Pixar is a company that has developed a very focused vision. They put creators first, they put human drama over visual spectacle, and then they knock the visuals out of the park anyway. For a while I’d been following along with all their releases in a state of near delight, enjoying each film they put out more than the one before it, and I started to think that they were as close to infallible as a movie studio could get. But then they put out Cars 2, which was kind of an overlong mess of juvenile humor set in a pun driven, unrelatable world. This wasn’t the Pixar I loved, this was for kids! But with Brave they seem to be getting back to the basics of what makes them great; stories that can be appreciated by kids and adults alike. Here we have a young girl who is different than everybody else, who doesn’t want to be what the rest of the world tells her a young girl should be. She’s driving at something that everybody is telling her she can’t do. She’s in danger, must rely on herself, and she must rise up and become something she never thought she could if she’s going to survive a great adventure. That’s more like it. That sounds like a prototypical Pixar movie, to a tee. Check out the trailer for yourself:

Simple, elegant and whimsical. All three words accurately describe this one minute teaser for Pixar’s next original work, Brave. Disney and Pixar released it today, mostly in celebration of the success it’s having attached to Cars 2, which won a decisive victory at the box office this weekend. With all the talk of Pixar sequels, including revelations about a fourth Toy Story film, it’s even more delightful to see them working on something not based on previously existing material. In this brief tease we meet Princess Merida, a Scottish warrior princess who will be voiced by Kelly MacDonald. She’s got red hair, a bow and arrow and she’s about to take down a bear. That’s one badass lady.

Pixar’s great, wonderful, incredible, stellar, etc. That goes without saying but must be said in every post about Pixar ever, because them’s the rules. However, one of the things Pixar has been lacking is a sole female lead to go on an adventure and win the day while learning a lesson. They’ve definitely distanced themselves from the Disney princess aesthetic, and it’s time for them to come a little closer. Brave is the story of a young Scottish princess named Merida who is skilled with a bow and with defying mystical, sacrosanct acts that bring down terrible fates on her people. So, she sets out to make things right with a sage older character, a magical wish, and some comic relief. The cast here is fantastic. Kelly MacDonald will voice Merida. Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Julie Walters, Kevin McKidd, Craig Ferguson, and Robbie Coltrane are all on board as well. That’s a strong list right there. Plus, EW has some pictures that show off the view point and computerized beauty of their fictional Highlands (and what looks like painstaking concept art):

An evil wizard named Flagg seeks to subvert the Kingdom of Delain by placing a monarch in power that will listen to his every whim. With King Roland’s two sons – Peter and Thomas – Flagg sees an enemy to fear and a child to manipulate into the tool of destruction he needs on the throne.

To illustrate the raunch, Fox Searchlight has released the following red band trailer, which is about as NSFW as they come.

I finally see now the masterpiece so many others have heralded the movie as, it just took a couple of extra viewings for me to open my eyes.

Fox Searchlight announces a date for its Chuck Palahniuk penned Sundance ’08 acquisition…

From the writer of Fight Club comes a dark comedy about sexual addiction that is a joy to behold.

Take a look at the first official stills from the upcoming adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk’s novel.