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Delgo

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For the town, see Delgo, Sudan.
Delgo
Promotional movie poster for the film
Directed byMarc F. Adler
Jason Maurer
Written byMarc F. Adler
Scott Biear
Patrick J. Cowan
Carl Dream
Jennifer A. Jones
Produced byMarc F. Adler
StarringFreddie Prinze, Jr.
Jennifer Love Hewitt
Anne Bancroft
Chris Kattan
Val Kilmer
Malcolm McDowell
Louis Gossett, Jr.
Michael Clarke Duncan
Eric Idle
Kelly Ripa
Burt Reynolds
Narrated bySally Kellerman
CinematographyHerb Kossover
Music byGeoff Zanelli
Distributed byFreestyle Releasing
Fathom Studios
Release date
December 12, 2008
Running time
94 min.
Country United States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$40,000,000[1]
Box office$694,782 [2]

Delgo is a 2008 computer-animated fantasy film. The film was distributed by Freestyle Releasing and produced by Fathom Studios, a division of Macquarium Intelligent Communications,[3] which began the project in 1999. It currently holds the record for worst wide release opening ever with total earnings of $511,920 while playing at 2160 screens. [4].

Plot

A teenaged boy, Delgo (voice of Freddie Prinze Jr.), of the terrestrial Lokni people on the alien planet Jhamora, and Princess Kyla (voice of Jennifer Love Hewitt), of the winged Nohrin occupiers, fall in love and save both societies from would-be conqueror Sedessa (voice of Anne Bancroft), exiled sister of the Nohrin King Zahn (voice of Louis Gossett, Jr.).

After having left their own world due to a loss of natural resources, the Nohrin settle on Jhamora with the permission of the Lokni. But some of the Nohrin, led by Sedessa, believe in the superiority of their own race and try to take land away form the Nohrin. Delgo's parents are killed in the resulting conflict. King Zahn is horrified by the war and admonishes Sedessa, who then poisons the Queen and almost kills Zahn as well. She is subsequently banished, and her wings are clipped off. Delgo meanwhile, is raised by Elder Marley , who tries to teach him how to use the power of the stones. Once Delgo grows up, however, he gives in to his desire for revenge against the Nohrin as a whole. But then he meets Kyla and develops a tentative friendship with her. When she is kidnapped by General Raius, who is actually working for Sedessa, Delgo and his friend Filo are blamed and arrested.

In the Nohrin Prison, Delgo meets General Bogardus, who was forced to illegally gamble with his weapons by Raius, because Bogardus opposed an all out war with the Lokni. Delgo, Filo, and Bogardus escape into some underground caverns and eventually reach Sedessa's stronghold and rescue Kyla. Together they hurry back to try to stop the war from taking place. They are too late, for the war has already begun. Bogardus meanwhile fights and defeats Raius, but is soon after mortally injured. Just as Bogardus dies, Delgo realizes that he was the Nohrin soldier who spared his life many years ago during the first war between the Norin and Lokni. Meanwhile, Sedessa's army of monsters join in the battle. Kyla convinces the Nohrin generals to direct their troops to stop fighting the Lokni and instead pick them up and fly them away from the battlefield. Filo then directs an entire stampede of large animals onto the battlefield, sending Sedessa's minions fleeing for their lives. Delgo goes off to face Sedessa and find King Zahn, whom she has taken prisoner. He finally manages to master the stone magic, and defeats Sedessa. He also puts the past behind him by saving her rather than letting her fall to her death. However, Sedessa then attacks Kyla, who has come to Delgo's aid. The two struggle and Sedessa finally falls, her artificial wings being of no use. Later, during the celebrations, Delgo and Kyla's friendship blossoms into romance when they finally kiss.

Cast and characters

Production

Fathom Studios began development on Delgo in 1999; animation work began in 2001.[1] The movie was produced by Fathom in conjunction with Electric Eye Entertainment Corporation.[5]

In a 2001 Interview Adler said that the film sets itself apart from other recent computer-animated films because it is not a comedy and also because it is “a very human story told in a non-human world”. [6] Maurer said that “the inspiration for the story really came from all of unrest we have in society today, prejudice, discrimination, hate crimes, violence - all of those terrible things. We wanted to tell a story where our heroes overcame these things personally and facilitated change among entire peoples.” [7]

During the movie's production, Fathom Studios created a viral marketing campaign. In 2001, they created a teaser stating, "From a Studio Nowhere Near Hollywood ... From People You've Never Heard of ... Comes a Myth for the New Millennium ... Delgo". The teaser was placed on five message boards and soon spread to many more.[citation needed]

Next, they launched the Digital Dailies[8] on the movie's official website, which allowed fans to follow the production as it happened. Animators would post their work daily on the message board system and fans could see the directors' and producers' input as well as subsequent changes to the scenes.[9] Athough, according to Adler, the original intent of the dailies was to allow the crew to “be able to offer commentary to other staff members who do not work the same hours,” he also said that offering a learning experience to the public was an important reason for their creation. “By granting public access to our film as a work-in-process we are helping to educate students, burgeoning animators, and film enthusiasts about the procedures involved in the making of a computer animated movie.”[6] Adler says that the they have been “contacted by professors from the many universities who use the Digital Dailies in their classrooms.” [10] The dailies “were receiving a half-million hits a month,” and some of the crew members started to get offers from Hollywood studios (At one point Adler started hiding the identities of the crew with fancy aliases). [11] Adler recruited man crew members locally from “Savannah College of Art and Design, Georgia Tech and smaller digital outfits.” [11] Students from the drama department of North Atlanta High School acted out some of the scenes to create reference material for the animators. [11]

The filmmakers put together kits with artwork and actual replicas of the stones used in the movie to send to the actors, rather than just an offer letter. [12] Once they had they had the cast signed up, the filmmakers had to travel to where the actors were with all their equipment rather than have the actors come to them to record their voices.[12] Anne Bancroft, the voice of villain Sedessa, died in 2005, before production finished. On the film's end credits, the movie is dedicated to her.

Distribution

Distributor-for-hire[1] Freestyle Releasing is distributing the film in 2,000 theaters — 1,500 in the U.S. and 500 in Canada.[1] Around 2004, world sales were handled through Key Creatives.[3]

Awards

Delgo received the "Best Feature Film" award at 2008's Anima Mundi.[13]

Even before its release, Freestyle Releasing has submitted Delgo as its entry for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards. [14]

Delgo received the title of "Worst Wide Release Opening Ever" by only earning $511,920 on 2,160 screens. That is equal to about an average of only two viewers per showing site. [15].

Reception

As of December 17, 2008, Delgo has received mainly negative reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 16% of critics gave positive reviews based on 32 reviews. [16] On Metacritic, the film has a 27/100 approval rating based on 10 reviews. [17]

Most critics panned the film for its similarity to other fantasy films and having poor animation. Adam Markovitz of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a D-, opinioning that the movie does not sufficiently set up its story or setting, asking, "Why does the teen hero (Freddie Prinze Jr.) have Jedi-like powers? And why is evil Sedessa (Anne Bancroft) bent on world conquest?" [18] Susan Walker of The Star gave the film two stars out of four and claimed the film was a "cheap thriller where the wisecracks always fall flat and the author couldn't be bothered to invent a new plot, so he just patches together some old ones." [19] Tom Keogh gave the film a fair review awarding it with 2 1/2 stars. Keogh praised Anne Bancroft's "excellent voice work" and noted the film was a "busy but decent animated fable that feels like a "Star Wars" or "Lord of the Rings" spinoff." [20]

On its opening weekend, the film opened poorly at #18 with $511,920 breaking the record for the lowest opening weekend in wide release. [21] [22] During its six-day release on December 18, the film has grossed $694,782.<ref name="mojo">

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Thielman, Sam (2008-10-24). "Fathom drawn to animated 'Delgo'". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved 2008-11-19.
  2. ^ "Delgo (2008)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2008-12-17.
  3. ^ a b Dunkley, Cathy (2004-06-15). "'Delgo' gets Creatives rep". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved 2008-11-19.
  4. ^ "Animated 'Delgo' Has Worst Wide Release Opening Ever". Yahoo! Movies. 2008-12-15. Retrieved 2008-12-17.
  5. ^ Koehler, Robert (2007-02-05). "Delgo". Variety. Retrieved 2008-12-11. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  6. ^ a b Tracy, Joe (2001). "dFX Interview: Marc Adler (About Delgo)". Digital Media FX. Retrieved 2008-12-22. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ Tracy, Joe (2001). "dFX Interview: Jason F. Maurer". Digital Media FX. Retrieved 2008-12-22. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  8. ^ Delgo.com: Digital Dailies
  9. ^ Ain't It Cool News
  10. ^ "fathom studios delgo". El Portal del 3D y la Animación. 2002. Retrieved 2008-12-22. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  11. ^ a b c Ruhe, Pierre (2008-12-11). "Atlanta talent creates animated epic 'Delgo'". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved 2008-12-22. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  12. ^ a b Fritz, Steve (2008-12-11). "Animated Shorts: The Story of Delgo". Retrieved 2008-12-22. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  13. ^ Godman, Martin (2008-12-04). "Delgo and the Independent Spirit (Page 1)". Animation World Magazine. AWN. Retrieved 2008-12-22. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  14. ^ "14 Animated Features Submitted for Academy Awards". Oscars.com. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
  15. ^ "Animated 'Delgo' Has Worst Wide Release Opening Ever". Yahoo! Movies. 2008-12-17. Retrieved 2008-12-17.
  16. ^ "Delgo Movie Reviews, Pictures". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
  17. ^ "Delgo (2008):Reviews". Retrieved 2008-12-15.
  18. ^ "Delgo Movie Review - Entertainment Weekly". Entertainment Weekly. 2008-12-10. Retrieved 2008-12-17.
  19. ^ "Delgo: An exercise in plot recycling". The Star Magazine. 2008-12-12. Retrieved 2008-12-17.
  20. ^ "Delgo": animated fable falls short of mythic status". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2008-12-17.
  21. ^ "Weekend Box Office Results from December 12-14, 2008". Box Office Mojo. 2008-12-14. Retrieved 2008-12-17.
  22. ^ "Jennifer Love Hewitt, Freddie Prinze Jr. Face Bomb-Making Charges For 'Delgo'". Defamer. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
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