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If it's DreamWorks vs. Pixar, stop the fight
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One of the more frustrating things for me come awards time, is the idea that an animated movie cannot be good enough to win or be nominated for things like Best Picture. If there can be BP winners that do not have the director nominated, or the stars for that matter, then there is not a difference. A story is a story, and voiceover work can be just as effective in making a character what it is. I would like to think the actors behind The Simpsons have been doing something right for two decades. I bring this up, not to suggest that Monsters vs. Aliens will be a possible Best Picture nominee, but as I was trying to do a comparison of DreamWorks and Pixar, I quickly realized that it wasn’t much of a comparison. Also, there are some really good movies that have come out of Pixar Studios.
This is not to say that DreamWorks hasn’t done an admirable job of competing with Pixar, and anyone that takes a run at Disney is OK with me, even though I look at Pixar separately most of the time. It is simply the list of movies that have come out of Pixar are consistently some of the best movies of that year period, whether people truly acknowledge that or not. I have full confidence that Monsters vs. Aliens will be entertaining, and quite possible could end up being very good. There just is a different expectation with Pixar, and the thing is, they never fail to disappoint. I remember seeing the trailer for Wall-E and thinking that it was going to be a tough sell, and maybe they had finally run dry. Little off on that one. So in honor of another movie with Seth Rogan in it opening on Friday, and in 3-D no less, a quick look at the top 3 computer animated-movies from DreamWorks over the years, and a top 3 from Pixar.
DreamWorks:
3. Kung-Fu Panda: I went back and forth between this and Madagascar, and ultimately had to go with Panda, for the mere fact of Jack Black voicing a panda. The movie itself was only slightly above average, but it looked great on blue-ray and personally I think that Madagascar is way overrated.
2. Shrek: This is the movie that put this studio on the map, and rightly so. It also helped spawn a ride at Universal Studios and it is a pretty good one, although I think it took the place of the Hannah-Barbara ride. This is currently what is keeping Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy somewhat relevant and it lit up the box office for one of the lower budgeted pictures.
1. Shrek 2: Putting these two on top isn’t really an indictment on the studio; it just means that most of the computer-animated fare is like Madagascar, which is pretty good, but not great. Shrek 2 was great in one of the few ways to improve on an original. Most of the time adding new characters means death, but Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots was truly inspired.
Pixar:
3. Toy Story: Not only did this start Pixar, but really started celebrities voicing characters and helped give credibility to animated movies. While Beauty and The Beast and The Lion King were the closest to gain awards recognition, Story had everything and helped launch this type of movie and the studio.
2. Wall-E: Boy this was tough. I knew I had to get a Toy Story in here, but this could have been like three Pixar movies, again proving which studio is more dominant. I mean I am leaving off The Incredibles, Finding Nemo and Ratatouille from this list. I failed to recognize Shark Tale from DreamWorks. While the aforementioned movies are fantastic (not Shark Tale), they did not have that opening 45 minutes that Wall-E had. Any movie that can be that engrossing visually, propel a story at the same time, and make you care about a robot gets the edge.
1. Monsters Inc.: With this being number one and having a similar title, I guess the current DreamWorks release has a lot to live up to, and by no means am I expecting anything close. The beauty of Pixar movies, from Toy Story to this especially are the ability to create such vivid characters from actual inanimate things in everyday life. And these aren’t even that, they are non-existent, but not after Billy Crystal and John Goodman got a hold of them. The greatest part, as it is with many of these, Wall-E being the closest, was the ending. If you don’t tear up a little at the end of Monsters, I think you have some issues.
I will let you know what theaters will have Monsters vs. Aliens in 3-D in my review over the weekend.
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