic of the original Imagineers that created the mansion.

We are not returning Eddie Murphy’s calls."

That's what I love to hear. Can't wait! After I heard this though, I went to look at Del Toro's IMDB, he has SO much in the works. The ones that stand out are Pinocchio, Frankenstein, & The Witches. The Witches!? AHHHHHH stoked! Firstly I just want to see. I just want to see what he will concoct for this. Real excited. I hope he gets Angelica Houston to come back. Frankenstein, I'm not too excited, since there have been SO many adaptations, but I'm intrigued nonetheless. Pinocchio I think will be exciting too since it will finally be the scary story it was originally written as. Should be interesting. Very exciting stuff. This man is a marvel. 

Happy Moviegoing!

Fun, Fun Times alla Disney

Beginning August 2, ArcLight Cinemas will present the Disney classics selected by D23, Disney's official fan club, every Monday at ArcLight Hollywood, Tuesday at ArcLight Sherman Oaks, and Wednesday at ArcLight Pasadena.


Ya, I just wrote that. Cool huh!? Gotta love it. 


Check out this schedule:

The focus is on Disney science-fiction and fantasy films at ArcLight Hollywood, with the following schedule:

•Monday, Aug. 2: Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)
•Monday, Aug. 9: The Rocketeer (1991)
•Monday, Aug. 16: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)
•Monday, Aug. 23: The Black Hole (1979)
•Monday, Aug. 30: Escape to Witch Mountain (1975)

Disney animated classics are in the spotlight at ArcLight Sherman Oaks all throughout August:

•Tuesday, Aug. 3: Cinderella (1950)
•Tuesday, Aug. 10: Pinocchio (1940)
•Tuesday, Aug. 17: Alice in Wonderland (1951)
•Tuesday, Aug. 24: The Jungle Book (1967)
•Tuesday, Aug. 31: Peter Pan (1953)

ArcLight Cinemas in Pasadena will be home to tune-filled Disney musicals every Wednesday in August:

•Wednesday, Aug. 4: Newsies (1992)
•Wednesday, Aug. 11: Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)
•Wednesday, Aug. 18: Pete’s Dragon (1977)
•Wednesday, Aug. 25: Mary Poppins (1964)

Amazing Inception Comic on Yahoo! Movies

The story line leads right up to the beginning of the where the movie starts. Really cool shit! Check it out here!

I'm Just Saying...

The Fraggle Rock movie better be awesome. AMAZING! You hear? I'm just saying...

Happy moviegoing!

It's Here! It's Here!

The official international trailer for Sylvain Chomet's The Illusionist. Take a look. I'm dazzled right now. So excited for this! Just watch:



Happy moviegoing!

Oscar Nominated Short Films

So in my last Oscar post I wrote that I would be seeing all the nominated shorts for this years race at an event hosted in Detroit. The event was held at Detroit Institute of Arts and it was in a lovely theater.  To my pleasant surprise the crowd was filled with an array of people from the very old to the young. It was great to see the entire house packed with excited faces and wonderful feelings that these events are still organized and enjoyed. It was also great to see that the shorts were films from all over the world including the USA, Sweden, France, Spain, Russia and India. So here is my take on what we saw.

Animated Shorts:

French Roast by Fabrice Joubert - This was a cute little film set in a cafe in France and follows a man who accidentally leaves his wallet leaving him penniless to pay for his coffee. The film was CGI animation. Most characters had very exaggerated features, which I love. It was lovely. You can watch it here.

Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty by Nicky Phelan, Darragh O'Connell - This was hilarious and had everyone laughing from the 60+ man sitting beside me to my 13 year-old stepsister. The story is very nicely constructed and presents a retelling of the famed Sleeping Beauty by a bitter elderly lady to her grandson. The film was mix of CGI and hand drawn animation. It was just a pleasure to watch and is my second favorite of the bunch. You can watch it here.

The Lady and the Reaper by Javier Recio Garcia - This was cute and had a great rhythm to it. The film parades a frenzy between an old women being taken by the Reaper and being saved continuously by a playboy doctor with a team of pin-up nurses. The battle is stellar in CGI.  You can watch it here.

Logorama by Nicolas Schmerkin - This was my favorite. WOW when it says Logorama it means it. I wouldn 't be  able to count all the logo's used in this short. I was also surprised to found out the this short film hails from France. The film has everything from Ronald McDonald shooting up the cops in the streets of LA, to the Pringles man hitting on a diner waitress. You have to see it to believe it. Watch it here. (It's not the best quality but at least you can watch it)

Wallace and Gromit in 'A Matter of Load and Death' by Nick Park - This was good to be expected as that which is Wallace and Gromit magic. But this time teaming up(somewhat) to beat a baker murderess on the loose.


Live Action Shorts:

The Door by Junaita Wilson, James Flynn - This film while depressing was shot wonderfully and tells the tale of a family in the aftermath of Chernobyl. Not my favorite of the bunch but very touching. Trailer here.

Instead of Abracadabra by  Patrick Eklund, Mathias Fjallstrom - This was a hilarious Swedish film and for me one of the best of the bunch. It follows the misadventures of a 25 year-old, still living at home with dreams of being a celebrated magician. He has a dark sense of humor but an endearing quality shared by all in the film. The entire crowd was having a hoot with this one and I believe it is one of the top contenders to win for this category. I'm trying to find a full length version for you all to watch but for now you can watch the trailer here to get an idea of how great it is. Ps. the soundtrack is marvelous!

Kavi by Gregg Helvey - A submission by a MFA student at USC, this film shows some of the tragedy that is still occurring today with slavery in India. The film is quite sad, and follows a little boy in present day India working in a labor camp.  What continues to amaze me and is demonstrated wonderfully here is the strength in child actors. This little boy (see pic) is amazing. Trailer here.

Miracle Fish by Luke Doolan, Drew Bailey- An Australian submission and with a surprise appearance(for me) by Tara Morice who played Fran in Strictly Ballroom. This follows a introverted little boy on the day of his eighth birthday. To retreat bullies he takes a nap in the nurses ward at school and wakes up to a completed empty building. What happens next you can watch here.(Got to the end of the article to play video) It's quite good and one of my favorites.

The New Tenants by Joachim Back, Tivi Magnusson - My absolute favorite of the bunch. I'm trying my hardest to get a full video of it so you can experience the genius. So wonderful and the entire crowd was roaring with laughter. Follows new tenants in a building, as we discover,  inhabited with an array of characters from scorned lovers to drug dealers. The film features appearances by Vincent D'Onofrio and Kevin Corrigan. Trailer here. Website here.

And that's all folks...See who the winners will be March 7th!

Happy Moviegoing!

Sydney Chomet's The Illusionist

Premiering at Berlin Film Festival. Sydney Chomet's latest, five-year-in-the-making, animated endeavor is co-written by Jacques Tati. Now who's excited even more? MOI! An unlikely friendship blooms between an aging French magician and a young Scottish girl. I'm only going to add some photos here, so you can get the best understanding of why I am so excited about this. If you haven't seen any of Chomet's stuff, I suggest you do. Particularly his 2003 Triplets of Belville. This is my favorite type of animation to date. I love it dearly. I'll also put a clip of Triplets at the end so you get an a sense of what awaits you in his newest film.

 

  

 

Cool Stuff: Cartoon Saloon Sells The Secret of Kells DVD and Original Sketch

On March 6th Disney will release The Secret of Kells.  Unfortunately I hadn't heard about this movie until the Oscar nominations; since it's nominated for Best Animated Feature. However now that I do know, I will spread the word as much as I can. Brought to us by Irish company Cartoon Saloon. It looks super cool. I'm gonna post some photos from the site, just so you can get an idea of how great this looks. But the cool stuff is that the site's online store is selling the DVD with a personalized original sketch signed by the director. AWESOME no!? Check it out!

 Happy moviegoing folks!

Sita Sings the Blues

I've been meaning to see this film since I first heard about it when I was working at the magazine. Then I saw a post on it in Roger Ebert's Journal. As I searched for it on the World Wide Web with no luck, a sparkle of magic happened just recently when my wondrous cousin Jenna somehow found a full version of it on YouTube. So my search was over and I finally got to see it.

WOW. When Ebert says I was enchanted and swept away, I didn't realized just how much I would be too. The best description I've seen so far is the one the Hollywood Report gave. It says:

Being dumped has longed served as a catalyst for artistic inspiration, but rarely has a dumpee turned their heartbreak into an end result as charming as "Sita Sings the Blues." This low-budget animated film was written, directed, animated and edited by Nina Paley, who proves that an army of technicians isn't necessary to produce something as terrific as anything by Pixar.

So trust me it is as wonderful as it's sounding. This film wont disappoint, and if it does then I am sorry but your heart is stone. Nina Paley is a marvel. This film is a revelation.  How Paley did so much all on her own with such a wonderful end result without the intervention of the money bags in Hollywood is just something to revel in. Bravo!

So as the Hollywood Reporter has alluded to the inspiration for the film comes from a break-up. So we see the story of the Ramayana-the love, marriage and break-up of the god Rama and his first wife Sita-and, one can only assume, Plaey's own break-up played along side each other throughout the film, with the focus staying mainly on India with Rama and Sita. The wonderful part about this touching break-up story is when Sita sings her blues, it is to 20s jazz vocals of Annette Hanshaw. It's stunning to say the least. All the different forms and types of animation that are used in this feature is just amazing, you can't imagine what you'll see. I am going to let the film speak for itself (you can watch it here) and I can't stress how much you should watch it. However, I am going to post a bunch of pictures here so you can get a sense of just why I and so many others are so amazed by this film.

 

Nina Paley will be someone to watch out for, for sure! I hope that when you do get a chance to watch this, you love it as much as I did.

Happy moviegoing!

Look who's talking...Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters

/Film just reported about Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters. Click here to see the post. Click here to see the post I did a while back about it. Looks like this thing is actually under way. I'm excited!

Happy moviegoing!