You want animated movies? Well,
DreamWorks has them ... a lot of them. The popular studio dropped the bomb last May
that it was constructing a ten-year plan with sequels galore forthcoming to
their most popular property including How
to Train Your Dragon,
The
first film, as most know by now, is Kung Fu Panda
2, which marks the return of everyone’s favourite tubby panda 
The year 2012 will see two more offerings with Madagascar 3 on June 8. The three-quel has all the
principal cast returning. Thankfully at least one non-sequel offering comes on November 21 with Rise of the Guardians
starring Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin, Hugh Jackman, Isla Fisher and Jude Law. Guillermo Del Toro serves as an executive producer. The plot goes like this:
“Rise of the Guardians is
an epic adventure that tells the story of a group of heroes – each with
extraordinary abilities. When an evil spirit known as Pitch lays down the
gauntlet to take over the world, the immortal Guardians must join forces for
the first time to protect the hopes, beliefs and imagination of children all
over the world.”
The year after, no less
than three animated films courtesy of DreamWorks will see the light of day,
beginning with The Croods (March 1)
starring Nicolas Cage, Ryan Reynolds, Emma Stone and Catherine Keener, which
takes us back to a previously undiscovered era in the history of our planet
known as the Croodaceous, when nature was still a work-in-progress and full of
never-before-seen creatures and landscapes. That summer will bring Turbo on June 7 about a garden snail with dreams of becoming the
fastest of his sluggish species. Finally the neat-sounding Me and My Shadow will feature a unique blend of traditional
animation and CG to tell the tale of a disheartened shadow, tired of being
linked to his boring portrayer, who breaks shadow code and takes control of the boring boy who casts him.
Still with us? Finally, four years down the road in 2014, Robert Downey Jr. takes on the voice of the world’s smartest dog in this update of Mr. Peabody & Sherman on March 21. Wrapping up this animation extravaganza is perhaps the movie you would be expect to be in production immediately considering its critical and financial success: How to Train Your Dragon 2 on June 20. But alas we must wait. So there you have it, expect visits from old friends and some new ones as well in the coming years courtesy of DreamWorks and a rather ambitious slate of films.