This game was released in Japan in January 1989. My Neighbor Totoro was released in April 1988. This means the computer game (based on the manga of the same name) was among the very first non-Ghibli media that acknowledged the film, before stuff like “Toy Story 3” and “Big Bad Fox and Other Tales”.
Image credit: Basement Brothers
This Reel FX co-production adds to the list of Paramount Animation films being developed under the new leader Jennifer Dodge (formerly of Spin Master Entertainment) set to release after “PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie” on August 14th.
Others include:
Robert Rodriguez’s “The Naughty List” (original Christmas comedy)
An animated film of “Survivor” starring animals
Dan Trachtenberg’s family-friendly horror comedy “Freddy the 13th” (fittingly set to release on October 13th, 2028)
Released by Warner Bros Pictures, this animated film adaptation of the 1999 John Nickle story was produced by Legendary Pictures, the Tom Hanks production company Playtone, and Texas-based animation studio DNA Productions, which had a hit 5 years prior with the 2001 computer-animated Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (it had a spin-off show on Nickelodeon from 2002-2006). Hanks approached director John A. Davis following that movie, feeling like Neutron's style and humor would suit the story. This was one of the Warner Bros animated films released between 2003's Looney Tunes: Back in Action and 2014's The Lego Movie, when they relied on third-party-produced animated films instead of producing their own in-house.
The Ant Bully, which starred Nicolas Cage, Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, Paul Giamatti, Bruce Campbell, and Zach Tyler Eisen (known as Aang in Avatar: The Last Airbender), received mostly positive reviews from critics (and an A- on CinemaScore from audiences, like Jimmy Neutron), but was released in a crowded marketplace for family-friendly animated films. Cars and Over the Hedge had been out for some time, Monster House was released a week before Ant Bully, and Barnyard was getting released the week after. Ant Bully didn't stand out to audiences in comparison, as it looked a bit too similar to two animated ant movies released in 2006 (Antz and A Bug's Life). Warner Bros marketing team did try, however, with a teaser being attached to Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (which featured a Potter spoof) and shorts that aired during commercials on Cartoon Network, similar to what Neutron had done on Nickelodeon before the film's release. It even received an IMAX 3D release.
It opened domestically at #5 (behind Miami Vice, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, John Tucker Must Die, and Monster House) with $8.4M. It ended its run with $28.1M. It made less internationally, with just $27M, leading to a total of $55.1M worldwide against a $50M budget.
DNA Productions ultimately shut down after the release due to no other project being set up after Ant Bully and Jimmy Neutron's third season (Nickelodeon was uninterested in season 4). Davis would go on to be an astrophotographer and took long trips with his wife thanks to residual money from Neutron. He is still up for doing another Jimmy Neutron project whenever the time comes.
I just watched the brand new Avatar film that got dropped onto Paramount+ today (despite being originally set as a theatrical release, big missed opportunity), which is a really good new entry in the Avatar universe. One of the most memorable things about the film to me was this gorilla-aardvark spirit named, well, Gorillavark.
While this spirit's only in the film for roughly 2 minutes and may have just existed as an excuse to have a voice cameo by another big-name actor (in this case, Taika Waititi), I nevertheless dug this character's sweet personality and awesome design. I love the way they not only mixed a gorilla (body, arms, and hands) with an aardvark (tail and feet), but the creative team also mixed in elements of a warthog (face) and an owl (with the head turning like one in picture #3). Gorillavark also has some plant elements, particularly with the antlers that resemble branches and green leaves around the neck. The six huge blue eyes are also used for cute visual gags. This design reminded me of Derpy the Tiger's (KPop Demon Hunters) mysterious look crossed with one of the wolf spiders from DreamWorks' Croods franchise.
The design is also elevated by how expressive Gorillavark is in both the facial expressions and body language. The artists and animators really packed as much as they could into a very brief character! Curious if we'll see Gorillavark again in a future Avatar installment.
Quilladillo is an interesting design mix of an armadillo and a hedgehog who also happens to be a giant demon (the armadillo part is only really noticeable on his head with the markings between his eyes). The armor on his shoulders and legs, the bandages on his arms, and the big bandage on his tummy also make him stand out. The pajamas he wears in the third picture (a piece of birthday merchandise) looks cute on him, too. I can see why there’s more fan art of Quilladillo than other characters in the anime and manga. He looks intimidating yet lovable at the same time, kinda like a Monsters Inc character.
Lanteveldt from the anime Sacrificial Princess & the King of Beasts has a striking character design. His white/yellow/black outfit is cool, the heterochromia-esque eyes (where both eyes have different colors) give him a mysterious atmosphere while also reminding me of Sans from Undertale (obvious reference, I know), and I love how this is a hyena character design where the head resembles a cat (notice the short snout and "3" shaped mouth) as opposed to a dog, which is what I typically see with hyena designs. Hyenas are more closely related to cats than to dogs, so it's nice to see Lanteveldt reflect that.
Lastly, it goes without saying, but Lanteveldt's design has a balance of looking adorable and badass, and that's the kind of design I often find myself favoring.
This remains the biggest deal Comcast and NBCUniversal has made that is comparable to a Bob Iger acquisition when he ran Disney (Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, 21st Century Fox), although the company attempted to acquire 21st Century Fox in 2018 and Warner Bros in 2025 before backing out.
Do you think this acquisition was worth it in the end?
This was part of the “National Air and Space Museum 50th Anniversary Film Series” at the Lockheed Martin IMAX Theater in Washington DC. On the last Monday of every month, they’ll play a movie about space or aviation, with April’s movie being Pixar’s WALL-E.
Since WALL-E wasn’t processed into IMAX, the location opted to play it through a Blu-ray Disc instead (not even a 4K one which is crazy). So the audience sat there looking at the Blu-ray menu, the Disney Blu-ray logo, and the anti-piracy screen.
It makes you wonder if the DCP print could’ve been used at all or they just didn’t have access to it (or it was too old since it was from 2008).
The last picture is the schedule for the year. I bet this blunder could happen again to one of these movies. My bet is Disney’s Planes since that wasn’t originally released in IMAX.
Full Schedule
February 2: The Right Stuff (1983)
February 23: Sully (2016) in IMAX
March 30: Hidden Figures (2016)
April 27: Wall-E (2008)
May 25: Top Gun: Maverick (2022) in IMAX
June 29: Galaxy Quest (1999)
July 27: Planes (2013)
August 31: Interstellar (2014) in IMAX
September 28: Redtails (2012)
October 26: The Great Waldo Pepper (1975)
November 30: The Martian (2015) in IMAX
December 28: 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) in IMAX