Epic Directed by: Chris Wedge Starring: (voices of) Amanda Seyfried, Josh Hutcherson, Colin Farrell, Beyoncé Knowles Rating: Not Yet Rated Release Date: May 24, 2013
TRAILER SCORE: 6/10
Thoughts by TSR: Ice Age and Rio are both name-dropped in this trailer. That doesn't do a whole lot to boost my interest (quite the opposite, in fact, considering I'm no fan of those films). Luckily there is enough good stuff here and in the earlier teaser that I'll probably give Epic a look once it hits Blu-ray.
The story doesn't come across as all that original or exciting, but the craft on display makes that slightly less bothersome. The animation is uniformly beautiful, and that goes a long way towards keeping me on the positive side. The shot with one character walking across the lily pads is gorgeous. I also love the moment where the termites are going to town on the tree bark. The humor works fairly well too, though there isn't a whole lot of it to be found. Aziz Ansari's playboy slug got a chuckle out of me, so it's a plus that it didn't fall flat. Amanda Seyfried and Jason Sudeikis (as father and daughter) seem to be doing solid voice work, but I would have liked to hear a bit more from Christoph Waltz’s villain. Alas, this beautifully animated trailer does a fine job laying out the battle for the forest, however unoriginal it may be.