AFRICAN CATS, based on the title alone, is more fine-tuned in subject matter than its DisneyNature predecessors EARTH (2009) and OCEANS (2010). CATS' real-life lion and cheetah characters, who have names, evolve over the course of the film, their inter-family drama and interactions with the world described with a light and simple narrative geared primarily toward kids. ("The savanna is the greatest schoolyard." "To Mara, he’s the best Dad ever!") All of DisneyNature’s films pale though in comparison to that leviathan of nature infotainment, BBC’s Planet Earth series, and CATS is slower than Warner Bros.' 40-minute-long BORN TO BE WILD, which inspires constant oohs and ahhs with its 3D/IMAX indulgence in baby orangutan and elephant cuteness. (Despite a G rating, it doesn’t shy away from the harshness of nature, though little blood is revealed.) But this film faces a tougher challenge in its focus on three families of animals in the wild, not just their species. So kudos to directors Keith Scholey and Alastair Fothergill for taking on such a creative and documentarian hurdle and for providing us with an escape from civilization that’s both entertaining and enlightening.
At first I couldn’t identify the voiceover — LeVar Burton? Um, no (and lame guess, I realize): Samuel L. Jackson. But why use Patrick Stewart in the trailer? Captain Picard’s sonorous voice, like Morgan Freeman’s in BORN TO BE WILD and MARCH OF THE PENGUINS, can transform a storytelling into what feels like a larger-than-life event. Jackson’s voice on the other hand sounds so underwhelming for CATS' dramatic imagery, and even sounds oddly strident when he revs up for fight scenes. Perhaps Jackson’s usual choice of self-spoofing badasses for characters undermines his credibility as a serious narrator and guide.
>> Read the rest at Upcoming-Movies.com
No comments:
Post a Comment