The Wild
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Movie Reviews of The Wild
Movie Review: Very Good
Summary: 4 Stars
I got this for my 3 yr old grandson and he loves it. He has watched it about 20 times and it is currently his favorite movie.Movie Review: Review of DVD The Wild
Summary: 4 Stars
I gave this DVD to my grandsons for Christmas and they love it.
It is a very cute movie.
Movie Review: The Wild
Summary: 4 Stars
The Wild was fun and great for my kids as well as for me.Movie Review: Second-hand Lions: "HAVEN'T I SEEN THIS MOVIE BEFORE?"
Summary: 3 Stars
They say Hollywood is a "race for second place," so you might say that DISNEY'S "THE WILD" is first to be second. Talking animals from an NYC zoo, ending up in an exotic foreign place, facing their fears to become better...talking animals. If this sounds familiar you may have already seen it DREAMWORKS' MADAGASCAR released less than a year ago. I'm not pointing fingers here, Disney has been supposedly working on this for 9 years, but THE WILD comes across as a "second-hand lion," watered down and "toothless."
The only differences, apart from the film and production company names, are style and voice casting. Whereas MADAGASCAR'S visual style is more cartoonish, THE WILD's approach is ultra-realistic in details. While Madagascar had characters voiced by Ben Stiller, Chris Rock and David Schwimmer, the voice casting for THE WILD is up to Disney's high standards: Respected leader SAMSON (guess HIS species) is voiced by Kiefer Sutherland , street savy Benny the Squirrel by Jim Belushi, dim-witted Larry the Snake by Richard Kind (of "the Producers") and Janeane Garofalo as Bridget the Giraffe. Don Cherry, Canadian hockey announcer cameos as the penguin MC. One possible breakout character is Nigel the British kolala, voiced by Eddie Fizzard, trying to shed his cuddly image, later becoming idol to a pack of wildebeests along with their choreographing leader dancing to the beat of different drum, Kazar, voiced brilliantly-straight by William Shatner (who provides voice for another animated animal in the upcoming "Over the Hedge.")
The WILD'S Director Steve Williams and producer Clint Goldman helped to revolutionize CG character animation during their long association with ILM ("The Mask," "Jurassic Park," "Terminator 2"), and were responsible for the popular Blockbuster commercials featuring Carl the rabbit and Ray the guinea pig. The film is scored by Academy-nominated composer Alan Silvestri ( known for the" Back to the Future Trilogy," and "Polar Express"), the soundtrack is also filled with familiar tunes by such r recording artists EVERLIFE, COLDPLAY, LIFEHOUSE, and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy. Other new material provided by ex-"Monty Python" member Eric Idle and fellow songwriter John Du Prez, the team responsible for the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, "SPAMALOT" writing and performing the song, "Really Nice Day" for THE WILD.
As the animals embark on a dangerous journey to rescue one of their own, THE WILD, like its DREAMWORKS counterpart, is suitable for children with themes of teamwork, friendship and father-son relationships ( Samson's son's desire to get out of his father's shadow and have his own adventures). Overall it comes down to this: If you haven't seen MADAGASCAR you will enjoy this film infinitely more.
Movie Review: More Fluff than Substance
Summary: 3 Stars
The talking-animal genre of the computer-generated animation scene is more than a staple, it's an empire. And while names like Open Season, Over the Hedge, and Madagascar have earned their fair share of attention, don't count Disney out when it comes to the concept of realizing a potential market.
At 94-minutes, The Wild is actually one of the lengthier animated features on the market. The plot, while in no danger of being mistaken for a masterpiece, goes something like this:
Set in the NY City zoo, we meet Ryan is a young lion who wishes for little more than to go to the wild, where his father (Samson) once roamed. When he manages to get himself shipped to Africa, his distraught father and a ragtag group of zoo refugees work together to track him down and bring him back.
Once the group reaches Africa, however, the animals find themselves in a world of real danger; the type only hinted of in stories and legends while in captivity. Add to the fact that a wildebeest cult leader named Kazar sees the coming of the felines as a sign from the powers-that-be and a volcano that's on the edge of eruption and the wild offers a lot more risks than these caged-critters bargained for.
The Wild is a prime example of the simple fact that limitless budgets and a powerhouse brand name/ distribution network do not a good film make. This is especially evident when you stop to consider the fact that when this film was being developed, Disney was amidst heated negotiations with Pixar, the likes of which had Pixar going as far as attempting to sever the relationship entirely. The Diz was clearly doing all they could to prove that they still had a presence in the booming computer-animated feature arena (without Pixar if need be) while taking aim at Dreamworks' blockbuster Madagascar in the process.
What results is a pretty lackluster movie with all of the theoretical ingredients of a masterpiece (a decent cast, nice textures and animation, catchy theme songs and so on) but a finished product that comes up feeling dull and heartless.
Kids may find some value in the visuals and the few moments of slapstick surely included to get a rise, but it's difficult to avoid the reality that the plot struggles to find it's rhythm and fails to generate much enthusiasm in the few instances where it does.
In conclusion The Wild is a bit too dry and cumbersome for young children to enjoy and definitely too blasé to attract and hold the interest of the adults who will certainly be in the vicinity of the children the film is targeted toward. The pieces are all there but turning them into a complete puzzle is where Disney comes up short on this one.