Happy Feet

anonymous1980
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Post by anonymous1980 »

Is it just me or does anyone else think Michael Medved is a closet case?
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Post by Sonic Youth »

Michael Medved is still on the warpath over this film. Listen to an audio clip where he denounces Happy Feet's pro-gay messages.

Again, to all you international readers, thank you for your sympathy.
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Post by criddic3 »

The Original BJ wrote:
criddic3 wrote:
The Original BJ wrote:
JEEY-ZUS CHRIST! If I begin discussing that nightmare I won't be able to sleep tonight. So I won't.

But I think that chick is going to get booted from FOX News. She said the one GOOD thing about the movie was that it might get boys interested in tap dancing.

Boys . . . tap dancing . . . what kind of message could she POSSIBLY be promoting?

What kind of world do we live in when FOX News doesn't want America's boys acting macho?!!!

I do hope you're kidding.

You have to ask?
Just making sure.
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Post by The Original BJ »

I'll chime in and say that, though I didn't care for Happy Feet, it's not exactly the animated equivalent of Ace Ventura and Dumb and Dumber -- its great visual beauty and overall kind-heartedness places it miles above puerile dreck like those films.

I almost want to like it now, given that Medved and Co. have launched this ridiculous tirade against it. An animated version of An Inconvenient Truth?!
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Post by OscarGuy »

I'm just saying that dreck like this does not help the medium. it hurts it.
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Post by Anon »

OscarGuy wrote:It's the same reason films like Ace Venture and Dumb and Dumber are disgraces to filmmaking and why their quality of output is derided. They diminish and dumb down the art form. Sure a film needs to be entertaining, but if films like Happy Feet become successes, it makes it that much more difficult that quality pieces like Spirited Away will fail to find an audience and may die out as an offering because they aren't profitable.
Happy Feet is soooo not another Ace Ventura or Dumb and Dumber. I think that honor belongs to Shark's Tale.

While I'll agree that mediocre films pushed by the studio make it hard for artistic gems to get financial backing and distribution, I don't think this will prevent brilliant films from ever getting made again. Citizen Kane and The Godfather came out amid tons of mediocre and crappy films.
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Post by Damien »

OscarGuy wrote:This is the kind of animated film that helps Damien hate animated films as an art form.
For the record, I have never said that animated films can not be art (Dumbo, Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol, and a huge number of Looney Tunes are examples of great films). My point has always been simply that there are not, by any stretch of the imagination, enough of them to warrant an Oscar category. This year's contenders underscore my point perfectly.
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Post by The Original BJ »

criddic3 wrote:
The Original BJ wrote:
Sonic Youth wrote:And for all you international posters, here's a window into our world. Right-wing television commentators discuss 'Happy Feet'.

No donations, please. Just your sympathy. Thank you.

JEEY-ZUS CHRIST! If I begin discussing that nightmare I won't be able to sleep tonight. So I won't.

But I think that chick is going to get booted from FOX News. She said the one GOOD thing about the movie was that it might get boys interested in tap dancing.

Boys . . . tap dancing . . . what kind of message could she POSSIBLY be promoting?

What kind of world do we live in when FOX News doesn't want America's boys acting macho?!!!

I do hope you're kidding.
You have to ask?
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Post by criddic3 »

The Original BJ wrote:
Sonic Youth wrote:And for all you international posters, here's a window into our world. Right-wing television commentators discuss 'Happy Feet'.

No donations, please. Just your sympathy. Thank you.

JEEY-ZUS CHRIST! If I begin discussing that nightmare I won't be able to sleep tonight. So I won't.

But I think that chick is going to get booted from FOX News. She said the one GOOD thing about the movie was that it might get boys interested in tap dancing.

Boys . . . tap dancing . . . what kind of message could she POSSIBLY be promoting?

What kind of world do we live in when FOX News doesn't want America's boys acting macho?!!!
I do hope you're kidding.
"Because here’s the thing about life: There’s no accounting for what fate will deal you. Some days when you need a hand. There are other days when we’re called to lend a hand." -- President Joe Biden, 01/20/2021
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Post by criddic3 »

cam wrote:criddic: if you only saw the headline of Sonic's link, then you haven't heard the comments, which would be a good idea before you make a statement.

I suppose that the enviroment means nothing to you as Gore, a Democrat, pointed out the dangers facing us.
cam, I did note that I was responding to the headline over the video but the video did not show up. I will have to check the FOXNews site to see if I can find the clip he wanted people to see.

I have An Incovenient Truth above my TV, ready to be viewed. It's been there for a week. I am not one to dismiss an argument without listening to it first, but I am also not a fan of Al Gore. However, I also know that there are some environmentalist experts who disagree with Gore's characterization of the imminent dangers of this threat.

One of my ideas a while back was that Congress should compromise: Democrats offer some support for reforming social security to save it; Republicans offer some support for making environmental changes to prevent a catastrophe with global warming. Neither problem is going to directly affect us for quite some time, but if something is done about both issues now, it will save us much grief when it does.
"Because here’s the thing about life: There’s no accounting for what fate will deal you. Some days when you need a hand. There are other days when we’re called to lend a hand." -- President Joe Biden, 01/20/2021
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Post by OscarGuy »

It's the same reason films like Ace Venture and Dumb and Dumber are disgraces to filmmaking and why their quality of output is derided. They diminish and dumb down the art form. Sure a film needs to be entertaining, but if films like Happy Feet become successes, it makes it that much more difficult that quality pieces like Spirited Away will fail to find an audience and may die out as an offering because they aren't profitable.

Happy Feet is a substandard piece of filmmaking made less digestable by its huge success, meaning more films of its questionable quality will be made and less films of a higher calibre will be made. We've already seen the dumbing down this year where animated films are less smart and more "hip" and thus films with less become more abundant and start to muscle out the higher quality pics. It's what's been affecting the action and comedy genres for years now. A move away from quality of entire product and quality of one aspect that draws box office but makes audiences expect a substandard product and thus making it more difficult and less likely that studios will create the next great Citizen Kane or The Godfather.

People wander why new classics aren't being created with the regularity that used to dominate the industry.
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Post by Anon »

Okay, OscarGuy, I'm going to respectfully disagree with you. Yes, I enjoyed Happy Feet, it wasn't brilliant or anything, but I and the kids I took to see it were thoroughly entertained.

I certainly don't think it's dreadful, but why be concerned that the likes of Damien can easily dismiss the "art form" of animation because of movies like Happy Feet?

That's like saying, because of movies like Crash or any other movie that we can agree is not "art" by any stretch of the imagination, that these films allow us to dismiss cinema as an art form!

Do you really believe a film like Happy Feet prevents anyone from appreciating the likes of Spirited Away or Triplets of Belleville?

I agree the animation genre needs to diversify its offerings and expand beyond the kiddie market, but I can't fault Happy Feet for working on the level of a kids' animation movie. That's what it is!

Now, whether or not it gets the Oscar for Best Animation Feature is another debate.
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Post by OscarGuy »

A heartwarming story? my heart wasn't warmed...chilled was more like it. I didn't care about any of these characters (except maybe the mother played by Nicole Kidman and that's stretching it). These were cardboard cutout characters put in wacky situations that weren't even entirely funny.

Environmental issues aside, the film is poorly executed. The whole environmental segment feels tacked on like they suddenly ran out of ideas. The voice performances were among the worst I've heard since Doogal. Even the exasperating Ice Age 2 was better than this film.

This is the kind of animated film that helps Damien hate animated films as an art form. Outside of some amazing graphics, this film deserves to be compared to Disney's dreadful years, not even its best.
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Post by Anon »

I just got back from seeing this delightful and precious little movie and, for the life of me, I don't get the hate. ???

I was helping out my friend this weekend by babysitting her two little kids, and I took the opportunity to take them to this movie and see it for myself. Maybe because I was already surrounded by the silliness of their antics all day (and it's rare that I get a chance to spend time with kids since I don't have any of my own yet) that I was in a mood to be completely receptive to Happy Feet. I found it charming, and the so-called preachiness was no more heavy-handed than the "preachiness" of Bambi or Dumbo. In fact, I would venture to say that much of the criticism of Happy Feet's message has everything to do with the pervasive cynicism of our culture and, in particular, the kind of "cool cynicism" that has seeped its way into animated movies, like Shrek and South Park.

So when a movie like Happy Feet comes along, wearing its emotions on its sleeves and wallowing in both sentimentalism and catchy tunes and old-style hoofing, we're quick to dismiss it as having any merit.

Perhaps because I've already sugared up the kids with movie snacks, they were really hyperactive, but I do know that, at the end of the movie, they were too busy tap-dancing all the way back to the car to be concerned about the environmental issues being preached.

Happy Feet did what it was supposed to do: tell a heartwarming story, present cute and fuzzy little animals, and showcase amazing visuals. That used to be an acceptable formula for animations. What more do we want?

All this complaint about an innocuous little movie (well, the racial stereotypes really were over the top) being an animated version of "An Inconvenient Truth" is just too absurd to be believed.
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Post by 99-1100896887 »

criddic: if you only saw the headline of Sonic's link, then you haven't heard the comments, which would be a good idea before you make a statement.

I suppose that the enviroment means nothing to you as Gore, a Democrat, pointed out the dangers facing us.
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