GET READY FOR THE BADDEST COMEDY OF THE SUMMER! DREAMWORKS ANIMATION PRESENTS SAM ROCKWELL, MARC MARON, CRAIG ROBINSON, AWKWAFINA AND ANTHONY RAMOS IN THE BAD GUYS 2.
IN THEATERS AUGUST 1ST.
The special advance screening is at 11am on Saturday, July 26th @ Marcus Ronnie’s Cine (10am suggested arrival).
(from left) Mr. Snake (Marc Maron), Mr. Shark (Craig Robinson), Ms. Tarantula (Awkwafina), Chief Misty Luggins (Alex Borstein), Mr. Piranha (Anthony Ramos) and Mr. Wolf (Sam Rockwell) n DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys 2, directed by Pierre Perifel. Photo Credit: Universal Pictures / DreamWorks Animation
Everyone’s favorite felons are back, and this time, they’ve got company.
In the new action-packed chapter from DreamWorks Animation’s acclaimed comedy smash about a crackerjack crew of animal outlaws, our now-reformed Bad Guys are trying (very, very hard) to be good, but instead find themselves hijacked into a high-stakes, globe-trotting heist, masterminded by a new team of criminals they never saw coming: The Bad Girls.
Based on the New York Times best-selling book series by Aaron Blabey, which has soared from 8 million to over 30 million copies sold since the first film’s release in 2022, The Bad Guys 2 stars the stellar original cast, led by Academy Award® winner Sam Rockwell as Mr. Wolf, SAG award nominee Marc Maron as safe-cracker Mr. Snake, SAG award nominee Craig Robinson as master-of disguise Mr. Shark, Grammy winner Anthony Ramos as Mr. Piranha and Emmy winner Awkwafina as hacker Ms. Tarantula, aka “Webs.”
The returning voice cast is joined by a new trio of comedic powerhouses as The Bad Girls: Oscar® nominee Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple) as Bad Girls leader Kitty Kat, a dangerously clever snow leopard; Oscar® nominee Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Movie Film) as Pigtail, a brilliant Bulgarian wild boar engineer; and Emmy nominee and comedy icon Natasha Lyonne (Russian Doll, Poker Face) as Doom, a wry raven with a knack for deception.
From celebrated returning director Pierre Perifel and producer Damon Ross, The Bad Guys 2 also features the alumni voice talents of Emmy nominee Zazie Beetz as Governor Diane Foxington, BAFTA winner Richard Ayoade as Professor Marmalade, Emmy winner Alex Borstein as Police Chief (now Commissioner) Misty Luggins and Lilly Singh as sensationalist reporter Tiffany Fluffit.
The Bad Guys 2 is co-directed by JP Sans, who served as head of character animation on the first film. The music is by Oscar®-nominated returning composer Daniel Pemberton.
Everyone’s favorite felons are back, and this time, they’ve got company.
In the new action-packed chapter from DreamWorks Animation’s acclaimed comedy smash about a crackerjack crew of animal outlaws, our now-reformed Bad Guys are trying (very, very hard) to be good, but instead find themselves hijacked into a high-stakes, globe-trotting heist, masterminded by a new team of criminals they never saw coming: The Bad Girls.
THE BAD GUYS (review) grossed $97.2 million in the United States and Canada, and $153.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $250.4 million.
Based on the New York Times best-selling book series by Aaron Blabey, which has soared from 8 million to over 30 million copies sold since the first film’s release in 2022, The Bad Guys 2 stars the stellar original cast, led by Academy Award® winner Sam Rockwell as Mr. Wolf, SAG award nominee Marc Maron as safe-cracker Mr. Snake, SAG award nominee Craig Robinson as master-of disguise Mr. Shark, Grammy winner Anthony Ramos as Mr. Piranha and Emmy winner Awkwafina as hacker Ms. Tarantula, aka “Webs.”
The returning voice cast is joined by a new trio of comedic powerhouses as The Bad Girls: Oscar® nominee Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple) as Bad Girls leader Kitty Kat, a dangerously clever snow leopard; Oscar® nominee Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Movie Film) as Pigtail, a brilliant Bulgarian wild boar engineer; and Emmy nominee and comedy icon Natasha Lyonne (Russian Doll, Poker Face) as Doom, a wry raven with a knack for deception.
From celebrated returning director Pierre Perifel and producer Damon Ross, The Bad Guys 2 also features the alumni voice talents of Emmy nominee Zazie Beetz as Governor Diane Foxington, BAFTA winner Richard Ayoade as Professor Marmalade, Emmy winner Alex Borstein as Police Chief (now Commissioner) Misty Luggins and Lilly Singh as sensationalist reporter Tiffany Fluffit.
The Bad Guys 2 is co-directed by JP Sans, who served as head of character animation on the first film. The music is by Oscar®-nominated returning composer Daniel Pemberton.
THE BAD GUYS 2 is in theaters AUGUST 1.
(from left) Pigtail (Maria Bakalova), Kitty Kat (Danielle Brooks) and Doom (Natasha Lyonne) in DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys 2, directed by Pierre Perifel.(from left) Mr. Snake (Marc Maron) and Doom (Natasha Lyonne) in DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys 2, directed by Pierre Perifel.
As Spring slowly arrives (really, April snow), the multiplex makes way for a new family-friendly animated feature film (and contrary to what the Academy said, that medium can tackle the more mature subject matter, like FLEE). Now, this one’s got an interesting twist, a “spin” on a firmly established trope of the “cartoon conflict’. Well, it’s not a “skewed’ satiric fairy tale or fable but rather goes further back, before the features, to those “much-missed” theatrical shorts. Very often they dealt with a chase, usually a pursuit with a predator animal trying to capture its (not so defenseless) prey. In the world of Looney Tunes, Sylvester is after Tweety while the Coyote was always several steps behind that Roadrunner. But what about shifting the focus from the “heroes” to the “villains”, to a team of “nogoodniks” who somehow want to change? Or do they? Can they really “flip” their “nature” or must they remain THE BAD GUYS?
This “cartoon caper” begins with a casual diner conversation between the gang’s leader, Wolf (voice of Sam Rockwell), and his “second in command” and BFF Snake (Marc Maron). After exiting the “greasy spoon”, the duo begins a “bank heist’ with the help of the rest of the “crew”: computer-hacking whiz Tarantula (Awkwafina), master of disguise Shark (Craig Robinson), and the tiny but powerful Piranha (Anthony Ramos). After barely escaping capture by their arch-nemesis, Police Chief Luggins (Alex Borstein), the gang return to their secret lair and begin to plan their next “job”. A TV news report informs them that the valuable Golden Dolphin award for Samaritan of the Year will be presented to Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade) at a “fancy-schmancy” museum event. For Wolf, the “icing on the cake” is that the award will be given by newly elected Governor Foxington (Zazie Beetz). The gang complains that many criminals have failed to nab the Dolphin, but Wolf insists that this will be their greatest “score”. Of course, the plan doesn’t quite go smoothly, as Wolf helps a much-older matron who nearly trips down a staircase. He has an odd sensation, a twinge of euphoria inside sparked by doing good and causing his tail to wag. This helps lead to the gang’s capture, but security footage of Wolf’s selfless act inspires the Prof to plead for the gang, insisting that he can change their ways and do a better job of reforming them than any prison. Can the “bad guys” go good or is this just part of a bigger scheme? And what about that spark between Wolf and the Guv?
Dreamworks Animation theatrical features have been “hit and miss” of late, often releasing uninspired sequels (the last SPIRIT horse-flick was true horse…y’know) and tepid original ideas, but put this effort in the plus category. This may be due to the source material, a popular series of children’s books by Aaron Blabey, adapted with playful glee by screenwriters Etan Cohen and Yonni Brenner who have included several nods to the old “let’s steal something in the most intricate way possible” movies. The familiar setting of the first scene gives us a “head’s up’ as they recreate the eatery from the “bookends” of PULP FICTION. The other plus is the inspired direction of first-time feature director Pierre Perifel who balances the engaging character interchanges with action sequences that take a welcome satiric swing at the excesses of many blockbusters (consider this a “palette cleanser” to the insufferable AMBULANCE). Cameras swoop above and around the speeding vehicles before slowing down for us to appreciate a subtle visual “nugget”, then “revving up’ for some bit of F&F gravity-defying nonsense. Happily the flick also employs some really inspired, funny character designs, “filling-out” Blabey’s comic-strip imagery, while not going overboard on the “too busy” detailing of many CGI renderings, though I did enjoy the darkened lines about the eyes and lips which bring out the expressions. Now, this is a bit of a human/animal mix, unlike say ZOOTOPIA or the KUNG FU PANDA series, humans interact with the critters on the same level, much like Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny, so there’s the “fur-less folk” who are every bit as exaggerated but seem to owe much to the “anime” wide-eyed and “open-mouth” tropes we’re seeing more frequently, from LUCA to TURNING RED. Perhaps this is done to make the animals “stand out” a bit more, though I wish the Police Chief and her crew looked as appealing. What does work is the use of this terrific vocal cast led by Rockwell who is pure laid-back “Clooney cool” as Wolf while Maron conveys a different side to his wiseguy stand-up comic (and podcaster) persona as the irritable, curmudgeonly Snake (thinking his “bucket hat” is a nod to Carl Reiner in the OCEANS trilogy) . Oh,, and extra kudos to the artisans who have recreated the sun-drenched LA streets that are a backdrop to the frenetic mayhem. With so much to offer in the way of animated entertainment, audiences of any age should have fun spending a good 100 minutes with THE BAD GUYS.
3 out of 4
THE BAD GUYS opens in theaters everywhere on April 22, 2022
Mark your calendars, because THE BOXTROLLS are coming to theaters on September 26th. But before they do, Focus Features has released this cute, character filled poster for their upcoming film.
Get to know Fish, Eggs, Shoe, Oil Can and the entire gang in this new video.
(Moviefone)
THE BOXTROLLS is a family event movie from LAIKA, the creators of Coraline and ParaNorman, that introduces audiences to a new breed of family – The Boxtrolls, a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who have lovingly raised an orphaned human boy named Eggs (voiced by Isaac Hempstead Wright of Game of Thrones) in the amazing cavernous home they’ve built beneath the streets of Cheesebridge.
When the town’s villain, Archibald Snatcher (Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley), comes up with a plot to get rid of the Boxtrolls, Eggs decides to venture above ground, “into the light,” where he meets and teams up with fabulously feisty Winnie (Elle Fanning of Maleficent). Together, they devise a daring plan to save Eggs’ family.
Based upon the book Here Be Monsters, by Alan Snow, THE BOXTROLLS is directed by Anthony Stacchi and Graham Annable.
Watch what Ben Kingsley had to say about the film and acting at Comic Con 2014 HERE.
Check out the brand new trailer for THE BOXTROLLS. Think animation with a dash of Monty Python thrown in.
Based on Alan Snow’s bestseller HERE BE MONSTERS, the voice cast includes Ben Kingsley, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Elle Fanning, Jared Harris, Toni Collette, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Richard Ayoade, and Tracy Morgan.
The third animation collaboration is from LAIKA and Focus Features, the companies that brought you the Academy Award-nominated features PARANORMAN and CORALINE. Expect their latest film to take one of the spots for Best Animated Feature when the Oscar nominations are announced Thursday morning, January 15, 2015.
Meet a new breed of family – THE BOXTROLLS, a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who have lovingly raised an orphaned human boy named Eggs (voiced by Isaac Hempstead-Wright) in the amazing cavernous home they’ve built beneath the streets of Cheesebridge.
When the town’s villain, Archibald Snatcher (Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley), comes up with a plot to get rid of the Boxtrolls, Eggs decides to venture above ground, “into the light,” where he meets and teams up with fabulously feisty Winnie (Elle Fanning). Together, they devise a daring plan to save Eggs’ family.
From directors Anthony Staachi and Graham Annable, the family event movie, THE BOXTROLLS, releases in theaters on September 26.
Before the new stop-motion animated film THE BOXTROLLS hits theaters on on September 26, Focus Features and LAIKA invite you to get creative and build your very own Boxtroll at TheBoxtrolls.com.
One grand prize winner’s Boxtroll will be brought to life as a real puppet by LAIKA artists, and other Box-tastic prizes are available.
LAIKA artists put a ton of blood, sweat and tears into bringing THE BOXTROLLS to life. But that’s only three ingredients.
A family event movie from the creators of CORALINE and PARANORMAN that introduces audiences to a new breed of family – THE BOXTROLLS, a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who have lovingly raised an orphaned human boy named Eggs (voiced by Isaac Hempstead-Wright) in the amazing cavernous home they’ve built beneath the streets of Cheesebridge.
When the town’s villain, Archibald Snatcher (Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley), comes up with a plot to get rid of the Boxtrolls, Eggs decides to venture above ground, “into the light,” where he meets and teams up with fabulously feisty Winnifred (Elle Fanning). Together, they devise a daring plan to save Eggs’ family.
Based on the novel Here Be Monsters by Alan Snow, the voice cast includes Ben Kingsley, Toni Collette, Elle Fanning, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Jared Harris, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Richard Ayoade, and Tracy Morgan.
The amazing people at LAIKA (CORALINE and PARANORMAN) have debuted a second trailer for THE BOXTROLLS, and hoo-boy, is it ever CUTE!
The stop motion animation is incredible. With all the fine detailing and so much artistry, I can’t wait for this stunning film!
THE BOXTROLLS – a 3D stop-motion and CG hybrid animated movie is based on Alan Snow’s bestselling fantasy adventure novel Here Be Monsters.
The voice cast includes Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley, Academy Award nominee Toni Collette, Elle Fanning, Isaac Hempstead-Wright (Game of Thrones), Emmy Award nominee Jared Harris (Mad Men), Simon Pegg (Star Trek), Nick Frost (the upcoming The World’s End), Richard Ayoade (The IT Crowd), and Tracy Morgan (30 Rock).
THE BOXTROLLS is a comedic fable that unfolds in Cheesebridge, a posh Victorian-era town obsessed with wealth, class, and the stinkiest of fine cheeses. Beneath its charming cobblestone streets dwell the Boxtrolls, foul monsters who crawl out of the sewers at night and steal what the townspeople hold most dear: their children and their cheeses. At least, that’s the legend residents have always believed. In truth, the Boxtrolls are an underground cavern-dwelling community of quirky and lovable oddballs who wear recycled cardboard boxes the way turtles wear their shells.
The Boxtrolls have raised an orphaned human boy, Eggs (voiced by Mr. Hempstead-Wright), since infancy as one of their dumpster-diving and mechanical junk-collecting own. When the Boxtrolls are targeted by villainous pest exterminator Archibald Snatcher (Mr. Kingsley), who is bent on eradicating them as his ticket to Cheesebridge society, the kindhearted band of tinkerers must turn to their adopted charge and adventurous rich girl Winnie (Ms. Fanning) to bridge two worlds amidst the winds of change – and cheese.
THE BOXTROLLS is being directed by Anthony Stacchi (co-director of the hit animated feature Open Season) and Graham Annable (story artist on Coraline and ParaNorman), and produced by David Ichioka and Travis Knight.
Focus Features will release the film into theaters on September 26, 2014.
Seems like pesky real life can really get in the way of selling a movie. That’s what the folks at Fox must have thought several months ago when the Trayvon Martin case was making headlines. They’d already sent out teaser posters for their wacky Summer comedy ” Neighborhood Watch”. Well that title wouldn’t bring smiles to anyone’s faces after the Florida story. So, now it’s in theatres with a new title THE WATCH. Can one word really distance it from the tragedy? That’s what the marketing executives are hoping. But you what movie comedy are hoping? We hope this ” Avengers-like” teaming of comedy heroes will deliver the yucks! They’ve all got a pretty impressive track record, so…will this take our minds off the nasty news headlines?
The movie plunks us down on a quiet, nice suburban street in Ohio. Life’s good for nice guy Evan ( Ben Stiller ). He’s the manager of the local Costco warehouse store. He’s got a lovely home and a lovely wife, Abby ( Rosemarie DeWitt ). Oh, and they’re really trying to have a child. All’s well until a brutal crime at his work shakes up Evan. The local police, led by obnoxious Sgt. Bressman ( Will Forte ), aren’t making much progress in finding the culprit, so Evan takes matters into his own hands and announces during halftime at the high school football game that he’s forming a neighborhood watch patrol. He’s mocked by the folks in the stands ( and Bressman ), but three neighbors show up at Evan’s home for the first meeting. There’s the motor-mouthed, gregarious Bob ( Vince Vaughn ), who thinks the watch is just a good way for the guys to hang out away from their wives. Much more enthused about the watch is Franklin ( Jonah Hill ), a twenty-something high school dropout still living at home who’s irked that he didn’t pass the police entrance exams. Rounding out the foursome is transplanted Brit Jamarcus ( Richard Ayoade ) who’s eager to help ( and eager to hook up with those desperate housewives he’s heard about ). Soon the guys discover that these criminals are not of this world. How are they going to convince the authorities? And are some of these nasty aliens living in disguise right next door?
Yup, four, count em’, four comedy heavyweights in this flick. So I wondered why the film felt so, flat. It seems to run out of steam ( or momentum ) about the halfway point. The fellas are really trying, although they seemed to be trying too hard in certain scenes ( I smell improv! ). Stiller’s in his put-upon nice guy role that netted big returns as Greg Focker and that museum guard, but he doesn’t really get much of a chance to bust out as he’s done in supporting roles in DODGEBALL : A TRUE UNDERDOG STORY. I really miss Mr. Furious! Vaughn’s Bob is a lot of fun until he starts channeling Tony Danza In SHE’S OUT OF CONTROL and froths at the mouth as he tries to protect his teen daughter’s purity. More disturbing than funny. Hill’s Franklin is pretty disturbing also as he brandishes his knife constantly. His cop-wannabe character seems a bit too close to the neighborhood watchman on trial in Florida. At other times, he’s a more cuddly version of co-screenwriter Seth Rogan In OBSERVE AND REPORT. The real discovery here is Ayoade, who scores big laughs with his smooth low key delivery. I’ve only known him as the maker of last year’s excellent SUBMARINE and as a co-star of the very funny British TV show ” Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace “. But even his considerable talents can’t rescue this film when it hits a speed bump. The same goes for DeWitt, so wonderful in the recent YOUR SISTER’S SISTER, is regulated here to the exasperated missus. Summer flick MVP Forte ( he brightened up the dismal ROCK OF AGES and THAT’S MY BOY ), but neither he nor two great character actors playing odd neighbors can right this train once it leaves the tracks. Perhaps Akiva Schaffer ( HOT ROD and countless SNL Viral Videos ) could’ve tightened up the pacing. I think the problem may just be an unwieldy script. The brutal beating of a main character at mid-point seems to bring the laughs to a dead halt, as does a verbal fight meant to split the team that comes off as a forced conflict. While many films have mixed genres ( SHAUN OF THE DEAD immediately springs to mind ), the bouncy CGI aliens ( like the SUPER 8 beastie from a yaer ago ) never really mesh with these suburban goofballs. It’s especially upsetting when they grab firearms from Franklin’s hidden massive arsenal ( pretty creepy after last week’s horrors ). I was rooting for this flick because of my great affection for these actors and their past projects. I hope that if they team again, they’ll leave the mayhem to the secret agents and super heroes of Summertime. Ben, Jonah, Vince, and Richard are much more entertaining when they share a couple of beers and shoot the breeze ( instead of EFX gargoyles ).
Check out the new trailer for 20th Century Fox’s THE WATCH. In theaters July 27. Vince Vaughn dropped by Conan last night to give fans a look at his new comedy.
And the NSFW, Red Band trailer from earlier this month.
Starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill & Richard Ayoade, THE WATCH is the story of four everyday suburban guys who come together as an excuse to escape their humdrum lives one night a week. But when they accidentally discover that their town has become overrun with aliens posing as ordinary suburbanites, they have no choice but to save their neighborhood — and the world — from total extermination.
Here’s the trailer for The Weinstein Company’s comedy SUBMARINE, in theaters June 3rd.
Synopsis:
Fifteen-year-old Oliver Tate has two big ambitions: to save his parents’ marriage via carefully plotted intervention and to lose his virginity before his next birthday. Worried that his mom is having an affair with New Age weirdo Graham, Oliver monitors his parents’ sex life by charting the dimmer switch in their bedroom. He also forges suggestive love letters from his mom to dad. Meanwhile, Oliver attempts to woo his classmate, Jordana, a self-professed pyromaniac who supervises his journal writing – especially the bits about her. When necessary, she orders him to cross things out. Based on Joe Dunthorne’s acclaimed novel, SUBMARINE is a captivating coming-of-age story with an offbeat edge.
SUBMARINE is the debut feature film from Richard Ayoade, produced by Warp Films and Exec Produced by Ben Stiller. The film will be in theaters June 3, 2011. Follow the film on Twitter (http://twitter.com/SubmarineUK) and “Like” it on Facebook HERE.
