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Friday
- November 2, 2001
- Monsters, Inc. Opens to Positive
Reviews
- Best Animated
Feature Oscar a Go! Barely!
- Shrek DVD Released Amidst
Accusations
- News Link of the Day
- Toons Get an Oscar Category
Monsters,
Inc. Opens to Positive Reviews
(by digitalmediafx.com) Critics are praising Pixar's latest
animated creation, Monsters,
Inc. which opened on over 3,000 screens nationally
today. Analysts will be watching to see if Monsters, Inc.
can top Shrek's
opening weekend numbers of $42.3 million last May.
Here are select
quotes from leading critics about Monsters, Inc. with most
critics calling it another winner, but not as good as the two
Toy Story movies.
Mark Caro
of the Chicago Tribune - "...Monsters, Inc., the first
Pixar Animation/Disney feature since the great Toy Story 2,
is every bit as sly-witted as Shrek but not nearly so self-conscious.
The pop-culture references here are neither as numerous as in
Shrek nor as central to the concept. If you don't get the
humor of a restaurant being called Harryhausen's, no matter; you're
probably too busy chuckling at the imaginatively conceived creatures
to notice..."
Kenneth Turan
of the Los Angeles Times - "...despite occasional references
to drinking lattes and rolling blackouts, the dialogue here is
not up to the usual Pixar standards and only sporadically appealing
to adults...As a childhood entertainment it is certainly fine,
but Pixar's celebrated lure for adults is largely absent."
Paul Clinton
of CNN - "Monsters, Inc., the latest animated production
from the folks at Disney and the Pixar Animation Studio, will
be a solid hit and will surely do well on DVD and video. But on
the whole, the film lacks the heart, depth, and breath of those
studios' previous successes, Toy Story (1995), Toy Story
2 (1999), and A Bug's Life (1998) -- which earned a
combined total of $1.2 billion dollars worldwide. While the film's
sweet, simplistic storyline will hold up for young audiences,
Monsters, Inc. lacks the all-important edgy layer of adult
humor, so vital to Dreamworks' mega-hit Shrek..."
David Germain
of the Associated Press - "...With Monsters, Inc.,
Pixar maintains its perfect batting average, going four-for-four
with another smart, funny, adorable animated world populated by
endearing characters and propelled by a premise even more clever
than that of Toy Story. Pixar continues to hoist the bar
higher on computer animation, crafting a dazzling universe that
big-foots the images of Toy Story 2 from 1999 and even
runs lengths ahead of DreamWorks' Shrek, barely half a
year old..."
Click
here to visit the new dFX Monsters, Inc. Movie Site.
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Best Animated
Feature Oscar a Go! Barely!
(by digitalmediafx.com) Yesterday was the deadline for studios
to submit entry forms to have their animated movies considered
for the new Best Animated Feature Academy Award category. It almost
didn't happen, however, as rules require at least eight qualified
submissions and as of yesterday morning only seven films had been
submitted. Digital Media FX put up a news flash on the dilemma
in the dFX Forums.
By 5pm, however,
there were more than enough submissions to qualify the category,
likely putting Shrek, Monsters Inc., and Waking Life
up against each other for a battle to be named the first ever
Academy Award winner for Best Animated Feature. Shrek is
already an early favorite due to its monstrous box office run,
high critical acclaim, and appearance at Cannes. But if Waking
Life is officially accepted as an animated film, it could
present a challenge after winning widespread acclaim at the Sundance
Festival. Pixar also has a shot with Monsters, Inc. which
is also winning critical acclaim, although not as much as its
last film, Toy Story 2.
Last week
some concern was expressed by the Academy Executive Director Bruce
Davis, who said the following:
"This
is the first year for the animated feature category and we're
anxious about assembling a quorum. It's particularly important
that entry forms be submitted on time in this category because
eight eligible films are required to trigger a Best Animated Feature
Film Award. There were easily enough qualifiers released this
year, but with just a week to go we still don't have any entries."
Davis also
acknowledged, however, that most entries come in at the last minute.
That was the case with yesterday's deadline for the animated feature
as it took last minute entries to push the qualifications over
the top and to guarantee that the award will take place.
In the Animated
Feature Film category, an entry form naming the intended award
recipient and including the signatures of all credited producers
and directors is required. Supporting documentation also must
include a synopsis, cast and credits list, filmographies and stills.
Studios that
submitted entries must submit prints of the animated films to
the Academy by December 19, 2001. However, not all movies that
are entered will qualify for a chance at the award. A committee
will determine which movies become "officially nominated"
for the nomination announcement early next year.
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Shrek
DVD Released Amidst Accusations
(by digitalmediafx.com) DreamWorks released Shrek
to DVD
and video
today amidst accusations and denials of trying to interfere with
Pixar's Monsters,
Inc. by releasing Shrek on the same day. DreamWorks
denied the accusation that it was trying to interfere with Monsters,
Inc. hinting to the LA Times that the timing was a coincidence.
When the LA Times pointed out that Tuesdays are an industry standard
for DVDs and Shrek was being released on a Friday, DreamWorks
said that it was seeing Friday as a better day to release its
DVDs than Tuesdays. The LA Times then pointed out that all of
DreamWorks announced videos/DVDs before and after Shrek
are all still Tuesday releases.
Controversy
aside, the release of Shrek is expected to be huge and
some analysts predict that the Shrek DVD might break the one week
selling record set by the Stars Wars: The Phantom Menace
DVD just two weeks ago.
DreamWorks
has included a ton of additional features in its 2-disc DVD, which
sells for less money ($19.95) than most 1-disc DVDs without special
features.
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News Link
of the Day - Toons Get an Oscar Category
According to USA Today:
"The
Oscars may be more animated when the annual movie awards are handed
out March 24, what with fluffy monsters, green ogres and even
op-art humans possibly slugging it out in a three-way bout. That's
because the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences finally
has acknowledged that full-length cartoons deserve their own category..."
Click
here for the full story.
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