Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/426320
n o v e m b e r . d e c e m b e r 2 0 1 4 c g w 4 1 t's been the year of the superhero yet again: some newcomers and some returning to the big screen. X-Men. The Amazing Spider-Man. Guardians of the Galaxy. Captain America. Moviegoers in 2014 were also treated to a re-imagining of popular properties from the past – some from the near past, some from the distant past. The infamous bloodsuck- er in Dracula Untold. Fairy- tale characters from Into the Woods. The Sleeping Beauty princess and villain in Malefi - cent. The creature in Godzilla. The reptiles in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And then there were the recurring sequels. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb. Transformers: Age of Extinction. 300: Rise of an Empire. That, in essence, sums up the visual eff ects fi lms released in 2014. Make no mistake, though, the sequels and return of popular characters and franchises made for great en- tertainment. The eff ects were bigger and better than ever, as were the thrills. As far as the animation genre is concerned, there were a few returning franchise-based movies, including Rio 2, How to Train Your Dragon 2, Penguins of Madagascar, and Planes: Fire & Rescue. And all received a warm welcome back at the box offi ce, even Mr. Peabody & Sherman, which morphed from its decades-old 2D origins to a fl ashy 3D style. The year also saw the introduction of many new animated feature properties. The Lego Movie. Big Hero 6. The Nut Job. The Book of Life. And, Laika continued to improve on its stop-motion methods for an exciting new release, The Boxtrolls. It's been a thrilling and enter- taining year at the theater. The holiday releases are nearly upon us, the last entries that will be eligible to compete for the gold statues that soon will be hand- ed out to the best of the best. Until then, enjoy your ticket here to a recap of some of the fi lms that may be on that list. Karen Moltenbrey is the chief editor of CGW. Red Carpet Ready I WHICH VFX AND ANIMATED FEATURE FILMS WILL EARN NOMINATIONS IN THE TOP AWARDS COMPETITIONS? BY KAREN MOLTENBREY