My thoughts on…the recent blitz of animated movies
June 14th 2006 -
I don’t know about you, but I’m getting a little tired of all these animated movies. Tired of their cute and cuddly characters and their wacky antics. Tired of their bright, primary colours. If I see another movie about a gang of mismatched critters on an epic adventure, I’m going to shoot myself! Now don’t get me wrong, I like these movies, my all-time favourite being The Incredibles. But enough is enough! Once they released one or two of them a year. Now you have them opening weeks after each other. Not surprising though, because once Hollywood sees an opportunity to make money, they’ll milk that cash cow like there’s no tomorrow (Remember the numerous horror flicks released in the ’90s?).
The three most recent animated movies are Ice Age 2, Over The Hedge and Cars. Ice Age 2, about a “herd” of prehistoric animals trying to save their fellow creatures from the end of the ice age, grossed $190.2 million in the U.S. Over The Hedge, a tale about a group of furry woodland creatures battling the forces of suburbia, grossed $130.3 million in the U.S. Cars, a story of a hot shot racecar that finds himself in a quaint little town, drove off with $62.8 million in its opening weekend. Pixar seems to have captured the magic Disney lost somewhere between The Lion King and Dinosaur, and its evident in their enviable line of box office successes. And by the looks of it, Cars will follow in the footsteps of its predecessors.
What is it about these movies that make them so appealing? Perhaps its because they’re the only real family friendly movies out there, where parents can bond with their children before they enter that rebellious phase called adolescence. Or perhaps are kids getting really good at wearing down their parents, constantly whining about how much they wanna see these movies, making their parents comply in frustration. But not all is well in the land of pixels and celluloid. Expectations were high for Cars, and though it opened well, it earned less than its expected $70 million. Plus it has received lukewarm reviews. Looks like the cash cow is starting to dry up Hollywood! But will they stop? No. The only way they’ll learn is if Pixar drops a bomb, then they won’t touch animated movies with a ten-foot pole. But I enjoy these movies, and want to see more of them being made. But for the love of God, Hollywood, slow the hell down!
Related Posts:
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- My thoughts on…this holiday season’s movie lineup
- My thoughts on…the Fast and the Furious 4
- My thoughts on…the death of the movie theatre
- My thoughts on…Snakes on a Plane’s opening weekend
Cinthia Says:
June 14th, 2006 at 4:22 pm
Yeah one of ‘em becomes a success and suddenly a whole interminable string of ‘em are being made and thrown at us… STOOOOP it right there, Hollywood! Time to find something new.
ps: I LOVED The Incredibles, too.
Napfisk Says:
June 14th, 2006 at 4:50 pm
Yep, Incredibles rocked! I’ve been getting this feeling of overkill for some time as well now… I can’t even keep them apart anymore. Where are the days Toy Story was an amazing feat!?
I did see the trailer for A Scanner Darkly today and that is quite something new and different.
Mad Bull Says:
June 14th, 2006 at 7:38 pm
Well, I am all for them. Now the kids have some movies to watch too. Hey kids are people too, you know! Good for them!
Enemy of the Republic Says:
June 14th, 2006 at 7:55 pm
Good looking blog. I haven’t seen Cars, but as a parent, I’ve gone to most, not all of those movies. Some are terrible, like Sharks Tale. I never saw Robots. Incredibles was great, so was Wallace and Grommit. I like the good ones because they aren’t the usual boring family tripe.Taking kids to the movies can be hell. I like to laugh, and some are really funny, like Shrek 2.
Cinthia’s point is well-taken. Hollywood wants the bucks. Think of all the gross horror films coming out now. You make a few good ones, then we are cursed with the unwanted cousins.
Abeni Says:
June 15th, 2006 at 6:25 am
Bring them on.I love them because they are more often good than bad.Can’t wait for Cars to arrive.
Åñèè§å Says:
June 15th, 2006 at 11:21 pm
i love animation…..esp jap animation….ice age 2 was a bowl of laughter for me….the squirrel was real kicks…
Anonymous Says:
June 17th, 2006 at 7:29 pm
I love the animated movies and I’m glad to see that they are released at a time just when the kids are getting out of school so at least they have a choice of movies for their enjoyment.