I’m just not getting that magical Pixar vibe from Brave. Then again, I said the same thing about Ratatouille and now it’s my favorite of the Pixar lot. Part of my pause comes from Brenda Chapman’s directorial credit (a title she shares with Pixar-regular Mark Andrews). Chapman directed Prince of Egypt, and if you ever want a great read I highly suggest checking out Nicole Laporte’s The Men Who Would Be King. It covers Dreamwork’s rise as the studio to watch to later being marginalized and sold off in chunks. Disasters like Prince of Egypt had a lot to do with that, though not all of the blame could be laid at Chapman’s feet for its failure.
Still, I’m having a hard time finding a way into this. It’s certainly not Tangled, but the vibe I get from this trailer is a surprisingly similar one to that recent Disney hit. Hopefully there’s some cool shit in the Highlands of Scotland that the trailers are holding back on. After all, it’s not like I’m not going to see it. Sound off in the comments section if I’m missing something:
Synopsis:
“Since ancient times, stories of epic battles and mystical legends have been passed through the generations across the rugged and mysterious Highlands of Scotland. In “Brave,” a new tale joins the lore when the courageous Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald) confronts tradition, destiny and the fiercest of beasts.
Merida is a skilled archer and impetuous daughter of King Fergus (voice of Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (voice of Emma Thompson). Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the uproarious lords of the land: massive Lord MacGuffin (voice of Kevin McKidd), surly Lord Macintosh (voice of Craig Ferguson) and cantankerous Lord Dingwall (voice of Robbie Coltrane). Merida’s actions inadvertently unleash chaos and fury in the kingdom, and when she turns to an eccentric old Wise Woman (voice of Julie Walters) for help, she is granted an ill-fated wish. The ensuing peril forces Merida to discover the meaning of true bravery in order to undo a beastly curse before it’s too late.”
Source: itunes via Coming Soon
7 comments
Wait, what. Isn’t Steve Purcell co-director here? Surely the creator of Sam & Max deserves a bit of mention.
Chapman was taken off as sole director about two years ago; her name remains out of obligation to the work she had already done up to that point. Mark Andrews took over the production and retooled much of the film. So your worries really need to get dialed down a couple notches. Besides, this looks fantastic.
Yeah, this is going to have to run on WoM. That trailer does nothing. I’m more interested in the movie the Japanese trailer is advertising.
But good thing none of those First Borns were handsome and skilled, otherwise they wouldn’t have a story apparently. Does the bear turn into a buff underwear model at the end or something?
…And Chapman getting fired threw up a huge red flag for me, since this was apparently a very personal project for her, and Pixar had initially touted this as “our first movie directed by a woman! See, we’re not sexist at all!”
Love the Pixar guys, and I’m sure this’ll be good, but all those accolades seem like they might be causing them to lose touch with reality.
More internet hate from haters (its truly sad when the media start it), its time to rise up and put a stop to it.
This looks awesome. A least for one brief moment, will have new Pixar movie* that will bring down the house.
Then the sequels start again, doom and the end of the world will surely follow.
*Will it be good/great? I’ll believe until proven otherwise.
I thought it was great up until the guitar-celtic music kicked in. Do Pixar films really need “From the Creators of __(Pixar Movie)___” in their trailers anymore? It’s not like anyone actually doesn’t know who they are. The little lamp at the beginning is recognizable enough.
Maybe keeping the film on track to being, y’know, good meant more to them than a PR soundbite? How is that losing touch with reality?
Comments are shown as archived from the original site; new comments are closed.