I Know That Voice

I've always said that if my plan to become a writer ever failed, I had a plan b: voice acting. And I'm a fan girl who pays attention to the credits to know the names of my favorites--Jim Cummings, Grey DeLisle, Clancy Brown--and I'm happy to say they are all interviewed for this film. Voice actor John DiMaggio takes us behind the scenes of his life interspersed with a history lesson about voice acting. Getting to go behind the scenes with DiMaggio for the final "Penguins of Madagascar" episode was fun and fascinating, as well as his appearance at San Diego's Comic Con. However, I felt the film could have interviewed more actors than they did (Rob Paulsen, for example) rather than spending most of its time devoted to the filmmaker's world. Overall, a great film for fans of the art of voice acting.

One thing I really enjoyed about this show is the nostalgia. This show will make you think about the shows you watched when you were a child, doesn't matter what age. It is fascinating to see what these voice actors do and see what shows and video games they work on. It is very interesting.

When it showed the voice actors, it would say a different show every time it shows the voice actor. So it is interesting to see what else they work on.

I do wish this documentary had even sections though. The movie will spend maybe 10 minutes talking about one thing and then maybe 5 minutes talking about another. It would have been better if they were all even. It would have made the movie a bit longer, but I see nothing wrong with that. Another thing is that they really never showed any clips whenever they talked about their work. So sometimes I would have to look up a clip to get a better understanding of what they were talking about.

Despite those complaints, this is a fun documentary that shows the voices of our beloved cartoons. It isn't anything that would have been Academy Award worthy, but I Know That Voice is a great documentary that people will enjoy watching.

This documentary is all about the "secret world" of voice actors. And inside scoop if you will. They don't just make voices, they create characters. In some way, they're better than physical actors.

This flick gathers the best of the best in the business. Billy West, Mark Hamill, Seth Green, Phil LaMarr, Nolan North, Hank Azaria, June Foray, Tara Strong, Jim Cummings, Nancy Cartwright, James Arnold Taylor, Daran Norris, Rachel McFarlene, Bob Bergen, these are just a few names from the industry.

This film really does justice to the real heroes behind animation. Watching this will make you appreciate their job more as an art. I watch it every now and then just to remind me how great this is.

10/10

John DiMaggio and his friends tell the story of voice acting, and nobody tells a story better than people who do funny voices. It's raucous, wild, silly, and honest. About 45 minutes in you've heard about the beginning of voice acting in cartoons and all the principals have told you how they got into the business and what it means to them. It's a complete experience, a great ride, and you're well and truly satiated. And a little exhausted by all the high-energy emoting.

But there' was still another 45 minutes to go. What, I asked, could the next 45 minutes possibly be about?

Well, actually, it's about the business of cartoon voice-overs: how you get work, what it's like to need work and the insecurity of the business, what a recording session is like, what their agents do for them, how they work with directors, and the different kinds of work that they do. The part about doing voice-overs for video games was a scream. But it was all good.

Taken all in a piece, it's too much. So here's my suggestion; especially doable if you see this on Netflix. At 45 minutes, stop the movie; you've seen Part 1. Go do something else. The next day, see the rest of the movie -- Part 2. You'll enjoy the two halves immensely -- much better than the whole. That's what I did, and I whole-heartedly recommend the movie, when watched this way.

I have always been a lover of animation and voices. I remember being in the playground and practicing voices from shows. Then one day I realised that somebody actually has to do that as a job. They don't just generate voices from a computer or record random stuff. Someone has to perform a character to bring that character and show to life. That was when I began my fascination with voice actors. This documentary was so lovely to watch. It was wonderful to hear the people behind so many of my childhood heroes, (and villains), talk about their careers and experiences. The film covered some great topics from Daddy of all VO Mel Blanc to how video games are becoming the next big thing in Voice acting. It was so nice to hear how genuine and humble these incredibly talented people are. I suppose I would have liked to have seen more from certain actors, but you can only do so much in one documentary. It would be incredible if this was picked up and turned into a show, similar to Voice Actor Rob Paulson's podcast "Talkin' Toons" which is also excellent. A fantastic watch for anyone interested not only in Voice acting but also acting in general and filmmaking.