"Will Pixar Regreat Making 'Up?'"

Hell, no. Not if they know what's good for them.

I'm getting real tired of reading these "concern troll" articles on the future success or failure of Pixar's Up, which always revolves around how much merchandise can be shoved down our throats.

It's interesting that Cars is now seen as the great success story, thanks to the enormous profits from all the tie-in merchandise. At the time, it was considered a near-failure at the box office, despite earning a rediculous amount of money. This is the nature of the movie business, and the nature of global capitalism at the turn of the 21st Century. Consume consume consume, more more more.

Frankly, I don't give a damn if young boys don't buy the stupid toys. Filmmakers should never wrap their work around the endless, mindless appetites of shareholders, and the whims of the idol "Merchandizing, Merchandizing!"

Pixar built their empire on taking creative risks and blazing new trails. Steve Jobs lost money hand over fist for a decade until Toy Story. Now everybody and their grandfather wants to be them. The minute they start hedging their bets, second-guessing themselves because the parent conglomerate wants double-digit growth for the next quarter, and they want to sucker the masses on mountains of junk, they're finished.

Don't listen to the concern trolls. You're artists, not door-to-door salespeople. Never forget that.