We have compiled a list of animated movies and specials that will be airing during this holiday season.  The shows listed are based solely on the movies and characters regularly covered on DTW.  Gather the family and enjoy!

NBC      Sat. Nov 28, 8:30 PM - The Incredibles: Now fighting boredom in suburbia, a former superhero and his family get a chance to save the world. (Zap2it.com)

ABC      Mon. Nov 30, 8:30 PM - Shrek the Halls: The ogre’s plans for a cozy family Christmas go awry when Donkey, Puss in Boots and the rest of the fairy-tale gang try to join in the fun. (Zap2it.com)

DISN    Tues. Dec 1, 8:00 PM - Happy Feet: Born without the ability to sing, a young emperor penguin expresses himself and hopes to attract a mate through his amazing dancing talent. (Zap2it.com)

DISN    Wed. Dec 2, 8:00 PM - Happy Feet

AFAM  Wed. Dec 2, 7:00 PM - Pixar Short Films: A collection of 20 computer-animated short films includes “Rescue Squad Mater,” “Jack-Jack Attack,” and Oscar-winners “For the Birds,” “Geri’s Game” and “Tin Toy.” (Zap2it.com)

A snowman pulls out all the stops in attempting to break out of his snowglobe in Pixar's short "Knick Knack."

AFAM  Thu. Dec 3, 6:00 PM - The Polar Express: A train conductor guides a boy who doubts the existence of Santa Claus to the North Pole. Based on a book by Chris Van Allsburg. (Zap2it.com)

AFAM  Thu. Dec 3, 8:30 PM - The Polar Express

NICK    Sat. Dec 5, 11:00 AM - Back at the Barnyard (It’s an Udderful Life): When Santa gets a case of ferret fever, Otis and the animals vow to make toys and deliver them on Christmas Eve. (Zap2it.com)

NBC      Sat. Dec 5, 8:30 PM - The Incredibles

ABC      Wed. Dec 9, 8:00 PM - Shrek the Halls

NICK    Wed. Dec 9, 7:00 AM - Back at the Barnyard (It’s an Udderful Life)

DISN    Wed. Dec 9, 8:00 PM - Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King gives the yuletide season a touch of Halloween in an animated tale from the mind of Tim Burton. (Zap2it.com)

DISN    Thurs. Dec 10, 12:00 PM - Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas

DXD      Fri. Dec 11, 5:00 PM - The Polar Express

NICK    Sat.  Dec 12,  11:00 AM - Back at the Barnyard (It’s an Udderful Life)

DXD      Sat. Dec 12, 8:30 PM - The Polar Express

AFAM Wed. Dec 16, 8:00 PM - Happy Feet

AFAM Fri. Dec 18, 7:30 PM - Cars: A hot-shot race-car named Lightning McQueen gets waylaid in Radiator Springs, where he finds the true meaning of friendship and family. (IMDb.com)

AFAM Sat. Dec 19, 8:00 PM - Ratatouille: Remy is a young rat in the French countryside who arrives in Paris, only to find out that his cooking idol is dead. (IMDb.com)

AFAM Fri. Dec 20, 8:30 PM - The Incredibles

DISN   Mon. Dec 21, 8:00 PM - The Polar Express

DISN   Tues. Dec 22 8:00 PM - Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas

FAM    Wed. Dec 23, 10:00 PM - The Polar Express

AFAM Fri. Dec 25, 6:00 PM - The Incredibles

DISN   Fri. Dec 25, 3:30 PM - Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas

Source(s):
Holiday TV specials [Cincinnati.com]
ABC Family (magazine ad)

All times are Eastern Standard Time and programming may vary.  Check your local listings.

The complete lack of originality found in Hollywood is something I have personally been disappointed with for a countless number of years now.  Seemingly every heavily-marketed flick is based upon something else, whether it be a novel a comic book or various other art forms –nobody can come up with a single original idea.  Well, not nobody, but the amount of innovation hitting theaters is very slim indeed, as pointed out by /Film in their dissection of the top 50 grossing movies of the decade so far.

Among this list, only 2 of the top 30 money-makers are original concepts — Disney-Pixar’s Finding Nemo (slotted at #15) and DreamWorks’ Kung Fu Panda (rounding out the top 30).  In fact, taking into consideration the entire list, only 9 of the top grossing movies are new ideas, and 5 of those 9 were created by Pixar.

1 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King New Line Cinema $1,119,110,941 2003
2 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest Disney $1,066,179,725 2006
3 The Dark Knight Warner Bros. $1,001,921,825 2008
4 Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone Warner Bros. $974,733,550 2001
5 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End Disney $960,996,492 2007
6 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Warner Bros. $938,212,738 2007
7 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Warner Bros. $929,022,922 2009
8 The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers New Line Cinema $925,282,504 2002
9 Shrek 2 DreamWorks SKG $919,838,758 2004
10 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Warner Bros. $895,921,036 2005
11 Spider-Man 3 Columbia $890,871,626 2007
12 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Warner Bros. $878,643,482 2002
13 Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs 20th Century Fox $878,615,229 2009
14 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring New Line Cinema $870,761,744 2001
15 Finding Nemo Disney / Pixar $864,625,978 2003
16 Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith 20th Century Fox $848,754,768 2005
17 Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Paramount $833,229,011 2009
18 Spider-Man Columbia $821,708,551 2002
19 Shrek the Third DreamWorks SKG $798,958,162 2007
20 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Warner Bros. $795,634,069 2004
21 Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Paramount $786,636,033 2008
22 Spider-Man 2 Columbia $783,766,341 2004
23 The Da Vinci Code Sony / Columbia $758,239,851 2006
24 The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Disney $745,011,272 2005
25 The Matrix Reloaded Warner Bros. $742,128,461 2003
26 Transformers DreamWorks / Paramount $709,709,780 2007
27 Ice Age: The Meltdown 20th Century Fox $655,388,158 2006
28 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl Disney $654,264,015 2003
29 Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones 20th Century Fox $649,398,328 2002
30 Kung Fu Panda DreamWorks SKG $631,736,484 2008
31 The Incredibles Disney / Pixar $631,442,092 2004
32 Hancock Columbia $624,386,746 2008
33 Ratatouille Disney / Pixar $623,707,397 2007
34 The Passion of the Christ Newmarket $611,899,420 2004
35 Mamma Mia! Universal $609,841,637 2008
36 Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa DreamWorks SKG $603,900,344 2008
37 Casino Royale MGM / Columbia $594,239,066 2006
38 War of the Worlds DreamWorks / Paramount $591,745,540 2005
39 Quantum of Solace MGM / Columbia $586,090,727 2008
40 I Am Legend Warner Bros. $585,349,010 2007
41 Iron Man Paramount $585,133,287 2008
42 Night at the Museum 20th Century Fox $574,480,450 2006
43 King Kong Universal $550,517,357 2005
44 Mission: Impossible II Paramount $546,388,105 2000
45 The Day After Tomorrow 20th Century Fox $544,272,402 2004
46 Madagascar DreamWorks SKG $532,680,671 2005
47 The Simpsons Movie 20th Century Fox $527,071,022 2007
48 Monsters, Inc. Disney / Pixar $525,366,597 2001
49 WALL-E Disney / Pixar $521,268,237 2008
50 Meet the Fockers Universal $516,642,939 2004

And this is exactly why I have so much respect for the animated movie genre, which always had a hard time establishing itself as a serious enough genre.  But time and time again, these studios churn out imaginative films in an otherwise stale; dried-up Hollywood.

Source(s):
Only Two of the Top 30 Grossing Films of This Decade Are Original [slashfilm]

Director: Brad Bird, Jan Pinkava Starring: voices of Patton Oswalt, Ian Holm, Janeane Garofalo, Brad Garrett, Peter O’Toole Running Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes Theatrical Release: June 29, 2007 Shop for Ratatouille Merchandise

Plot Summary

From Academy Award-winning director Brad Bird and the amazing storytellers at Pixar Animation Studios comes Ratatouille, the most original comedy of the summer about one of the most unlikely friendship’s imaginable. The film’s protagonist is a rat named Remy who dares to dream the impossible dream of becoming a gourmet chef in a five-star French restaurant. Together with a down-and-out garbage boy named Linguini, the pair carves their own imaginative path to becoming the greatest chef in Paris…. (from MovieWeb.com)

Film Review

If there’s one movie studio we can count on for a great film, it’s Pixar. From the get-go with Toy Story twelve years ago, the studio has released some of the best animated films of our time, including The Incredibles, Toy Story 2, and Finding Nemo. Incredibles director Brad Bird is given his second go in the writer/director’s chair for a Pixar film with this summer’s Ratatouille, an original story about a rat in Paris who has the aspirations of becoming a great chef. While it may seem like an impossible task for Bird to top his previous directorial outing, Ratatouille not only comes close, but it is easily one of the best Pixar films yet, and easily the best animated film thus far this year.

Ratatouille may be the most mature in nature of all of the Pixar films. Basing the entire film around culinary arts, Ratatouille takes viewers into the restaurant business in France, colliding it with the world of sewer rats. And while the premise may seem a little far-fetched for older audiences or potentially boring for younger viewers, Ratatouille has an involved, well-written story with vibrant characters that will likely land the film with an instant classic status. While the story and characters are the film’s clinchers for its success, the most memorable part about it is its truly breathtaking animation. As a fan of animation in general (with the exception of anime and most flat, poorly developed TV programs these days), it was just as entertaining to follow the story and characters as it was to watch Remy race through the Gusteau restaurant kitchen through a rat’s-eye view, and admire the immense detail in a single torn piece of bread. I’m not sure another animated film can come close in detail and sheer beauty. Ratatouille has such a class and elegance to it, that as its characters marvel the wonder of Paris, we can share the same awe and wonder at the visuals unfolding before our very eyes.

I was a little surprised that a more well-known voice cast wasn’t chosen, but the absence of big names did help give a unique identity to the characters. Instead of thinking about the actor voicing the character, I could focus more on the character itself. Comedian Patton Oswalt brought a great realism and human quality to the central rat character of Remy, while Lou Romano injected the perfect amount of youthful awkwardness into Linguini. Everybody Loves Raymond star Brad Garrett is almost unrecognizable as French chef Gusteau, and Peter O’Toole brings just the right amount of life and intensity to food critic Ego.

The G rating seemed low considering some of the things that surprised me about the film. I thought a sequence where an old woman shoots a shotgun at the rats, and later a scene where we see a group of dead rats hanging in a store window seemed a little violent for G. Also, some passionate kissing, a brief glimpse of an artist’s room of most likely nude art (foreground objects obstruct anything explicit), and a strange but humorous moment where a pair of quarreling lovers (with a gun?!) kiss and make up are also present. None of these moments are especially offensive or vulgar, but I just was surprised to find these slightly edgier pieces of material sprinkled into a G-rated Pixar feature. The opening cartoon, Lifted, is a wonderful little new take on alien abduction, but also includes quite a bit of more Looney Tunes-esque slapstick violence that surprised me. As a whole, however, Ratatouille is still a fine family film – one parents will enjoy just as much as their children (if not more).

Ratatouille is the kind of family film that makes the more dumbed-down live action comedy trend in Hollywood seem all the more insulting and, well, unacceptable for viewers. Ratatouille also features a great message for chasing your dreams despite the odds being stacked against you, as well as the importance of friendship, family, and even servanthood. The messages aren’t preachy, and when all is said and done, Ratatouille is just one immensely enjoyable animated experience. Chalk another one up in Pixar’s favor. Let’s hope this studio never loses sight of what it takes to make a great movie – even if their parent company, that they’ve more recently officially become a part of, has lost their way. So in a sea of summer sequels or cheesy kid films, Ratatouille is a savory distraction from it all. ~ Served best with a bag of popcorn and a friend or loved one to share it with!