Garfield's Fun Fest
Garfield's Fun Fest is a 2008 CGI film starring Garfield. It was produced by Paws, Inc. in cooperation with The Animation Picture Company and distributed by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. It was written by Garfield's creator Jim Davis as a sequel to Garfield Gets Real. The film was released on August 5, 2008. It was followed by a third film, Garfield's Pet Force, in 2009.
Garfield's Fun Fest | |
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![]() Cover art for the Garfield's Fun Fest DVD | |
Directed by | Mark A.Z. Dippé |
Produced by | Jim Davis John Davis |
Written by | Jim Davis |
Based on | Garfield by Jim Davis |
Starring | Frank Welker Gregg Berger Tim Conway Greg Eagles Wally Wingert Jason Marsden Jennifer Darling Neil Ross Stephen Stanton Fred Tatasciore Audrey Wasilewski |
Narrated by | Tim Conway |
Music by | Kenneth Burgomaster |
Edited by | Aaron Seelman |
Production company | |
Distributed by | 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment |
Release date |
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Running time | 80 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $3 million |
Plot
Garfield and his friends enter a talent contest, the Fun Fest, but as the audience was not entertained by his performance another cat (with bigger muscles and a Spanish accent) arrives to compete against him, Ramone.
He and Odie venture into a forest and climb a steep mountain in search of the legendary "Funny Water", which is supposed to make them more humorous. They gather some of the water and fly back to the studio using a hang glider, only to find that Ramone is dancing with his girlfriend Arlene. Just as Garfield is about to give up, Freddy Frog tells him to search within himself for his own humorous talent, so Garfield beats Ramone and wins the Fun Fest. Ramone is revealed to be a robot controlled by Nermal, as the latter also sought to win the contest's prize.
Cast
- Frank Welker - Garfield, Jeff, Leonard, Delivery Gnome, Prop Boy
- Tim Conway - Freddy Frog, Gate Guard, Momma Bear, Roger, Narrator
- Gregg Berger - Odie, Shecky
- Jennifer Darling - Bonita Stegman, Betty, Bonnie Bear
- Greg Eagles - Eli
- Jason Marsden - Nermal/Ramone
- Neil Ross - Walter "Wally" Stegman, Charles
- Stephen Stanton - Randy Rabbit, Stanislavsky
- Fred Tatasciore - Billy Bear, Junior Bear
- Audrey Wasilewski - Arlene, Momma Bear, Zelda
- Wally Wingert - Jon Arbuckle
Additional voices
- Cathy Cavadini
- Kaden Dippe
- Greg Finley
- Jeffery Todd Fischer
- David Michie
- Paige Nan Pollack
- Ruth Zalduando
Release
Garfield's Fun Fest was released on DVD on August 5, 2008, by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.[1]
Reception
Box office
The film opened in nine countries. Its most profitable market was Brazil, where the film generated $729,560 in revenue and opened at sixth place with $219,801.[2] The film had a 2013 re-release in Portugal, and opened to $9,048, finishing eighth at the box office. The film dropped to 14th and 19th in its second and third weekends and finished with $21,705.[3]
Critical response
Paul Mavis of DVD Talk said in his review: "Maybe the problem is that Garfield creator Jim Davis, who wrote this movie, can't translate his humor into an 80 minute film. What's funny in a three-panel strip becomes drawn out and forced in a feature-length film. The obvious video-game structuring of the scenes is to be expected, I guess, in these days of rampant, voracious synergy, but that doesn't make the film any more palatable. Maybe somebody else should be brought in to write these straight-to-DVD toons? It doesn't help, either, that the voice work here is somewhat muted. Legendary Frank Welker as Garfield doesn't seem all that inspired this time around (true, he's working with a character who's supposed to be ticked off and monotone, but Welker doesn't seem to find any fun here). And unfortunately, Tim Conway basically phones in his turn as Freddy Frog (even that character's name shows Davis' tired approach to the material - Freddy? Really? That's the funniest or most memorable name you could come up with?). I'm a fan of Conway's, but there's very little here to recommend in his rote performance."[4]
Video game
A Nintendo DS game that is based on the film was released on July 29, 2008.[5] It was developed by Black Lantern Studios and published by DSI Games in North America and Zoo Digital Publishing in Europe.
Sequel
Following the success of Fun Fest, a sequel to the film, titled Garfield's Pet Force, was released on June 16, 2009. It is the final instalment in a trilogy of computer animation Garfield films, including Fun Fest and Garfield Gets Real.[6]
References
- Garfield's Fun Fest. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (DVD). Century City: Walt Disney Direct-to-Consumer & International. November 24, 2019. ASIN B0017XOFCS. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
- "Garfield's Fun Fest". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
- "Garfield's Fun Fest 2013 Re-release". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
- Mavis, Paul (August 25, 2008). "Garfield's Fun Fest". DVD Talk. United States: Internet Brands. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
- http://ds.gamespy.com/nintendo-ds/garfields-fun-fest/
- "Alcon Plans A Series of Fully-CG 'Garfield' Features". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved May 26, 2016.