DVD available at Amazon.com
Director:
Cory Edwards
Featuring the voices of:
Anne Hathaway……….Red
Glenn Close……….Granny
James Belushi……….The Woodsman
Patrick Warburton……….The Wolf
David Ogden Stiers……….Nicky Flippers
Anthony Anderson……….Det. Bill Stork
Xzibit……….Chief Grizzly
Chazz Palminteri……….Woolworth the Sheep
Andy Dick……….Boingo
Cory Edwards……….Twitchy
The Weinstein Co. presents Hoodwinked! Written by Cory Edwards, Todd Edwards, and Tony Leech. Running time: 83 minutes. Rated PG (for some mild action and thematic elements). Available on DVD: May 2, 2006.
The movie:
In the realm of fairy tale literature there are a lot of stories that can be adapted to the silver screen. And some of them have. One story was about a woman living with seven guys. But don’t worry no funny business took place. The woman’s name was Snow White and the guys were a bunch of dwarfs. In 2001, DreamWorks released Shrek, a comedy that broke the mold of the Walt Disney-Pixar Studios computer animated classics that preceded it. Hailed by some as the greatest fairy tale never told, the movie was one great spoof about finding true love, with a giant green ogre, a princess and a loudmouthed jackass.
When Harvey and Bob Weinstein left the Disney-owned Miramax Films last year and started their own company – called The Weinstein Co. – they had a goal: find offbeat entertaining films as well as those that can make a splash come awards season.
Hoodwinked!, the brother’s first foray into the world animation, was a small surprise when it was released last Christmas. Much of its success is because it is a fairy tale spoof in the tradition of Shrek. The movie does not star an ogre, but rather a little girl in a red hood. Simply known as Red, she spends her days riding her bike through the forest so she can deliver goodies baked by her Grandma (voiced by Glenn Close).
Then one day she encounters a wolf (Patrick Warburton) with an Afro, a headband, and a faded Lakers basketball jersey. Fearing she’s about to become the main course, she sprays him with mace and runs to her grandmother’s house. There, Red (Anne Hathaway) finds the wolf lying in bed and wearing a Grandma mask. Wiling to put up a fight, she threatens violence; the wolf just wants to talk. Before that can happen, though, Grandma pops out of the closet all tied up and a crazed axe-wielding woodman crashes through a large window yelling at the top of his lungs.
Instead of continuing on as a linear story, Hoodwinked! turns into a police procedural with David Ogden Stiers as the voice of Chief Investigator Nicky Flippers. With a name like Flippers he must be a frog. It is his job to try to figure out what exactly happened in Grandma’s house. At the same time, he is trying to solve the mystery of the Goodie Bandit.
Red, the Wolf, Grandma, and the Woodsman are individually questioned about what took place and each tells a different story. The Wolf is not really big and bad like he seems; he is an investigative reporter trying to find out who is stealing all the recipes and pastries, thus causing all the bakeries to close shop. So he acts like I. M. Fletcher (“Fletch”, for short) and wears different disguises to get the inside scoop. He, along with his photographer Twitchy, go digging and discover that Granny’s goodies are the only ones the Goodie Bandit has not stolen.
Red has aspirations to leave the forest and experience the world, but her Grandma convinces her it’s too dangerous. Grandma lives another life beyond the confines of a kitchen as she competes in extreme sports and daredevil antics. The Woodsman is a poor schlump who struggles being an actor, and yet has aspirations to be a part of a world-renowned yodeling troupe.
The twist in the narrative uses a technique that has been around for decades. Legendary director Akira Kurosawa made a film called Rashomon in which the story is told from different points-of-view. This device keeps the story fresh for Hoodwinked! as the four characters are able to tell their amazing stories of what happened that fateful day in the forest.
Filmmakers Cory Edwards, Todd Edwards and Tony Leech have a grand sense of humor, especially incorporating characters like a bewitched goat singing about his horns and a hyperactive squirrel that doesn’t drink coffee.
Hoodwinked! is far from being like a polished Pixar movie. Lacking in visuals, the movie succeeds because it is a fun, little spoof. Saturday Night Fever, Mission: Impossible and the Vin Diesel action flick Triple X are referenced, as are many other pop culture favorites. Anne Hathaway, Patrick Warburton and the rest of the vocal players are well suited for their animated characters. The tongue and cheekiness of the dialogue is all around gratifying, and is indispensable given that nothing is off limits in this fairy tale parody.
Score: 7.5/10
The DVD:
THE VIDEO
(Presented in 1.78:1 Anamorphic widescreen)
The DVD sports a wonderful transfer. No problems with the print, everything looks lush. Most likely Hoodwinked! was transferred from the digital source so there is little to not edge enhancement. The attention to detail, including the lighting during Red’s “blue scene” and film noir-esque riff is crisp.
Score: 8.5/10
THE AUDIO
(English and French 5.1)
The Weinstein Company film goes two-for-two with a very good sound track. The woodman’s yelling, Red’s singing, and the goat’s banjo playing are accentuated by 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound. Audio-pumping delight, the track masterfully blends action, comedy, and original songs by co-director Todd Edwards for this animated gem.
Score: 8/10
SPECIAL FEATURES: Victims of the Goodie Bandit!!!
The raucous animated movie is short on extras. Five deleted and extended scenes have optional commentary from writer/director Cory Edwards. Most involve extensions of musical numbers. The only deletion was a storyboard that was scrapped prior to computer animation.
The feature commentary with Edwards, his co-writer-director-brother Todd, and co-writer-director Tony Leech is quite fun. Cory Edwards is animated (no pun intended) as he begins the proceedings with a British accent. This makes his other partners in crime scratch their heads. “What are you doing?” “I’m trying to bring a little bit of culture.” Nevertheless, the trio are laid back and thankfully don’t bombard the listener with computer animation gibberish. Instead, they reveal how some of characterizations and narrative came about. Chief Inspector Nicky Flippers was somewhat inspired by Nick Charles a.k.a. “The Thin Man”. The occupation of the Wolf was indeed based on I. M. Fletcher, thus backing up my description earlier. Oh, and anytime you have contributors who express the need to have an enjoyable commentary, because entertainment magazines grade its quality, that’s always a good thing. Despite pointing out pop culture references, the most interesting revelation is probably during the closing credits. All three tell the listening audience what to expect in the sequel.
The last remaining features on the disc include the film’s theatrical trailer and a featurette on the making-of the film. How to make an Animated Film (12:50) is mostly fluff, but there is some good information. Like how the feedback from children in producer Sue Bea Montgomery’s neighborhood – they were shown a storyboard reel with recorded voices – helped make the final product better. Kids as young as four suggested Twitchy should have a bigger role.
Score: 5/10
| InsidePulse’s Ratings for Hoodwinked! | |
