Now this is a Cars 2 banner…

Pretty darn cool.

Hidden gems all through the image as well! So far I’ve found Richard Simmons, Herbie the Love Bug, The Kardashian Sisters, Abe Vigoda and William Hung.

How many more can you find?

Images from Pixar’s “Brave”

I’m sure you’ve probably seen these images from Pixar’s upcoming, “Brave,” by now. Try to show anyone on the internet something, and they claim to have already seen it, on average around 20 minutes before it was ever even posted.

From what I can gather, the film centers around Prop-Comic, Carrot Top, as he attempts to cross the dreaded Sparkly Swamp.

I could be way off on this, and according to Entertainment Weekly, I most certainly am:

Brave is set in the mystical Scottish Highlands, where Merida is the princess of a kingdom ruled by King Fergus (Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson). An unruly daughter and an accomplished archer, Merida one day defies a sacred custom of the land and inadvertently brings turmoil to the kingdom. In an attempt to set things right, Merida seeks out an eccentric old Wise Woman (Julie Walters) and is granted an ill-fated wish. Also figuring into Merida’s quest — and serving as comic relief — are the kingdom’s three lords: the enormous Lord MacGuffin (Kevin McKidd), the surly Lord Macintosh (Craig Ferguson), and the disagreeable Lord Dingwall (Robbie Coltrane).

For more information on the plot and cast of “Brave,” hit up Entertainment Weekly’s Site.

New “Cars 2” Poster

Somehow I get the feeling that Pixar is really wanting to drive the point home that “Cars 2” is no longer confined to just the cute little town of Radiator Springs…

Why am I the only one asking where the hell Sally is in all of this? I need to know why she is no longer the “nut” to McQueen’s “lug.”

Mars Needs Robert Zemeckis to Stop Making Animated Films

Before I jump into this pool with both feet, let me first say that I’m quite sympathetic to the fact that a lot of sweat went into making a movie like “Mars Needs Moms,” and that I even know some of the talented folks involved on the project. As I’ve also stated in the past, I’m a huge fan of Brekeley Breathed, both from his comic strip days as well as his children’s books. To top it all off, I’ve really enjoyed some of Robert Zemeckis’ live action films, especially those released in the 80s.

So with all of that out of the way, now that “Mars” is officially an utter bomb, can we please all just agree that these types of animated motion capture features just do not work?

I would contend that the only Zemeckis mo-cap film that can be considered a hit is “Polar Express,” and I think most people could even make the case of that film being a hit based more on it’s premise than it’s actual execution. Films like “Monster House,” “A Christmas Carol,” and “Beowulf,” on the other hand, did not exactly set the world (or Box Office) on fire, and with “Mars,” it seems as though audiences have finally had their fill of living in Uncanny Valley, and are moving on.

These types of films attempt to bridge a gap between live action and animation, only to find that people are pretty happy on their current sides of the water. Films like these rarely take advantage of the respective strengths of live action or animation, and instead they wander somewhere in the middle with results that are often stiff and lifeless. When you strip away the charm and exaggerated physics of keyed animation, and couple it with characters who look close to their live-action counterparts yet feel dead from an emotional standpoint, it’s very difficult for audiences to connect on any level.

With “Mars,” this disconnect was pretty obvious, even from a 30 second trailer, and the results seem to be playing out in the form of a $6.5 million dollar opening weekend for a film that cost $150 million on the production side alone.

However much like 3D, I’m sure that Hollywood will take a break from these types of mo-cap animated films for a few years and then attempt to cram it down our throats again. They’ll probably even re-brand it and call it “EmotionCap” or something stupid like that.

I can’t wait!

Lots of Kung Fu Panda 2 Character Shots

With all of this talk of tiger blood in recent weeks, I think Charlie Sheen may be missing the boat. If you want to really “win,” it’s all about the panda blood. Check out these brand new character shots from “Kung Fu Panda 2,” as well as the synopsis for the film below.

And now to top off what may be the longest post in Bleeding Pixels history, I give you… THE SYNOPSIS!

“Po is now living his dream as The Dragon Warrior, protecting the Valley of Peace alongside his friends and fellow kung fu masters, The Furious Five – Tigress, Crane, Mantis, Viper and Monkey. But Po’s new life of awesomeness is threatened by the emergence of a formidable villain, who plans to use a secret, unstoppable weapon to conquer China and destroy kung fu. It is up to Po and The Furious Five to journey across China to face this threat and vanquish it. But how can Po stop a weapon that can stop kung fu? He must look to his past and uncover the secrets of his mysterious origins; only then will he be able to unlock the strength he needs to succeed.”

The film stars Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Lui, David Cross, James Hong, Gary Oldman, Michelle Yeoh, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Victor Garbor.

“Kung Fu Panda 2” is directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson and released by DreamWorks Animation. It will be in theaters on May 26 this year.

You’ve just been synopsified!

New Cars 2 Trailer

A brand new trailer for “Cars 2” has been posted.

Every Christmas, my Grandma makes a new dish for Christmas dinner, and every year it looks questionable at best. Yet when we all sit down to eat, everyone tries it, and we always wind up enjoying every last bite.

“Cars 2” feels like a dish my Grandma would make for Christmas dinner, but with far less cat hair.

Tons of Dreamworks Animation Release News!

Dreamworks has released a buttload (don’t worry… it’s an industry term) of information regarding their animation release slate through 2014. Lucky for lazy people like me, Coming Soon has compiled it into one easily digestible post.

One interesting tidbit is the announcement of “Turbo”:

Turbo will be released on June 7, 2013. It is being directed by David Soren (Merry Madagascar), who first brought the project to the studio, and produced by Lisa Stewart (Monsters vs. Aliens). It is being written by Darren Lemke (Shrek Forever After) together with Soren. Turbo tells the story of an ordinary garden snail with an impossible dream: to become the fastest snail in the world. When a freak accident gives him extraordinary speed, Turbo sets out to try to make this dream come true.

I feel like it’s a solid slate overall, but I know there is going to be at least one really nice looking shiny pot in the bunch that we later find out is made from recycled cat turds.

For more information on the slate, including news of “Madagascar 3” and details on the “How to Train Your Dragon Sequel,” click the Dreamworks logo. For more information on my pottery making, hit up davesawesomepotsmadefromcatturds.com.

Brand New Puss in Boots Trailer!

Wow… Dreamworks Animation is going nuts today with trailer releases, and I assume these will play before “Rango” in theaters.

As with the last post, just click the poster if you want to watch it.

Meow!

Brand New Kung Fu Panda 2 Trailer!

The folks at Apple just posted the brand new trailer and poster for “Kung Fu Panda 2”!

Click said poster to see said trailer and make this said moron shut up.

Rango In Theaters Today!

The goofy little lizard named, Rango, comes riding into town today!

The much-hyped film starring Johnny Depp and directed by Gore Verbinski is currently sitting at an 86% Fresh Rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and has an audience rating of 81%.

I’ll be taking it in tonight, and will try to post my thoughts early next week. I’m also going to try and post my thoughts on Charlie Sheen, and maybe I’ll just combine the two…