Disney

It is by now a well-established fact that the effect of rendering real-life animals with CGI to make them look like they can talk and express human emotions is inarguably creepy. At best, it just doesn’t look believable, and at worst, it is the stuff of nightmares, as evidenced by the online backlash to the terrifyingly photorealistic Pumbaa in this summer’s remake of The Lion King. (One Twitter user summed up the criticism, sarcastically writing, “Why would anyone want the character, human touch, and charm of 2D animation when you could look into a visually accurate warthog’s black, dead eyes as it sings you a song telling you not to be worried.”) Luckily, Disney’s new live action adaptation of Lady and the Tramp, premiering on the streaming platform Disney+ on Nov. 12, leans more toward inoffensively unrealistic than unsettling. The remake, directed by Charlie Bean, is faithful to the 1955 classic animated film—except, thankfully, in the … [Read more...] about Watching Real Dogs Talk Through CGI Mouths in Disney’s ‘Lady and the Tramp’ Remake Is as Weird as You Think

There's a special place in the heart reserved for wisecracking candlesticks, singing crustaceans, and lion cubs growing up to be mighty kings. It's a place where nostalgia is kept, where a warm feeling swells at the thought of things that we used to love, that used to be great. For the better part of this new century, Disney's animated features resided there. With a string of brilliant animated musicals in the late '80s and '90s—The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King—the House of Mouse reigned, with hit after hit of family-friendly cartoons that dominated the box office, dazzled critics, and warmed cold hearts with signature Disney magic and catchy tunes. The Magic Kingdom was overthrown in the new millennium, with Pixar delivering its own brand of reliably wholesome and reliably brilliant films—Toy Story 2, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Up, Wall-E—while Disney struggled to adapt its magic to a new tech-savvy age. Not anymore. Frozen, … [Read more...] about ‘Frozen’ Is the Best Disney Film Since ‘The Lion King’

New York (CNN Business)"Disney's Folly." That's what some in Hollywood dubbed "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" before it premiered in 1937. Critics argued that Walt Disney was risking his studio's reputation with a risky film that no one would sit through. But in the end, Disney's gamble paid off. "Snow White," the first animated feature in America, became a blockbuster that helped make Disney the company it is today. Eighty-two years later, Disney (DIS) is about to unveil another risky innovation — one that could be as vital to the company's future as "Snow White" was to its origins: the launch of Disney+. The company's much-anticipated streaming service debuts on Tuesday in the United States, Canada and the Netherlands. It is Disney's first charge into the "streaming wars," which has media companies like WarnerMedia, CNN's parent company, as well as tech giants like Apple (AAPL) battling with Netflix (NFLX) for consumers' time and money. Read More For Disney and its CEO … [Read more...] about The long-awaited Disney+ is finally here. Here’s everything you need to know about it

FILE - In this Aug. 8, 2017, file photo, The Walt Disney Co. logo appears on a screen above the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. On Tuesday, Nov. 12, Disney Plus launches its streaming service. FILE - In this Aug. 8, 2017, file photo, The Walt Disney Co. logo appears on a screen above the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. On Tuesday, Nov. 12, Disney Plus launches its streaming service. Photo: Richard Drew, AP Photo: Richard Drew, AP Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Image 1 of 3 FILE - In this Aug. 8, 2017, file photo, The Walt Disney Co. logo appears on a screen above the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. On Tuesday, Nov. 12, Disney Plus launches its streaming service. FILE - In this Aug. 8, 2017, file photo, The Walt Disney Co. logo appears on a screen above the floor of the New … [Read more...] about Big names like Marvel, Star Wars as Disney streaming debuts

“Genie, you’re free.” The perfect, heartbreaking tweet—it's unclear, but The Academy appears to be an original source—was circulated by millions Monday night following the news of the shocking passing of Robin Williams at the age of 63. Devastatingly poignant, the image that went viral was a still from the hit 1992 Disney animated feature Aladdin, in which Williams ebulliently voiced the charismatic Genie—a performance so spectacularly mad and entertaining that it won him a special Golden Globe award and pioneered the trend of hiring celebrities to voice animated characters. The scene is from the end of the film, when Aladdin keeps true to his word and makes his third wish to free the Genie from his lamp. With tears in their eyes, the friends hug each other goodbye. It’s easy to understand how the image has come to encapsulate the perfect final goodbye between fans and the entertainer, who has moved us so deeply over the years, all the while … [Read more...] about The Genie Is Free: Robin Williams’s Complicated Relationship With Disney