Like the highly overrated/undercooked Cars.Steph2 wrote:This might surprise everyone - I gave it * (one) star. I mean, even I could tell it was better than some of the other Pixar films.
Ratatouille: The Poll
Seriously, this poll business has become extremely tiresome (alongside Snick's Guy's polls which seem to have copulated and given birth to several more polls). Just my two cents.
Edited By flipp525 on 1201624502
Edited By flipp525 on 1201624502
"The mantle of spinsterhood was definitely in her shoulders. She was twenty five and looked it."
-Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
-Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
The world stopped making sense when things like Chicken Run and Nemo and especially the loathsome The Incredibles were being treated like real movies. And don't get me started on Rat Shit.Akash wrote:Looks like Damien isn't the only one willing to give a pass to Alvin. I don't even know what to say. The world continues to make no sense.
At least Alvin seems as if it may be in the glorious tradition of Bob Clampett, Tex Avery, Frank Tashlin, Chuck Jones and Max Fleischer.
"Y'know, that's one of the things I like about Mitt Romney. He's been consistent since he changed his mind." -- Christine O'Donnell
Looks like Damien isn't the only one willing to give a pass to Alvin. I don't even know what to say. The world continues to make no sense.
Slant Magazine
Alvin and the Chipmunks
by Ed Gonzalez
Posted: December 9, 2007
** stars
When Dave (Jason Lee) puts his foot down and throws Alvin, Simon, and Theodore out of his house, the chipmunks respond, "But we talk." Wittily, the film is asking audiences to take its premise at face value, and because Dave sees the chipmunks as children, it only makes sense that he doesn't question their knowledge of Christmas and television but doubts Simon's understanding of an investment portfolio once the boys become singing sensations. Points, then, for consistency, though there is no forgiving how the compositions, as in Garfield: The Movie and Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties, are so dispiritingly static, mindful of the space the CGI chipmunks will fill in post-production but largely neglectful of the human actors who all show signs of anguish over having to talk to and chase after empty space. But unlike those abominable Garfield movies, this big-screen adaptation of the cartoon series from 1980s of the same name is intermittently cute, though never when Dave is screaming out Alvin's name—a concession to the original show that never makes sense here because Simon and Theodore are just as badly behaved as their brother. Hum-drum but family-friendly, the movie sees the commitment-phobic Dave's struggle to define his relationship to Alvin, Simon, and Theodore seriously put to the test after the boys fall into the hands of the evil music executive (an overzealous David Cross) who encourages the chipmunks to lip-sync after their world tour puts a strain on their voices. Replace Alvin, Simon, and Theodore, then, with pint-sized versions of Britney Spears, Ashlee Simpson, and the surviving member of Milli Vanilli and you may even appreciate it as a music-industry satire. It's not a demanding proposition, but after The Golden Compass, Alvin and the Chipmunks feels like rocket science.
http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=3383
Edited By Akash on 1197452290
Slant Magazine
Alvin and the Chipmunks
by Ed Gonzalez
Posted: December 9, 2007
** stars
When Dave (Jason Lee) puts his foot down and throws Alvin, Simon, and Theodore out of his house, the chipmunks respond, "But we talk." Wittily, the film is asking audiences to take its premise at face value, and because Dave sees the chipmunks as children, it only makes sense that he doesn't question their knowledge of Christmas and television but doubts Simon's understanding of an investment portfolio once the boys become singing sensations. Points, then, for consistency, though there is no forgiving how the compositions, as in Garfield: The Movie and Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties, are so dispiritingly static, mindful of the space the CGI chipmunks will fill in post-production but largely neglectful of the human actors who all show signs of anguish over having to talk to and chase after empty space. But unlike those abominable Garfield movies, this big-screen adaptation of the cartoon series from 1980s of the same name is intermittently cute, though never when Dave is screaming out Alvin's name—a concession to the original show that never makes sense here because Simon and Theodore are just as badly behaved as their brother. Hum-drum but family-friendly, the movie sees the commitment-phobic Dave's struggle to define his relationship to Alvin, Simon, and Theodore seriously put to the test after the boys fall into the hands of the evil music executive (an overzealous David Cross) who encourages the chipmunks to lip-sync after their world tour puts a strain on their voices. Replace Alvin, Simon, and Theodore, then, with pint-sized versions of Britney Spears, Ashlee Simpson, and the surviving member of Milli Vanilli and you may even appreciate it as a music-industry satire. It's not a demanding proposition, but after The Golden Compass, Alvin and the Chipmunks feels like rocket science.
http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=3383
Edited By Akash on 1197452290
I'm a huge Pixar fan not just because I love well-done animation, but also because, as Brad Bird put it, "they protect stories." I saw someone mention Monsters, Inc. and Toy Story 2 (which I really liked)... Pixar Studios seems to have compiled a team of writers and producers who can so ingeniously play to both kids and adults, which is a hard thing to do, with tremendous results. I thought Ratatouille was great, much more because, as someone mentioned, the view of Paris with it's absolutely beautiful palette manages to be both romanticized and authentic at the exact same time.
I too am excited about Wall-E. I'm really interested to know more about it.
Akash, I think you're crazy; Chicken Run, to quote Original BJ, was "a hoot and a half". Though I'm glad to see we agree on Ratatouille.
Damien, I totally agree; Watership Down was a very well-done adaptation. But to counter that, Alvin and the Chipmunks looks ridiculously stupid.
I too am excited about Wall-E. I'm really interested to know more about it.
Akash, I think you're crazy; Chicken Run, to quote Original BJ, was "a hoot and a half". Though I'm glad to see we agree on Ratatouille.
Damien, I totally agree; Watership Down was a very well-done adaptation. But to counter that, Alvin and the Chipmunks looks ridiculously stupid.
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The Original BJ
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Oh, I think Chicken Run is a hoot and a half. It's a warm and humane comedy, visually dazzling in an old-fashioned, hand-made sort of way, with half a dozen marvelous set pieces and a rollicking score. I think it's a total joy.
I don't think Ratatouille is near the top of Pixar's slate, but I think it's quite lovely -- marvelously animated, witty and inventive. I'll also give you the weakness of the protagonist (and some narrative looseness)...but then I remember the awe I felt watching images like Paris at night and, yes, the rats in the kitchen. It's the best film of the summer and deserves the handful of Oscar nods it will nab next year.
Damien, I'll give you that most animated films lack profundity (though I do think the best have plenty of ideas), and rely on more obvious (or "lower") pleasures like astonishing visuals, narrative urgency, and memorable music . . . but when I see you looking forward to something like Alvin and the Chipmunks (which looks nothing short of excruciating), I have to throw my hands up in the air in complete confusion.
I don't think Ratatouille is near the top of Pixar's slate, but I think it's quite lovely -- marvelously animated, witty and inventive. I'll also give you the weakness of the protagonist (and some narrative looseness)...but then I remember the awe I felt watching images like Paris at night and, yes, the rats in the kitchen. It's the best film of the summer and deserves the handful of Oscar nods it will nab next year.
Damien, I'll give you that most animated films lack profundity (though I do think the best have plenty of ideas), and rely on more obvious (or "lower") pleasures like astonishing visuals, narrative urgency, and memorable music . . . but when I see you looking forward to something like Alvin and the Chipmunks (which looks nothing short of excruciating), I have to throw my hands up in the air in complete confusion.