The Fantastic Mr. Fox?

[72teeth]

im down... yeah, it looks a little Chicken Run-y, but i liked chicken run.. and i like Anderson...

cant wait.

[pete]

first of all, it'll get its ass kicked by where the wild things are.
secondly, the animation itself is just not "funny".  not even in a matter-of-fact way.
BUT I LOVE WES.

[socketlevel]

not long ago in the Alice in wonderland thread, polkablues stated a perfect assessment of Tim burton and his relation to that upcoming movie.  i added that i was worried Wes Anderson might eventually go through the same circumstances, as I'm sure many others have hypothesised as well.  after watching this trailer, i gotta say it looks tired and a little obvious for Wes.  while I'm not totally convinced of what I'm about to say, i can't help but think more and more that Wes Anderson is falling down a slippery slope.  in the same way that burton affected mainstream so predominantly in the 80/90s that essentially ruined his aesthetic, turning goth into bubble gum, looks like Wes is maybe going through the same vicious circle now.  in part because he won't change his style, but also because of the influence he had on others.  the more i look at Wes the less i see the "baroque" moniker originally given to him.   now I'm hard pressed to not see an aging hipster in a once cool persona. in turn, i think he played a major role in creating that hipster movement; good or bad as that is.  this isn't more evident to me then right now as i watch this trailer.

i couldn't help but sigh at the awkward silences in it.  i think when Wes puts in long beats between dialog with actors you get to observe their reactions, which makes it funnier because the actors are always thinking and evolving the moment, even if they're silent.  however, in the case of Mr. fox the same approach comes across like a detached freeze frame of a puppet, i don't read anything off of it.  it is the trailer, and i haven't seen the film itself so I'll give em a grain of salt. I'm still a little worried.  i think the low budget art in his films (mainly done by his brother) is kinda cute as the backdrop to a larger whole, but when it's all you're looking at (ie. Mr. fox) you can't help but imagine Wes has actually transformed into max fisher and made a feature. which doesn't work because the detached laughing at the character all the while feeling endearment toward the amateur spirit is what makes it work.  the layer of smiling at a wild imagination is gone when you remove the essential realism.  all you're left with is the crappy kinda cute art, void of the vulnerable yet defiant auteur character.

that's how it appears upon viewing this small clip.  i hope i am wrong.

[AntiDumbFrogQuestion]

while some might say "It's the SAME OL' WES at it AGAIN!", I tend to disagree.

I feel he is taking a leap by making the movie this way with this sense of animation.
Not to mention, he is a co-director.

This movie has an "Autumnal" feel to it, which consistent with the storybook style that we tend to acquire at a young age around the time we had this book read to us, and it fits in with the release date.

Also, from a writing standpoint, this is for KIDS, and the plot's simplicity opens this movie up for more fun and less complexity that former "Wes" hits.

As for the aesthetic around being affected so and Wes not changing, sure he is!  It might be slow, but there are changes there, guaranteed.  I mean, people are forced to grow, and only the stubborn flail (TIM BURTON, where you at?!)

Anways, good luck for Fantastic Mr. Fox.
Oh wait...you don't need Luck when you've got....SKILL.

[MacGuffin]

Fantastic Mr. Fox
Source: EW

Since it's technically a stop-motion-animated kids' movie, this adaptation of Roald Dahl's beloved children's book would seem to be a major departure for Wes Anderson, best known for his funny-sad stories of eccentric dreamers (The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou) and alienated families (The Royal Tenenbaums). But Anderson approached Mr. Fox as if he were making a live-action ensemble film. ''There are things in this that you don't typically find in animated films, like characters cutting each other off and being really raw and human,'' says Jason Schwartzman, who voices the pint-size son of Mr. and Mrs. Fox (George Clooney and Meryl Streep) in a story about a family of foxes digging their way out of trouble when local farmers set out to get rid of them. Anderson, a big Dahl fan, modeled Mr. Fox on the notoriously prickly author himself. ''I always saw him as Dahl,'' says the director. ''He has this darkness about him.''

Anderson refused to pander to children — or the conventions of animated filmmaking. He bypassed the usual recording booths for real locations such as a farm in Connecticut. ''Rather than having perfect technical recordings,'' says Anderson, ''I wanted to have the actors in a place where maybe they're inspired by the atmosphere.'' According to Schwartzman, those instincts were dead-on. ''Wes not only makes movies, but he makes real experiences for the people making them,'' says the actor. ''How often do you get to work with all these great people, eat and live together, and run around and dig in the ground with a guy chasing after you with a microphone?''

[tpfkabi]

TRAILER: http://movies.yahoo.com/premieres/14824491/standardformat

yikes.

I missed this. It looks interesting and I've never been interested in the other similiar stuff - Chicken Run/Nightmare, etc.

[MacGuffin]

Behind The Scenes Featurette here.

[picolas]

it keeps getting worse!

[AntiDumbFrogQuestion]

it keeps getting worse!

really?  I thought for something that was mostly put out for kids it had an air that didn't really insult their intelligence...i think we're all gonna have a love-hate relationship with this film.

I work with kids, so I always look for a movie that isn't just ultra-sheen crap for them.  This seems like one I hope they'd like, which is why I also look forward to "Where the Wild Things Are"...basically movies that opens up their boundaries some.
Sadly, a movie that is TOO different could collapse their search for unique things to a non-existent status.  Basically, I'm sick of "Shrek" and "Bolt".


(ALSO: Does anyone else think that when we see Mr. Fox head-on that his face sort of resembles Billy Murray???)

[socketlevel]

it keeps getting worse!

oh shit ya, so awkward.

[Gold Trumpet]

It's still too early to tell for me. I remember when Chicken Run was coming out, I had problems with the animation. I never thought I would get past the awkwardness of the animation, but it was fun and entertaining and I easily forgot about those worries. It's a little unfair to already be judging Fantastic Mr. Fox because a good story could do a lot.

[socketlevel]

touche, i guess i just imagine the worst.  truthfully i'd feel this way about any wes anderson flick at this point.

I loved chicken run, i hope it's as good.

[AntiDumbFrogQuestion]

http://www.apple.com/trailers/fox_searchlight/fantasticmrfox/

anybody watch "The World of Roald Dahl" yet?

[cinemanarchist]

http://www.apple.com/trailers/fox_searchlight/fantasticmrfox/

anybody watch "The World of Roald Dahl" yet?

Trailer #2 up at that link. Are all of you haters still hating, because this trailer looks amazing. I'm more excited about this than I was for Darjeeling, at least now Baumbach is collaborating again.

[Pubrick]

trailer #2 is heaps better in that it doesn't seem to be aimed at kids/idiots/ppl who LOVE whistling and clicking.