The Dark Knight
We actually went and saw the new Batman flick a week (possibly more) ago, but I guess I never got around to posting about it … arguably because I didn’t think it was as good as everybody claimed. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it was still enjoyable and Heath Ledger gave a great performance, but I certainly didn’t think it was the best superhero movie ever and Iron Man is still my favorite of the season. Admittedly, it probably didn’t help that we went to see it at the IMAX theater downtown, but got there so late that we were literally sitting in the front row of a packed theater – looking nearly straight up for over two hours didn’t put the movie in the best light – but still, I thought it was only so-so. Who knows, maybe I’ll think different after I watch it on DVD and can view the whole thing without a horrible crick in my neck…
Wall-E
This weekend, however, we finally went to go see the latest Pixar venture and…well, I sort of had mixed feelings on it. The CGI was absolutely amazing – these guys keep getting better and better with every single movie – and yet I can still look back at Toy Story and appreciate it, too. What has me on the fence, though, is the story – yes, Wall-E was adorable and was a really neat, little character to personify, however I guess it was just kind of weird for me to watch an entire movie with very little dialog in it … and no, I don’t really consider all of the buzzes and whirs, despite sounding like words, to be actual dialog. I don’t know – I guess I sort of compare it to if instead of talking, all Nemo and his friends did was go “blub blub blub” in Finding Nemo. It definitely had some hilarious and some cute moments, but ultimately it just wasn’t my favorite.
Beverly Hills Chihuahua
For the most part I’ve been shielded from this preview because we don’t really go to non-adult movies very often, but after watching it yesterday, I cringe at the idea of having to endure this dog movie … especially because after that loud-as-hell song and dance number, Sara turned to me and said, “Ooh – I can’t wait!” and she was serious.
Bolt
So this is Disney’s next actual non-Pixar movie and I guess we’ll have to wait and see how it turns out, but I don’t have a whole lot of faith … and this is why Pixar is the future of Disney animation. I’ll elaborate further in a moment below, but it’s just sad to see how a studio that used to churn out animated masterpieces by the dozen now can’t hit a story on their own to save their lives…or at least not nearly as consistently as before. I enjoyed Meet the Robinsons more than I have a lot of the classics – will be curious to see where exactly the super dog movie ranks this fall…
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Not much to say, except that the next movie that was scheduled for this Thanksgiving has been delayed by eight months…
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/ET_Cetera/Harry_Potter_flicks_release_delayed/articleshow/3373678.cms
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The Pixar Story
So probably the best watch of the weekend, Sara and I caught this documentary on the making of Pixar on Starz and it was really great, and talk about inspiring to boot – you’d have thought you were watching the Walt Disney story when they were going through John Lasseter’s career! It was just amazing to see all of the work these guys did for Disney Animation back in the late ’80s before 3d films really ever even took off, not to mention their work ethics and the amount of pride that goes into their work. We both loved seeing the guys racing scooters through the office, launching paper airplanes of all shapes and sizes off the balcony, and basically just seeming to have an absolute blast at work – it made me very jealous! It didn’t really go much into the writing side of their work – more the animation, but it certainly seems like it would be an interesting venture. I don’t know if it’s too late for me to pursue that sort of a career path (specifically looking into films) or if that’s even the direction I’d like to explore, but it definitely got the creative juices flowing and hopefully I’ll be able to get a few steps closer to that big, secret goal of mine tonight!