Zambezia

There is great Animation (Turbo) and there is good animation (Epic) and there is just about average animation.  Zambezia is unfortunately part of the last of the 3.  Just about average. Sometimes, I guess movie houses get it right by not releasing a movie in this part of the world.  But then, why go through the effort in the middle of year after the release? I wonder.

Aladdin

It is so wonderful to watch a movie that was released nearly 20 years back and still feel that it was a timeless work of art. I had watched Aladdin around the time of release itself way back in 1992-93 thanks to my movie addiction (which has still not been cured coincidentally) which started a really long time back. I still remember humming “A whole new world” by Brad Kane and Lea Salonga for the movie and then the single by Peabo Bryson and Regina Belle all through college and how much of a sought after track it used to be. A truly ever green number that deserved every bit of the Oscar that it received that year for Best Song. A pity that Animation movies did not have a separate category at the Oscars till 2001. Aladdin would have been an auto qualifier for the award and would be if it were released even today. Not too many movies in the history of animation have the timeless quality that Aladdin gets to the table. No wonder that Wikipedia calls it out as part of the Disney film era known as the Disney Renaissance.
There are obviously very few of you out there who would not know the story of Aladdin (Scott Weinger) so I really would not waste my time or yours in explaining the gory details. It would suffice to say that Disney has stuck true to the classic Arab tale of the street urchin who stumbles onto a huge treasure, gets conned by an evil wizard, Jafar (Jonathan Freeman) who is also the minister of the Sultan of Agrabah, falls in love with the Sultan’s daughter Jasmine (Linda Larkin) and also gets the services of a wonderful Genie (Robin Williams) along the way.

The casting of Aladdin is simply superb to say the least with the stand out voice casting being that of Robin Williams. If you click on the video link at the end of this review for the trailer you will notice the absolutely fabulous performance from Williams as the Genie. It is outstanding to say the least. I would consider it as probably the best performance in the field of animation to date. The ones that would come close to Robin Williams as the Genie would be Ellen DeGeneres as Dory in Finding Nemo and Jeremy Irons as Scar in Lion King who have voice overs which are fabulous. Even then Robin Williams would be miles ahead. Incomparable to say the least.

Ron Clements & John Musker are something of a made for each other pair in animation movies. They have made only 6 movies between the 2 of them and all of them have been together. How is that for a sense of commitment? I guess we could all learn a thing or two about collaboration from them. However, I would guess Aladdin was their moment of truth and they have not been able to recreate the magic at the same level ever again. Having said that, their future creations have still been miles ahead of the crap that we have seen over the past few years. Needless to say, Aladdin is a fabulous watch and definitely a 8 on 10. Don’t miss out on it. Playing these days on one of the movie channels.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi2421621785/

Gnomeo & Juliet

I am an amateur critic and would probably not understand the finer nuances of animation. But in my not so expert opinion, I think Disney has given us a lovely movie yet again. This time with director Kelly Asbury (Shrek 2; Spirit : Stallion of the Cimaron) they give us an adaptation of a The Bard’s classic and make no bones about it when they start the movie by saying “The story you are about to see has been told – A LOT”. It is definitely just another Romeo and Juliet movie but it is told a bit differently and Disney has ensured that it doesn’t turn out to be insulting to a classic like Rob Letterman did to Gullivers Travels. In fact it is an extremely entertaining animation movie for both adults and kids alike. And rest assured, the kids will totally love it.

In Stratford upon Avon (Shakespeare’s birth place) stay an elderly gentleman by the name of Mr. Capulet (Richard Wilson) and an equally elderly lady called Ms. Montague (Julie Walters). They are forever at loggerheads with each other. But this enmity is not restricted to just them. Even their ceramic garden gnomes come to life when there are no humans around and take the fight way too seriously for their own good. In the Blue corner is a team of gnomes led by Lady Blueberry (Maggie Smith) and her son Gnomeo (James McAvoy) along with their trusted ally Benny (Matt Lucas). In the Red corner is Lord Redbrick (Michael Caine), Tybalt (Jason Statham), Fawn (Ozzy Osbourne) and the extremely cute martial arts expert, Juliet (Emily Blunt). Their fights range from ruining the opponents garden to their favourite “national” pastime – Lawn mower racing. The not so obvious twist in the tale is when Gnomeo meets Juliet and it is love at first sight. Of course they take a few minutes to figure out what they are getting into but as Juliet’s frog nanny – Nanette (Ashley Jensen) puts it – the relationship is DOOMED from day one. And things only get worse when Tybalt decides to raid the Blue Lawns and destroy a flower that Gnomeo’s late father had lovingly planted and the Blue Army had tended to all these years.

A slew of corny one lines and references to Shakespearean classics do not prevent this movie from being great fun to watch. Stuff like Juliet being stuck to her pedestal with the “Taming of the Glue” or the fact that the warring elderly couple stay on Verona Drive or Nanette telling Gnomeo’s pet mushroom “You look like a fun gi”. And it is garnished with Elton John songs from the past 3 decades. The voice overs are excellent. The distinctly identifiable ones are those of Michael Caine, Ozzy Osbourne and surprise surprise Hulk Hogan as the Terrafirminator – the mean lawn mower that sets you back by a 1000 pounds of hard earned money only to cause the complete destruction of the back yards. The resulting product spread over just under 85 mins is a lovely way to spend a weekend afternoon. And it would not matter if you don’t see it in 3D coz the effects are quite bland. A very entertaining flick but on second thoughts, may not make it to the Oscars this year. Guess there were many other animation movies that were better off. I give this a 6 on 10.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi854264089/