Mr. Peabody and Sherman was released on March 7th, 2014. The film stars Ty Burrell, Max Charles, Ariel Winter, Stephen Colbert, Leslie Mann, and Allison Janney. It was directed by this guy named Rob Minkoff, he was known for co-directing this humble little movie called The Lion King. Peabody and Sherman is notable for being the first animated film based on the property of Jay Ward Productions and DreamWorks' first animated film based on a property from Classic Media. For those who are wondering what I'm talking about, allow me to explain. Jay Ward Productions is an animation studio founded by Jay Ward, and the company is responsible for the cartoons he created up until his death in 1989. Ward created such characters as Rocky and Bullwinkle, George Of The Jungle, and even produced commercials for Cap'n Crunch. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show had several segments featuring the titular duo Rocket J. Squirrel (Rocky) and Bullwinkle J. Moose, Dudley Do-Right, Fractured Fairy Tales, and Peabody's Improbable History, which featured Mr. Peabody and Sherman. What Rocky and Bullwinkle lacked in animation, they more than made up for with its clever writing, hilarious jokes, and great voice work, remaining influential to this day. The whole gimmick for Peabody's Improbable History is that Mr. Peabody, the world's smartest dog, and his adopted son Sherman, travel through time and go on wacky adventures, meeting different versions of important figures in history. Sounds silly, but it worked. In the 2000's, Jay Ward Productions created a joint venture with Classic Media known as Bullwinkle Studios, which managed most, if not all, of Ward's cartoons. In 2012, DreamWorks Animation bought Classic Media for $155 million, and thus Classic Media turned into DreamWorks Classics. And with Universal now owning DreamWorks Animation, anything Classic Media purchased, Universal now owns.
When Mr. Peabody and Sherman was released on March 7th, it grossed only $275.7 million on a $145 million budget, which meant that the film sadly flopped at the box office. But despite that, Peabody and Sherman received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the humor, writing, animation, and voice work. I have to agree with them. When I first saw the movie, I thought it was hilarious and had a lot of heart to it. And I like that they had Stanley Tucci and Mel Brooks voice historical figures such as Leonardo da Vinci and Albert Einstein respectively. When I saw the movie in theaters with my sister, we laughed at the jokes, and a lot of adults laughed at the jokes too. Several months after Peabody and Sherman was released, DreamWorks Animation released How To Train Your Dragon 2, which clearly overshadowed the film. It's a real shame that this film isn't talked about as often. I think it's funny and enjoyable, and I think the whole family should give it a watch. It deserves to be talked about a lot more.
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Top Five DreamWorks Animated Movies That Deserve To Be Talked About More
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