Open Season (2006)

Directors:

Roger Allers
Jill Culton

Writers:

Steve Moore (story) and
John B. Carls (story) ...

Release Date:

29 September 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family

Tagline:

One Fur All & All Fur One.

Plot:

Boog, a domesticated 900lb. Grizzly bear finds himself stranded in the woods 3 days before Open Season. Forced to rely on Elliot, a fast-talking mule deer, the two form an unlikely friendship and must quickly rally other forest animals if they are to form a rag-tag army against the hunters.

Plot Keywords:

Hunter | Forest | Bear | Deer | Grizzly

Awards:

1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

Martin Lawrence	...	Boog (voice)
Ashton Kutcher	...	Elliot (voice)
Gary Sinise	...	Shaw (voice)
Debra Messing	...	Beth (voice)
Billy Connolly	...	McSquizzy (voice)
Georgia Engel	...	Bobbie (voice)
Jon Favreau	...	Reilly (voice)
Jane Krakowski	...	Giselle (voice)
Gordon Tootoosis	...	Gordy (voice)
Patrick Warburton	...	Ian (voice)
Cody Cameron	...	Mr. Weenie (voice)
Nika Futterman	...	Rosie (voice)
Danny Mann	...	Serge (voice)
Jack McGee	...	Hunter (voice)
Michelle Murdocca	...	Maria (voice)

MPAA:

Rated PG for some rude humor, mild action and brief language.

Runtime:

83 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS (8 channels) | DTS | Sonics-DDP (IMAX version) | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG | Netherlands:AL | Ireland:PG | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-7 | UK:PG | Germany:o.Al. | Philippines:G (MTRCB) | Indonesia:SU | Malaysia:U | Australia:G | Hong Kong:I | Argentina:Atp | Portugal:M/6 | South Korea:All | Sweden:7 | New Zealand:G | South Africa:A

Filming Locations:

Sony Pictures Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Sony Pictures Animation

Trivia:

The town's stores are all named after people who worked on the film. Co-directors Roger Allers and Jill Culton have a shoe store and an attic named after them respectively.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: At the beginning of the movie Beth loads a large blue cooler and a smaller red one into the back of her jeep. They are no where to be seen when Boog jumps into the back a few minutes later.

Quotes:

McSquizzy: Oy, you late for Sunday school? This is McSquizzy's turf. Nobody messes with McSquizzy, coz that's me!
Boog: What?
McSquizzy: Touch a needle on this tree, and I'll give you such a doing!
Boog: You and what army?
[an army of sqirrels appears]
Squirrels: Oy!
Boog: Oh, that army.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Big Fish (2003)

Soundtrack:

I Belong

Fun for the whole family! A great start for Sony Pictures Animation!

What's a 'unihorn' you may ask? Well, it's a deer that only has one antler, of course. And you'll only see one in the new Sony Pictures Animation film, Open Season, starring Martin Lawrence, Debra Messing, Ashton Kutcher, Gary Sinise, Jon Favreau, and many more.

Martin voices the lovable Boog in the film; he's the main attraction of a show at the zoo with his best friend, Beth (Debra Messing). Boog also lives with Beth, equipped with his stuffed animal, Dunkleman. On a completely side note, what would a Sony film be without a reference to one of their own. Before Boog settles in for his comfy night sleep, he checks out Pat Sajak on Wheel of Fortune.

They have a great life together doing shows for the fans, even exchanging powerful roars. But that's before Elliot (Ashton Kutcher) shows up, the hapless one-antlered deer who's been captured by the evil Shaw (Gary Sinise). Boog helps Elliot escape and makes Boog's and Beth's life miserable, forcing Beth to send the two animals away into the forest.

On his own for the first time, Boog now has to rely on himself, or be stuck with Elliot. And that means figuring out how to go to the bathroom in the wild. That's when he first runs into McSquizzy, the squirrel (voiced by Billy Connolly) – McSquizzy is the ruler of the forest trees, and has a great and powerful squirrel Army to back him up, equipped with thousand of acorns. Without a doubt, McSquizzy is one of the highlights of Open Season! He's got wit, humor, and a ton of Scottish charm.

Boog realizes having Elliot around is the only way he'll get back to Beth. So they become 'partners,' much to the dismay of Boog – but the delight of Elliot, who just needs a friend. With hunting season right around the corner, the two must work together to sneak around the hunters.

But when Shaw breaks the hunting season date, the animals switch their thinking – instead of running away, they're going to fight back! And fight back they do! Trying to run away, Boog crosses a dam; unfortunately, his 900 pound body crumbles the wood.

That's when Open Season turns into Hill Street Blues! There is one of the most amazing chase scenes I've ever seen in the movies. Boog, Elliot, and their porcupine friend try and escape the gun shots of Shaw – but on water. Bobbing and weaving through the water, under water, above water, around rocks – great scene! There's even a waterfall at the end to top it off! I have somewhat of a test for animated movies I've been giving myself over the past few years – ever since seeing the water scenes in The Incredibles, and noticing how real it looked, I've started to take an eye to the screen. If water doesn't look real, than it doesn't pass the test. Let's just say, Open Season aced my test. This water chase scene goes on for about 5 minutes, maybe a little more; but it's so exciting and amazing to watch! It's not just the water of Open Season, it's the entire field of animation; the animals really come alive on the screen. I'm a huge fan of animation; I think it has to do with the fact that anything done with computer fascinates me. The detailed description of each character, from their eyes, nose, mouth, walk, and hair – and in this movie, fur; it's just so amazing! But back to the story - after meeting back up with the group of beavers, led by Reilly (voiced by Jon Favreau), some of Elliot's former deer mates (Patrick Warburton and Jane Krakowski), and a few other animals, Boog and Elliot team up and go on the attack against the hunters. Bras, plungers, grills, forks, knives, spoons, and basically, anything they can get their hands on – sorry, whatever they can get their paws on – they use to charge the hunters with.

Open Season is directed by Jill Culton, Roger Allers, and Tony Stacchi; each has a number of major credits to their name. Both Tony and Jill make their feature directorial debut on this film; however, Jill has worked at Pixar on the character development for Monsters Inc. and Toy Story. Tony worked on a number of films for ILM including Hook and Ghost. Roger Allers co-directed The Lion King, and has just recently completed The Little Match Girl – a short attached to The Little Mermaid.

Open Season is a fun and very enjoyable film for kids and families. It's definitely a film you'll be talking about for a long time. And don't forget, you can also check out the film in IMAX 3D, opening at major theaters across the country.