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Most people have some sort of affinity to animals. These benevolent, lovable, innocent, cute beings never fail to melt an audience’s heart. If you have the right animal, whether it be real-life or animated, then you will have your audience captivated. Having a prominent animal can give your film numerous trajectories to go down – for example how big a part is the animal going to play; would it play a role like Will Smith’s dog in I Am Legend or more of a light relief comic effect like Regina George’s dog in Mean Girls.
So what are the most memorable animals that have ever graced our screens?
Marley
Film – Marley & Me
Animal – Dog
Memorable Scene – After being tied to a table whilst John and Jenny attempt to sit, Marley, remembering that he is his own dog, starts running… taking the table with him. John gives chase but the damage Marley does in those 20 seconds is enough to set you back a fair amount of coin.
by Kevin Rodriguez Ortiz
This Labrador retriever plays by no rules bar its own. Owners John and Jenny originally bought the dog as it was the logical progression in their relationship. What they had banked on was being the proud owners of a fantastic dog. What they got was a fantastic dog but one who would not listen, and one who would leave a trail of destruction in his wake. Despite his lax attitude to commandments it is clear that there is a serious amount of love between owner and dog. The way Marley comforted Jenny is a tear-jerker.
Cerberus
Film – Mad About Dog
Animal – Dog
Memorable Scene – The final race at Clonmel
By liza31337
Cerberus is a greyhound who gets given to three slightly idiotic Irish males. After leaving Northern Ireland to go down south in an attempt to win some money, with a dog that they presume is a dud, they discover that Cerberus is a blinding dog but one who will only chase real hares rather than the plastic ones found at tracks. The only place he can therefore race is Clonmel as they are one of the few courses in Ireland to use live hares. After a brief melee with some travellers at the fair, in which the dog is taken before being stolen back, the bunch eventually arrive at the Clonmel where Cerberus proceeds to win every race he has entered, which, thanks to some smart betting, wins the boys a cool £50,000.
. This was in an age before you could bet on the dogs online. If not, the ordeal would have been a lot easier as well as profitable. Following his success Cerberus is put out to stud.
Dory
Film – Finding Nemo
Animal – Pacific regal blue tang
Memorable Scene – “Just keep swimming”
by Castles, Capes & Clones
Had Marlin (Nemo’s father) never had met Dory then Nemo would more than likely not made it home. In fact, without Dory, Marlin would never had made it to the harbour. Together these two fought off sharks three-times the size of themselves, rode the East Australian Current with some hospitable turtles, did battle with jellyfish, traversed to the darkest and deepest trenches of the ocean, spoke whale, and most notably found, and saved, Nemo. Dory, who suffers from short-term memory loss, is incredible. As before mentioned, she can speak whale, read written English and befriend blood lustful sharks but cannot remember any of it 15 seconds down the line. It is this plucky never-say-never attitude that really endears her to you. Despite her forgetting who you may be she is more than willing to help. She is what you would call a true friend.
Simba
Film – Lion King
Animal – Lion
Memorable Scene – Returning to Pride Rock to do battle with Scar
The Lion King was the game changer when it came to animated film. It was the first to garner proper mainstream attention and buzz. Its gross of over $900 million for 1994 is stupendous and it starred A-List actors such as Matthew Broderick, who voiced the adult version of Simba. As a young lion cub, Simba was primed to take over Pride Rock once his father’s time had come. However, his uncle, Scar, furious that he had lost his place in line to the throne, successfully kills Mufasa and pins the blame on Simba, causing the youngster to run away into the African dry lands. Here, this big eyed, naive lion meets Timon and Pumbaa, a meerkat and warthog who rear him with a staple diet of grubs. One thing leads to another and Simba finally goes home to take what is rightfully his… Pride Rock. As the lionesses do battle with Scar’s army of hyenas, Simba searches out his uncle, eventually finding him on the top of the rock. Simba manages to vanquish his uncle, who fills him in on the fact that it was he (Scar) who had killed Mufasa, and restores Pride Rock to its former glory. Simba was everything you could want. He could sing, dance, show compassion, joke and most importantly kick some proverbial.
Caesar
Film – Rise of the Planet Apes
Animal – Common Chimpanzee
Memorable Scene – “No!” … Caesar speaking for the first time
by Dylan Payne
The reboot of the hugely popular Planet of the Apes series was a revelation. With the technological advances that have revolutionised the film industry, the apes could be more realistic than ever. When you have Andy Serkis doing the motion capture acting you know you are going to be treated to something special. Not only does Caesar look the part, but his emotions and facial expressions can at times bear a chilling resemblance to that of humans. After being taken in by Will Rodman (James Franco), the audience follows Caesar’s development from a baby ape to a full-grown adult male. Along the way you see his mischievous side whilst a youngster and an inquisitive nature during adultescence before he reaches adulthood, a time that sees him getting impounded for attacking a neighbour of Rodman’s. Caesar – thanks to his drug induced heightened intelligence – soon rises to the top of the impound and leads a whole host of apes into escaping the compound and running riot on the streets of San Francisco. Caesar is one of the greatest movie animals as he can actually talk and is one of the few that you truly believe can match or better humans. They are the more physically imposing of the two and thanks to the increased mental aptitude that Caesar possesses he is more than a formidable foe.
Babe
Film – Babe
Animal – Pig
Memorable Scene – “That’ll do, Pig. That’ll do.”
by The Pug Father
Few movie animals have been as decorated as Babe. The movie came out to critical acclaim; to date it holds a 97 per cent fresh rating with the Rotten Tomatoes, and it is one of the very few movies of its kind to garner an Academy Award nomination – Babe got seven, including Best Picture and Best Director.
The story of Babe is surreal and it is probably for this reason why it was so popular. For you see, Babe, the pig, wanted to be a sheep dog. The film charts the plight of Babe from a piglet who was raised by a border collie to his triumphant showing at the sheep-herding competition.
Po
Film – Kung Fu Panda
Animal – Panda
Memorable Moment – Dumpling training montage
A fat panda that knows kung fu, what’s not to like? Po seemed destined to spend his life serving noodle soup at his father’s restaurant, but thanks to some experimentation with fireworks he ends up becoming the new Dragon Warrior – the most feared and powerful warrior in the valley. Not long after, the dangerous and maniacal Tai Long, a snow leopard who believes himself to be the rightful Dragon Warrior, starts to take his vengeance out on the valleys of China. Po, a panda who struggles with flights of stairs, is now the only chance in saving the people from this nasty leopard. After being trained by Master Shifu in the arts of kung fu, Po reads the Dragon Scroll, which holds the secret to limitless power, only to see his own reflection. Dejected, Po leaves Master Shifu to fight Tai Long while he and the others leave town. However, after discovering there is no secret ingredient in his father’s noodle soup, Po understands that the meaning of true power is to have confidence in yourself. He uses this confidence to go and get the better of Tai Long.
Donkey
Film – Shrek series
Animal – Donkey
Memorable Moment – Far too many to even try and justify naming one
by ☺ Lee J Haywood
Without question the funniest animal to have ever graced either the animated or the real world. The comic timing of Eddie Murphy (Donkey) really comes off well against the some what stony and sour Shrek (Mike Myers). After originally being sold by his owner, Donkey escapes and bumps into Shrek, who he proceeds to badger and annoy, but takes no interest in the fact that he is an ogre. After helping his new best mate rescue the princess, thanks to some fantastic donkey flirting to appease the dragon whom he later marries and has children with, donkey proceeds to both infuriate, humiliate, save and advise Shrek. Donkey would be the first to tell you that he is an Ass. Most things he does do seem to annoy but his heart is the right place. A loyal friend who will stay with you until the end of time, and every now and again he cracks out the old brilliant one-liner.
Puss in Boots
Film – Shrek series and Puss in Boots
Animal – House Cat
Memorable Moment – Doing shots of full fat milk
The dynamic between Puss, Shrek and Donkey is what makes the Shrek films so good. With Antonio Banderas’ thick Spanish accent, Puss is one sexy cat. But he is a dangerous sexy, the things he can do with that sword of his are unspeakable. When he isn’t fighting he likes to make good use of his boots and gets a merry little dance on, whilst his love for the senoritas is much documented. But for all of Puss’ fighting prowess, it is his big eyes that are his greatest threat. Just one look at those things and you are done for. The second you let your guard down around a cat like this expect your pockets to soon be emptied. If you want a friend that will fight any foe that tries to harm you and also functions as the very best wingman in the world then you would have Puss by your side.
Shere Khan
Film – Jungle Book
Animal – Tiger
Memorable Moment – His battle with Baloo, the bear
by suvodeb
When you think of movies containing animals it is usually The Jungle Book that is on the tip of your tongue. Rudyard Kipling’s
classic novel was turned into a classic film in 1967, its quality still shines through today. Unlike the rest of the characters on the list, Shere Khan is no protagonist; no, much rather he is the main antagonist. This fiendish man-eating feline is scared of just two things: man’s gun and man’s fire, and once he overhears that Mowgli, a young orphan, is somewhere alone in the jungle he sets out to go and get his dinner. After eventually tracking down young Mowgli, Shere Khan decides to play with his food before eating it, but before he can he has to do battle with a bear. In the chaos that ensued Mowgli was able to tie a twig that had caught fire to the tail of Shere Khan, causing the fearsome tiger to run for cover. What made Khan such a great character was the genuine feeling that you got from him that he genuinely despised all men and such there was a real sense of grave danger whenever he appeared on screen. The voiceover work by George Sanders added this regal, important, chilling and scary tone to Khan’s voice. Here is an animal that kills.
These are just some of the great animals who have graced cinema screens over the past 60 years. We can expect ourselves to be seeing plenty more new additions in the years to come.