Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012)

WITH ICE AGE: CONTINENTAL DRIFT’S $47 million opening weekend (pushing its worldwide total to $380 million), the Ice Age films are now one of the highest-grossing movie franchises ever – up there with Harry Potter, James Bond, and Lord of the Rings.

As someone who’s seen the first Ice Age but not parts 2 or 3 (The Meltdown and Dawn of the Dinosaurs), I began to wonder if I was missing out on a rewarding movie franchise – one whose likability and popularity was apparently evident by its billions in box office and the millions of moviegoers who have kept the saga afloat since the original Ice Age in 2002.


After seeing Ice Age: Continental Drift -- the highly disposable yet occasionally endearing fourth entry in the series from Blue Sky Studios (Rio, Horton Hears a Who!) – I don’t think I’ve been missing much. We meet up with woolly mammoth Manny (Ray Romano), sabre-tooth tiger Diego (Denis Leary), and Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo) as their herd (including Manny’s wife Ellie (Queen Latifah) and their teenage daughter Peaches (Keke Palmer)) get caught up in the cataclysmic separation of their landmass, casting Manny, Diego, Sid, and Sid’s eccentric Granny (Wanda Sykes) out to sea on a mass of ice.

As our trio of heroes (plus 1) try to reach the destination where Ellie, Peaches, and the rest of the herd will meet them, they encounter simian sea pirate Captain Gutt (Peter Dinklage) and his crew, including first mate Shira (Jennifer Lopez), a sabre-tooth tiger who ends up with conflicting feelings about her captain and Diego.

With all the effort the filmmakers behind Ice Age: Continental Drift put into the action scenes and stunning visuals (especially the breathtaking sequences of the giant land mass breaking apart), they should have devoted more to character development. Ironically, that devotion would be a major undertaking, for by continuously adding new characters with each film in the franchise, it leaves directors Steve Martino and Mike Thurmeier with the unenviable task of finding a purpose for each character in what is now a cast of dozens.

This overpopulation is also a far cry from what made the original Ice Age’s core trio of Manny, Diego, and Sid fun to watch. Martino, Thurmeier, and Continental Drift’s trio of writers seem to agree, for the main plot sends Manny, Diego, and Sid (and Sid’s Granny) on their own adventure, relegating the rest of the cast to a B-story of trekking across the remaining landmass to reunite with our heroes.

The dialogue and jokes in Ice Age: Continental Drift rarely rise above the level of sitcoms or Saturday morning cartoons, and laugh-out-loud moments are at a minimum. The only exceptions are the adorable, hyperactive hyraxes (who form an Ewok-like alliance with Manny, Diego, and Sid to help bring down Captain Gutt) and the ongoing hilarious antics of Scrat the squirrel and his never-ending pursuit of his elusive acorn. Outside of that, the script largely serves to advance the plot to the finish line, peppered with mawkish Valuable Lessons and Very Special Moments about love, family, father/daughter relationships, and not forgetting your true friends.

If Pixar classics such as Finding Nemo and The Incredibles are gourmet meals, then Ice Age: Continental Drift is Chinese food: It doesn’t stay with you, and an hour later you’ll be hungry for something more substantial.

Rating:

What did Dash and Jack-Jack think?

Dash and Jack-Jack both enjoyed Ice Age: Continental Drift, though neither raved about it afterwards. I’m guessing that, like their father, they found it suitably entertaining at the time, but pretty forgettable afterwards.

Is it suitable for your kids?

Ice Age: Continental Drift is rated PG for mild rude humor and action/peril.

Mild/rude humor: Sadly, there is so much name-calling that it’s impossible to list them all here, but a sampling includes “freak,” “wiener,” “stupid,” “loser,” “idiot,” “tubby,” “cry baby,” and “pinhead.” In addition, Granny makes a couple of off-color quips, such as “I’ll bury y’all and dance on your grave” and “If they kiss, I’m gonna puke.” Also, Sid exclaims “Holy crab!” after seeing a giant crustacean, and a child animal asks Ellie, “When you drink through your nose, does it taste like boogers?”
Action/peril: An extended sequence shows landmasses separating violently, causing animals to run and panic; some of the fights between Manny’s herd and Gutt’s pirates are pretty intense, with weapons in heavy use; Gutt makes verbal threats to various characters, and attempts to kill Ellie and Manny during the finale.

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

My wife enjoyed Ice Age: Continental Drift, though I’m guessing it won’t rank as one of her all-time favorites. But it made for a passably fun family film outing while it lasted.

Ice...ice...age-y.

Ice Age: Continental Drift
* Directors: Steve Martino, Mike Thurmeier
* Screenwriters: Michael Berg, Jason Fuchs, Mike Reiss
* Stars: Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Jennifer Lopez, Queen Latifah, Peter Dinklage, Keke Palmer, Simon Pegg, Seann William Scott, Wanda Sykes
* MPAA Rating: PG


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Rio (2011)

LOOKING AT MY REVIEWS for April, I noticed there wasn’t one kid movie in the whole bunch. (The last was the terrific LEGO movie from mid-March.)

I usually try to alternate kid movies with dad movies, or at least stick to a 2-to-1 ratio to keep things somewhat balanced. But I fell short last month, and I needed to stock up on more reviews of kid flicks.

As fate, luck, and good timing would have it, the four of us got out to see a family-friendly movie together over Spring Break…

Plot:
Set in Rio de Janeiro and the rainforest of Brazil, Rio centers on Blu (Jesse Eisenberg), a rare macaw who thinks he is the last of his kind. When Blu’s owner (Leslie Mann) is told that there's another — a female macaw — she takes Blue from the comforts of his cage in small-town Minnesota and heads with him to Rio. But it's far from love at first sight between domesticated, flight-challenged Blu and fiercely independent, high-flying Jewel (Anne Hathaway). Unexpectedly thrown together, they embark on an adventure where they learn about friendship, love, courage, and being open to life's many wonders.

Critique:

With a lavish opening musical number featuring dozens of colorful tropical birds, Rio makes its intentions of a festive experience known immediately. Yet after that opening number, the festivities take a back seat as Blu and his owner make the tough decision to head to Rio and help his species survive by, um, “relating” with Jewel. (FYI: The mating concept is handled lightly and comically, so don’t worry about having to explain the birds and the bees – or in this case, the bird and the bird – to your kids.)

The design and art direction in Rio are truly something to behold – lush, extravagant backdrops and settings, including wide aerial shots that look like true-life photographs of Rio’s mountains, beaches, and iconic Jesus statue.

Eisenberg brings his trademark neurotic delivery to the voice of Blu, which is a perfect fit since Blu is unsure and skittish about much of what (and whom) he encounters during his journey. Hathaway is a good fit and enjoyable as the strong-willed and eventually sympathetic Jewel. And as much I was fearing over-the-top, grating performances from George Lopez and Tracy Morgan, they reeled it in just enough to make their characters (Rafael the toucan and Luiz and the bulldog) a lot of fun. In addition, Flight of the Concords’ Jemaine Clement provides one of the most memorable animated villains since Toy Story 3’s Lotso Huggin’ Bear as the sadistic cockatoo Nigel.

Music – specifically, Latin dance – plays a huge part in Rio, and rightfully so since the film takes place in Rio de Janeiro during Carnavale. Legendary musician/producer Sergio Mendes, along with Black Eyed Peas leader will.i.am, provide a rich soundtrack highlighted by the film’s signature track, “Hot Wings.” In addition, Rio’s music brings something back to animated features that hasn’t been heard since Disney’s early ‘90s heyday: signature songs by the characters in the film. The best of the bunch is Nigel’s wicked tune, “Pretty Bird."

Character development in Rio is a slow build, but it eventually gets there, along with much more laugh-out-loud comedy. Yes, there’s a pinch of pop culture references, but not too much as to spoil things or jeopardize the film’s freshness ten years from now.

With Rio, director Carlos Saldanha (and a small team of screenwriters) has tapped into something unique in both story and location. Yes, Pixar still has nothing to worry about (though rumor has it they canceled their film Newt because it was too similar in story). But with its gorgeous, vibrant, energetic vibe, Rio is well with the trip.

Rating:

Will your kids like it?

Absolutely. Rio is a lot of fun, with great songs, fun characters, and a visually amazing execution.

Will your FilmMother want to watch it?

The trailers really didn’t sell Rio as anything special, but the film is much better than she may expect. Convince her to make it a movie for the whole family to watch; nobody will be disappointed.

Hmmm...did the filmmakers intend for this

shot to be in 3-D? Guess we'll never know...

Rio
* Director: Carlos Saldanha
* Screenwriters: Don Rhymer, Joshua Sternin, Jeffrey Ventimilia, Sam Harper
* Stars: Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, Tracy Morgan, Leslie Mann, Rodrigo Santoro, George Lopez, Jake T. Austin, Carlos Ponce, Bernardo De Paula, Wanda Sykes, Jane Lynch, will.i.am
* MPAA Rating: G


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Interview: Hans Dastrup, Lead Animator, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

I recently teamed up with Surfer Jay to interview his brother, Hans Dastrup, a lead animator at Blue Sky Studios for such films as Robots, Horton Hears a Who!, and the Ice Age series. His latest project, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, opened in theaters last month.

Surfer Jay: How did you get hired by Blue Sky? Is it true you animated a large singing and dancing sperm to get the job?

Hans: Uh...no, that is not true. There was no singing or dancing involved. Just a talking sperm quoting a line from Better Off Dead. That little sperm was my pride and joy at the time. Now it's just embarrassing.

I was hired at Blue Sky right after college. I got lucky! I first heard of Blue Sky when I saw the first Ice Age during my senior year at Cal State Fullerton. Before then, I was focusing mostly on traditional hand-drawn animation; but once I saw Ice Age, it was very clear to me what I wanted to do. I wanted to work at Blue Sky.

I spent the next few months getting my demo reel ready. An animator's demo reel consists of two to three minutes of their best work, and usually submitted on a DVD. That summer, with over 20 demo reels in hand, I went to a huge convention in Texas where all the animation studios were represented, including Blue Sky.

I wasn't sure what to expect. I thought at best I would get a handful of callbacks from small start-up companies. But to my surprise, my work caught the interest of Blue Sky. They called me back, I interviewed the next day, and it went great! I had one semester left before I graduated, so I spent that time animating day and night, finishing the last two animations that I submitted to Blue Sky, which sealed the deal.

FilmFather: As a lead animator, what are your roles and responsibilities?

Hans: My responsibilities are split between helping supervise other animators and animating my own shots. We have two supervisors and two leads. The supervisors often need assistance overseeing the 40-70 animators in our department (the number changes depending on the stage of production).

As a lead, people can come to me for creative advice. I'll also assist in hiring new talent, representing animation on interdepartmental issues, supervising animation and imagery for marketing, etc. I recently directed the animation on a McDonald's commercial featuring Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs characters.

It's nice being a lead. I get experience in different areas, and I still have time to do my own work as an animator.

Surfer Jay: You use to be a tan California lifeguard who spent all his time on the beach checking out chicks with your binoculars, saving lives, sporting a yearlong tan, and surfing all the time. Now, you’ve turned in your surfboard to become a desk jockey. The last time I saw you, you were whiter than my 12-month-old baby’s powdered butt, sporting a farmer tan, wearing skinny jeans, and flabby as the marshmallow man. But of course, now you are making awesome animated movies. So was turning in your lifeguard trunks and surfboard worth it?

Hans: The California beach lifestyle sucked. I hated waking up in the morning on a beautiful sunny winter day, just to ride my beach cruiser a few short blocks to the beach, hop out on my board and surf a nice NW swell with offshore wind. And as far checking out chicks on the beach, I'm married and have been for the last ten years. What hot chicks on the beach? I never noticed any. Also, I prefer to be fat and butt-white. I like the soft ivory skin look. Chicks dig it.

Even though I have missed many things that I loved back in California, it has been worth it for these last 6 1/2 years that I've been here. But I'm excited to say that we are finally coming back! I just got a job at DreamWorks and I start this November. Woohoo!!

FilmFather: Blue Sky Studios is based in Greenwich, CT (just outside New York City). What are the advantages of working on the east coast versus California (the land of Disney/Pixar and DreamWorks)? Any disadvantages?

Hans: The east coast is quite different from where I grew up in southern California. The only potential advantage about working on the west coast is as an animator, you have more options in terms of employment. There are tons of studios to choose from in California. It's not quite the same on the east coast. There are not many animation jobs in feature film animation over here. Actually, there's only one: Blue Sky. But there are plenty of jobs if you want to work in commercials or kids’ television shows.

FilmFather: In your films like the new Ice Age movie, are you part of the recording sessions when the actors create their voices?

Hans: We aren't usually a part of the recording sessions, but I did have the chance to sit in on a few with Simon Pegg via satellite, as he was recording from Britain. That was very cool to see. He is a great actor! He has so much range in his voice and he's quite creative in the choices that he makes. He voiced Buck in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. I had a chance to meet Simon when he came to our studio. He sat down with me as I showed him all the work we were doing with Buck. That was a cool experience!

Surfer Jay: Your previous animation work on Ice Age: The Meltdown, Robots, and Horton Hears A Who! was spectacular. So given your talent and expertise, do you ever think about creating your own cartoon?

Hans: I've thought about that a lot. I think one day I will want to create something of my own, but as for now I am very happy doing what I'm doing. I love being involved on big feature film projects.

Surfer Jay: It’s apparent that in the Ice Age movies, you gave Crash the opossum blue eyes because you wanted him to look like you. How much creative control do you have over the characters, such as their movements and stunts, their facial expressions, and the camera angles?

Hans: I get quite a bit of creative influence over the characters’ look and performance. But the truth is, there are many people involved in creating the final product. The character's personality begins taking shape when the script and story are being developed. At that point, a character designer comes in and begins to develop what the character will look like. The character gets sculpted in clay and then built digitally in the computer.

During this design process, my input is very important. I have to make sure the design of the character is going to allow me, as animator, to achieve the performance and personality the director is looking for. If I feel something isn't going to work well, the design will need adjusting. As an animator, we concern ourselves mostly with things relating to how the character moves, how they walk, talk, run, and interact with other characters.

FilmFather: Does your work require you to be away from your wife and kids for extended lengths of time? How do you balance your work with family life?

Hans: I don't usually travel for work; once in a while, they fly us somewhere to recruit new animators. But balancing work and family life can still be difficult. For the last few years, we've been working 60+ hours a week for six months a year. During the last few months of Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, it got even worse; we were working around 80 hours a week. It was insane. I definitely didn't get to spend a lot of quality time with my wife and kids. But even when I work a lot of hours, I make sure I see my kids every day. The best part of my day is playing with my two kids, Annika and Eli. They are a ton of fun!

Surfer Jay: For every movie you’ve made, you give your brothers the company shirts, which were made by and for the animators only, and not sold to the public. But I can’t help and wonder: Why don’t you send your favorite brother more free movie loot? I mean, you have access to all the character toys and posters and clothes and bobbleheads, and you don’t even send me anything. What’s up with that?

Hans: I hoard it all. I have a HUGE stockpile in my basement. One day when it's worth millions of dollars, I will sell it for an early retirement. Maybe I'll give you first dibs.

FilmFather: What's your next project?

Hans: Our next project is called Rio, which centers on a nerdy parrot who leaves the comforts of his cage in a small Minnesota town and heads to Rio de Janeiro. I'm not allowed to say much more than that.

Surfer Jay: Do you think it’s okay to mislead our kids into believing that dinosaurs are real, that llamas can talk, and wooly mammoths sound like Kermit the Frog? Okay, scratch that: How are you going to convince fathers to spend ten bucks a pop, not including popcorn and a soda, to go see your new movie?

Hans: You should take your kids to see our movie because they will learn that sloths can talk, not “llamas." And you don't buy movie popcorn and soda at the movie theater. Buy it for half the price at the nearby convenient store and smuggle into the theater. That tip just saved you ten bucks.

FilmFather: If you had to animate your brother Jay in one of your projects, what direction would you give your team?

Hans: Animating Jay would be easy. Now that he's Mr. Mom, he plays all day with his cute chubby baby, and also plays video games while his wife goes out and earns the dough. So I'd tell my animators he's good with a joystick. Not a bad gig, if you ask me.

Somehow he stays fairly muscular, even though he never exercises. He has a talent for breaking surfboards. He has a shoulder that dislocates on command. He has a really great artistic eye, and he has used that talent to become an accomplished, award-winning photographer. He's a creative writer and I'm sure will take advantage of that skill someday. And growing up, he learned how to defend himself from his four older brothers. He has a really hard left kneecap and will use it as a shield if you try to punch him in the stomach. Beware, if your fist makes contact with his knee, your knuckles will shatter into pieces. And it friggin’ hurts! Well, that's what I heard.

Surfer Jay: I’ve asked you several times to send me your rough, unfinished, top-secret animations during the making of your movies so I can post them on the net. Why don’t you ever hook a brother up?

Hans: I'll hook you up, if you promise to provide my family with free room and board while I search for a new job.

Surfer Jay: One of the really cool things about being a part of these films is that you get to have your name in the credits. Your kids’ names are also in the credits, which is also really cool. Being immortalized like that must be exciting for them. How did that happen?

Hans: All they had to do was be born during the production of one of our movies. Every film we make, we save a section at the end of the credits for the all the "production babies." It's really special. I love that our studio does that.

Surfer Jay: I remember you as a kid always acting like a cartoon character. You would sing, dance, and make goofy faces, making noises and mimicking movie characters and voices. Even now, you talk in funny character voices as if you were one. So when will you realize that you were destined to do character voices, and animating is merely a gateway to get into that? Jim Carrey’s got nothing on you. When will you start being in the movies you animate?

Hans: I'm glad you enjoyed my singing, dancing, and silly voices. I thought I was just an annoying kid. I would love to do voiceover work one day. I did have a few opportunities to do voiceover for some of our movies "in progress," but nothing I did ever made it into the final films. They hire only SAG members for that. Although, one time on Robots, my voice made it into a movie trailer. That was exciting! Honestly, it's very tough to make it as a voice actor, especially in animated films. You have to be a famous celebrity to make into feature film animation.

Read FilmFather's interview with director John Wildermuth (The Taking of Pelham 123)

Horton Hears a Who! (2008)

Let me start this review by saying I've always had a chip on my shoulder when it comes to animated films by DreamWorks. Granted, I haven't seen some of their movies like Over The Hedge (which I hear isn't half bad) and Kung Fu Panda (which I hear is actually pretty good).

But Shark Tale was abysmal, I couldn't sit through the hyperkinetic, ADD style of Madagascar, and to be blunt, I feel the Shrek films are derivative, pop-culture-laden marketing tools whose jokes will be stale (and their films irrelevant) 10 years from now.

Such was my mindset when I rented DreamWorks' Horton Hears a Who! In addition to my lack of enthusiasm for DreamWorks films, do we really need another Dr. Seuss book stretched out to the length of a major motion picture? Mike Myers' Cat in the Hat, anyone?

Still, I did hear good things about Horton from co-workers and other parents, so I set aside my pre-conceived notions and pressed Play.

Plot:· Horton (voiced by Jim Carrey) is a carefree, fun-loving elephant who comes across a clover that blew his way - on which, he's convinced, is a speck containing the smallest form of life in the shape of Whoville and its occupants, including mayor Ned Who (Steve Carell).

· Since the inhabitants of Whoville are too small to bee seen, no one believes Horton's story - and no one more fiercely than Kangaroo (Carol Burnett). She feels that Horton is a menace, that "he has the kids using their imagination!" She begins speaking ill of Horton to the other animals in the jungle.
· Meanwhile, just like Horton tried to convince his fellow animals of the Whos' existence, Ned tries in vain to convince the people of Whoville that Horton is real (Norton's out of sight above the clouds of Whoville; Ned speaks to him through a series of pipes and horns leading off the speck [just play along here]).

Horton's characters are drawn very true to Seuss' illustrations - Horton, the Whos, and the Whos' houses and horns look like they came right off the pages of his book.

Carrey and Carell do great jobs with their roles, especially considering their interactions could have easily devolved into a "ham-off" of these two scene-stealing stars.

At its essence, Horton Hears a Who! is about acceptance, imagination, and the power of believing - as well as a good lesson in how ignorance and intolerance can breed a mob mentality. It also takes several jabs at how those who champion a cause or belief for the sake of "protecting the children" may not be able to think of a better argument, or they simply don't have a leg to stand on.

So yes, Dash and I both enjoyed Horton Hears a Who! And yes, I will try to approach future DreamWorks movies with a more open mind. In fact, Horton had me all the way to the very last scene - when they had to go and bust out a cast singalong to a cheesy '80s ballad. (It was only a few verses, but cheese is cheese.) Nevermind, though - it doesn't negate how well-done, how fun to watch, and how much of a surprise Horton Hears a Who! turned out to be.

[UPDATE/CORRECTION 6/25/09: I just realized that Horton Hears a Who! was created by Blue Sky Studios, not DreamWorks. My apologies to Blue Sky...though my opening opinion on DreamWorks still stands.]

Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5).
What did Dash think?

· After learning why it's wrong to spread rumors (thank you, LarryBoy), Dash immediately latches on to anybody (real or cartoon) who is saying false things about somebody else. To wit, his first declaration while watching Horton was, "The kangaroo's all wrong! She's the baddest because she's the one who started the rumor."
· On a lighter note, Dash said that the funniest thing in the movie was when Horton's cute little friend Katie (right, who steals her scenes), says about her clover, "In my world, everyone is a pony, and they all eat rainbows, and poop butterflies." Can't imagine why a 5-year-old boy would find that funny...

Will your kids like it?

I'll answer that with another question: What's not to like? It's based on a classic Dr. Seuss story, it's a well-made film, and except for a couple of tense scenes involving a bad vulture and a mob of monkeys trying to cage Horton, it's (pardon the cliche) a film for the whole family to enjoy. Horton Hears a Who! is definitely one to consider for a family movie night.

Will your FilmMother like it?

Absolutely, and for many of the same reasons I mention above. Parents and kids will enjoy Horton, and for grown-ups it'll feel like time and money well-spent versus sitting through a lame, uninspired movie aimed at kids with no regard for parents in the audience.

Horton Hears a Who!* Directors: Jimmy Hayward, Steve Martino
* Screenwriters: Ken Daurio, Cinco Paul
* Stars (Voices): Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Carol Burnett, Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, Amy Poehler
* MPAA Rating: G

Buy this movie for less at Half.com >>