Madagascar

I've seen the previews for the upcoming CG animated feature Madagascar, and let me just say this: I can't tell how you how sick and tired I am of all these CG movies all about talking animals and toys! Why do these producers think that all we want to see on the big screen are monsters and tools? Ice Age. Shark Tale. Robots. I mean, how many Toy Storys can you have? When I first heard about Disney's last 2D animated feature Home on the Range I thought (and who knows where I got this idea) that it was going to be a satiric spoof on western melodramas, but when I finally see the preview trailer for it, it turns out to be-surprise!- another children's barnyard funny with goofy talking animals!

That's why I commend Brad Bird for Pixar's The Incredibles; first, because it deals with one of my favorite subjects-super heroes, and second, because Bird took the bold step of working with human protagonists. Same deal with Don Bluth's Titan A.E. (2000). OK, I'll admit that Titan A.E. wasn't the greatest story of all time, but I have to at least give Don Bluth credit for trying something different. A feature film about human (and space aliens) where the characters don't sing. At least it wasn't a retread of The Little Mermaid or Toy Story for the umpteenth time.

It's because of Madagascar and thier ilk that I rarely go to the theaters anymore. Why should I pay $7.50 for something I've seen done fifty times already by some hack who just wants to copy Disney's style?