Geek It! Upcoming Animated Films of 2014 (Big Hero 6, Book of Life, Penguins of Madagascar, Jack and the Cuckoo Clock Heart)

We’ve seen some incredible animated films over the past few months including How to Train a Dragon 2 and Lego The Movie. Now, with only a few months left till the end of 2014, we take a look at the remaining animated films of 2014 (and beyond) that have caught our interest.

Jack and the Cuckoo Clock Heart

It’s rare to find a good old-fashioned conceptual story that strikes a chord with young viewers, and Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart will certainly do the trick. Based on the concept album and illustrated novel, La Mecanique du Coeur, the story takes place in Scotland back in 1874 where Jack was born on the coldest day ever.

Because of the extreme cold, his heart stopped beating, and in order to save his life, the midwife decides to replace his heart with a clock. Under the midwife’s protective care, Jack was not allowed to be angry or excited as every possible emotion can endanger his life by causing his clock to stop working. If it wasn’t hard enough, he later learns that he cannot fall in love as that would also stop his heart. Directed by Stephane Berla and Mathias Malzieu, this English-French animated feature film looks visually creative and amazingly surreal (almost Tim Burtonesque). We have high hopes for this film so hopefully it don’t disappoint!

Big Hero 6

Inspired by the Marvel comics of the same name, Big Hero 6 is directed by some of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ big names including Don Hall (Winnie the Pooh) and Chris Williams (Bolt), and produced by Roy Conli (Tangled).

Big Hero 6 is an action-packed comedy-adventure about robotics prodigy Hiro Hamada, who learns to harness his genius—thanks to his brilliant brother Tadashi and their like-minded friends. When a devastating turn of events catapults them into the middle of a dangerous criminal plot, Hiro recruits his closest companion-robot, Baymax, along with his other friends – to become a group of high-tech criminal fighters in order to save San Fransokyo from destruction. Big Hero 6 is definitely one of this year’s action-packed animated films and it will be a sure hit amongst all Disney and Marvel fans.

Penguins of Madagascar

Penguins of Madagascar is the upcoming DreamWorks Animation feature that is a distinct spin-off series of the Madagascar series, and sequel to Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. In their own spy thriller adventure, our favourite mischievous penquins, Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private, joins the undercover services of the North Wind (aka an elite undercover special task force) that is dedicated to help animals.

Featuring the voices of Chris Miller, John MDiMaggio and Benedict Cumberbatch, the penguins must work with the North Wind to prevent Dr Octavius Brine from taking over the world. We absolutely adore the penguins from Madagascar — they’re witty, and always up to no good, and we’re sure having their own spin-off movie will be fantastic fun to watch.

 

Book of Life 

The Book of Life is an animated romantic comedy that follows the journey of Manolo, a young man who is torn between fulfilling the expectations of his family and following his heart. With the two spirits (La Muerte and Xibalba) making bets from behind the scenes, both Manolo (Diego Luna) and Joaquin (Channing Tatum) battle it out to win Maria’s affections (Zoe Saldana).

With a little twist, Xibalba sends a snake to kill Manolo, hoping that will result in Joaquin becoming Maria’s lover. Filled with determination and passion, Manolo embarks on an incredible journey to win Maria, and to return to the human world. Produced by Guillermo del Toro, and co-written and directed by Jorge Gutierrez, this is one romantic comedy that we haven’t seen before. Besides the notable vibrance of the Mexican flair to the film, it’s hard not to notice the cultural references made about life and death. Not many films discuss these concepts (especially for animated films) so Book of Life should certainly give its audience something to think about.

The Box Trolls 

We are huge fans of stop-motion animation so the upcoming Boxtrolls has undeniably got our attention.The Boxtrolls is a 3D stop motion adventure-comedy based on Alan Snow’s Here Be Monsters. Starring Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Elle Fanning, Toni Collette, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost, the film tells the story of an orphaned boy named Eggs who was raised by underground cave-dwelling trash collecting trolls called the Boxtrolls.

The Boxtrolls are targeted by an evil exterminator named Archibald Snatcher, and Eggs must save his family from Snatcher before it is too late. If you’re aspiring to be an animator, this is a fantastic-looking animated film that will definitely awe you with its details and efforts.

Beyond 2014: Preview of 2015 Animated films