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09-13-2006, 01:54 PM
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ANIMATED SHORTS 292: EVERYONE’S HERO
 ADULT SWIM’S SCHEDULE & MORE by Steve Fritz The last thing I’m going to do is damn Everyone’s Hero for lack of good intentions. By now the hype machine has made sure everyone knows the story about who worked on it, the late Dana and Christopher Reeve. I’m also not going to dump on the powers that be at Fox/IDT over trying to stake out relatively new terrain in the animation field. After all, I can’t think of a single animated theatrical about baseball since Friz Freling did his epic short Baseball Bugs, and that was 1946. This movie is definitely going for the heartstrings. Does it succeed? Somewhat. Is it a G movie I could take a kid to? Sure. Yet like a lot of films of this ilk, sometimes it has a hard time discerning the message from the hype, and the heavyhandedness gets in the way. For instance, consider this: “I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles,” is the opening statement on the press kit, from the now saintly Mr. Reeve. “They are the real heroes, and so are the families and friends who have stood by them.” So how about a little background. As everyone probably now knows from the commercials, Everyone’s Hero is a tale of Depression-era scrapper Yankee Irving (voiced by Jake T. Austin). If that sounds familiar, it’s because that’s the name of the kids book the film is based on. The author is also the founder and chairman of IDT, Howard Jonas. “I had been telling the story of Yankee Irving to my kids for years. It was one of their favorites,” says Jonas. “They just loved how the family stuck together and how a young boy could overcome all sorts of obstacles to become a hero to his family. One day, I told the story to our creative executives and everyone thought it would be a great film.” There are the basics of a very good story here. Young Yankee lives in New York City in 1932. He’s named after the baseball team, where his father (Mandy Patinkin) happens to be a security guard. The boy’s biggest problem at the beginning of the film? He can’t hit to save his life, even with the aid of a talking baseball named Screwy (Rob Reiner).  When Babe Ruth’s bat Darlin’ (Whoopie Goldberg) is stolen by Lefty (William H. Macy) a pitcher for the National League Champs, the ChicagoCubs. Yankee’s dad is blamed. Yankee sets out to retrieve the bat and save his father’s destroyed reputation. Along the way he is aided and abetted by a girl named Marti (Raven-Symone) who can throw a mean apple. If that isn’t enough pressure, can he get the bat back in time for the Babe (Brian Denehee) to make that one incredible moment of baseball history where he called the shot? Of course he will. This is a family movie. Apparently, Jonas thought having Reeve direct the film would be more than just a marketing hook. “I always knew I wanted to bring in the biggest hero I could think of to direct,” Jonas says. “To me, there is no bigger hero than Christopher Reeve.” So Jonas hooked up with the man, leaving him with the manuscript “Apparently that night, Christopher’s son Will had picked up the story and started reading it,” Jonas recalls. “When Dana called everyone for dinner, Will said he couldn’t come down because he was in the middle of reading a great story. After he was done, Dana read it to Christopher. The next morning, we had a phone call and he agreed to do the movie.” They didn’t just get Christopher, they also got Dana in as an Executive Producer. 20th Century Fox agreed to distribute. In the years it takes to produce an animated feature, no one expected BOTH Reeves to succumb to their own particular maladies. As cynical as Hollywood is, it’s not that gross. Still, when Christopher’s health began to go, IDT did the right thing and hired two strong animation veterans to help direct, technical wizard Daniel St. Pierre (whose background includes Disney and DreamWorks) and character designer Colin Brady (ILM and Pixar). “I knew Dan when we both worked at Disney,” Janet Healy, IDT’s president of animation explains. “I was heading up the use of computer graphics in the traditional movies and he was the fellow who was pushing for the use of painterly artwork in 2-D animation. So, Tarzan was the first time we started to work together. He oversaw what was one of the biggest selling points of Tarzan, which was deep canvas, the moving shots through the brush strokes. After we both left Disney, we went to DreamWorks. I was the producer on Shark Tale and I hired him as the production designer. I knew he was a visionary in our industry for movies that had great camerawork and a great look. I came to IDT after Shark Tale and the movie was underway in Toronto but, after Chris’ death, not really finding its way. That’s when I brought Dan in.”  “It’s because there are so many places to be at one time, so many departments to oversee and so many tasks, it’s really hard for one person to do it alone. We started looking for a partner for Dan, knowing that Dan comes from production design and from layout; we knew that we had the look of the movie in really great hands, and knowing that Dan is a really great storyteller, we felt really good there too. So, we were looking for someone to complement him, someone who had an animation background. One of our favorite movies is Toy Story II and one of the people who really shaped that film in a big way was Colin Brady. Dan met with Colin and they just seemed like they were a good team. They’re both funny and smart about the choices they make as directors. Between them, they have very strong specialties and they are both the full package.”Honestly, Brady and St. Pierre don’t do a bad job. On an animation level, Everyday Hero is not that far behind a Pixar. Brady is a good personality animator and St. Pierre does come up with solid action and backdrops. So this film will definitely not be that hard on the eye. My main reservation on the film is the story. It has a strong tendency to go for the LCD more than I like it too. The humor and anything involving “life lessons” or Screwy and Darlin’ feels forced and mawkish. When the film decides not to take itself that seriously, it has its moments, particularly whenever Macy shows up. But I’m still not going to dump to hard on this film. First and foremost, I’m a diehard baseball fan whose dad did brick and mortar work on Shea Stadium (so guess what team I root for). There were times when the fan in me had a nice giggle, such as hiring Joe Torre to voice the manager of the Yankees. Also, Jake Austin (whose regular gig is Go! Diego! Go!) and Disney vet Raven-Symone, are the real animation vets in the cast, do highly credible jobs. So all I can finally say is if you want to take your kids to a movie that will more than likely entertain them, by all means go to this one. It won’t be a bad one for them. Just remember I’m not going to go to hard on this one. Just call me a sucker for good intentions. ADULT SWIM FLOODS US WITH NEW PROGRAMMING Bleach and Trinity Blood are just the first drops. Adult Swim will be opening up the gates and hitting us with a flood of new material over the next month-plus. Here’s a quick lowdown of things to come (all times eastern): • Robot Chicken: Starting this Sunday, that douche Seth Green and those ex-Wizard guys start the second half of their second season with all new episodes. The first features just what the aliens through when E.T. did get home, a little girl who finds Pegasus and goes Misery on her and the series’ plans for mass merchandising. 11:30 p.m. • Squidbillies: Them North Georgia invertebrates also return this Sunday with more liquored up, gun-totin’ rage, racin’ an’ racism. Guaranteed to offend everyone at one point or another. Midnight. • 12 oz. Mouse: Speaking of offensive, like the vermin it portrays Matt Maiellaro’s mouse with a Magnum continues its forays into dirt cheap animation, cheaper booze and less plot. Second season starts on September 24-5; 12:45 a.m. • Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law: The latest season starts off in a big way, with Mentok being sued by Shazzan (voiced by Maurice LaMarche, no less). The notes promise two unnamed characters are going to die, just like that. For who, we’ll just have to wait and see. Still one of the best creations by Michael Ouweleen. October 1-2, 12:15 a.m. • Frisky Dingo: Just when you thought there couldn’t be another way to skewer superheroes, Adult Swim finds a new angle. Awesome X is a combination Batman/Nick Fury whose alter ego makes millions licensing X merchandise. Killface is your typical psychopathic supervillain who also has to worry about rising health insurance premiums, media buys, the cost of propelling the Earth into the Sun and other sundry items. When the two hook up it’s marketing heaven. The creation of former Sealab alumni Mat Thompson and Adam Reed, this series will do to spandex what the Hurricane Katrina did to New Orleans. You’ve been warned. October 15; 12:30 a.m. • Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Those fried and brain frozen food products return for another season with ten new episodes. No previews available as of press time, but AS/ATHF fans should have no problems with this anyway. It’s still some of Maeillaro and Dave Willis’ best work. October 22, 10:30 p.m. Still no official word on the movie. • Moral Orel: The little boy who’s interpretations of church dogma that can only be interpreted as highly creative returns on November 12, 12:15 a.m. with more radical interpretations of the Good Book. Just what gets maimed, murdered and whatever else done to it is yet to be known. FUNimation Channel Doubles Programming FUNimation Entertainment announced it doubled the content on its syndicated anime block to four hours. CoLours TV Network, available nationwide as part of DISH Network's basic satellite TV package, is the first broadcaster to pick up the extended block. The new block covers key prime time programming slots and will launch on September 11, 2006. "Based on strong fan feedback and network partner response, we are pleased to announce that the FUNimation Channel syndicated anime block will double from two hours to four hours," said Gen Fukunaga, president and CEO of FUNimation Entertainment. "Once again this is outstanding news for anime and entertainment fans in the United States as we continue to offer new and exciting programming to a growing number of households." "We are excited about expanding our line-up schedule with programming content that is in great demand by our urban, savvy viewers", said Tracy Winchester, President and CEO of CoLours TV. The new extended block will feature uncut episodes from such fan favorites as Yu Yu Hakusho, The Slayers, and Negima, which was voted as one of the top four best anime series by fans in Japan. ILLUMITOON PARTNERS WITH WESTLAKE Illumitoon Entertainment, Ltd. announced today that it will be utilizing Westlake Entertainment Inc. for home video distribution on its new acquisitions, including Beet the Vandel Buster and AM Driver. The announcement comes on the heels of Westlake Entertainment’s announcement of the company’s repositioning in the marketplace to release first-run features, including theatrical and new title acquisitions in other key core categories. “Westlake is a strong strategic partner for Illumitoon and we look forward to a strong launch together,” said Barry Watson, President/CEO of Illumitoon. “Westlake brings considerable home video experience including a high level of anime sales and marketing experience and shares our vision for the product.” Tony Vandeveerdonk, VP of Sales for the new Westlake and formerly with Pioneer (now Geneon) and FUNimation states, “Illumitoon is bringing the anime category exciting new brands and content as well as a clear direction for repositioning the product in new and innovative ways. We feel the timing is perfect for Illumitoon's entrance into the anime marketplace. We’re very excited to include them with our other premium content.” The new Illumitoon releases are initially planned to street as early as January, 2007. “We’re already in production, and are gearing up for a strong production pace,” commented Watson. NEXT COLUMN: It’s another Special Edition coming at you this Friday. We interview WB producer Glen Murakami on Teen Titans: Trouble In Tokyo, which will make its Cartoon Network debut Friday, September 15, at 7:30 p.m.. |
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09-13-2006, 02:57 PM
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#2 |
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New ATHF and Birdman!!!!
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09-13-2006, 03:00 PM
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I've got Dish Network. I've found the CoLours channel. But I'll be damned if I've ever seen any anime on it.
That, and the fact that it's like channel 9756, or some such number... |
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09-13-2006, 03:04 PM
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SM - I have Direct TV, which unfortunately doesn't have CoLours. My best suggestion is to go to FUNimation's site and tell them. They're pretty responsive over there. -s |
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09-13-2006, 03:40 PM
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Oops.
I had no idea the Reeves had a hand in Everyone's Hero until reading this article.
Ha!  |
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09-13-2006, 04:14 PM
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09-13-2006, 05:15 PM
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What do these three Shows have in Common? Answer: They are all Crap. |
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09-13-2006, 06:08 PM
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CoLours show anime everday from 8 - 12 on channel 9407 for me over here on the esat coast. |
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09-13-2006, 09:00 PM
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What about the Disney Casey at the Bat shorts? When were they released?
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09-13-2006, 10:46 PM
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Oddly enough, the Casey At The Bat short also came out in 1946...but BEFORE Baseball Bugs by a few months. I wouldn't be surprised if the Termite Terrace guys saw the Disney short and then decided to spoof on it. -s |
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09-14-2006, 12:11 AM
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09-14-2006, 01:01 AM
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funny how a yankee propaganda movie opens in october when they seem to be charging forward toward the playoffs yet again after looking dead.
"2 of our star players are hurt, but they'll come back in time for september!" "hey we want a star player, would you please take these 4 minor leaguers noones heard of and have no potential? YES? THANKS!" evil empire indeed. propaganda indeed. |
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09-14-2006, 02:09 AM
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Hey...that's Major League Baseball for you....and this is from a die hard Mets fan. On the other hand, take solace in hearing that it seems the Yankees are actualy LOSING money. Even they can't afford a $200+ million payroll. Or to put that in animation terms, with the Yankees payroll, you can finance TEN seasons of Avatar or a Pixar movie, and still have change. Now that's ill. -s |
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09-14-2006, 09:23 AM
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Except for AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE and SQUIDBILLIES, you're absolutely correct. |
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09-14-2006, 08:15 PM
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I'm pretty sure it exists. My random imagination rarely provides baseball themed daydreams. |
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09-14-2006, 09:49 PM
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Well...saw no mention of it at the IMDB. And I didnt remember seeing the sequel myself...so I checked Leonard Maltin's Of Mice & Magic. In the year 1954 there's a listing for "Casey Bats Again." Think that's it? Sounds like it. It was directed by Jack McKinney. All I can now say is your memory for obscure 'toons just trumped mine, sir. -s |
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09-15-2006, 12:36 PM
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#17 | |
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The occasional obscure 'toon knowledge (thank you for the compliment, sir) comes from having a grandpa who would fill a whole VHS tape with the Disney channel back in the mid '80s. It was his way of showing he cared. |
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09-15-2006, 12:43 PM
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#18 | |
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Now that's a great gramps. The best I could do was get my uncle to sit and watch Rocky & Bullwinkle with me (which he liked). -s |
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09-15-2006, 01:07 PM
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The Edgar Burgan part of Fun and Fancy Free was one of the funniest things I ever watched. When he narrated the opening to Mickey and the Beanstalk and said, "All was misery, misery, misery." and Charlie McCarthy said, "Just like the eighth grade." my brothers and I would laugh so hard we couldn't breath. (That movie was where I learned what dry rot was, thanks to Mortimer Snerd.) I wish the Disney channel still played the old shorts and chunks of old movies. Those tapes were the first place I saw bits of Fantasia, which is my all time favorite movie. Now I'm feeling wistful, but in a good way. |
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