The Shrek series is, it's fair to say, DreamWorks' most popular series of films, although I suppose it's possible that Kung Fu Panda may yet overtake it, and Shrek 2 is the best of the bunch. Grossing over $1 billion worldwide, it's certainly the most successful film of the franchise, and also marks the last time, at least until recent prequel Puss in Boots, that the series was … [Read more...]
Review: Beauty and the Beast (1991)
A Tale as old as Time¦Disney again catches the imagination of all children in the 1991 hit, Beauty and The Beast. Mindful of its audience Disney creates another film with an important message. Looks are not the be all and end all, despite what many think. Disney jumps on the band wagon to teach children that to respect people of all backgrounds is a trait no one should grow up … [Read more...]
Review: The Iron Giant (1999)
The Iron Giant is an animated film directed by Brad Bird and based on the Ted Hughes book The Iron Man. Loosely stylistically based on Hayao Miyazaki's ˜Clear Line Technique' it avoids the similarities of a Disney film by being a proper, realistically drawn film. In total it cost $70m to make and only took $23m at the box office, making it a clear commercial flop. However, a … [Read more...]
Review: The Pirates! In An Adventure with Scientists (2012)
Waiting for an Aardman film requires patience and understanding. With the advent of computer-generated animation, the wait has been reduced which leaves cinema-goers in the enviable position of having had two released within 6 months of each other. Arthur Christmas was a treat for the wintery season, but now we have a fully-fledged claymation film in the form of The Pirates! In … [Read more...]
Review: The Little Mermaid (1989)
In the vast ocean that is ˜Disney' where anything can occur, a young red head resides. Taking it back to 1989 and one of Disney's finest, The Little Mermaid continues to entertain and amaze. When thinking of Disney and the masses of films that have been churned out over the years, very few have stuck in the hearts and minds of audiences around the world like this one has. The … [Read more...]
Review: Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989)
Kiki (Kirsten Dunst) is a 13-year-old witch in training. An old tradition states that at 13, a young witch can leave home and study to become a full time witch. So, even though her parents are not overjoyed, she decides to leave. She takes her broomstick and her cat Jiji (Phil Hartman) and sets off for Koriko, a big port city. Once there, she finds she does not have any witch … [Read more...]
Review: Toy Story 3 (2010)
When Pixar launched their first feature length animated film, Toy Story in 1995 they introduced the world to set of full-realised toy characters, loosely based on their award-winning short, Tin Toy After the original was heralded with critical praise and a very successful run at the box office, the decision was made to release a sequel in 1999. Cleverly titled Toy Story 2, the … [Read more...]
Review: Return to Oz (1985)
A well-loved trivia question is, ˜Which films have the longest gap between the original release and the sequel?' The answer is Victor Fleming's beloved The Wizard of Oz and its sequel Return to Oz which was filmed forty one years later. Despite the long gap, expectations were high and inevitably comparisons were made. As a result it garnered mixed reviews for its somber tone … [Read more...]
Review: Ratatouille (2007)
As part of Pixar's move away from the early childish topics for their films, their 8th feature, Ratatouille, focused on the broad topics of ˜family vs. career' and the need to improve, move forward and change. The budget for the film was $150m, which showed an increase in production costs necessary to improve the computer animation and it took over $620m at the box office. … [Read more...]
Review: Up (2009)
Up was something of a landmark movie for Pixar “ it marked the studio's 10th feature film, was the first animated movie to open the Cannes film festival and was the studio's first film to be presented in 3D (but try not to hold that against it). Directed by Pete Docter, his second time in the director's chair, after Monsters, Inc., it was also a huge commercial success grossing … [Read more...]