Originally Posted By Moderation Well, saw it last night. The plot is weak, but the 3D is really something special here. Seriously, this would be just an OK movie without the tech, but it's the WOW factor that's driving this. It was so fast paced that I really need to see it again in the theater.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 I saw it last night too, in 3D. I thought it was good, not great. It started well and ended well, but it was just too manic and "loud" in the middle (and I'm not talking about volume). There were some serious plot and character development flaws, though not horrendous. I enjoyed it while I was watching it, but it wasn't the kind of thing where today I can honestly say I'd LOVE to see it again, right now, as was the case with, say, Finding Nemo. I was impressed with the 3D, particularly since I watched 90 minutes of it and it never tired my eyes. And they didn't overdo it. But it will always be less important than the "meat" of the movie itself. I'm going to take a "glass half full" attitude - it was a step up from Chicken Little, and with Lasseter's name on it, I'm hoping that the Pixar know-how will rub off on the WD division - perhaps some already has, and more will show in subsequent films. The trailer for Ratatouille looked great, by the way. And it was neat to see the DD/Chip & Dale cartoon that hadn't been seen in 3D since it's first release. It was a very different kind of 3D, of course - it looked like a moving View Master!
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA Well, we went to see it, and, given that my expectations were exceptionally low, I was pleasantly surprised. I liked the opening scenes of the Robinson kid in the orphanage, with his friend 'Goob.' Cute. Science Fair. Cute. Why 'Bowler Hat Guy'? Loved 'Goob' at the beginning -- couldn't figure out why he'd turn into a turn-of-the-twentieth-century Snidely Whiplash type of character. Quite a leap in character there...seemed really far out. And it was absolutely no surprise that young Robinson was old Robinson etc... And yes, it was absolutely frenetic in that mid-section -- with the big band frogs, and all that crazy family stuff, and Bowler Hat Guy with all his ineptness. And the dinosaur. Beh. Ended nicely I thought, but why no 'time space continuum' issue when the older Robinson met his younger self? This was FAR better than 'Chicken Little' and 'Home on the Range' for me. Not quite as strong as 'The Incredibles' or the other Pixar fare, but it was neat to see the animation group 'keep moving forward' to some degree. <DD/Chip & Dale cartoon that hadn't been seen in 3D since it's first release.> Perhaps not in movie theaters. But I seem to recall seeing 'Working for Peanuts' as a pre-show to 'Magic Journeys' at WDWs Magic Kingdom in the late 80s. It was in 3-D there too.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 Maybe they did. But wasn't Magic Journeys at EPCOT (like Captain EO and now HISTA are). That's where I saw it, I think (sans Chip & Dale).
Originally Posted By mawnck I too saw "Working for Peanuts" at Magic Journeys, I believe right after EPCOT opened. And saw it again at the World 3-D Film Expo at the Egyptian Theater last September. If they said it's the first 3-D showing since its first release, then they were fibbin'.
Originally Posted By tcsnwhite Ok, I saw the film on opening day in Disney Digital 3D. The 3d is wonderful- not overdone at all. I really hope this takes off in the future. The scene in the opening with the rain- that was beautiful in 3D. Other than that, the 3d really allowed me to see the textures of the clothing and environments in a way that I am not sure can be accomplished in the regular 2d format. As for the film itself, I am going to say that it was one of my favorite WDFA (WDAS now) films in a long, long time- maybe since Tarzan (though I adore The Emperors New Groove). Yes, it is flawed, in particular in parts of the second act (which John and the new team had to focus on fixing in the first place) where you meet the family. It is interesting that the film is called Meet the Robinsons, but I felt that the film wasn't so much about the family itself as it is about Wilbur, Bowler Hat Guy, and most of all, Lewis. The marketing for this film, in my opinion, dropped the ball. The marketing does NOT match what this film really is all about. I would even go as far to say that the title is misleading as well. Overall, I loved this film. The story was beautiful, the animation was top-notch, the design I LOVED (would love to see some of this in the parks- Tomorrowland, ahem), and the main characters were lovable. It really all comes together in the third act. And the ending was emotional, at least for me. I truly enjoyed the fact that there were hardly any pop culture jokes, none of this make fun of other films sort of thing, no fart or poop jokes, and the rest of the nonsense that has contaminated much of mainstream feature animated films today. In the end, as it all comes together, it really felt like a Disney film- the heart was there. While I don't believe it will be a blockbuster and the real start of the next golden age, I felt that it had the signs that it is all coming very soon. The tide is turning in WDFA...
Originally Posted By DlandDug >>And it was neat to see the DD/Chip & Dale cartoon that hadn't been seen in 3D since it's first release.<< The title card claimed it was the first showings since the wide release of 1953. It was shown as a part of Disneyland's "3-D Jamboree" in the original Fantasyland Theater in Disneyland (with the Mouseketeers in a specially produced 3-D film). It was also shown with Magic Journeys at the Magic Eye Theater. It also showed up at the 3-D Expo at the Egyptian in Hollywood. (I also saw it there. They also showed Disney's only other 3-D short, Adventures in Music: Melody.) BUT... it has not been seen in "wide release" since 1953. So I guess we should just take their word for it and not think about it too much.
Originally Posted By DlandDug I actually saw this at the El Capitan Theater on Wednesday evening, but reserved judgement until everyone else could see it. Overall, I liked this film. Liked, not loved. I agree that the biggest flaw in this film is the staggering number of characters, most of whom do little or nothing to advance the plot. It is also apparent that the plot was worked over several times, leaving various loose ends. But I do feel that the through line is there, and the end did pack enough genuine emotion to get me misty eyed. (I HATE manipulative films, and am generally resistant to them.) As far as the time travel plot holes, I long ago gave up on overthinking these in general. No film has ever done better at avoiding the time paradox than Time After Time (H.G. Wells pursues Jack the Ripper to modern San Francisco. Remember?). It seems to be the case that Meet the Robinsons fares better in 3-D than flat. Considering that the film was conceived and designed specifically for Disney Digital 3-D, this is not necessarilly a bad thing.
Originally Posted By DlandJB I saw it today (couldn't go with dlanddug and ds last week) I loved the 3-d effects and thought it made the visuals really terrific - especially in the future. Dozed a bit at the beginning (where were you, Dave? but that had less to do with the movie and more with just being tired. However, when I came to, I really enjoyed the movie. I agree -- too many characters not really developed enough. I did think it must have been quite a mess before Lassiter and Co. came aboard and yes, feelings were manipulated but I happily complied. The theater was full - kids seemed to really enjoy it. I thought it showed promising growth from that last two Disney films - Chicken Little and Home on the Range -- a big step forward from them. I would like to see it again if only to study the scene design more. And 3D appears to be the only way to go.
Originally Posted By Liberty Belle Looks like I'm really in the minority here! I posted over in the other Robinsons thread before seeing this one, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I thought it was funny and sweet and had a lot more charm than most recent Disney films. The one thing I normally don't like about time-travel movies is that I come out confused with unanswered questions ... by the end of this one I felt like all the questions I had along the way had been answered. >>No city can transform THAT MUCH in 30 years<< I thought that at first too, but Lewis/Cornelius was supposed to be a great inventor and Bowler Hat Guy said he "created this city" or something along those lines ... I took it to mean that he was largely responsible for sending the city forward at a quicker rate than it normally would. LOVED the Walt Disney quote at the end! I wondered what the quote was about when it came up, since it wasn't one I'd heard before, and then when Walt's name came up I had a little "awww!" moment. I saw it in 2D (the friend I went with wanted to go to the theatre near her place) but I'll definitely be seeing it again in 3D, and hopefully will love it even more! I also thought it might be the kind of movie that would be better a second time, because there's so much in it to 'catch'. I didn't like the overwhelming amount of characters either, but I guess it was sort of Lewis' dream to have the BIG happy family.
Originally Posted By Liberty Belle Another quick note -- maybe it's because it was the 7.30pm session, but the cinema was packed, yet had hardly any kids in it. I like seeing an animated movie that can pull in a large audience of teenagers and adults.
Originally Posted By mapleservo We just saw it tonight, and we were surprised how much we enjoyed it. Unfortunately no 3D theatres anywhere near so we saw the stand 35mm. Overall I thought the film looked pretty good, and the plot and the humour were decent. I actually quite enjoyed Bowler Hat guy, (and his little binder) as absurd as he was. My biggest problem with the film was the Robinsons themselves. I found them ugly, and just wacky for the sake of wacky. I think if your gonna try to pull off that kind of humour, it needs to be REALLY funny, not just odd. I'd give the movie a six out of 10. If the Robinsons (aside from Mom, "Dad" and Wilbur) had been left on the cutting room floor, I would have rated it at least a notch or two higher. But yeah, a big step up from Chicken Little & HOTR, IMO.
Originally Posted By danyoung >It [the Chip and Dale 3D cartoon] was shown as a part of Disneyland's "3-D Jamboree" in the original Fantasyland Theater in Disneyland (with the Mouseketeers in a specially produced 3-D film). It was also shown with Magic Journeys at the Magic Eye Theater.< According to Wikipedia, Magic Journeys (along with, I assume, the Working For Peanuts cartoon), were in Epcot when it opened in 1982. Then "Walt Disney World later moved the movie into the Fantasyland Theatre inside the Magic Kingdom on December 15, 1987. It played there until December 1, 1993 when it was removed in order to make room for the Legend Of The Lion King show." I never saw the cartoon in Epcot, but I did see it in the Fantasyland Theater.
Originally Posted By danyoung I saw Meet the Robinsons at an early show on Sunday, and I'm sorry to say that I was extremely disappointed with the movie. As others have said, the overall story had no flow, and the editing style was way too frenetic for a big screen movie. And once our hero jumped forward and started meeting the family I was left in the dust. There were times that I just didn't know what was going on, like when all of the sudden a bunch of frogs were singing big band music. Very weird, disjointed, unpleasant. I understand Lasseter came in very late in the production cycle, and after his SIX HOUR MEETING with the directors, 60% of the movie was redone. This is always a bad sign. Look at the writing credit - there were 6 or 7 names up on screen, another bad sign. They tried hard to save this turkey, and flopped miserably. I so wanted this to be good, but left the theater with that bad feeling of having had 90 minutes go by that I'll never get back. Very sad.
Originally Posted By mawnck Apparently the seven writers thing is the result of Disney crediting members of the story department who worked on the film. All animated features have a small army of storyboard artists who make contributions, this time a bunch of them just got credited. Really . . . it's not a problem. That being said, this particular movie LOOKS like it was cobbled together from seven different scripts.
Originally Posted By danyoung That's my point, mawnck. I understand that there are always teams of writers. But usually you get one or two credited writers. The fact that they had to credit so many says to me that this script went through many almost total rewrites, which usually isn't a good thing.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA Anyone know what the movie's plot was before all the changes happened? It'd be interesting to compare what the story was before and then as it appeared on the screen.
Originally Posted By gurgitoy2 I saw this in 3D yesterday and must say I was pleasantly surprised. After seeing the trailers for ages, and having not been too enthusiastic about Disney's recent output, I had low expectations. OK, the film wasn't great, but it was much better than I thought it would be. I loved the 3D, and it made the film much more immersive. I think everyone agrees about the frenetic middle. Too many odd characters that you won't remember...even after Lewis is quizzed about them. Also, the t-rex bit just fizzled too, with him sitting in the yard like a confused puppy. I liked the William Joyce visuals, and the very positive futuristic outlook (the "Doris" future notwithstanding). Bowler Hat Guy was an interesting character, but I also agree it was too much of a leap to have him be "Goob"...just too much of a stretch...even physically. Still, I did enjoy the movie overall and agree that it's a much better effort than Chicken Little. Especially because it isn't trying to be hip or ironic.
Originally Posted By cstephens We saw "Meet the Robinsons" in 3D at The El Capitan on Friday night. The beginning show with the disco light balls and music and the Wilbur and Lewis rubberheads was a bit odd. I loved seeing the short with Chip and Dale and Donald Duck. I thought the first half of the movie was kinda slow, and some of the jokes were fairly one-note. I also realized that I'd seen the trailer too many times because caffeine-patch lady had almost no effect on me anymore by the time that scene came up in the movie. I thought the tone of the film at the beginning was quite dark, given Lewis' predicament. However, as the film moved along, I found myself caught up in it more, trying to figure out what was going on. And unlike my companions and another friend, I apparently came to the two major revelations quite late in the game. I would have loved to have gotten to know the various members of the Robinsons better. They all kinda went by in a flash, even though they each seemed interesting. I absolutely loved the T-Rex scenes. To date, the large and beanie T-Rex plush are the only merchandise from the film (other than a few pins) that I've purchased. Of course, they don't appear to be marketing at all my favorite character - Goob. I've not seen him on any of the mechandise. A PVC would be good. A plush would be great. A talking doll a la Boo would be perfect. At the El Capitan, they had some "props" and other stuff on display, including a maquette of Goob with the baseball on the ground next to him. I so want that. Loved the casting of the voice of Wilbur's dad. I didn't recognize his voice during the movie, but I saw his name in the credits. The husband and I laughed a lot about that. I started to tear up when Lewis ran to his new parents, but I willed myself not to cry because it seemed entirely too contrived. And then the quote came up. And then Walt Disney's name came up. And I lost it. And some people will read this next comment and entirely dismiss anything else I have to say, but I liked this film more than "The Incredibles" or "Cars". Neither of those films moved me or connected with me. It took a little while into the film to do it, but this one definitely touched me with the message it had. I thought it had a fantastic lesson to teach and philosophy to rely on. One of my favorite lines: paraphrase of Bowler Hat Guy: "I could accept all the responsibility myself for what's happened to me, or I could blame you. Ding ding ding. I pick you." And I loved the celebration of Lewis' failure to fix the Robinsons' peanut-butter-and-jelly machine. I want to see the film again. With regard to the 3D, the entire film is in 3D, but it's not the same kind of gimmicky 3D that you get with the attractions and older 3D films. It's more of a prevailing vision. In the beginning, you'll notice it a lot, but after a while, it just becomes normal. There was only one scene in the T-Rex segment that made me jump because of the 3D, and there's a special 3D bit in the credits. /cs
Originally Posted By Dabob2 I watched Toy Story 2 on DVD on Sunday, after seeing MTR Saturday night, just because I wanted to compare a movie that got some things right with a movie that got just about everything right. I really noticed the pacing of TS2 this time - it's just about perfect. FWIW, Toy Story 2 also had a small army of writers given credit, so it's not always bad.
