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Hello folks. Yes I'm afraid it's time for another barely coherent rant and ramble from yours truly.

This time, it's about my frustration at animated films. But specifically animated kids films, like the dross vomited up by Disney each and every year. You know, the blatant money making exercise you cannot hide from if you ever watch the Telly.

But rather than the content, it's the medium. What the hell happened to films like Labyrinth and Dark Crystal? Things like that have an added level of magic for the little'uns, as the human characters can really interact with the puppets and stuff.

I get that animation is now a far cheaper option, but surely someone out there would still be producing Jim Henson type stuff? It would genuinely break my heart if this particular form of film making was dead and buried, purely in the name of more moolah.

well i totaly agree with you and would like nothing more to see more movies of this style, *2 of my fave movies* but i would also like to see more Tim Burton'esk movies as well!

That is so true.

I have got nothing to add.

It is that true.

Labyrinth is just fethed up from start to finish.
would scare most kids into having nightmares most of the time.

easy way to solve the problem, stop watching TV and go out side! (yes, there is such a thing as "outside" and the air is safe)

kids should be out rather than sat in watching TV all day.

football, rugby, hocky, its all good.

Labyrinth rules though!

It's genius from beginning to end, and isn't *that* scary for kids.

Planning a Labyrinth themed party for my mates daughters 5th Birthday. Princess and Goblins. What more could the kids want?

argh double post

Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
What the hell happened to films like Labyrinth and Dark Crystal?

Jim Henson died.

There was a reason these kind of films never existed before him. He was unique. When he died we lost one of the most important entertainers of the century.
Disney is trying to pull itself out of the hole it dug during the last 10 years, there is a new animated film coming out in the next year or so from them, not CG based, which is a step in the right direction, but I have completely turned to studio Ghibli for my toon tastes.

A lot of Disney movies are really good for children and parents to watch together. I have most of the old classics and modern classics and have watched them multiple times with my daughter.

My daughter also loves Nightmare Before Christmas.

Also a lot of women have rather disturbing ideas RE David Bowie in Labyrinth. I don't know why- or rather I do, and wish I didn't.

The problem now with puppetry and animatronics is willing the suspension of disbelief, and with how everything else looks, all the glitzy graphics and whatnot, I think people (and kids) have a little bit of a harder time accepting it than perhapos they once did.

Chicago wrote:
The problem now with puppetry and animatronics is willing the suspension of disbelief, and with how everything else looks, all the glitzy graphics and whatnot, I think people (and kids) have a little bit of a harder time accepting it than perhapos they once did.

I watched terminator 2 the other night.

The opening of that film is more realistic looking than any cg imagery I have seen in the last 4 years. Because it WAS real, and effort was put into making it look real, not trying to make it look so real, that it becomes fake, which is something noticeable with the latest transformers movie, or Advent Children.

Kids still pick up on why the likes of the Dark Crystal is special, I have a little brother and sister that have both seen it repeatedly and would choose it over anything Disney or Pixar has released in the last 10 years. I think honestly because it is closer to the images in their imagination than finding Nemo was.

I've never seen this Labyrinth movie, but if you want to some creative pupepts, try Hellboy 2

I know there's a lot of animated junk out there, but it's not that hard to find the good stuff. Pixar is almost everytime a safe bet (except Cars) and half of the Dreamworks stuff is rather solid too. For example: Kung-Fu Panda was great, I enjoyed it even more then I did Wall-E, but I don't even want to see Madagascar 2.

But I think they look a damned sight more convincing than some CG tat churned out by Pixar.

Sure, Henson was a trailblazer, but just because the man is dead, doesn't mean his techniques, vision or style went with him?

If I had the money, I'd have one made!

Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:Hello folks. Yes I'm afraid it's time for another barely coherent rant and ramble from yours truly.

This time, it's about my frustration at animated films. But specifically animated kids films, like the dross vomited up by Disney each and every year. You know, the blatant money making exercise you cannot hide from if you ever watch the Telly.

But rather than the content, it's the medium. What the hell happened to films like Labyrinth and Dark Crystal? Things like that have an added level of magic for the little'uns, as the human characters can really interact with the puppets and stuff.

I get that animation is now a far cheaper option, but surely someone out there would still be producing Jim Henson type stuff? It would genuinely break my heart if this particular form of film making was dead and buried, purely in the name of more moolah.

Well I agree I miss films like Labyrinth, Dark Crystal and so on.

Studio Ghibli has done a fine damned job up until now, but sadly I fear the sun is setting on them just as it seems the mainstay of the group is getting close to retirement. His son's take on Earthsea needed to much stronger than it was, however they are working on at least two films currently, so there is still hope.

I hear there is a Labyrinth 2 on the way mind you, although part of me fears its going to be awful.

Morathi's Darkest Sin wrote:

I hear there is a Labyrinth 2 on the way mind you, although part of me fears its going to be awful.

There is a terribad manga about it, and the Dark crystal 2 has been in the works for years, with no proper updated. Shame really.

Aye, I've seen a bit of that Manga, I sorta get where they where going, but I wasn't a fan of what I read.

Beowulf was animated, and it was epic win. It's so damn realistic, you could fap to it.

i thought beowulf got really close to that point of realism where instead of liking it, people were kind of creeped out by it.

you know, even though a good chunk of the degree i'm working on is computer modeling and animation and such, i still really enjoy seeing oldschool stuff like the movies mentioned.

i think part of it is that i enjoy them more though, with something from pixar or somesuch, i find myself either trying to figure out how they did something, or picking apart elements i liked/disliked

greenskin lynn wrote:i thought beowulf got really close to that point of realism where instead of liking it, people were kind of creeped out by it.

That's the "uncanny valley".

greenskin lynn wrote:

you know, even though a good chunk of the degree i'm working on is computer modeling and animation and such, i still really enjoy seeing oldschool stuff like the movies mentioned.

i think part of it is that i enjoy them more though, with something from pixar or somesuch, i find myself either trying to figure out how they did something, or picking apart elements i liked/disliked

People suspend their disbelief to watch like Powerpuff Girls and Wallace and Grommit. Total realism is unnecessary, extremely difficult to achieve and can be misused.

A number of modern action films have got computer generated stunts in which are so over the top they are impossible to believe in. 10 years ago, a stunt would have involved some element of reality, even if it used wires, mattes and so on.

One of the main reasons Henson studios haven't done any thing is Disney owns it.

Studio Ghibli has done a fine damned job up until now, but sadly I fear the sun is setting on them just as it seems the mainstay of the group is getting close to retirement. His son's take on Earthsea needed to much stronger than it was, however they are working on at least two films currently, so there is still hope.
.

What was that one with Tom Cruise and the ultimate Daemon costume.

...

Legend is the name and what it is!

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/92/215822265_fe8a602c79.jpg?v=0

Damn good film.

Plus talking CGI animals who have the mannerisms, accents, and other human characteristics 'make me mad, sucker'.

Legend
yup yup
before his nose job Lol

Ponyo has done better in Japan than Wizard of Earthsea.

I haven't seen either of them myself.

Anung Un Rama wrote:I've never seen this Labyrinth movie, but if you want to some creative pupepts, try Hellboy 2

I'll agree with this. Hellboy 2 (and Pans Labyrinth, I haven't seen Del Toros other non English films) really did show that there is still a place for good old fashioned animatronics and puppetry. It will be interesting to see if he brings this influence to the Hobbit.

Another less childish example is Aliens. Puppetry and suits used really made the film feel more real. Alien 3 had some shocking CGI which really took the edge of the creatures scariness. The AVP movies and Alien Resurrection did have better CGI but I still kinda missed the puppets of old.

I've nothing against CGI per and I think, if well done, it really is a tool for good. I personally love the Majority of Pixars films and even the few that missed the mark (Cars, A Bugs Life) were still solid and enjoyable, if not quite as good as their other works. I personally think that the Incredibles is the best superhero movie I've ever seen, even better than The Dark Knight or Watchmen (though not by much!). Also the Advent of CGI has meant that the likes of LotR, 300 and Transformers were possible to make.

One of the few movies that I have watched that didn't use any CGI at all was The Thing, even the scene when a guy got both his hands bitten off didn't use CGI. I wish action films and the like didn't have to rely on it, take note from the The Thing.

The creatures in Pan's Labyrinth were pretty cool, but at some point the plot just forgot they were there

Hard to reconcile a mythical land and someone getting his tortured with a hammer. OTT but we rented and were fortunate in that we could fast forward much of the real world stuff. Had I been in a theater I would have thrown a fit.

I never walked out on a movie I've paid for. But at one point there's a scene when the girl showsp up in a cave somewhere and all I could think off was, "oh right, I forgot about the subplot"

Krull.

I hate Tim Burton and the Nightmare before Christmas style of animating, as I freaks me the feth out. I feel like he must be on meth when he comes up with that stuff.