comment #1

Rothchild says ...

Beowulf was borderline awful and will be forgotten very soon for many reasons. I watched Return of the King this week for the first time in years and it seemed even more embarrassing in hindsight. But hey, that was a hell of a dragon set piece. It was really on another level.

comment #2

jeffmcm says ...

I don't think the problem with Beowulf is that it's not 'animated' enough. I think the problem is that it's stiff and uninvolving.

comment #3

TheJeff says ...

"Unquestionably, the animators who voted this way did so for small reasons."

Small reasons like the fact that the admittedly interesting work done in Beowulf barely resembles the traditional craft of animation and animators find that insulting.

The difference between the rotoscoping used in Snow White and the motion capture used in Beowulf is huge. In Snow White, animators are still creating the illusion of movement between images. They are moving the characters and giving them expressions. With Beowulf the actors are doing it.

comment #4

PerfectTommy says ...

They obviously do consider Beowulf to be animated because they gave it a nomination. I thought maybe they were going with the "for the kids" route, but they did nominate Persepolis. So it seems other reasoning was involved. Of course they did nominate Bee Movie. How could Beowulf be worse than that?

comment #5

aspiringcrackaddict says ...

wife Jessica recently spoke about Jerry getting away from films saying, "Jerry is . . . as he would say, he's at the end of his career. [Bee Movie] took four years out of our life . . . My children are not going to see their father for 23 days [while he's promoting it]. In the future, he'll just do stand-up. That makes him happy."

This is a sad day for film and film fans everywhere. I will really miss the old lug. God bless Jerry and save America.

comment #6

TheJeff says ...

"If Beowulf isn't animated, I'd like to know what term I'm supposed to use."

clusterfuck.

comment #7

PerfectTommy says ...

Okay, here's what I choose to be outraged about...Peter O'Toole was not nominated for his vocal work as the critic. That was one of the most touching performances by any actor this year.

comment #8

lazarus says ...

Agreed, PT. How Ian Holm's French caricature villain (or Garofalo's perf, for that matter) was viewed as superior O'Toole's work is beyond me.

What especially pissed me off is the absence of Paprika. Ineligible? Unseen? They recognized Spirited Away big time, but was that because it was promoted by Disney? I can't imagine how you could be an animator and not be aware of, or impressed by Kon's work. His films run circles around tripe like Surf's Up, Bee Movie, and I'd make the case that what he does is more creative than anything Pixar's put on-screen.

comment #9

Geoff says ...

I was having a blast at Citywalk watching BEOWULF in IMAX 3D until 40 minutes in they kicked us out. Full refund, free tickets, but lots of pissed of people, especially me. This after I had tried a couple days earlier and they said the showing I wanted wasn't working.

Universal Citywalk pissed me off!

Anyways, what I did see convinced me that 3D is the future. Cameron's AVATAR can't come soon enough. As for BEOWULF, again, I thought it was great fun....I'd just like to see the second half.

comment #10

Craig Kennedy says ...

Lazarus, wasn't Paprika released briefly in NY in 2006?

Universal Citywalk. Hell on earth. Drive across town to The Bridge...though I haven't been there since it opened. That's probably hell on earth too.

O'Toole. That's way worse of a snub than Beowulf. He was the best part of the film they apparently chose to recognize in all other ways. A shame.

comment #11

Luke Y. Thompson says ...

Paprika did an unpublicized one-week Oscar-qualifying run last year, during which it wasn't promoted and hardly anybody saw it.

comment #12

ZayTonday says ...

Paprika was amazing.. just saw it again on Blu-ray yesterday. But even if it's not eligible (such a shame) there's still Tekkonkinkreet which is definitely worthy of awards consideration. Americans are just in a box that tells them that animated films should only be kid stuff, and anything that challenges this like Final Fantasy, Titan A.E., Beowulf, anything done by Satoshi Kon, etc etc falls by the wayside because of this.

comment #13

Craig Kennedy says ...

Who released it in the US LYT, do you know?

comment #14

jeffmcm says ...

Sony Classics, I think.

comment #15

mutinyco says ...

I think the big deal about Beowulf isn't so much the motion capture -- it's the fact that the filmmakers used it to try and aesthetically replicate live human beings. Monster House was nominated for an Oscar last year, and it was built around motion capture as well. Only it looked and worked like a traditional CG animated film.

It's not how it was made, so much as what the technology was used for.

comment #16

D.Z. says ...

The only thing they got right was a lifetime achievement award for John K.

comment #17

mutinyco says ...

Actually, speaking of last year's Oscars, Happy Feet, which won, was based around motion capture as well.

comment #18

Craig Kennedy says ...

Let me translate DZ's comment for those of us who actually enjoy our time here on HE:

"Wow, that's great John K got some recognition. I love that guy. My favorite Ren & Stimpy was Space Madness. Good times."

comment #19

actionman says ...

I think that the snubbing of BEOWULF had to do with the fact that it sucked. And I am not happy to report that, being a big fan of Zemeckis. What a boring, uninvolving, and generally lackluster experience BEOWULF was, even in the much hyped IMAX 3-D format.

comment #20

giantman says ...

Now that I've seen Beowulf on IMAX 3D for myself I can finally appreciate Jeff's feelings about the 3D, WOW! Yep, that there is the future. Unfortunately the best "animation" in Beowulf is when they weren't trying to be realistic, Beowulf and Grendel being the best examples. When they tried to mimic "real" people, like Anthony Hopkins, they just looked like puppets. Hopefully this will be a lesson to them the next time around.

Enjoyed the heck out of it and it is a huge step forward in technology/art, but I can now understand the animation snubbery.

comment #21

actionman says ...

And while I doubt that the future of cinema is 3-D, I for one am all for the 3-D format, just as long as the movies themselves are shot in live-action and not this bull shit, pseudo-Playstation motion-capture nonsense.

comment #22

jeffmcm says ...

CJ, well done and good tactic.

comment #23

T. Holly says ...

Shouldn't there be a number 5? "Beowulf" deserves more than Production Design. I'd love to read the "Beowulf" script. I'll even trade, no sex though. "The Simpsons Movie" writing was a piece of crap.

WRITING IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
"Ratatouille"
"The Simpsons Movie"
"Surf's Up"
"Persepolis"

comment #24

Wrecktum says ...

Stay away from both Universal and The Bridge. IMAX 3D is too wonky and touchy a technology. The RealD 3D is far more rugged (and looks just as good) and the technology is only a few years old...it'll only get better.

Beowulf was intermittently involving (the dragon scene was aces!) but not enough to recommend.

comment #25

Luke Y. Thompson says ...

Paprika was indeed Sony Classics. And its soundtrack album is my favorite CD of 2007.

comment #26

D.Z. says ...

LYT: If you like Paprika's music, you might want to check out Berserk.

comment #27

jeffmcm says ...

!!!!! You just blew my mind, DZ.

Of course, I don't know if Berserk is a movie or a band or if you're just referring to the actual condition of being frenetically crazy, but still: progress.

comment #28

D.Z. says ...

http://www.amazon.com/Berserk-TV-Season-Complete-Collection/dp/B0003JAK6C/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1196758138&sr=1-1

comment #29

BurmaShave says ...

It's important to see BEOWULF in 3-D, as the makers intended. Having done so about a week ago, it's still remained in my mind as no other films have this year except ZODIAC and NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. Is it on the level of those films? No. But it's still an amazing achievement. I do wish more people were seeing it because it is one of the most thrilling experiences of the year. The dragon setpiece is indeed superb.

It's animated, deal with it. If THE SIMPSONS MOVIE or SURF'S UP gets a nomination over it, it will be another disgrace in the long history of Academy snubs, up there with HOOP DREAMS and WAKING LIFE.

comment #30

D.Z. says ...

I don't feel like paying extra in 3-d, if that's the only way to enjoy a film. That's just bullshit. If the story can only be appreciated visually, then, other than the price-jacking, how is it different from any other mentally-challenged blockbuster from the last decade?

comment #31

jeffmcm says ...

You are aware, I hope, that movies are a visual medium and best appreciated visually.

comment #32

BurmaShave says ...

DZ, we're talking 2 dollars for glasses. You spend more than ten times that on Weightlifting magazines every week, but only for the articles, of course.

comment #33

D.Z. says ...

jeff: I mean visually in the sense of "all cg with no plot".

Burma: And concessions are $20. What's your point?

comment #34

jeffmcm says ...

Nobody's putting a gun to your head to buy $20 worth of popcorn, soda, and candy. That's a pathetic excuse for an argument.
How many movies do you see in theaters per year? We know that you hate going to theaters so I'm assuming it's maybe 20, and half of those are movies you hate like Transformers and Grindhouse.

comment #35

D.Z. says ...

I'm forced to sit through ads or pay for a seat I don't even get to choose. And this is on top of higher gas prices and them eventually charging tolls for certain roads.

comment #36

jeffmcm says ...

I didn't ask you "Tell me more about all the things you hate about your life", I know you'll do that without prompting. I asked how many movies do you see in theaters per year.

You're one of those 'the glass is 1/10th empty' people where most would be 'it's 9/10ths full'