Shark Tale (2004)

When a son of a gangster shark boss is accidentally killed while on the hunt, his would-be prey and his vegetarian brother decide to use the incident to their own advantage.
Shark Tale is a 2004 American animated comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by DreamWorks Pictures. The film was directed by Vicky Jenson, Bibo Bergeron, and Rob Letterman (in his feature directorial debut), from a screenplay written by Letterman and Michael J. Wilson. The film features an ensemble cast that includes the voices of Will Smith, Robert De Niro, Renée Zellweger, Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, and Martin Scorsese. It tells the story of an underachieving fish named Oscar (Smith) who falsely claims to have killed the son of a shark mob boss in an attempt to advance his community standing. Oscar teams up with the mobster's younger son Lenny (Black) to keep up the facade. It is the 6th film of Chace! Studios after Garfield: The Movie and before Madagascar
Shark Tale premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 10, 2004, and was theatrically released in the United States on October 1. It made $374.6 million worldwide against its $75 million budget, finishing its theatrical run as the ninth-highest-grossing film of 2004. The film received mixed reviews from film critics. Advocacy groups criticized the film for its use of Italian-American stereotypes. It was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 77th Academy Awards.
== Plot ==
In the Southside Reef, a lonely Bluestreak cleaner wrasse named Oscar, who, in his childhood, dreamed to be a tongue-scrubber at the Whale Wash, like his late father Earl until his classmates cruelly made fun of him for it, fantasizes about being rich and famous, but owes money to his boss and the Whale Wash's owner, a pufferfish named Sykes. His best friend, an angelfish named Angie, offers him a pearl that was a gift from her grandmother to pawn and pay his debt. Meanwhile, Don Lino, the boss of a mob gang of sharks, orcas, sailfish, and octopuses, which Sykes works for, dislikes that his son Lenny is a vegetarian, and orders his eldest son, Frankie, to mentor Lenny.
One day, Oscar brings the money from the pearl to a seahorse race to meet Sykes, but hears that the race is rigged and bets it all on a seahorse named "Lucky Day". A lion fish gold digger named Lola sees this and flagrantly seduces Oscar. Sykes is annoyed that Oscar bet the money, but he hopes that Oscar might win. Lucky Day, which revealed that the race was rigged against him, eventually takes the lead, only to trip and lose short of the finish line. Sykes loses his temper and orders his two Jamaican jellyfish enforcers, Ernie and Bernie, to deal with Oscar. While the two shock a tied-up Oscar, Frankie sees them and urges Lenny to eat Oscar, but Lenny instead frees Oscar and tells him to escape. Furious and fed up with his brother's tenderness, Frankie charges at Oscar, but suddenly an anchor from above the surface falls on his neck, killing him. Devastated and blaming himself for his brother's demise, Lenny leaves. With no other witnesses, Oscar takes credit for killing Frankie and quickly rises in fame as the "Sharkslayer".
Sykes becomes Oscar's manager and forgives his debt, and Oscar moves to the "top of the reef" to live in luxury. At the same time, Lino has everyone search for Lenny and the "Sharkslayer". Oscar encounters Lenny who, aware of Oscar's lie, begs Oscar to let him stay at his place to avoid returning to his father. Angie soon finds out about Oscar's lie and threatens to tell everyone, but he and Lenny convince her to be quiet. The next day, Oscar and Lenny stage a battle involving Oscar "fighting" off Lenny, thus cementing Oscar's popularity and making the sharks believe that Lenny has been killed too, infuriating Lino. Lola kisses Oscar on camera, making Angie jealous. That night, as Lenny disguises himself for his new life as a dolphin, Oscar and Angie get into a heated argument, where she reveals that she had romantic feelings for Oscar even before he became the "Sharkslayer". A remorseful Oscar sadly reflects on his selfishness and dumps Lola, who beats him up in anger.
Oscar buys some gifts for Angie, only to discover that Lino has kidnapped her to stage a meeting, which Lola is also attending in revenge for being dumped. Lino threatens to eat Angie if Oscar does not surrender, but Lenny "eats" Angie to save her. He soon regurgitates her, and Lino realizes the "dolphin" is Lenny. Enraged, Lino chases Oscar through the reef. Oscar flees to the Whale Wash, accidentally trapping Lenny in the machinery before also trapping Lino. Everyone cheers for Oscar, but he finally confesses the truth behind Frankie's death while urging Lino to respect Lenny's lifestyle. Lino reconciles with Lenny and accepts him, and states that he and his gang bear the city no ill will. Oscar forsakes all the wealth he has acquired, becomes co-owner of the Whale Wash (which is now frequented by the gang members), and reconciles with and begins a romantic relationship with Angie.
== Production ==
The film was officially announced and began production in April 2002, under the title of Sharkslayer, with Vicky Jenson (Shrek) and Bibo Bergeron (The Road to El Dorado) directing from a screenplay by Michael J. Wilson (Ice Age), as well as Mark Swift and Damian Shannon. By September 2003, the film had been retitled Shark Tale, to make it sound less violent and more family friendly. Bill Damaschke, the producer of the film, explained the title change: "In the beginning, we set out to make a movie a little more noir, perhaps a little darker than where we've landed." Shark Tale is the first all computer-animated film produced at DreamWorks Animation's Glendale facility, which previously animated the studio's hand-drawn animated movies, as well as the first computer-animated film by DreamWorks Animation to not be produced by Pacific Data Images.
James Gandolfini was initially set to voice the kingpin shark, named Don Lino, but he dropped out, with Robert De Niro taking over the role.
The film was produced concurrently with Finding Nemo, another animated film set underwater, which was released a year and a half earlier. DreamWorks Animation's CEO, Jeffrey Katzenberg, defended the film, saying that "any similarities are mere coincidence. We've been open with the Pixar people, so we don't step on each other's toes."
== Release ==
Shark Tale was initially scheduled for release on November 5, 2004, but was later moved up to October 1. This shift was reportedly made to avoid competition with Pixar's The Incredibles, which was released on the same weekend. The film had its worldwide premiere on September 10, 2004, in Piazza San Marco in Venice, Italy. Screening as part of the Venice Film Festival, it marked the first time that Piazza San Marco was closed for a premiere of a major feature film. The film was projected on the largest inflatable screen in the world, measuring more than six stories tall and over 3,900 square feet (360 m2). It required 20,000 cubic feet (570 m3) of air to inflate and more than 50 tons of water for stabilization. The premiere was attended by 6,000 visitors, including Will Smith, Angelina Jolie, Robert De Niro, and Michael Imperioli. Jeffrey Katzenberg, the executive producer of the film, explained that they "wanted to find a unique way to introduce this movie to the world. We needed a big idea. … More than anything, we are in showbusiness. This is the show part."
=== Home media ===
Shark Tale was released on VHS and DVD on February 8, 2005. Physical copies contain behind-the-scenes featurettes, games and activities, blooper reels, an audition for the whale Gigi, the Car Wash music video featuring Aguilera and Elliott, and a short film Club Oscar. The film was released on Game Boy Advance Video on November 17, and on Blu-ray on February 5, 2019.
== Trivia ==
* According to Hans Zimmer, he told producer Jeffrey Katzenberg that he could not deal with any more epic movies, but wanted to do a fun animated movie instead, and so he got the chance to compose for this movie.
* When Don Lino is clearly seen for the first time (when he looks up from the aquarium), a mole can be seen near his right eye, a distinct facial feature of Robert De Niro.
* When Sykes is fired, he is thrown against the drawing of Rose that Jack drew in Titanic (1997).
* Some of the "fishified" products are: "Coral Cola" (Coca-Cola), "Gup" (GAP), "Fish King" (Burger King), "Old Wavy" (Old Navy), and "Newsreef" (Newsweek).
* In the racetrack sequence, there are more than 16,000 computer animated 3-D characters in the stands.
* When Crazy Joe retreats into his shell to watch his show, the theme song for The Benny Hill Show (1969) starts up.
* This was the first DreamWorks Animation movie that featured no humans.
* Oscar was voiced by Will Smith. His wife Jada Pinkett Smith voiced Gloria in DreamWorks Animation's Madagascar film franchise.
* Jack Angel were a deleted role of Bob the Great White Shark.
* Corey Burton performed a deleted role of Randall the Swordfish. Rodger Bumpass performed a deleted role of Fred the Swordfish.
* When Leonard "Lenny" Lino temporarily eats Angie and then regurgitates her, he also regurgitates a license plate, the same license plate number from Jaws (1975), which the tiger shark had consumed when found by Matt Hooper and Police Chief Martin Brody.
* During the staged fight scene between Oscar and Lenny, Oscar says, "You had me at hello." Angie, who is watching the fight on TV, immediately gives a look as if she thought that line was familiar. Renee Zellweger, who portrays the voice of Angie in this movie, said that famous line in Jerry Maguire (1996).
* Originally, Luca the octopus was going to die. DreamWorks Animation abandoned the idea because it was considered too dark and risky for a family movie. It was replaced with Frankie's death, because Frankie's death was more interesting.
* The second DreamWorks Animation movie to have the main antagonist redeem himself towards the end. The first being Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003).
=== References or Mentions in CHACE! Media ===
* SpongeBob Band Geeks Reanimated Collab (Short 2019): Oscar appears.
=== References from CHACE! Media ===
* Sesame Street: Get Up and Dance (Short 1997): When Celina asks if Oscar is on the other end of the line of her phone, he says, "No, it's Santa Claus. Of course it's me!"
== Gallery ==
Shark Tale/Gallery
Category:Shark Tale
Category:DreamWorks Animation
Category:2004
Category:2000s
Category:Animation
Category:Animated Films
Category:Comedy
Category:Films about Fish
Category:Films about Lying
Category:Films about Sharks
Category:Films set in the Atlantic Ocean
Category:Hans Zimmer
Category:Sea Adventure
Category:Crime Comedy
Category:Controversial Media
Category:September