Plots and Stuff

Hey there space rangers!

[Jim Hill Media] posts some 'spoilers' (more like the info you'd find on the back of the dvd covers) for several new animated films coming out.

First up, there's Meet the Robinsons - Walt Disney Feature Animation's next film:

"Meet the Robinsons"
Release Date: March 30, 2007

"Meet the Robinsons" is about Lewis -- a brilliant twelve-year-old with a surprising number of clever inventions to his credit. His latest and most ambitious project is the Memory Scanner, a machine that will help him find his birth mother so that they can then become a family. But before he can find her, his invention is stolen by the dastardly Bowler Hat Guy and his diabolical hat -- and constant companion -- Doris. Lewis has all but given up hope in his future when a mysterious boy named Wilbur Robinson whisks our bewildered hero away in a time machine and the two travel forward in time to spend a day with Wilbur's eccentric family. In a world filled with flying cars and floating cities, they hunt down Bowler Hat Guy, save the future and uncover the amazing secret of the Robinson family. Based on the book "A Day with Wilbur Robinson" by William Joyce.

Then there's Enchanted, being worked on by several studios (?), but primarily by James Baxter's Animation studio (correct me if I'm wrong)

"Enchanted"
Release Date: November 2, 2007

A classic Disney animated fairy tale meets with the modern, live-action romantic comedy in Walt Disney Pictures' "Enchanted." Featuring an all-star cast, the film follows the beautiful princess Giselle (Amy Adams) as she is banished by an evil queen (Susan Sarandon) from her magical, musical animated land and find herself in the gritty reality of the streets of modern day Manhattan. Shocked by this strange new environment that doesn't operate on a "happily ever after" basis, Giselle is now adrift in a chaotic world badly in need of enchantment. But when Giselle begins falling in love with a charmingly flawed divorce lawyer (Patrick Dempsey) who has come to her aid-- even though she is already promised to a perfect fairy tale prince (James Marsden) back home -- she has to wonder: can a storybook view of romance survive in the real world?

*Vomit*

And finally, Ratatouille, Pixar's next film:

"Ratatouille"
Release Date: June 29, 2007

Pixar, the creators of "Finding Nemo," "The Incredibles" and "Cars" now cook up "Ratatouille," a delicious new animated-adventure centering on an ambitious French Rat named Remy who dreams of becoming a great chef. Because of his passion for cooking, Remy accidentally uproots his family from the French countryside to the sewers of Paris, and finds himself ideally situated beneath a restaurant made famous by his culinary hero, Auguste Gusteau. When Remy helps create a soup that wins rave reviews from the world's most powerful food critic, he sets in motion a hilarious and exciting rat race that wreaks havoc on the entire city, allowing him to achieve the impossible and pursue his true gift. The screenplay, written by Academy Award-winning Brad Bird ("The Incredibles"), is flavored with a colorful cast of characters and exquisite French backdrops making "Ratatouille" a tantalizing recipe of imaginative fun and unexpected delight.

Apparently the voice of Remy from the trailer is none other than comic Patton Oswalt, and the chef will be played by Brad Garrett. Oh ya, and the imdb.com Ratatouille page says that John Ratzenberger is going to be a voice in the film. Surprised? One thing about the quote (other than the fact that Ratatouille is spelt wrong (I fixed it in this post) is that I believe that at least the story concept was by Jan Pinkava. Perhaps the screenplay is by Brad Bird, but I haven't had any indication that he was anything other than director on this film.

Follow that link if you want to see the synopsis for the third Pirates of the Caribbean movie, which I have little interest in.

Just out of interest, the Tag Blog posts an estimate that there are around 3500-6000 people working in the animation and gaming industry in Southern California.

Check out this film, Fairy Berry. It's got some pretty interesting visuals for a 3d film. I think it's by the folks at the french school EESA (Ecole Européenne Supérieure d’Animation).

Ok, so I know I'm gonna be called a geek on this one, but I figure it's relatable enough that you guys would be interested in the techie stuff. Engadget posts about how Toshiba has released a new tablet pc. It features an Intel Core Duo Chip, up to 4 Gigs of Ram, an 80 Gig Hard Drive, A Dual-Layer DVD Burner, at 14" Tablet-enabled 1440X900 display, weighs around 6 pounds (ugh!), around 3 hours of battery life (ew!), has wi-fi and bluetooth, and a 128Meg nVidia Quadro NVS 110M Graphics card. Not available in Canada yet so no idea on specific pricing. This is the best tablet pc that I've seen (Toshiba has two other 'good' models - one that has an integrated graphics card (The Portege M400), and the other that doesn't have a newer core duo chip (The Tecra M4) -both are glaring omissions that I think make them not very good value-wise). I know a few poeple were interested in tablet pcs so I suggest you check this one out (so long as the actual price is reasonable). If you want more detailed specs check here. No actual pictures for it yet I don't think.

Oh yeah, Bill Gates is quitting his job as chief software architect as well. That's it for geekiness today.