Open Season
Open Season promotional poster
Directed by	Roger Allers Jill Culton Anthony Stacchi
Written by	Steve Bencich Ron J. Friedman
Starring	Martin Lawrence Ashton Kutcher Matthew W Taylor Jon Favreau Gary Sinise Debra Messing Jane Krakowski Billy Connolly Georgia Engel Patrick Warburton
Music by	Ramin Djawadi (score) Paul Westerberg (songs) James Newton Howard (Sony Pictures Animation logo only)
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release dates	September 29, 2006 (US, CN) September 30, 2006 (NL) October 5, 2006 (IL) October 6, 2006 (BR, VE) October 13, 2006 (UK, PL )
Running time	1 hr. 25 minutes
Language	English
Budget	US$85 million

Open Season is a computer-animated film produced by Sony Pictures Animation and directed by Roger Allers, Jill Culton and Anthony Stacchi. It was released on September 29 2006 by Columbia Pictures. It features a role reversal, with woodland creatures that are traditionally hunted teaming up against hunters, much like the classic Warner Bros. shorts. It has also been released in the IMAX 3D format. A video game for the film was released on multiple platforms.

Plot

Boog (voiced by Martin Lawrence), a happily domesticated grizzly bear, has his perfect world turned upside down after he meets Elliot (voiced by Ashton Kutcher), a scrawny, fast-talking wild mule deer.

In the tranquil town of Timberline, 900 pound Boog enjoys an idyllic existence. He spends his day as the star attraction of the town's nature show and spends his nights living the life of luxury in the garage of park ranger Beth (voiced by Debra Messing) who raised him since he was a cub. Boog also tries to show a big, loud roar to impress Beth to think that he is a tough, strong, reluctant animal but he still has to learn how to roar like a grizzly. Every town has a bully and Beth knows about the meanest, most fantical tormentor there is: Timberline's paranoid, mullet-sporting hunter, Shaw (voiced by Gary Sinise) who believes that animals conspire against humans so he has to "get them before they get us".

When Shaw drives into town, he has the one-horned Elliot strapped to the hood of his truck and when Boog meets him, he uses a stick to touch him and wakes up and the two end up screaming in terror. With Boog reluctant to intervene, Elliot begs Boog to get him free and escape Shaw. Only then, before Beth can drive her truck to the town's nature show, Boog—against his better judgement—frees Elliot before Shaw could go after him.

Boog never expects to see his "friend" again.

But Elliot has other plans. He follows Boog home and finds him sleeping in the garage and starts to throw rabbits at the window. Elliot goes in as Boog turns on the garage light and is intent on returning the favor by "freeing" Boog from his garage "captivity". Elliot introduces Boog to a world of sweet temptations he has never known. When the grizzly's true instincts begin to emerge, events quickly spiral out of control as the two started to mess up the town's food store and Elliot runs out of the store before Boog gets caught by a friend of Beth, police officer Gordy. After Boog is taken back home, Elliot fails to free him but he still has another plan.

At the nature show, Boog meets up with Elliot as he messes with his career after he gets chased by Shaw. Boog attacks the mule deer, causing the whole audience in the show to panic before Boog threatens to kill Elliot. Shaw has them and prepares to shoot Boog but he is shot by Beth with a tranquilizer gun; she shoots Elliot as well. The two trouble-makers are put into the Timberline National Forest and became lost for 3 days before the start of hunting season and the arrival of Shaw, who escaped before police officer Gordy could arrest him.

Without any bear skills, Boog takes Elliot as his hapless guide to get him back home to Timberline for Boog to reunite with Beth. But in the woods, they quickly learn that it's every animal for itself. The two run into their share of the forest animals including hot-tempered skunks, psychotic ducks and panic-stricken rabbits. They also run into critters such as the Scottish-accented squirrel, McSquizzy (voiced by Billy Connolly) and his rogue gang, and meet up with Reilly (voiced by Jon Favreau) with his beaver construction worker team, as well as a porcupine who is in search of a friend. With each adverse encounter, Boog learns a little about self-reliance and Elliot gains self-respect. After their run-in with Ian, a militaristic mule deer who has forced Elliot out of his herd (voiced by Patrick Warburton), they realize that they've obtained something even more important and that is true friendship.

With hunting season upon them and Shaw in hot pursuit, Boog and Elliot use their new-life lessons to unite the woodland animals. In a rowdy, madcap battle, they make the forest safe once and for all by turning the hunters into the hunted.

Cast

Characters

Boog: The reluctant hero and main character of Open Season. He is a pampered,900-pound grizzly bear who wants nothing more than to continue living in the tranquil town of Timberline with his beloved owner, park ranger Beth, who raised him since he was a cub. Boog has developed skills at living around humans and is the local Timberlines Nature Show's attraction but he absolutely has no skills in surviving in the Timblerine woods and would be at a complete loss if he ever had to "rough it" in the woods. It would take a force of nature to get Boog out of Timberline since he doesn't want to be alone when he is separated from home. And that is where his "friend", Elliot, comes in. When hunting season opens, Boog, Elliot, and all the forest animals band together to drive the hunters out of the forest. Shaw, however, still roams the forest grounds, and wounds Elliot. Outraged, the pure animal instincts within Boog are awakened, and Boog attacks Shaw like a real grizzly, and even roars like one, before taking his rifle, and tying up his limbs with it. Boog and the rest of the animals choose to stay in their natural habitat.

Elliot: A scrawny, fast-talking mule deer. Elliot gets hit by a truck driven by Timberline's top hunter, Shaw, and arrives in town with a missing antler and is strapped to the hood of Shaw's truck. As the runt of the Timberline woods, Elliot comes across as a pest, but all he really wants is to be accepted. After he persuades Boog to free him, neither of their lives are ever the same. Elliot soon starts an unlikely frienship with Boog to help the other animals to live.In a shot when Elliot is holding Boog's favorite teddy bear, he was holding the bear in his crotch.That shows that Elliot is a laid-back deer. He also seems not to care about anyone's belongings.When he and the rest of the forest animals drive the hunters out of the forest, Shaw steps in, and is about to shoot Boog, but Elliot intervines, and nearly takes the bullet. He is only stunned however, and when Shaw is dragged out of town, Elliot stays in the forest with all his animal friends. At the end of the movie, Elliot ends up losing his other antler after getting shot by Shaw for saving Boog's life, yet it also appears as if he's won Giselle's heart.

Jackrabbits: These creatures have a lot of appearances since there are thousands of them around the Timberline woods, watching and waiting behind any rock and under every bush. The Jackrabbits are afraid of any threats and thrive on panic. There is also no escape from those creatures. Out of all the animals in the film, they clearly take the most abuse, especially when rabbit-fights begin (replacement of snowball fights). They also make pretty good gas masks and face towels.

Buddy: This character is seen when Boog gets his butt on his quills and he was a loner who wanted to have friends and constantly wants to give a hug. Buddy always says "buddy" and speaks in complete sentences when spooked or excited about something. Buddy also doesn't understand that he is downright painful to be around.

Reilly: The construction foreman of the woods, Reilly (voice by Jon Favreau) is an extreme perfectionist North American Beaver who takes great pride in the building of the largest dams in the world. He is also a tough worker who gets the job done come high water...and has plenty to say when Boog and Elliot mess up his work. Seems to have taken a fanatical liking to the chainsaw he stole.

Giselle: A mule deer doe in the Timberline woods, she is quick-witted and strong-willed. Giselle has a very long neck, that makes her a little less beautiful.The only reason that Elliot likes her is because Ian is not affctionate. Giselle puts up with the rantings of the strong and tough mule deer buck, Ian, and secretly longs for a little sensitivity in her life. She is the living object of Elliot's affection, which puts Elliot at even greater odds with Ian. Capable of holding her own against anybody.

Ian: The leader of a mule deer herd who is bold and opinionated. A tough, muscular Alpha male, Ian easily intimidates the herd into submission, and like the quarterback of a football team picking on a class nerd, he has forced Elliot out of the herd and told him never to come back. Fed up with his browbeating, the rest of the herd would love it if someone stood up to Ian as a "tough guy"... but none of them will. Although a bully when Boog first meet him, Ian later became friends with the bear and deer and had helped Elliot lead the deer herd to an attack against the hunters as a steed for Elliot. Was last seen wearing a jacket that caused him to fall down in embarrassment in front of two other deers of the herd.

The Herd: The rest of the mule deers led by Ian. Tend to confuse an oval formation with a circle one and are afraid to stand up against Ian himself. Double as cavalry as well as mobile firing platforms for the Furry Tail Clan (with underwear attached to their antlers).

Serge and Deni: A pair of psychotic mallard ducks with French accents. Both were survivors of the "Great Migration", an event where many other mallards were shot down by hunters while Serge and Deni remained the only survivors of the incident, both refusing to fly again and Deni suffering from insantiy after being shot in the butt by a hunter. Eventually, the shell-shocked pair get their chance at payback when Boog and Elliot enlist them (with backup) to ward off the hunters back to town. One of the pair (presumed to by Deni) had the honor to drop "Mr. Happy" (a gas cylinder McSquizzy stole from Mr. Weenie's owners) on a hunter's van. Deni was also the source of Maria and Rosie's argument near the end of the film.

McSquizzy: A grey squirrel who speaks in a Scottish accent (played by Billy Connolly), McSquizzy is the leader of the Furry Tail Clan, a group of hundreds of squirrels, and is the Guardian of The Pine. He may appear small but he makes up for it with a fierce temper. McSquizzy and the Furry Tail Clan own many trees that no one will ever touch or climb on because nobody--and they mean nobody--messes with McSquizzy. Stole a gas cylinder (which he christened "Mr. Happy") and used it against the hunters and was with the herd (riding on Mr. Weenie) when the assault started. Was responsible for blowing up every single one of the hunters' vans by shooting a signal flare towards the back of the van Mr. Happy landed.

The Furry Tail Clan: A clan of grey squirrels loyal to McSquizzy. They often shout "Oi!" when they appear onscreen and like poking fun at Mr. Dinklemann (Boog's teddy bear). Their main arsenal often consists of acorns, though they were seen throwing various items (household or otherwise) at the hunters during the assault. Were also seen firing forks of flaming marshmallows at the hunters using the antlers of the herd and underwear as slingshots.

Maria and Rosie: Two female Striped Skunks, Maria and Rosie are not to be messed with and they sometimes argue and fight over something (in fact, they fight over everything). If someone dares to be around them, they will spray their foul-smelling gas from their scent glands to make someone learn not to mess with them. If any hunters run, they cannot hide. Led all the other skunks into battle against the hunters while hanging on a flock of mallards. Last seen fighting over Deni as their new boyfriend.

Mr. Weenie: A domestic Dachshund accustomed to a pampered good life. Mr. Weenie has a personality to match his name. While taken captive, when on vacation with his owners, Bob and Bobbie, he discovers that he has been living a lie and begs to join Boog, Elliot and the other creatures of the woods to take him with them. During the plan to run the hunters back to town, Mr. Weenie had never felt so alive. Last seen being used as McSquizzy's steed when he chased Reilly for cutting down a pine with his chainsaw.

Salmon: They are "super elite ninja assassins" - expert martial artists who appear speak in Japanese accents (though the only words that ever came out of their mouths are just screams and shouts). Not to be taken lightly, ever.

Beth: Boog's beloved owner and park ranger of Timberline, Beth is a kind woman who always watches for Boog and raised him since he was a cub. Ever since Boog threatened to kill Elliot when the mule deer messes up his Nature Show career, Beth is concerned that Boog shouldn't live in Timberline anymore and soon puts him somewhere in the Timberline woods (above the waterfalls) where he will be safe before hunting season. She is very emotional towards Boog and possesses a maternal instinct towards him, and this clearly conveyed when she is forced to let him go in the end.

Shaw: Timberline's fanatical hunter, Shaw is the main villain of Open Season and is an arch-rival to Beth and never listens to the rules that hunting season begins in 3 days. During hunting season, Shaw hunted many animals as trophies and was the one responsible for hitting Elliot with his truck. When hunting season opened, he invaded the forest that Boog and Elliot protected, and fought Boog. He was about to shoot him, until Elliot intervined, and was stunned. For wounding his friend, Boog became a real grizzly, and attacked Shaw and tied him up with his own rifle, after which the other animals started pounding the heck out of him. At the end, Shaw is strapped to the roof of the RV of Mr. Weenie's owners after mistaking him for Bigfoot (he was covered in leaves and feathers at that time) and running him over and hasn't been the same since. He never started hunting again.

Lorraine Shaw's pet rifle, Lorraine's apparently a high caliber pump-action model with a sniper scope and has "her" name scrawled on the butt-stock. Last seen used by Boog to tie up Shaw, rendered unusable thereafter.

Critical reception

Open Season received mixed reviews from critics - on Rotten Tomatoes, critical opinion was split almost evenly in half. All commended the film's animation but some slated its use of crude humour, celebrity voiceovers and similarities to other CG films such as Shrek, Ice Age, Madagascar, and Monsters, Inc. (Boog and Elliot pair are similar to both Donkey and Shrek, Sulley and Mike, Manny and Sid, Alex, and Marty.) Some critics did, however, think that it was well suited for its younger audience as well as keeping adults from being bored.

Audiences were similarly divided but were slightly more approving - as of January, 2007, the film has been given a weighted average of 6.0/10 by 1,769 voters on the Internet Movie Database. Some audiences praised the film for its snappy comic timing and good intentions, but many noticed the instances of deja vu in the storyline.

Box Office performance

The film opened to a surprise US$ 23 million in its first week, in 3,833 theaters. In its second week, it made US$ 16 million. It has made over US$ 84 million within the United States, along with around $103 million at the foreign box office. .[1]

Soundtrack

The soundtrack includes original music scored by Ramin Djawadi with help by and original songs written by Paul Westerberg, formerly of The Replacements. You may listen to the songs here.

Ratings

• Brazil: The movie received a rating of Livre (general public) by the Department of Justice.

• Finland: The film received a K-7 (for those aged 7 and above) certification from the Finnish Board of Film Classification.

• Ireland: A Parental Guidance rating was given by the Irish Film Censor's Office.

• Netherlands: The film received an AL (suitable for all ages) rating from the Kijkwijzer system.

• Singapore: The movie was given a Parental Guidance rating from The Media Development Authority.

• Switzerland: The movie received a 7+ rating (no one under the age of 7 admitted) in both, Canton of Vaud and Canton of Geneva.

• United Kingdom: The film received a Parental Guidance rating from the British Board of Film Classification.

• United States: The film received a Parental Guidance rating from the Motion Picture Association of America for some rude humor, mild action, and brief language.

• Australia: The movie received a "General Exhibition" rating (G) from the Office of Film and Literature Classification.

DVD and Blu-Ray

This movie was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on January 30, 2007. It includes a new animated short called "Boog and Elliot's Midnight Bun Run", deleted scenes, Audio Commentary, I Wanna Lose Control music video, Swept Away documentary and other disc extras.

Sequel

Sony has decided to greenlight a sequel to last year’s computer animated film Open Season. Open Season 2 is scheduled to go direct to DVD in 2009 [2].

Trivia

• Martin Lawrence and Ashton Kutcher never met during production.
• Out of the three directors Roger Allers was the only one who had experience in feature film directing before.
• The Sony animation team developed a digital tool called shapers that allowed the animators to re-shape the character models into stronger poses and silhouettes and subtle distortions such as squash, stretch, and smears, typical of traditional, hand-drawn animation.
• All cellular phones in the movie were Sony Ericssons.
• One scene in the movie shows the Jack Rabbits threatening a hunter with a plunger, a possible reference to the Rabbids from Rayman Raving Rabbids. Also in another scene, the Jack Rabbits popping out of their holes is a resemblance to the brown rabbits from Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.
• This film was inspired by the town of Estes Park Colorado and the Rocky Mountain National Park. References to the Lawn Lake Dam flood, Longs Peak, and other points of interest in the area are depicted in the movie.
• It is thought that the Furry Tail Clan leader, riding the dog is inspired by Sir Didymus from Labyrinth. (Both have similar accents)
• At the start of the film, Boog dances in a boogie, a reference to Baloo's dancing from The Jungle Book (1967).
• Boog and Elliot will be seen in the Nickelodeon Movies logo of 2008.

External links

• Official website
• Open Season at IMDb
• Open Season at Rotten Tomatoes

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