When Toy Story 3 was announced to the wider world thanks to that little teaser before Up, a lot of people groaned. I don't know of a single person who hates either of the Toy Story films, and I don't think it's too mushy to say that they hold a pretty special place in everybody's heart. You don't want to see that watered down and exploited.

Thankfully, it's PIXAR at the helm rather than sequel-squeezing Disney, and they assure everyone that the third installment will actually bring closure to the series. SciFi Wire caught up with animator Angus MacLane at the Saturn Awards (he was responsible for Burn-E, and has been with Pixar since Toy Story 2 where he created the crazy Buzz clone), and he spilled a few secrets on the newest adventures of Buzz and Woody. To the surprise of no one that saw Up, their final installment will be a bittersweet one. Lee Unkrich will be directing, and the storyline will center on Andy leaving for college.

"I feel like we've grown up making these movies, and each of the films represents where the filmmakers were at the time of making the films," MacLane said. "Certainly we're approaching this film 10 years later, so I think we're sort of coming at it from the standpoint of [Andy] has grown up, and we've grown up with these toys, and we have a reverence for them, but we also have different things as a priority." In other words, you should start stocking up on Kleenex now, and prepare to feel old and tired when you leave the theater.

If the summer movie season wasn't originally designed for guys, it's certainly been appropriated by them, both in theaters and behind the camera. Where the hottest months of the year once served as an even playing field for films of all kinds, they now operate with one edict in mind, bigger is always better, unless you're a shrewd enough filmmaker to find an opening and exploit it with a clever bit of counter-programming. Anne Fletcher hopes to be the exception that proves this rule with the release of The Proposal (which took the number one spot at the box office this past weekend with $34 million) a romantic comedy starring Sandra Bullock. And while there's only two action scenes, one involving falling off of a boat and another about surviving a face-to-crotch attack by an overeager amateur stripper, the film seems poised to capture at least as many female hearts as its competition does male ones.

Cinematical recently spoke to Fletcher via telephone to discuss her work on the film, which is her third directorial effort after the original Step Up and last year's 27 Dresses, in addition to talking about taking a film straight into summer's heart of darkness, she reflects on what if anything her gender means to the movies she makes, and speaks about an early '80s Spielberg movie that still proves inspirational (and it's none of the ones you might think).

I love watching Sandra Bullock, who is enjoyable even in the lamest of films. And sadly, there are so many lame movies starring Bullock, and so few that I would enjoy watching more than once -- Infamous is a rare exception. After I saw Speed, I said that I thought Bullock could be this generation's Carole Lombard, but unfortunately the actress has not yet found her Howard Hawks or Ernst Lubitsch. The Proposal is yet another Bullock-starring formulaic romantic comedy with little to offer except sparkling performances, and not just from Bullock.

Margaret Tate (Bullock) is the terror of the Manhattan publishing office where she's editor-in-chief, and even her charming assistant Andrew (Ryan Reynolds) is scared of her. Her Achilles heel turns out to be that she's ... Canadian, and she's about to be deported for a year due to some visa problems. So Margaret hurriedly declares that she's engaged to Andrew, who's American. You don't have to have seen Green Card to guess the rest of the story.

I'm all for creative advertising, but sometimes it blows my mind to see the stuff these giant firms approve of. Like have you seen that Heineken commercial where the kids are all singing in the cab and then the words "Let a stranger drive you home" appear on the screen. Yeah, that's exactly what I want to do Mr. Heineken -- I want to get trashed and let a total stranger drive me home. Thanks for the wonderful advice.

And then there's these ads featuring Disney characters that don't seem to make a whole lot of sense. Super Punch noticed them on the M&C Saatchi site labeled Travel & Tourism, and they apparently come from Buena Vista International. Each ad features a picture with the tagline "Life should be a bit more Disney" -- and I can kinda "get" it for two of the three, but what's up with the one that shows Prince Charming approaching a woman in a burka? Am I missing something here? Do these all make perfect sense to you? And if anyone out there knows what these are advertising, do let us know in the comments.

Check out all three images below.

If it wasn't for Andrew Stanton at the helm of John Carter of Mars, I think the interest might completely bottom out with its casting. ComingSoon had the scoop via Twitter that Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins were set to star, and the rumor became reality in The Hollywood Reporter.

Kitsch will be playing the titular Carter, a Civil War veteran who is transported (via astral projection, leaving his lifeless body behind) to Mars. There he meets the lovely Martian princess Dejah Thoris, wins her hand, rediscovers his own humanity, and rescues Mars. The film is tipped to begin filming in 2010, and they've been scouting Utah for Martian locations.

When Stanton discussed the project earlier this year, he mentioned they wanted an unknown despite the fact Hugh Jackman was tipped as a fan favorite. How odd then that they've managed to recast 2/4 of Jackman's X-Men Origins: Wolverine. THR notes that Jon Hamm and Josh Duhamel also tested for the part, and while I've got nothing against Kitsch (I'm not going to hold Gambit against him), I really wish they had chosen Hamm. An ex-Confederate needs a bit of age and weariness to him instead of being a fresh faced up and comer ... but then again, a lot of Civil War soldiers were ridiculously young when they enlisted, so perhaps Kitsch can play it as disillusioned and old-before-his-time. One can hope ...

Mere days ago I passed on the report that Disney was making The Lone Ranger their priority and pushing back Pirates, which wasn't too surprising since Ranger had a director and Pirates didn't. Well, belay all that, because ComingSoon caught up with Jerry Bruckheimer, who assured Jack Sparrow fans that a fourth installment was just around the corner, and suggested that Ranger had stalled out for the moment.

When it comes to the masked man, there's no hunt for a lead, and Bruckheimer & Co. are essentially waiting to hire a director, and for Disney to hit the gas on the whole thing. Despite all reports, Mike Newell is not attached to the chair because he's still hard at work on Prince of Persia -- and frankly, Disney could be waiting to see how that flies before signing him onto another franchise maker.

But Pirates, well, that's a sure thing. "It's a great franchise for [Disney] and for us, too," Bruckheimer said. "We love the character and Johnny was really excited about coming back to Captain Jack. He certainly is interested in Tonto, but Disney's priority is to get Pirates made first. You never know what's going to happen, but they would like it." Franchise scribes Terry Rossio and Ted Elliott (who are also writing Ranger) are scribbling a script as you read this, one that Bruckheimer promises is "funny" and a "whole new way of going."

Well, we know where we're going -- weighing anchor and heading back to sea instead of riding off into the sunset. As someone who enjoyed the Pirates franchise, I'm pleased we're going back so soon (especially if they get Geoffery Rush back) but it's always deflating when something fresh gets stuck spinning its wheels.

I was just watching Monsters, Inc this past week, and wondering why it belonged to Pixar's no sequel club ... and guess what's in the works now? Dedicated Disney blogger Jim Hill visited this year's Licensing International Expo, and talked to the fine people who were representing Disney and Pixar, and buying up licensing rights.

Reportedly, Pete Docter (fresh off his success with Up) is planning to return to Monstropolis and helm a sequel to his previous Pixar effort, Monsters, Inc. Obviously, story details are shrouded in secrecy, but they've got Cars 2 and Toy Story 3 in the works, it's not much of a stretch to believe they'd revisit Mike and Sully. While it's a delightfully complete film, it's also a wonderful world, and I'd like to go there again.

Hill also reports that Disney is really focusing its efforts on The Lone Ranger, and are hoping to have it in theaters by Summer 2011. As you may remember, Mike Newell was hired to direct, and Johnny Depp is set to play Tonto.
Intent on launching a Ranger franchise, they've pushed back Jack Sparrow's, and are now planning to release the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean installment to a tenative date of Summer 2012. Both franchises offer a dose of Depp, so the Pirates fanbase should be pretty happy with that. Frankly, I'm willing to trade tricorns just to know just who they cast as that masked man ....

It's so hard to get behind Disney and their treatment of Winnie the Pooh. I've always enjoyed their The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, even if it did steer away from A.A. Milne's original illustrations. It's sweet, and it kept the book's conversation between Pooh and Christopher Robin about growing up. That scene can melt even the hardest and blackest heart.

But they have sold him out shamefully since then. They've slapped him on every single item of merchandise they could (he's the world's second-largest licensed character franchise -- he falls behind Mickey Mouse), churned out bad stories like Pooh's Heffalump Movie, and treated the A.A. Milne estate horribly. No money goes towards maintaining England's 100 Aker Wood or Pooh Corner, an act that has left a lot of really bad blood. (By the way, if you are ever in England, go down to east Sussex. You can play Poohsticks on the real bridge and buy pots of honey. You won't ever regret it.)

Now, according to The Hollywood Reporter, it's set to begin all over again. Disney has announced plans for a new Winnie the Pooh movie in Spring 2011, despite the commercial and critical failure of Heffalump. There's no further detail as to what the film will center on, but I imagine it'll be another original story that has little in common with Milne, and will make sane people wince at the sight of the chubby yellow bear. Poor Pooh. At least he's kept nice and simple in Sussex.

Aside from Star Trek, I've been rather unimpressed with the summer of '09 thus far, which is why this weekend couldn't pop up at a better time. Today marks the arrival of two (very different) wide releases, and each one of 'em is better than Wolverine, Angels & Demons, and Terminator 4 combined.

The first flick is, of course, Up, which comes from the stunningly reliable Pixar crew and was just reviewed by our own Jette K. right here. I won't steal her thunder, as her review is quite good, but I will say this: Up is one of the strangest, sweetest, warmest, and funniest animated films I've ever seen. The kiddies will lap up every single frame, obviously, but I suspect the film will strike its strongest chord with the grown-ups of the audience. About as close to perfect as a family film can get, Up is (easily) one of the best movies of the year.

And you just know an animated flick is good if I focus on it before I even get into a new horror movie! From Sam Raimi no less! Yes, after you're done flying high from Up, you're going to adore that sinking feeling once Raimi starts dragging you through his old stomping grounds. Drag Me to Hell is a straightforward but deliciously twisted morality play in which a frantic young woman tries desperately to rid herself of a gypsy curse. It's like a campfire tale combined with one of the better Tales from the Crypt episodes. (Check out the review by Peter M.)

So yeah: For the first weekend in many a month, I offer one simple suggestion: the double feature. Most theater chains offer cheaper tickets for the pre-noon screenings. Start movie one right there and you'll still have plenty of day left with which to go home and watch DVDs. Like a Pixar classic or Evil Dead 2.

I'm a little annoyed with Up right now, because it made me cry in the first 10 minutes. Crying at the end of a movie is easier to hide -- you can mutter about allergies or how too much computer time makes your eyes red. But crying at the beginning of the movie makes you feel like an awfully sappy wuss. Thank goodness I had big ol' 3-D glasses on, which at least managed to hide any telltale traces of weakness ... until I cried again at the end, damn it.

Up is the latest film from Pixar, and this time the main character is not a robot or rat or monster, but rather a little old man who looks like Spencer Tracy and occasionally growls like Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino. After his wife dies, Carl Fredericksen (Ed Asner) faces a lonely life ahead, possibly in a retirement community. He decides to have the adventure that he and his wife always dreamed of, and sets out for the quasi-legendary Paradise Falls in South America. His method of travel? The family home, lifted by an amazing canopy of balloons. However, he isn't alone ... he's inadvertently picked up an enthusiastic 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer, Russell (Jordan Nagai), who only wants to help.