nature Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Review: Arctic Tale
Filed under: Documentary », New Releases », Paramount », Theatrical Reviews », New in Theaters », Family Films »
If not for the unexpected box-office success of March of the Penguins, Arctic Tale would never have seen the light of theatrical release. The documentary would have ended up as a National Geographic special on whatever TV channel nature shows are broadcast these days (remember, I don't have cable), and I suspect a slightly less glitzy star than Queen Latifah would have narrated the show. However, Paramount Vantage is gambling that families will flock to theaters to see more polar adventures with adorable animals, even if the animals aren't doing anything we haven't seen before.
The success of March of the Penguins is that it introduced many of us to a phenomenon of nature: the mass marches and other rituals that make up penguin conception and birth. If you're a fan of nature shows you may have known all about the penguin march, but most of us did not. Unfortunately, Arctic Tale does not focus around a similar phenomenon. The movie concentrates its story around a baby polar bear and a baby walrus as they struggle to survive in the Arctic mountains and islands ... especially since in recent years, the ice melts earlier and forms later every year. The phenomenon here is actually global warming, although it is never mentioned by that name, but it is not a radical enough catalyst to muster much interest. The animals themselves are simply too predictable -- they swim, hang out on the ice, wrestle, hunt, and eventually grow up.
'Arctic Tale' Trailer: How to Sell a Documentary (Or Not)
Filed under: Documentary », Independent », Paramount Classics », Family Films », Cinematical Indie »
When an innocuous-sounding nature movie called March of the Penguins smashed box office records two years ago -- to the tune of $77 million in the US -- you better believe Hollywood was paying attention. Distributor Paramount Classics was quick to snap up rights to another documentary about polar creatures in early November 2005. Call of the North was not some hurried project put together to capitalize on the success of Penguins, though. Filmmakers Adam Ravetch and Sarah Robertson had worked together on at least two Arctic-themed episodes of the long-running series Nature earlier in the decade. David Poland reported that they had been working on the film, shooting on location and thus often enduring sub-zero temperatures, for seven years. He also passed along the news that the film was "due out in mid or late '06." Somewhere between then and now, the title changed to Arctic Tale (at one point it was The Walrus and the Polar Bear) and acquired narration spoken by Queen Latifah and written by Linda Woolverton (Beauty and the Beast), Mose Richards and Kristin Gore (Futurama and daughter of the former US Vice President). From a look at the web site, it's being marketed as a cute yet environmentally-sensitive movie for kids; for adults, the advertising mentions the film as coming from "the studio that brought you An Inconvenient Truth." Certainly it's the distributor's goal to get as many people as possible to see it. I just wonder if any of the harsh realities of the animal kingdom were softened for the sake of trying to replicate the success of Penguins, and if the result fully reflects what the filmmakers set out to make so many years ago. For now, you can watch the trailer at Moviefone and decide if you agree with The Documentary Blog, where Jay Cheel comments: "I don't mean to sound like an a******, but this trailer is s***." Paramount Classics has set a release date of July 25.
Julia Roberts to Play Joan Root in New Movie
Filed under: Drama », Casting », Newsstand »
While gearing up for one heckuva busy production schedule, Working Title Films has nabbed the actress responsible for their biggest box office hit to date (Notting Hill) for a new biopic on the wildlife conservationist Joan Root. Variety reports that Julia Roberts has signed on to star as Root (who was shot dead in her Kenyan home earlier this year), tapping David Magee (Finding Neverland) to pen a script which was inspired by the Vanity Fair article A Flowering Evil. Pic will follow Root during her earlier years when she teamed with her husband on a number of acclaimed nature documentaries in the 1960s, 70s and 80s.
It's a different role for Roberts (who hasn't starred in a live action film since 2004), but one that could definitely garner her another best actress nomination should all the right chips fall into place. She will next be seen this fall in the much-hyped Charlie Wilson's War, starring opposite Tom Hanks and Philip Seymour Hoffman. As for Working Title, this Joan Root project is one of four that are being prepped to shoot early next year; they include Richard Curtis' The Boat That Rocked, Paul Greengrass' Imperial Life in the Emerald City and the Coen Bros.' A Serious Man. Aside from those four, WT also have six pics set to go into production by the end of this year. Go Working Title! For those familiar with the life of Joan Root, do you feel Roberts is a good choice to play her?
Peter Jackson Says Spielberg's 'Tintin' is Done Filming, but...
Interracial Harmony: 'Ninja Assassin' vs. 'Blind Side'
Spin-ematical: New on DVD for 11/24_thumbnail.jpg)
Exclusive 'Nine' Poster Premiere!
Exclusive: Title Track for 'The Road' Soundtrack
_thumbnail.jpg)
