Our final countdown. Both of these lists were quite easy to put together and ultimately just came down to finding what I felt was the right order for the characters.
Top 5 Henchmen:
5) Diablo (Sleeping Beauty)
4) Jasper and Horace (101 Dalmatians)
3) Lucifur (Cinderella)
2) Anastasia and Drizella (Cinderella)
1) Mr. Smee (Peter Pan)
Top 5 Villains:
5) Captain Hook (Peter Pan)
4) Cruella De Vil (101 Dalmatians)
3) Lady Tremaine (Cinderella)
2) Mad Madame Mim (Sword in the Stone)
1) Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty)
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Top 5 Heroes and Top 5 Heroines 1950 - 1960's
Today will cover the final two countdowns for the 1950 to 1960's period of the Disney canon. Both of these lists were rather interesting to try putting together, especially in comparison to the 1990's film period due to the number of available characters to pick from.
Top 5 Heroines:
5) Alice (Alice in Wonderland)
4) Perdita (101 Dalmatians)
3) Lady (Lady and the Tramp)
2) Wendy (Peter Pan)
1) Cinderella (Cinderella)
Top 5 Heroes:
5) Tramp (Lady and the Tramp)
4) Pongo (101 Dalmatians)
3) Peter Pan (Peter Pan)
2) Prince Phillip (Sleeping Beauty)
1) Merlin (Sword in the Stone)
Top 5 Heroines:
5) Alice (Alice in Wonderland)
4) Perdita (101 Dalmatians)
3) Lady (Lady and the Tramp)
2) Wendy (Peter Pan)
1) Cinderella (Cinderella)
Top 5 Heroes:
5) Tramp (Lady and the Tramp)
4) Pongo (101 Dalmatians)
3) Peter Pan (Peter Pan)
2) Prince Phillip (Sleeping Beauty)
1) Merlin (Sword in the Stone)
Friday, June 29, 2012
Top 5 Songs and Top 5 Sidekicks 1950 - 1960's
Last post for the day. Today we will start the first of three posts to cover the countdowns during the 1950's to the mid 1960's period of the Disney canon. The song list was a bit harder to do, while the Sidekicks was much more easily done it felt like. So here are the lists.
Top 5 Sidekicks:
5) Tinkerbell (Peter Pan)
4) Jaq and Gus (Cinderella)
3) Jock and Trusty (Lady and the Tramp)
2) Flora, Fauna and Merryweather (Sleeping Beauty)
1) Archimedes (Sword in the Stone)
Top 5 Songs:
5) You Can Fly! You Can Fly! You Can Fly! (Peter Pan)
4) Unbirthday Song (Alice in Wonderland)
3) Once Upon A Dream (Sleeping Beauty)
2) I Wanna Be Like You (Jungle Book)
1) A Dream Is A Wish (Cinderella)
Top 5 Sidekicks:
5) Tinkerbell (Peter Pan)
4) Jaq and Gus (Cinderella)
3) Jock and Trusty (Lady and the Tramp)
2) Flora, Fauna and Merryweather (Sleeping Beauty)
1) Archimedes (Sword in the Stone)
Top 5 Songs:
5) You Can Fly! You Can Fly! You Can Fly! (Peter Pan)
4) Unbirthday Song (Alice in Wonderland)
3) Once Upon A Dream (Sleeping Beauty)
2) I Wanna Be Like You (Jungle Book)
1) A Dream Is A Wish (Cinderella)
Cinderella
Cinderella is the first film of Disney's second successful age in animation, and the last film of this age that I will be reviewing. Growing up, this was one of the films that I had much easier access to and has left a rather nostalgic imprint on me. With that said, it has been quite some time since I last saw this film so it made for an enjoyable experience getting to watch it again.
Cinderella is one of those films where the plot is so simple and rather short that it makes it hard to really flesh things out a bit. Disney decided to pad out the runtime a bit more by giving us quite an excess of scenes revolving around Cinderella's animal friends as they gather breakfast and do their best to avoid Lucifur, the fat and rather pompous cat of the household. While their antics with Lucifur can be entertaining, it would have been nice to perhaps see more of their relationship with Cinderella instead. To also add to the runtime of the film, we get a couple of scenes with the Duke and the King which are also rather comical and help further the plot a bit more than the mice's scenes do. Despite all of this, the film does seem to go at it's own, slower pace and doesn't try to rush through things at all. One small thing that I actually noticed this time around is that the film takes place largely over the course of only one day, and the following morning, and for some reason I had never really noticed this.
The animation in Cinderella certainly does mark a change in the Disney canon. On the one hand, it is a step up from the War Years shorts, yet it's not quite on the same level as films from later on in the decade such as Sleeping Beauty. The backgrounds are rather simplistic, though not to the same degree as Charlie Brown shorts, yet are still rather nice to look at. The scenes at the ball when Cinderella and the Prince are dancing are among the most visually interesting parts, and the Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo song is also visually fun to watch all of the transformations occurring.
The songs come to us in two different manners. The Work Song, sung by the mice is rather infectious and quite bouncy, as if the previously mentioned Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo. Both of the songs are quite fun and certainly stand out. The other way the songs are presented to us is almost in a much more solemn manner in the form of Sing Sweet Nightengale, and A Dream Is A Wish. These two songs, and the song So This Is Love, are much slower yet are still fully enjoyable to listen to both in the film and on their own.
As for the characters, all of them are rather fun to watch even if the mice do tend to hog the spotlight a bit. Lady Tremaine, or the Evil Stepmother as she's sometimes better known as, is one of Disney's better villains and has a really eerie realness to her. You could see this woman actually existing in our world and is very dangerous in how she uses emotional manipulation to get things done instead of relying on physical force or magical means. Cinderella is quite enjoyable and has a very innocent quality to her without making her younger as a result of it. She does have her one moment where she actually does mock the Stepsisters musical ability and this keeps her from being Too Nice. The mice and Lucifur are quite fun, and I especially enjoy the latter as he's shown to be just as intelligent as his mistress, using tricks to get Bruno in trouble and is able to trap Gus twice with a tea cup while fending off the others attempts to help save the poor mouse.
I think the only thing that really hampers this film, for me personally, is spending a bit too much time with the mice and not quite enough with our main hero and her relationship with them, or perhaps more scenes of Cinderella with the Stepsisters and Stepmother.
4 1/2 /5
Cinderella is one of those films where the plot is so simple and rather short that it makes it hard to really flesh things out a bit. Disney decided to pad out the runtime a bit more by giving us quite an excess of scenes revolving around Cinderella's animal friends as they gather breakfast and do their best to avoid Lucifur, the fat and rather pompous cat of the household. While their antics with Lucifur can be entertaining, it would have been nice to perhaps see more of their relationship with Cinderella instead. To also add to the runtime of the film, we get a couple of scenes with the Duke and the King which are also rather comical and help further the plot a bit more than the mice's scenes do. Despite all of this, the film does seem to go at it's own, slower pace and doesn't try to rush through things at all. One small thing that I actually noticed this time around is that the film takes place largely over the course of only one day, and the following morning, and for some reason I had never really noticed this.
The animation in Cinderella certainly does mark a change in the Disney canon. On the one hand, it is a step up from the War Years shorts, yet it's not quite on the same level as films from later on in the decade such as Sleeping Beauty. The backgrounds are rather simplistic, though not to the same degree as Charlie Brown shorts, yet are still rather nice to look at. The scenes at the ball when Cinderella and the Prince are dancing are among the most visually interesting parts, and the Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo song is also visually fun to watch all of the transformations occurring.
The songs come to us in two different manners. The Work Song, sung by the mice is rather infectious and quite bouncy, as if the previously mentioned Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo. Both of the songs are quite fun and certainly stand out. The other way the songs are presented to us is almost in a much more solemn manner in the form of Sing Sweet Nightengale, and A Dream Is A Wish. These two songs, and the song So This Is Love, are much slower yet are still fully enjoyable to listen to both in the film and on their own.
As for the characters, all of them are rather fun to watch even if the mice do tend to hog the spotlight a bit. Lady Tremaine, or the Evil Stepmother as she's sometimes better known as, is one of Disney's better villains and has a really eerie realness to her. You could see this woman actually existing in our world and is very dangerous in how she uses emotional manipulation to get things done instead of relying on physical force or magical means. Cinderella is quite enjoyable and has a very innocent quality to her without making her younger as a result of it. She does have her one moment where she actually does mock the Stepsisters musical ability and this keeps her from being Too Nice. The mice and Lucifur are quite fun, and I especially enjoy the latter as he's shown to be just as intelligent as his mistress, using tricks to get Bruno in trouble and is able to trap Gus twice with a tea cup while fending off the others attempts to help save the poor mouse.
I think the only thing that really hampers this film, for me personally, is spending a bit too much time with the mice and not quite enough with our main hero and her relationship with them, or perhaps more scenes of Cinderella with the Stepsisters and Stepmother.
4 1/2 /5
Alice in Wonderland (Animated)
Total acid-trip. That is generally what most audiences take away from this film, that they had just watched something that can only be described as an acid-trip. Who can blame them? Alice in Wonderland is full of crazy characters and events that never really relent until the film finally ends.
The one main thing that makes Alice in Wonderland a bit of an iffy film is the lack of coherent plot. Our main character simply wanders along from each new character and place to the next with little rhyme or reason outside of chasing the White Rabbit. Of course, given what we learn at the end of the film, this seems perfectly natural as well since quite often our dreams don't make a lot of sense. It's a minor flaw that some people are able to look past, while it can hamper other peoples enjoyment. I tend to be more of the former since I'm enjoying what's going on so much that it doesn't slow things down for me. The largest flaw for the plot is during the Tulgey Woods scene in which all of the zany characters don't speak and Alice only then realizes she needs to find her way home. The entire scene drags on a little bit and it would have been nicer if Alice had been chasing the White Rabbit to find out how to get home in the first place.
One thing that really sets Alice in Wonderland apart is the wide variety of colourful and quirky characters that we get to meet. While Alice herself can be a bit more plain compared to the other characters, she still interacts really well with everyone in Wonderland which keeps her from being boring. This film boasts a fair number of characters and they have such a wide range of personalities from the timid King of Hearts, the volatile Queen of Hearts, the stressed out White Rabbit, to the completely insane Mad Hatter and March Hare, the latter two performing one of the most memorable songs from the film.
While the Unbirthday Song is the most memorable, all of the other songs still hold up really well on their own. A fair number of them also blend well with spoken dialogue which can be rather hard to do in musicals. The songs are all helped with the visual eye candy that Alice in Wonderland provides, all of the characters are vibrant and give the film a very nice burst of colour. The result is some very entertaining animation as a whole.
While Alice in Wonderland may have some plot troubles, it still holds up as a really enjoyable film even if it may not be everyone's cup of tea.
4/5
The one main thing that makes Alice in Wonderland a bit of an iffy film is the lack of coherent plot. Our main character simply wanders along from each new character and place to the next with little rhyme or reason outside of chasing the White Rabbit. Of course, given what we learn at the end of the film, this seems perfectly natural as well since quite often our dreams don't make a lot of sense. It's a minor flaw that some people are able to look past, while it can hamper other peoples enjoyment. I tend to be more of the former since I'm enjoying what's going on so much that it doesn't slow things down for me. The largest flaw for the plot is during the Tulgey Woods scene in which all of the zany characters don't speak and Alice only then realizes she needs to find her way home. The entire scene drags on a little bit and it would have been nicer if Alice had been chasing the White Rabbit to find out how to get home in the first place.
One thing that really sets Alice in Wonderland apart is the wide variety of colourful and quirky characters that we get to meet. While Alice herself can be a bit more plain compared to the other characters, she still interacts really well with everyone in Wonderland which keeps her from being boring. This film boasts a fair number of characters and they have such a wide range of personalities from the timid King of Hearts, the volatile Queen of Hearts, the stressed out White Rabbit, to the completely insane Mad Hatter and March Hare, the latter two performing one of the most memorable songs from the film.
While the Unbirthday Song is the most memorable, all of the other songs still hold up really well on their own. A fair number of them also blend well with spoken dialogue which can be rather hard to do in musicals. The songs are all helped with the visual eye candy that Alice in Wonderland provides, all of the characters are vibrant and give the film a very nice burst of colour. The result is some very entertaining animation as a whole.
While Alice in Wonderland may have some plot troubles, it still holds up as a really enjoyable film even if it may not be everyone's cup of tea.
4/5
Monday, June 25, 2012
Peter Pan
The 1950's era was certainly one where I was unable to really have access to the films. Yet again we find a film where I only had very rare glimpses of it, very rarely getting to see the full film and more often than not would see clips through other sources.
Peter Pan is perhaps one of the most magical films out of this era, and the plot is certainly what helps with this feeling. While Peter Pan does have a very similar feeling to Alice in Wonderland in terms of meeting the worlds inhabitants through one encounter after another, Peter Pan links it all together in a much more cohesive way with a story about revenge. This gives the film a larger sense of plot and makes it feel less episodic than Alice does which is a perk. The plot itself is fairly simple, Captain Hook wants revenge on Peter Pan, while our hero shows Wendy, John, and Michael around Neverland.
Neverland is perhaps one of the most interesting places we get to explore, it provides numerous locations and inhabitants for us to meet and each area feels unique enough to stand out, yet none of it really feels out of place. All of the animation is quite well done, and during the 1950's period it felt as if the animation only got better as time went on.
In terms of characters we do get a slightly mixed bag. Disney really went for a much more comical villain with Captain Hook, who most likely paved the way for Mad Madame Mim, and is one of the most enjoyable villains we get out of the canon. Our four main heroes are a lot of fun to watch as they embark upon their adventures in Neverland, and while Peter is flawed this is quite normal given how he has never grown up so it would be quite odd to expect him to act more like the heroes of other films, or in more adult manners. We do get a couple sour points where a lot of the female characters seem to be played a bit too much in the jealousy department, while we also get some offensive characters out of the Indian camp. For the latter, while it may not be PC today, we do need to keep in mind this film was made during a much different time and with a different mindset. While it does not excuse things, it's just easier to keep a more open mind about this as you go into the film itself.
As far as music goes, the most famous of the songs is "You Can Fly, You Can Fly, You Can Fly!" and is one of the more memorable songs. With that said, the rest of the songs are quite enjoyable and are fairly bouncy for the most part. The only song that is rather iffy is, of course, the song sung at the Indian camp for obvious reasons.
4/5
Peter Pan is perhaps one of the most magical films out of this era, and the plot is certainly what helps with this feeling. While Peter Pan does have a very similar feeling to Alice in Wonderland in terms of meeting the worlds inhabitants through one encounter after another, Peter Pan links it all together in a much more cohesive way with a story about revenge. This gives the film a larger sense of plot and makes it feel less episodic than Alice does which is a perk. The plot itself is fairly simple, Captain Hook wants revenge on Peter Pan, while our hero shows Wendy, John, and Michael around Neverland.
Neverland is perhaps one of the most interesting places we get to explore, it provides numerous locations and inhabitants for us to meet and each area feels unique enough to stand out, yet none of it really feels out of place. All of the animation is quite well done, and during the 1950's period it felt as if the animation only got better as time went on.
In terms of characters we do get a slightly mixed bag. Disney really went for a much more comical villain with Captain Hook, who most likely paved the way for Mad Madame Mim, and is one of the most enjoyable villains we get out of the canon. Our four main heroes are a lot of fun to watch as they embark upon their adventures in Neverland, and while Peter is flawed this is quite normal given how he has never grown up so it would be quite odd to expect him to act more like the heroes of other films, or in more adult manners. We do get a couple sour points where a lot of the female characters seem to be played a bit too much in the jealousy department, while we also get some offensive characters out of the Indian camp. For the latter, while it may not be PC today, we do need to keep in mind this film was made during a much different time and with a different mindset. While it does not excuse things, it's just easier to keep a more open mind about this as you go into the film itself.
As far as music goes, the most famous of the songs is "You Can Fly, You Can Fly, You Can Fly!" and is one of the more memorable songs. With that said, the rest of the songs are quite enjoyable and are fairly bouncy for the most part. The only song that is rather iffy is, of course, the song sung at the Indian camp for obvious reasons.
4/5
Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping MacGuffin, er, Beauty.....is one of two Disney films in which I was fortunate enough to have taped off of the t.v back when Disney was cool and would do big specials for their canon films complete with extra cartoon shorts and the like. For the longest time, this vhs was the only way for me to watch Sleeping Beauty and now I am able to watch it quite easily on my dvd copy. Though I do still have that original vhs, after all it does have Fieval Goes West on it too!
To get the huge plus out of the way, the animation here is at Disney's peak for the 1950's era if not at it's best until the early 90's films. All around this film is beautiful to look at, looking like a intricate tapestry. The characters do pop out ever so slightly but not distractingly so, and all of them are so well animated that it doesn't hurt the film very much, if at all. The opening scene is one of parts that I remember best as a kid, watching all of the interesting knights in armor riding about on their horses, as well as the visual scenes that accompany each of the three fairies gifts to Aurora.
Oh the three fairies. How they do seem to carry the film, if not overshadow the main leads. The character department is where Sleeping Beauty really seems to stumble a bit. On one hand we get some really great and enjoyable characters out of the three fairies as they try to survive without magic and guide our main leads to their happily ever after. On the more villainous side, we get Maleficent who is one of Disney's most memorable villains and is a personal favourite especially as she takes on her dragon form at the finale after throwing everything she has at Prince Phillip. Some people have stated their dislike for our prince, and yet out of Disney's original three he is given the most to actually do. Instead of simply disappearing after singing with Aurora in the woods, he sticks around to have a few more scenes with the other characters, escapes from the dungeon with a lot of help and finally slays Maleficent before awakening Aurora. Quite a bit more than our previous two Prince Charming's. Our leading lady however is where things really stumble. Aurora is not much more than a macguffin and doesn't really do a whole lot in her film, and yet after having a good cry and a nap is handed everything she could possibly want. Despite having an Ariel-type happy ending, she was at least more tolerable than our mermaid heroine.
Surprisingly, for a Princess film, Sleeping Beauty doesn't really have a lot to offer in the music department. "Once Upon A Dream" is the one big song that really stands out in peoples minds, while "I Wonder" does have it's own good qualities but lacks that extra bit to really make it stand out more. Aside from these two songs, we have our opening song which is fun, but more so visually than lyrically.
Ultimately, Sleeping Beauty is really pretty to look at but the ever so helpful fairies do drag things down a bit as they overshadow our main leads.
4/5
To get the huge plus out of the way, the animation here is at Disney's peak for the 1950's era if not at it's best until the early 90's films. All around this film is beautiful to look at, looking like a intricate tapestry. The characters do pop out ever so slightly but not distractingly so, and all of them are so well animated that it doesn't hurt the film very much, if at all. The opening scene is one of parts that I remember best as a kid, watching all of the interesting knights in armor riding about on their horses, as well as the visual scenes that accompany each of the three fairies gifts to Aurora.
Oh the three fairies. How they do seem to carry the film, if not overshadow the main leads. The character department is where Sleeping Beauty really seems to stumble a bit. On one hand we get some really great and enjoyable characters out of the three fairies as they try to survive without magic and guide our main leads to their happily ever after. On the more villainous side, we get Maleficent who is one of Disney's most memorable villains and is a personal favourite especially as she takes on her dragon form at the finale after throwing everything she has at Prince Phillip. Some people have stated their dislike for our prince, and yet out of Disney's original three he is given the most to actually do. Instead of simply disappearing after singing with Aurora in the woods, he sticks around to have a few more scenes with the other characters, escapes from the dungeon with a lot of help and finally slays Maleficent before awakening Aurora. Quite a bit more than our previous two Prince Charming's. Our leading lady however is where things really stumble. Aurora is not much more than a macguffin and doesn't really do a whole lot in her film, and yet after having a good cry and a nap is handed everything she could possibly want. Despite having an Ariel-type happy ending, she was at least more tolerable than our mermaid heroine.
Surprisingly, for a Princess film, Sleeping Beauty doesn't really have a lot to offer in the music department. "Once Upon A Dream" is the one big song that really stands out in peoples minds, while "I Wonder" does have it's own good qualities but lacks that extra bit to really make it stand out more. Aside from these two songs, we have our opening song which is fun, but more so visually than lyrically.
Ultimately, Sleeping Beauty is really pretty to look at but the ever so helpful fairies do drag things down a bit as they overshadow our main leads.
4/5
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Top 5 Heroines and Top 5 Heroes 1989-1999
Ok, our last countdown for the 1989-1999 period. Both of these lists can actually be rounded out to the Top 10's technically, but since that's just listing the 10 males and females from each film... I see little point really. Anyway, let's get on with the lists!
Top 5 Heroines:
5) Jane (Tarzan)
4) Belle (Beauty and the Beast)
3) Meg (Hercules)
2) Esemeralda (Hunchback of Notre Dame)
1) Mulan (Mulan)
Top 5 Heroes:
5) Shang (Mulan)
4) Phoebus (Hunchback of Notre Dame)
3) Hercules (Hercules)
2) Aladdin (Aladdin)
1) Beast (Beauty and the Beast)
Top 5 Heroines:
5) Jane (Tarzan)
4) Belle (Beauty and the Beast)
3) Meg (Hercules)
2) Esemeralda (Hunchback of Notre Dame)
1) Mulan (Mulan)
Top 5 Heroes:
5) Shang (Mulan)
4) Phoebus (Hunchback of Notre Dame)
3) Hercules (Hercules)
2) Aladdin (Aladdin)
1) Beast (Beauty and the Beast)
Lady and the Tramp
Much like 101 Dalmatians, Lady and the Tramp was one of those 'rare' and elusive films from the Disney canon while I was growing up. Having had little exposure to it in the past, I don't really feel the same nostalgic connection with it as I do other films.
Lady and the Tramp is almost an oddity in the canon. Sure it has talking dogs, and a few good songs, but it has a certain.... sophistication to it in comparison to other talking animal films, especially ones made in the last few years, and almost comes across as a much more mature entry into the canon. This more mature feel to the film, and the older American setting really make this film stand out in a good way. The story itself is fairly straightforward as our hero, Lady, interacts with her world and experiences changes that come with a baby while also exploring how other dogs live. Things have a very laid back pace to it, there isn't a constant need for action or characters bursting into big performances every so often. While this suits the more sophisticated feel, it also makes it a little bit harder to really stay focused with such a calmer flow to the things that unfold, and the parts that have action seem to come at just the right moments.
The music isn't really a strong point for Lady and the Tramp, the majority of the song lyrics were written by Peggy Lee, who also voiced four of the characters, and aside from two songs they won't really stick around in your head for days on end. The strongest point is Bella Notte, of course, which is also one of highlights of the film itself. While "He's a Tramp" is the second of the more memorable songs, growing up I did have the "We Are Siamese" song on a vhs of Sing Alongs so, for myself, this song was actually more memorable than the former.
The films strongest point, ultimately, would be the characters themselves. Jock and Trusty are fun, without being overbearing, and when she's around Peg is also quite enjoyable as well to watch. For our human characters we get Jim Dear and Darling who play more of supporting roles are quite comforting to Lady, as are Tony and Joe the friendly Italian restaurant owners who feed Lady and Tramp their famous plate of spaghetti. Rounding out the humans is Aunt Sarah who enables most of the minor conflict in the film's second half. Since they are our main characters, both Lady and Tramp are given the most personality and make for a very likeable pair both on their own and when they are on-screen together.
With some really great animation, and strong characters Lady and the Tramp is still a fairly enjoyable entry into the Disney canon even if the pace isn't quite as brisk as what we seem to get these days from films.
4/5
Lady and the Tramp is almost an oddity in the canon. Sure it has talking dogs, and a few good songs, but it has a certain.... sophistication to it in comparison to other talking animal films, especially ones made in the last few years, and almost comes across as a much more mature entry into the canon. This more mature feel to the film, and the older American setting really make this film stand out in a good way. The story itself is fairly straightforward as our hero, Lady, interacts with her world and experiences changes that come with a baby while also exploring how other dogs live. Things have a very laid back pace to it, there isn't a constant need for action or characters bursting into big performances every so often. While this suits the more sophisticated feel, it also makes it a little bit harder to really stay focused with such a calmer flow to the things that unfold, and the parts that have action seem to come at just the right moments.
The music isn't really a strong point for Lady and the Tramp, the majority of the song lyrics were written by Peggy Lee, who also voiced four of the characters, and aside from two songs they won't really stick around in your head for days on end. The strongest point is Bella Notte, of course, which is also one of highlights of the film itself. While "He's a Tramp" is the second of the more memorable songs, growing up I did have the "We Are Siamese" song on a vhs of Sing Alongs so, for myself, this song was actually more memorable than the former.
The films strongest point, ultimately, would be the characters themselves. Jock and Trusty are fun, without being overbearing, and when she's around Peg is also quite enjoyable as well to watch. For our human characters we get Jim Dear and Darling who play more of supporting roles are quite comforting to Lady, as are Tony and Joe the friendly Italian restaurant owners who feed Lady and Tramp their famous plate of spaghetti. Rounding out the humans is Aunt Sarah who enables most of the minor conflict in the film's second half. Since they are our main characters, both Lady and Tramp are given the most personality and make for a very likeable pair both on their own and when they are on-screen together.
With some really great animation, and strong characters Lady and the Tramp is still a fairly enjoyable entry into the Disney canon even if the pace isn't quite as brisk as what we seem to get these days from films.
4/5
Friday, June 22, 2012
Top 5 Songs and Top 5 Villains 1989 - 1999
Both of these lists are quite hard to really put together. While we were provided with ten villains, I felt that I should whittle the list down a bit to the five that I felt were really the best of the lot. As for the songs, this list was so much harder to do because there were just so many amazing songs to pick from.
Top 5 Songs
5) Out There (Hunchback of Notre Dame)
4) Reflection (Mulan)
3) Won't Say (I'm In Love) (Hercules)
2) A Whole New World (Aladdin)
1) Poor Unfortunate Souls (Little Mermaid)
Top 5 Villains:
5) Gaston (Beauty and the Beast)
4) Jafar (Aladdin)
3) Shan-Yu (Mulan)
2) Frollo (Huncback of Notre Dame)
1) Ursula (Little Mermaid)
Top 5 Songs
5) Out There (Hunchback of Notre Dame)
4) Reflection (Mulan)
3) Won't Say (I'm In Love) (Hercules)
2) A Whole New World (Aladdin)
1) Poor Unfortunate Souls (Little Mermaid)
Top 5 Villains:
5) Gaston (Beauty and the Beast)
4) Jafar (Aladdin)
3) Shan-Yu (Mulan)
2) Frollo (Huncback of Notre Dame)
1) Ursula (Little Mermaid)
101 Dalmatians
101 Dalmatians is one of those rare Disney films that I never really got a chance to grow up with. Viewings of this film were very fleeting, if at all. So of course upon buying a cheap vhs copy, and later the dvd, I eagerly set out to make up for lost time and soaked in this 'rare' film. But did I enjoy it?
Of course!
One of the main things that I had always remembered about this film was Cruella De Vil, and who could honestly forget her? This villainess is an awesome antagonist and one of Disney's best for sure. On the protagonist side of things we get the dalmatian couple Pongo, and Perdita who are willing to do anything it takes to find and rescue their stolen puppies. While these three are our main characters, there is a large cast of other 'main' characters and a supporting cast who all show up for a long enough period to move the story along without slowing things down at all.
101 Dalmatians is one of those Disney films where we don't really get a whole lot in the way of music. The main stand out song, and the one people generally seem to remember the most is 'Cruella De Vil' while we also hear a very brief song at the end called 'Dalmatian Plantation.'
Our story is pretty straight forward, and adapted from the novel of the same name by Dodie Smith. Taking up the most time, watching our heroes escaping from Cruella's manor would almost seem like it could drag on and yet it never does. We manage to watch the parents pull together their vastly expanded brood of puppies and take them on their perilous journey back to London to be reunited with their owners, all while keeping the film enjoyable.
The animation here is quite well done, even if it may not be as well advanced as the films of the 90's, or even have the same intricate detail as films before it such as Sleeping Beauty. Despite this, the film is still really nice to look at and has a very well chosen colour palette to go with it. Our opening is one of the most visually interesting and keeps the credits from being boring to watch.
I think ultimately that while the film can be enjoyable, it doesn't really present that same 'Wow' factor as the other classic films during Walt's era and yet it still does retain a 'classic' feeling at the very least.
4/5
Of course!
One of the main things that I had always remembered about this film was Cruella De Vil, and who could honestly forget her? This villainess is an awesome antagonist and one of Disney's best for sure. On the protagonist side of things we get the dalmatian couple Pongo, and Perdita who are willing to do anything it takes to find and rescue their stolen puppies. While these three are our main characters, there is a large cast of other 'main' characters and a supporting cast who all show up for a long enough period to move the story along without slowing things down at all.
101 Dalmatians is one of those Disney films where we don't really get a whole lot in the way of music. The main stand out song, and the one people generally seem to remember the most is 'Cruella De Vil' while we also hear a very brief song at the end called 'Dalmatian Plantation.'
Our story is pretty straight forward, and adapted from the novel of the same name by Dodie Smith. Taking up the most time, watching our heroes escaping from Cruella's manor would almost seem like it could drag on and yet it never does. We manage to watch the parents pull together their vastly expanded brood of puppies and take them on their perilous journey back to London to be reunited with their owners, all while keeping the film enjoyable.
The animation here is quite well done, even if it may not be as well advanced as the films of the 90's, or even have the same intricate detail as films before it such as Sleeping Beauty. Despite this, the film is still really nice to look at and has a very well chosen colour palette to go with it. Our opening is one of the most visually interesting and keeps the credits from being boring to watch.
I think ultimately that while the film can be enjoyable, it doesn't really present that same 'Wow' factor as the other classic films during Walt's era and yet it still does retain a 'classic' feeling at the very least.
4/5
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Top 5 Sidekicks and Top 5 Henchmen 1989-1999
A day or so late in starting, this will be the first of three posts outlining my top favourites for the 1989-1999 time period. Initially I wavered on if I wanted to keep things at a Top 5, or if I was going to go for a Top 10 for the sidekicks. Since there were not enough villainous henchmen to really fill a Top 10 I decided to keep the post at 5 only. With all that aside, here are the lists.
Top 5 Sidekicks:
5) Zazu (Lion King)
4) Pegasus (Hercules)
3) Genie (Aladdin)
2) Mrs. Potts (Beauty and the Beast)
1) Cogsworth and Lumiere (Beauty and the Beast)
Top 5 Henchmen:
5) Flotsam and Jetsam (The Little Mermaid)
4) Pain and Panic (Hercules)
3) Lefou (Beauty and the Beast)
2) Joanna (Rescuers Down Under)
1) Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed (Lion King)
Top 5 Sidekicks:
5) Zazu (Lion King)
4) Pegasus (Hercules)
3) Genie (Aladdin)
2) Mrs. Potts (Beauty and the Beast)
1) Cogsworth and Lumiere (Beauty and the Beast)
Top 5 Henchmen:
5) Flotsam and Jetsam (The Little Mermaid)
4) Pain and Panic (Hercules)
3) Lefou (Beauty and the Beast)
2) Joanna (Rescuers Down Under)
1) Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed (Lion King)
Sword in the Stone
Coming near the end of Disney's second high-point era, Sword in the Stone is one of the less memorable films when compared to the more big name ones such as Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, and Peter Pan. With that said, despite not being quite as memorable, and fairly obscure, I still grew up with this film and it was one that I remember enjoying.
The main flaw that I have with this film is simply how badly the story is handled. While having an episodic film is certainly nothing new by this point in the Disney canon, it simply feels like things don't quite flow as smoothly from sequence to sequence. With this said, each sequence is actually fairly enjoyable and the most memorable sequence would be that of our hero, Wart, meeting Mad Madame Mim and the ensuing wizards duel. We don't really get a lot of time to learn much about Wart's current situation or have his relationship with his foster father extrapolated upon. Would this improve the film? Well.... maybe...Given how this film is a bit short, an extra ten minutes would certainly have helped in smoothing out the story problems.
Despite a clunky story, this film is heavily driven by the characters. Our hero Wart is rather innocent, though not fully entertaining like the others. The strongest characters here are Merlin, Archimedes, and Madame Mim. Each of these three really bring their own unique strengths, with Merlin he is so much fun to watch and quite delightful. Archimedes is also quite fun to watch and brings a more sarcastic side to play off of Merlin. Then we have Madame Mim who is easily one of Disney's most fun and enjoyable villains, quite an oddity given how villains are more scary than anything else. There is something simply enjoyable in just how crazy Mim comes across and is evil just for the sake of being evil. One of the lesser characters in this film that I have an odd soft spot for is the wolf who tries his best to eat Wart, when our hero is making his way to and from Merlin's home, and once again near the middle when Wart is transformed into a squirrel. The poor wolf just can't catch a break.
Normally this is where I would comment on the music, and yet Sword in the Stone isn't very memorable when it comes to the music. Most of the songs are quite forgettable and perhaps the only one that really stands out is Higitus Figitus even if it's a tad short. Despite not being very memorable, most of the songs still work well enough within in the film itself.
Even with nostalgia working in this films favour, it's still hard to overlook the flaws that Sword in the Stone has, and yet still manages to come out as being a rather decent entry into the canon.
3/5
The main flaw that I have with this film is simply how badly the story is handled. While having an episodic film is certainly nothing new by this point in the Disney canon, it simply feels like things don't quite flow as smoothly from sequence to sequence. With this said, each sequence is actually fairly enjoyable and the most memorable sequence would be that of our hero, Wart, meeting Mad Madame Mim and the ensuing wizards duel. We don't really get a lot of time to learn much about Wart's current situation or have his relationship with his foster father extrapolated upon. Would this improve the film? Well.... maybe...Given how this film is a bit short, an extra ten minutes would certainly have helped in smoothing out the story problems.
Despite a clunky story, this film is heavily driven by the characters. Our hero Wart is rather innocent, though not fully entertaining like the others. The strongest characters here are Merlin, Archimedes, and Madame Mim. Each of these three really bring their own unique strengths, with Merlin he is so much fun to watch and quite delightful. Archimedes is also quite fun to watch and brings a more sarcastic side to play off of Merlin. Then we have Madame Mim who is easily one of Disney's most fun and enjoyable villains, quite an oddity given how villains are more scary than anything else. There is something simply enjoyable in just how crazy Mim comes across and is evil just for the sake of being evil. One of the lesser characters in this film that I have an odd soft spot for is the wolf who tries his best to eat Wart, when our hero is making his way to and from Merlin's home, and once again near the middle when Wart is transformed into a squirrel. The poor wolf just can't catch a break.
Normally this is where I would comment on the music, and yet Sword in the Stone isn't very memorable when it comes to the music. Most of the songs are quite forgettable and perhaps the only one that really stands out is Higitus Figitus even if it's a tad short. Despite not being very memorable, most of the songs still work well enough within in the film itself.
Even with nostalgia working in this films favour, it's still hard to overlook the flaws that Sword in the Stone has, and yet still manages to come out as being a rather decent entry into the canon.
3/5
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Jungle Book
Ok. With the 1990's now behind us, jumping back to the late 1960's makes for an almost jarring experience. This is not to say that this a bad jarring, there is just a much more notable change in how the films come across to me. It just makes for a slight adjustment on my part.
While normally I would praise a strong opening, with the Jungle Book we get a much more slow, meandering opening primarily as we see the credits over some very pretty backgrounds. During our opening we do eventually meet Bagheera, the panther, and our young hero Mowgli the man-cub who is taken to be raised by a pack of wolves while he is a baby.
The rest of the film that follows very much feels like a tamer, more jungle themed version of Alice in Wonderland. It has a very episodic feeling as we get our opening, we meet the elephant herd twice, Kaa the python visits twice, we get introduced to Baloo, Mowgli is kidnapped by the crazed monkey group and their leader King Louie, and we get our final showdown with Shere Khan who gets a few scenes of his own. Oh and the vultures!
While this sounds like quite a lot and comes across as lacking a good, proper story structure this more episodic manner does allow us to meet a wide variety of awesome characters. The most interesting thing about these characters is that they are quite often in the shady grey region instead of simply being clear cut villains or heroes, Shere Khan and to a lesser extent Kaa. Initially sounding like a shady grey character himself is Bagheera who eventually begins to act more and more like a surrogate father to Mowgli, causing him and his idea of what's best for the boy to clash with that of the more laid back Baloo.
During most of his encounters, Mowgli gets to interact with all of the animals generally through song and more often than not, a sense of danger as well. The songs are quite enjoyable, and as a child I very much enjoyed playing the elephants song over, and over, and over, and over, and over again just for good measure. Yet for the life of me I barely remember the words now despite having only watched this last night. Alas.
4/5
While normally I would praise a strong opening, with the Jungle Book we get a much more slow, meandering opening primarily as we see the credits over some very pretty backgrounds. During our opening we do eventually meet Bagheera, the panther, and our young hero Mowgli the man-cub who is taken to be raised by a pack of wolves while he is a baby.
The rest of the film that follows very much feels like a tamer, more jungle themed version of Alice in Wonderland. It has a very episodic feeling as we get our opening, we meet the elephant herd twice, Kaa the python visits twice, we get introduced to Baloo, Mowgli is kidnapped by the crazed monkey group and their leader King Louie, and we get our final showdown with Shere Khan who gets a few scenes of his own. Oh and the vultures!
While this sounds like quite a lot and comes across as lacking a good, proper story structure this more episodic manner does allow us to meet a wide variety of awesome characters. The most interesting thing about these characters is that they are quite often in the shady grey region instead of simply being clear cut villains or heroes, Shere Khan and to a lesser extent Kaa. Initially sounding like a shady grey character himself is Bagheera who eventually begins to act more and more like a surrogate father to Mowgli, causing him and his idea of what's best for the boy to clash with that of the more laid back Baloo.
During most of his encounters, Mowgli gets to interact with all of the animals generally through song and more often than not, a sense of danger as well. The songs are quite enjoyable, and as a child I very much enjoyed playing the elephants song over, and over, and over, and over, and over again just for good measure. Yet for the life of me I barely remember the words now despite having only watched this last night. Alas.
4/5
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Beauty and the Beast
Once more we reach a Disney film that holds a special place in my heart. Much like Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast is one of those films that I remember watching again and again with my family. Having grown up with it, this film has always been a favourite and it's easy for me to see why this film nearly won an Oscar award for Best Picture. So what is it about this film that just works so well? In short, everything.
Starting with the music there is not a single dud in this film. All of the songs are fully enjoyable, catchy and manage to entertain - especially the show-stopper feeling Be Our Guest. For once I'm even going to stop and mention how even the score is really quite beautiful and works so well with the rest of the film. One thing that is rather rare in the Disney films is that we get two songs from our villain for a change, the ego charged 'Gaston' and later on we get the 'Mob Song' as the mob advances upon the castle and our heroes.
On the topic of villains, Gaston is one villain where he really seems to start out much more in the shady grey area. While he does have all the obvious signs of being a villain, all he really wants initially is to marry Belle for reasons motivated by vanity. When his pride gets in the way of multiple rejections, this is when he shifts more and more into the villainous role. What works really well about this, is that initially Beast starts out more like the villain as he locks Maurice away in the tower before finally agreeing to let Belle be his prisoner. He starts off much more hostile before he very gradually warms up and takes his time to evolve into our hero. Leading the film is our heroine, Belle, who doesn't really want or expect to be a princess and for the entire film simply wishes to have adventures and wants more than what her small town can provide. This is certainly something anyone from a small town can relate to quite easily which cements Belle as being more likeable. Rounding out our cast is a large group of transformed servants who are all enjoyable and play off of, not only each other, but off of our heroes really well.
So. Onto the animation. This film is simply gorgeous to watch. Beast alone is a really well done amalgamation of various animals that looks and feels natural instead of simply looking silly, which was a very real possibility upon seeing early concept art. The ballroom scene during the song 'Beauty and the Beast' is quite beautiful and makes really good use of camera movements and angles, all while looking amazing. Aside from these two points, the last for animation I want to point out is simply the sheer level of detail put into this film. There is so much to look at, especially during scenes when we are travelling down the hallways. Countless horrific statues are on display, twisted from their original forms, and it would take multiple viewings just to take in all of the details put into this film.
Given how one reviewer once said that this film is as close perfection as possible, I would be quite inclined to agree.
5/5
Starting with the music there is not a single dud in this film. All of the songs are fully enjoyable, catchy and manage to entertain - especially the show-stopper feeling Be Our Guest. For once I'm even going to stop and mention how even the score is really quite beautiful and works so well with the rest of the film. One thing that is rather rare in the Disney films is that we get two songs from our villain for a change, the ego charged 'Gaston' and later on we get the 'Mob Song' as the mob advances upon the castle and our heroes.
On the topic of villains, Gaston is one villain where he really seems to start out much more in the shady grey area. While he does have all the obvious signs of being a villain, all he really wants initially is to marry Belle for reasons motivated by vanity. When his pride gets in the way of multiple rejections, this is when he shifts more and more into the villainous role. What works really well about this, is that initially Beast starts out more like the villain as he locks Maurice away in the tower before finally agreeing to let Belle be his prisoner. He starts off much more hostile before he very gradually warms up and takes his time to evolve into our hero. Leading the film is our heroine, Belle, who doesn't really want or expect to be a princess and for the entire film simply wishes to have adventures and wants more than what her small town can provide. This is certainly something anyone from a small town can relate to quite easily which cements Belle as being more likeable. Rounding out our cast is a large group of transformed servants who are all enjoyable and play off of, not only each other, but off of our heroes really well.
So. Onto the animation. This film is simply gorgeous to watch. Beast alone is a really well done amalgamation of various animals that looks and feels natural instead of simply looking silly, which was a very real possibility upon seeing early concept art. The ballroom scene during the song 'Beauty and the Beast' is quite beautiful and makes really good use of camera movements and angles, all while looking amazing. Aside from these two points, the last for animation I want to point out is simply the sheer level of detail put into this film. There is so much to look at, especially during scenes when we are travelling down the hallways. Countless horrific statues are on display, twisted from their original forms, and it would take multiple viewings just to take in all of the details put into this film.
Given how one reviewer once said that this film is as close perfection as possible, I would be quite inclined to agree.
5/5
Aladdin
Coming near the end of a five year span of great animated films, Aladdin manages to be quite a force in the Disney canon as a highly energetic and entertaining film. Having grown up during the 90's, it is easily one of the Disney films that I really enjoyed the most as a kid and would constantly watch it again and again.
One of the biggest perks Aladdin has is that the film has very likeable and identifiable characters, especially in the form of Aladdin himself. Our main hero manages to come across as quite charming and self-assured while still having his own flaws as he yearns to be more than just a 'street rat.' For Jasmine, we find a princess who is fed up with the pampered lifestyle available to her and, in a similar manner to Aladdin, yearns to be more than who she is. This common element is what really helps bring the two together in a more believable fashion instead of simply falling in love at first sight and never talking to each other about their lives. We receive a great villain in the form of Jafar, a royal advisor who is willing to do anything it takes for power even if it means forcing the Princess to marry him. Of course, no review would be complete without mentioning the Genie. Robin William's is a very powerful driving force behind this character and not only manages to make his scenes hilarious, but also brings warmth and heart to the character when the scene calls for it. All of our sidekicks are surprisingly entertaining and none feel like they're out of place or as if they are trying too hard to be funny.
Given the time span between Aladdin and the Little Mermaid, the animation has only improved to levels that at the very least manage to fall just a short step below that of the Lion King. The backgrounds are stunning, aided by the camera movements which give a slight live-action feel to things, and we almost move fully away from a more cartoon feeling to the animation. For it's time, the CGI works really well and is implemented in a way that works without it being jarring even if the CGI is considered vastly out of date by today's standards. This however is not a fault that will seriously hurt the film since it was limited by the technology available instead of simply being sub-par due to oversight or sheer laziness.
All of the songs in this film are enjoyable, and certainly memorable. One thing to note is that the opening song has had lyrics modified due to controversy in the past, but most people may never notice if they don't hear about it from more passionate Disney fans.
Ultimately, despite looking like a period piece Aladdin is more of a 1990's American pop culture film with it's contemporary and fast paced references. Not only does this film give small references to other Disney films before it, we also get a ton of pop culture references through the genie some of which include Jack Nicholson and Arsenio Hall impressions. If the film has any real flaw, it would simply be that these references will slightly date the film. In the end, however, this is a very minor flaw and is certainly one that can be overlooked by anyone who has grown up with this film.
4 1/2/5
One of the biggest perks Aladdin has is that the film has very likeable and identifiable characters, especially in the form of Aladdin himself. Our main hero manages to come across as quite charming and self-assured while still having his own flaws as he yearns to be more than just a 'street rat.' For Jasmine, we find a princess who is fed up with the pampered lifestyle available to her and, in a similar manner to Aladdin, yearns to be more than who she is. This common element is what really helps bring the two together in a more believable fashion instead of simply falling in love at first sight and never talking to each other about their lives. We receive a great villain in the form of Jafar, a royal advisor who is willing to do anything it takes for power even if it means forcing the Princess to marry him. Of course, no review would be complete without mentioning the Genie. Robin William's is a very powerful driving force behind this character and not only manages to make his scenes hilarious, but also brings warmth and heart to the character when the scene calls for it. All of our sidekicks are surprisingly entertaining and none feel like they're out of place or as if they are trying too hard to be funny.
Given the time span between Aladdin and the Little Mermaid, the animation has only improved to levels that at the very least manage to fall just a short step below that of the Lion King. The backgrounds are stunning, aided by the camera movements which give a slight live-action feel to things, and we almost move fully away from a more cartoon feeling to the animation. For it's time, the CGI works really well and is implemented in a way that works without it being jarring even if the CGI is considered vastly out of date by today's standards. This however is not a fault that will seriously hurt the film since it was limited by the technology available instead of simply being sub-par due to oversight or sheer laziness.
All of the songs in this film are enjoyable, and certainly memorable. One thing to note is that the opening song has had lyrics modified due to controversy in the past, but most people may never notice if they don't hear about it from more passionate Disney fans.
Ultimately, despite looking like a period piece Aladdin is more of a 1990's American pop culture film with it's contemporary and fast paced references. Not only does this film give small references to other Disney films before it, we also get a ton of pop culture references through the genie some of which include Jack Nicholson and Arsenio Hall impressions. If the film has any real flaw, it would simply be that these references will slightly date the film. In the end, however, this is a very minor flaw and is certainly one that can be overlooked by anyone who has grown up with this film.
4 1/2/5
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Lion King
The final film of the 'Fab Four,' the Lion King is often considered the pinnacle of the 1990's films in terms of animation and it is quite easy to see why. This was, and likely still is, one of the biggest and most popular films in Disney's long history, and will quite likely stay that way even years from now.
The film starts off with perhaps one of the best openings out of all the canon films. It gives the sense of a grand scale, which only continues to remain a present feeling all throughout the entire film. Everything feels vast and open, yet not distractingly so.
From start to finish, the Lion King looks simply gorgeous. While I did view this as a Blu-Ray, it is quite possible that the treatment did fudge with the visuals a bit compared to all of the dvd viewings I have done thus far. With that aside it does not change the fact that this is still a really, really well animated film. Every scene looks vibrant and full of life and there was never a moment where I really went "Hmmm...that looks a little off."
Complementing the visuals is a really great set of songs, all of which are well remembered and still quite popular. While it's a bit hard to really pick a stand out song, all of them are still really enjoyable to not only listen to, but to watch as well. The nostalgia in me does lean towards Can't Wait to Be King as my favourite, however the villain lover in me also leans towards Be Prepared.
The characters in this film are quite enjoyable, though I do have a certain duo where I do feel a bit "Ehhh..." about. Starting with the great however is Scar. This is a villain who gets things done. He kills off his rival, secures power for years and is generally sitting pretty even if the Pride Lands have slowly died from his tyrannical rule. Using manipulation to get what he wants, Scar certainly does a good job of things or else he would not have made it as far as he did. Rather fun to watch are his three henchmen Shenzi, Banzai and Ed who seem to represent the hyena community that Scar has taken under his wing. Mufasa is probably most memorable as being the one character that makes children burst into tears thanks to his death scene, and yet is also really wise and powerful. Zazu, Nala, and Rafiiki are all enjoyable in their scenes and provide the right amount of support for Simba. Our main hero is also really fun to watch. While some people don't like his younger form, I found I really enjoyed young Simba quite a bit, and he only became better as his character gained a story arc that developed him further. Theeen we get Timon and Pumbaa. They aren't as bad as I remember, so I will give them that. However I can't really say I fully enjoy them either. Maybe in time and more viewings they can grow on me, but right now I just go "Ehh..."
Also. Obligatory mention of how Lion King is similar/ a supposed rip off of Kimba the White Lion. I honestly don't care. As far as I'm aware more people know of Kimba -because- of the Lion King instead of knowing about Kimba because it's any good or popular. So thus ends the obligatory mention of that.
I think the only thing that really hampers the Lion King for me, Timon and Pumbaa aside, is that the ecosystem in this film is rather odd to the point of being a bit distracting in the end. I understand that Scar and his hyenas have eaten the animals and scared off the rest of the herds. However that is not any reason to cause droughts or massive loss of vegetation. That is more of an apocalyptic/human error and not something a lion is really capable of doing. So there's that. It just makes me scratch my head a bit and wonder "Why?"
4 1/2/ 5
The film starts off with perhaps one of the best openings out of all the canon films. It gives the sense of a grand scale, which only continues to remain a present feeling all throughout the entire film. Everything feels vast and open, yet not distractingly so.
From start to finish, the Lion King looks simply gorgeous. While I did view this as a Blu-Ray, it is quite possible that the treatment did fudge with the visuals a bit compared to all of the dvd viewings I have done thus far. With that aside it does not change the fact that this is still a really, really well animated film. Every scene looks vibrant and full of life and there was never a moment where I really went "Hmmm...that looks a little off."
Complementing the visuals is a really great set of songs, all of which are well remembered and still quite popular. While it's a bit hard to really pick a stand out song, all of them are still really enjoyable to not only listen to, but to watch as well. The nostalgia in me does lean towards Can't Wait to Be King as my favourite, however the villain lover in me also leans towards Be Prepared.
The characters in this film are quite enjoyable, though I do have a certain duo where I do feel a bit "Ehhh..." about. Starting with the great however is Scar. This is a villain who gets things done. He kills off his rival, secures power for years and is generally sitting pretty even if the Pride Lands have slowly died from his tyrannical rule. Using manipulation to get what he wants, Scar certainly does a good job of things or else he would not have made it as far as he did. Rather fun to watch are his three henchmen Shenzi, Banzai and Ed who seem to represent the hyena community that Scar has taken under his wing. Mufasa is probably most memorable as being the one character that makes children burst into tears thanks to his death scene, and yet is also really wise and powerful. Zazu, Nala, and Rafiiki are all enjoyable in their scenes and provide the right amount of support for Simba. Our main hero is also really fun to watch. While some people don't like his younger form, I found I really enjoyed young Simba quite a bit, and he only became better as his character gained a story arc that developed him further. Theeen we get Timon and Pumbaa. They aren't as bad as I remember, so I will give them that. However I can't really say I fully enjoy them either. Maybe in time and more viewings they can grow on me, but right now I just go "Ehh..."
Also. Obligatory mention of how Lion King is similar/ a supposed rip off of Kimba the White Lion. I honestly don't care. As far as I'm aware more people know of Kimba -because- of the Lion King instead of knowing about Kimba because it's any good or popular. So thus ends the obligatory mention of that.
I think the only thing that really hampers the Lion King for me, Timon and Pumbaa aside, is that the ecosystem in this film is rather odd to the point of being a bit distracting in the end. I understand that Scar and his hyenas have eaten the animals and scared off the rest of the herds. However that is not any reason to cause droughts or massive loss of vegetation. That is more of an apocalyptic/human error and not something a lion is really capable of doing. So there's that. It just makes me scratch my head a bit and wonder "Why?"
4 1/2/ 5
Little Mermaid
Released in the year I was born, Little Mermaid has been an odd film for me to really sit and review. On one hand I can praise it's strong points, while pointing out the weaker areas, while on the other hand I have a bit of nostalgia that often blinds me. More recently however, I've begun to be less blinded by nostalgia as a certain part of the film constantly hampers the film for it's enjoyability factor for me.
First, however, lets get the stronger areas out of the way. Visually this film was gorgeous for it's time, and it can still hold up really well today. The underwater scenes are really well done and painstakingly so with all of the bubbles and light reflections upon the rocks and surfaces. You can really tell they put a lot of time and effort into this and the opening is really pleasing visually to watch. The backgrounds are constantly interesting to watch, save for the odd one here and there which has a bit less to it.
As far as the songs go, the vast majority are easy to pick out and quite memorable. Part of Your World, and it's reprise are the first of many "I Want" songs where the hero or heroine sings about what they want to the audience to further their character. Under the Sea is bouncy and rather fun, though I don't seem to remember it as well as I used to. Certain parts of the song just aren't quite how I recall it, but that is probably bad memory more than anything. The real stand out song however is Poor Unfortunate Souls. This is one of the best villain songs Disney has to offer and starts out really slow, with an almost waltz like feel before it gradually becomes louder and more crazy as Ursula's evil nature is seen.
Characters. Little Mermaid, for myself, has a lot of great supporting characters. When I was younger I never really cared for King Triton, yet now I really enjoy his character and how he evolves through the film. Prince Eric is certainly a step up from the previous princes who were much less involved in their films, and even earns a pair of sidekicks in the form of his sheepdog Max, and his advisor, Grimbsy. Flounder and Sebastien make for a good pair to balance Ariel, both looking out for her best interests but in different ways. Scuttle is... a bit annoying, but he not enough to drag things to a standstill. Ursula is very much my favourite character from the entire film. From her entrance, to the finale she never ceases to entertain and frighten. When she becomes gigantic Ursula there is a large sense of power to her and only becomes more awesome, resulting in a really grisly demise.
So what about Ariel? To be honest I really don't like her. At all. If Disney did one thing right about Ariel it would be that they really captured the essence of a 16 year old girl. Oh did they succeed at that. The thing, however, is that Ariel is so selfish. She puts everyone in danger because she has a crush on Eric and refuses to listen to her father's orders. During the second half of the film, she is barely capable of doing things herself and largely requires her friends help to get her to the happy ending, which she doesn't even deserve after nearly handing over all the tridents power to Ursula. She makes so many mistakes and only gives a very brief two second apology to her father for all the trouble she caused.
Now, yes, I do understand that she's unhappy with her situation. That does not, however, give her the right to handle things the way she did. Cinderella was unhappy with her situation, but still managed to get out there and make things better without putting others at risk. I could continue the comparisons, but it's probably best that I don't. So, in having a main hero who I find very flawed, it hampers my viewing of the film and because of this I have to take a mark off, giving Little Mermaid the following score.
4/5
First, however, lets get the stronger areas out of the way. Visually this film was gorgeous for it's time, and it can still hold up really well today. The underwater scenes are really well done and painstakingly so with all of the bubbles and light reflections upon the rocks and surfaces. You can really tell they put a lot of time and effort into this and the opening is really pleasing visually to watch. The backgrounds are constantly interesting to watch, save for the odd one here and there which has a bit less to it.
As far as the songs go, the vast majority are easy to pick out and quite memorable. Part of Your World, and it's reprise are the first of many "I Want" songs where the hero or heroine sings about what they want to the audience to further their character. Under the Sea is bouncy and rather fun, though I don't seem to remember it as well as I used to. Certain parts of the song just aren't quite how I recall it, but that is probably bad memory more than anything. The real stand out song however is Poor Unfortunate Souls. This is one of the best villain songs Disney has to offer and starts out really slow, with an almost waltz like feel before it gradually becomes louder and more crazy as Ursula's evil nature is seen.
Characters. Little Mermaid, for myself, has a lot of great supporting characters. When I was younger I never really cared for King Triton, yet now I really enjoy his character and how he evolves through the film. Prince Eric is certainly a step up from the previous princes who were much less involved in their films, and even earns a pair of sidekicks in the form of his sheepdog Max, and his advisor, Grimbsy. Flounder and Sebastien make for a good pair to balance Ariel, both looking out for her best interests but in different ways. Scuttle is... a bit annoying, but he not enough to drag things to a standstill. Ursula is very much my favourite character from the entire film. From her entrance, to the finale she never ceases to entertain and frighten. When she becomes gigantic Ursula there is a large sense of power to her and only becomes more awesome, resulting in a really grisly demise.
So what about Ariel? To be honest I really don't like her. At all. If Disney did one thing right about Ariel it would be that they really captured the essence of a 16 year old girl. Oh did they succeed at that. The thing, however, is that Ariel is so selfish. She puts everyone in danger because she has a crush on Eric and refuses to listen to her father's orders. During the second half of the film, she is barely capable of doing things herself and largely requires her friends help to get her to the happy ending, which she doesn't even deserve after nearly handing over all the tridents power to Ursula. She makes so many mistakes and only gives a very brief two second apology to her father for all the trouble she caused.
Now, yes, I do understand that she's unhappy with her situation. That does not, however, give her the right to handle things the way she did. Cinderella was unhappy with her situation, but still managed to get out there and make things better without putting others at risk. I could continue the comparisons, but it's probably best that I don't. So, in having a main hero who I find very flawed, it hampers my viewing of the film and because of this I have to take a mark off, giving Little Mermaid the following score.
4/5
Friday, June 15, 2012
Mulan
Continuing Disney's trend of venturing to other countries during the 90's, Mulan takes us to China where we come across one of my favourite heroines of this era, if not out of all the canon films.
Once again our film has a really strong opening. Not only do we get a good sense of who Mulan is but we also get a great feel for her world and how it works. We learn that honour is a really important factor in their lives, which is something that will be in play for the entire film and influence people and how they act. The opening remains quite strong right up until we encounter Mushu, which is where things give a small stumble. With that said, the rest of the film still carries itself quite well and has a lot of strong points especially when we get to spend some time with our villain, Shan-Yu.
This is one of those films where we get a rather enjoyable cast of characters. We get a really strong heroine in the form of Mulan who wants to bring honour to her family and protect her father, which is also a trait evident in our main hero Shang who also wishes to bring honour to his father by being a good general. Shan-Yu is a rather surprising villain given how ruthless he is. At two points in the film we see that he's willing to go out of his way to destroy anyone, even if there's a safer path for him to take towards his ultimate goal. Our sidekick's are generally where mileage may vary. Mulan's friends in the army can be entertaining and balance each other fairly well, playing their part quite nicely, however it's Mushu where things go bad. This is a character who I simply can't stand. Unlike our heroine, he is largely motivated in getting his promotion back to being a guardian and really comes across as if he's only in it for himself instead of helping Mulan for the sake of being there for there. It also doesn't help that his voice actor, Eddie Murphy, is rather abrasive.
The songs in this film are actually quite good, quite a few of them are memorable enough to remember even after the film has ended. The one stand out song that is easily my favourite is Reflection, which really helps to show Mulan's motivation as she expresses herself and the imagery that accompanies it is really well done. The rest of the songs are quite fun, Make A Man Out of You is quite likely the other big song that really stands out from the rest and is a lot of fun to sing along to.
One final thing to note, is that the animation here is really well done and only seems to have improved since Pocahontas while still keeping a rather unique visual style just as Hercules did.
4 1/2 /5
Once again our film has a really strong opening. Not only do we get a good sense of who Mulan is but we also get a great feel for her world and how it works. We learn that honour is a really important factor in their lives, which is something that will be in play for the entire film and influence people and how they act. The opening remains quite strong right up until we encounter Mushu, which is where things give a small stumble. With that said, the rest of the film still carries itself quite well and has a lot of strong points especially when we get to spend some time with our villain, Shan-Yu.
This is one of those films where we get a rather enjoyable cast of characters. We get a really strong heroine in the form of Mulan who wants to bring honour to her family and protect her father, which is also a trait evident in our main hero Shang who also wishes to bring honour to his father by being a good general. Shan-Yu is a rather surprising villain given how ruthless he is. At two points in the film we see that he's willing to go out of his way to destroy anyone, even if there's a safer path for him to take towards his ultimate goal. Our sidekick's are generally where mileage may vary. Mulan's friends in the army can be entertaining and balance each other fairly well, playing their part quite nicely, however it's Mushu where things go bad. This is a character who I simply can't stand. Unlike our heroine, he is largely motivated in getting his promotion back to being a guardian and really comes across as if he's only in it for himself instead of helping Mulan for the sake of being there for there. It also doesn't help that his voice actor, Eddie Murphy, is rather abrasive.
The songs in this film are actually quite good, quite a few of them are memorable enough to remember even after the film has ended. The one stand out song that is easily my favourite is Reflection, which really helps to show Mulan's motivation as she expresses herself and the imagery that accompanies it is really well done. The rest of the songs are quite fun, Make A Man Out of You is quite likely the other big song that really stands out from the rest and is a lot of fun to sing along to.
One final thing to note, is that the animation here is really well done and only seems to have improved since Pocahontas while still keeping a rather unique visual style just as Hercules did.
4 1/2 /5
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Hercules
Hercules, much like Pocahontas, seems to earn a lot of negativity for being unfaithful to the original source material. The thing is, most people who aren't as inclined to read about Greecian myths are more likely to not be aware of how far the story deviates from the material. That being said, once again this is nothing new for Disney. Over the company's entire run they have always retold stories how they wanted to and often steered clear of things that would make the story unsuitable for children. The original story of Hecules' twelve tasks on it's own is full of things that wouldn't get the green light. So.... why whine about it? As a really large fan of mythology myself, I love this film. I enjoy seeing all the references to various myths in one film even if it's not super duper accurate.
With that lengthy bit out of the way, Hercules is very much the story of what it means to really be a hero. It's also, much like the majority of the 90's films, a story about finding your place while being true to who you are. The story itself is rather straightforward, Hercules is trying to prove himself so he can rejoin his family on Olympus, while Hades is attempting to take over the cosmos. In order to do this, Hades must first eliminate Hercules due to a prophecy given to him by the three Fates.
To be rather honest, I just really enjoy the film. The visual style is unique enough to stand out among the other canon films, and is always visually interesting to watch. While we do get some rather poor CGI work with the Hydra, we also get a lot of great looking characters. I have always loved how all of the gods are visually different, and it's quite fun to pause scenes where they are together in an attempt to figure out who is who.
For characters we get a really awesome villain in the form of Hades who is a fast-talking deal maker that has a busy schedule full of taking over the world to get to and is willing to do anything it takes to achieve his goals. He has two fun, and comical villains in the form of Pain and Panic, as well as a sadly underused minion in the form of Cerberus. Meg, our love interest is spunky and a lot of fun to watch instead of feeling like the cliche love interest who's only good for standing there looking pretty. Our main hero, Hercules is quite new to being a hero which doesn't make him perfect. Still being so new, he's learning the ropes on how to actually be a hero without being in it for the glory and the title. He is also supported by his trainer Phil, who is used just right, and by his horse Pegasus who makes for a funny sidekick.
All of the songs in this film are pretty memorable, perhaps save for the opening Gospel Truth. Zero to Hero is a rather catchy tune, while Won't Say (I'm In Love) is a great song as well as we see more of Meg as she opens up to admit her feelings. Go the Distance is a great starting song for Hercules as he sings about what he wants, and helps to show his motivation for seeking out training from Phil.
If this film has any flaws, it would be the almost constant barrage of modern day references that we seem to get in this film. While one or two uses of it would be ok to have, it just feels like there's too much of it. Seeing all of the modern references in an older period takes away from things a bit and feels more like product advertising. Perhaps the two references that really worked best were having Scar as a brief cameo, he really does make a handsome throw rug, and the Haunted Mansion reference during the song, Won't Say (I'm In Love).
With all of that said, Hercules manages to earn a solid 4/5
With that lengthy bit out of the way, Hercules is very much the story of what it means to really be a hero. It's also, much like the majority of the 90's films, a story about finding your place while being true to who you are. The story itself is rather straightforward, Hercules is trying to prove himself so he can rejoin his family on Olympus, while Hades is attempting to take over the cosmos. In order to do this, Hades must first eliminate Hercules due to a prophecy given to him by the three Fates.
To be rather honest, I just really enjoy the film. The visual style is unique enough to stand out among the other canon films, and is always visually interesting to watch. While we do get some rather poor CGI work with the Hydra, we also get a lot of great looking characters. I have always loved how all of the gods are visually different, and it's quite fun to pause scenes where they are together in an attempt to figure out who is who.
For characters we get a really awesome villain in the form of Hades who is a fast-talking deal maker that has a busy schedule full of taking over the world to get to and is willing to do anything it takes to achieve his goals. He has two fun, and comical villains in the form of Pain and Panic, as well as a sadly underused minion in the form of Cerberus. Meg, our love interest is spunky and a lot of fun to watch instead of feeling like the cliche love interest who's only good for standing there looking pretty. Our main hero, Hercules is quite new to being a hero which doesn't make him perfect. Still being so new, he's learning the ropes on how to actually be a hero without being in it for the glory and the title. He is also supported by his trainer Phil, who is used just right, and by his horse Pegasus who makes for a funny sidekick.
All of the songs in this film are pretty memorable, perhaps save for the opening Gospel Truth. Zero to Hero is a rather catchy tune, while Won't Say (I'm In Love) is a great song as well as we see more of Meg as she opens up to admit her feelings. Go the Distance is a great starting song for Hercules as he sings about what he wants, and helps to show his motivation for seeking out training from Phil.
If this film has any flaws, it would be the almost constant barrage of modern day references that we seem to get in this film. While one or two uses of it would be ok to have, it just feels like there's too much of it. Seeing all of the modern references in an older period takes away from things a bit and feels more like product advertising. Perhaps the two references that really worked best were having Scar as a brief cameo, he really does make a handsome throw rug, and the Haunted Mansion reference during the song, Won't Say (I'm In Love).
With all of that said, Hercules manages to earn a solid 4/5
Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Hunchback of Notre Dame is one of Disney's darkest ventures, surpassing even that of the Black Cauldron. Despite being well known as a kid friendly company, they took this film down a much darker route and included more adult themes. This, of course, is what makes Hunchback such a great film. It has something for all ages, just as Walt had always intended during his lifetime.
I'm not going to spend a lot of time, if any, discussing the plot since I see very little point in doing so. Instead I intend to focus more on our characters. I do however want to point out a few scenes that I really enjoyed. Once again we get a really strong opening for Hunchback, setting up the relationship between Frollo and Quasimodo, as well as establishing who they are, and what we can expect as the conflict. This film also has a lot of smaller scenes that are still a lot of fun, or that help to provide an impact and drive the story. Examples of these scenes include Frollo ordering Captain Phoebus to burn down a home with a family trapped inside, Captain Phoebus and Esmeralda's interactions both early in the film and later on when they've grown closer together.
Since we are on the note of characters, this film has a great group of four main characters. We get a really strong, yet twisted, relationship between Frollo and Quasimodo, and a rather sweet, yet sad, relationship between Quasimodo and Esmeralda, while Captain Phoebus and Frollo have the relationship of loyal soldier to a cruel superior. All four of our characters play off of each other really well in all of the scenes where they are interacting with each other. Even on their own, we still get some really fun, twisted or sad scenes from them as we watch their character arcs develop and grow from start to finish. While the main four are really strong, we also get some supporting characters who all fill their roles to a fairly satisfactory degree. While two of the gargoyles can be rather fun, the third one played by Jason Alexander feels more like an annoyance in the way he acts and seems to provide the kid related jokes.
The majority of the songs in this film are really well done and all of them, save for one, are fully enjoyable to watch. Out There is a great song from Quasimodo that really helps us learn about how he sees himself in the scheme of things, and what he really wants. God Help the Outcasts is really pretty visually for the most part, and also helps show Esmeralda's character as wanting to find acceptance for her and her people. Possibly the strongest of the songs, Hellfire is a really great villain song as we see how twisted Frollo is and how he's slowly going mad from his lust to the point that he's willing to do anything it takes. The only other song I really want to note is the song A Guy Like You which is SO out of place that it can be slightly jarring. Paris is burning and many innocent people are being arrested, if not worse, and we get a song to help cheer up Quasimodo who is having relationship woes. It's.... just so odd. It would have worked better if we had it earlier in the film not long after Quasimodo and met Esmeralda and was still doubting things.
The animation here is really great, it may not be quite as top notch as the Lion King, yet it's still really well done. The cathedral of Notre Dame looks amazing, and a lot of scenes are visually pleasing to watch. Some of the best looking scenes are the opening sequence when we first meet Frollo, the Hellfire scene, and the scene of the family's home being burnt down.
So. The question becomes are the two flaws big enough to keep this from being a full 5 star rating? As much as I want to give this a full 5, I am also unable to really give it a 4 either. To give it a 4 would be too much of a step down I feel, so instead I will happily give Hunchback the following rating.
4 1/2 /5
I'm not going to spend a lot of time, if any, discussing the plot since I see very little point in doing so. Instead I intend to focus more on our characters. I do however want to point out a few scenes that I really enjoyed. Once again we get a really strong opening for Hunchback, setting up the relationship between Frollo and Quasimodo, as well as establishing who they are, and what we can expect as the conflict. This film also has a lot of smaller scenes that are still a lot of fun, or that help to provide an impact and drive the story. Examples of these scenes include Frollo ordering Captain Phoebus to burn down a home with a family trapped inside, Captain Phoebus and Esmeralda's interactions both early in the film and later on when they've grown closer together.
Since we are on the note of characters, this film has a great group of four main characters. We get a really strong, yet twisted, relationship between Frollo and Quasimodo, and a rather sweet, yet sad, relationship between Quasimodo and Esmeralda, while Captain Phoebus and Frollo have the relationship of loyal soldier to a cruel superior. All four of our characters play off of each other really well in all of the scenes where they are interacting with each other. Even on their own, we still get some really fun, twisted or sad scenes from them as we watch their character arcs develop and grow from start to finish. While the main four are really strong, we also get some supporting characters who all fill their roles to a fairly satisfactory degree. While two of the gargoyles can be rather fun, the third one played by Jason Alexander feels more like an annoyance in the way he acts and seems to provide the kid related jokes.
The majority of the songs in this film are really well done and all of them, save for one, are fully enjoyable to watch. Out There is a great song from Quasimodo that really helps us learn about how he sees himself in the scheme of things, and what he really wants. God Help the Outcasts is really pretty visually for the most part, and also helps show Esmeralda's character as wanting to find acceptance for her and her people. Possibly the strongest of the songs, Hellfire is a really great villain song as we see how twisted Frollo is and how he's slowly going mad from his lust to the point that he's willing to do anything it takes. The only other song I really want to note is the song A Guy Like You which is SO out of place that it can be slightly jarring. Paris is burning and many innocent people are being arrested, if not worse, and we get a song to help cheer up Quasimodo who is having relationship woes. It's.... just so odd. It would have worked better if we had it earlier in the film not long after Quasimodo and met Esmeralda and was still doubting things.
The animation here is really great, it may not be quite as top notch as the Lion King, yet it's still really well done. The cathedral of Notre Dame looks amazing, and a lot of scenes are visually pleasing to watch. Some of the best looking scenes are the opening sequence when we first meet Frollo, the Hellfire scene, and the scene of the family's home being burnt down.
So. The question becomes are the two flaws big enough to keep this from being a full 5 star rating? As much as I want to give this a full 5, I am also unable to really give it a 4 either. To give it a 4 would be too much of a step down I feel, so instead I will happily give Hunchback the following rating.
4 1/2 /5
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Pocahontas
Pocahontas is one of those films that quite often gets critiqued for not being historically accurate. I quite often find this puzzling when people make this complaint about a Disney film because ever since Snow White, the company has -always- changed and altered the original source material to suit -their- version of the story. So, I will not be holding this against the film, or any other film in the Disney canon.
With that said, let's move on to the story itself. Pocahontas follows the titular character as she tries to find the right path to go down, especially when strange invaders arrive and threaten the peace of her world, causing Pocahontas to look at things in an entirely new way. Despite the growing obstacles, she soon finds love with John Smith, one of the British men who has come in search of riches. The story itself is rather similar to Romeo and Juliet, but with singing and fuzzy animals.
One of my favourite things about this film is the animation. I love the way the backgrounds look all through the film, and especially enjoy the scene where Pocahontas and John Smith first meet at the waterfall. Speaking of which, upon this viewing I found I really enjoyed how Pocahontas was animated, the way she moves and acts feels really fluid and natural. It's very rare to find a time where I found the animation to decrease, though the version of the film I own also inserted a deleted scene which did stand out a bit to me. This is a very minor detracting factor since there is an option to view the film without this additional scene.
During the film one of the largest hampers is how two of the main animal sidekicks are played up for laughs, though at times it feels forced and like it interrupts things even if their squabbling is meant to parallel the fighting between the British settlers and the Native Americans. Also feeling rather forced, and rather out of place is Ratcliffe's assistant, Wiggins. The character is just a bit too much and could have been better handled. The main villain, Ratcliffe also feels pretty weak as he is only a greedy man, seeking to take all the riches for himself and feels almost like he doesn't add anything new or interesting.
With that said, Pocahontas really helps to carry the film and feels like the most interesting character that is offered. John Smith is also rather well handled, and is able to hold his own without feeling too bland. While Pocahontas is more of the fun, outgoing daughter of the chief, John Smith balances her as the very respected soldier who has had his fair share of adventure as well.
The songs here are all pretty good, the obvious stand out being Colors of the Winds which is easily the most popular one. Both parts of the Savages song help to fan the sparks of conflict, leading up to the climax of the film. The villains song is alright, but it feels a bit lacking and rather curious as Ratcliffe sings his greed to the settlers who actually seem fine with what the outcome will be.
Pocahontas can be a very entertaining film if you go into it not searching for a lesson in early American history. 4/5
Tarzan
For many fans, Tarzan was the mark of the third golden age in the Disney canon. This film is the first of the films to no longer feature the characters themselves singing the songs in the film, thus setting a trend that continued right up until Princess and the Frog.
Tarzan is one of many films that really feels like a great entry in the Disney canon. We are treated to what I felt was a rather strong opening sequence that really helped to set us up for the rest of film. While our hero is still a baby during it, the opening still cements the close bond that his adoptive mother has with Tarzan and helps to motivate her, as well as Kerchak. Also. Baby Tarzan is adorable.
Following the strong opening, the film almost feels like two films to me. The first 'film' follows Tarzan as he grows up and we learn of how he and his world work. All of this helps to set the stakes, and eventually culminates in Tarzan fighting the evil leopard Sabor. Once this has finished, we are introduced to the story proper where Tarzan then learns of other humans and begins to explore the world he has been missing out on for so many years. This 'second' feeling film explores his interactions with Professor Porter, his daughter Jane, and the main villain, Clayton. Despite this, the entire end product is really fun to watch with a few exceptions that aren't fully plot related.
So. Let's get the nitpicks out of the way first. One flaw was with Clayton, who really feels like a weaker villain from the 1990's decade since we don't get a very strong motivation from him. We know he wants the gorillas but that's as far as things really go. For the rest of the characters I found Tantor and Terk, Tarzan's childhood friends, to be fairly lacking. It probably did not help that Rosie O'Donnell voiced Terk. The final flaw I had with this film is the songs as far as how they handled it. It's rather hard to accept Phil Collins as being some sort of narrator for the film who sings at specific points. The film also seems to handle the songs in a misleading way, at first characters will begin to sing the opening lyrics as if they might do the whole song, but then we transition to Phil Collins taking over. Regardless, some of the songs are actually quite good.
So. Characters I enjoyed! I really liked Tarzan and Jane which was helpful to the film. If your two main leads are rather bland it can really hamper things, however on their own or together Tarzan and Jane are always entertaining to watch. Perhaps my favourite moment is when the two first meet each other. It's a rather funny, and yet also tender scene as Tarzan tries to make sense of things.
Tarzan earns a strong 4/5
Tarzan is one of many films that really feels like a great entry in the Disney canon. We are treated to what I felt was a rather strong opening sequence that really helped to set us up for the rest of film. While our hero is still a baby during it, the opening still cements the close bond that his adoptive mother has with Tarzan and helps to motivate her, as well as Kerchak. Also. Baby Tarzan is adorable.
Following the strong opening, the film almost feels like two films to me. The first 'film' follows Tarzan as he grows up and we learn of how he and his world work. All of this helps to set the stakes, and eventually culminates in Tarzan fighting the evil leopard Sabor. Once this has finished, we are introduced to the story proper where Tarzan then learns of other humans and begins to explore the world he has been missing out on for so many years. This 'second' feeling film explores his interactions with Professor Porter, his daughter Jane, and the main villain, Clayton. Despite this, the entire end product is really fun to watch with a few exceptions that aren't fully plot related.
So. Let's get the nitpicks out of the way first. One flaw was with Clayton, who really feels like a weaker villain from the 1990's decade since we don't get a very strong motivation from him. We know he wants the gorillas but that's as far as things really go. For the rest of the characters I found Tantor and Terk, Tarzan's childhood friends, to be fairly lacking. It probably did not help that Rosie O'Donnell voiced Terk. The final flaw I had with this film is the songs as far as how they handled it. It's rather hard to accept Phil Collins as being some sort of narrator for the film who sings at specific points. The film also seems to handle the songs in a misleading way, at first characters will begin to sing the opening lyrics as if they might do the whole song, but then we transition to Phil Collins taking over. Regardless, some of the songs are actually quite good.
So. Characters I enjoyed! I really liked Tarzan and Jane which was helpful to the film. If your two main leads are rather bland it can really hamper things, however on their own or together Tarzan and Jane are always entertaining to watch. Perhaps my favourite moment is when the two first meet each other. It's a rather funny, and yet also tender scene as Tarzan tries to make sense of things.
Tarzan earns a strong 4/5
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Top 5 Heroes, Heroines and Villains: 1970's to 1988
Once again we reach the Heroes, Heroines, and Villains for the Disney canon. While it was easy enough to narrow it down to just five for each, it was a bit harder to really put them in a definite order. However, I am quite happy with the results.
Top 5 Heroines:
5) Maid Marian (Robin Hood)
4) Duchess (Aristocats)
3) Princess Eilonwey (Black Cauldron)
2) Olivia Flaversham (Great Mouse Detective)
1) Miss Bianca (The Rescuers)
Top 5 Heroes:
5) Tod (Fox and the Hound)
4) Robin Hood (Robin Hood)
3) Dodger (Oliver and Company)
2) Basil (Great Mouse Detective)
1) Bernard (The Rescuers)
Top 5 Villains:
5) Sykes (Oliver and Company)
4) Prince John (Robin Hood)
3) Ratigan (Great Mouse Detective)
2) Horned King (Black Cauldron)
1) Madame Medusa (The Rescuers)
Top 5 Heroines:
5) Maid Marian (Robin Hood)
4) Duchess (Aristocats)
3) Princess Eilonwey (Black Cauldron)
2) Olivia Flaversham (Great Mouse Detective)
1) Miss Bianca (The Rescuers)
Top 5 Heroes:
5) Tod (Fox and the Hound)
4) Robin Hood (Robin Hood)
3) Dodger (Oliver and Company)
2) Basil (Great Mouse Detective)
1) Bernard (The Rescuers)
Top 5 Villains:
5) Sykes (Oliver and Company)
4) Prince John (Robin Hood)
3) Ratigan (Great Mouse Detective)
2) Horned King (Black Cauldron)
1) Madame Medusa (The Rescuers)
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Rescuers Down Under
The first Disney sequel to actually become a canon film, Rescuers Down Under often gets overlooked in favour of the original film, which can be understandable since it's hard to really outdo the first film. With that said, Rescuers Down Under still manages to hold it's own quite nicely.
Right off the bat there is a large jump in the animation department, given how many years had passed for the technology to improve, and it really shows. The opening sequence is really nice to look at, and I think all of the animation really suited the Australian location, while in the original the more watercolor feeling backgrounds felt fitting for the swamp location. One thing that stood out for me was how well the golden eagle, Marahute, looked. It definitely looks as if a lot of work was put into animating her, and it shows.
While the story is still a pretty basic "Rescue the child in danger," there's a few shifts in view points through the film. We get to follow our heroes Miss Bianca, Bernard and their guide Jake, though also check in at times with Cody the kidnapped child, the villain McLeach, and finally Wilbur the albatross who flies our heroes to the Outback. Despite the constant shift in viewpoints, everything was rather easy to follow though I think things would have been better if Wilbur had been given a smaller role so that Bianca and Bernard could have more focus given to them. We get two small subplots in the film, the first of which is Bernard trying to propose to Bianca, while the other follows Wilbur having hurt his spine during his landing. One thing about Wilbur's subplot is that the nurse mice are voiced by Russi Taylor, who is better known as Minnie Mouse.
However, there are two things that really stand out as flaws to me in this film aside from the rather average story. The first thing is that Cody scales up a GIGANTIC cliff without any gear at all and at one point he looks down and we see just how far up he is. This.... is a bit too unbelievable to really be taken seriously and as a kid I'm quite sure I just thought Cody was really cool for being able to do that, but now as an adult I just shake my head. The second thing that takes me out of story is that in the climax, Bernard dives down and drags Cody up above the surface of the rushing water and manages to save him. Again, it just feels like this is stretching logic a bit far that a mouse can drag a much heavier human up to the surface.
Now... the last thing I want to comment on is actually a really big can of worms and it's making the comparison of the talking animals versus the animals who we see that are unable to speak. This is hardly the first time where animals are able to speak in a film, or where animals are silent, but in this film we get a mixture of both much like in Talespin. So instead of rambling any further, I will (eventually) dedicate a full post to this.
All in all, Rescuers Down Under is a really good film and certainly one of the best sequels we have seen. With that said, there are still some flaws that keep this from being 'Great.'
3 1/2 /5
Right off the bat there is a large jump in the animation department, given how many years had passed for the technology to improve, and it really shows. The opening sequence is really nice to look at, and I think all of the animation really suited the Australian location, while in the original the more watercolor feeling backgrounds felt fitting for the swamp location. One thing that stood out for me was how well the golden eagle, Marahute, looked. It definitely looks as if a lot of work was put into animating her, and it shows.
While the story is still a pretty basic "Rescue the child in danger," there's a few shifts in view points through the film. We get to follow our heroes Miss Bianca, Bernard and their guide Jake, though also check in at times with Cody the kidnapped child, the villain McLeach, and finally Wilbur the albatross who flies our heroes to the Outback. Despite the constant shift in viewpoints, everything was rather easy to follow though I think things would have been better if Wilbur had been given a smaller role so that Bianca and Bernard could have more focus given to them. We get two small subplots in the film, the first of which is Bernard trying to propose to Bianca, while the other follows Wilbur having hurt his spine during his landing. One thing about Wilbur's subplot is that the nurse mice are voiced by Russi Taylor, who is better known as Minnie Mouse.
However, there are two things that really stand out as flaws to me in this film aside from the rather average story. The first thing is that Cody scales up a GIGANTIC cliff without any gear at all and at one point he looks down and we see just how far up he is. This.... is a bit too unbelievable to really be taken seriously and as a kid I'm quite sure I just thought Cody was really cool for being able to do that, but now as an adult I just shake my head. The second thing that takes me out of story is that in the climax, Bernard dives down and drags Cody up above the surface of the rushing water and manages to save him. Again, it just feels like this is stretching logic a bit far that a mouse can drag a much heavier human up to the surface.
Now... the last thing I want to comment on is actually a really big can of worms and it's making the comparison of the talking animals versus the animals who we see that are unable to speak. This is hardly the first time where animals are able to speak in a film, or where animals are silent, but in this film we get a mixture of both much like in Talespin. So instead of rambling any further, I will (eventually) dedicate a full post to this.
All in all, Rescuers Down Under is a really good film and certainly one of the best sequels we have seen. With that said, there are still some flaws that keep this from being 'Great.'
3 1/2 /5
Top 5 Sidekicks, Songs and Villain Sidekicks: 1970's - 1988
It's that time again to count down the Top 5 Sidekicks and Songs for the 1970's to the late 1980's Disney films. I'm also going to toss in a third Top 5 this time and will also countdown the Top 5 Villain's Sidekicks. So let's get started!
Top 5 Sidekicks (Heroes):
5) Gurgi (Black Cauldron)
4) Tito (Oliver and Company)
3) Evinrude (The Rescuers)
2) Dr. Dawson (Great Mouse Detective)
1) Lady Cluck (Robin Hood)
Top 5 Songs:
5) Perfect Isn't Easy (Oliver and Company)
4) Everybody Wants to Be a Cat (The Aristocats)
3) Heffalumps and Woozles (Winnie the Pooh)
2) Winnie the Pooh - Main Theme (Winnie the Pooh)
1) Why Should I Worry? (Oliver and Company)
Top 5 Sidekicks (Villains):
5) Brutus and Nero (The Rescuers)
4) Roscoe and Desoto (Oliver and Company)
3) Creeper (Black Cauldron)
2) Sir Hiss (Robin Hood)
1) Fidget (Great Mouse Detective)
Top 5 Sidekicks (Heroes):
5) Gurgi (Black Cauldron)
4) Tito (Oliver and Company)
3) Evinrude (The Rescuers)
2) Dr. Dawson (Great Mouse Detective)
1) Lady Cluck (Robin Hood)
Top 5 Songs:
5) Perfect Isn't Easy (Oliver and Company)
4) Everybody Wants to Be a Cat (The Aristocats)
3) Heffalumps and Woozles (Winnie the Pooh)
2) Winnie the Pooh - Main Theme (Winnie the Pooh)
1) Why Should I Worry? (Oliver and Company)
Top 5 Sidekicks (Villains):
5) Brutus and Nero (The Rescuers)
4) Roscoe and Desoto (Oliver and Company)
3) Creeper (Black Cauldron)
2) Sir Hiss (Robin Hood)
1) Fidget (Great Mouse Detective)
Friday, June 8, 2012
Great Mouse Detective
Perhaps one of the most underrated films in the Disney canon, Great Mouse Detective is one of the highlights during the darker age the 1970's and 1980's period. Despite being a highlight, so many people seem to forget about it or don't always give it credit it deserves.
A lot of things in this film are generally "Good," nothing more, nothing less. The animation is good, we get a good villain song, good characters who work well together and so forth. Being based around Sherlock Holmes, we get a rather fun story as Basil sets out to save young Olivia's father from the evil Ratigan.
The characters in this film are a slightly mixed bunch. Olivia is quite adorable at times, and unlike a lot of children in films, doesn't feel like she's being "The Load." Basil is a lot of fun, though does start off with a slightly arrogant feeling, though this is ok since it gives him room to grow through the story. Dr. Dawson provides a good balance to Basil, and I would be tempted to liken him to being the straight man of the duo when compared to Basil's personality. Of course a film isn't complete without it's villains and we get a rather great villain in the form of Ratigan, who is voiced by Vincent Price no less, and his henchman Fidget. Ratigan is a lot of fun as a villain, and his transformation at the end of the film into a much more crazed state is certainly a highlight. Fidget is one of those rare sidekicks to the villain who is actually pretty competent. He manages to kidnap people successfully, has a couple 'scary' scenes, and manages to obtain all the tools Ratigan needs in order to further his scheme.
This film has two final things I really wanted to point out. One of course is almost an obligation, this being how Great Mouse Detective featured use of computer technology during the Big Ben climax. So yes, this is well done and merges rather well with the hand drawn animation. Obligation aside, one thing that I rarely see pointed out is how dark and gloomy the entire film is. From start to finish we never actually see the sun, or daylight at all. Everything takes place at night, and the entire atmosphere is rather gloomy, even with a bit of fog. I actually found this to be a perk to the film since use of daylight might ruin the tone of things.
Always worth a watch, Great Mouse Detective can be quite fun, especially to hear Vincent Price having a blast as the evil Ratigan.
3 1/2 /5
A lot of things in this film are generally "Good," nothing more, nothing less. The animation is good, we get a good villain song, good characters who work well together and so forth. Being based around Sherlock Holmes, we get a rather fun story as Basil sets out to save young Olivia's father from the evil Ratigan.
The characters in this film are a slightly mixed bunch. Olivia is quite adorable at times, and unlike a lot of children in films, doesn't feel like she's being "The Load." Basil is a lot of fun, though does start off with a slightly arrogant feeling, though this is ok since it gives him room to grow through the story. Dr. Dawson provides a good balance to Basil, and I would be tempted to liken him to being the straight man of the duo when compared to Basil's personality. Of course a film isn't complete without it's villains and we get a rather great villain in the form of Ratigan, who is voiced by Vincent Price no less, and his henchman Fidget. Ratigan is a lot of fun as a villain, and his transformation at the end of the film into a much more crazed state is certainly a highlight. Fidget is one of those rare sidekicks to the villain who is actually pretty competent. He manages to kidnap people successfully, has a couple 'scary' scenes, and manages to obtain all the tools Ratigan needs in order to further his scheme.
This film has two final things I really wanted to point out. One of course is almost an obligation, this being how Great Mouse Detective featured use of computer technology during the Big Ben climax. So yes, this is well done and merges rather well with the hand drawn animation. Obligation aside, one thing that I rarely see pointed out is how dark and gloomy the entire film is. From start to finish we never actually see the sun, or daylight at all. Everything takes place at night, and the entire atmosphere is rather gloomy, even with a bit of fog. I actually found this to be a perk to the film since use of daylight might ruin the tone of things.
Always worth a watch, Great Mouse Detective can be quite fun, especially to hear Vincent Price having a blast as the evil Ratigan.
3 1/2 /5
Robin Hood
Robin Hood is one of those rare Disney films that actually excludes human characters fully. Quite often when it's a more animal based story, such as Oliver and Company or The Rescuers, we still get a few humans who play a part. In Robin Hood's case, however, we get the entire cast as animals. Despite being set in England, a large part of the animal choices are not even native to the country.
This film is an odd mix. While it can be a lot of fun to watch, with quite a few entertaining scenes there is still a feeling that this film isn't really living up to it's full potential. One scene we have that works really well is when Robin Hood is stealing all of the gold right out of Prince John's bedroom during a jail break. The entire sequence is full of suspense and is really well done, but then we get scenes like the "Phony King of England" which is much less entertaining and uses a ton of recycled animation from previous films.
Another thing that does hamper this film is how the songs aren't exactly memorable. "Whistle Stop" is perhaps best known not for it's use in this film, but as a much slower version of the Hamster Dance. While "Love" is probably the best known song from this film, the lyrics leave quite a bit to be desired.
What Robin Hood lacks in the song department, it more than makes up for it with characters. Prince John and Sir Hiss are completely delightful to watch, as is Lady Cluck who even gets an entertaining football-esque scene at one point. Despite being the main leads, Robin Hood is just charming enough to be likable while Maid Marion makes for a good match. Perhaps the worst of the characters is Little John, who is essentially a recolored Baloo wearing clothing. As far as the voice actors go, there are a lot of familiar voices floating about including the voice actors for Merryweather, Piglet, Jasper, the goose sisters from Aristocats, and of course Baloo.
Despite it's flaws, Robin Hood still manages to entertain and if you're able to push past recycled animation then this film is all the better.
3/5
This film is an odd mix. While it can be a lot of fun to watch, with quite a few entertaining scenes there is still a feeling that this film isn't really living up to it's full potential. One scene we have that works really well is when Robin Hood is stealing all of the gold right out of Prince John's bedroom during a jail break. The entire sequence is full of suspense and is really well done, but then we get scenes like the "Phony King of England" which is much less entertaining and uses a ton of recycled animation from previous films.
Another thing that does hamper this film is how the songs aren't exactly memorable. "Whistle Stop" is perhaps best known not for it's use in this film, but as a much slower version of the Hamster Dance. While "Love" is probably the best known song from this film, the lyrics leave quite a bit to be desired.
What Robin Hood lacks in the song department, it more than makes up for it with characters. Prince John and Sir Hiss are completely delightful to watch, as is Lady Cluck who even gets an entertaining football-esque scene at one point. Despite being the main leads, Robin Hood is just charming enough to be likable while Maid Marion makes for a good match. Perhaps the worst of the characters is Little John, who is essentially a recolored Baloo wearing clothing. As far as the voice actors go, there are a lot of familiar voices floating about including the voice actors for Merryweather, Piglet, Jasper, the goose sisters from Aristocats, and of course Baloo.
Despite it's flaws, Robin Hood still manages to entertain and if you're able to push past recycled animation then this film is all the better.
3/5
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
We now reach the original Winnie the Pooh film, which was originally three smaller shorts that were pieced together to create one film. Before he started appearing in his own t.v show during the 80's, this was generally our first encounter with the silly old bear and is a great way to introduce Pooh and his world to viewers.
First off, the animation is full of charm and whimsy and it really captures the storybook feeling quite well. While the technology available at the time does date the film a tad, it still holds it own quite well even against the more modern Winnie the Pooh film.
Once again the story, or stories, are very simple which usually creates a problem in films. This, like Peanuts, is not the case for Winnie the Pooh since our characters don't need overly complex plots, and just seeing their day to day lives is entertaining as it is. Everyone in the Hundred Acre Wood fits into things in their own way and nobody ever feels useless or like they are taking up too much time from other characters. During these three shorts we are also introduced to Gopher, who has his own clever joke about how he's "Not in the book," which is of course a reference to how he is an original character created by Disney.
One thing I really want to note about this film is how the voices really seem to fit well with the characters. Nobody came across as an odd choice or sounded weird when matched to their characters. I think perhaps this original voice cast is my favourite group, when comparing them to the more recent film. Of course it is silly to expect the original cast to still be around after all these years, but they really added to the charm the characters have.
This film is also where we get the wonderfully WTF'tastic sequence, "Heffalumps and Woozles," which is perhaps one of my favourite scenes out of the whole film. Some parts of it that stood out for me were the Heffalumps and Woozles in band uniforms, the Heffalumps as hot air balloons, and when one Heffalump looks like a bubble and fills with honey. The sequence did feel a tad longer than I had remembered, yet I still enjoyed every second of it.
So. It sounds like this film would be a contender for a full 5/5 right? Well. Not quite. Each of these three shorts on their own are very deserving of a full 5/5 score, but when patched together it does give that feeling of "Too much of a good thing" and slightly makes things drag out. The other detracting factor is that Gopher does come across a bit too strongly at times, and he tends to push his "Not in the book" line at us one too many times. With that said I am all too happy to give this film the following score:
4 1/2 /5
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Rankings. How Do They Work?
Time to lay it all out. Thus far not one film has earned lower than a 2 or higher than a 4. Why? Why do so many films get a 3? What's with those half marks? Well, let me explain it all as best I can.
5 Star Ranking.
- Rare to see. These 5 Star films are the cream of the crop, the tip of the top and it's where we stop. Pardon the references, but a 5 Star ranking has to feel perfectly perfect in every way to me. Which is where the debate will begin, because SOMEONE out there may not agree with everything I say, think, or feel. Which is fine. A 5 Star film, to me, is one that I really, really enjoy and love to watch. I love the characters, the songs (if there are any), the story etc.
4 Star Ranking:
- Not as rare as 5's, but still elusive. These are films that almost had it in my mind. The ones that are almost 'perfect' and might have a few minor flaws that I still overlook because the rest of the film just works so well.
3 Star Ranking:
- The most common ranking there will be. This is the "Happy Middle Ground" for me. While there are flaws to keep it from a 4 or 5 Star ranking, they are still quite enjoyable to me and might be considered "Fun, fluffy popcorn flicks" by others. There's a very good chance a lot of films might be here where other people go "OH NO that is NOT a 3 Star film." To which I say, "Not to you. To me, however, it is."
2 Star Ranking:
- Guilty pleasures abound. Not great films, but not terrible enough for me to say "Oh dear god avoid it." These films have too many flaws, or too big of flaws to really warrant a higher rating at all, but, I will still watch them and get some form of enjoyment out of it.
1 Star Ranking:
- Terrible. Just....terrible. Not even as a guilty pleasure. I pray that this ranking is never needed.
Half Stars:
- These are for films where I waver on it. I want to say it's one mark higher, but also feel it might be one mark lower. Since I waver so much, it's easier just to put it a little bit in between two rankings. This also suggests that with a little tweak it could have been a bit higher but just fell a tiny bit short.
So. What do I consider when I rank films? Any of the following:
- Story
- Characters - Is there character growth? Do I even like the characters?
- Villain/Antagonist - Are they a good villain or are they just terrible?
- Songs - For the musical oriented films, are the songs memorable? Do enough of them stand out?
- Animation - Is the animation any good? Does it look bad? How pretty is it?
- The Climax - Did I get enjoyment out of the ending?
So there you have it. A basic idea of what goes on in my head when I put down these rankings.
5 Star Ranking.
- Rare to see. These 5 Star films are the cream of the crop, the tip of the top and it's where we stop. Pardon the references, but a 5 Star ranking has to feel perfectly perfect in every way to me. Which is where the debate will begin, because SOMEONE out there may not agree with everything I say, think, or feel. Which is fine. A 5 Star film, to me, is one that I really, really enjoy and love to watch. I love the characters, the songs (if there are any), the story etc.
4 Star Ranking:
- Not as rare as 5's, but still elusive. These are films that almost had it in my mind. The ones that are almost 'perfect' and might have a few minor flaws that I still overlook because the rest of the film just works so well.
3 Star Ranking:
- The most common ranking there will be. This is the "Happy Middle Ground" for me. While there are flaws to keep it from a 4 or 5 Star ranking, they are still quite enjoyable to me and might be considered "Fun, fluffy popcorn flicks" by others. There's a very good chance a lot of films might be here where other people go "OH NO that is NOT a 3 Star film." To which I say, "Not to you. To me, however, it is."
2 Star Ranking:
- Guilty pleasures abound. Not great films, but not terrible enough for me to say "Oh dear god avoid it." These films have too many flaws, or too big of flaws to really warrant a higher rating at all, but, I will still watch them and get some form of enjoyment out of it.
1 Star Ranking:
- Terrible. Just....terrible. Not even as a guilty pleasure. I pray that this ranking is never needed.
Half Stars:
- These are for films where I waver on it. I want to say it's one mark higher, but also feel it might be one mark lower. Since I waver so much, it's easier just to put it a little bit in between two rankings. This also suggests that with a little tweak it could have been a bit higher but just fell a tiny bit short.
So. What do I consider when I rank films? Any of the following:
- Story
- Characters - Is there character growth? Do I even like the characters?
- Villain/Antagonist - Are they a good villain or are they just terrible?
- Songs - For the musical oriented films, are the songs memorable? Do enough of them stand out?
- Animation - Is the animation any good? Does it look bad? How pretty is it?
- The Climax - Did I get enjoyment out of the ending?
So there you have it. A basic idea of what goes on in my head when I put down these rankings.
Black Cauldron
Some of you might be scratching your head going "Black Cauldron? What's that?" Well, the Black Cauldron is constantly branded as a black sheep of the Disney canon and every reviewer is practically contracted to state this when reviewing or mentioning the film. So there you go. Why is it the black sheep though? For one it was considered a flop, and since it's from a darker time at the studios it's much easier to pretend it doesn't exist.
So. Is it a good film? Weeeell......kind of. The biggest problem commonly given to this film is the poor animation, which again has notable cel's showing. There's a lot of rough animation here, though I do admit I really enjoy the Morva backgrounds and the shots of the Horned King's lair. One part of the animation that I also really liked was when Hen Wen (the oracular pig) does her vision in the beginning of the film, as well as most of the big scenes with the Horned King, such as when he first enters, when he teleports into his throne room and his death scene at the end.
The biggest problem I had, however, was with the story. Disney, for whatever reason, decided to do a LOT of tinkering with the story of the Black Cauldron, a number of characters were cut out and the villain of the original book was changed into the evil spirit that inhabits the cauldron. The Horned King was lifted from the first book of the Prydain series, though the only reason for this that I have heard is "Because he has horns like Maleficent and Chernabog." So...there you have it. Randomness at it's best? So because Disney did this, we get a lot of back and forth in the plot and some unneeded filler that could have better been used as development for the characters. One minor thing to note is that this film is lacking -any- songs at all, not even a single song to play over the background!
On the note of the characters the vast majority of them do stay the same. I do want to point out that both Gurgi and Taran do have small character growth during the film, but it's not quite on the same level as Beast from Beauty and the Beast for example. Princess Eilonwey is an interesting character who certainly has a bit of spunk, though sadly or perhaps thankfully, she will never be part of the horrid Princess franchise. The Witches of Morva are an interesting trio, and I have always had a small fondness for them, even if their entrance was badly handled. We could have had more scenes giving them some background. The final character I really want to talk about is the Horned King. This guy is -awesome- and is pretty much the reason this film is actually rated PG, or so I presume. He can be quite frightening, and despite a simplistic robe and appearance he really sticks out and is wonderfully voiced. A very good addition to the villain roster.
So. All in all, the Black Cauldron does suffer from plot hindrances and from relatively plain characters, yet there is still an enjoyability factor to it. Perhaps with some plot work, and maybe some character development, this could have been a much better film.
2 1/2/5
So. Is it a good film? Weeeell......kind of. The biggest problem commonly given to this film is the poor animation, which again has notable cel's showing. There's a lot of rough animation here, though I do admit I really enjoy the Morva backgrounds and the shots of the Horned King's lair. One part of the animation that I also really liked was when Hen Wen (the oracular pig) does her vision in the beginning of the film, as well as most of the big scenes with the Horned King, such as when he first enters, when he teleports into his throne room and his death scene at the end.
The biggest problem I had, however, was with the story. Disney, for whatever reason, decided to do a LOT of tinkering with the story of the Black Cauldron, a number of characters were cut out and the villain of the original book was changed into the evil spirit that inhabits the cauldron. The Horned King was lifted from the first book of the Prydain series, though the only reason for this that I have heard is "Because he has horns like Maleficent and Chernabog." So...there you have it. Randomness at it's best? So because Disney did this, we get a lot of back and forth in the plot and some unneeded filler that could have better been used as development for the characters. One minor thing to note is that this film is lacking -any- songs at all, not even a single song to play over the background!
On the note of the characters the vast majority of them do stay the same. I do want to point out that both Gurgi and Taran do have small character growth during the film, but it's not quite on the same level as Beast from Beauty and the Beast for example. Princess Eilonwey is an interesting character who certainly has a bit of spunk, though sadly or perhaps thankfully, she will never be part of the horrid Princess franchise. The Witches of Morva are an interesting trio, and I have always had a small fondness for them, even if their entrance was badly handled. We could have had more scenes giving them some background. The final character I really want to talk about is the Horned King. This guy is -awesome- and is pretty much the reason this film is actually rated PG, or so I presume. He can be quite frightening, and despite a simplistic robe and appearance he really sticks out and is wonderfully voiced. A very good addition to the villain roster.
So. All in all, the Black Cauldron does suffer from plot hindrances and from relatively plain characters, yet there is still an enjoyability factor to it. Perhaps with some plot work, and maybe some character development, this could have been a much better film.
2 1/2/5
Monday, June 4, 2012
The Rescuers
Like a few of the films during the post-Walt years, The Rescuers is actually a fun film and generally overlooked due to the huge shadow the princess oriented films tend to cast.
The animation is quite on par through the film, and is actually a much darker film than Oliver and Company or Fox and the Hound. Perhaps the only flaw that I can pick up on in the animation, is that during the vehicle shots, characters and the vehicle being used tend to stand out from the background a bit more which make the cel a tad obvious. Other than this minor bit, the animation is still quite pretty to look at.
Our story is pretty straightforward. A young girl named Penny has been abducted, and it is up to Bernard, a handyman mouse, and Miss Bianca to go and save her from the clutches of Madame Medusa. Along the way, our two heroic mice grow closer and make friends with some swamp folk who are all too eager to help drive away Medusa.
Much like most films from this time period, the songs are not sung by the characters themselves and are instead played in the background. Most of the songs don't have quite the same lasting power as other films in the canon, yet they are still quite fitting to the film and are a wonderful addition.
Two small things in this film did stand out to me, one made me giggle while the other made me scratch my head a bit. What made me giggle was how Bernard in his handyman outfit reminded me quite a bit of Mario, of Nintendo fame. The thing that made me scratch my head was how Penny does not seem to question talking animals. By the time she meets Bernard and Bianca, she already knows animals can talk and yet in a flashback the kitty at the orphanage simply chats with her like it's fully normal. It makes me wonder if this is normal in this world, or how exactly talking animals work precisely. Is it just something children can hear? A rather minor thing, yet it's something I picked up on.
One larger thing to point out is our villain, Madame Medusa. She is quite overlooked when being ranked with other villains. Two things that really stand out about her is that she is willing to go to any length to get what she wants, even if it means endangering Penny's life. The second is a very brief scene that really drives home her cruelty when she has a chat with Penny and asks the little girl "Why would anyone want a homely girl like you?" and says it so casually. One interesting thing to note is that originally Cruella De Vil was supposed to be the villain in this film, yet in the end they made Medusa, which is the right choice in my own opinion, though the two ladies share the same skill in driving.
3 1/2 /5
The animation is quite on par through the film, and is actually a much darker film than Oliver and Company or Fox and the Hound. Perhaps the only flaw that I can pick up on in the animation, is that during the vehicle shots, characters and the vehicle being used tend to stand out from the background a bit more which make the cel a tad obvious. Other than this minor bit, the animation is still quite pretty to look at.
Our story is pretty straightforward. A young girl named Penny has been abducted, and it is up to Bernard, a handyman mouse, and Miss Bianca to go and save her from the clutches of Madame Medusa. Along the way, our two heroic mice grow closer and make friends with some swamp folk who are all too eager to help drive away Medusa.
Much like most films from this time period, the songs are not sung by the characters themselves and are instead played in the background. Most of the songs don't have quite the same lasting power as other films in the canon, yet they are still quite fitting to the film and are a wonderful addition.
Two small things in this film did stand out to me, one made me giggle while the other made me scratch my head a bit. What made me giggle was how Bernard in his handyman outfit reminded me quite a bit of Mario, of Nintendo fame. The thing that made me scratch my head was how Penny does not seem to question talking animals. By the time she meets Bernard and Bianca, she already knows animals can talk and yet in a flashback the kitty at the orphanage simply chats with her like it's fully normal. It makes me wonder if this is normal in this world, or how exactly talking animals work precisely. Is it just something children can hear? A rather minor thing, yet it's something I picked up on.
One larger thing to point out is our villain, Madame Medusa. She is quite overlooked when being ranked with other villains. Two things that really stand out about her is that she is willing to go to any length to get what she wants, even if it means endangering Penny's life. The second is a very brief scene that really drives home her cruelty when she has a chat with Penny and asks the little girl "Why would anyone want a homely girl like you?" and says it so casually. One interesting thing to note is that originally Cruella De Vil was supposed to be the villain in this film, yet in the end they made Medusa, which is the right choice in my own opinion, though the two ladies share the same skill in driving.
3 1/2 /5
Sunday, June 3, 2012
What Is a Disney Era?
As you've been reading through these reviews, lately I have been mentioning the Eras in Disney. Essentially, the Disney Animated Classics can be broken down into various Eras or Periods. Of course, Disney fans all have their own idea of when certain ones start and end, there are a few agreed upon ones that appear to be more or less set in stone. Given how this is my own personal blog, this is how I view the timeline, though will include little notes here and there on where some people debate on things.
The Golden Age:
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
- Pinocchio
- Fantasia
- Dumbo
- Bambi
This age is generally set in stone, as is the following.
The War Years/Package Years/First Dark Age:
- Saludos Amigos
- 3 Caballeros
- Make Mine Music
- Fun and Fancy Free
- Melody Time
- Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
The Silver Age:
- Cinderella
- Alice in Wonderland
- Peter Pan
- Lady and the Tramp
- Sleeping Beauty
- 101 Dalmatians
- The Sword in the Stone
- The Jungle Book
The Silver Age always seems to begin with Cinderella, though when it ends is usually a matter of preference. Personally I cut it off at the last film that Walt Disney was heavily involved in, even if he was unable to see it through to completion.
The Dark Age/ Second Dark Age:
- Aristocats
- Robin Hood
- Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Rescuers
- Fox and the Hound
- Black Cauldron
- Great Mouse Detective
- Oliver and Company
This Dark Age follows the films after Walt's death, until Disney was able to launch the following Renaissance period. Again because of where this Age starts, there is debate on it, though it seems to be agreed upon that Oliver and Company is the last film for this Age.
The Renaissance:
- Little Mermaid (First of the Big 4)
- Rescuers Down Under
- Beauty and the Beast (Second of the Big 4)
- Aladdin (Third of the Big 4)
- Lion King (Last of the Big 4)
- Pocahontas
- Hunchback of Notre Dame
- Hercules
- Mulan
- Tarzan
This Renaissance period is quite notably a nostalgic one for me, being born during the same year as Little Mermaid, I was able to grow up with a new Disney film every year, right up until about 2000. There is a small debate on if Tarzan ends this Age, or if it goes further to Emperors New Groove. However, I generally cut it off here given how Fantasia 2000 and Dinosaur would wind up part of this age.
The Third Dark Age/ Bronze Period:
- Fantasia 2000
- Dinosaur
- Emperors New Groove
- Atlantis
- Lilo and Stitch
- Treasure Planet
- Brother Bear
- Home on the Range
- Chicken Little
- Meet the Robinsons
- Bolt
Current Age:
- Princess and the Frog
- Tangled
- Winnie the Pooh
- Wreck It Ralph (Upcoming)
- King of the Elves (Upcoming)
- Frozen (Upcoming)
There is still some debate on whether or not things are still in a "Post Renaissance" age, or if Princess and the Frog has brought about a "Redemption Age." With three films to work with right now, it might take another couple years or so to really get a better idea of things. For all purposes, I have divide things into a "Current Age" for the time being. This is subject to change, though I really hope the upcoming films are able to steer us back into a Renaissance period.
So now you know, and knowing is half the battle!
The Golden Age:
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
- Pinocchio
- Fantasia
- Dumbo
- Bambi
This age is generally set in stone, as is the following.
The War Years/Package Years/First Dark Age:
- Saludos Amigos
- 3 Caballeros
- Make Mine Music
- Fun and Fancy Free
- Melody Time
- Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
The Silver Age:
- Cinderella
- Alice in Wonderland
- Peter Pan
- Lady and the Tramp
- Sleeping Beauty
- 101 Dalmatians
- The Sword in the Stone
- The Jungle Book
The Silver Age always seems to begin with Cinderella, though when it ends is usually a matter of preference. Personally I cut it off at the last film that Walt Disney was heavily involved in, even if he was unable to see it through to completion.
The Dark Age/ Second Dark Age:
- Aristocats
- Robin Hood
- Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Rescuers
- Fox and the Hound
- Black Cauldron
- Great Mouse Detective
- Oliver and Company
This Dark Age follows the films after Walt's death, until Disney was able to launch the following Renaissance period. Again because of where this Age starts, there is debate on it, though it seems to be agreed upon that Oliver and Company is the last film for this Age.
The Renaissance:
- Little Mermaid (First of the Big 4)
- Rescuers Down Under
- Beauty and the Beast (Second of the Big 4)
- Aladdin (Third of the Big 4)
- Lion King (Last of the Big 4)
- Pocahontas
- Hunchback of Notre Dame
- Hercules
- Mulan
- Tarzan
This Renaissance period is quite notably a nostalgic one for me, being born during the same year as Little Mermaid, I was able to grow up with a new Disney film every year, right up until about 2000. There is a small debate on if Tarzan ends this Age, or if it goes further to Emperors New Groove. However, I generally cut it off here given how Fantasia 2000 and Dinosaur would wind up part of this age.
The Third Dark Age/ Bronze Period:
- Fantasia 2000
- Dinosaur
- Emperors New Groove
- Atlantis
- Lilo and Stitch
- Treasure Planet
- Brother Bear
- Home on the Range
- Chicken Little
- Meet the Robinsons
- Bolt
Current Age:
- Princess and the Frog
- Tangled
- Winnie the Pooh
- Wreck It Ralph (Upcoming)
- King of the Elves (Upcoming)
- Frozen (Upcoming)
There is still some debate on whether or not things are still in a "Post Renaissance" age, or if Princess and the Frog has brought about a "Redemption Age." With three films to work with right now, it might take another couple years or so to really get a better idea of things. For all purposes, I have divide things into a "Current Age" for the time being. This is subject to change, though I really hope the upcoming films are able to steer us back into a Renaissance period.
So now you know, and knowing is half the battle!
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Aristocats
The Aristocats is the first of three things. It marks the beginning of a darker period in Disney's years, it's the first film done without Walt (whom had passed away during early development), and it is the first film to heavily feature felines. Yet it's also not as memorable as many other Disney classics.
The thing about Aristocats, is that while it is a lot of fun there's just not anything that's big enough to make it stand out from all of the other talking animal films. The animation looks nice, and thankfully avoids the cel problems that most of the upcoming films ran into, and the character designs are pleasing. The two character designs that I enjoyed the most were Madame, and Duchess. The kittens were rather cute, and easy to distinguish from each other, and had a certain spunk to them. Despite being important to the story, O'Malley feels like one of the characters not handled very well, ultimately he just comes across as a cat version of Baloo. Being voiced by the same actor certainly doesn't help, and the two even sing songs which are a tad similar to each other.
Musically, Aristocats does pretty well. Despite being similar to 'Bare Necessities,' the song 'Thomas O'Malley' is one of the films strengths, along with 'Scales and Arpeggios' and 'Every'body Wants to Be A Cat,' the latter of which is probably the most memorable and infuses the film with a much needed boost.
The entire film, again, is rather fun as we watch Duchess and her three kittens embark on a journey to get home, after their owner's butler tries to get rid of them upon learning they will inherit all of the money and estates. Along the way they meet the alley cat Thomas O'Malley, and set out on a series of adventures in order to get home. Perhaps the more annoying bit of the adventures is a trio of geese that they come across. While as a child I found them fun, upon more recent viewing I find that they are a bit tiring. In a way they remind me of annoying drunks who you wish would just leave so you can have some peace and quiet. As a villain, Edgar is ok, though there are certainly better villains out there.
3/5
The thing about Aristocats, is that while it is a lot of fun there's just not anything that's big enough to make it stand out from all of the other talking animal films. The animation looks nice, and thankfully avoids the cel problems that most of the upcoming films ran into, and the character designs are pleasing. The two character designs that I enjoyed the most were Madame, and Duchess. The kittens were rather cute, and easy to distinguish from each other, and had a certain spunk to them. Despite being important to the story, O'Malley feels like one of the characters not handled very well, ultimately he just comes across as a cat version of Baloo. Being voiced by the same actor certainly doesn't help, and the two even sing songs which are a tad similar to each other.
Musically, Aristocats does pretty well. Despite being similar to 'Bare Necessities,' the song 'Thomas O'Malley' is one of the films strengths, along with 'Scales and Arpeggios' and 'Every'body Wants to Be A Cat,' the latter of which is probably the most memorable and infuses the film with a much needed boost.
The entire film, again, is rather fun as we watch Duchess and her three kittens embark on a journey to get home, after their owner's butler tries to get rid of them upon learning they will inherit all of the money and estates. Along the way they meet the alley cat Thomas O'Malley, and set out on a series of adventures in order to get home. Perhaps the more annoying bit of the adventures is a trio of geese that they come across. While as a child I found them fun, upon more recent viewing I find that they are a bit tiring. In a way they remind me of annoying drunks who you wish would just leave so you can have some peace and quiet. As a villain, Edgar is ok, though there are certainly better villains out there.
3/5
Friday, June 1, 2012
Oliver and Company
Oliver and Company was the final film to be released before Disney began it's lengthy renaissance run. In some ways it does feel like it set us up for this new period by bringing back a more musical oriented feeling to the Disney films. One of the most immediately notable things about this film is that the inclusion of the twin towers in New York city gives it not only a modern day setting, but also dates it as a pre-9/11 film. This is a rather odd departure not only from olden day settings, but also moves away from an animal story being set largely in a forested area. Also, before you go into this any further there will be spoilers of sorts all through this.
Oliver and Company follows the super adorable kitten, Oliver, as he crosses paths with street-wise Dodger, a crook dog, and his canine gang. In turn, the gang acts as family and helps support a down-on-his-luck man named Fagin. Man I hope I managed to spell that name right, because seriously? Of ALL the names you could give him, you go with -that?- Anyway's. Oliver winds up being bad at gang-life and is soon taken in by a little girl named Jenny. Toss in a loan shark villain who is out to get his money back at any cost, and you've got this film.
Now. Surprisingly this film is a bit dark at times, primarily when the villain is around. In the past I used to not care much about this film, or the villain and yet looking at it years later I find a new appreciation for it. In one scene, the villain is actually giving someone tips on how to drown a man, and then of course we have the entire chase scene at the end. This chase scene is surprisingly violent and shows two of the villains dogs fall onto the electrified train tracks with a yelp, not to mention the villain himself being blow up because he got hit by a train. I repeat. His car was rammed into by a train. Complete with explosion. This...is Disney right?
Right. So happier topics? Songs! We have lots of great songs in here. "Why Should I Worry" and "Perfect Isn't Easy" are easily two of the stand out songs from this film, the first being performed by Billy Joel, while the latter is performed by Better Middler. Both of whom voice their respective characters as well. While we're on that note, the third voice actor I want to point out is Dom Deluise who is awesome as usual, in the role of Fagin.
So. The animation is actually rather interesting. It's not quite up there in the "Amazing" category, but it's still pretty good and our characters mesh better with the backgrounds instead of popping out and being obvious cels. The film has a lot of fun scenes, especially the "Why Should I Worry?" number, and even the opening "Once Upon A Time In New York City."
As far as characters go there is one who really stood out for me and that is Dodger. For whatever reason I just love the character, and I think a fair part of it is his design. The two other characters who I really enjoyed were Georgette, voiced by Bette Middler, and the villain Sykes. While I've already talked about Sykes up above, Georgette is a spoiled show dog who spends a lot of time in the shady grey area. She isn't nice to our hero, but at the same time she doesn't really go out of her way to harm him either. Instead she's just a bit selfish and wants him out of her way, even if it means letting Dodger and his gang invade her home for a while to 'rescue' him.
Certainly one of Disney's overlooked films, Oliver and Company is worth a watch, or five. 3 1/2 /5
Edit: Updated the rating.
Oliver and Company follows the super adorable kitten, Oliver, as he crosses paths with street-wise Dodger, a crook dog, and his canine gang. In turn, the gang acts as family and helps support a down-on-his-luck man named Fagin. Man I hope I managed to spell that name right, because seriously? Of ALL the names you could give him, you go with -that?- Anyway's. Oliver winds up being bad at gang-life and is soon taken in by a little girl named Jenny. Toss in a loan shark villain who is out to get his money back at any cost, and you've got this film.
Now. Surprisingly this film is a bit dark at times, primarily when the villain is around. In the past I used to not care much about this film, or the villain and yet looking at it years later I find a new appreciation for it. In one scene, the villain is actually giving someone tips on how to drown a man, and then of course we have the entire chase scene at the end. This chase scene is surprisingly violent and shows two of the villains dogs fall onto the electrified train tracks with a yelp, not to mention the villain himself being blow up because he got hit by a train. I repeat. His car was rammed into by a train. Complete with explosion. This...is Disney right?
Right. So happier topics? Songs! We have lots of great songs in here. "Why Should I Worry" and "Perfect Isn't Easy" are easily two of the stand out songs from this film, the first being performed by Billy Joel, while the latter is performed by Better Middler. Both of whom voice their respective characters as well. While we're on that note, the third voice actor I want to point out is Dom Deluise who is awesome as usual, in the role of Fagin.
So. The animation is actually rather interesting. It's not quite up there in the "Amazing" category, but it's still pretty good and our characters mesh better with the backgrounds instead of popping out and being obvious cels. The film has a lot of fun scenes, especially the "Why Should I Worry?" number, and even the opening "Once Upon A Time In New York City."
As far as characters go there is one who really stood out for me and that is Dodger. For whatever reason I just love the character, and I think a fair part of it is his design. The two other characters who I really enjoyed were Georgette, voiced by Bette Middler, and the villain Sykes. While I've already talked about Sykes up above, Georgette is a spoiled show dog who spends a lot of time in the shady grey area. She isn't nice to our hero, but at the same time she doesn't really go out of her way to harm him either. Instead she's just a bit selfish and wants him out of her way, even if it means letting Dodger and his gang invade her home for a while to 'rescue' him.
Certainly one of Disney's overlooked films, Oliver and Company is worth a watch, or five. 3 1/2 /5
Edit: Updated the rating.
Fox and the Hound
The 1970's and 1980's were a hard period for Disney's animated classics. After Walt had passed on, the company spent a lot of time seemingly trying to figure out "What would Walt do?" This lead to a rather darker period and for a while the live action films started to get churned out faster and more often. Fox and the Hound is a film that does bear a few resemblances to not only Bambi, but is also set in a world of talking canines much like 101 Dalmatians and Lady and the Tramp.
The basic story was adapted from a much, much darker novel of the same name and still retains some of the less happy material. Our two main heroes are Tod the fox, and Copper the hound dog. This unlikely pair become fast friends despite their differences. Following the same vein as Bambi, we soon time skip ahead to Spring and everyone starts to change. The main question is will the two still be friends despite Copper having gone off to learn how to hunt? The entire last act answers this in a rather surprising manner as their friendship is put to the test and results in a rather action packed sequence involving a very, very angry bear.
So, let's take a look at our characters. On the one hand, baby/young Tod and Copper are extremely adorable to watch. When they get older, however, things take an odd turn as they become voiced by Mickey Rooney and Kurt Russell. Oooook. Odd choices, yet it works well enough. We also have a trio of birds including the owl Big Mama, and a pair of birds named Boomer and Dinky whose primary goal is to try and eat a tiny caterpillar. From there we have the kindly Widow Tweed who raises Tod, and her gun happy neighbour Amos Slade who raises Copper, as well as an older dog named Chief. Rounding out the cast are Vixey who is only around to be the Love Interest, and a porcupine.
Quite a few of these characters aren't quite as memorable, Tod and Copper don't really have enough going for them to warrant a whole lot to say. Both Widow Tweed and Amos Slade have the potential for more depth, but their limited screen time keeps this from happening.
The film itself does look a tad dated in the animation department. There are times where it doesn't look all that bad, such as the opening chase, but at other times you are very much aware that the characters are not meshing with the backgrounds. This is quite obvious during most of the film, and it can be a tad distacting as it keeps you from fully immersing yourself. Despite all this, the ending is quite well done as no dialogue is given and yet winds up being really expressive.
The songs in this film are much like most of the characters, not all that memorable. The one exception is the song "Best of Friends" which is sung early in by Big Mama and is likely the one song that everyone remembers from this film.
While Fox and the Hound isn't the worst feature to be put out, it's also far from the best in the Disney canon.
3/5
The basic story was adapted from a much, much darker novel of the same name and still retains some of the less happy material. Our two main heroes are Tod the fox, and Copper the hound dog. This unlikely pair become fast friends despite their differences. Following the same vein as Bambi, we soon time skip ahead to Spring and everyone starts to change. The main question is will the two still be friends despite Copper having gone off to learn how to hunt? The entire last act answers this in a rather surprising manner as their friendship is put to the test and results in a rather action packed sequence involving a very, very angry bear.
So, let's take a look at our characters. On the one hand, baby/young Tod and Copper are extremely adorable to watch. When they get older, however, things take an odd turn as they become voiced by Mickey Rooney and Kurt Russell. Oooook. Odd choices, yet it works well enough. We also have a trio of birds including the owl Big Mama, and a pair of birds named Boomer and Dinky whose primary goal is to try and eat a tiny caterpillar. From there we have the kindly Widow Tweed who raises Tod, and her gun happy neighbour Amos Slade who raises Copper, as well as an older dog named Chief. Rounding out the cast are Vixey who is only around to be the Love Interest, and a porcupine.
Quite a few of these characters aren't quite as memorable, Tod and Copper don't really have enough going for them to warrant a whole lot to say. Both Widow Tweed and Amos Slade have the potential for more depth, but their limited screen time keeps this from happening.
The film itself does look a tad dated in the animation department. There are times where it doesn't look all that bad, such as the opening chase, but at other times you are very much aware that the characters are not meshing with the backgrounds. This is quite obvious during most of the film, and it can be a tad distacting as it keeps you from fully immersing yourself. Despite all this, the ending is quite well done as no dialogue is given and yet winds up being really expressive.
The songs in this film are much like most of the characters, not all that memorable. The one exception is the song "Best of Friends" which is sung early in by Big Mama and is likely the one song that everyone remembers from this film.
While Fox and the Hound isn't the worst feature to be put out, it's also far from the best in the Disney canon.
3/5
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)