Megamind

[Bampot]

I heard about this movie a while back, but I didn't see the trailer until yesterday. Looks really good. I think Dreamworks may be kicking off to some great films. HTTYD was amazing and I've heard good thinks about Monsters vs. Aliens, even though I've yet to see it. I like the whole classic hunky ridiculous hero verses a manic mastermind of science thing. Plus, I love Will Ferrell.

[RandallBoggs]

I've mentioned this before, but if I recall Megamind is the dreamworks picture that runs on the redemption theme, as it's about a villain losing his archenemy, the hero, and becoming depressed, evetually becoming a hero himself against a new villain.

[Bampot]

Is that how it's going to go? Awesome. I'm so looking forward to this.

Does this mean Dreamworks is going to one-up Pixar in actually showing that redemption for villains is possible?

Also, I apologize for putting this in the wrong thread >.< Fail.

[RandallBoggs]

*nods* At least that's what Wikipedia says. Yes, I know some people don't like it, but in some context I believe bits, especially when it sounds like a good plot and something Pixar should move an eye too.

[Bampot]

I think Dreamworks may surpass Pixar, if things just keep going like they're going now. Pixar is getting unoriginal. Dreamworks is learning from past mistakes.

[RandallBoggs]

Interesting...

[mentalguru]

On PP, I was on the opinion that this movie would probably (just) miss Kung Fu Pandas level myself, which I enjoyed.

(More or less for Dreamworks my top two are How To Train Your Dragon as first and KPF as second).

You perhaps have a point Bampot. HTTYD was about getting over prejudice, about how also narrowly even defining the group you also belong to can be bad. And while ratatouille tried to do something around this theme on a certain level and I enjoyed it, it certainly wasn't even as near as powerful, touching or as good as presenting this message as HTTYD. HTTYD can be compared to a variety of things which happen in our OWN time/world.

We can relate to Hiccup, being the disappointment. To his father perhaps who has all these expectations and duties which are not being met. And Toothless is rather like those certain types of animal which are judged on preconceptions and misunderstandings. It had a thumbs up to domestication as well at the end. Toothless was also an adorable 'cat like' creature.

It was a very good movie. In fact. I want to see it again and again. I actually stated it was better than most Pixar movies and I stand by that. It deserves an oscar on a level far more than Up. Up FAILED because I couldn't suspend my disbelief at all. Plus while I have shook some of this away from my subconscience a part of me can't help but see Up as a less interesting version of Monsters Inc is some respects. Up just... wasn't as good. It had good things like Carl/Ellie. But the dogs were rediculous and the antagonist more or less failed to be a good presence. Protaganist fan that I am, antagonists are also important. Randall resonates interest, pity and some empathy from me because of the realisation that he couldn't have been hired like that unfortunatly the writers themselves seem unaware of this) and I wonder how things got to that point and what happened later. Waternoose is an excellent antagonist in that his presence is something you feel throughout, and he is someone believable, that you can see existing and having similar reasons and actions which can resonate fear in many people. They can see someone LIKE THAT existing in real life. Perhaps having even met them in some respects. Or had some experience they can link it to (by themselves, people they know or a bit of both). Monsters Inc has the best CHARACTERS IMO and most interesting world, though not really the best story in total because I never saw it as complete.

Pixar... hasn't really ever done a redemptive thing though. But they write the stories they want and so a part of me wonders if perhaps most of them don't BELIEVE in redemption (whether ever or anymore) so its why it never happened. And that makes me feel more sad for them than angry really in the end. But while people are complaining about Dreamworks of being 'sequel happy', it seems like Pixar is going to go down that road as well with little complaint, even though the TS3 trailer is questionable. People on PP are already saying TS3 will be fantastic. ALREADY. How do they know that? Especially since if a similar trailer was by Dreamworks they'd be calling it doomed (so many pop culture references/stereotypes etc.). I'm almost afraid to bring it up on PP really. But Up wasn't believable. It was in Carl/ellies case. But not in many others. I mean talking dogs was pushing it already before they stuck them in planes.

I'm not exactly hopeful of the M.I. sequel, and I think randomdrifter earlier had a point when it came to the TS3 trailer.

Granted the HTTYD sequel idea isn't something I'm happy with, but we'll see.

I think because Dreamworks has had more criticism perhaps eventually they can come to go up in terms of story telling, they can improve.

Pixar has been... surrounded by constant praise it seems for a very long time, and I'm kind of afraid there will come a day when (for a little while anyway), people will buy Pixar for no other reason than its... Pixar. Any Pixar movie is gruaranteed to make a s*** load of money these days. Being surrounded by nothing but praise is also not a good thing in general, even if they don't mean to, ego inflation can result in bad decisions. I'm just wondering if there's many people in Pixar who are having their cocoon of praise being penetrated at all. There is a certain amount of people putting Pixar on a very high pedestal, so high that they can't actually see certain flaws (no work is perfect, HTTYD was as close as perhaps anyone has got to though). I dispised Shrek 3 though, and I don't deny it was terrible. The thing is Pixar is... maybe starting to repeat itself. There are only 7 stories perhaps but they don't seem to be venturing into some of the stories territory at all nor seem to express a desire to.

Megamind looks entertaining to me, so I'm going to see it. Whether it will be fantsatic, we'll just have to see. It looks FAR better than Shrek 4 though.

The female lead at the very least interests me too. She's not a super hero, but she's not the cry baby damsel in distress either which is cool. (And the hero kind of expects her to be it seems. This could be interesting. She's got some funny talk with the 'villain' and it pretty much vaguely shows to be maybe they could end up being friends at the very least in this movie... maybe. Their interactions are interesting anyway.)

ANYWAY. I already am digging the female lead.

[Bampot]

I never got around seeing Kung Fu Panda, but I heard it was good. I have to admit, the only reason I didn't see it was Dreamworks. Now I'm rethinking my whole viewpoint on them. Even after HTTYD, I was calling of Megamind as a miss just because it looked like one of those classic Dreamworks movies. Then I see the trailer and was surprised. For once the characters and story seemed out-ruled to pop-culture references. When the trailer ended, I was actually sad because I wanted to see more. If they do go with a story of redemption, I'll be more than pleased. First HTTYD, which focuses on a new generation distinguishing an ancient prejudice and now this with a villain redeeming himself.

I thought UP was good, but I dislike it the more I watch it. I realized the only thing I liked was the whole Carl/Elllie thing and I didn't care about much else. The whole movie ran on that wonderful scene from the beginning. The rest of the character were flat. The villain was boring. The side-characters were more annoying than funny. Decent, but far from Pixar's best and even farther from the Oscar nomination it received.

I think people are already liking Pixar just because it's Pixar. I'm going to try to not judge TS3 before I see it, but I'm just not wild for what I already see.

Ugh, I hated Shrek 3. I loved the first two, so I decided to see Shrek 4 against my better instinct. Wasn't as bad as the third, but that's not saying much.

I'm loving all the characters right now. I'm going to hope some high expectations for Megamind. The fact that it's in November is kind of annoying. I hate waiting.

[mentalguru]

Up annoyed me because it felt like it would be better as a shirt film too. Like just have a Carl/Ellie thing as they grew together. Then end with Carl doing the 'balloon' thing. Do it like a silent film perhaps and make it clear he's 'going to the care home'.

End with him in the house flying and smiling.

Somehow I think that may have worked better (despite the implausibility of balloon carried house in the first place).

The dogs annoyed me in how they were used for the most part (...flying dogs... were they HIGH when they came up with that?)

Plus, Kevin and Muntz etc. annoyed me.

Instead have it like a more silent thirty minute film with just Carl and Ellie and the care home people etc. and it works out to be a better shorter film IMO.

[Bampot]

If it were a silent short, it would of been 10 times better! I would of loved to see something like that. So heartwarming and innocent.

Yeah, the flying dogs were a bit much. Big eye roller that could of been left out.

I think that other animated films were robbed this year because of Up. I recently watched Fantastic Mr. Fox and I feel it was horribly snubbed. It was much, much better than Up ever was. Which is why I own it and not Up on DVD.

[sgtyayap]

Indeed. The only thing that wasn't at least stupid about Up was Carl's relationship with Ellie.

[RandallBoggs]

You are aware that there might be a sequel to Panda?

I will say I did like UP. But there was something strange with Muntz. They DID show his past and such...but now that I think about it, it seems as if they just showed it in a way to justify the end, rather than to garner sympathy.
---
*blinks* Well...never heard the term "shirt film" before 0_0.

[V]

I DID hear of Panda 2 after the first one was released.

Funny... I saw the blu-ray of Up, and it stated that at first, Muntz was having a chat with Carl and he was soon forgiven. But they trashed that idea and stuck with him being dead...

[Bampot]

I think I might try to pick up Kung-Fu Panda this weekend. Although with Monsters vs. Aliens, which I didn't get to see too well because I was babysitting at the time.

Funny... I saw the blu-ray of Up, and it stated that at first, Muntz was having a chat with Carl and he was soon forgiven. But they trashed that idea and stuck with him being dead...

Ah, better to kill a villain than to compromise. So Pixar

I'm uber excited for Megamind right now. Why November?! Whhhhyyyy

[RandallBoggs]

Of course it can be debatable if Muntz is dead. *chuckles* For those who haven't seen it, take a look at Villain's Inferno here or on PP. ^_-