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Hopeless Pictures: Season 1
Red Envelope Entertainment // Unrated // Netflix-exclusive; not for sale // January 1, 2006
List Price: $20.00 [Buy now and save at Linksynergy]
The Show
When we think of animation, we typically think of the visuals, as that's what makes the medium unique. However, more than just art goes into animation, as it's equally important the an animated project have a good story and good vocal acting. If one of those elements is lacking, then the show/film won't feel as complete. Hopeless Pictures is an animated television show which has a lot of promise, but it ultimately only contains one (maybe one and a half) of the three elements which make for a good cartoon.
Hopeless Pictures is set in Hollywood, and focuses on the life of producer Mel Wax (Michael McKean). Mel is the head of a small movie studio, called Hopeless Pictures, and things aren't going very well for Mel. Hopeless Pictures is known for its lackluster films and Mel is desperate for a hit. He doesn't get much help from his staff, which consists of a nymphomaniac executive, Traci (Jennifer Coolidge), and his "idiot nephew", Sam (Bob Balaban). Mel's wife, Sandy (Lisa Kudrow), has accused him of infidelity and is threatening divorce. Mel often turns to his therapist, Dr. Stein (Jonathan Katz), for help. As Mel is always on the go, he rarely sees people face-to-face, and most of his conversations occur on the phone. We often see Mel talking to a publicist, Peggy (Peggy Siegal), or perhaps a famous director, such as Nora Ephron or Paul Weitz. As the show progress, we see Mel go throw many highs and lows, as he attempts to save his studio, his career, his marriage, and his sanity.
Let's break down those attributes I listed earlier to pinpoint the highs and lows of Hopeless Pictures. We'll start with the show's main attribute, it's voice cast. The names listed in the above synopsis should be a strong indicator of how powerful and talented the performers on the show are. Michael McKean, Jennifer Coolidge, Bob Balaban, and Jonathan Katz fortify the main characters of the show with strong and recognizable personalities. On top of that, we have the guest actors, such as Lisa Kudrow, Nora Ephron, Rob Reiner, Martin Mull, and Paul Reubens, just to name a few. These actors not only do fine job with the vocal acting, but their improvisational skills bring a much-needed energy to the show.
Speaking of improv, according to series creator Bob Balaban's commentary, much of the dialogue is improvised. So, the actors must be commended on their sharp wits. Yet, there (presumably) writers on each episode steering the main storylines and this is where we run into trouble. Hopeless Pictures is an odd mixture of a show which is too shallow and too inside at the same time. It would most likely be safe to assume that a majority (even if it's a small majority) of Americans have an idea of what life is like for the rich and famous in Hollywood, and Hopeless Pictures revels in these stereotypes. Everyone on the show is constantly on their cell-phones, in therapy, oversexed, unfaithful, and money-hungry. In other words, it's things that we've all seen before (see Altman's The Player). These recognizable traits permeate each episode and the show rarely veers from this formula. On the other hand, the show presents situations and jokes which I understood, but didn't find funny -- I must assume that these were aimed directly at those in Hollywood. The "Indie Producer" who keeps calling Mel with bad ideas is an annoying character because his ideas are never funny. This was a great opportunity for the show to cut loose and introduce wild and humorous ideas, but these scenes fall flat. Is it supposed to be funny because his ideas are so boring? There are nice touches, like Mel having named his studio after his parents in the same manner that the Weinstein's did with Miramax, but this isn't really funny. The show managed to produce a few comical moments, but overall the jokes are stale and the show feels too restrained for its own good.
Finally, we have the animation. When I first heard that Jonathan Katz was involved with the show, I incorrectly assumed that the program would be in "Squigglevision" like Katz's previous animated outing Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist (I also incorrectly assumed that Hopeless Pictures would be funny like Dr. Katz.) No, the show is done in an almost surrealist style. The characters have abnormally large heads, especially Mel, and distorted facial features. What is up with Sam's purple nose? The color palette is dominated by pastels. The animation lacks a great deal of detail and the animation is limited. There are some funny things happening in the background, such as faux billboards and movie posters, but the visuals don't do a thing to boost the lackluster writing on the show.
Video
Hopeless Pictures is greenlit for DVD courtesy of IFC and Netflix. The 2-disc set contains all 9 episodes from the first season of the show. The episodes are all presented in their original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The image is sharp and clear, displaying no grain or defects from the source material. The colors look good and never bleed together. I did notice some video noise and jagged lines in the animation.
Audio
The DVDs features a digital 2.0 surround audio track. These tracks offer clear dialogue and sound effects with no readily apparent hissing or distortion. The music reproduction sounds fine and the stereo effects are very noticeable. Surround effects are not as prevalent and seem to exist mostly as musical cues.
Extras
Disc 2 of the Hopeless Pictures set features audio commentaries from Bob Balaban on episodes 8 and 9. He speaks at a very fast clip and quickly jumps from one subject to another. Here and there, he touches on things such as the writing of the show, or how actors were cast, but mostly he reacts to the on-screen action. The most interesting thing that we learn is that Jonathan Katz records his dialogue in Boston while everyone else is in Los Angeles. The DVD also features three brief "Deleted Scenes" all of which were clearly trimmed for their racy material. The extras are finished off by a Storyboard Gallery.
Hopeless Pictures is clearly an attempt to create an adult-oriented (the show contains a surprising amount of nudity and sex) animated show about the entertainment industry. And while the show has some funny moments, the overall effects is quite numbing. Is Mel Wax were pitching this idea to me, I would pass.
It should be noted that Hopeless Pictures is currently only avaialable for sale form IFC and for rental from Netflix.
When we think of animation, we typically think of the visuals, as that's what makes the medium unique. However, more than just art goes into animation, as it's equally important the an animated project have a good story and good vocal acting. If one of those elements is lacking, then the show/film won't feel as complete. Hopeless Pictures is an animated television show which has a lot of promise, but it ultimately only contains one (maybe one and a half) of the three elements which make for a good cartoon.
Hopeless Pictures is set in Hollywood, and focuses on the life of producer Mel Wax (Michael McKean). Mel is the head of a small movie studio, called Hopeless Pictures, and things aren't going very well for Mel. Hopeless Pictures is known for its lackluster films and Mel is desperate for a hit. He doesn't get much help from his staff, which consists of a nymphomaniac executive, Traci (Jennifer Coolidge), and his "idiot nephew", Sam (Bob Balaban). Mel's wife, Sandy (Lisa Kudrow), has accused him of infidelity and is threatening divorce. Mel often turns to his therapist, Dr. Stein (Jonathan Katz), for help. As Mel is always on the go, he rarely sees people face-to-face, and most of his conversations occur on the phone. We often see Mel talking to a publicist, Peggy (Peggy Siegal), or perhaps a famous director, such as Nora Ephron or Paul Weitz. As the show progress, we see Mel go throw many highs and lows, as he attempts to save his studio, his career, his marriage, and his sanity.
Let's break down those attributes I listed earlier to pinpoint the highs and lows of Hopeless Pictures. We'll start with the show's main attribute, it's voice cast. The names listed in the above synopsis should be a strong indicator of how powerful and talented the performers on the show are. Michael McKean, Jennifer Coolidge, Bob Balaban, and Jonathan Katz fortify the main characters of the show with strong and recognizable personalities. On top of that, we have the guest actors, such as Lisa Kudrow, Nora Ephron, Rob Reiner, Martin Mull, and Paul Reubens, just to name a few. These actors not only do fine job with the vocal acting, but their improvisational skills bring a much-needed energy to the show.
Speaking of improv, according to series creator Bob Balaban's commentary, much of the dialogue is improvised. So, the actors must be commended on their sharp wits. Yet, there (presumably) writers on each episode steering the main storylines and this is where we run into trouble. Hopeless Pictures is an odd mixture of a show which is too shallow and too inside at the same time. It would most likely be safe to assume that a majority (even if it's a small majority) of Americans have an idea of what life is like for the rich and famous in Hollywood, and Hopeless Pictures revels in these stereotypes. Everyone on the show is constantly on their cell-phones, in therapy, oversexed, unfaithful, and money-hungry. In other words, it's things that we've all seen before (see Altman's The Player). These recognizable traits permeate each episode and the show rarely veers from this formula. On the other hand, the show presents situations and jokes which I understood, but didn't find funny -- I must assume that these were aimed directly at those in Hollywood. The "Indie Producer" who keeps calling Mel with bad ideas is an annoying character because his ideas are never funny. This was a great opportunity for the show to cut loose and introduce wild and humorous ideas, but these scenes fall flat. Is it supposed to be funny because his ideas are so boring? There are nice touches, like Mel having named his studio after his parents in the same manner that the Weinstein's did with Miramax, but this isn't really funny. The show managed to produce a few comical moments, but overall the jokes are stale and the show feels too restrained for its own good.
Finally, we have the animation. When I first heard that Jonathan Katz was involved with the show, I incorrectly assumed that the program would be in "Squigglevision" like Katz's previous animated outing Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist (I also incorrectly assumed that Hopeless Pictures would be funny like Dr. Katz.) No, the show is done in an almost surrealist style. The characters have abnormally large heads, especially Mel, and distorted facial features. What is up with Sam's purple nose? The color palette is dominated by pastels. The animation lacks a great deal of detail and the animation is limited. There are some funny things happening in the background, such as faux billboards and movie posters, but the visuals don't do a thing to boost the lackluster writing on the show.
Video
Hopeless Pictures is greenlit for DVD courtesy of IFC and Netflix. The 2-disc set contains all 9 episodes from the first season of the show. The episodes are all presented in their original 1.33:1 aspect ratio. The image is sharp and clear, displaying no grain or defects from the source material. The colors look good and never bleed together. I did notice some video noise and jagged lines in the animation.
Audio
The DVDs features a digital 2.0 surround audio track. These tracks offer clear dialogue and sound effects with no readily apparent hissing or distortion. The music reproduction sounds fine and the stereo effects are very noticeable. Surround effects are not as prevalent and seem to exist mostly as musical cues.
Extras
Disc 2 of the Hopeless Pictures set features audio commentaries from Bob Balaban on episodes 8 and 9. He speaks at a very fast clip and quickly jumps from one subject to another. Here and there, he touches on things such as the writing of the show, or how actors were cast, but mostly he reacts to the on-screen action. The most interesting thing that we learn is that Jonathan Katz records his dialogue in Boston while everyone else is in Los Angeles. The DVD also features three brief "Deleted Scenes" all of which were clearly trimmed for their racy material. The extras are finished off by a Storyboard Gallery.
Hopeless Pictures is clearly an attempt to create an adult-oriented (the show contains a surprising amount of nudity and sex) animated show about the entertainment industry. And while the show has some funny moments, the overall effects is quite numbing. Is Mel Wax were pitching this idea to me, I would pass.
It should be noted that Hopeless Pictures is currently only avaialable for sale form IFC and for rental from Netflix.
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