Screen Junkies » aardman animation

The ‘Pirates! Band Of Misfits’ Trailer Has Pissed Off Lepers

Wookie Johnson — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:43:17 +0000

What should have been this year’s least offensive film, Aardman Animation’s The Pirates! Band Of Misfits, has gone and pissed off leprosy groups. Seriously. Clay pirates have caused offense.

Lepra Health In Action and the International Federation of Anti-Leprosy Associations took issue with a scene in the trailer when a man declares himself as a leper just seconds before his arm falls off. Aardman apologized for the offense (probably in a hilariously proper British way) and agreed to change the scene. An Aardman spokesperson says:

“After reviewing the matter, we decided to change the scene out of respect and sensitivity for those who suffer from leprosy. The last thing anyone intended was to offend anyone and it is clear to us that the right way to proceed is to honor the efforts made by organizations like ILEP to educate the public about this disease.”

I assume the scene will now feature characters inflicted with severe pain, muscle weakness, eye problems, and enlarged nerves primarily around the elbow and knee. The changes to the stop-motion scene is expected to be finished in three years. (Deadline)

Hugh Grant’s Voice Stolen By ‘Pirates’

Wookie Johnson — Thu, 05 May 2011 16:36:51 +0000

Hugh Grant‘s adorable stammer has been sought by Aardman Animations for their next project. In The Pirates! Band Of Misfits, Grant will voice a bearded pirate captain concerned with winning the Pirate of the Year award. Directed by Peter Lord, the 3D stop-motion animated flick also stars a metric ass-ton of people, mostly British. Like Martin Freeman, David Tennant, Imelda Staunton, Jeremy Piven, Salma Hayek, Brian Blessed, Brendan Gleeson, Russell Tovey and Ashley Jenson.

Umm… Salma Hayek? Voicing a cartoon?? That means Salma Hayek was sought out for her acting and not her attributes. This. Makes. No. Sense. What is going on today? Help me though this confusion! Dogs are cats!! Food doesn’t taste right!!!! (Deadline)

‘Arthur Christmas’ Teaser for Santa Conspiracy Theorists

Col. Longshanks — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 17:12:33 +0000

Sony has dropped the teaser for Arthur Christmas, and it’s going to have Santa believersbuzzin‘ like they’re fly like a bee. It starts off with a Morgan Freeman impersonator (or maybe Freeman himself?) taking us through the frigid landscape of the North Pole like some penguins are going to pop out. Then an elf bombards the camera, trying to get us to look away, but we won’t, damnit. We see a tall lanky dude in the background, who the tweaking elf totally gives away as Santa’s son, and then a red sleigh that looks like an alien spacecraft. I’m freakin’ out, man! Quit messing with my traditional perception of Christmas!

James McAvoy plays Santa’s misfit son, Arthur, who executes an unauthorized rookie mission to get a present that Santa missed half way around the globe before dawn on Christmas morning. It’s a little disconcerting that Santa is just forgetting to drop presents off, but I’m glad someone is picking up the slack. I hope this film doesn’t take an awkward turn to examine Mr. Kringle’s battle with Alzheimer’s. That would not make for a very jolly tale at all.

Arthur Christmas crashes into theaters November 23, 2011.