Pixar today released the teaser for Brave, its upcoming animated fantasy film.
The dark teaser arrives right on the heels of the theatrical release of Cars 2, which did exceedingly well, despite some poor reviews regarding a bit of a backward slide in the Pixar hit.
It also land on the ‘Net on the same day Tom Hanks dropped some hints to a BBC interviewer that Toy Story 4 is already underway after the screaming success of the third installment.
This new animated film, however, seems to take Pixar’s current trend of darkening each successive film to the next logical step.
This teaser gives us a lot of information about the style of the film, but unless that bear is the primary villain, which I doubt, then it’s not giving us much about the actual plot.
Everything here is gorgeous, however, and the film looks like it may be one of their most interesting and immersive yet.
One thing it, and the accompanying synopsis and poster revealed last week, clarifies the one word title is being used as an adjective, not a noun. When I first heard the title of this new film, months back, I assumed it was going to be about a Native American warrior.
This scenery and character design, however, looks very Celtic, and I think we can expect some strong elements from Celtic and Scottish mythology and folklore to enter into the tale. The synopsis is thus:
Brave is set in the mystical Scottish Highlands, where Merida is the princess of a kingdom ruled by King Fergus (Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson). An unruly daughter and an accomplished archer, Merida one day defies a sacred custom of the land and inadvertently brings turmoil to the kingdom. In an attempt to set things right, Merida seeks out an eccentric old Wise Woman (Julie Walters) and is granted an ill-fated wish. Also figuring into Merida’s quest — and serving as comic relief — are the kingdom’s three lords: the enormous Lord MacGuffin (Kevin McKidd), the surly Lord Macintosh (Craig Ferguson), and the disagreeable Lord Dingwall (Robbie Coltrane).
Brave is slated to hit theaters on June 22, 2012.
