In Contention

Tag: Toy Story 3

  • I’m a big crybaby

    Pixar’s “Toy Story 3” reduced me to mush, just like it has untold numbers of critics across the nation.  I’m so excited to see that 2010 has already seen two top-notch animated features, and a few of those still to come look intriguing to say the least.  But this one took a formula, injected it with more profound meaning than its two predecessors could have dreamed of, had the balls to keep its edge when push came to shove with the story’s antagonist, and at the end of the day, put a big, bright, beautiful bow on one of the most beloved franchises in — I think we can say this now — cinema history.

    The story was cooked up by Lee Unkrich, Andrew Stanton and Pixar Don, John Lasseter, but Michael Arndt was tasked with actual scripting duties.  His work is a lean vision of purpose, four years of hard work shining through.  The voice work is every bit as effective as it ever was, but all the toys in Andy’s toy box seem to be even more distinguished in their own rights this time out.

    Of course, this makes it all the more sad that we can’t hear Jim Varney’s Slinky Dog chime in, but Blake Clark gives it a decent go.  On the whole, though, we’re looking at one of the best films of the year, easily.  And a studio that knows how to do the franchise thing well.

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  • OSCAR TALK: Ep. 27 — Special Edition! — Quick Cannes review, bleak summer season so far, counter-programming

    Oscar TalkWelcome to Oscar Talk, your one-stop kudocast between yours truly and Anne Thompson of Thompson on Hollywood.

    In the second of three off-season discussions, Anne and I address the following today:

    • Since we haven’t talked since Cannes, Anne talks about the stronger titles from the Croisette as well as various news and notes that came out of the fest.

    • We’re in the middle of the summer, and as far as we can tell, it’s bleak out there. We discuss the lackluster box office so far and the potential hope of what’s still to come.

    • One of those hopes is Pixar’s “Toy Story 3,” which Anne enjoyed. Unfortunately, I haven’t seen it yet.

    • Another hope would be counter-programming, like titles such as “Winter’s Bone” and “The Kids Are All Right.” Anne and I discuss our feelings on each.

    • Finally, we address the fact that all eyes seem to be on Christopher Nolan’s “Inception,” which will certainly dominate our next off-season podcast on July 16 (coincidentally the day of the film’s release).

    Have a listen to the latest podcast below. As always, remember to subscribe to Oscar Talk via iTunes here.

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  • FRIDAY FORECAST: Hey, remember the 80s?

    *All historical figures cited are adjusted to today’s dollars.

    A thousand apologies for being off the grid for a little over a week. I was in Germany for a screening of my film and was happily without internet or phone for most of the trip. Sadly, I returned to the news that “Shrek Forever After” was still the number one movie in the States. Honestly, I can’t leave you people alone for a minute.

    Last week’s slate was always going to be a crop of modest performers but this week is a little different. Hollywood double dips into the 80s nostalgia well and at least one of the films carries a very high price tag that will need some juice to be recouped.

    But first let’s talk about “The Karate Kid.” Some ultra nerds have been complaining that it’s false advertising because Jackie Chan actually teaches Kung Fu this time, but if that was really an issue then the original would have been called “The Karate Man,” since I’m pretty sure Ralph Macchio was 35 when it came out. Regardless, Sony is hoping to gain kids with the PG rating and pre-teen protagonist, teens with the martial arts and Jackie Chan, and finally adults with nostalgia. Test screenings went extremely well (so says Sony) and I think the film could surprise with a $30 million weekend.

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  • OFF THE CARPET: Taking the temperature

    Now that we’re on the other side of Cannes, I felt it was a good time to put a finger to the wind, stare into the tea leaves, shake the magic 8-ball and basically just take stock of where we’re at roughly three months away from the start of the 2010-2011 film awards season.

    The festival, covered diligently by Guy Lodge around these parts (we thank him), brought little to write home about where Oscar potential is concerned.  The truth is, it rarely does.  But as the year takes shape, things start to linger.  A film like “Inglourious Basterds” can transform muted if appreciative response on the Croisette into a foaming-at-the-mouth bid for a surprise upset in just a few months’ time.

    The big narrative stand-outs for most were Alejandro González Iñárritu’s “Biutiful” and Mike Leigh’s “Another Year.” Perhaps the latter has an easier Oscar path ahead, given that it was more unanimously accepted and could ultimately be a soft lob for Academy types.  Sony Pictures Classics swooped in and nailed down domestic distribution, so I think we’re looking at a bona fide Best Picture nominee to go along with likely bids for Best Actress (Lesley Manville) and the usual expected tip of the hat from Leigh’s fellow screenwriters.  Maybe even a Best Director nod, too.  And yet the film didn’t win a single festival prize.  See how this works?

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  • Keaton ready to rock as Ken

    One of the big reasons for me to get excited for Adam McKay’s “The Other Guys” was that Michael Keaton, after suffering through a slew of straight-to-video or otherwise forgettable films, would have a front-and-center performance in what should be a commercially successful film.

    I remain faithful to Keaton despite the lows.  But let’s face it.  The last time he had a theatrical starring role was the deplorable “White Noise” (and before that it was 1996’s “Multiplicity”).  The last time most remember seeing him on screen was probably 1997’s “Jackie Brown.”

    Of course, there was his directorial debut, “The Merry Gentleman,” which opened last year and surely demanded plenty of his time.  And there have been some nice TV offerings (such as “The Company” a few years back and “Live From Baghdad,” which is actually nine years ago at this point).

    Anyway, I was excited when it was announced that Keaton would be working with Pixar again, this time as the Ken doll in “Toy Story 3.” Susan King caught up with the actor recently for a Los Angeles Times piece, and he definitely seems to be having fun with things.

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  • Fletcher rides Oscar momentum to directorial debut

    In retrospect, Geoffrey Fletcher’s Best Adapted Screenplay win for “Precious” at last month’s Academy Awards shouldn’t have come as quite the shock it did. In the last few years, Oscar voters have been especially kind to newcomers in the writing races, with this year’s pair of freshman winners, Fletcher and Mark Boal, coming on the heels of three others who struck gold for their first feature credit: Michael Arndt, Diablo Cody and Dustin Lance Black.

    How do you follow that kind of debut success? In the case of many of those names, we’re on the verge on finding out. Arndt has lain low since striking gold with “Little Miss Sunshine” in 2006, but will be back on the radar this summer with “Toy Story 3” — for which, unusually for a Pixar production, he has sole script credit.

    Cody may have struck out with “Jennifer’s Body” last year, but is having more luck on the small screen with “The United States of Tara.” Boal, meanwhile, is continuing his happy partnership with Kathryn Bigelow, as the two are readying the South American-set thriller “Triple Frontier” for shooting.

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  • Tom Hanks and his Woody

    Tweeted this afternoon by “Toy Story 3” director Lee Unkrich, who is working on ADR for the film in Los Angeles:

    (from left) Tom Hanks and Lee Unkrich behind the scenes on Toy Story 3

  • My most anticipated films of 2010

    InceptionAnnually I put together a hasty list of my most anticipated films of the New Year on January 1.  I got rid of the pomp and circumstance around the perennial post a while back and just stuck with the list.  But a couple of things…

    I’m not sure if Kevin Macdonald’s “The Eagle of the Ninth” will make it to theaters in 2010, but that would definitely be a consideration.  And it’s difficult not to be interested in product from major filmmakers like Martin Scorsese, David Fincher, Peter Weir and James L. Brooks, but, alas, they didn’t speak up for me when putting this together.

    Typically, the blockbusters will show up in numbers on something like this, because for me, that’s what I tend to anticipate.  When art seems to be skillfully married to commerce (like my #1 selection — which is most people’s #1 selection), all the better.  But it’s tough to really know what the art house product could have in store until we’re in the thick of the year.

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  • ‘Toy Story 3’ trailer

    (Courtesy: Movie-List)

  • Disney sends all-star auteur team to Comic-Con

    Tim BurtonWell, this is impressive. Hayao Miyazaki, John Lasseter, Tim Burton and Robert Zemeckis have all lined up to help represent Walt Disney Studios at Comic-Con in San Diego later this month, in the interests of showcasing a range of new and/or revived Disney features at the geek mecca. This is the first Comic-Con for all four filmmakers, so it’s quite a coup for Disney to assemble them in one place.

    Burton and Zemeckis will be joining a panel on 3D filmmaking (the first time Comic-Con has broached the subject), which will include discussion, not to mention exclusive footage, of their respective upcoming 3D features “A Christmas Carol” and “Alice in Wonderland.”

    Meanwhile, Miyazaki and Lasseter are set to participate in an animation panel (which also includes such veterans of  hand-drawn Disney animation as “The Little Mermaid” duo Ron Clements and John Musker), in which a range of upcoming animated titles — including “Toy Story 3,” “The Princess and the Frog” and “Ponyo” — will all be previewed.

    Both sound likely to be hot tickets. Kris, of course, will be on site in San Diego and covering the whole shebang for your reading pleasure. Lucky man. (Full press release after the cut.)

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  • ‘Toy Story 3’ teaser trailer

    Watch it in high def here.  Stay tuned for my interview with “Up” director Pete Docter later this afternoon.

  • 5/22 Web Round-up

    Alfred Hitchcock• Devin Faraci talks to “Terminator Salvation” star Moon Bloodgood, whose nude scene probably should have stayed in the film.  No, I’m not a perv, but…well, you tell me if you believe the relationship that develops. [CHUD]

    • Ian Freer wishes a happy 10th birthday to “Star Wars: Episode I — The Phanom Menace.” [Empire]

    • If it’s good for the ladies it’s good for the boys.  Alonso Duralde on Dylan Vox, the latest adult film star to follow in Sasha grey’s footsteps and bridge the gap to mainstream films. [MSNBC]

    • Jamin Borphy-Warren talks to Mike Judge about his latest animated foray, “The Goode Family.” [Wall Street Journal]

    • The great (yes, the great) Shane Black talks to Sam Delaney about what makes a good action film. [The Guardian]

    • Talking the machine uprising depicted in the “Terminator” franchise with a military technology expert. [Slate]

    • Speaking of which, the newly named SyFy channel could be in an opportune position to pick up the recently canceled “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.” [Premiere]

    • John Walsh on the timeless Alfred Hitchcock, whose work will be enjoying a tele retrospective across the pond. [The Independent]

    • Susan Wloszczyna digs into the risks of Pixar’s 10th entry, “Up.” [USA Today]

    • 3D at home: awesome or awful? [Cinematical]

    • Big ole’ rumor that stems from a /Film commenter, but some are saying the cute pink teddy bear you’ll catch a glimpse of in “Up” is named Lotso and will be the villain in next year’s “Toy Story 3.” [Pixar Planet]

  • Brilliant casting item of the day…

    Michael Keaton as Ken (of Ken and Barbie) in “Toy Story 3.”  Awesome.

  • What will the Bat’s Monday gross be?

    Warner Bros. Pictures\' The Dark KnightI was just talking with someone who went to see “The Dark Knight” at a noon IMAX show today and was met with a sold out crowd. So I’m wondering, what will the Monday gross turn out to be, and how many more records are left for the Bat to claim?

    The 4-day total is obviously going to fall. “Spider-Man 3” raked in $10.2 million on the Monday following release on the way to a $161.4 million 4-day.

    “Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith,” meanwhile, holds the 5-day record with $172.8 million. If “Knight” even matches Spidey’s Monday number (and it’s probably safe to say it’ll zip past it), that will already put the film within $4 million of the 5-day title.

    I’m not a whiz with box office research, but I don’t remember the last time a Friday release claimed the 5-day total. The top 10 on that front is littered with Wednesday releases.

    It’ll be interesting to see how the rest of the world responds to the hoopla and, of course, the specter of Heath Ledger. Personally, I’d love to see the film threaten a billion bucks worldwide, but with a mere $166 million outside the States for “Batman Begins,” that’s obviously a long shot.

    It’ll also be interesting to see what film takes the opening weekend crown from “The Dark Knight.” Looking on the horizon, I can’t even see a pretender to that throne.

    “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen?” Doubtful. The opening for the original wasn’t as big as many anticipated and nothing about that film’s quality would suggest a rush to the box offices for part two.

    “Terminator: Salvation?” Maybe. But that would take some marketing razzle-dazzle to say the least.

    No, it may take a second “Iron Man,” a fourth “Shrek” or a third “Toy Story” to even come close. ut we’re surprised each and every year, so let’s just sit back and enjoy the ride.