 |
Found this link to a really impressive model of Howl's Moving Castle that someone apparently built.
I've been sifting and cleaning up animation profiles the last few days and I was just thinking I ought to watch Howl's Moving Castle again at some point. I remember giving it a pretty negative review when I saw it in theatres, but I wonder now if it would improve on a second viewing... or if I'd still be saying "what the heck?!"
You're thinking of copyright law, which expires after so long, or is at least suppose to, regardless of what you do, although you used to be able to renew it under old US laws (which failed to happen to some films). In those terms Rapunzel the fairytale is most definitely in the PD since it's almost 200 years old.
I'm talking more about trademarks, like trademarking the name, the style it's presented in - like logos, what people associate with the name when they see it, etc - for a specific reason which can be renewed till you can't afford it anymore or until it becomes the common word for the item, etc, in question.
I assuming that changing the name to Tangled is to gain the ability of trademark, since it's a generic word that can be trademark for a specific thing, rather than the name of the play Rapunzel, which may be untrademarkable.
Mickey's rights
If I remember right, Disney and some bignames in the industry, managed to put enough pressure on the US government to up copyright protection by another 25 years; though this would only apply to the USA unless they can also get a global copyright treaty to that effect.
Rapunzel has got to be public domain by now though. I mean, at this stage it's harder for them to hang on to a property like "Winnie the Pooh" since A.A. Milne's got descendants that can haggle over rights.
Wasn't there some ka-fuffle years ago about the fact that Mickey Mouse himself might be entering the public domain just based on how old he is...?
So basically Disney thinks that the actual name of the - probably pretty well known - fairytale they're adapting carries less weight than a generic word like Tangled; personally I think that's bull. It wouldn't surprise me if they really had issues with something like getting a trademark attached to the film logo.
New trailer up for Shrek Forever After, the fourth and (they claim) final installment of Dreamwork's Shrek tale.
Personally, I can't say I'm all that excited about yet another Shrek, although I am looking forward to How to Train Your Dragon which is set to come out later this month. It also has a new trailer if you haven't seen it yet.
Well I'm not happy that Up won best animated picture, but I enjoyed the movie. I'd call it a "once every two months" movie. If you don't mind renting it and doing a proper review, I'd like to see your take on it. I tried watching Macross II The Movie and stopped watching about ten minutes in. It was just. . .so. . .bad.
I enjoyed District 9. Thoroughly. Probably not as much as the new Star Trek, but I thought District 9 was a different take on the sci fi genre with a hefty message. It's just a shame that there really wasn't anybody to root for because everybody seemed like a bad guy.
Two days ago I had to go to the dentist. Since I never bothered renewing my driver's licence whem it expired 2 years ago. I got a cab back, stopping briefly at the video shop. I saw 'Up' and thought it looked crap. And that it was a rip-off of 'Mary and Max', if the profile is accurate)
So I didn't watch it. I watched 'District 9'. It was pretty much crap as well.
Loop
The storyboard art makes me wish that this was 2D, because the CGI - and yes I know it early - pales in comparision, oh well.
The way that Rapunzel is able to use her hair reminded me of the character Millia Rage from the Guilty Gear series of fighting games, who uses her hair as a lethal weapon.
Theatrical Shorts
You didn't say "stop adding them", just not to add so many at once that it floods the homepage and looks like the only thing we add.
Fraidy Cat and Hoppity Hooper
From what I found out about these shows, both online and in my animation books, both these were cartoons shown on a parent TV show, in the manner of a Hanna-Barbara parent/child cartoon/live-action show (think like Banana Splits). Since we decided to list those as seperate entries, both these cartoons would be listed seperately in the TV series section as well.
I think the trailer looks good!
On another note, the storyboard art is really beautiful.
Formerly known as Disney's Rapunzel movie, Lineboil has the leaked trailer up for Tangled. It's definitely still in rough form so it includes everything from rough animation to storyboards, but still it definitely got my attention.
Watch it before it gets zapped.
Seriously? I actually said stop adding theatrical shorts? oy... sometimes I really do need my head examined...
Okay, in a perfect world I'd say we should be striving for some kind of balance on the homepage... in my mind it isn't so much about how many profiles there are in each section, but keeping the homepage feeling accessible to everyone who comes... however, it's been an imperfect world for some time now where we're all busy... so in light of that I would say adding something is better than having the homepage go stale.
As for my Olympic experience... well, I wish I could say I was plastered in a bar last week, but alas I spent most of the Games either down with a bad cold or working at the Games. The organization I've been working for these past three years has strong Games ties which meant all of us were sent off to different Games-time jobs. I ended up as the Website Coordinator for the Four Host First Nations where I kept their site up to date on a daily basis with all the activities going on at the Aboriginal pavilion.
I did get to attend some events though--which is probably why I'm still sick since sitting in a hockey arena or speed skating rink is not how you recover from a cold. But I did see a couple hockey games, short track speed skating, men's figure skating and some of the craziness that was downtown Vancouver for the past couple weeks.
We're all headed back to our regular jobs now, although given that where I work has such a strong Games connection, things will be changing there... if I seem more AWOL than normal, that would be why... on the plus side though, my organization named me as their torchbearer for the Paralympic torch relay, so my Olympic experience isn't quite over yet.
My knowledge of these theatrical shorts is extremely limited. I'd like to see some Little Audrey and Little Lulu entries. I'm also not sure if some cartoons like Fraidy Cat and Hoppity Hooper should count as separate shorts or as a tv series.
Well, I see it this way: how many theatrical shorts are there, compared with animated features? I would (out of the blue) expect ten times as many - I mean Warner alone have released 4 boxed sets of shorts, and they haven't anywhere near exhausted their catalogue. Have there been a couple of thousand feature films? Of course not.
Loop
Yes, darn us for managing to win something we haven't been able to for twenty or whatever years… :P
To be honest I haven’t been following any of the sporting events, beyond knowing that the Winter Olympics where on, like my country’s going to win many events in that these days.
Right onto the theatrical stuff...
For my part, I've been lazy, I'd admit that; lazy with the number of profiles I could have added and lazy for just rating profiles rather than writing reviews proper.
And yes Loop, I know your comment isn't directed at me personally, or really at anyone (except in a vague way).
A part of me has felt like I've had my foot on the brake pedal for a while, worrying about flooding the site with theatrical shorts and more recently I think I've almost stalled completely once or twice. I remember talking a while back with athena about this very thing - possibly on more than one occasion - and her saying that it might look like that was all we added was theatrical stuff.
I seriously doubt it would hurt to add more theatrical stuff much more regularly; if people think that's all we're adding then so-be-it I suppose, it not as if they couldn't click and find that there are other categories to check (or use search). And yes both known and the more obscure shorts.
It certainly wouldn’t hurt me any given that’s it relatively easier than other profile types, like trying to add an long running anime series.
And I'll try my best to add reviews to what I add in the future, though I also owe that to myself more than anyone. I mean, how much stuff is on this site I could review but haven't got round to yet? Though I guess that's a question many could also ask.
First, congrats to Athena, who I imagine is plastered in some pub at the moment. I actually dragged myself out of bed at 5.30 am to watch the Canada v US hockey finals, and we were on the same side as you (Oz are one of the top 3 hockey (i.e. grass not ice) nations, and in the World Cup England just beat us for first time since the mid 80's. Darn them. ))
But anyway, what I wanted to say is I think you should have more theatrical shorts.
If you're going to have a section with that name, then justify it by giving it more than a token offering. Nobody is going to come here looking for TS's if there aren't a decent number of them. Not just the classics, but some oddities, personal faves, whatever.
(dare I suggest, as an example my 'Ding Dog Daddy' which I added when I was editor once. You won't find it on any of Warner's boxed sets, but you can find on a public domain DVD for $2) - and who's to say who has more of either type. And regardless, I put that film there because I thought it was superb, and it might turn some other people on to it. I think this site should be about that. Same reason I added Svankmajer, odd European series, Australian ones, English series, et al.)
I suggest that whoever adds it has seen it, so we can at least expect ONE review, and I encourage people to review stuff in general.
What's the flamin' point otherwise.
Going to polish my hockey stick
Loop
I loved Princess and the Frog. I could watch that Dr. Facilier animation over and over. Beautiful! And I found the animator responsible for it: Bruce W. Smith.
Indeed, Bruce is an incredible animator. I really admire his work.
so was Princess and the Frog... hand drawn animation FTW!
I loved Princess and the Frog. I could watch that Dr. Facilier animation over and over. Beautiful! And I found the animator responsible for it: Bruce W. Smith.
"You know. As much as I enjoyed Up, I didn't enjoy it as much as I should've. I felt it was par for the course for Pixar, which still puts a high bar for typical Disney. But Coraline felt like something that every animated movie should've been. Different. Atmospheric. And endearing."
I wholeheartedly agree. Up was great (so was Princess and the Frog... hand drawn animation FTW!), don't get me wrong but Mr. Fox and Coraline... they were nothing short of INCREDIBLE. Mr. Fox was my favorite movie of 2009 hands down. Clever dialogue, great hand-made look, great characters... hell yeah.
You know. As much as I enjoyed Up, I didn't enjoy it as much as I should've. I felt it was par for the course for Pixar, which still puts a high bar for typical Disney. But Coraline felt like something that every animated movie should've been. Different. Atmospheric. And endearing.
I still respect the BAFTAs more than the Annies, though.
Bit late for news, since it was last Sunday the awards where held; nevertheless the BAFTAs, the British Oscars, so to speak, have awarded Up best Animated Film. It went up against Coraline and The Fantastic Mr Fox.
|
