It’s easy to argue that we’re living in something of a golden age for animation. Pixar knock out classic after classic every year, unique directors like Hayao Miyazaki and Sylvain Chomet produce magic every time out, and an experienced live-action director like Wes Anderson comes up with his best work in years in the medium. Hell, even the films we initially dismissed like “Cloudy With Chance Of Meatballs” and “Despicable Me” proved funny and touching, and even Dreamworks found their touch this year with “How To Train Your Dragon” being easily their best film to date. So there’s certainly a convincing argument to be made.
And on the other side of the coin, there’s “Gnomeo & Juliet.” A retelling of Shakespeare’s tale starring garden gnomes, it’s been in development for years, but is finally set for release early next year, under Disney’s Touchstone label (who took over after the folding of original backers Miramax). There’s a starry cast, led by Emily Blunt and James McAvoy as the titular lovers, with Michael Caine, Jason Statham, Ozzy Osbourne, Maggie Smith, Patrick Stewart, Matt Lucas, Stephen Merchant and Julie Walters all lending their voices.
A trailer hit Apple yesterday (plus a first still, courtesy of Deadline), and, despite the talented ensemble, it looks truly awful. It seems to have been born of the punning title first, plot second — unless it ends with a double suicide, it’s not likely to be that faithful to the Shakespeare — and the trailer’s full of garish action and weak gags (including a rare outing for the fungi/fun guy wordplay, officially the oldest joke in the world). And the touch of “Shrek 2” helmer Kelly Asbury is fully in evidence, particularly in the least topical reference to “The Matrix” we’ve yet seen.
In fairness, it looks like it’ll skew very young, so we’re certainly not the target audience, and the trailers for the excellent “Cloudy With Chance Of Meatballs” didn’t look that promising either. But unless we find out that the promised soundtrack of ‘classic songs’ by Elton John includes ‘Candle In The Wind’ being played over the death scene at the end, we’re not going anywhere near this one…
“Gnomeo & Juliet” opens on February 11, 2011.