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Ratatouille is the fourth nomination for Brad Bird and the second in the Best Animated Feature category. He received the
Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film in 2004 for The Incredibles, and was also nominated for writing that film. He is also
nominated for writing Ratatouille.
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 friendships 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.
All his life, Remy has had a gifted sense of smell and a most unusual dream for a rat: to cook in a
gourmet restaurant. Undeterred by the obvious problem of trying to make it in the world’s most
rodent-phobic profession, not to mention his family’s urgings to be satisfied with the usual trashheap
lifestyle, Remy’s fantasies are filled with flambés and sautés. But when circumstances
literally drop Remy into the Parisian restaurant made famous by his culinary hero, Auguste
Gusteau—whose mantra "anyone can cook" has been Remy’s lifelong inspiration—he soon
finds that being discovered in the kitchen can be alarmingly perilous if you’ve got whiskers and a
tail.
Just as Remy’s dreams look like they will go up in smoke, he finds the one thing he needs, a
friend to believe in him: the restaurant’s shy, outcast garbage boy who is about to be fired from
his job. Now, with nothing left to lose, Remy and Linguini form the most improbable
partnership—with Linguini’s clumsy body channeling Remy’s creative brains—that will turn
Paris upside down, leading them both on an incredible journey of comical twists, emotional turns
and the most unlikely of triumphs, which they could never have imagined without each other.
Disney Pixar presents RATATOUILLE, directed by Brad Bird, the film is produced by Brad
Lewis and executive produced by John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton. Bringing to life a wideranging
roster of memorable characters is a voice cast that includes popular stand-up comedian
Patton Oswalt, Golden Globe® Award winner Brian Dennehy, Emmy® Award winner Brad
Garrett, comic star and Emmy® nominee Janeane Garofalo, Academy Award® nominee Ian
Holm and the legendary eight-time Academy Award® nominee Peter O’Toole.
As the film follows a young rat named Remy’s quest to leave his garbage-eating roots behind and really
cook, it takes him into a world where he’s at once creatively inspired and in constant danger—a
circumstance ripe for all kinds of comically chaotic situations and side-splitting stunts. Just as it
looks like Remy’s one big chance at finding his way into a five-star kitchen is in trouble, he
strikes up an unlikely friendship with the restaurant’s down-and-out garbage boy, coming up
with a clever, if literally hair-raising, plan that will allow these two outcasts to achieve great
things together.
Amidst the perils and pratfalls, the film also traverses through universal themes: the
bonds of friendship and loyalty; the battle against family expectations and finding your own
independence in spite of them; and most of all, the importance of being true to who you are, even
if you’re not quite what anyone expects.
Says the film’s director, Brad Bird: "I think we all have impossible dreams and we do
what we can to pursue them—and Remy’s dream might be the ultimate impossible dream of
them all."
The story’s original mix of witty repartee, acrobatic hijinks, tightly choreographed comic timing
and resonant emotional themes was an exciting next step for Bird, who made his Pixar debut
with the Academy Award®-winning hit "The Incredibles," an animated feature so humanly
complex and moving that it was included on numerous year-end top-ten lists right along with its
live-action cousins, breaking down the barriers between the two.
"I was really intrigued by the possibilities of RATATOUILLE’s premise," says Bird. "The story
has such a great and relatable hero, because in order for Remy to do the one thing he loves, he
has to go into a world that’s completely hostile to him. He wants to express himself in a way the
world doesn’t expect him to, and I think a lot of people know that feeling," says Bird. "The
question is: just how bold and clever can this little guy be in pursuing the thing that matters most
to him, and what will he discover along the way? The story is in the tradition of that kind of
timeless physical comedy that spans all languages and cultures, but it’s been given a fresh twist."
2008 Best Animated Feature Oscar Nominee
Surf's Up
2008 Oscar Best Animated Feature
"Surf's Up" (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Ash Brannon and Chris Buck - This is the first nomination for both.
Surf’s Up is an animated action-comedy that delves behind the scenes of the high-octane world
of competitive surfing. The film profiles teenage Rockhopper penguin Cody Maverick (Shia
LaBeouf), an up-and-coming surfer, as he enters his first pro competition. Followed by a camera
crew to document his experiences, Cody leaves his family and home in Shiverpool, Antarctica to
travel to Pen Gu Island for the Big Z Memorial Surf Off. Along the way, Cody meets Sheboygan
surfer Chicken Joe (Jon Heder), famous surf promoter Reggie Belafonte (James Woods), surf
talent scout Mikey Abromowitz (Mario Cantone), and spirited lifeguard Lani Aliikai (Zooey
Deschanel), all of whom recognize Cody’s passion for surfing, even if it’s a bit misguided at
times. Cody believes that winning will bring him the admiration and respect he desires, but when
he unexpectedly comes face-to-face with a washed-up old surfer (Jeff Bridges), Cody begins to
find his own way, and discovers that a true winner isn’t always the one who comes in first.
Cody Maverick, the hottest (and only) up-and-coming surfer in Shiverpool, Antarctica, has
always dreamt of something bigger than a job at the fish factory, even as his unsupportive family
– mom Edna and older brother Glen – do not understand why he has to be different from
everyone else. But Cody has always wanted to be a winner at something and he’s determined to
take to heart the lesson that the late, great surfer, Big Z, imparted before going out for his final
wave: find a way, because that’s what winners do. And Cody finds his way: hitching a ride on
overcaffeinated shorebird surf scout Mikey Abromowitz’s whale, Cody heads for Pen Gu island
and the 10th Annual Big Z Memorial Surf-Off. Along the way, he meets Chicken Joe, a goofball
surf nut hailing from Sheboygan, Wisconsin, who learned the sport by riding the icy waters and
small waves of the Great Lakes.
No sooner have Cody and Joe arrived than Cody falls head over heels for Lani Aliikai, the
beguiling surf beach lifeguard on Pen Gu. After an awkward introduction and an even more
awkward request for a date, Cody escapes down the beach to save himself further
embarrassment… only to run into Tank “The Shredder” Evans, king of the nine previous Big Z
Memorial Surf Offs, who is using a monument to Z for target practice. Cody is about to start a
fight with the enormous bully when Reggie steps between them and turns the fight into a mini
surf-off… which Cody quickly loses in an embarrassing wipeout.
Lani brings the embarrassed (and unconscious) surfer to the home of her friend, Geek, who
quickly revives Cody. Soon after, Cody discovers the truth: this weird dude is his idol, Big Z.
The questions come quickly: Why is he alive? How did he get here? What really happened on
that last wave? But none of that is important now; the bigger question is: Can Z help him win the
championship? Z, frustrated by Cody’s poor surfing, blurts out, “You want to learn to surf the
right way, you gotta make your own board.”
Cody’s impatience gets the better of him once again – and despite Big Z’s guiding hand, Cody
makes a terrible board. Cody, unable to admit his mistakes, misses the point of Z’s lessons.
Needing a break from his mentor, Cody heads off into the jungle – and runs smack into Lani, the
pretty lifeguard who rescued him. She invites him to one of her favorite places – the lava tubes
that run underneath the island. After an exciting, playful afternoon exploring the tubes, Cody
returns to Z’s beach and repeats the steps that Z taught him earlier. This time, ready to heed Z’s
lessons, Cody creates a perfect board. Z is pleased with what Cody has created, but Cody, still
preoccupied with the need to win, asks only how many points you get for being “in the tube” –
inside the curl of a wave.
Z continues his teaching – first making Cody practice his surfing on land, and then – finally! – in
the water. For the first time in 10 years, Z takes a board and dives into the ocean. Z is happier
than he’s been in years – until Cody asks Z to watch him surf during the competition the next
day. Z is disappointed – if Cody still wants to compete, has he been listening at all? But Cody is
convinced this is just an excuse for whatever happened ten years earlier. And it’s true: Z says
that he couldn’t win against Tank, and couldn’t face going back to the beach as a loser, so he
chose to disappear. The young penguin, angry with Z, walks off, not caring what his mentor
thinks about the competition.
Cody returns to the surf beach to compete – and shocks the crowd as he shows he is no longer
the “wipeout kid” (in Reggie’s words) that he was three days ago. With the confidence from his
lessons with Z, he is simply taking the waves as they come. As the finals near, he will need to
rise to the challenge and prove to Big Z, Lani, and himself what a true winner really is.
2008 Best Animated Feature Oscar Nominee
Persepolis
2008 Oscar Best Animated Feature
"Persepolis" (Sony Pictures Classics)
Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud - This is the first nomination for both.
Persepolis is the poignant story of a young girl coming-of-age in Iran during the Islamic
Revolution. It is through the eyes of precocious and outspoken nine year old Marjane that we see
a people's hopes dashed as fundamentalists take power - forcing the veil on women and
imprisoning thousands. Clever and fearless, she outsmarts the "social guardians" and discovers
punk, ABBA and Iron Maiden. Yet when her uncle is senselessly executed and as bombs fall
around Tehran in the Iran/Iraq war, the daily fear that permeates life in Iran is palpable.
As she gets older, Marjane's boldness causes her parents to worry over her continued safety. And
so, at age fourteen, they make the difficult decision to send her to school in Austria. Vulnerable
and alone in a strange land, she endures the typical ordeals of a teenager. In addition, Marjane
has to combat being equated with the religious fundamentalism and extremism she fled her
country to escape. Over time, she gains acceptance, and even experiences love, but after high
school she finds herself alone and horribly homesick.
Though it means putting on the veil and living in a tyrannical society, Marjane decides to return
to Iran to be close to her family. After a difficult period of adjustment, she enters art school and
marries, all the while continuing to speak out against the hypocrisy she witnesses. At age 24, she
realizes that while she is deeply Iranian, she cannot live in Iran. She then makes the
heartbreaking decision to leave her homeland for France, optimistic about her future, shaped
indelibly by her past.
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