This past Monday night, I was part of an audience in San Francisco that got the chance to watch a sneak preview of Pixar’s new film, “ The Incredibles“. I’m not going to give you a review in the traditional sense, however.
Is it another winner? Assuredly. Classic? Perhaps. Should you go see it? Yes…
It has great characters, well developed and you’ll find it very easy to get emotionally involved with them. The story is a great tale of a family and how they face a challenge and come out better for it. The art direction and overall style are another winner as well, with a great taste of the late 50’s/early 60’s suburban chic. And the soundtrack by Michael Giacchino is, well, “Incredible’! Some great moments paying homage to great film scores, especially John Barry’s classic “ Goldfinger” (in my opinion, still hands down the best of all of the James Bond films). The Internet Movie Database says that Michael is also hard at work on the score for the new Muppet’s “Oz” film as well.
Enjoyed both the trailer for “Cars” as well as getting to finally see all of Bud Luckey’s “Boundin”. Hopefully, the “Cars” trailer will make an appearance on Apple’s Movie Trailer page sometime soon
But I think it is absolutely fair to say that it is a product that is markedly different from anything ever produced by Pixar for Disney. A number of people have described it as darker in tone than the previous projects. Well, if by darker they mean deadlier, they may be right on target.
Death isn’t new to animated films, even at Disney. “Snow White” had the Huntsman taking Snow White of to the woods to cut her heart out and return it to the Queen. It may not have happened, but it was threatened. And the Queen’s own demise was key to the climax of the film. In a “Bambi”, a generation was shocked by the sudden and unforeseen death of Bambi’s mother at the hands of a human hunter. Even Pixar’s last, “Finding Nemo”, had Nemo’s mother and siblings devoured in the opening moments.
However, “Incredibles” may have more than it’s share of death(s). Counting evil henchmen and superheroes, it’s a bit more than we’ve seen before. How will you feel about it after seeing the film? I can’t say. It’s likely to effect people differently.
But with real heroes seeming to die every day in Iraq, I found that what was supposed to be light escapist fantasy was tainted by the overt application of it. Death is indeed natural. I just didn’t expect to see quite so much of it in a Pixar film.
Changing gears, I stopped in a few stores along the way from the train to the theater. The Virgin Megastore (even the online version!) has all kinds of temptations and as I was traveling light, I didn’t want to weigh myself down with a lot of purchases. “ The Art of The Incredibles” was one title I easily could have left the store with. (A great deal there through Amazon! $15 off the cover price!) Some great work from the folks who brought the film from Emeryville to the screen.
I didn’t leave empty handed, however. “ The Villain’s Guide to Better Living” by Neil Zawacki was a great read while waiting in line for the film outside the theater. Something for every villain or villain-wannabe on your Christmas list. Heck there’s even information every CEO can make good use of!
The real gem of the day was “ Nobody’s Perfect: Billy Wilder – A Personal Autobiography” by Charlotte Chandler. I have always admired the films of Billy Wilder and this book offers a great look at both the man and his work. “‘Nobody’s perfect’ is the line that most sums up my work,” Billy Wilder told writer Charlotte Chandler. “There is no comedy, no drama about perfect people.” I haven’t finished reading it yet, and suspect I’ll want to read it again after I’m done. By the way, that line is from the end of “Some Like It Hot”. According to the book, it was the tortured last line in the screenplay, spoken by Joe E. Brown, in his role of Osgood Fielding III. Neither Wilder nor his co-writer and close friend I.A.L. “Iz” Diamond could think of an ending for the script. Under pressure they liked that and said that they would fix the script after production got under way. They never did, and each of them says that the line was the other’s work. Let’s be glad they didn’t fix it. I can’t imagine the film ending any other way!
I also stopped by the San Francisco Disney Store again to see what things looked like. Not a great deal different then the last time, except for all of the merchandise for “Incredibles”. So far, a good selection of items. We’ll see if they got the message as the shopping season intensifies…
In other Disney merchandise news, how about Disney Pins online? Yes, there is now an official pin sale web page. Hopefully, they will eventually add all of the current pins (rack and some special editions, too?) to the initial offering.
Well, I voted Tuesday and I hope that you all did, too. Expecting the outcome, I went home and popped DVD in the player for the evening to avoid the television networks and their own brand of entertainment. “ Robin Williams Live On Broadway” was just the ticket to keep me laughing. I think we’re all gonna need a good sense of humor for the next few years, and this is a great start.
And joining the crowd, here’s my own Café Press store with a few goodies I hope you’ll enjoy!
Who know what the next week will bring? Tune in next Friday and see what the fates have in store. That or whatever topics I can find to share with you here!
Thanks again to everyone for your support of the American Red Cross. It’s great to know that your help makes their efforts go that much further when folks in trouble need assistance.
And if you’re in a generous and or appreciative mood, drop me a buck or two using the Paypal Donation Box or the Amazon Honor System links from my bio page here! I’m putting it to good use, honest!