Jim Davis has written and ‘executively produced’ a Garfield movie entitled Garfield Gets Real which will be released on DVD on November 20th. The movie is CGI and the plot is described as:
Tired with his routine as a comic strip star, Garfield escapes the page and heads into the â??real world.â? While living the low-key life of a real house cat, he learns his comic will be cancelled if he doesnâ??t return before the newspaper goes to print, but no character who has escaped to the real world has ever returned. To complicate the situation, evil forces are blocking his path back to Cartoon World!
Will Jim Davis himself be in the film? That might be the only saving grace. I can’t wait for the next film, “Garfield: Please God Make It Stop!”
And the next sequel, “Garfield: Z”, featuring a smashing scene in which the big G literally jumps over a shark.
Actually, I shouldn’t be so harsh. There was a time when Garfield was fresh and new, and I was a fan. Nowadays, there are still some strips that make me chuckle, but they are rare. I think it’s just the sheer commercialization of the strip’s characters that’s so easy to make fun of. We should all be so lucky.
I don’t begrudge Jim for his products or billions he’s earned. He created a much loved character that has entertained people for the last three generations. I remember going through a phase as a kid when I owned my share of Garfield products and religiously read the strip and book collections. Garfield was the best comic ever. Now I see my kids doing the same thing. They love the cat. It’s all about audience and Jim has the children’s market all sewn up. Good for him.
My daughter loved Garfield when she was younger. If there weren’t cartoons that kids can love, then we wouldn’t be raising cartoon lovers and the art form would likely die off.
I vividly remember the day when Garfield debuted in our local paper here in Indiana. It was such an event, especially because Jim was a local boy!
I impatiently waited for our Sunday comics section so I could get my Garfield fix and plaster the strip on my wall in an attempt to make my very own, first ever Garfield wallpaper.
They still carry Garfield on the front page of our comics section, but it is rarely funny anymore. I can look over my old book collections and laugh, so I know I am not jaded.
Paws Inc, isn’t too far away from where I live and I have always wanted to work for Mr. Davis, but Garfield seems to be part of a production line that I don’t know if I would like to participate in if I was lucky enough to get a job there.
Mr. Davis has created a juggernaut that can’t be stopped so I imagine he is just doing whatever it takes to keep the machine of demand fed.
to me the big g is funny and i actually hated him when he first appeared
I think I’m the exact opposite from Mike. I really liked the early Garfield work. I also preferred the original character design with the larger body and smaller eyes. As a cartoonist, I understand how and why characters evolve physically. Larger eyes are more expressive, a smaller body is easier to place in frame, etc. But for me the original design for the famous fat cat is by far my favorite. Danny mentioned jumping the shark (LOL), I believe Garfield jumped the shark when Jim Davis stood him up on his hind feet.
Garfield was the first comic that I read, the first comic strip collection I bought, and (so far) the only suction-cup animal that I’ve owned (I don’t anymore, and my car feels somehow bereft for it).
I recently wrote a blog entry about the exact moment when I became disillusioned with Garfield. You should check it out if interested: joshshalek.blogspot.com/2007/10/say-it-aint-so-garfield.html
Josh your recollection of your troubled Garfield realization in your blog is so true it almost hurts. Did you keep the Jim Davis form letter? LOL!
I felt the need to search this old topic thread out and post on it.
Garfield Gets Real was on Cartoon Network the other night and it was absolutely horrible. Not even any redeeming cuteness factor.
It’s a shame, the overall concept of Garfield getting tired of life in a comic strip and breaking the bounds of the strip into the real world could be so promising if done properly. I envisioned perhaps a cool cameo from Davis himself drawing the strip or exchanging snarky dialogue with Garfield. I think that would have some merit.
But let me tell you, this film was awful! The animation was sub par, the color schemes and color pallete made me want to barf. It’s such a horrible shame. It’s something that could have been done so much better. I’m sorry to resurrect an old topic from the grave, but I felt I had to comment on it.
Gary, thanks for resurrecting this post. I just read your quote “I canâ??t wait for the next film, â??Garfield: Please God Make It Stop!â? and it made me literally laugh out loud in my cubicle.
Jesse, I don’t want it to sound like I’m totally busting on Garfield or Jim Davis or even Paws, Inc (A division of Conglomco..we’re Beatrice). Seriously, I don’t dislike the character or the strip. As I stated before, the sheer commercialization of Garfield is just really easy to make fun of.
But as I said, this film was horrible and I hope that Davis takes a more active role in supervising these productions to keep the quality up and not ever repeat the poor quality of this cartoon.
Also, who ever was cast to voic Garfield this go-around is no Lorenzo Music or Bill Murray.