So how do you mix cartoonish and realistic styles in a movie? One option would be a realistic cartoon like Archer. The character models for Archer were based off of real people, but being animated allows for handy things like grisly death, without real danger to actors or special effects. But the characters aren't really caricatures, and don't change style, making them not quite right for a Mumbo Jumbo.
There's also the style of Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). It has a mix of comically animated and live-action characters that bounce off each other and interact in a way that was radically new at the time.
Of course, there's a spectrum of realistic versus cartoonish in every animated show. Animes tend to switch styles based on the seriousness of the topic: think One Punch Man's Saitama when relaxed versus fighting. I think Mumbo Jumbo: The Anime could be a good time, honestly.
As for what the characters themselves would look like, I made a goofy little drawing of Hinkle Von Vampton as I imagined him whenever he was mentioned. He's somewhere between the Duke of Weselton from Frozen and that weird mountain goat dude from Hoodwinked.
Thanks for reading my ramblings!
Wow! Your drawing of Hinckle is legitimately exactly how I pictured him while reading the novel. I would agree with our conclusion in class that anime or cartoons would fit the book's vibe better in that it would capture the humor and exaggeration of Reed's narration style. Maybe you should create a Mumbo Jumbo comic for one of the group projects later in the semester.
ReplyDeleteThis is great! I love your drawing of Hinckle! This is such a good idea!
ReplyDeleteI love your drawing and I love this idea! Reed definitely makes his characters into caricatures and I think a cartoon would fit well. I could picture the cartoon taking place on a legitimate background though, as Reed does in the novel by using a distinct historical period and creating a story of his own within it.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all your drawing is amazing and totally captured the Hinckle vibe. Personally whenever I imagine the Mumbo Jumbo characters they're always in the same style as the Scooby Doo cartoon characters (although this could just be because I did my panel on how Mumbo Jumbo is like a detective novel). I think you bring up a good point on making sure that there is enough room for satire to be present in the depiction of the characters.
ReplyDeleteI agree that that is a really good drawing! Given how cartoonish the characters appear to be, I would argue they could look similar to characters from your stock TBS shows (Family Guy, American Dad, Etc.). However, I have issue with this as the character portrayals in those shows may not allow for the kind of depth necessary in this book. Nevertheless, looking at cartoons and how characters may be portrayed is certainly an interesting idea.
ReplyDeleteI feel as if the characters would usually be portrayed best as a live-action film, but there are a few moments, like in the Wallflower Order headquarters, that feel more cartoon-ish. I think all the characters should be the same, but maybe it could be a weird mix, like realistic cartoon characters in a real world. I don't know if that would work though. I love the drawing!
ReplyDeleteThis is a really cool post! I would love to see an animated movie for Mumbo Jumbo, which would I think as we discussed in class be the best way to capture the book. A normal movie would definitely not do justice to the complexity of the novel. Your drawing is really good and I honestly think that would be a great way to animate the film.
ReplyDeletewow cool post! I really like your drawing of Hinckle, it fits just what I imagined. I would probably keep a similar style to what you did. I think maybe the characters of Archer style with a really bland background. That's my vibe for some reason. For Slaughter-house I think it would have to be realistic, but the other two could be more cartoony. Mumbo Jumbo especially.
ReplyDeleteWow this is literally so cool! I. In terms of the cartoon style, I'm not really sure which one I can see Mumbo Jumbo as - I feellike it'd be pretty realistic, but also the caricature is really important so it'd have to be somewhere in between. love your drawing of Hinckle Von Vampton - I feel like that is definitely how he would look, and I can see an entire Mumbo Jumbo cartoon made in a similar style - maybe a future art project??
ReplyDeleteI love the Hinkle drawing so much its totally what he would look like! Probably you should draw every character and then also animate it into a movie! I like the different styles of animation that could work for Mumbo Jumbo, it would be so fun to see a Who Framed Roger Rabbit type movie, I think that would help to show the craziness of some of the characters in contrast to a real human!
ReplyDelete