movies/tv Animation vs. Live Action

[Blue Moon 6,341]

I was watching Batman: Under the Red Hood (great movie by the way. Highly recommend it) and I was starting to wonder if animation was better than life action. The movie had a lot of things and showed a lot of emotion that would be hard to do with life action. But life action has a more familiar visual, which may make some people more comfortable and care more for the characters.

 

Basically, I'm asking what you guys think is better. Animation or Life action. Vote above and post reasons below. What can one do that the other cannot?

 

I personally like animation. I get more attached to cartoons and have always loved the different art styles you can have in animation.

Edited April 15, 2013 by Gary MF Oak
It's "live" action. Fixed title, but I don't want to edit the post. Too intrusive for my liking.

[Sir.Flutter Hooves 2,953]

I was watching Batman: Under the Red Hood (great movie by the way. Highly recommend it) and I was starting to wonder if animation was better than life action. The movie had a lot of things and showed a lot of emotion that would be hard to do with life action. But life action has a more familiar visual, which may make some people more comfortable and care more for the characters.

 

Basically, I'm asking what you guys think is better. Animation or Life action. Vote above and post reasons below. What can one do that the other cannot?

 

I personally like animation. I get more attached to cartoons and have always loved the different art styles you can have in animation.

Really depends on the subject matter. If the show they're making is based off a cartoon, let it stay a cartoon (Smurfs, I'm looking at you!)

 

But, if it is a life action show to begin with, leave it a life action show! I would hate for the Sopranos to be an animated movie.

 

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[Doc Ginger 86]

I believe it depends on the mood your trying to set and what points your trying to make. Most anime's would just be weak B movies if they were done live action styled, BUT the other hand is true of animation as well.. 

 

For example there is no animation style that exists today that could capture the essence or feelings and power of a movie such as Shindler's list or the Epic Struggle that was Black Hawk Down. 

[Scootalove 10,689]

I am more of a animation kind of fan.

 

I don't really care for live action because, in some terms it ruins shows. Like, it ruined Scooby Doo and Ben 10 after they kept putting out more of it even after the originals ended. I prefer animation over live action, as long as a show isn't live action.

[Rainbow Skywalker 642]

Animation has an endless stream of possibilities that cannot be restricted by any such laws of our simple physical dimension.  Animation can stretch across the fabrics of space and time, and even many popular "live action" movies are made with special effect animating.

Animating represents infinity, which is a pretty neat concept in itself.  Animation also takes much more work and effort as live action shots only require the movement of a body part or a stunt double to do something crazy, while there are an incredible amount of artists focused on drawing each individual frame, as well as matching audio with visual elements to blend together a spectacular show of emotion and reality.

Some animations have given the style a bad name, or bad taste temporarily, but in my opinion, animation is just that much cooler.

[Evilshy 5,090]

It really depends.

Some things are portrayed much better with live action, such as drama, romance, that sort of thing. The expressions and body language that only comes from real actors is what makes the movie/show really moving. Amazing artists can pull it off in animation, though. For example, No-face in Spirited Away. His face is no more than a few simple shapes, but he shows an astounding amount of emotion, all without talking. Because Miyazaki is just awesome like that.

 

Almost anything else can work either way. Comedy is usually completely dialogue or situation based, so all you need is a good writer and good VAs. Animation helps if it's surreal humor, but live action surreal humor can be great as well (see: Monty Python). Action can go both ways as well, and can even be better animated, because you don't have to suspend disbelief as much as when it's live action. Things that have objects and characters with immense amounts of flashy power (see: a lot of shonen anime) almost always works better animated. Live action guy with a sword that shoots giant lasers that can destroys a city? Lame. Animated guy who can do the same thing? Badass. It's why whenever a comic/cartoon/manga/anime with huge power scales is made into a live action movie/series, the super crazy powerful stuff is always toned down, or left out entirely (see: every live action movie made from a comic or manga ever).

[Celtore 2,770]

A difficult question indeed... My answer: Why not both?
 

 
There are certain films like Spirited Away that simply couldn't be done nearly as well in live action. At the same time, there are certain live action films that I love that wouldn't be the same animated, such as the Princess Bride. Both have their place and different techniques and styling for different genres and it truly is a difficult choice to determine which is better.
 
That's just my 21 cents, anyway.

Edited April 15, 2013 by Celtore

[GrooveBroove 680]

I've always been a bigger fan of animation.

Now i'm talking 2D animation here and not 3D (Though that's a conversation for another time)

There's just so much you can do with. Especially when it comes to making whole new worlds for people to experience.

Obviously Live Action has it's place and it's positives as well. But I always have to give the edge to animation.

[MyLittlePonyTales 273]

I really like animation a lot better. When I watch live action movies, I frequently scrutinize the special effects. Many live action movies use CGI for stunts or use green screens or just so much other fake stuff. With animation, everything is already fake, so everything matches up. I can't tell you how many movies I've watched where I'm watching and then go-yep, they used a green screen for this scene. Or movies that like, mix aliens and humans, and the aliens look totally cartoon-ish and you can tell it's not a person in a costume, but a computer generated figure. Animation just works better, because EVERYTHING is animated, not bit and pieces, there's no green screening, and they aren't trying to convince you that things in the cartoon could actually happen in real life. It doesn't have to be realistic, because it's already established that everything is fake.

[Paleopony 703]

I think it depends on what movie or show you're talking about. For example, I can't imagine Jurassic Park being so popular if it was drawn by hand. Making lifelike dinosaurs was the whole point of that movie. Think of Bambi as a live action film with real animals. It probably would have been forgotten. It's the fact that everything was drawn and painted by hand that makes that film a classic.