Animated Antic

One thing I'll always cherish about Eric Bauza is his fight to get Coyote Vs. Acme out after it was shelved by WB. He was the film's biggest champion and supported it all the way and I'm glad he was at least able to see it released and become a critical and commercial hit.

I'm absolutely horrified and shocked to hear about Eric Bauza's death. He really captured the spirit of the Looney Tunes very well and I can't believe that he passed away today as young as he was. I will really miss him badly.

After seven years, Laika is back with their new film featuring two kids rescuing a baby from a dark, magical forest outside of Portland. The film is one of the most stunningly crafted animated films I have ever seen. Anyway, here's my review of Wildwood.

One of the biggest things that I adored about Wildwood was the fact that Laika hired cinematographer Caleb Deschanel to shoot it. It was a bold choice knowing he has shot amazing classics like Being There and The Right Stuff and he really helps give the stop motion amazing depth.

Eighty five years ago today, Dumbo was released. A short but sweet film from Walt Disney Animation Studios, this little tale about an elephant that can fly is a cute one that works with its quiet charm, beautiful animation, and heartwarming moments.

Wildwood is a monumental achievement. It is a grand scale epic from Laika with a dark twisted story in the vein of Spielberg and Jim Henson with breathtaking stop motion and fully fleshed characters. It’s one of the best films of the year. I’ll give you my full review soon.

It's not often that just the basic premise of a film alone will get me emotional. Tangles looks like an exception and the trailer confirms it. This film is most likely gonna wreck me emotionally and I cannot wait to see it.

Persepolis is such a great film.

Not surprised at all that Dan Lin ended up getting fired by Netflix given reports of him butting heads with David Fincher and Greta Gehrig. I'm not sure who will replace him, but I hope that it might be a sign for Netflix to start evolving cause they need to badly.

Every time I see pencil test art from The Princess and the Frog, it just makes me miss traditional hand drawn animation from Walt Disney Animation Studios that much more. It's been over fifteen years without it and I just wanna see it back some day.

Ponyo was one of the first Studio Ghibli films I saw and it's one that has really just been cozy to watch. The colors here really are warm and sweet and I just love the two kids in this a lot. It's such a delight.

I love The Colors Within a whole lot. It's easily one of the animated films that really stuck with me from the past few years and has that same wonderful touch that Naoko Yamada and Reiko Yoshida brought to A Silent Voice though more uplifting. It's a really lovely film.

Every time a film studio lays off people, I just get sadder and angrier. I really hope those that were laid off are able to find new jobs soon. 

The amount of love, attention to detail, and craft that goes into stop motion films will never cease to amaze me. These artists are true magicians of their craft.

Warner Archive Collection has announced a Blu-Ray that has every Tex Avery short film he made at MGM. It's called the Tex Avery: The Definitive Screwball Classics Collection which will be released on December 1st. As someone who loves Avery's MGM work, this is something I need!

The Triplets of Belleville is so good.

Have some concept art from The Prince of Egypt by Paul Lasaine. The detail in these paintings really is striking, especially knowing how they translated into the final film.

A new look at Bong Joon Ho's new animated film Ally has been revealed alongside news that the film will premiere in South Korea in July 2027. I'm really curious to see what he does in animation, especially with the interesting premise that he's developing.

Anything that is fully generative AI trying to pass itself off as animation is not animation, nor even a film. I will never take it seriously since all it does is steal and I'd rather see real art come from real people than thieving machines.

Eva Marie Saint was a Hollywood icon. Despite having only appeared in a number of movies, having films like On the Waterfront, Grand Prix, and especially North by Northwest are gems to have. Also, I loved her as the elderly Katara in Legend of Korra. I'm sad to hear she's gone.

Here's some early concept art from an early version Monsters Inc by Harley Jessup. It's interesting knowing this version of the film was really influenced by Paper Moon, which is a film that has really seeped through all of Pete Docter's films.

The fact that Coyote Vs. Acme both managed to be somewhat of a box office success after all it went through really is proof that execs do not know anything about what the audience wants from films. And I'm glad it was one because it deserved to be since it was just great.

Here's a concept art sketch of Hoppers drawn by Daniel Chong. It's such a We Bare Bears sketch and you can still feel his touch all over the film. Just such a hilarious and special ride.

I wanna show Corpse Bride a little love. Always find this such a sweet film from Tim Burton.

Netflix has confirmed that the sequel to KPop Demon Hunters will debut through a theatrical rollout worldwide rather than immediately debut on streaming. It's honestly a relief and exciting since I wanna see more films on the big screen and eager to see what Huntrix does next.

Definitely not happy the merger got approved, but I’m not gonna bow my head in despair. I’m still fighting for a brighter future for filmmaking no matter what and I know this merger will only hurt Ellison in the long run. No matter what, I’m still holding strong for good movies.

Hollywood and executives can try as they might, but I firmly believe that good films will always endure no matter what. As long as audiences still want more and filmmakers want to keep telling stories, they can never kill the art of cinema.

Song of the Sea is still one of the richest, most beautifully designed animated films of the last decade. There's no way anything other than the warm human touch can create anything this beautiful and haunting like we get from the fine folks at Cartoon Saloon.

DreamWorks has a brand new animated film out where two Filipino best friends end up on a magical island that tests their friendship. It's both one of the best from DreamWorks and one of the best of the year. Anyway, here's my review of Forgotten Island.

I still think Kung Fu Panda 2 is the best entry in the franchise. The emotional highs of that film are so rich and the scene where Po remembers his past still is just as haunting as it was in 2011.

Forgotten Island is a terrific film. It’s a riveting emotional roller coaster filled with some of the best sequences DreamWorks has ever crashed with top tier animation and a fun protagonist duo. It’s one of the best animated film of the year. I’ll give you my full review soon.

Elemental is still just a charmer. I'm glad the film was able to find the audience it has because it really is a sweet film and the colors in it are amazing.

Shaun the Sheep is back in another film as he and his friends deal with a very hairy creature. It's another wonderful charmer with the characters in another stop motion Halloween treat from Aardman. Anyway, here's my review of The Beast of Mossy Bottom.

Things might be grim right now, but the last thing I wanna do is fall into despair and hopelessness. I believe in a good future for filmmaking and I wanna make sure that I stand strong at harsh times like now. I'm still going to fight for a good future because someone has to.

I still believe that Ghibli's pairing of Grave of the Fireflies and My Neighbor Totoro as a double feature is genius. It seems strange on paper, but they both work as a way of showing childhood innocence, with Grave being about its death and Totoro being about its blossoming.

I came across concept art some more of Mary Blair's concept art from Cinderella and I'm always in love with her work. There's something about the colors here that really captures a certain mood.

Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom is another delight from Aardman. It’s another witty film featuring the flock filled with lots of Halloween gags and also more fantastic hand made stop motion. I’m so happy to see it on the big screen. I’ll give you my full review soon.

Laika released the final trailer for Wildwood today and it's insane how much of its ambition you can already see just from this alone. Knowing the film is over two hours long and also got a PG-13 rating, this is a film I know really went all out. I'm so eager to see it!

When it comes to animated films from the last decade that really ripped my heart out, one of the biggest is Wolf Children. I still think this is Mamoru Hosada's masterpiece and easily one of the best films about parenthood I've ever seen. It's an emotional rollercoaster.

Hoppers was such a riot.

Professor Ratigan in The Great Mouse Detective is such a fun villain. Then again, it's hard not to have fun with Vincent Price.

This year has really given me more hope for films in the future. Hollywood won't ever be perfect, but considering that many of them have been very good, and the fact that movie theaters are thriving once again, it really does make me excited for the future of films.

Here's some concept art from Tangled by Lisa Keene. I love the Rococo influence in these bits of concept art, as the art looks pulled from the 18th century, especially given that one is an homage to the painting, The Swing.

A new anime film made by a few Ghibli alumni has come out in the United States and while it may not rival the best of Ghibli, it's still a very effective and haunting war film on its own. Anyway, here's my review of Cocoon: One Summer of Girlhood.

One of the biggest reasons The Wild Robot really has such a strong heart really is thanks to its voice acting. Everyone here really helps bring Chris Sanders' script to a whole new level and it's just such a gut punch. I can't wait for the sequel.

After two previous bumpy feature films, Tom and Jerry are back on the big screen this time in their third feature film. Sadly, third time was not the charm because this new film is rough. Anyway, here's my review of Tom and Jerry: Forbidden Compass.

I just got out of Cocoon: One Summer of Girlhood and it was such an emotional and heartbreaking experience. It’s a beautifully animated film with strong Ghibli vibes and devastating war imagery. It’s not an easy watch, but I was moved greatly. I recommend it highly.

Fifty years ago today, Aardman Animations started making films and changed the face of stop motion forever. Their quirky British films have such a lovable and fun charm to them and have led to some great characters like Wallace and Gromit and Shaun the Sheep. Simply wonderful.

One thing that I'm glad about from this decade is that a couple of animated projects were initally scrapped by the studios but eventually saved and released to great success. Both Nimona and Coyote Vs. Acme proves that stupid execs and corporations really can't kill great art.

Wile E. Coyote goes to battle against Acme in the new Looney Tunes film which also faced a battle to get released. And after all the trials and tribulations, it's a total fun ride worth watching. Anyway, here's my review of Coyote Vs. Acme.