Shark Tale (film)
Shark Tale is an Academy Award-nominated
computer-animated film produced by DreamWorks Animation, and released in 2004.
It features the voices of Will Smith, Jack Black, Renée Zellweger, Angelina
Jolie, Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro. Its original title was Sharkslayer,
but the producers thought that this might provoke a degree of misunderstanding
among the target audience of the film, children and families. Shark Tale is also
one of the first three feature-length films to get the Game Boy Advance Video
treatment.
Nominations
2004 Oscar nominated for Best Animated Feature
Many Italian-American organizations protested Shark Tale for perpetuating negative stereotypes of Italian-Americans. Gay groups noted Lenny's "vegetarian" shark as an obvious metaphor for coming out of the closet, and even speculate that the character Lenny could possibly be a representative of a gay man. Noteworthy in this discussion is the fact that refusing to "eat meat" could be construed as a rejection of masculinity. A brief passing of Walter, a sperm whale voiced by Anthony Anderson, triggers a few suggestive comments regarding "sperm whales", although it isn't said outright. Lenny also expresses his fear of telling his father of being "vegetarian" and how his decision would not be accepted.
Cast
Will Smith - Oscar (voice)
Robert De Niro - Don Lino (voice)
Renée Zellweger - Angie (voice)
Jack Black - Lenny (voice)
Angelina Jolie - Lola (voice)
Martin Scorsese - Sykes (voice)
Ziggy Marley - Ernie (voice)
Doug E. Doug - Bernie (voice)
Michael Imperioli - Frankie (voice)
Vincent Pastore - Luca (voice)
Peter Falk - Don Feinberg (voice)
Katie Couric - Katie Current (voice)
David Soren - Shrimp / Worm / Starfish #1 / Killer Whale #2 (voice)
David
P. Smith - Crazy Joe (voice)
Bobb'e J. Thompson - Shortie #1 (voice)
Kamali Minter - Shortie #2 (voice)
Emily Lyon Segan - Shortie #3 (voice)
Lenny Venito - Giuseppe / Great White #1 (voice)
Saverio Guerra - Pontrelli (voice)
Shelley Morrison - Mrs. Sanchez
(voice)
Mark Swift - Announcer (voice)
James Madio
- Great White #2 / Hammerhead (voice)
Frank Vincent - Great White #3 (voice)
Joseph Siravo - Great White #5 (voice)
Steve Alterman
- Messenger Fish / Tip Fish #2 (voice)
Phil LaMarr - Prawn Shop Owner (voice)
Jenifer Lewis - Motown Turtle (voice)
Sean Bishop - Tip Fish #1 / Great White #4 / Whale / Killer Whale #1 (voice)
James Ryan - Cashier / Starfish #2 and 3 / Oyster / Clown Whale (voice)
Latifa Ouaou - Whale Wash Co-Worker (voice)
David Yanover - Taxi Fish (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Stephen Apostolina - (voice)
Robert Clotworthy - (voice)
Faiz-Kevin Mangat - Ernie
Christina Aguilera - Christina (voice) -
Missy 'Misdemeanor' Elliott - Missy
(voice) -
Plot
The
story begins with an underachieving fish named Oscar (Will Smith) going to work
and slipping up with a mistake again. With that, he is called to his boss', Mr.
Sykes (Martin Scorsese), office to discuss the fact that he owes money and has
to pay it back by the next day. As he explains to his best friend, Angie (Renée
Zellweger) (who harbors a secret love for him), he is offered the chance to pay
back the money by pawning off a pink pearl given to him by her, which he plans
to use, but is distracted by his wishes of grandeur and places it all on a bet
at the race tracks. The race is lost and Oscar is set to be surreptitiously killed.
Meanwhile, on another side of the ocean, a family of criminally-inclined sharks has a trouble with one of their sons, Lenny (Jack Black). Lenny refuses to act the part of a killer and wishes to not have to live up to those expectations. With this, his father, Don Lino (Robert De Niro), decides that he must learn to kill, by being taught by Lenny's more savage brother, Frankie (Michael Imperioli).
As the two sharks set out to go in accordance with their father's wishes, Frankie spots the scene where Oscar is being electrocuted by Ernie and Bernie (Doug E. Doug & Ziggy Marley), his boss' two jellyfish thugs and sends Lenny off to attack. The jellyfish spot Lenny and swim off, leaving Oscar alone with him. Lenny tries to calm Oscar down by telling him that he will not eat him, but Oscar will not listen, and insists on screaming, until Frankie becomes annoyed and tries to attack, but an anchor kills him. As no one saw the deed done and Oscar was seen near the body, everyone thinks he did it, and Oscar saw the chance to both redeem himself and receive his fame.
Oscar comes back to the city with a new title of the Sharkslayer. On the way he meets Lenny once more who forces Oscar to let him stay with him because he does not want to go home. Soon Angie finds out about the lie and threatens to tell everyone but Oscar keeps her satisfied. Meanwhile while it obvious that Angie loves Oscar, Oscar has fallen in love with gold digger Lola (Angelina Jolie).
Although Oscar desires to please everyone, he soon discovers that he pleases no one; his paramour Angie is heartbroken by the fact that Oscar is no longer honest, while her hedonistic rival Lola is disgusted by what she considers low taste. Don Lino plans revenge, and Oscar must rise to the occasion. When the trick planned by Oscar and Lenny succeeds only in angering Don Lino, Oscar lures both sharks into a trap. Given an ovation by the other fish, Oscar confesses that he is not a real "Sharkslayer". He forsakes all the wealth he has acquired, makes peace with the sharks, and marries Angie. However, he becomes manager of the Whalewash. Lola also ends up with a crazy crab. Moreover he helps Don Lino make peace with Lenny.
Christina Aguilera and Missy Elliott make a cameo appearance in the end of the movie.
Animation
- Comedy - Crime
- Documentary
-
Family - Foreign
Language - Historical
- Horror - Musical
- Political
Recommended- Romance- Science Fiction and Fantasy - Sport Movies -- Thriller - War - Western - Wildlife
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