For the ultimate example, see Snakes on a Plane.
I, personally, find the fact that Jerry Seinfeld is involved to be the biggest turn-off. Seinfeld wouldn’t know funny if it bit him on the ass, planted a flag, yelled ‘I claim this ass in the name of Funny’, then perched on his shoulder and sang all 4000 verses of the Funny National Anthem in all 3 official languages of Funny.
You know, I never paid all that much attention to the trailer before, especially the last part.
I actually thought it was really going to be a mockumentary about Jerry Seinfeld making this absurd vanity project movie. At the time, it seemed hilarious, because they were doing this sort of real-life marketing campaign that imitated what you might expect if they were actually releasing the “real” film. It would be like a staged “Lost in La Mancha”, I imagined.
I’m apparently wrong, sadly.
And of course this wacky idea about suing isn’t as crazy as some think.
There were two teaser trailers- the first featured Seinfeld and Chris Rock as live-action actors in insect costumes, this being supposedly the way they were originally going to make the film. The second trailer was linked to upthread- Jerry realizes the project isn’t going to work, despite some kind words from Steven Spielberg. Suddenly, somebody gets the bright idea: why don’t we make it a cartoon? The trailers were thought up by Seinfeld himself, which isn’t surprising: the teaser trailer for his previous film, the documentary Comedian, also contained no footage from the film- rather, it was a sendup of stereotypical movie trailer voice-overs with veteran trailer voice Don LaFontaine as himself.
But Jerry’s going all-out for this thing: besides the teasers and the NBC bits, he even dressed up in a bee costume at the Cannes Film Festival this year. Whether or not all this buzz* will help the film, I don’t know. I’m neutral, by the way- I’ll form an opinion if and when I see the film.
*Equipoise did it first. Blame him, not me.
Yeah, it may be that way, based on the trailers. Ray Liotta endorses his own honey. How exactly is that supposed to be funny?
I agree. To me, that just screams “This movie is failing, we need to convince people to see it!”
I try not to prejudge any animated movie. The plots usually sound really bad. I mean a daddy fish trying to rescue his lost son? Two dolls fighting over who’s the favorite? A psychotic alien midget learning the meaning of family? With animated movies it’s all in the execution.
The humour doesn’t really work for me, but I’m the guy who didn’t like Finding Nemo…
I dunno, I think the Seinfeld factor is enough to keep it from being a total flop. It won’t pull down Spiderman money but I suspect it’ll do well into the tens of millions. It has to do well, b/c a little googling shows me it has a budget of 150 million which usually means it won’t make any money until the 300 mark.
Going the way of Eddie Murphy perhaps.
Yiddish, and… ?
I have no idea what movie this is…
Lilo and Stitch. You know, back before they had this fancy “computer animation.”
All of those ideas sound interesting, except for the part right after “psychotic alien midget”, and that was the worst part about Lilo & Stitch.
Of what type? And anyway, no, of course not. If there really was a type of movie that was almost always a huge hit, it’s obvious how big of a deal that’d be. Those are the only types of movies we’d be seeing.
Lilo and Stitch. Which also has an inexplicable adult following that I do not understand.
Don’t all Disney animated movies made from the Katzenburg Era and after have an inexplicable adult following? I know that The Lion King, The Emperor’s New Groove, and The Little Mermaid (You and the Little Mermaid can go…) do.
Pig Latin and Mime.
The Mime verses are especially stirring.
…English, with Yiddish syntax. “Funny, you want?”
I have no need to see the film before judging it “not worth my time”. I don’t care about Seinfeld’s involvement, or Dreamworks’, or any of the behind the scenes crap. I don’t even care what the story is. The animation style itself is enough to tender my judgment: I am sick to death of not anthropomorpohic animals, but human animals in animation. Those aren’t bees in the movie, they’re tiny striped humans with wings. They have four limbs and flat faces. There is nothing even remotely insectoid about them!
Some people don’t think Seinfeld’s funny? Who arrrre these people?
Aw, man, that’s even funnier than my choices.
I don’t know if the movie will be any good, but nothing turns me off like relentless promotion.