After Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Disney’s Fantasia, from 1940, was quite possibly the studio’s riskiest and definitely their most experimental film. Before 1938, the idea of animated feature was unheard of. The thought that a story could be created, and cartoon characters could be involving enough to carry an entire full length film…
Tag: animated
Star Trek: The Original Series (1969) & The Animated Series (1973) – Turnabout Intruder and Beyond the Farthest Star
Captain’s log: stardate 5928.5 The last live action television episode chronicling the adventures of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Science Officer Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and Dr. Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley) is a bit of a mixed bag. It was the first time someone else besides Shatner played Kirk, but the story itself sure could…
La Belle et la Bete (1946) – Jean Cocteau
The Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book returns me to the Science Fiction and Fantasy genre, and this time, it’s to plunge me into this wonderfully imagined fairy tale. Long before Disney retold the story, first in animated format, then a stage musical, and then in a live action film, French director Cocteau…
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984) -Hayao Miyazaki
The next stop in the Sci-Fi Chronicles book is a long overdue check-in with Miyazaki, the famed writer/director who has envisioned so many incredible tales. This time around, it’s Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. I didn’t have access to a subtitled version, so I went with the English dubbed (subtitle is ALWAYS the…
Superman: The Animated Series (1997) – The Prometheon, Speed Demons and Livewire
Superman (Tim Daly) finds more trouble in outer space this week as he encounters The Prometheon. This episode aired on 12 September, 1997, and features another great voice cast joining Daly’s Superman, and Dana Delaney’s Lois Lane. Superman encounters a giant creature (Frank Welker) bound to an asteroid in space, when it breaks loose it…
The Iron Giant (1999) – Brad Bird
The Sci-Fi Chronicles now brings me Brad Bird’s now classic animated tale of a young boy, Hogarth Hughes (Eli Marienthal) who meets a robot (Vin Diesel) from outer space, and the government agent, Kent Mansley (Christopher McDonald) who is trying to capture them. Set in the late 50s, the film gives adult viewers an…
Batman: The Animated Series (1993) – The Demon’s Quest: Part II, Read My Lips and Fire From Olympus
The first epic season of Warner Brother’s fantastic animated series comes to a close this week. We pick up from last week’s post, with the conclusion of The Demon’s Quest, which aired on 4 May, 1993. Talia’s (Helen Slater) life hangs in the balance as it opens and Batman (Kevin Conroy) must confront Ra’s…
Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) – Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise
Michael J. Fox, Disney and Joss Whedon, sounds good to me! The next film in the Sci-Fi Chronicles book for me to take a look at is this animated film that saw Joss being one of the writers who contributed to the story that tells what happened to the original inhabitants of Atlantis, and…
Astro Boy (2009) – David Bowers
The Sci-Fi Chronicles book has been a lot of fun so far, and it’s also introduced me to a lot of things I was aware of, but had never seen. Astro Boy is a prime example, I have been aware of Osamu Tezuka’s manga for a long time, I’ve always recognized the character, but never…
Tarzan (1999) – Chris Buck & Kevin Lima
It’s Disney’s turn to take on the classic Edgar Rice Burroughs’ character of Tarzan as I continue my exploration in the highly addictive Sci-Fi Chronicles book. Tony Goldwyn lends his voice to the animated film, along with a star-studded ensemble including Lance Henriksen, Minnie Driver, Brian Blessed, Glenn Close Wayne Knight and Rosie O’Donnell. This…
The Mind Reels 