Animated Movies Throughout the Years: 2010

Animated Movies Throughout the Years: 2010

Note: Blue Sky Studios did not release a single film this year.

In March, DreamWorks kicked off the year with the crowd-pleasing How To Train Your Dragon. The film got very good reviews, with an impressive rating of 98% on Rotten Tomatoes, and spawned a sequel, a TV series, a Christmas special, and even an arena show with animatronic dragons! 'Dragons' also got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature, but lost to Toy Story 3.

In May, the fourth and final Shrek film, Shrek Forever After, was released. While it may seem like a good way to book-end the franchise, it was no match against Toy Story 3.

In June, the toys came back to town with Toy Story 3. It was the first animated movie to gross a billion dollars worldwide, got excellent reviews, and got the Oscar nominations for Best Picture and Best Screenplay. TS3 also won the Oscars for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song.

July saw the release of Illumination Entertainment's first feature film, Despicable Me. Despite receiving mixed reviews, the film managed to gross over 500 million dollars on a modest 60 million dollar budget. Despicable Me also surprisingly won the KCA (Kid's Choice Award) for Best Animated Feature, beating out both How To Train Your Dragon and Toy Story 3.

There were actually three animated movies released in September. The first was The Illusionist, from the creators of The Triplets of Belleville. It was shown at the Telluride Film Festival in Colorado, got favorable reviews, and got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature.

The second was the mediocre CGI movie Alpha and Omega. While it wasn't that successful at the box-office, the film managed to spawn several direct-to-video sequels and a small fanbase.

The third was Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole. This was the second film from Australian animation house Animal Logic (their first was Happy Feet). This film has gorgeous animation, but the story will confuse younger viewers. However, the film managed to win the Heartland Award for Truly Moving Picture.

On November 5th, PDI/DreamWorks released the rather underrated Megamind. It was about what would happen if the super-villain really did defeat the superhero. While the film did do well at the box-office and got favorable reviews, the film is somewhat forgotten nowadays

And finally, on November 24th, Disney released their 50th animated feature film Tangled, based on the Brothers Grimm fairytale Rapunzel. The film got great reviews, grossed over 590 million dollars worldwide at the box-office, and got the Oscar nomination for Best Original Song. Too bad it didn't get the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature, which I think it deserved. Thankfully, it won the Heartland Award for Truly Moving Picture and got a perfect 5-star rating on Common Sense Media. Well, that's all I have to say for this weeks Animated Movie Throughout the Years! Tune in next
week when we talk about animated movies from 2011, in which Pixar released their first critical disappointment with Cars 2, DreamWorks released two surprising Oscar nominees for Best Animated Feature, Blue Sky went to Brazil with Rio, and Aardman and Sony collaborated to create the underrated Arthur Christmas.

Animated Movies Throughout the Years: 2009

Animated Movies Throughout the Years: 2009

The year kicked off in February with Laika's first feature film Coraline. It did well at the box-office, got great reviews, and got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature.

In March, DreamWorks released Monsters vs. Aliens, their first movie to be released in stereoscopic 3D. It paid homage to several classic monster B-movies from the 50s and 60s.

May saw the release of another Titan AE-esque film, Battle For Terra. It also bared resemblance to James Cameron's Avatar, which wouldn't premiere for seven months. Surprisingly, the film managed to win the Heartland Award for Truly Moving Picture.

Also released in May was Pixar's 10th feature film, Up, which was also released in stereoscopic 3D. The film did very well at the box-office, received critical acclaim, and won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. Up also got the Oscar nomination for Best Picture, the first animated feature to do so since Beauty and the Beast.

July saw the release of Blue Sky's fifth feature film, Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. While it may seem like another run-off-the-mill cash-grabbing sequel, I'll tell you one thing: It's better than Will Ferrell's Land of the Lost.

Also in July, the Irish-produced Secret of Kells was shown at the New York International Children's Film Festival. The film somehow got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature, snubbing Ponyo that year. 'Kells' would have a wide release in the US in February 2010.

August saw the US release of Ponyo, Miyazaki's most kid-friendly movie since My Neighbor Totoro. It is loosely based on Hans Christian Anderson's The Little Mermaid, as well as Yuriko Ohmura's Elta the Frog.

In September, Tim Burton, with the help of Shane Acker, made his first CGI movie simply called 9. It was a rather dark film about a group of leather dolls, who are the last traces of mankind, which have to stop machines from killing them.

Also released in September was Sony Pictures Animation's Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. While it has its fans, I personally think the character designs are kind of ugly.

October saw the release of Astro Boy, based on the beloved anime character from the 60s created by Osamu Tezuka.

There were three animated movies released in November. The first was Robert Zemeckis's A Christmas Carol, which stuck faithfully to its original source material.

The second was Planet 51, which is about a human that crash-lands on a planet inhabited by Shrek-like aliens. The film got rather negative reviews.

The third was the far superior stop-motion film Fantastic Mr. Fox, based on the children's book of the same name by Roald Dahl. It was the first animated feature from cult live-action film director Wes Anderson. Fantastic Mr. Fox got really good reviews when it premiered, and even got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature, but lost to Up.

And finally, in December, Disney made their triumphant return to hand-drawn animation with The Princess and the Frog. While it was overshadowed by James Cameron's Avatar, the film got the Oscar nominations for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song. Well, that's all I have to say for this weeks Animated Movie Throughout the Years! Tune in next
week when we talk about animated movies from 2010, in which the toys came back to town with Toy Story 3 and raked in a billion dollars at the box-office, Disney released their 50th animated movie with a retelling about a princess who had long hair, DreamWorks made dragons fly with How To Train Your Dragon, and Illumination made their feature film debut with Despicable Me.

Movie Review: The Boxtrolls

Movie Review: The Boxtrolls                                                                                                     3-19-19

From the creators of Coraline and ParaNorman comes The Boxtrolls, the tale of a boy named Eggs (Isaac Hempstead Wright) who was raised by strange creatures called the Boxtrolls, which wear cardboard boxes in a similar fashion to hermit crabs. They are feared by the citizens of Cheesebridge because they think they kidnapped and killed Eggs when he was a baby. One day, Winnie (Elle Fanning), the Mayor's daughter, discovers Eggs, and she trains him to act like a gentlemen. He also has to save the Boxtrolls from extermination by the villainous Archibald Snatcher (Ben Kingsley).

When I first saw this movie on September 27th, 2014, I personally thought it was an Aardman wannabe. For example, Lord Portly-Rind, Winnie's father and mayor of Cheesebridge, is just crackers about cheese, just like Wallace of Wallace and Gromit.

However, after rewatching it last year, I think that The Boxtrolls is rather underrated. While a far cry from Coraline and Kubo and the Two Strings, Boxtrolls makes up for its lackluster and convoluted story with eye-popping animation, powerful vocal performances, some enjoyable characters, and a deep message on self-evaluation. Throughout the film, Eggs learns that boxes, hats, and cheese are not what makes you. You are what makes you, and I find that touching.
Snatcher is also a villain with a motive: He wants nothing more than to join the White Hat Society, which Lord Portly-Rind is part of. He made a deal with Snatcher that if he kills every Boxtroll in town, he will be part of the society.

In conclusion, The Boxtrolls Is definitely weaker than Laika's other films, but deserves at least one watch. For the parents out there who plan on watching this with their kids, just keep in mind that there are some gross moments.
Rating: 3.25 stars out of 5
PS. If you are reading this Rachel, thank you for talking about this movie on YouTube. It has helped me a lot.

Animated Movies Throughout the Years: 2008

Animated Movies Throughout the Years: 2008

The year began in January with a film nobody cared about nor asked for: Veggietales in The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything.

In March, Blue Sky released their first G-rated film, Horton Hears a Who! It is based on the beloved children's book by Dr. Seuss. 'Horton' did well at the box-office and got great reviews. This would be the last Blue Sky movie Chris Meledandri would be involved with, as he left the studio to form Illumination Entertainment.

In June, DreamWorks released Kung Fu Panda, their biggest hit since Shrek. The film was so successful that it spawned two sequels, a TV series, and numerous follow-up specials and short films. Kung Fu Panda also got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature, but lost to WALL-E.

Also released in June was another hit from Pixar, WALL-E. It did very well at the box-office, got excellent reviews, and won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature.

In July, Vanguard released one of their final films, Space Chimps. While the film made enough money to cover its budget, Space Chimps got rather negative reviews and spawned an even worse direct-to-video sequel.

August saw the US release of the Belgian CGI movie Fly Me To The Moon. It is said to be the first animated movie to be created for 3D, but it also got rather negative reviews.

In September, Igor, another CGI movie from a lesser-known studio, was released. In my Top 30 Worst CGI Movies of All Time countdown, I stated that "Igor isn't horrible, but it has awkward character designs, pop-culture references that will fly over viewers' heads, and a storyline that feels like a feature-length episode of Phineas and Ferb."

October saw the US release of Michael Ocelot's Azur & Asmar: The Prince's Quest. It's basically an apology letter from The Weinstein Company for ruining The Magic Roundabout. I personally think 'Azur & Asmar' is underrated, and it deserves a bigger fandom.

There were three animated movies released in November. The first was The Tale of Despereaux, based on the beloved children's book by Kate DiCamillo.

The second was Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa. In this film, Alex, Marty, Gloria, and Melman crash-land in Africa. Alex also meets his parents, whom he was separated from when he was a cub. ‘Madagascar 2’ did very well at the box-office, got better reviews than the original, and also won the KCA for Best Animated Movie.

The third was Bolt, Disney's first CGI movie to have the full involvement of John Lasseter. It became the best reviewed Disney movie since Lilo & Stitch, and even got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature.

And last, but kind of least, in December, the Georgia-produced Delgo premiered and was a box-office flop: It earned less than 700,000 dollars on a 40 million dollar budget, perhaps because of Delgo's very limited promotion. Well, that's all I have to say for this weeks Animated Movie Throughout the Years! Tune in next week when we talk about animated movies from 2009, in which Disney made a triumphant return to hand-drawn animation with The Princess and the Frog, Pixar released the first animated film to get the Oscar nomination for Best Picture since Beauty and the Beast, and stop-motion animation reached new heights with Coraline and Fantastic Mr. Fox. You can now find me on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/andrew.sateriale.31

Animated Movies Throughout the Years: 2007

Animated Movies Throughout the Years: 2007

Note: Blue Sky Studios did not release a single movie this year.

January saw the release of Vanguard’s second film, which is also regarded as one of the worst animated movies ever, Happily N'Ever After. It was a Shrek rip-off with horrible animation, an uninspired plot, and annoying side characters.

On March 23rd, the popular pizza-loving reptiles from the 80s, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, appeared in an all-new CG adventure called TMNT. While it had excellent animation, the film will confuse those unfamiliar with the Ninja Turtles.

On March 30th, Disney released their first animated movie as Walt Disney Animation Studios, Meet the Robinsons. While it may not look like much, 'Robinsons' would eventually pave the way to hits like Tangled, Wreck-it Ralph, Frozen, Big Hero 6, and Zootopia.

In May, the popular ogre had his third big-screen adventure with Shrek The Third. While it got mostly negative reviews, with only 41% on Rotten Tomatoes, the film managed to gross over 798 million dollars worldwide!

There were two animated movies released in June. The first was Sony Pictures Animation's next feature film, Surf's Up. It actually got better reviews than Open Season, and even got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature.

The second was Pixar's eighth feature film, Ratatouille. While not as successful as Shrek the Third, Ratatouille got very good reviews and won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature.

In July, after nearly twenty years, America's favorite non-prehistoric cartoon family finally made their feature-film debut with The Simpsons Movie. The film got good reviews and managed to gross over 500 million dollars worldwide! Too bad neither Troy McClure* or Maude Flanders appeared in the movie.

October saw the release of another attempt at adapting the story of Moses into an animated feature, The Ten Commandments. Instead of having both hand-drawn and computer animation blended beautifully like The Prince of Egypt, The Ten Commandments was all CGI, but the animation looks like it came from 1997. The film became a box-office flop, grossing only a million dollars on a 10 million dollar budget.

In November, DreamWorks released their next CGI feature Bee Movie. While it got mixed reviews, the film managed to gross over 293 million dollars worldwide. Also in November, Robert Zemeckis released his third motion-capture film, Beowulf. What makes this film different from The Polar Express and Monster House is that the motion-capture animation is hyper-realistic, plenty of excessive violence, some strong innuendo, and disturbing imagery.

And finally, in December, the French-produced and adult-themed Persepolis was brought to the US. It got great reviews and even got the Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature, but lost to Ratatouille. *Troy McClure was a character on The Simpsons. He was a movie actor who would say lines like "Hi, I'm Troy McClure. You may remember me from beloved educational short films such as 'Paint: Delicious But Deadly' and 'Here Comes the Metric System.'" He would change his quote every time he appeared. Troy McClure was voiced by the late but great Phil Hartman. Troy McClure was featured throughout Seasons 2 through 9 (1991-1998) of The Simpsons and has become a fan favorite character. Unfortunately, Phil Hartman died in 1998, so McClure no longer appears on the show. The last Simpsons episode to feature Troy McClure was 'Bart the Mother', in which he gave a lecture on how to raise chicks. That's all I have to say for this week's Animated Movies Throughout the Years! Tune in next
week when we talk about animated movies from 2008, in which Disney went back to basics with Bolt, DreamWorks taught an overweight panda bear new tricks with Kung Fu Panda, Pixar told a love story with robots with WALL-E, and Blue Sky faithfully retold the story of a big-hearted elephant with Horton Hears a Who!