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Warners Brass screwing with Warners Animation again' OSMOSIS JONES
A long time ago in a period of stupidity known as the production of QUEST FOR CAMELOT, a bunch of brain amputee suits from Warner Brothers corporate, began fumbling about with... QUEST FOR CAMELOT. The results were musical chair directors, a jigsaw script and excrement upon celluloid. The disaister was sooooo big that these suited zombies stayed way far away from THE IRON GIANT. Instead just wanting it to be over with because Feature Animation was a bad egg. The results of this non-interference was the brilliant film, THE IRON GIANT, which was the sole baby of the animators and Brad Bird. A film of nerve and vision. But because the Execs didn't have anything to do with it, they didn't care about it. There were no 'points' to be scored if it succeeded so they just based it's advertising budget upon the failure of QUEST FOR CAMELOT and that was that. Of course the film died. Now of course, all the zombies at Warners have woke up. Animation is important. And these kindergarted kids have decided to shove their fingers into the fingerpaint class. Mudding up the colors and the story. And here we have the results of this stupidity. The first angry insider... watching what was once a really cool script become diluted. The addition of the Something About Mary Brothers is welcomed for the live action scenes... but... The folks at Warners should let the animation people do their job. You back em up at the advertising and marketing end. But get the hell out of the way of the story.
I have absolute confirmation that the Farrally brothers are directing the live action portions of "Osmosis Jones." And they've given a bunch of notes for the animation, as well. Fine, but it's 1/3 into production, so it's gonna cost an arm and an ear-lobe to fix. William Shatner is now one of the lead voices, and fortunately or unfortunately for Warners feature animation, every producer on the lot now wants to put in his/her two cents ("touch the robe...."). This is similar to what happened to "Quest for Camelot" once big named stars were attached. Animation directors are look at as hired shits, so no one would respect their opinion as to the direction characters should take. Sounds like disaster waiting to happen, NOT because the Farrally brothers aren't talented (they are), but because Warners won't hear any arguments from the animation crew: they're blindsided by their success. With little to no understanding of the animation process, the studio mucktiymucks are pawing all over what could be a really fun film. I HATE to sound pessimistic, but it's hollywood. Check it out if you will, but there you go...keep up the great work.
Lorenzo's Hair Oil
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Just curious. Mountain View High School football rules!
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Once when i was driving I saw the sun come through the clouds. It was the most lovely thing and In that moment i thought God was real and everything in my mind and the world was ok. However when i hear things like this I really hope an asteroid hits this planet and kills all life. And i hope ground zero is the WB offices. There is a part of me that hopes that the WB suits are really not stupid. I mean they seem determined to "help" with this new film and I am sure their black hearts are in the right place, but the fact remains that regardless of intellegence and determination, Art cannot be created without some talent. Leave the talented animators to create thier ART. It was not like the IRON GIRANT sucked. (by the way, I still come close to crying everytime The Giant says "Superman" at the end of that movie) Anyways, i have my figers crossed and my WB suit voodoo dolls out. This week i am going to be sticking lots of pins and needles in the groin area. We really do not want these people reproducing do we?
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I can't believe it, it's a dream come true. I also hoped that I could be the seventh talk backer, and now... Ah crap! What a let-down. Just like Warner Bros. handling of the brilliant Iron Giant, the third best film of the year (after Run Lola Run (#2) and American Beauty (#1)). FRankly, hearing this news, I just don't care. Princess Mononoke failed to find an audience, I guess we all deserve what we get. Another serving of Disney fried crap anyone?
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"Those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it". Oh well, even if Warner's makes a good film, they'll just bollocks the marketing. Mononoke didn't find an audience because Miramax didn't want it to. I don't think they even bothered to market it at all, and the release pattern was a joke. But Mononoke isn't the film to try to break Miyazaki in the states anyway. They should have done a major release of Kiki or do one with Totoro to accomplish that.
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I don't know a whole lot about the story, but the basic premise stated in past reports sounded pretty cool. Now if the suits can just keep their hands out of the creative process and push it when the time comes to market it, we'll have something to look forward to, and not some hideous monstrosity created by committe.
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I was just curious, but I must say I don't care if it's big names or no names, I just want a more than decent animated film like this one started out to be. I would like to hear why the suits are really putting their spoons in the broth. Optimism, optimism, optimism...it's not done for yet.
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At the VIFF Trade Forum in the summer, one of the Farrelly (pronounced ferrily, like merrily) brothers was there. So was Robert (women can't write female characters) McKee. Robert McKee said the Farrelly brothers are "geniuses." His book Story is okay, but if he really believes that, Robert McKee is a fool.
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"Those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it".
This was the same quote painted on a board that hung over the vat of cyanide laced kool-aid at the People's Temple in Guyana. There's a lot of talented people at Warners animation, but in this case, maybe they should run for the jungle. Does anyone know the release date? -
In answer to various questions, Osmosis Jones is about a white blood cell in a human bloodstream who has to hunt down viruses...it's done as a Shaft-style cop movie. Chris Rock was rumoured to be the titular character, with David Hyde Pierce as his uptight rookie sidekick. And the director had done a short film called T.R.A.N.S.I.T., which I'm told is brilliant. I'm not so much worried about the Farelly Bros, who are creative, talented people who actually *make* films. It's the corporate interference jazz that terrifies me...what's really frustrating about this is that after Iron Giant flopped they gave OJ a miniscule budget, which meant it had be go overseas and make all kinds of compromises. That's a shame, but Iron Giant was made under similar circumstances and we got a great film out of it because no one meddled. But no, OJ has to contend with a tiny budget AND this kind of crap interference!! I'll bet they demand that they add songs--just watch. AAAARRRRGGGGHGHGH!!! The lesson is there for a retarded 2-year-old to pick up on: corporate meddling = an expensive flop that was one of the worst animated movies of the decade; complete noninterference = a thrifty masterpiece that's on it's way to being a cult classic (and making it's money back). Now they're starting a project with all the disadvantages of BOTH projects?!? Christ, I can't believe ANYONE still works at WB, after being treated so shabbily.
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I suspect you, like me, can't wait for the next Jonze/Kaufmann collaboration, "Adaptation." Look away, look away, look away, look away, look away...
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As far as I can tell, there is one person who is mostly responsible for the meddling that has, from what I've been told, turned a great script into an incoherent mess. I won't name names, but here's a clue -- he scripted such gems as Last Action Hero and PCU.
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I went to see Mr. Shatner recently at a ST convention in Brooklyn,NY. During the Q&A, he spoke for a moment about his role in "Osmosis Jones". He said that he had just finished up his work for the film. His character is the Mayor of the body/brain(I dont remember which). He NEVER made it seem like he was a lead role in the film.----- I completely understand why we want to make WB out to be evil animation tyrants, but I must say that what I learned from Mr. Shatner and this article, I dont see anything to worry about...yet!
BTW Mr. Shatner said that his performance as the Mayor was his best Nixon impression.----"Sounds like fun..." -
Having worked in the animation field for the last year or so, I can add the authoritative opinion that when it comes to producing a good cartoon, producers have absoluletely NO idea of what they're doing. We animators are led to think that that's why they hire us, but really we just turn out to be very elaborate puppets, dancing to whatever inane tune they play.
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Dec 15, 1999 12:16:02 PM CST
Harry, great article! Viva la resistance! But about these tal
by l'auteur
get 'em in order. But seriously, awesome article. Stay bad.
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...DID find an audience. Namely, me. Despite the horrible big name dub over, I loved it. Where were YOU on opening night?
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i just think hes a really good director, thats all
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chris rock as lead, david hyde pierce as sidekick, lawrence fishburne as villain, shatner as mayor, brandy as love interest, and joel silver as the obnoxious chief of police. (real stretch.)
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perhaps the people who should be allowed to "touch" this thing shouldnt be limited to WB directors... I'de love to see one scene directed by John woo and the very next scene directed by anyone whos directed a hey(spelling?) grant romantic "comedy" film...
get as many people to direct this thing as possible I say!...just when you think its getting all serious and dramatic bang! a weak attempt at humour in a chinese restaurant!... I love this idea!! -
frederick dachau. Get it???
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I saw Iron Giant at the premiere in Sweden last week. I was really touched by the story and think it is one of the best animated movies, ever. However, I noticed when I was watching a commercial for IG on TV that it didn't seem that impressive on the small screen. The animation that seemed so refreshing and cool at the theater, kind of looked like a Saturday morning cartoon in my 15" (go figure:). Well, maybe it's time to get a projector before the DVD is released... ;)
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In reply to Uncle Cranky: I wasn't there at opening night, I was there at the preview that Miramax held in Minneapolis with Neil Gaimen in attendance. There we were told to get the word out on Princess Mononoke, since Miramax was treating the Twin Cities as a test market - if it did well here they would open it wide across the country. Depsite the best efforts of myself and others who attended the screening (Harry even had notice supporting us and encouraging anyone near Mpls/St. Paul to go), the movie did not do as well as Miramax hoped, and it was released as a "small art film" for a while, and now is gone. My comment was based on the fact that Wild Wild West makes hundreds of millions of dollars, that anything Disney seems to do huge business, but truly amazing films, with just HAPPEN to be animated, such as Princess Mononoke and Iron Giant become "cult" hits. I'm glad, Uncle Cranky, that you found Princess Mononoke, my comment was basically a cynical sigh that so few others did as well. If nothing else, if Mononoke had hit, perhaps we might see more complex and morally ambiguous stories, rather than Tarzan good, everyone else bad. And to the poster from Holland, I agree that Iron Giant needs to be seen on a big screen. I've seen it three times in a theater, and am in no rush to see it squeezed down to a medium for which it was NOT designed (and I agree with the other poster, the moment when the Iron Giant dreams of being Superman at the end of the film is such a wonderful, rich and deep moment, that it bothers me that so many people can not get passed the "animated" issue). Well, I'm starting to rabble, so I might as well mosey while I'm at it.
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