One of the many things I love about Pixar movies is the fact that they pack the screen with so many details. Not just in the story and the characters, but the designs, and backgrounds. It usually takes a few viewings to catch everything. And even then, you are probably missing out on a few of the hidden easter eggs that were left by the geniuses at Pixar.
Some of these hidden treasures have become a tradition for Pixar Animation Studios such as the Pizza Planet Truck which has appeared in nearly every Pixar film since it made its debut in 1995’s Toy Story while others are a unique insider’s view [...]

Audiences love Disney/Pixar’s new film Ratatouille. So much so, that over 6,000 Internet Movie Database users have voted the movie onto the coveted Top 250 Movies of All Time list. Ratatouille currently sits on the list at #33. And before you say “All good new movies land on the list because of the number of votes”, that’s far from true. Only three other films in the last few years that have made the top 50: The Departed (#36), Pan’s Labyrinth (#42), and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (#45). No film in the past three years (excluding Ratatouille) is currently rated in imdb’s top 35.

 In a summer full of big blockbuster movies, adaptations, sequels and threequels, you would think that Hollywood would have made some record scratch. Not so! According to the AP, attendance is running behind last summer’s and has even fallen below that of the summer of 2005. According to Media By Numbers, 279 million tickets had been sold thus far compared with 315 million at this same point in 2002.  But this is not what was supposed to happen. Industry analysts predicted the first $4 billion summer in history,  but we’re at the midway point and it’s not looking probable. As of this past weekend, Hollywood has made $1.9 billion since [...]

A lot of the industry talk now-a-days is about the viability of day and date releases (ie releasing a movie on dvd and theatrically on the same day or week). Most theater owners are against the idea, fearing a loss of revenue. And most of the big Hollywood studios are also against the idea because of piracy concerns. So who would have thought that Disney would be the first studio to release a movie for purchase on iTunes the same week that the film is released theatrically around the world. Okay, I know this a bit of a stretch - but I thought the build up was worth it.
Disney/Pixar is [...]

Transformers fanboys (and probably a few normal people too) showed out in full force last night for the big opening of Michael Bay’s Transformers. Our sources are claiming that the film took in around $8.5 million. Not bad for a film that only played for four hours. In perspective, it probably took Pixar’s Ratatouille the whole day to make the same amount.
Most industry insiders are predicting that the film will take in over $130 million in the film’s first seven days of release. But if the flick can top $152 million, it will then hold the 7-day record for the biggest non-sequel opening of all time. And that is entirely [...]

 
Live Free or Die Hard made an estimated $9.1 million on Wednesday, according to 20th Century Fox. Obviously, this number comes no where near the Wednesday Opening Day Record set by Spider-Man 2 ($40.4 million). Fox considers this a good number. Most people were projecting $8-$10 million. So it’s good but not great. You can now expect the film to take in around $35 to $40 million for the 5-day opening (Wednesday to Sunday).
But tomorrow, three new movies will challenge John McClane: Disney/Pixar’s Ratatouille, Michael Moore’s Sicko and Focus Features’ Evening. Ratatouille is tracking low for a Pixar film, and will probably take in anywhere from $40 - $50 million. [...]

The summer movie season is in full effect. I saw Live Free or Die Hard last night and loved it despite the many logic holes and ridiculous stunts (read my review here). Tonight I see License to Wed, which I don’t have much hope for (why does Mandy Moore keep picking the crappiest movies? I really want her to succeed). I would assume the studio also doesn’t have much hope for the film considering it’s being released against Transformers, possibly the biggest movie of the Summer. And before next week Sicko and Ratatouille hit theaters on Friday. I would venture to say that in this 7 day span you will [...]

Did you know: Before director Brad Bird took over production of Pixar’s Ratatouille, the film went under a couple different titles: “Rat!” or “Rats!” Above we bring you two of the title concept designs courtesy of Pixar’s new hardcover coffee table book, The Art of Ratatouille [via: JH].

Our sources have just informed us that the first official movie trailer for Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium will be attached to Disney/Pixar’s Ratatouille. You might be asking yourself, what is Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium, and why should I care? Emporium is a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory-like fantasy film written by Zach Helm, who we like to refer to as the Hollywood-ized Charlie Kaufman (Helm wrote Stranger Than Fiction). His directorial debut stars Jason Bateman, Natalie Portman and Dustin Hoffman. Have we hooked you already?
The story is about an eccentric toy store owner named Mr. Edward Magorium (Hoffman), who hands over his Emporium to his assistant Molly Mahoney (Portman). Things [...]

In future history books, 2007 will probably become known as the year that movie piracy became mainstream. Sure, Star Wars Episode III hit the bit torrent networks days before it’s release. And there was the occasional other film that found it’s way onto the web before it’s nationwide release. But for the most part pirated movies were something you would find the week after the film’s premiere.
This last month has been one of the biggest 30 days in movie piracy, with Hostel: Part II, Michael Moore’s Sicko and now Pixar’s Ratatouille finding their way onto the internet weeks before their US release. We have not downloaded the movie (as that [...]

As people continue to pester The Incredibles director Brad Bird about a possible sequel, the answers remain, for the most part, the same. Here is what Brad told AP while promoting his new film Ratatouille:
I love the world. I love the characters, and if I could come with a story that was as good or better than the original, I’d go there in a second. I have pieces of things that I would love to see in a sequel, but I haven’t got them all together yet, and I certainly wouldn’t want to come out there with something that is less than the original. … Sequels are not part of [...]

It’s been a Pixar week here at /Film, and we have even more! Disney has sent us 13 new concept photos from Pixar’s Ratatouille. If you’ve ever seen one of Pixar’s coffee table books (I’ve always wanted to buy them, but have never been able to convince myself to spend the money), than you know all the love and work that goes into the art behind the film. Check out the photos below (and above). Click on the production art to enlarge. Ratatouille hits theaters on June 29th 2007.

Disney sent us a list of fun Ratatouille facts. Of course, nothing earth shattering, but interesting none the less. Read the list below.

To save on time, the artists at Pixar skipped one detail - none of the human characters have any toes.
Colette is the toughest chef and the only female in the kitchen at Gusteau’s. Colette rides a “Calahan” branded motorcycle, named after Sharon Calahan, the Director of Photography for RATATOUILLE.
During the character design process, the sculptor created nine handmade clay sculpts of the film’s protagonist, Remy. Six of those sculpts were different design explorations. The last three were different poses [...]

Disney/Pixar have released yet another Ratatouille Video Blog. This one is titled Parlez-Vous Francais?, and follows Brad Bird and the crew as they fly to Paris to scout locations, eat food, and ride motorcycles past the Eiffel Tower (we’re not completely sure if this last segment is completely work related). Check out the video below.
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Disney.com has an exclusive 9-minute look at Pixar’s Ratatouille. Click on this link to watch it now. The nine minute video clip is essentially the clip shown at WonderCon 2007. Here is how we explained it back then: