The first trailer for the upcoming animated film Epic has surfaced online, promising a mixed batch of beauty, humor and wit. But will it appeal to a mass audience? Or, as most animated films are, be dismissed as nothing more than a kid’s movie?
Epic follows a teenager as she finds herself transported to a deep forest setting, where a battle between the forces of good and evil is taking place. She bands together with a rag-tag group of characters in order to save their world. Amanda Seyfried is set to star alongside Josh Hutcherson, Beyonce Knowles, Colin Farrell, Christoph Waltz and Aziz Ansari. Chris Wedge, the man responsible for the original Ice Age and Robots directed the project.
The trailer, visually, has everything you could possibly expect from an animated feature film. It’s quite a pleasure to look at. That being said, it’s difficult to tell whether or not Epic will have much to offer to adults. The song and overall pace accompanying the action in the trailer seems to be at odds with the childish dialog. The major strength of films like Shrek, Toy Story, and other Pixar films lies in their ability to reach not only the imagination of children, but the heartstrings and sentimentality in adults. Epic doesn’t really seem to be leaning either way, which can be seen as a good or bad thing.
Still, Epic does show plenty of promise. The breathtaking imagery and artwork need only a good script to make this one the total package. It sort of seems like FernGully for the new generation, and that’s awesome. It’s also cool to see Christoph Waltz make great use of his now-distinct vocal chords (I knew Quentin Tarantino made him talk for so long for a reason).
Hopefully, before the May release of Epic, more information and promotional material will make their way online and silence any potential fears and concerns. In the meantime, let us know what you think and enjoy the trailer below.
