2011 Animation Preview
It's a new year and time to get excited for a new crop of animated features on the horizon. Disney and Paramount have four films coming. Franchise productions heavily weigh on the 2011 schedule, but that doesn't mean there aren't some interesting original properties coming too. I'm sure this list will expand as the year goes along and some indie toons jump into theaters in order to qualify for the Oscars. It looks like an interesting year for lots of reasons.
Evangelion 2.0: You Can (Not) Advance (Eleven Arts, Jan. 21)
FUNimation Ent. has teamed with Eleven Arts to bring this venerable series to American theaters. Directed by Masayuki and Kazuya Tsurumaki and shepherded by series creator Hideaki Anno, this production is the second film in the Rebuild of Evangelion tetralogy, which is based on the Neon Genesis Evangelion anime series. In this adventure, a new Evangelion pilot takes the helm in the continued battle against the Angels. The word from the anime world that this is an improvement over the first installment in the remake series, but might make some hardcore fans irate, because makes changes.
This long-gestating project is finally coming to theaters. The pet project of Sir Elton John was originally in development at Disney, but John eventually took over the rights and is producing it through his Rocket Pictures. Starz Animation, who animated 9, animated the garden gnome version of Shakespeare's classic young love tale. Disney was going to release it via Miramax, but now will put it under the Touchstone label. Shrek 2 director Kelly Asbury is at the helm with a voice cast boasting James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Jason Statham, Maggie Smith, Michael Caine, Patrick Stewart and Julie Walters.
Here is one of the most unusual productions of the year. It's from Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies, and was animated by visual effects house ILM. Directed by Pirates of the Caribbean's Gore Verbinski, the film has Johnny Depp voicing a chameleon with an identity crisis. The lizard dreams of becoming a swashbuckler and gets to play one in a Western town that is under siege by bandits. Depp is joined in the voice cast by Timothy Olyphant, Bill Nighy, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Ned Beatty, Alfred Molina, Ray Winstone, Harry Dean Stanton and Stephen Root. It's certainly one of the most highly anticipated animated features of the year.
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Hey Rick
Looks very good but you forgot to put The Dreaming Machine in that list and thier are some images of it online and they say it comes out sometime in 2011. Also, I think the best animated films I am looking forward for are Cars 2, Arthur Christmas, Kung Fu Panda 2, Happy Feet 2, and Tintin and here are my precdications of who will be nominated for the 84th Academy Awards' Best Animated Feature
If five, let the Academy chose these...
4. The Dreaming Machine (This anime film needs to get nominated and chould pull another Secret of Kells move like the 82nd Academy Awards. The reason why is becuse the first director (Satoshi Kon) had died while making this film and he and this film needs the Oscar and Critics' love when it comes out in American and Japanese theaters when it is done been made. Finally, Sony Pictures Classics needs to bring it to America after it is done been made and had its premiere in Japan)
5. Happy Feet 2 (This one chould be a good one if it gets the critics' love and if Cars 2 gets nominated along with this. There chould be a huge problem)
Also here are my precations for Best Animated Feature of the 69th Golden Globe Awards
Also, I like Tintin but The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn looks more for Best Visual Categories (Best Original Score to Best Visual Effects) type. I love all kinds of animation and it is still good in its own way. Peace Out my anmation freind Rick.
Two, actually. Hop isn't in 3D, either.
Just one film that isn't 3D? That makes me sad.
nyc..6
You're missing "The Smurfs".
Rango, Tintin, maybe Kung Fu Panda 2 will be worth watching.
For the rest, I have my doubts...
Puss in Boots? Seriously? A Shrek spin off? As if Shrek 2 to 4 haven't been bad enough?
And Cars 2? A sequel to the worst Pixar flick ever?
I mean how dumb is the general theater audience really that they don't get those rip offs?
The Animation houses have so much potential to tell original stories, and yet production companies always push them to go for the sure-money, stereotype sequel.
If it's only for the money, why not just found an investment bank? Seriously! It's way easier to make millions that way!
Do us a favor suits: leave the Animation Business alone and let artists make movies again, OK?
Rick
Just a quick correction.
Happy Feet 2 is being made at Dr D Studios (not Animal Logic).
Animal Logic were the studio behind the first Happy Feet film and the recent Legends of the Guardians.
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