Jason Segel talks The Muppets and his inspiration

[Mupp]

Oohh... Well, I can tell you for a fact they'd never EVER try to make a film like Oz again. You wouldn't eat something that made you very sick one time. The whole Oz project was rushed (even though the script, out of a bunch of GOOD ones, was made well before the Disney sale), and it grabbed too many demographics,

I have to say, even though Oz had its share of issues, the bloopers reel was hilarious!

 

[beaker]

That is WHY I was so anti-Disney in the first place. I'm still not happy with a lot of things... Mickey Mouse Clubhouse for one (We need a NEW House of Mouse/Mouseworks type project) and getting after specific younger demographics that changed their channels permanently... and almost abandoning their profitable TV animation projects. I LOVE Phineas and Ferb, but it shouldn't be the only thing they're doing. Fish Hooks looks like crap, though. But even I admit that things are getting slightly better.

Yeah but I say who cares about this stuff. Who cares about Hannah/Jonas, kiddy stuff, etc. All I care about Disney wise is the Muppets, Pixar, Tron and a few other things. I used to be a big Pooh fan, but not much anymore(tho I always relish the advent of old school Pooh movies that get made here and there)
Sometimes ya have to accept bygone eras...this isn't the 80's or early 90's, you're not going to get Darkwing, Ducktales or Tale Spin, nor the Gummy Bears. Heck even late 90's Disney tv cartoons were pretty good.

Gah... isn't that the loser that kept posting his idiotic rants and had multiple accounts on this very message board. Really. There's a difference between not liking something or not getting something and going TO the fan base to whine like a broken record over and over.

We've had so many exactly like him in the past (if not the same guy over and over... again, LOSER! A true loser would be someone who's banned from a site and makes multiple accounts to get banned again)... AND goes on another site and uses the same rants. Difference is he apparently has a little loser following of his own (unless they're just multiple accounts of himself agreeing with himself... I wouldn't put it past him).

Now, if I can remember his "educated opinion" (I would SOOOO say something about that if it wasn't a family site. There's something to be said about that kind of ego), he absolutely worshiped the ground CGI walked on. he'd come back from all these HORRIBLE movies and say how great the CGI was (anyone who willfully saw any of the Santa Clause movies past the first in theater's doesn't have a right to an opinion on how crappy things are) and say how puppetry, an artform in its own right, was dated and everyone has to make look a like CGI nonsense that detracts from people who actually use it as a tool, not a device to sell tickets cheaply. Pixar films are always amazing... Dreamworks seems to be maturing now and making good films... but virtually everything else is noisy ugly junk. Alpha and Omega looks like someone puked on paper and someone said "Let's film that" (when, frankly, they just stole an idea Pixar had and rushed it out, causing Pixar to can it).

There's a difference between the garbage Giggleschmuck/Frogpoop/toadbutt or whatever nom de loser he took this week spouts and the average muppet "I grew out of it so I could watch MTV stunt shows and Jersey Shore" hater. he seems insanely bent on making sure they're destroyed. Almost to a dangerous obsession. He basically made life miserable for the fan base and he gets a rise out of that. Think of it this way. if we complain about his idiotic "Noo Skool iz da bess skool" ramblings, he wins. Sure, I spent the entire thing pulling him apart to the unhappy doof he is, but that's just so you'll know not to take that guy seriously.

Wow... I used loser a lot in that one, didn't I?

I'm not sure why a few fringe Muppet haters commands so much energy to be put into talking about how lame they are, but at least they are a fringe element. Look how AICN worships the Muppets and posts any news big or small relating to the Muppets or JHC stuff(even if they're talk back is littered with haters)

Now, why would one guy be able to make life miserable for a whole forum or fanbase? Isn't this giving too much power away? I mean reading your post, I get that this individual/s really got under your skin, but wouldn't it be more of a case of someone one can laugh at and dismiss rather than allocate so much anger towards?

Of course people are gonna hate. Muppet sales have never been all too stellar, especially with merchandise given the perception that Muppets are "old nostalgic baby" stuff, an image I hope is completely reversed soon. Still, I know whenever I wear my Muppet shirts so many people who see it seem to brighten up.

 

[beaker]

The icky-looking “Alpha and Omega” is not a DreamWorks project. It's from Crest Animation (formerly RichCrest Studios that produced “Swan Princess” and “The King and I”) and distributed by Lionsgate. Strangely enough, this is probably the final performance from film legend Dennis Hopper. Other than that I don’t see any value in it. It has such a straight-to-video look.

DreamWorks has had some misses ("Bee Movie", "Shark Tale"), but it's also created some fantastic non-Shrek movies too like "How to Train Your Dragon" and the stunningly gorgeous "Kung Fu Panda". DreamWorks initiated its animation division by partnering with PDI (the organization that in fact teamed up with Jim Henson to create Waldo C. Graphic) that was later absorbed into the DreamWorks banner. I wouldn't -pigeonhole DreamWorks as something substandard. Just my two cents. They do have a great track record.

Disney does seem to be back on track and not spewing out those unsightly sequels to their prized properties. The Little Mermaid ones particularly upset me and looked so poorly drawn. It’s reassuring that they seem much more protective over their properties now and that includes the Muppets too. I was looking forward to the Muppets Halloween special, but I’ll believe them if they don’t think that project’s ready yet. I’m very excited about this new Muppet film and keep imagining that the cast and crew is scrambling around in pre-production right now, getting ready for the shoot in the coming days.

I found the animation of Madagascar 1 and 2(especially compared to the Wild) to be of very 1998 sub par quality. I thought it has a lot of whiz bang pop and personality that the Wild lacked. Heck I even liked Antz more than A Bug's Life

I usually do not like the look or feel of Dreamworks cgi films, but I have to say Monsters vs Aliens is one of the most amazing and well done(and just plain fun) cg features I've seen. When that and Up(my favorite Pixar one to date) came out around the same time was quite the sensory fest.

But most kiddy cgi films I think are rubbish..though I did like chicken Little and Robots.

 

[frogboy4]

I found the animation of Madagascar 1 and 2(especially compared to the Wild) to be of very 1998 sub par quality. I thought it has a lot of whiz bang pop and personality that the Wild lacked. Heck I even liked Antz more than A Bug's Life

I usually do not like the look or feel of Dreamworks cgi films, but I have to say Monsters vs Aliens is one of the most amazing and well done(and just plain fun) cg features I've seen. When that and Up(my favorite Pixar one to date) came out around the same time was quite the sensory fest.

But most kiddy cgi films I think are rubbish..though I did like chicken Little and Robots.

I dug the Golden Book style of Madagascar. They were going for a different sort of look, but some of the motion did appear stiff and rigged. Apart from the senseless sequel (that I skipped) I see Kung Fu Panda as DreamWorks' animation reboot and from then on they're on Pixar level IMHO. The visuals and art direction in that film are stunning. It's a much better movie than it has to be. I know many people liked Wall-E and Up, but the stories fell flat halfway through. They're both on Bug's Life par to me. Pretty and state of the art, but rather boilerplate when it comes to storytelling. I really was looking forward to Newt, but it seems the story was hijacked and I’m glad they spotted that in time to do something else. They’ll probably come back to it someday.

Most kiddie stuff is garbage, but I agree with Chicken Little and Robots. Even though they aren't the finest representations of animation, they both created their own worlds, they are charming and I felt genuine triumph of the human spirit through the poultry and robots. The companies that made them deserve to be proud.

I'm interested in seeing what's next with Muppets and animation. Jim had ideas to bring the Muppet Show gang into Disney's traditional animation fold. Maybe once the brand is strong enough...

 

[Yorick]

And another thing: anyone who hates the Muppets has no soul, IMO.

I can't argue with that!

 

[Mupp]

I found the animation of Madagascar 1 and 2(especially compared to the Wild) to be of very 1998 sub par quality. I thought it has a lot of whiz bang pop and personality that the Wild lacked. Heck I even liked Antz more than A Bug's Life.

Even though Dreamworks stole the idea from Pixar...

And I still say that Bolt was good. John Lasseter (from Pixar) was the executive producer. You should really give it another chance. It did well critically. and incidentally, it was NOT a kiddie film. It had jokes for adults.

 

[beaker]

I dug the Golden Book style of Madagascar. They were going for a different sort of look, but some of the motion did appear stiff and rigged. Apart from the senseless sequel (that I skipped) I see Kung Fu Panda as DreamWorks' animation reboot and from then on they're on Pixar level IMHO. The visuals and art direction in that film are stunning. It's a much better movie than it has to be. I know many people liked Wall-E and Up, but the stories fell flat halfway through. They're both on Bug's Life par to me. Pretty and state of the art, but rather boilerplate when it comes to storytelling. I really was looking forward to Newt, but it seems the story was hijacked and I’m glad they spotted that in time to do something else. They’ll probably come back to it someday.

Most kiddie stuff is garbage, but I agree with Chicken Little and Robots. Even though they aren't the finest representations of animation, they both created their own worlds, they are charming and I felt genuine triumph of the human spirit through the poultry and robots. The companies that made them deserve to be proud.

I'm interested in seeing what's next with Muppets and animation. Jim had ideas to bring the Muppet Show gang into Disney's traditional animation fold. Maybe once the brand is strong enough...

Wait, Madagascar was suppose to look like that? I just assumed they were on a fixed budget, hence the blocky late 90's look.
I saw Monsters vs Aliens on blu ray, and that has to be one of the most amazing cgi features I've seen. But I love the chemistry and fun of Madagascar.

Oh I'm with you...I love robots, but Wall E was insanely boring to me. I'm definitely not looking forward to Cars 2, but I have to say Up for me was a personal triumphant.

I wish there was more Muppets animation. I liked the animated segments on Little Muppet Monsters and loved the Fraggle cartoons. But so many of these animated movies...Over the Hedge, Open Season, Alpha and Omega, Planet 51...who even enjoys these? Ice Age had to be one of the most painfully boring experiences I've had at the cinema

 

[beaker]

Even though Dreamworks stole the idea from Pixar...

And I still say that Bolt was good. John Lasseter (from Pixar) was the executive producer. You should really give it another chance. It did well critically. and incidentally, it was NOT a kiddie film. It had jokes for adults.

I think perhaps I was a bit soured from having to endure it in "3d", as I've realized 3D can be a handicap toward enjoying a film. I think as well, the 2d backgrounds through me off(I actually prefer 2d animation, but a mix of both can be a bit off...tho I really was looking to Disney's 2d/3d film "My Peoples")

I should see Bolt again, as I loved that Rhino hamster and loved the first 10 minutes.

 

[frogboy4]

Wait, Madagascar was suppose to look like that? I just assumed they were on a fixed budget, hence the blocky late 90's look.
I saw Monsters vs Aliens on blu ray, and that has to be one of the most amazing cgi features I've seen. But I love the chemistry and fun of Madagascar.

Oh I'm with you...I love robots, but Wall E was insanely boring to me. I'm definitely not looking forward to Cars 2, but I have to say Up for me was a personal triumphant.

I wish there was more Muppets animation. I liked the animated segments on Little Muppet Monsters and loved the Fraggle cartoons. But so many of these animated movies...Over the Hedge, Open Season, Alpha and Omega, Planet 51...who even enjoys these? Ice Age had to be one of the most painfully boring experiences I've had at the cinema

Yup. Madagascar was intended to resemble the old Golden Books. It was a little hit-or-miss.

I liked parts of Hedge, Open Season and even the original Ice Age, but it's the storytelling (along with the most innovative technology) that makes Pixar superior...in most cases. I don't write the mental blank check that many others do considering them.

Wall-E had a great first act and then got lost in the middle. I can't understand how so many of my friends felt that it had a solid story. It was really a mess, but with good ideas and themes. I think they should bring the character back for short subjects as Pixar's Charlie Chaplin type character.

Bug's Life and Up both seemed to be aimless as well. Both had great scenes and stunning animation, but Antz really had the catchy story and edge missing from the glossy Bugs and the brilliant mixture of both style and substance makes the traditionally stop motion Fantastic Mr. Fox superior to Up.

I hope Pixar steers away from the sequels soon. They're watering down their own magic.

Back to the topic...I wonder if the new Muppet movie willgo plural, like "The New Muppets Movie" or "The Great Muppets Adventure". Not keen on the branding tactic.

 

[Mupp]

I think perhaps I was a bit soured from having to endure it in "3d", as I've realized 3D can be a handicap toward enjoying a film.

The theater that you went to did not offer it in 2D?