GEEKS!
There was a film I held close to my heart since childhood. Even in adulthood I can look past the cringeworthy parts and still enjoy the film to this day. I’m talking about the 1989 animated feature LITTLE NEMO - ADVENTURES IN SLUMBERLAND, and it appears that Nemo will be returning to the public eye in LITTLE NEMO IN SLUMBERLAND.
Based on old comic strips from 1905 by Winsor McCay, which was sort of like an ALICE IN WONDERLAND type of story. The 1989 film ADVENTURES IN SLUMBERLAND had a lot of issues during development. Many people didn’t want to produce the film, animators handed it off to others (including Hayao Miyazaki himself--oh, what could have been!), and the film had a number of writers that came and left. Though the animation got a positive reception, it didn’t do well in the box office in Japan when it was ironically competing with Miyazaki’s KIKI’S DELIVERY SERVICE. The film flopped in the box office so badly that producer Yutaka Fujioka decided to retire right after. Though underrated by the masses, ADVENTURES IN SLUMBERLAND was influential to South Park writers who spoofed the film in their South Park Special: Imaginationland. Check out a trailer for the 1989 movie below.
There were definite issues with the storyline and some things that were never very well explained, but a new animated LITTLE NEMO could be what ADVENTURES IN SLUMBERLAND tried to be. I’m definitely not in doubt because I haven’t seen any disappointing trailers or art yet, but the possibilities could be so great right now! It looks like ON Animation Studios, who animated THE LITTLE PRINCE is taking on the project. This...this could work. MOANA’s head of animation, Hyrum Osmond, is partnering with ON Animation Studios to direct.
I’m so flipping excited for this, you guys. Though I know better than to get my hopes up too high before seeing how they ruin the art or something, but it sounds like it could be good hands.
~Big Eyes
