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DreamWorks Animation was originally founded back in 1994, and in over 25 years’ worth of time, it has endured a legacy among one of the best distributors of animated movies. They may not quite be on par with Disney or Pixar, but the fact that DreamWorks remains in that conversation is worth noting, to begin with.
As part of that top echelon of animation creators, DreamWorks has offered the world plenty of classics over the decades, many of which still hold up to this day. However, there are some other, older works by DreamWorks that have, to put it lightly, aged like milk instead of wine.
10 Aged Well: The Road To El Dorado Became A Cult Classic
When The Road to El Dorado first hit theaters, it was a box office bomb with mixed reviews. Though a well-animated original idea, the DreamWorks name as a brand wasn’t big enough yet to help carry this movie into earning back its budget. In more recent years, audiences and critics alike have been kinder to this movie, re-evaluating it as a classic.
Thanks to meme culture reminding social media that this movie exists, The Road to El Dorado has carried over a new life. As Polygon puts it, “El Dorado is the perfect movie for the internet age.”
9 Didn’t Age Well: Rise of the Guardians Is Just Fake Avengers
It almost seems too coincidental that a movie about a team comprised of the world’s greatest mythical fairy tale characters (like Santa Claus, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, etc.) joining forces to stop an evil entity came out the same year as The Avengers.
It’s hard not to view Rise of the Guardians’ conception as anything more than a timely cash grab, and the feeling is present throughout the movie, liking the same kind of energy or flair that The Avengers would be praised for.
8 Aged Well: The How To Train Your Dragon Trilogy Is Consistently Great
This mostly pertains to the first movie, but it is hard to talk about and praise How to Train Your Dragon without talking about the trilogy as a whole. Because the thing about sequels is that they can either make or break the original movie.
Fans need not worry about How to Train Your Dragon’s sequels, as each entertains in their own unique way. The latter movies only help strengthen what works in the first movie.
7 Didn’t Age Well: The Boss Baby Is A One-Note Joke That Overstays Its Welcome
The Boss Baby is, at its core, a movie about a baby who acts like an adult and wears adult clothes. Not the most complex of pitches, but a simple premise for a simple kids’ movie. For a lot of people, there may even be some humor found to such a premise. Except, that simple premise got ran into the ground fast with each follow-up.
To date, The Boss Baby has had a sequel, a spin-off television series, a Netflix special, a short movie, and a planned third movie. Whatever enjoyment could be found from the original movie is tanked as soon as the joke gets dragged further than necessary with sequels no one asked for.
6 Aged Well: Shrek Aged Like Fine Wine
Shrek was always destined to age well as time went on. The beauty in its humor is that it is equal parts directed towards children and adults. The humor is naturally funny to kids, but the more grown-up inside jokes age better once that same generation of kids grows up to understand the jokes that went over their heads.
That same generation of children grew up to make memes of the Shrek character that only helped extend the relevancy of both the character and his movie.
5 Didn’t Age Well: The Latter Half Of The Shrek Franchise Are Weaker
Here are two for the price of one: Shrek the Third and Shrek Forever. This was when it was clear that Shrek and his friends had overstayed their welcome. The first Shrek was like catching lightning in a bottle, while the sequel somehow managed to exceed expectations.
The third and fourth movies, however, failed to recapture the magic of either movie. The latter sequels rely too heavily on pop culture references of the time, dating them even worse upon a recent rewatch.
4 Aged Well: Shrek 2 May Be Better Than Shrek
As with any sequel, Shrek 2 was a gamble, in terms of quality at least. Between the expectations and success based around the first movie, this sequel easily could have been a flop. Thankfully, thanks to its smart and clever writing, it manages to be on par with the original to the point that some fans actually prefer it over the original.
Unlike the later sequels, Shrek 2 doesn’t heavily rely on pop culture references and when it does, they aren’t shoved down the audience’s throats.
3 Didn’t Age Well: Sinbad Nearly Killed DreamWorks
Sinbad: League of the Seven Seas is easily the biggest flop in the history of DreamWorks. Which says a lot for a movie with such a star-studded cast and a $60 million budget. Even with that budget, the movie nearly bankrupted the studio, resulting in a $125 million loss, according to LA Times.
The poor response and reception are why the studio stopped making traditional animation for 15 years. One would hope that the movie could be resurfaced years later as a forgotten gem, but no, the movie is still pretty bad with modern eyes.
2 Aged Well: Bee Movie Is Remembered For The Wrong Reasons (But Somehow Entertains)
This is in no way, shape, or form an endorsement for Bee Movie being a good movie, but instead embraces just how bad Bee Movie is. It falls squarely into that “it’s so bad, it’s good” category. The kind of movie that is so out of wack that it’s at least a fun time to watch with a group of buddies.
Similar to The Road to El Dorado, Bee Movie is perfect for the internet age, hence why it has frequently been the subject of ridicule and meme culture in recent years. Its bizarre plot and sense of humor have found a new life as practically a cult classic in the same vein as The Room or Troll 2.
1 Didn’t Age Well: Shark Tale Is Just As Bad As When It First Came Out
Shark Tale is the very definition of a lazy movie. Instead of animating original character designs, the animators molded the voice actors’ likenesses as fish creatures. Rather than actually try to write jokes, the filmmakers went the easy route by inserting as many pop culture references as possible. As a result, all of the jokes fall flat and feel dated through modern ears, as if the jokes were even funny in 2004.
Understandably, the movie was eviscerated to shreds by critics upon its release and still gets flak to this day. Without having a hint of charm like the previously mentioned Bee Movie, Shark Tale is just plain bizarre and bad. There’s a good case for this being the worst movie ever released by DreamWorks.
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