There is a reason why nobody remembers the 2006 Film The Wild. And the reason is probably because it's not that good... Join my suffering as I review The Wild. Thanks For Watching!
Really glad I found this video. I was an illustrator at Disney Publishing when this movie was made. Any printed collateral that comes out to support the movies - Illustrated Storybooks, merch, comics, promotional pieces, periodicals… it either all came from us, or it had to pass through our department for production and QS before it went to print. Previously I’d worked on the book programs for Disney since (ironically) “a Bug’s Life”. Some properties were more fun to work on than others; eg “Finding Nemo” was a blast, “Home on the Range” an example of one that wasn’t so great. Working on the book programs for “The Wild” was different though, and I think that you are very latched on to what went so wrong with this movie. From the get-go, the art style was weird - full realistic-looking CG, yet the look was somehow trying to “warp” realistic characters into non-realistic moments. Tim Burton can pull this sort of thing off (remember the “Large Marge” segment of Pee wees big adventure, or Alec Baldwin suddenly ripping off his face in Beetljuice?) In this movie though, it felt like almost every scene was going to “bend the rules” resulting in a weird, off-putting feeling. The voice actors were all - as usual, A-list talent (except for the inclusion of relatively unknown Eddie Izzard, who was starting to get traction in America at the time. But A-list voice talent can only work with what they’re given to perform and the writing was for lack of a better term - cold. It’s hard to illustrate a scene from the movie that is supposed to be a warm emotional moment, but you don’t feel that warmth in the actual clip. The art style and character models themselves got revised several time in production. This resulted in the requirement that we illustrate the animals (with all their fur, scales and spots) fairly realistically, but not as much care towards the environments. Story points were being frequently rewritten (and thus re-drawn). This is a very normal part of production in Hollywood, but these revisions didn’t feel like they were tweaking the story to make it better so much as new producers were being brought in to try to find some ways to turn this sh#tshow into actual working story. So, what you’re trying to process from a fan’s end, I can confirm from my time on the inside; I don’t think this movie ever had a vision behind it that ever got any clearer than, “We have to make a ‘response’ to Madagascar (which we hear from production is shaping up to be a pretty solid film) We can NOT allow Dreamworks -ESPECIALLY Katzenberg - to have a clear win, so let’s make our own “Madagascar.” And you know what’s really sad? The Wild is still a way better film than the empty trash that Disney now seems only capable of releasing.
@@FirstClassJunk Hollywood can be a bit weird (understatement.) the way I remember, It was common knowledge that the two were competing productions, but this sort of thing goes on frequently in H’wood. At the time though it’d be a small studio trying to catch some or even exceed some of that lightning of another production going on. This was the first time in decades the Disney had serious animation competition. Iron Giant came out from WB at that time, and it’s well-known how IG succeeded despite WB’s clueless marketing all but ignoring Iron Giant’s release completely. Disney saw no threat from WB. However, Disney WAS very aware of what was going on at Dreamworks, because Dreamworks not only was full of expatriate Disney employees, but it had Jeffrey Katzenberg who’d been screwed over by Disney and was trying to build a company that “does animation and film the way “they OUGHT to be done.” I think Disney backed off this strategy not long after Antz and Bug’s Life, but they finally seemed to remember that the way they got to the top in the first place was not by being an imitator of anyone.
@@KENBECKERARTyour point on Home On the Range hits home. I remember seeing it in 2004 and that was the only time I ever saw it. It's sad how not only was that Disney's last pre-modern movie, but that was Disney's last consecutive 2D theatrical release. Also I'd argue The Wild is just as bad as what Disney is releasing today tbh.
Honestly, i dont dislike the animation. Ok, yeah, its not as good as usual Disney animation, but i like the fur texture and the shine on the reptiles. And, say what you will, they're more expressive than the 2019 Lion King!
As kids we liked a lot of bad things. When was a tyke I really enjoyed the Disney Channel cartoon "The Buzz on Maggie" but as an adult, I'm quite repulsed by it.
I have very fond memories of this movie and the soundtrack. While this video may have insulted me, I completely get where you're coming from, and I can't help but agree when I ignore my nostalgia
I remember loving this movie but purely because of how absurd I felt it was and how, weirdly scary the wilderbeasts were? They generally freaked me out as a kid especially the mechanical one from the circus. Somehow that always made me want to come back to the movie.
The Wild being a Madagascar rip-off is actually a misconception, it's actually the other way around. The Wild began production first but it took longer to make, so it ended up releasing after Madagascar, which is where the misconception comes from.
So it's kind of like how people thought Pixar's Coco was a rip-off of The Book of Life despite Coco's production starting around the same (or earlier iirc) time?
@@geministrial950 DreamWorks has solid animated franchises like Shrek and How To Train Your Dragon, but - overall - their catalogue doesn't hold a candle to Disney's (even though their latest films seem mediocre). I'd pick Wish over Ruby Gillman any day.
The wildebeasts wanting to turn the food chain around is _way_ more interesting than anything else in the movie (especially since many herbivores can/will eat meat irl.)
As a kid I really really preferred the Wild over Madagascar, because the animals were slightly more realistic. I found Madagascar to be too cartoony. Now that I'm older I prefer Madagascar of course, but I do still have a soft spot for The Wild
This movie could have been really good with better writers and producers. It's a shame, really. The animation is uncanny but still pretty impressive: the fur textures and backgrounds are absolutely gorgeous.
Indeed. The real problem is the character design and animation. It doesn't look good at all. I think Rango (2011) handled the realistic-ish artstyle approach better. That film still looks amazing.
I have a soft spot for The Wild only because it was a part of my childhood. Now as an adult I still look fondly on that. Now I just like it because of how absurd it is. I was like four or something when I watched it and the only thing that was running through my mind at the time was like “Haha funny talking animal go brrrr.”
Same! I never really watched it when I was little, but like the two times that I DID watch it, I remember loving it. I like it more ironically now, but tbh a decent chunk of the voice acting is pretty good! It has this odd “casual” feel to the way some characters speak. One of the best examples of this is the first scene with the crocodiles!
For my birthday I got a dvd copy of “the Wild.” I remember watching it and cringing, but pretending to like it because it was a present, but worried that my parents watching it was hating it, too. If a dumb kid cringed and gained self-consciousness and secondhand embarrassment/empathy for their own parents, you know it was baaaad. (Also I blame this movie for making me avoid watching the Madagascar movies. I’ll never forgive this movie for that) Edit: the “Clocks” song in the middle was the only clarity I had and that scene is engrained in my mind
All the side-characters have one personality trait; The koala is a jerk, the snake is an idiot, the squirrel is in love with the giraffe, she is a bit sassy. There's nothing interresting about them. If one of them where like Stitch; cute and brave while a duo was like Timon and Pumbaa; funny and entertaining; i would appreciate them. For now, it's hard to like them 🤨The only who is alright is the lion cub, he's curious like Simba and likes adventure like Tod and Copper; he's fine!
And then we have Samson who is... I don't know. A merge of two versions of the character. On this side we the pompous and vain Samson who was actually born in the wild and lived all those adventures and on the other side the coward Samson who was born into the circus, never even saw the savannah in picture and lied to everyone about his past
I remember seeing this way back when it came out, but the only things that I remembered was the wildebeasts turning to predators and the Koala-is-god subplot with him hating the stuffed toy. If a kid can't even remember who the main character in your movie was, you must have screwed something up royally.
The wildebeasts wanting to turn the food chain around is a SIGNIFICANTLY more interesting plot than anything else on the movie and it lasts for about 20 minutes.
Thank you so much! I actually have another channel where I recently did a Pixar ranking video, It's called "Phid Sillips". I am planning to upload on both channels again soon!
Madagascar had a budget of $75M dollars and was a much better film and made $556.6M dollars at the box office, so wow surprised that even The Wild with having a bigger budget and failed so badly. I really want a Madagascar 4 now.
I saw this movie as a kid in cinema and while I thought it was OK, I also thought something was weird with it. Watching it again as an adult made me realize it's probably got the weirdest timing in any animated move I've seen. We get the main Madagascar-like confilct, the father-son relationship, a bit detail for all members of their friend group (which are just too many characters) and the escape from the zoo... but unlike Madagascar where all this is just the first act and literally gets done in 30 minutes, leaving the rest of the movie for the conflict and to deepen the characters, The Wild drags all this out to about 2/3rd of the movie. We get the real conflict, the adventure, the villain, the character development and the solution all in the last 25 minutes which feels extremely rushed.
I remember my friend loved this film (because it had lions in it) and I watched it with her one day and I was so confused. I didn't realise that sometimes films can just be bad, and I couldn't understand why I didn't like it like she did
You just unlocked a core memory for me, I did NOT remember this movie at all until you showed me that part where the snake was on the wheel and kept rotating and hitting his head. Huge "OHHHHHH" moment.'' I also realize that the lion cub has Beast Boy's VA. I only remember half of the movie bruh, or atleast they invoke deja vu to me.
So when I was really little my dad would go to movies himself before he took me to see them to make sure there was nothing thatd scare me (i was really sensitive) and the Wild was one of the movies he saw himself that didnt make the cut. Not because he thought it would scare me but because he thought it would bore me to death. Same thing happened when Robots came out.
I remember watching this movie when I was a kid in this pirated cd my uncle made me with multiple movies and I remember loving it so much and for years I had been trying to find this movie but no one ever seemed to remember it or even talk about it and it wasn’t until not long ago that I had found it again and realized why it’s been forgotten 💀
I grew up on the Icelandic dub of this movie and I remember finding it way funnier than the English version. I don't know if it's the voice actors' delivery or just that they changed some of the jokes in translation.
Throughout most of the review I was thinking about Samson’s voice and how it sounded familiar. I finally pieced together that it was Kiefer Sutherland aka Snake’s VA for MGSV and now I can’t help but think of him being a in a B-movie Lion King/Madagascar rehash
The Wild wasn't a ripoff of Madagascar like the title implies (yes I did watch the video, not one of those that read the title and comment before watching, don't worry lol). It was in production before Madagascar ever was and was allegedly one of the ideas taken alongside A Bugs Life and some other films. That's how long ago the idea for this film was conceived. Due to multiple issues and delays production eventually decided they needed to recoup their losses and just try to release something to get some of their money back (which definitely explains the rushed nature of the story line, lack of any fleshed out characters and bland jokes). Unfortunately for them Dreamworks was able to release Madagascar before they could finish their own movie and gave the illusion that The Wild was a ripoff when in fact that was not the case at all. I definitely won't argue that The Wild was better than Madagascar, because it definitely was not the better of two, that's for sure. But a ripoff? Definitely not. Still not a good movie though lol :')
Lol I remember seeing this in elementary school, the teacher made us all sit down in front of a tv and watch this movie. I second the "even as a kid it seemed weird" notion
I thought I dreamt this movie up until I saw this video. I’ve been looking for this movie in vain for years. Not because it’s good. I just wanted to prove it’s existence. And thanks to you I finally have.
NO WAIT, I HAD THE WEIRD MAGNET BOOK THING OF THIS MOVIE. i always knew it wasn't Madagascar, but could never remember what it actually was. Huge nostalgia wave. Idk if I've ever even seen the movie tbh BUT I HAD THAT BOOK
I do kinda remember seeing that at the ymca years back, but yeah, I did forget about it very easily! Not to mention even as a *child* I thought of it as a knock off Madagascar!
I think i'm one of the few that actually remembered this movie, when I was younger i used to watch films on repeat for like, a week, I watched this one quite a lot too so it sorta just engraved itself into my brain
I find it funny that Keifer Sutherland’s animation voice roles here and in Monsters vs. Aliens were really awful. And then he does a top-tier performance as Venom Snake in Metal Gear Solid V.
It technically isn’t a Disney Animated film since it wasn’t actually made by Walt Disney Animation Studios themselves it was made by a independent animation studio and simply distributed by the Walt Disney Pictures. Also, it took me a while to process that’s Big Boss as Samson and Beast Boy as Ryan
I remember having a disc of the film as a kid and it was scratched right where the very ending as the volcano is errupting and they are getting on the boat, so I never really did see the end despite still rewatching it multiple times over
Don't compare this film to chicken little. Chicken little actually had some okayish animation for the time, a fairly interesting story, a relatable and sympathizable protagonist and some interesting moments here and there? Is it a masterpiece? No, but I think this is more comparable to the kung fu panda bootleg.
The wild is one of my greatest childhood movie animation i never saw it bad really i love how the story also it shine its own way same of Madagascar both are good movie and each are unique ❤
I always preferred Madagascar over this, even when I was a kid. Hell, I'd even rather watch Chicken Little again, then this. Yep, I said it. At least with Chicken Little, I get a good laugh at how bad it is. With The Wild...I don't.
Saw quite a few ads for this thing back then (they were really proud of that bar joke from what I vividly remember). Kid me watched it, tuned it out after everyone left the zoo, then proceeded to forget about it. Kinda surprised this is a Disney movie too; it feels so out of place compared to the rest of their library...
This honestly means the world to me, I really appreciate the kind words. Thank you so much! I actually have another channel where I recently did a Pixar ranking video, It's called "Phid Sillips". I am planning to upload on both channels again soon!
I used to FUCKING LOVE this movie, I could probably quote the whole thing from memory even now that I don’t like it anymore, I had a handful of bootleg DVDs that I used to just constantly watch on a daily basis when I was in middle school, mostly this and an even worse movie called The Christmas Bunny.
I remember watching the first half of this movie when I was really young once, and I didn't know the name of the movie and all I really remembered of it was the scene of Ryan getting taken away in the crate and for years I was convinced I was just completely misremembering Madagascar
I was three when those commercials came out, I think they interviewed some of the voice actors on Disney channel (or something of that sort) to promote the movie. That whole movie was a fever dream, I couldn't even remember the name of it until recently when people started talking about it
When I was a young, dumb boy, I absolutely loved this movie. But I didn't remember anything about it. I remembered bits from the climax (that at the time I remember being kind of scared of) and the scene where the kid gets locked in the box and gets taken to the wild. That scene I remember invoking strong feelings too! I remember feeling really sad and scared for the cub. But that was literally. It. Those were the only things I actually remembered. No names, no songs, just memory flashes of those two scenes. Oh and the dance party ending and credits that I remember thinking was so cool. I WATCHED IT A LOT and that's ALL I TOOK AWAY FROM THIS MOVIE AS A CHILD. I liked this movie more than Madagascar too. I thought Madagascar was dumb and for babies. But this... THIS! Clearly "The Wild" was the high brow pick. That's how you know this movie is bad 😂
I always thought it was a Lion King ripoff. Despite that being their own movie I thought they basically did the same thing and fused it with Madagascar
oh my god... I genuinely thought this film was a weird ass dream I had when I was 3, I literally only remember the tunnel part and the koala being crowned king, I can't believe this was an actual film
I'm gonna be real, but this and the first Madagascar are both not very good movies, and both have pretty poorly aged animation. Tbh Madagascar only succeeded due to its marketing and came out first, but The Wild was kind of a side thing Disney didn't really handle much and tossed it out after Madagascar basically won. Both movies are kind of mid if I'm being honest, with the only saving grace of Madagascar being the Penguins and those Lemurs, while the Wild had the Patrick "Joe Swanson" Warburton wildebeest.
One of the worst animated films I've ever seen. An example of how not to do a cartoon. The realistic art and design the film's approching clashes with the supposedly cartoony tone is looking. Madagascar worked because the designs were stylistic, reminiscent to Chuck Jones or Tex Avery style. The Wild wants to look realistic, but the realistic look takes away the possibilities for character exaggeration and squash and strech and makes the character look ugly. Chicken Little at least is stylestic even if the animation aged poorly. Storywise it's sucks. It combines three diferent movies into one. It's Lion King meets Finding Nemo meets Madagascar. The sound effects are awful. Instead of making the slasptick or joke funny, it comes across as loud and irritating. The jokes are terrible, the characters are either annoying, one dimensional or obnioxious. It's loud, it's stupid, it's unimaginative, it's lazy, this movie sucks. Didn't liked it even as a kid.
Oh my goodness I remember this movie! I was thinking about it the other day and thought I dreamt it, I don’t know if it’s good that it turned out to be real
I remember the Koala nutshot joke being absolutely hilarious to me and all my friends at school at the time…….and it still is. I don’t care what anyone says. There was literally a meme a handful of years ago focused around Mike Wazowski “getting nutted.” Animated nutshots continue to be funny.
I loved madagascar as a kid and I was very hyped for its sequel. A salesman sold the wild dvd instead of that and gosh how disappointed I was. I didn't hate it though.
I watched this vid feeling like it's a youtube account with 200k + subs and when I saw u only got 700 I was stunned. Great quality vid with an entertaining commentary!
I was one of the few people that knew The Wild. I watched this movie a lot back when I was a kid. Also, I still remember this scene where it shows New York City with Clocks by Coldplay playing in the background.
The Wild is not the ripoff. Madagascar is the ripoff even if it was much better. The Wild was in development for a very long time, but Madagascar came out earlier. And this film is awful. This was also produced by the same studio that made Angela Anaconda.
During a second grade school field trip we were taken to see Lemony Snickets a series of unfortunate events, (a movie that also did a funnier fake out opening sequence) It felt like were were being treated with respect and maturity to go see it since it appeals to everyone with it's darker themes, then we get treated to The wild the next year.. absolutely all of us, possibly including the teachers had already seen Madagascar, so we were all thinking the same, why are we watching this inferior unfunny copy of Madagascar?
Describing these movie as a fever dream is so accurate i almost forgot it was even a part of my childhood. This video just unlocked some hidden memories lmao
If you start listening to the score, cover your eyes and pretend it’s something called “Alan Silvestri’s Greatest Hits”. This got me through the Mac & Me score. The score is actually really good.
Even when I was a child, this movie was awkward and uncomfortable to watch even with my parents 😬 I owned this on DVD and everytime we popped it in the awkwardness never wore off; I was reminded of how weird this movie is from this vid, but I’m so glad I found someone is talking about this monstrosity
Thank you so much for the support! I actually have another channel where I recently did a Pixar ranking video, It's called "Phid Sillips". I am planning to upload on both channels again soon!
My sister and I rewatched this movie on DVD so many times and it was a happy part of my childhood. I remember getting a Koala plush for my birthday because I thought Nigel was funny AF. What makes me prefer "The Wild" over "Madagascar" is the music played through NYC and the fact that my sister and I played Need for Speed: Most Wanted on the Xbox 360 before watching the movie *EVERY* *SINGLE* *TIME* Dunno how exactly I correlate a legendary NFS game with "The Wild" haha.
I use this movie as grounds for explaining that 2d animation was never the problem. Disney was just doing terribly at the time and relying on Pixar for everything.
I remember liking the movie a lot back in the day but maybe that's because our dub was especially good. Also any time the lion backstory dropped, I'd legit choke in tears.
Oh, I remember seeing this when I was around 5-6 years old. So bizarre seeing clips of it again. I remember enjoying the animated intro and the scene where the group is taking a bus through the city and “Clocks” by Coldplay starts playing. I don’t remember much else, but I did enjoy this movie and the Madagascar movies at the times
Their is now way that the roar from the lion guard ( when kion roars and blast everyone in the aria away) was most likely taken from the story at the beginning of this movie
As a fellow smaller creator about to hit 2k subs, I salute you. I've hated this abomination of a movie for years and I'm glad we share a common distaste.
