February In Review

This month has been bursting with exciting Pixar news, so in case you missed any of it, here it is in a nutshell.

It was a big month for Monsters University, and it looks like Pixar have got their marketing campaign for the film in full swing. This month marked the release of the film's first full-length trailer, as well as the debut of a marvelous new poster - plus several other little tidbits, like a fantastic little promo.

Director Mark Andrews and producer Katherine Sarfian posing with the golden trophy 

The 85th Academy Awards took place just this past Sunday, and the Best Animated Feature statuette ended up going to Pixar's Brave. Congratulations to Brenda Chapman, Mark Andrews, Katherine Sarafian and all the talented artists and filmmakers that put together a wonder of a film!

Monsters, Inc. arrived on Blu-ray 3D this month, bringing with it Partysaurus Rex and a sneak peek at MU! I'll hopefully be picking it up shortly, but if you have already gotten around to buying it, feel free to share your thoughts on the release!

The latest short film to come up of the animation powerhouse, The Blue Umbrella, premiered on the 12th of this month at the Berlin International Film Festival, and a gorgeous poster (above) for the short was also released.

Reports began to show up that the hilarious Albert Brooks, voice of Marlin the clownfish in Finding Nemo, had officially signed on the voice the character once again in the rumored sequel to the 2003 film. If Nemo 2 is indeed a go, then at least it seems Brooks would likely return, because let's face it, you can't make a sequel to Nemo without him. Ellen DeGeneres (voice of Dory) is reportedly in talks to return as well, and director Andrew Stanton would helm the follow-up for sure.

I was originally skeptical of a sequel to Finding Nemo, but if it is really happening then I trust Pixar's judgement, and I doubt they would ever make a sequel just because it would be a huge box office hit. And apparently Stanton has got quite the idea, so I see little chance of them screwing up, especially if they've got the main cast back.

Regarding upcoming films from the studio, the official logo for Bob Peterson's The Good Dinosaur was revealed, and while it had already been rumored, the title for Pete Docter's ambitious 'Inside the mind' film has been officially confirmed to be The Inside Out. Hooray!

So now February comes to a close and we begin March. Rumor has it that a new Monsters University trailer may show up this month, so fingers crossed!

Vibrant New 'Monsters University' Poster

When it comes to movie posters, Pixar never fails to impress. Today Nerdist dropped an all-new poster for Monsters University onto the web, and it is quite stunning.

Overflowing with monster college students, some familiar faces, some new, the poster is just exploding with color. The Monsters characters have always been some of my favorites, as well as the Toy Story gang, because of just how vivid and lively they are - not to mention incredibly hilarious and charismatic.

Monsters University already looks like it's got quite the cast of new characters. I personally love the ones that have been introduced so far, particularly Squishy and Art.

Excitement meter continues to rise....nothing new here.

MU hits theaters June 21.

Awesome, Beautiful, Fantastic New 'Brave' Poster!

A major website update. A new trailer tomorrow. Even with these two unbelievably exciting gifts from Pixar this week, they decided to give us one more Brave present...

The gorgeous and spectacular poster seen above that probably made your jaw drop the instant you first saw it.

This is even better than the previous Brave poster we saw, which, for the record, was extremely awesome as well. This one's just so vibrant, and while there's not a large variety of colors on it, it's still very colorful. I think part of the reason Pixar decided to give Merida fiery red hair is to give the movie some more color and spirit, rather than having it look dull and boring.

The new poster features Princess Merida stylishly aiming an arrow at who-knows-what, and bravely staring into the camera. John Lasseter was not kidding when he said Merida was going to be a "kickass" princess! She looks like she could be deadly to anyone or anything if she so desired, so I pity the boy who dumps her.

Also, you can once again catch a glipse of that mysterious bear in the background, as well as those mystical-looking, glowing, blue thingies in the foreground.

The bottom of the Brave poster includes the tagline, and invites you to Change Your Fate on June 22.

I invite you to do the same when Brave hits theaters this summer! Man, now I am starting to get really impatient for June 22 to get here!

Brave: One Year Until Release, First Poster!

The date today is June 22, 2011. Exactly one year from today, Pixar's 13th film Brave will hit theaters! When I first heard that Pixar was going to do a fairy tale, I wasn't quite keen on the idea, but I was still pretty excited since Pixar has never let me down. Over time, as more concept art was released, I started to see how this could be really cool. But after seeing this gorgeous poster I am now ten times even more excited. Brave will not only feature Pixar's first female protagonist, but it will have a darker tone to it than any other previous films from the studio. Now Pixar has stated that they are not trying to scare all their fans away, and that Brave will preserve all the humour and great characters that all Pixar movies have, but it will have a darker tone, and you can tell by the look of the poster. I mean, compared to the Toy Story logo, it is definitely going to be a different type of movie.

Coincidentally, the very first teaser poster for the film was released today, exactly one year before the film's release! It is absolutely stunning, and I think it is one of the best posters for a Pixar film that I have ever seen. Just look at the amount of detail on it! I also love the tagline, "Change Your Fate". There's just something cool about it. Also, you can see what appears to be a bear hidden between the rocks behind the logo. That bear keeps popping up here and there in concept art and now this poster, and remember, before being given the name Brave this movie was originally called "The Bear and the Bow", so this bear is obviously going to be key in the film's plot. I'm also curious to know what those blue sparks in the poster are...

Also, read more Brave and its new teaser poster on Entertainment Weekly. Comments by Brave director Mark Andrews and producer Katherine Sarafian are included.

Brave hits theaters in one year exactly, and don't miss the teaser trailer in theaters with Cars 2!

So what do you think of the poster?

Cars 2: Poster Mania!

If you have been reading my blog since the very beginning, you may remember the post Toy Story 3: Poster Mania!, which was one of my very first posts on this blog. Now, as the wait to Cars 2 quickly approaches the finish line, I give you more...

Poster Mania!! (Cars 2 Edition)

Lightning McQueen chills out in Tokyo, Japan...



Holley Shiftwell takes to the skies, while Finn McMissile keeps guard down low in London, England...

McQueen smiles while Francesco Bernoulli smirks back in Porto Corsa, Italy. As Lightning would say (in Italian), Ka-Ciao!

Mater and Holley share a moment in Paris, France. I'm starting to get the feeling that these "Mater + Holley" rumours are maybe true...

Check it out! Mater's wearing Mater-hosers in Germany!

Brrrrr...I guess even cars get cold, especially in Russia.

Feel free to click the posters to view them larger and in high-res.
Wow, these sure are amazing. They really capture the whole "international" aspect of the film, and I love the tagline The Road Trip Begins Summer 2011. Cars 2 is going to be AWESOME.

Cars 2 Goes to England!

Pixar is working mighty hard to get Cars 2 into theaters on June 24, but they are also busy bringing us many new characters and posters. The ones in this post all have a London, England theme.

These British posters are just as cool as those British accents that the people of England have.

An interesting and creative take on typical British figures, including some royalty.

 

With the final stage of the World Grand Prix racing through the historic streets of London, England, the Queen is quietly elated she was invited to preside over the finish line by Sir Miles Axlerod. Painted in shades of the most royal blues and never without her jeweled crown, the Queen is the definition of decorum and regality, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t enjoy a bit of first-rate competition!

Prince Wheeliam of England is an avid racing fan. He can’t believe his luck that the final race of the one-of-a-kind World Grand Prix is happening on the streets of London. Though he must remain impartial when by his grandmother the Queen’s side, he is privately rooting for his fellow Brits Lewis Hamilton and Nigel Gearsley to cross the finish line first.

                                      
Topper Deckington III is a classic British double-decker bus in a vivid shade of red who relishes in his daily Killswitch route through London’s famous bustling Petroldilly Circus.

Sgt. Highgear is a member of the regiment assigned to London’s landmark Buckingham Palace. With a recognizable tall bearskin cap atop his scarlet body, he stands guard at his sentry box with pride and conviction

No one knows the sites, streets or shortcuts of London better than the jovial Chauncy Fares, a quintessential London black cab.

Cross your fingers for some Italian characters and posters now!

Cars 2 Goes to Japan!

I wonder if the people at Pixar EVER get tired of working. As if they weren't busy enough finishing off Cars 2. Today, enjoy a look at these new Japan-themed posters and characters.

I may not be able to read those Japanese symbols on some of these posters, but I can say that these posters look wonderful.

Also, check out these great new Japanese characters. I'm guessing they're cheering for Shu Todoroki at the World Grand Prix...I, as always, am rooting for Lightning McQueen.

Okuni is a micro car Kabuki dancer who dons the traditional white-painted face and an exquisite colorful kimono for her performances at the Kabuki theater in Tokyo, Japan.

As a professional Sumo wrestler at an arena in Tokyo, Japan, Kingpin Nobunaga is a gold-painted micro van who fights his fiercest matches when he’s wearing his lucky purple mawashi.

Pinion Tanaka is a gold-painted micro van and a professional Sumo wrestler from Tokyo, Japan, who’s always a menacing sight in the ring in his signature teal mawashi.

A master in the art of sculpting the serene zen rock garden at the Tokyo museum, Zen Master wears his old woven reed hat and uses his antique wood rake to create mesmerizing patterns in the garden’s sand.

Stay tuned for more awesome Cars 2 posts! Next up, 'Cars 2 Goes to England'!

Toy Story 3: Poster Mania!

Pixar has released many colorful detailed posters for TS3. I decided to put some here on this post. I hope you like them. I think these are awesome!!! What do you think?