Ponyo/崖の上のポニョ (Gake no Ue no Ponyo) (2008) - Magical animation masterpiece from master Miyazaki

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+ 3rd Best Movie of the Year

+ Best Adventure Movie of the Year + Best Family Movie of the Year + Best Huge Hit Movie of the Year + Best Japanese Movie of the Year 

 

 

Disney's poster for the Hayao Miyazaki's Ponyo does its best to recall the public's attraction to one of the biggest animation hits in the preceding years, Pixar's Finding Nemo (2003)

Goldfish Ponyo gradually becomes a girl with magical powers, when it tastes the blood of the boy Sosuke, The two become good friends, while a storm surge ravages the boy's native area.

 

Ponyo is written and directed by Japanese master filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki (Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro/Rupan sansei: Kariosutoro no shiro (1979)), whose 11th feature it is.

It is another wonderful, - and often truly strange! - film from Miyazaki. That Liam Neeson (Schindler's List (1993)) voices the womanly character from the sea in the English language version is just one of these peculiarities, and the classic H.C. Anderson mermaid fairytale also gets a dramatic altering here. 

The animation sucks your eyeballs to every single one of the amazing (entirely hand drawn) images, and especially the animation of the treacherous, dangerous ocean is stunning.

Ponyo is also a jolly and quite funny film, and a wise film that is enormously rewarding for all ages, - pure cinema magic. It is one of those rare works of mankind that is so good it could be worth presenting for other life forms (simians, aliens etc.)

 

Related posts:

Hayao Miyazaki: The Wind Rises/風立ちぬ [Kaze Tachinu] (2013) - Miyazaki's beautiful but languid last film 

2008 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III] 

Top 10: Best fantasy movies reviewed by Film Excess to date 

Howl's Moving Castle/ハウルの動く城 [Hauru no Ugoku Shiro] (2004) - Miyazaki's hugely successful, gibberish fantasy
Spirited Away/千と千尋の神隠し [Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi] (2001) - Miyazaki's highly Japanese, enormously weird story of a girl 

Princess Mononoke/もののけ姫 (Mononoke-hime) (1997) - Miyazaki's grand, magical adventure masterpiece

1992 in films - according to Film Excess 

Porco Rosso/紅の豚 (Kurenai no Buta) (1992) - Childlike qualities help propel strange Miyazaki adventure 

 

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 34 mil. $

Box office: 204.9 mil. $

= Huge hit (returned 6.02 times its cost)

[Ponyo was released 19 July (Japan) and runs 101 minutes. 12 companies cooperated in the financing and production of the film. Production began in May 2006 in Japan, with Miyazaki's animation concept for the film building on traditional hand-drawn techniques rather than incorporating CGI as he had done in earlier films. The film opened #9 to a 3.5 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it fell on the chart from then on, grossing 15 mil. $ (7.3 % of the total gross). It was the film's 2nd biggest market. Japan was its biggest with 164.5 mil. $ (80.3 %), and South Korea was the 3rd biggest with 6.9 mil. $ (3.4 %). Roger Ebert gave the film a 4/4 star review, equal in rating to this one. Miyazaki returned with Mr. Dough and the Egg Princess/Pan-dane to Tamago-hime (2010, short) and theatrically with The Wind Rises/Kaze tachinu (2013). Ponyo is certified fresh at 91 % with a 7.60/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Ponyo?

Oceans/Océans (2009, documentary) - Marvels galore in Cluzard/Perrin's outstanding work

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+ Best Nature Movie of the Year

 

A stunning image of a majestic blue whale adorns this poster for Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzard's Oceans

The oceans are home to a virtual galaxy of diverse life, which we don't normally see and fail to protect adequately.

Oceans is written by François Sarano (Le Clan des Cachalots (2019, TV movie)), Michael Katims (Ciudad Baja (1994)), Laurent Gaudé (Nulle Part en France (2016, short)), Stéphane Durand (Winged Migration/Le Peuple Migrateur (2001)), Christophe Cheysson (Voyager/Homo Faber (1991, second assistant director)), Laurent Debas and great French filmmakers, co-writer/co-director Jacques Cluzard and co-writer/co-producer/co-director/narrator Jacques Perrin (Winged Migration/Le Peuple Migrateur (2001), both).

It is a formidable nature documentary with exceptionally beautiful recordings as pearls on a string. Dolphins, sea turtles, seals, crabs, sharks and whales are captured in ways that make the spectator almost doubt his eyes. The sublime grandness of the wild spectacle of life can make one zone out some, simply because its veracity is so staggering. The beauty can at times seem as if it must be from another planet entirely (or manufactured with computer programs.)

But then Oceans takes a sharp dive, as it takes on a portrayal of man's over-exploitation and horrific pollution of the seas. (SPOILER A shark loses its fins in a heartbreaking, seemingly reconstructed scene.) The film cries out against the aquarium cultivation of the vast natural life in our oceans and for a changed course and responsible human behavior. 

Oceans also has sequences of marine life in motion that rivals any ballet dancer in elegance, and the film makes the viewer want to support the world seas. One wonders afterward how come the ending doesn't endorse some trustworthy organization involved with the protection of the oceans. (The diverse list of benefactors to the film's production, including an oil and energy company, royals and a sheikh, may indirectly explain this.)

 

Related post:

 

Jacques Perrin: 2009 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED IV]

Cinema Paradiso/Nuovo Cinema Paradiso (1988) - Tornatore's timeless masterpiece (co-star)

 

Watch a trailer for the film here

 

Cost: 80 mil. $

Box office: 83 mil. $

= Huge flop (returned 1.03 times its cost)

[Oceans premiered 13 October (Middle East International Film Festival, UAE) and runs 104 minutes with an alternative Disney edit without the parts about humanity's negative influence on the oceans running 84 minutes. A staggering 37 companies and support bodies collaborated in the financing and production of the film. Shooting reportedly took place in more than 50 countries over the course of 4 years. The film opened #8 to a 6 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it grossed 19.4 mil. $ (23.4 % of the total gross). North America was the film's 3rd biggest market. The two biggest were Japan with 25.5 mil. $ (30.7 %) and France with 23.8 mil. $ (28.7 %). The film won 1/3 César award nominations. Cluzard and Perrin returned with Le Peuple des Océans (2011, miniseries)) and theatrically with Seasons/Les Saisons (2015). Oceans is certified fresh at 80 % with a 7.40/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Oceans?

A Fish Tale/Hjælp, Jeg Er en Fisk/Help! I'm a Fish (2000) - Impressive Danish-spearheaded family animation

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Sympathetic, naive characters and colorful animation is promised on this breezy poster for Stefan Fjeldmark, Greg Manwaring, Michael Donovan and Michael Hegner's A Fish Tale

Fly and his sister and cousin are kids who visit a strange scientist on their improvised fishing trip, but by an accident they are all three transformed into fish. Will they be able to find the antidote to get back out of the ocean within the 48 hour window they have for it?

A Fish Tale is written by Tracy J. Brown (It'll Kill You (1996)), Karsten Kiilerich (Hodja fra Pjort (2018)), John Stefan Olsen (Bølle Bob - Alle Tiders Helt (2010)) and co-writer/director Stefan Fjeldmark (Jungle Jack/Jungledyret (1993)), who co-directed with Greg Manwaring (Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988, animator)); with Michael Donovan (Superbook (2011, TV-series)) and Michael Hegner (The Ugly Duckling and Me!/Den Grimme Ælling og Mig (2006)) contributing voice direction. The original Danish title, Hjælp, Jeg Er en Fisk, translates to 'Help, I'm a Fish', which was the film's title in the UK, (where the film flopped.)
As a rare occurrence, a major non-American animation (it is a Danish-German-Irish co-production), the film is a deeply impressive production, which almost reaches the Disney level in terms of animation; perhaps more accurately A Fish Tale meets Disney's level 5 years prior to its release.
There's strong characters, including Alan Rickman's (Bob Roberts (1992)) teeth-cleaning pilot fish villain, good songs and a positive adventure feel and sensible joy about the art of storytelling at work.
The original and somewhat bizarre plot winds up idealizing science somewhat naively, and the playing time could have gone longer, as some clear opportunities for the story are missed due to budgetary reasons or perhaps inexperience. But the general impression with A Fish Tale is nonetheless that of a broadly appealing, handsome and warm family experience.

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 101 - 106 mil. DKK (different reports), or approximately 18 mil. $
Box office: Approximately 9.1 mil. $ - some uncertainty
= Huge flop (returned approximately 0.50 times its cost)
[A Fish Tale was released 6 October (Denmark) and runs 82 minutes. Parts of the production were outsourced to Germany and Ireland to exploit tax credits offered in the co-producing countries. The film sold 355,449 tickets in Denmark, becoming the year's top-grossing local film in the market. It opened #50 to a 57k $ first weekend in 34 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #43, never widening in terms of screens, and grossed 563k $. The film's biggest market must have been main production country Denmark, in which its admission number comes to approximately 3.6 mil. $ (39.6 % of the total gross) - a number missing from the film's official Box Office Mojo site. The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Germany with 2.6 mil. $ (28.6 %) and the Netherlands with 1 mil. $ (11 %). The film was nominated for 6 Robert awards (Denmark's Oscar) and 1 German Film award. Fjeldmark returned with Terkel i Knibe (2004); Manwaring with Dragon's Rock (2004, TV-series), The School for Vampires (2006, TV-series) and theatrically with Little Big Panda (2011). 5,762 IMDb users have given A Fish Tale a 5.9/10 average rating.]

What do you think of A Fish Tale?

Finding Nemo (2003) - Stanton/Unkrich's oceanic animation masterpiece

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+ Best Movie of the Year

+ Best Adventure Movie of the Year + Best American Movie of the Year + Best Family Movie of the Year + Best Mega-hit Movie of the Year + Best Poster of the Year + Most Profitable Movie of the Year: 282.12 mil. $ range

A plush poster for Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich's Finding Nemo, filled to the brim with many of the film's fascinating characters

Nemo is a clownfish in Australia's Great Barrier Reef, whose father Marlin only has his son to look out for, and so when Nemo gets caught by a human diver on his first day of school, Marlin - and Nemo - each do everything in their power to locate each other again.

Finding Nemo is written by Bob Peterson (Up (2009)), David Reynolds (The Emperor's New Groove (2000)) and Bostonian master co-writer/co-director Andrew Stanton (John Carter (2012)), who directed it with Ohioan master filmmaker Lee Unkrich (Monsters, Inc. (2001)).
Finding Nemo is one of Pixar's top films, - arguably their best since Toy Story (1995), - it is an incredibly full and vibrant adventure which billows with love for the art of animating as well as for great storytelling. All members of every family should enjoy this fantastical journey, - and find plenty of amusement and excitement in the anonymous meat-eating sharks, the stoner sea turtle, the poisonous jellyfish scene, the Sydney dentist's aquarium and all the deep and deliciously vibrant colors on display. The voice work is terrific, suiting the remarkable character works created for the film without fail, and especially Ellen DeGeneres (Doctor Dolittle (1998)) and Willem Dafoe (Opus Zero (2017)) give perfect (and very funny) voice performances. Finding Nemo is the oceanic animated adventure.

Related posts:

Andrew Stanton: 2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
2016 in films - according to Film Excess
Finding Dory (2016) - An endearing, funny and touching family adventure
2012 in films - according to Film Excess
John Carter (2012) - Bloated Mars-nonsense yawner

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

The 2000s in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess

2003 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II] 

2003 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I] 

Lee Unkrich: Toy Story 3 (2010) - The year's top-grossing movie is this excellent family animation  (Stanton story contributor) 

The 2000s in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess

2003 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

2003 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

 

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 94 mil. $
Box office: 940.3 mil. $
= Mega-hit (returned 10.00 times its cost)
[Finding Nemo was released 30 May (North America) and runs 100 minutes. Production lasted from 1997 - October 2002. The film opened #1 to a 70.2 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it spent another 6 weeks in the top 5 (#2-#1-#2-#3-#4-#5) and grossed 380.8 mil. $ (40.5 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Japan with 102.4 mil. $ (10.9 %) and the UK with 67.1 mil. $ (7.1 %). The 2012 3D-converted re-release of the film added 72.1 mil. $ to the film's total gross. Roger Ebert gave the film a 4/4 star review, equal to its rating here. It was nominated for 4 Oscars, winning for Best Animation. It lost Original Screenplay to Sofia Coppola for Lost in Translation, Sound Editing to Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World and Score (Thomas Newman (Skyfall (2012))) to Howard Shore for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. It was also nominated for a Golden Globe, 2 BAFTAs, won an AFI award, nominated for a European Film award, won a National Board of Review award and several other honors. It currently sits at #168 on IMDb's user-generated Top 250, between Come and See (1985) and The Deer Hunter (1978). The film's success had negative environmental impacts, as tropical fish aquariums boomed in sales, adding stress to the decimation of the world's endangered fish species and reefs. A great sequel was made with Finding Dory (2016), reuniting co-director Stanton, DeGeneres and Marlin-voicing Albert Brooks (A Most Violent Year (2014)). Stanton returned with WALL-E (2008), Unkrich with Toy Story 3 (2010). DeGeneres returned with 5 TV and a short credit until her next theatrical outing in Finding Dory (2016), Brooks returned in Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World (2005), Nemo-voicing Alexander Gould (Mexico City (2000)) in 4 TV and a short credit until theatrically in Wheelman (2005). Finding Nemo is certified fresh at 99 % with an 8.7/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Finding Nemo?

Aquaman (2018) - Wan delivers a majorly satisfying, gung ho action-adventure splash

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+ Best Action-Adventure of the Year + Best Huge Hit Movie of the Year + Best Superhero Movie of the Year + Breakthrough Actor of the Year: Jason Momoa

An early Comic-Con poster for James Wan's Aquaman, crammed with characters, creatures, colors and action, - and with the stretching, muscular body of its title star in front, - feast your eyes on this awesome poster

Aquaman is the 6th movie in the DC Extended Universe, directly following Justice League (2017), and the first standalone film dedicated to the Aquaman superhero character, who has previously appeared in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and in Justice League. It is written by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick (Orphan (2009)) and Will Beall (Gangster Squad (2013)), with Geoff Johns (Smallville (2009-11)) and great Malaysian co-writer/director James Wan (Saw (2004)) contributing story elements, based on the Aquaman comics, created and started by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger in 1941. 

The son of a human lighthouse keeper and Queen Atlanna of the seas, Arthur as a child learns that he is born with amazing abilities related to the ocean and life there. As a distant royal 'bastard', he is despised by his half-brother, King Orm, as he is forced to step up to protect both surface and sea!

Aquaman works on many levels: Jason Momoa (Road to Paloma (2014)) is an inspired choice to lead, and he gets his cinematic major breakthrough here: Arthur is a perfect fit for Momoa's persona; strong as an ox and a lovable, irreverent drifter, who finds his place as the superhero, who is aided with charm and intelligence by Amber Heard (Paranoia (2013)) as his sexy, fiery red-haired partner and romantic interest. The ensemble cast gathered are an exciting mix of one Wan 'veteran', terrific Patrick Wilson (The Conjuring (2013)) as antagonist Orm, major dramatic stars Willem Dafoe (The Walker (2007)) and Nicole Kidman (The Hours (2002)), a fine, rarely seen New-Zealander actor Temuera Morrison (Once Were Warriors (1994)) and a major break for action veteran Dolph Lundgren (Fat Slags (2004)); voicing creatures Julie Andrews (10 (1979)), John Rhys-Davies (Kim (1984, TV movie)) and Djimon Hounsou (Biker Boyz (2003)) are even enlisted.
The story is as cut of classic, almost Shakespearean fabric; brothers that are opposites, a lost mother, a high-stakes family showdown breaking out. The elaborate layout of the underwater world evokes equal measures of Clash of the Titans (1981), Conan the Barbarian (1982), The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) and Star Wars, as oceanic battles mirror space-set fighting in parts of the film's 3D-envisioned CGI extravaganza. Aquaman exceeds the previous great DC action adventure Wonder Woman (2017) in terms of wow-effect and scale with the trench scenes especially an imaginative knockout.
Wan succeeds in mixing the compelling story with a sense of fun and gleeful embrace of its genre corniness, which it wears as a badge of honor: Lundgren's very casting, (he comes with campy baggage, which is only fitting), Heard's hair and the semi-comical, great masks and outfits as worn by King Orm and the other villain, Black Manta, revel in the colorful escapade that superhero comics can and should be, - radically opposed to the gloomy realism cultivated in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy (2005; 2008; 2012), a style that was attempted copied without much luck in Man of Steel (2013).
Rupert Gregson-Williams' (Postman Pat (2014)) score is a crisp, 1980's-riffing, bombastic one, almost as great as his work on Wonder Woman. Kym Barrett (Rumor Has It... (2005)) is behind the film's standout costumes, sure to become Halloween and cosplay hits.
Wan continues his great, enviable oeuvre with the brightest, shiniest action adventure in a long while with Aquaman, a sure-footed piece of prime popcorn fodder.

Related posts:

James Wan: 2018 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
The Conjuring 2 (2016) - Wan's sequel is a long horror treat with terrifying periods
2013 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2013 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
2013 in films - according to Film Excess
The Conjuring (2013) - Best horror film in 7 years   
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess  
Insidious (2010) - Wan's thrilling, scary ghost horror

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 200 mil. $
Box office: 1,066.9 mil. $ and counting
= Already a big hit (has returned 5.33 times its cost by now)
[Aquaman premiered 26 November (London, UK) and runs 143 minutes. An Aquaman film began development in 2004. Shooting took place in Morocco, Australia, Canada and in Italy from May - October 2017. Some sites list 160 mil. $ as the film's cost, which, if true, would be impressive and make the film's success even greater. It opened #1 to a 67.8 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it has grossed 306.5 mil. $ to date. It is already the most successful Extended Universe title and the first of them to cross the 1 bil. $ mark. It has set a new December record in China, where it surpassed Wonder Woman's end gross within 3 days. The film has yet to open in one major market; Japan on 8 Feb. The film's ending teases a sequel, which we can expect to be announced soon. Wan does not have his next project made public yet (bet it will be Aquaman 2 though.) Momoa returns with a voice performance in The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part (2019), in See (TV-series) and in the flesh on the big screen possibly in action-adventure Just Cause. Aquaman is fresh at 64 % with a 6/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Aquaman?

Finding Dory (2016) - An endearing, funny and touching family adventure

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+ Best Blockbuster of the Year

The exciting, wildly invitational poster for Andrew Stanton and Angus MacLane's Finding Dory

Finding Dory is the sequel to masterpiece Finding Nemo (2003). It is written by returning Massachusetts-born master co-writer/co-director Andrew Stanton (A Bug's Life (1998)) and Victoria Strouse (New Best Friend (2002)), and directed by Stanton and Angus MacLane (Burn-E (2008), short).

After getting Nemo back to his father Marlin, blue amnesiac fish Dory begins to recollect her own parents, whom she herself got lost from years ago. Without the initial assistance of Nemo and Marlin, she heads out on a new quest to find them.

The scope of the adventure can't but feel smaller and less novel here than in the first film, which went through several incredible ocean sequences before ending in a fantastic section set in a tank in a dentist's office in Sydney, Australia. The storytellers make an auspicious and smart turn in Finding Dory by getting the story pretty quickly out of the familiar endlessness of oceans and setting it firmly within a much smaller setting, a public aquarium in California.

Stanton and Co. manage to make another fun-filled adventure work here. Any fan of Ellen DeGeneres (Ellen (1994-98)) will enjoy her empathetic, excellent voicing as Dory, a fish whose forgetfulness would likely be annoying if performed by a less endearing actor. Ed O'Neill (Modern Family (2009-16)) is good as the voice of the biggest new character, disheartened octopus Hank, and other fun star turns, of which there are too many to notice and fully appreciate in just one viewing, include Idris Elba (The Jungle Book (2016)) and Dominic West (Pride (2014)) as two sea lions. Two more lovable characters are the whale shark and the beluga whale that Dory befriends in the aquarium.
The animation is great as expected, and the 3D dimension never gets the driver's seat: Story is king, which is just as it should be. My only negative note on the animation is the design of Dory as a baby fish, in which she has grotesquely oversized eyes. Anyone with some knowledge of character animation knows the importance and power of characters' eyes, which is why they are usually oversized, but this level of oversizing seems unnecessary overkill; - plus we know that Pixar's skilled animators can make us feel for characters even if they have less oversized eyes. So a small burp to that.
There's some darkness before the funny and awesome conclusion of the over-all wonderful film, a solid sequel that doesn't lessen the strength of the original but also never comes near to it.
The film is accompanied by Alan Barillaro's short Piper, his first effort as writer-director, a sweet, incredibly vividly animated story of a little bird's learning to find its own food.

Related posts:

Andrew Stanton: 2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]

2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
2016 in films - according to Film Excess
2012 in films - according to Film Excess
John Carter (2012) - Bloated Mars-nonsense yawner

 

Watch an official trailer for the film here

Cost: 200 mil. $
Box office: 930.9 mil. $ and counting
= Big hit
[Finding Dory premiered June 8 (El Capitan Theatre, Hollywood) and runs 97 minutes. Disney initially planned to make a sequel without the involvement of Pixar, after their purchase of the company, at their Circle 7 Animation, - which however never produced any films before it was closed again in 2006. Stanton was not interested in a sequel for many years, but after his mega-flop John Carter (2012), he developed a script with Strouse and got the very enthusiastic DeGeneres involved. Documentary Blackfish (2013) resulted in some changes to the script and its SeaWorld-like setting. The film opened #1 to a 135 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it dropped pretty slowly week-to-week, keeping in first place for 4 weeks before dropping to #3, then #4 and then out of the top 5. It has so far grossed 479.7 mil. $ in North America. It is the 4th highest-grossing movie worldwide of the year at the moment, and in North America, it is the highest-grossing film of the year and the highest-grossing animated movie of all time. It has yet to open in Italy, Austria and Germany and so is likely to cross the 1 bil. $ mark before finishing theatrically. Finding Dory is certified fresh at 94 % with a 7.7 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Finding Dory?