| Charlotte's Web | |
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| Directed by | Gary Winick |
| Produced by | Jordan Kerner |
| Written by | Screenplay: Susannah Grant Karey Kirkpatrick Book: E. B. White |
| Narrated by | Sam Shepard |
| Starring | Dakota Fanning Julia Roberts Steve Buscemi Cedric the Entertainer John Cleese Oprah Winfrey Thomas Haden Church Andre Benjamin Reba McEntire Kathy Bates Robert Redford |
| Music by | Danny Elfman |
| Cinematography | Seamus McGarvey |
| Editing by | Susan Littenberg Sabrina Plisco |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures/Nickelodeon
Movies (U.S.) United International Pictures (Worldwide) |
| Release date(s) | December 7, 2006 (AUS) December 15, 2006 (U.S.) February 9, 2007 (UK) |
| Running time | 97 min. |
| Language | English |
Charlotte's Web is a live-action/computer-animated feature film, based on the popular book of the same name by E.B. White. It is directed by Gary Winick and produced by Paramount Pictures, Walden Media, The Kerner Entertainment Company, and Nickelodeon Movies. The screenplay is by Susannah Grant and Karey Kirkpatrick, based on White's book.
It is the second film adaptation of White's book, preceded by a 1973 cel-animated version produced by Hanna-Barbera for Paramount Pictures. It was distributed in Switzerland, Spain, and Netherlands by Universal Pictures.
Contents |
One spring, on a farm in Maine, Fern Arable (Dakota Fanning) learns that her father plans to kill the runt of a litter of newborn pigs. She successfully begs him to spare the piglet's life. The farmer gives the tiny pig to Fern, who names him Wilbur and raises him as her pet. To Fern's regret, when Wilbur grows into an adult pig, Fern is forced to take him to the Zuckerman farm, where he is to be prepared as dinner in due time.
Charlotte (Julia Roberts), a spider, lives in the space above Wilbur's sty in the Zuckermans' barn; she befriends Wilbur and decides to help prevent him from being eaten. With the help of the other barn animals, including a rat named Templeton (Steve Buscemi), she convinces the Zuckerman family that Wilbur is actually quite special, by spelling out descriptions of him in her web: "Some pig", "Terrific", "Radiant" and "Humble". Charlotte gives her full name as "Charlotte A. Cavatica", revealing her as a barn spider, an orb-weaver spider with the scientific name Araneus cavaticus.
The farm family, Wilbur, Charlotte, and Templeton go to a fair, where Wilbur is entered in a contest. While there, Charlotte produces an egg sac. She cannot return home with Wilbur because she is dying. Wilbur tearfully says goodbye to Charlotte but manages to take her egg sac home, where hundreds of offspring emerge. Most of the young spiders soon leave, but three, named Joy, Aranea and Nellie, stay and become Wilbur's friends.
This was Thomas Haden Church's second family film to be released by Paramount Pictures. In 2006, the first being Over the Hedge, which was made by DreamWorks Animation. Paramount had distributed the film as a result of its acquisition of DreamWorks, whose animation division became its own company in late 2004.
This was the first film based on a book by E. B. White since 2001's The Trumpet of the Swan.
This was the second film where Julia Roberts voices an arthropod, the first being The Ant Bully where she voices an ant.
Charlotte's Web was produced without any involvement from E.B. White's estate.[1]
Major shooting was completed in May 2006. It was filmed on location in Bacchus Marsh, Victoria and suburbs in Melbourne, Australia. The fair scene in the story was filmed in Heidelberg in Melbourne, Australia at Heidelberg West Football Club's football ground.
Visual effects are by Rising Sun Pictures, Fuel International, Proof, Rhythm and Hues Studios, Digital Pictures Iloura and Tippett Studio. The visual effects supervisor for the film as a whole was John Berton, who noted that a live action version of Charlotte's Web has become much more practical in recent years due to advances in technology.[2] Winick "was adamant" that Charlotte and Templeton (the film's two entirely computer-generated characters) should be realistic and not stylized, although they did give Charlotte almond-shaped eyes.[3] John Dietz, visual effects supervisor for Rising Sun Pictures, notes that there was a debate over whether to give her a mouth, and that in the end they decided to have her chelicerae move in what he describes as being almost like a veil, as if there were a mouth behind it.[4]
The film was at one time intended for a June 2006 release, but was pushed back to December 2006 to avoid competition with two other films from Nickelodeon Movies - Nacho Libre and Barnyard - as well as Over the Hedge and Cars among other films. It was released in Australia on December 7, 2006 and in the United States and Canada on December 15, 2006.[5] The U.S. and Canadian release date matches that of 20th Century Fox's Eragon, another film with fantasy elements and a young protagonist. The scheduled release date in the UK is February 9, 2007. The DVD was released on April 3, 2007 in the United States and Canada and was released on DVD in the United Kingdom on May 28.
In the United States, the film was Paramount's first theatrical film to be rated "G" by the Motion Picture Association of America since the company's 2001's film Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.
Reviews were generally positive, especially with respect to Dakota Fanning's portrayal of Fern. Michael Medved gave Charlotte's Web three and a half stars (out of four) calling it "irresistible" and "glowing with goodness". Medved also said that Dakota Fanning's performance was "delightfully spunky".[6] Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman complains that the film is "a bit noisy" but applauds the director for putting "the book, in all its glorious tall-tale reverence, right up on screen." He goes on to say that "What hooks you from the start is Dakota Fanning's unfussy passion as Fern."[7]
Colm Andrew of the Manx Independent gave the film 6/10, saying that the main problem was "the ultra-cute characterisation of Wilbur, resulting in half the audience rooting for his demise" although overall it was "a competent retelling of a classic story that won't offend".[8]
The film was awarded a 2006 Critics' Choice Award for Best Family Film in the live-action category.[9] The film also won the Blimp Award for Favorite Movie Actress at the 2007 Kids' Choice Awards.
| Charlotte's Web | ||||
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| Film score by Danny Elfman | ||||
| Released | 2006 | |||
| Danny Elfman chronology | ||||
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A soundtrack CD, Charlotte's Web: Music from the Motion Picture, was released by Sony Classical on December 5, 2006. In addition to the instrumental score by Danny Elfman, the soundtrack includes a song by Sarah McLachlan. A CD compilation of "Music Inspired by the Motion Picture" was issued on December 12, 2006.
A video game of the movie, developed by Backbone Entertainment and published by THQ and Sega, was released on December 12, 2006 for the GBA, Nintendo DS, PS2 and PC.
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Charlotte's Web is a live-action/computer-animated feature film based on the highly acclaimed and popular children's book of the same name. It is preceded by a 1973 cel-animated version produced by Hanna-Barbra for Paramount Pictures.
Contents |
Ike: Spider! [Faints]
Mrs. Zuckerman: I mean it was clear as day. T-E-Double R-I, I mean can you believe a spider wrote that? I didn't learn how to spell that word until I was in the 10th grade!
[last lines] Narrator: It's not often someone comes along that's a true friend and good writer. Charlotte was both.
Charlotte A. Cavatica: Oh, Wilbur... don't you know what you've already done? You made me your friend and in doing so, you made a spider beautiful to everyone in that barn...
Templeton: You're a pig! Pig equals slop. The rat is happy!
Wilbur: My name's Wilbur! Do you have a name or is it just 'The Rat'?
Templeton: Did you say 'just the rat'? For your information, pig: The rat rules! We were here long before your kind and we'll be here long after. So, you just keep that in mind next time you feel like reducing me to just 'the rat'.
Wilbur: You called yourself 'The Rat'.
Templeton: I can call me that. You can't.
Wilbur: So you eat flies?
Charlotte A. Cavatica: No... no, no. I drink their blood.
Ike: [faints]
Charlotte A. Cavatica: [climbs down to Ike's face]
Ike: Please, don't hurt me.
Charlotte A. Cavatica: Well, since you said please. Hehe.
Templeton: Look at her! Don't you think she's a little... uh... what's the word? EW!
Wilbur: I think she's beautiful.
Charlotte A. Cavatica: Wilbur... we're born, we live, and when our time comes, we die. It's just a natural cycle of life. Wilbur: No! Just climb down! I'll carry you the rest of the way! We'll go back to the barn and I'll take care of you!
Charlotte A. Cavatica: No, Wilbur... I don't even have the strength to climb down.
Charlotte A. Cavatica: No, my webs were no miracle, Wilbur. I was only describing what I saw. The miracle is you.
Charlotte A. Cavatica: Goodbye... my sweet, sweet Wilbur.
Wilbur: Goodbye, Charlotte. I love you.
Homer Zuckerman: Well, what can I say about this pig that hasn't already been said? I know a lot of you folks have come out to the farm and you've seen the words, and a lot of you have asked me, 'how could this have happened?'. I don't know, but it has happened... at a time when we really don't see many miraculous things. Maybe we do. Maybe they're all right there around us everyday, we just don't know where to look. There's no denying that our own little Wilbur... he's part of something that's bigger than all of us. And life on that farm's just a whole lot better with him in it. He really is some pig.
[repeated line] Templeton: The rat rules!
Homer Zuckerman: How could this have happened? A miracle, in a time when we don't see many miraculious things!
Wilbur: Since you said Salu-what, does this mean your my friend?
Charlotte A. Cavatica: Well, let me think... Hmmm... Well... Yes.
Wilbur: Ya-hooo!
Brooks: I am gonna get me some rat!
[repeated line]
Wilbur: Great name!
Charlotte A. Cavatica: You're very kind.
Templeton: Don't go spreading it around.
Wilbur: Templeton, Charlotte is very sick.
Templeton: Yeah, and twisted.
Mr. Arable: [Mr. Arable looks at pigs, finds a runt, and picks up an ax]
Fern: What are you doing?
Mr. Arable: Nothing, now go back to bed.
Fern: You're not going to kill it, are you?
Mr. Arable: It's a runt.
Wilbur: [Wilber bangs his head into the fence and runs]
Golly the Goose: [Flies to the fence, lands on it and stops] Run pig! Be free! I would if I could.
Gussy the Goose: [Golly goes back inside the barn] Golly, it almost sounded like you said you would be free if you could.
Golly the Goose: I meant if I were a pig.
Charlotte A. Cavatica: Templeton, haven't you ever heard that good things come to those who wait?
Templeton: No. Good things come to those who find it and shove it in their mouth!
| Julia Roberts | Charlotte A. Cavatica |
| Oprah Winfrey | Gussy |
| Steve Buscemi | Templeton |
| Kathy Bates|Kathy Bates | Bitsy |
| John Cleese | Samuel |
| Thomas Haden Church | Brooks |
| Robert Redford | Ike |
| Cedric the Entertainer | Golly |
| Jane Sibbett | Joy |
| Reba McEntire | Betsy |
| André Benjamin | Elwyn |
| Dakota Fanning | Fern Arable |
| Gary Basaraba | Mr. Zuckerman |
| Siobhan Fallon | Mrs. Zuckerman |
| Kevin Anderson | Mr. Arable |
| Essie Davis | Mrs. Arable |
| Nate Mooney | Lurvy |
   | Official website at Nick.com - Charlotte's Web |
| | Official website - Charlotte's Web Movie - Based on the Book by E.B. White - Official Site |
| | Official website at Walden Media - Charlotte's Web |
| | Charlotte's Web 2007 - Charlotte's Web Movie - Yahoo! Movies UK |
| | Link - allmusic ((( Charlotte's Web [2006 Score] > Overview ))) |
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