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Dreamworks' Rise of the Guardians; Childhood legends as super heroes
Topic Started: Apr 12 2012, 11:02 AM (1,190 Views)
Fjord Mustang
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I Don't Really Look Like This. Usually.

They have Renee Flemming- awesome!
"And now each night, I count the stars.
And each night I get the same number.
And when the stars won't come to be counted,
I count the holes they leave."
— Amiri Baraka (Leroi Jones)

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** Signature art designed by Gumdrop Ch4rms ***
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Walter Roehrich
Terrible Terror
The whole score is now online.

click here
That's just weak songwriting. You wrote a bad song, Petey.
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Sheep32
Newborn
Just watched it today; oh goodness me, I think I just got a lil "Guardian Fever" right now ("Obsession-Mode" peeking out a bit, shoots). I find it as nice as HTTYD in my opinion.
(Not really active now due to test week coming up; immediate hols after I'm done with my last test)
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Fjord Mustang
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I Don't Really Look Like This. Usually.

Mmmm.. I have to say I did really like this movie. It related to the vibes of me that loves films like Watership Down , The Iron Giant and Spirited Away as well as How to train Your Dragon . I have to admit it is more like HTTYD in emotion and animation style rather than story- the storyline is not at all like HTTYD, but its emotional core and the artistic beauty of the animation is on par equal. I felt deeper with HTTYD, but this movie really came close to evoking the spirit and magic of HTTYD-- and in a few scenes even surpassed it (but only a few scenes BDrewq )


Critics have given it mixed reviews because it is so bizarre and different from most animated holiday movies, and it is a whole. whole lot darker and scarier than what most US critics of animated movies like. It's very edgy, with very bad-ass and gritty portrayals of Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman and the Easter Bunny (and the Easter Bunny totally channels an Australian version of Watership Down's Bigwig.) I would not have expected it, but this is a darker and scarier movie than HTTYD, but I think that works in its favor. Pitch is a fearsome bad guy for a reason, and the guardians themselves deal with death and sorrow as a big part of their duty.

As in HTTYD, Roger Deakins did the light effects, and he did them beautifully- in this movie the distinction between light and dark and between sun and moon is very important, as is the distinction between winter and spring.

I loved the quirks of the characters. Santa- known here as North - is a Russian gangster turned good- but he also grew up in the Byzantine empire (like the original St. Nicholas), so his palace is decorated with Byzantine art and colors, and he relies on written Byzantine Greek, not Russian letters, for his kingdom's language. (Like the runes in HTTYD, the Greek letters actually spell out English words if you look at them the right way) I loved that this buff, sword-wielding Santa was quite scary in looks but he has a kindly heart of wonder and a will to protect and help children and other helpless beings. The Easter Bunny is a tough-guy rabbit who doesn't trust Jack Frost, and with good reason. The Sandman is a silent small man who turns out being the most dangerous and powerful of the Guardians. The Tooth Fairy is the brains and intellect of the team, but she's also a hyperactive, obsessive compulsive fairy (and a kind big sister role, too). She and her fairies seem to have a fangirl crush on Jack Frost, but it turns out it's really an obsession over his teeth-- beyond that, she is no doubt the fastest and the smartest of the team-- but she's a silly geek, too. It's a nice change from movie fairies being portrayed as perfect and cutesy. She is competent, she can fight and she is the brains of the team-- but she's also a hyperactive nerd, too. I love it.

As for Jack Frost who seems to get most of the love in the DA fangirl community, I dreaded Dreamwokrs would make him into an Edward Cullen-type: broody, snarky, rude, emo guy who defies everyone and proves to the elders that he was right all along. But instead he is more like like the Marvel Comics teleporting demon Nightcrawler-- Jack could could have been dark, but he is rather a happy and even kind hearted acrobat who loves life and loves practical jokes, though he is a lonely youth who seeks a deeper purpose in life. . And I loved that his greatest strength as a warrior came from a very unexpected source in his personality- one totally at odds with most Hollywood movie superheroes.

The animation is really beautiful. I loved how HTTYD brought the North Atlantic islands to life. This movie brings scenes around the globe to life, but most of the action takes place in a rural village in New England over several hundred years. The Dreamworks crew went all out to really make New England rural villages evoke the beauty and magic folklore that they are known for among the locals in their folk tales. The movie does not say so, but I gathered from a few license plate and scenery clues, most of the story takes place in Vermont. It was so awesome for me to see historical and modern New England where I now live being shown as the setting for a Dreamworks animated film! T

Overall, the movie was strange but gorgeous. Keep an open eye on the Dreamworks logo at the beginning. It was a clever way to put an identity on the Moon Fisher.

The opening scene of the movie was one of the most moving and mystical scenes I have seen in animation. It entailed the birth of an elemental spirit, a moment of sense of confusion and loss for the newborn spirit, but also joy at being given the gift of life, pulled from fear and darkness into a new life of light and magic. Most of this scene done without words, and it felt to me a highly spiritual moment without religion being mentioned. The scene ties into a later scene in the film, one that evoked the same feelings for me as "Where's Hiccup" when Hiccup discovered he lost his leg. These moments are very different from each other but they evoke the same feeling of heartbreak and loss. Characters gaided gained wisdom and a sense of destiny, but they both had to take a permanent loss physically to gain that widsom.

On the downside: I thought the name of the movie was terrible. I don't know why Hollywood insists on renaming movies in misleading ways. I think many people got the idea this was a sequel to Legend of the Guardians . Maybe they were trying to make it more like "Avengers Assemble"

Also many of the action fight scenes are done at a breakneck and can be hard to follow. It provides a sense of realism that actual fighting is often very confusing.

Anyway, the critics don't seem to get this film unless they are from a less cynical and more sci fi background. I still say, it's a film worth checking out, as are the books on which it was based. But you have to be someone who sees weird can be wonderful if it's presented in a meaningful way.
Edited by Fjord Mustang, Nov 26 2012, 10:55 AM.
"And now each night, I count the stars.
And each night I get the same number.
And when the stars won't come to be counted,
I count the holes they leave."
— Amiri Baraka (Leroi Jones)

Posted Image

** Signature art designed by Gumdrop Ch4rms ***
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Night Fury
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Thanks for the great review, Fjord.

I am ashamed to say that I haven't caught this film yet, though I definitely want to. I think the critics put a lot of people of it, and the Box Office really suffered for it.

I have noticed that this film is challenging HTTYD as a favourite of the dA-sphere.
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Tasermon's Partner


Night Fury
Jan 15 2013, 05:31 PM
I have noticed that this film is challenging HTTYD as a favourite of the dA-sphere.
It's already beat out HTTYD on FanFiction.net, and HTTYD had a nearly 3-year head start. :o

On a somewhat related and odd note, the film "Newsies" has them both beat. o.Oa
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Celestra
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Fledgling
I really enjoyed this film, it was whimsical and gorgeously animated. I am eagerly waiting to get the art book for it in the mail (though probably not for another month or two... curses, Amazon).
"What you feel is what you are and what you are is beautiful" -Goo Goo Dolls, "Slide"

"If nothing else I am myself, it’s all I have to give" -Third Eye Blind, "Bonfire"


"Heaven’s not a place that you go when you die, it’s that moment in life when you actually feel alive" -The Spill Canvas, "The Tide"
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Anhedral
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Night Fury
Ah, another fan of 'The Art Of...' books. You're right, the availability and pricing is all over the place; I assume this is because of small print runs? The HTTYD one is very good and is now reduced price in the UK. I also got the one for 'Brave', mainly to see how they created the Scottish landscapes.
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Celestra
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Fledgling
Still awaiting, sigh.

Yes, I have the HTTYD one, the Tangled one, and the Brave one, though I haven't finished poring over that one yet. Actually, I ordered the Brave one and the RotG one together, but they shipped the Brave one first because of whatever issues they're having with stocking/printing/etc.
"What you feel is what you are and what you are is beautiful" -Goo Goo Dolls, "Slide"

"If nothing else I am myself, it’s all I have to give" -Third Eye Blind, "Bonfire"


"Heaven’s not a place that you go when you die, it’s that moment in life when you actually feel alive" -The Spill Canvas, "The Tide"
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Astrid Goes For A Spin
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This was overall a pretty good movie...I resent that it has more popularity than HTTYD, though. Alexandre Desplat did a good job on the score, but there was only one moment when I really stopped and liked the way the music fit. (Everyone loves the sleigh.)

It also had a bit of a "done before" vibe as well...the way Pitch spoke (and his robe) reminded me a lot of Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort.

Jack Frost, too, was a little unexpected. I enjoyed his character as a whole - but the voice actor nearly killed me. He has such a childish face - and acts like a younger teenage boy - and such a deep, deep voice. It didn't fit at all!

In my opinion, they made him very intriguing (unexpected depths), although he reminded me a LOT of Aang. (His weapon is a staff (although he is most likely left handed, leading with his left), he does quite a bit of similar acrobatics, and whips out that Avatar-state-like frost explosion (it's even blue) in the middle.)

The movie's animation was amazing, but the plot was sub-par. It didn't follow through (why would Jamie be the ONLY PERSON LEFT ON EARTH who believes? He has no "outstanding" qualities, yet somehow can magically transform the nightmare dreamsand....) and the climax was nowhere near as exciting as the middle.

There were only a few good visual jokes, sadly. It hit me toward the end that this really wasn't what I was expecting - where I could enjoy the entire movie. I only liked a few parts, and really didn't care enough about any of the characters except Jack.

How could this possibly get a thousand more fanfictions?!
No one has ever killed a Night Fury - that's why I'm going to be the first.
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