Patrick Warburton Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Imagine you're a filmmaker and you've got this cockamamie story about astronaut chimps that just won't go away. You don't have much money, but the story involves lots of technology and outer space effects. What do you do? You could use your imagination and shoot in darkness with lots of odd angles and perspectives, like Mario Bava's sci-fi masterpiece Planet of the Vampires (1965). But that would raise all kinds of questions about how to present the chimps. You could do a hand-drawn animated cartoon, something like Persepolis, for comparatively little money. But that would expose the fact that you really don't have much of an idea. So you decide to make a big, computer-animated film, make it fast, fill it with annoying jokes and hope no one notices how cheap and unfinished it looks. But what you don't do is open it three weeks after the astonishing WALL-E so that everyone notices the difference.

Space Chimps comes from the folks who brought you the universally despised animated film Happily N'Ever After (2006), and although I didn't see the earlier film, I'm told Space Chimps represents something of an improvement. Regardless, everything here has a kind of mechanical sheen rather than organic textures, and it feels like something closer to Tron than a cartoon about monkeys. Then comes the story: Ham (voiced by Andy Samberg) is the grandson of a famous chimp astronaut, who actually went into space. The younger Ham works at the circus, getting himself shot out of cannons. In the film's opening scene, he rockets toward the moon and reaches out for it, disappointed when gravity's pull inevitably begins dragging him back toward Earth.

Cartoons ... For the most part, I am happy to do without them. Sure, I love myself a little Danger Mouse and his trusty assistant Penfold, and I'm still amused by the brief brilliance that was Clone High, but my animated television love is ruled by one show. No, it is not The Simpsons. It is The Venture Brothers.

Really, the fact that one of the show's creators, Jackson Publick, worked on both the animated and live-action offerings of The Tick should be enough. But that's only the tip of the iceberg. In case you're ignorant to the ways of the Ventures ... The show is a spoof of the retro series Jonny Quest, and parodies much more than just father and son Quest -- it takes on media from Indiana Jones and Scooby Doo to that light-saber Internet kid. The show focuses on the Venture family -- super-scientist Dr. Venture, sons Hank and Dean, and his bloody tough and unstoppable bodyguard and reluctant friend, Brock Samson. They are constantly having to deal with a number of dastardly assailants, the most determined being Dr. Venture's arch-enemy -- The Monarch. He's an ineffectual villain who has the heart of Dr. Girlfriend -- a paramour with the body of a goddess and the voice of a fat and hairy henchman. It's just comic gold.

If South Park and The Simpsons get their own feature films, it's about time Hank and Dean's adventures made it to the big screen.

It was over two years ago that we got the first installment of Hoodwinked! It did well enough in its first weekend, making $17 million dollars ($3 mil short of its cost), that #2 was put into the works. Now writer and voice Cory Edwards has been blogging about the second installment, and has listed the cast that Weinstein Co. has put together. Some voices remain, like Glenn Close, David Ogden Stiers, and Andy Dick. Oh, and we can't forget Patrick Warburton -- but it's not like anyone, ever, could replace him.

But there are also some new names to the mix. Red, who was voiced by Anne Hathaway, will now get the invincible hero Hayden Panettiere -- which Edwards says is a good fit because Red becomes "more of a 'caped crusader'" in the film. Meanwhile, James Belushi's The Woodsman will now be voiced by the unstoppable Jack Putter -- Martin Short. You can't really complain about a Short replacement, unless well, he was taking over for a rippling, glistening superhero -- then it would be weird.

But there's also some tasty new vocal talent coming along for the ride. Edwards says Joan Cusack will play a "villainous witch," Brad Garrett is The Giant (of the beanstalk variety), Wayne Newton of all people will be Jimmy Ten Strings -- the Giant's singing harp, David Alan Grier will play a troll, and to top it all off, Amy Poehler and Bill Hader will voice Hansel & Gretel. How's that for an all-star cast?

[via Ace Showbiz]

Here's the biggest problem most folks will have with Bee Movie: It's not Ratatouille. Both films have a lot in common with one another, except the latter is far greater in terms of story, character and overall charm. And if Ratatouille hadn't arrived only a few short months ago, I might have felt differently about Bee Movie. Instead, I walked away feeling a bit jaded, expecting more from a man who had entertained me for so many years on one of my favorite television shows of all time. But that's not to say Bee Movie is a bad film; it will most certainly entertain the youngsters with its colorful, larger-than-life spirit, and there are enough adult-orientated gems scattered throughout to make it worthy of your family's hard-earned cash. But when your kids turn to you and whisper, "I liked the one with the rat better," don't say I never told you so.

If you're not aware of this film by now, then I'd seriously take a look around because you might, quite literally, be living in a bubble. The film is co-written by, produced by and stars the voice of Jerry Seinfeld, and the man has been buzzing "Pssst ... Bee Movie -- pass it on ...) in our ears for months. When he wasn't dressed up in a giant bee costume, hanging from a construction crane in France, he was promoting the film through commercials, television shows. From what I hear, several people claim the man actually entered their dreams at one point to promote Bee Movie. It's been nearly a decade since Seinfeld (the television show) ended, and it might take another 10 years for the man to do something else. Problem is, after Bee Movie, I'm not sure we'd mind.

The Masterson brothers are teaming up for their first feature film together, and whether or not you're a big fan of Christopher's big stint on Malcolm in the Middle, or Danny's on That '70s Show, you might want to check this out. Variety is reporting that the brothers will co-star in a new indie comedy called Made for Each Other, which is currently shooting in Connecticut. The movie is the first feature script by Eric Lord, and is being directed by newcomer Daryl Goldberg, whose first feature Unholy, a direct-to-DVD horror flick starring Nicholas Brendon, will be released next month.

While this might not sound intriguing yet, check out the premise and who they cast for each role. Christopher stars (and is co-producing) as a man who is a mere 3 months into a sexless marriage -- a sexless marriage with Bijou Phillips that is. (Who happens to be Brother Danny's real-life partner.) But it gets better. In a moment of sexual desperation, he breaks down and has a one-night stand. Of course, the only way he thinks he can fix things is to get her to cheat on him. So, he gets his best friend, Samm Levine (Life is Short and Freaks and Geeks), to not sleep with her himself, but find the right man for the job. Now take a second to think of the possibilities. Was The Tick/Brock Sampson/Joe Swanson the guy you were thinking of? That's right -- believe it or not, they pick Patrick Warburton to bed Bijou. Somewhere in all this brouhaha is Danny, who is an attorney waiting to help out with what he figures is a couple destined for divorce. Or, are they Made for Each Other? After Warburton, I can't imagine they would be!

The man who brought us The Addams Family, Get Shorty and Men in Black is leaving live action for a bit to take a test drive in his first bit of animation. The latest news from Variety is that producer/director Barry Sonnenfeld is going to produce an animated comedy called Space Chimps through Vanguard Animation and Starz Media, for 20th Century Fox to distribute. Apparently, production on this movie began last fall, and he was then helping out as a creative consultant. The project was written, and is being directed by, Kirk De Micco (Racing Stripes), and it's simply about a group of astronaut chimps who are on a mission in space -- accompanied by music from Dave Stewart and the Blue Man Group. This news is eh, whatever. It could be cute, it could be Space Jam, it could be terrible, it could be any number of things!

That being said, there's a chance for some sort of goodness considering the voice cast for the 2008 production. First, there is Jeff Daniels, the guy in everything from Terms of Endearment to Sonnenfeld's RV -- and I imagine the producer is also responsible for the other RV alum -- Cheryl Hines and Kristin Chenoweth. Then there's the SNL guy whose popularity is skyrocketing -- Andy Samberg -- who I can only hope will lend some of his music video humor to the movie, and his television cast-mate Kenan Thompson. To art things up a bit, there's the Tooch, Stanley Tucci, and then there's the quintessential man-voice. The roar of The Tick, the power behind Brock Sampson -- Patrick Warburton.

After seeing what Hollywood did with one of the finest cartoons ever made (The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle, ugh!) I was more than a little skeptical when I learned that Disney was turning one of my very favorite animated characters into a live-action movie. The cartoon is Underdog, the movie version comes from the guy who did Racing Stripes, and the very first teaser trailer is right here.

It's basically one of those "misdirection" trailers in which we're expected to think we're watching a "serious" promotional piece ... and then it's all fun and giggles when we get a flying dog thrown at the screen. Plus, and I know it's a major piece of geeky nit-pickery, but this cute little pup doesn't look a thing like Underdog! Someone get me the canine casting directors on the phone! Opening August 3 (against the teen comedy Charlie Bartlett and the spy thriller The Bourne Ultimatum), Underdog looks to have been a fairly "collaborative" production, what with its three screenwriters and ten (yes, ten) producers.

The title pup is voiced by Jason Lee; the supporting cast includes Peter Dinklage, Jim Belushi, Patrick Warburton and (the voice of) Amy Adams; and the tagline "One Nation Under Dog" is sure to cause some complaints across the bible belt. Bet on it.

Way back in June we had Crazy Chris Campbell informing us that Lionsgate had just purchased North American distribution rights to Happily N'Ever After, a CG-animated fairy tale spoof from the producer of Shrek -- and today we get our very first peek at the long-gestating project. ComingSoon.net is where you'll find the goods.

The plot deals with all the heroic fairy tale characters dealing with conflict from all the villains ... or something like that. (Let's give it up for characters in the public domain!) What I find most amusing is the voice cast. We got Sarah Michelle Gellar as Ella (as in Cinderella), Sigourney Weaver as an evil witch (cool!), Freddie Prinze Jr., Andy Dick, Patrick Warburton, Jon Polito, Wallace Shawn and George Carlin -- and when I say "amusing," I actually mean it. Most of those actors have pretty funny voices!

So in addition to the previously linked clip, this just-discovered teaser trailer at YouTube, and a release date of January 5, I can also inform you that both the writer and the director are first-time filmmakers. But hey, I liked Hoodwinked, so I think this flick looks pretty, well, amusing.

• The Call Of Cthulhu - The H.P. Lovecraft Preservation Society, a group of dauntless fans that created the brilliant, Cthulhu-themed musical, A Shoggoth On The Roof, have created the ultimate fan film, an incredible tribute to the writer whose work seeded modern horror favorites like Re-Animator and From Beyond. Shot like a 1920's era silent film, the 47-minute feature is technically amazing, shot (in black-and-white), lit and performed like an authentic film of the period would have been (although it would have horrified people of the time right into Arkham Sanitarium.) Considered Lovecraft's most famous story, the story of a man who inherits a collection of documents detailing the ghastly Cthulhu Cult, it is very faithfully adapted, not to mention super-efficient. The title cards are in the viewer's choice of an astonishing 24 different languages, and the lush, symphonic score can be played in hi-fi and the kitschy-fun, lo-fi "Mythoscope". A skillful build and an extremely satisfying payoff (think creature design King Kong '33 style) add up to one of the smartest horror films of recent memory.

After watching Hoodwinked, the Weinstein Company’s first foray into animation, one is not surprised to learn that the film has three directors (brothers Cory and Todd Edwards, and Tony Leech). In fact, the news is somewhat reassuring, because it potentially offers some explanation for the wildly schizophrenic work they have produced. Lurking beneath the surface of this (relatively) low-budget, modern retelling of Little Red Riding Hood are at least three distinct films. First is the traditional sweet animated story, complete with a bicycling, singing heroine who is briefly beset by an easily-resolved family conflict. Second comes the edgy, sarcastic 21st century cartoon, where all of the characters make knowing jokes, and people say things like “fo shizzle.” And, third, there’s the wildly unhinged, new style of animated film which stars a conniving, insane villain and his singing, action figure sidekicks. While all three would be fine on their own - the third, in fact, is fantastic - thrown together they result in an unfortunately uneven mess.