Tag Archives: Animation

Anastasia (1997)

11 Wednesday Jun 2014

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Anastasia is the daughter of the final Russian czar,
Happy and carefree until there came an evil man bizarre.
For Rasputin sold his soul to see the Romanovs destroyed;
Though his curse was carried out, he fell into an icy void.
 
Anastasia and her grandma were to safety kindly led.
While Grandmother got away, the girl was lost and hit her head.
Now, a decade later, Anya can’t recall her royal caste.
She departs her orphanage to find her future and her past.
 
Guided by her grandma’s necklace and a cute and helpful mutt,
She walks to St. Petersburg, intent on reaching Paris, but
So are two deceptive cons, Dimitri and his comrade Vlad,
Who want one fake Anastasia for reward cash to be had.
 
They convince her she could be the missing princess found at last,
And they journey off to France, where Anya hopes to find her past.
Yet the realization that one Romanov is living still
Wakes Rasputin, now a zombie, to enact his wicked will.
 
Anya, Vlad, and gruff Dimitri barely jump and make a dash
When Rasputin’s glowing minions cause the trio’s train to crash.
Anya then is trained and coached to fit the royal princess mold,
And Dimitri falls in love, although their friendship started cold.
 
As their boat is Paris-bound, Rasputin spoils Anya’s dream,
And she very nearly drowns because of his unholy scheme.
Still in Paris, her grandmother sees too many greedy fakes,
Passing as her Anastasia for one million rubles’ sakes.
 
When Dimitri tries to get the two of them at last to meet,
Her grandmother doesn’t want to, just assuming his deceit.
But Dimitri now is sure that Anya is the real princess.
He succeeds in reuniting both of them through stubbornness.
 
Anastasia finally is home and where she’s meant to be,
And Rasputin has decided he will kill her personally.
He attacks and nearly has her, but Dimitri comes to aid,
Which helps her destroy a relic, breaking that dark deal he made.
 
With Rasputin gone forever, Romanovs are safe at last.
Anastasia and Dimitri then elope extremely fast,
And the once-lost Russian princess has her future and her past.
___________________
 

Anastasia is the only film on my list made by maverick animator Don Bluth because it is the one that comes closest not only to being a Disney movie but also to being of Broadway play quality. I can appreciate The Secret of NIMH, All Dogs Go to Heaven, and The Land Before Time, but they frequently waver between being too childish to too dark for their own good. An American Tail came closest to earning a spot on my list, mainly for its music, though I do also fondly remember The Pebble and the Penguin from my childhood.

Anastasia does have the Don Bluth touch, mainly in the way it presents some dark elements. Rasputin’s selling his soul (assumedly to the devil) and his demonic minions is as troubling as Dr. Facilier’s voodoo conjuring in The Princess and the Frog, and my mom was understandably uncomfortable in letting me see the end at such a young age. Anastasia is one of a group of very different films that stick out in my mind as sharing a traumatic climax in which the villain is graphically evaporated. Quest for Camelot and The Black Cauldron didn’t make it to my list either, but Anastasia has many other factors that make it list-worthy, even though its villain death is perhaps the worst.

The animation is gorgeous. While Bluth’s films don’t always excel at certain aspects, like the fluidity of human faces, the character designs and backgrounds are excellently rendered. The scenes of the royal palace are particularly impressive, as is the exciting train crash sequence. The music is also marvelous and quite underrated, I’d say. It starts off with an initial city-spanning showstopper akin to “Belle” from Beauty and the Beast; later is Rasputin’s surprisingly malevolent but catchy villain song “In the Dark of the Night,” reminiscent of Scar’s “Be Prepared”; and the best of them all is the haunting “Once upon a December,” which has the immersive, spellbinding melody of something from The Hunchback of Notre Dame. All in all, it excels as a musical, and the songs by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty (Seussical) match even Alan Menken’s output.

The voices are also extensive and well-cast, featuring Meg Ryan as Anastasia, John Cusack as Dimitri, Kelsey Grammer as Vlad, Christopher Lloyd as Rasputin, Hank Azaria as Bartok the bat (whose voice makes everything he says funny), and Angela Lansbury as the Empress/Grandmama. Anastasia herself is a great character who I think deserves inclusion among the popular animated princesses.

I don’t care for some of Bluth’s darker inclusions, such as the sometimes nasty instances of Rasputin’s body parts falling off, but this is still the closest he came to a Disney-style movie. Anastasia is a fine film that remains as good as I remember it as a child.

Best line: (Anya, after waking up suddenly and hitting Dimitri) “Oh, sorry. I thought you were someone else—oh, it’s you. Well, that’s okay, then.”

 
Artistry: 7
Characters/Actors: 7
Entertainment: 8
Visual Effects: 9
Originality: 6
Watchability: 8
Other (dark elements): -5
 
TOTAL: 40 out of 60

 

Next: #212 – The Elephant Man

© 2014 S. G. Liput

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#220: Pinocchio (1940)

04 Wednesday Jun 2014

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When you wish upon a star,
It can kindle things bizarre.
Like a puppet made of wood
Becoming real.
When Geppetto, cheerful yet,
Made his youthful marionette,
He pronounced his puppet good
And played with zeal.
 
When he wished he had a boy,
To delight in and enjoy,
One Blue Fairy came that night
And filled his wish.
Jiminy Cricket is assigned
So Pinocchio will mind;
He will teach the boy what’s right
And what’s wrong-ish.
 
On his first day out to school,
Young Pinocchio’s a fool;
He’s tricked by a fox and cat
To take the stage.
He performs to quite the crowd,
But to leave is not allowed.
He’ll make his boss rich and fat,
But in a cage.
 
That Blue Fairy, kind and wise,
Comes to him, but he just lies.
Though his nose extends and grows,
She helps him out.
When the puppet’s free to roam,
He is stopped while running home.
Fox and cat again impose
To change his route.
 
He instead wastes time a while,
Acting bad on Pleasure Isle,
But he’s shocked to learn the cause
Of where friends go.
When boys act their worst, alas,
Each becomes a poor jackass.
Though Pinocchio withdraws,
He’s filled with woe.
 
Back at home, Geppetto’s gone;
He is hungry, cold, and wan
Inside Monstro, a great whale
Who causes fright.
In the sea, Pinocchio
Is devoured by Monstro.
Puppet and creator hail
And reunite.
 
Though they both are in a scrape,
That small puppet plans escape.
On Geppetto’s raft, he makes
The beast lose its meal.
On a beach, the group is spilled,
But Pinocchio is killed.
Yet he offered what it takes
To now be real.
_________________
 

Pinocchio is a true classic and is widely considered to be Disney’s greatest masterpiece. You’ll find that not all of Disney’s older films are on my list, notably Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Snow White was chosen as the best American animated film by AFI and is lauded by critics today as well as when it was released, but it’s just not my cup of tea. I have no issue with fairy tale movies, the scenes with the dwarves, or the exciting end, but Snow White herself is entirely too bland, the voice acting is often grating, and the film drips sugar. I think it’s gained most of its accolades solely because it was the first full-length animated film.

In contrast, Disney’s next film Pinocchio offers some saccharine moments but is a vast step forward in character development, entertainment, and animation quality. Pinocchio himself has an actual character arc, and the villains he meets are all colorful and frightening in different ways. The beginning is overtly child-centric (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing), but the end is impressively thrilling, and everything that comes between succeeds in confirming to all bad little boys that they should listen to their parents and consciences. Considering this was only the second animated film released, Disney’s animators pulled off some beautiful pictures and amazingly fluid scenes, from the opener with all the cuckoo clocks to Pinocchio’s walk through the underwater world of Monstro.

I don’t usually think of Pinocchio as a musical, but it does have some charming ditties, including “Give a Little Whistle” and the ever-classic “When You Wish upon a Star.” I especially enjoy Pinocchio’s performance of “I’ve Got No Strings,” which predates The Sound of Music’s puppeteering version of “The Lonely Goatherd” by over twenty years. The songs aren’t on the level of Alan Menken or the Sherman brothers, but they’re memorable nonetheless.

Disney put his indelible stamp on the project and certainly “Disney-fied” the material, leaving out some darker elements from Collodi’s book, such as Pinocchio and Lampwick being tormented to death as donkeys or Pinocchio’s killing of a certain talking cricket. Though, there’s still a good amount of smoking, including by children, that wouldn’t fly nowadays. One interesting thing my VC pointed out was the film’s frequent focus on the posterior as the “butt” of several jokes. It’s certainly tame, but I wonder if back then that was perhaps the only way to “push the boundaries,” so to speak. Either way, it’s something I had never noticed before.

For all the praise I’m heaping on this film, it may seem odd that it is as low as it is on my list. It’s an undisputed classic, but I simply enjoy watching other films more. I can applaud a movie for its artistry and trailblazing, but this list is ultimately based on how I like films overall. It probably deserves better, but regardless, I admire Pinocchio as a milestone in animation that is quite watchable and enjoyable.

Best line: (the Blue Fairy) “Now, remember, Pinocchio: be a good boy. And always let your conscience be your guide.”

 
Artistry: 9
Characters/Actors: 9
Entertainment: 6
Visual Effects: 10
Originality: 7
Watchability: 5
Other (I just like other films more): -6
 
TOTAL: 40 out of 60
 

Next: #219 – Journey to the Center of the Earth

© 2014 S. G. Liput

119 Followers and Counting

 

The Brave Little Toaster (1987)

25 Sunday May 2014

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A toaster and radio, lamp and a blanket,
As well as a vacuum called Kirby reside
Alone in a mountainside cottage and spend
Their days cleaning up the old cabin’s inside.
 
They dream of the day when their Master will come,
The boy who would play with their dials and chrome.
One day Toaster says they should go on a trip
To the city and locate their Master’s new home.
 
They load on an office chair, battery-powered,
With Kirby propelling them over the fields.
They run into animals after a song,
As well as a storm and the power it wields.
 
Through dangers they travel until they are nabbed
By Elmo St. Peters, who’ll harvest their parts.
They trigger a jail break with their fellow tools
And head for the city with all of their hearts.
 
They find the apartment the Master calls home,
But he will soon leave for his school’s freshman year.
His other appliances, jealous of them,
Send Toaster and friends to the dump when they’re near.
 
So close to destruction, they nearly lose hope,
But Master’s in search of a handy device.
He finds them but nearly is killed by a crusher,
Till Toaster saves him with a brave sacrifice.
 
Delighted to have his appliances back,
Nostalgia drives him to repair the old tool.
Again with the Master, they cruise off to college
To service their owner while he is at school.
___________________
 

Coming out soon after The Great Mouse Detective, The Brave Little Toaster was another sign that Disney was gradually improving its animation department, leading to the Disney Renaissance a few years later. With touches of The Incredible Journey, it also is a clear forerunner of 1995’s Toy Story and included some filmmakers, such as Joe Ranft, that went on to success at Pixar. The idea of inanimate objects coming to life when left alone, pining for their owner, and ending up in a dump no doubt inspired the first and third Toy Story films, and the appliances’ retaliation against Elmo St. Peters is similar to the toys’ revenge on Sid, who also cruelly takes them apart.

To be honest, parts of the movie are very juvenile, particularly the encounter with the woodland creatures, and the first song is okay but rather saccharine. Yet the film gets progressively darker as it goes, with the appliances cheating death on several occasions. Plus, the climax is unusually intense considering its lighthearted beginning, and it features a traumatic clown scene that may induce coulrophobia in the young.

The animation is passable, but the voice actors do a tremendous job creating their respective characters, particularly Jon Lovitz as the overly talkative Radio and Thurl Ravenscroft as Kirby the vacuum cleaner. (I kept expecting the latter to say “They’re grrrrrreat!”) All the characters are also surprisingly well-developed, each one (aside from Toaster) being unlikable in their own way but proving their worth by providing a valuable service during the trek. Plus, you’ve got to love all the appliance humor.

The best part for me is definitely the songs. As I said, the first song “City of Light” is good for what it is, but the songs get increasingly ambitious, rising above the music in other kiddie films. My VC loves “It’s a B-Movie,” and I most enjoy “Worthless,” an extremely catchy tune with a brief saxophone solo and some very serious subject matter when you get right down to it. (I know both by heart.) “Cutting Edge” is also quite good, though it dates the film with its boasting of what was high-tech back then.

All in all, The Brave Little Toaster is an excellent kids’ movie in which adults can find plenty to enjoy as well. For kids at heart, like me, it’s a true classic.

Best line: (Radio; it comes out of nowhere so it’s funniest with no explanation) “Why, if we were all wiener dogs, our problems would be solved.”

 
Artistry: 5
Characters/Actors: 8
Entertainment: 7
Visual Effects: 5
Originality: 8
Watchability: 6
 
TOTAL: 39 out of 60
 

Next: #228 – Rocky II

© 2014 S. G. Liput

115 Followers and Counting

 

The Girl Who Leapt through Time (2006)

08 Thursday May 2014

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Young Makoto Konno is always behind.
It’s hard to make up all the time she can’t find.
She makes time, however, to play catch each day
With new friend Chiaki and old friend Kosuke.
 
One day in particular seems to run long;
From quizzes to accidents, all just goes wrong.
Then Makoto finds a small nut-shaped doodad,
Which gives a brief vision that scares her a tad.
 
Her journey back home then delivers a thrill
When her bike’s brakes go out riding down a steep hill.
She’s thrown from her bike at the end of the lane,
Right into the path of an oncoming train!
 
She sees the train hit her and hears the bell chime,
Then finds she’s gone backward a minute in time.
Alive but confused, she is told by her aunt
That she can time-leap; Makoto thinks she can’t.
 
Through tentative practice, she picks up the skill
Of leaping to past and to future at will.
She starts by improving that horrible day
And making up time that had once slipped away.
 
Enjoying her power, she doesn’t see straight
That her problems are passed to another schoolmate.
When this poor guy’s had it and finally snaps,
She sees that time travel can damage perhaps.
 
The labyrinth of love is another sore spot,
As Chiaki asks her if she’ll date him or not.
She flees from the question, which never occurs
And causes a rift that she only makes worse.
 
She also tries playing the matchmaker too
For Kosuke and one timid girl, who is new.
Then after she does this, she sees a tattoo
That shows she has one time-leap left on her cue.
 
She wastes it before she sees Kosuke’s mistake
Of taking his girl on her bike that won’t brake.
She sees them rush down that notorious hill
And strike the same rails with the same deadly spill.
 
Then time stops; Chiaki comes forth to impart
He came from the future in search of some art.
He used his last leap to save Kosuke, alone,
But now he must leave since his secret is known.
 
He leaves her, and Makoto weeps for her friend,
Until she takes note of a way she can mend.
The leap that he made canceled out her last one
So she cancels his out to prevent what’s been done.
 
At last, all is right, and there’s no accident,
But Chiaki must leave since his secret is spent.
Though sad, he tells Makoto he’ll wait for her,
And she is content with her waiting future.
___________________
 

I first saw The Girl Who Leapt through Time only last year, but it is apparently a very popular story in Japan, first published in novel form in 1967 and spawning multiple Japanese films since. Both well-received and author-approved, this anime version combines two of my favorite elements: animation and time travel. It isn’t a rip-roaring adventure or a laugh-out-loud comedy but instead a sensitive young adult drama (with some humor thrown in) that has the same kind of quiet tone as another favorite anime of mine, Studio Ghibli’s Whisper of the Heart.

The English dub is better than most anime dubs, as is the quality animation, which is somewhere between the more cartoonish anime and the beautiful artistry of Ghibli. Directed by Mamoru Hosoda, who later directed the previously reviewed Summer Wars, this tale has both charm and some interesting additions to the time travel genre. Regardless of quality, anime most excels at creating striking visuals, and this one is no exception. The scenes of Makoto’s weeping and the shots of characters flying in slow motion in front of a moving train have stuck in my mind long after seeing it.

As is typical of time travel films, you probably shouldn’t think about it too much, since there are a number of unexplained issues. Why did Chiaki laugh at Makoto after hearing her describe finding the time travel device? If he couldn’t return to his time, where did Chiaki have to go after using up his last time leap? In the book, the boy from the future is from the year 2660, so how far in the future did Chiaki come from? It’s from a time obviously after some kind of war and the extinction of baseball, so how can he wait for her or her for him?

It’s true that the logic of the ending falls apart, but it’s touching nonetheless. By the end of the film, with Makoto again playing catch, as she had periodically through the film, I stepped back and said “I liked that movie.” Maybe you will too.

Best line (a constant theme of the film): (Makoto) “Time waits for no one.”

 
Artistry: 7
Characters/Actors: 6
Entertainment: 8
Visual Effects: 6
Originality: 8
Watchability: 7
Other (time travel plot holes): -4
 
TOTAL: 38 out of 60
 

Next: #242 – The Abyss

© 2014 S. G. Liput

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Lady and the Tramp (1955)

05 Monday May 2014

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In 1909, in the bright Christmastime,
A man gives his wife a young pup in her prime.
They christen her Lady, this dog that they’ve gotten,
And pamper and love her and spoil her rotten.
She grows and receives a new collar as well,
Which every dog wants, so she runs off to tell
The terrier Jock and a bloodhound named Trusty,
Whose great sense of smell has become a bit rusty.
 
But Jim Dear and Darling, her folks who adore her,
Soon seem too distracted and start to ignore her.
Old Jock (who’s a Scottish, not Yorkshire or Cairn)
Thinks Darling’s expecting a wee little bairn.
A stray passing mutt called the Tramp overhears
And says things will change, making worse Lady’s fears.
Sure enough, months later, they have a boy,
But Lady protects him and thinks he’s a joy.
 
When Jim Dear and Darling leave home for a while,
Aunt Sarah takes over their quaint domicile.
Her Siamese cats, who are quick to lay claim,
Wreak havoc, and Lady receives all the blame.
When Aunt Sarah muzzles her, Lady escapes
And gets lost in places where she should not traipse.
Tramp comes to her rescue and frees Lady’s snout
And gives her a lovely, romantic night out.
 
The next day, however, while yet homeward bound,
His wild ways get Lady sent to the pound.
She meets the dogs there, whose lives are much colder;
When Lady gets home, she gives Tramp the cold shoulder…
Until a huge rat scurries past in the dark
To the dear baby’s room, causing Lady to bark.
The Tramp swoops right in to destroy the rat first,
But when Aunt Sarah sees him, the maid fears the worst.
 
To the pound with the Tramp, but when they find the rat,
They see he’s a hero who deserves a good pat.
Both Trusty and Jock stop the dog catcher’s cart,
And, though Trusty’s hurt, he does not yet depart.
The next Christmas, Tramp is a part of the home,
And Lady and he have some pups of their own.
_________________
 

Lady and the Tramp is among Disney’s great classics and one of his last impressively animated films (the artistic style seemed to suffer in future endeavors). It’s a classic love story retold countless times, the pampered princess falling for the lovable scoundrel, but it’s not only lovely to look at but also full of endearing characters and memorable moments. I also enjoy how Lady thinks her owners are named Jim Dear and Darling since that’s what they call each other; it has that same naïve misunderstanding as people being called “human beans” in The Borrowers.

Almost any pet owner can commiserate with Jim Dear and Darling in the beginning with Lady as a newborn puppy. Then later on, her banter with Jock and Trusty is downright charming. Yet we also get a glimpse of the darker possibilities of a dog’s life. Tramp has a good, carefree life for the most part, but that scene of adorable despair in the pound is more affecting than most SPCA ads.

We may be cat people, but my VC and I find the Siamese cats’ song positively grating, but Peggy Lee’s “He’s a Tramp” is a highlight of the film (though she sang both songs). And, of course, there is that iconic scene with the spaghetti and meatballs. I had forgotten how good this film was, so, if you haven’t seen this true classic recently, go remind yourself posthaste.

Best line: (Trusty) “Why, everybody knows a dog’s best friend is his human.”

 
Artistry: 7
Characters/Actors: 8
Entertainment: 7
Visual Effects: 8
Originality: 5
Watchability: 7
Other (those Siamese cats and the fact that I just like other films more): -5
 
TOTAL: 37 out of 60
 

Next: #245 – X-Men

© 2014 S. G. Liput

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Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)

04 Sunday May 2014

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Flint Lockwood lives in Swallow Falls, a town built on sardines.
He spends his days pursuing praise by forging new machines.
His father doesn’t “get” what he is trying to achieve,
So Flint works solo in his lab with talking monkey Steve.
 
Sardines aren’t very tasty so he tries a new invention,
A bot debuted to conjure food (from water, I should mention).
It doesn’t work as he had hoped and flies into the sky,
But soon it’s raining cheeseburgers, which captures every eye.
 
Flint builds a new computer to connect with his device;
As orders call, he fills them all, thanks to the Mayor’s advice.
He also bonds with one Sam Sparks, a perky weather girl,
Who spreads the news of food-inspired rain around the world.
 
From pies that plummet to the plate to scoops of sherbet snow
To steaks that soar to dish or floor, Flint’s gadget doesn’t slow.
The food gets ever bigger, and, though Flint could shut it down,
He doesn’t want to wreck the recognition of his town.
 
His father still believes this food anomaly is wrong,
But Flint’s own fears are drowned by cheers till problems come along.
In front of everybody, Flint’s contraption goes berserk,
And he can’t turn it off because the Mayor is a jerk.
 
A tasty storm attacks the world, but Flint and his few friends
Fly up to stop the constant drop of meals, to make amends.
Though faced with sentient food-y foes (with logic in suspension),
Flint stops his evil gadget with another old invention.
 
Though Swallow Falls was leveled by an avalanche of food,
The people cheer when Flint draws near, to show their gratitude.
Then Flint and Sam embrace in the enthusiastic crowd,
And Flint’s impassive father indirectly says he’s proud.
__________________________
 

I don’t know whether to call Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs ridiculous inspiration or inspired ridiculousness. The main concept is so simple—food raining from the sky—but the writers milk every imaginative variance on this idea such that the total film exceeds the sum of its parts. Yes, we’ve seen some of this before (the misunderstanding parent and the he’s-dead-no-wait-never-mind cliché), but the directing and writing team of Phil Lord and Chris Miller give the material the same energetically original edge that made the recent Lego Movie a much bigger success than it might have been. Where else can you hear the matter-of-fact usage of the term amuse-bouche, along with a joke questioning its meaning?

The animation is impressive, though highly cartoony at times, and the voices are well-cast, including Bill Hader as Flint Lockwood, Anna Faris as Sam Sparks, James Caan as Flint’s dad, and the incomparable Mr. T as the over-zealous policeman Earl, along with Bruce Campbell, Andy Samberg, Benjamin Bratt, and Neil Patrick Harris in supporting roles.

Yet the comedy is the star, and the jokes fly out at an incredible rate. Sometimes they are so quick that a blink will cause you to miss something; other times, it takes half the movie for a funny line to pay off. Though some of the humor is awkward and obnoxious, particularly in the character of former-baby Brent, the multitude of sight gags, food puns, and laugh-out-loud moments, along with the touching culmination of Flint’s relationship with his dad, makes Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs a film worth seeing again and again.

Best line (oh, to have to choose): (Manny, the deadpan cameraman/doctor) “You are going to need a co-pilot.”
(Sam) “You’re a pilot, too?”
(Manny) “Yes. I am also a particle physicist.”
(Sam) “Really?”
(Manny) “No, that was a joke. I am also a comedian.”

 

Artistry: 2
Characters/Actors: 5
Entertainment: 8
Visual Effects: 7
Originality: 9
Watchability: 8
Other (some awkward parts): -2
 
TOTAL: 37 out of 60
 

Next: #246 – Lady and the Tramp

© 2014 S. G. Liput

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Brave (2012)

30 Wednesday Apr 2014

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Princess Merida’s expected always to be lady-like
By her mum Queen Elinor, who nags her constantly.
Weapons are forbidden on the dinner table too;
Merida must act the way that princesses should be.
 
Marriage is the straw that breaks the loaded camel’s back;
Merida can’t stand the fact that it must be arranged.
Archery decides the ugly clan chief’s son she’ll wed
Till she then outshoots him, hoping fate will now be changed.
 
Words are frightful weapons when they’re aimed at those you love;
Elinor and Merida prove this to be a fact.
Merida runs off into the forest in her grief,
Finding wisps that lead her to the way she will react.
 
Locating a cottage and a wood-engraving witch,
Merida finagles quite a vague and shady spell.
When she gives her mother this enchanted little cake,
Fate indeed is altered, for her mother isn’t well.
 
Elinor is changed into a giant, clumsy bear,
Merida insisting that it’s not at all her fault.
Siblings help them both to flee the castle right away,
Dodging their bear-hating father’s guaranteed assault.
 
Merida attempts to find the witch, but she is gone,
Nothing to assist her but a strange and cryptic rhyme.
Though her mother’s getting used to being more relaxed,
Merida is worried she won’t find a cure in time.
 
Learning that the spell brought down a kingdom long ago,
Altering a prince into the demon bear Mor’du,
Merida attempts to mend a tapestry she tore,
Thinking this will heal her mum, but quandaries ensue.
 
War among the clans is stopped when Merida decides
Everyone should get to choose their own selected spouse.
Happiness is short-lived, for her father finds her mum;
Fergus thinks she killed his wife and drives her from the house.
 
Elinor is hunted by her husband and his men.
Merida, however, will not let them follow through.
Suddenly they are assaulted by the demon bear,
Elinor defending them and vanquishing Mor’du.
 
As the sunrise dawns to make the spell a lasting change,
Merida can merely now apologize and wait.
Love succeeds in bringing back the Elinor she knows,
Changing both of them and truly bettering their fate.
_____________________
 

The second Pixar film on my list, Brave is a Scottish-set fairy tale that feels different from all previous Pixar projects. It’s a fine film to be sure with beautifully animated scenery that is alternately lush or barren, often extremely realistic, as well as lovely Celtic music and an exciting climax. Nonetheless, when people list off Pixar films (Toy Story, The Incredibles, WALL-E), Brave will almost certainly be one of the last to come to mind.

It’s an excellent movie, but it’s a strange mix of inspiration and unoriginality. The young hero/heroine straining to be themselves under the oppression of an overbearing authority figure has been overused in plenty of films, from The Sword in the Stone to The Little Mermaid to Ratatouille. The fateful bulls-eye that splits a previous arrow is borrowed directly from the Robin Hood stories. Plus, the plot twist of a bear transformation was already used in Disney’s earlier Brother Bear, as was the recycled line “I don’t speak bear.” Considering Brave was an original fairy tale, I wonder why Pixar didn’t think of something other than a rehashed bear. Brave was originally to be titled The Bear and the Bow (a better title, in my opinion), but it might as well be Mother Bear.

On the other hand, it’s refreshing to see a strained parent-child relationship that doesn’t call on the parent alone to change. Everything is set right only when Merida owns up to her mistake and accepts that all of this is her own fault. The part with the woodcarver witch has the funniest scenes, and the buildup to the transformation is nicely handled. While the Scottish accents were previously applied to the Vikings in How to Train Your Dragon, here the Scottish brogue is more than just a way of talking but a way of life, along with colloquialisms like “dinnae” and “gammy,” as well as realistic highland games.Also, not many films have a touching mother/daughter relationship with both parties being at fault and sympathetic at the same time.

Brave may not be Pixar’s best, but it is a gorgeously rendered addition to their string of hits. Ignore the uninventive elements, and you’ve got another Pixar classic.

Best line: (King Fergus, to Elinor) “Pretend I’m Merida; speak to me…. [in a girly voice] I don’t want to get married, I want to stay single and let my hair flow in the wind as I ride through the glen firing arrows into the sunset.”

 
Artistry: 6
Characters/Actors: 6
Entertainment: 6
Visual Effects: 10
Originality: 3
Watchability: 6
 
TOTAL: 37 out of 60
 

Next: #250 – Citizen Kane

© 2014 S. G. Liput

92 Followers and Counting

 

Treasure Planet (2002)

25 Friday Apr 2014

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Jim Hawkins grew up with the stars in his head
And the dread pirate Flint sailing all round his bed.
He’d dream of the treasure, while he was a kid,
Which this space pirate took to a planet and hid.
But twelve years have left, as his father did too,
And Jim’s a delinquent with little to do.
 
But that will soon change; Jim’s adventures begin
When Billy Bones enters the old Benbow Inn.
He gives Jim an orb before joining the morgue
And warns him about an impending cyborg.
The inn is attacked then and burned to the ground,
But Jim and his mom flee with what they have found.
 
Jim opens the sphere with a twist and a tap
And finds that it’s Captain Flint’s lost treasure map.
Their friend Dr. Doppler is wholly entranced,
Agreeing a voyage be quickly financed.
They’re off to the spaceport, as hastily planned,
With Captain Amelia, a cat, in command.
 
Jim then meets John Silver, the garrulous cook,
Who has more prosthetics than ol’ Captain Hook.
He’s wary at first of this cyborg-y one,
But soon they are bonding like father and son.
A close supernova makes their escape narrow
But swallows the trusty first mate, Mr. Arrow.
 
While Hawkins is hidden, he hears Silver talk
With the crew of a mutiny, which causes him shock.
As Jim tells the captain and Doppler of this,
The mutiny begins because something’s amiss.
The three journey down to the planet they’ve found,
Escaping the pirates by ramming the ground.
 
While searching for shelter, Jim meets up with B.E.N.,
A robotic castaway who shares his den.
With B.E.N.’s manic help, Jim goes back to the ship
To get back the map which he lost his first trip.
Back down on the planet, they all end up caught,
But Jim wields the map because Silver cannot.
 
The sphere leads the band to a portal of sorts,
That must have been used by Flint and his cohorts.
The right portal leads to the planet’s own core,
Where treasures abound, as recorded in lore.
They have a brief moment to revel in gold
Before a sly booby trap starts to take hold.
 
The planet begins to break up and explode,
And Silver saves Jim at the cost of his lode.
The heroes attempt to escape from the blast
But see they won’t make it when they lose the mast.
So Jim turns them round to the portal they saw
And sailing right through it, they barely withdraw.
 
It takes them back home just before certain death
And gives them a moment to re-catch their breath.
While Silver shoves off and Jim lets him retreat,
The cyborg is proud of “Jimbo’s” awesome feat.
Now that he’s done something to earn admiration,
Jim has a bright future in space navigation.
_____________________
 

Treasure Planet should have been a hit, but, despite fairly good reviews from critics, it never gained much of an audience and sadly joined a string of Disney flops that led to the canning of their traditional animation department. I don’t understand the chilly reception since the film has much going for it. It’s a futuristic telling of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, with spectacular cutting-edge visuals that combined hand-drawn and CGI animation, funny and likable characters, and some truly touching scenes. It’s also Disney’s most exciting animated movie, in my opinion, and was nominated for an Oscar (unfortunately losing to Spirited Away).

The voice actors suit their characters perfectly. The roles of Captain Amelia and Dr. Doppler were written with Emma Thompson and David Hyde Pierce in mind, but Brian Murray as Silver and an up-and-coming Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Jim Hawkins fill their roles equally well. Martin Short is at his most frenetic as B.E.N., the castaway who has literally lost his mind, at times making Robin Williams look like a Type B personality. The script ranges from tear jerking to hilarious, and I love a few well-timed references to Star Trek and Jaws.

With all this going for it, why then did the movie bomb? I can’t say. Roger Ebert claimed it was too “gimmicky” to futurize the classic adventure novel, but I don’t think this gimmick is any worse than, say, The Great Mouse Detective, in which Disneyreimagined a Sherlock Holmes mystery with rodents. Then again, John Musker and Ron Clements did direct both films. Hmm.

It’s true that the concept may not be as original as it at first seems. Don Bluth’s even less-successful Titan A.E. was released just two years earlier and featured a heavy mix of traditional animation and CGI and a science fiction plot involving a fatherless young rogue following a map through the stars. In addition, there was even an Italian miniseries in the 1980s entitled Treasure Island in Outer Space or Treasure Planet. I don’t know if anything in Disney’s film was drawn from that, but it’s interesting to note.

As much as I’ve defended Treasure Planet, I must admit that, compared with most of Disney’s films, it just doesn’t stick out like others do. I may just like other movies better, but Treasure Planet is nonetheless a wondrous retelling of a classic story that anyone can enjoy.

Best line: (Captain Amelia to Dr. Doppler) “Doctor, to muse and blabber about a treasure map in front of this particular crew demonstrates a level of ineptitude that borders on the imbecilic! And I mean that in a very caring way.”

 
Artistry: 6
Characters/Actors: 7
Entertainment: 9
Visual Effects: 10
Originality: 5
Watchability: 8
Other (I just like other films more): -9
 
TOTAL: 36 out of 60
 

Next: #255 – Silverado

© 2014 S. G. Liput

81 Followers and Counting

 

The Great Mouse Detective (1986)

23 Wednesday Apr 2014

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The toymaker Flaversham makes the best toys
Of any mouse London has seen,
Which catches the eye of a villain who sends
A bat to abduct the old bean.
His daughter Olivia’s now all alone,
So a helpful gent must intervene.
 
This gent is, of course, Dr. David Q. Dawson,
Who won’t let her stay all alone.
He guides her to Baker Street, where they meet with
A detective named Basil, who’s known
For solving great crimes. He’s uncaring at first,
Having problems and such of his own.
 
But when he hears tell of the bat that’s involved,
This Basil of Baker Street knows
His nemesis Ratigan must be behind it,
A plan that he now must expose,
For Ratigan’s famous for being depraved,
The foulest, most wicked of foes.
 
This time he is forcing the toy man to build
A robotic clone of the queen,
Replacing the real one with his lookalike
To be the top mouse on the scene.
His cat will eat Flaversham and his young daughter
If he doesn’t build the machine.
 
So Basil and Dawson (Olivia too)
Ride off on one Toby, a hound,
In search of ol’ Ratigan’s peg-legged bat,
Who’s stealing and snooping around.
The bat grabs the girl and then gets away clean,
But soon an important clue’s found.
 
The pair of detectives drop in at a pub
In their search for the villainous chap,
And, after poor Dawson has much too much fun,
They follow the bat through a gap,
But Basil is soon made to feel like a fool
When he walks into Ratigan’s trap.
 
The bad guy conspires to do his foe in
With a mousetrap, an axe, and the like,
But can’t stay to watch since he’ll be much too busy
Directing his villainous strike.
Yet Basil snaps out of his self-induced shame
To save them all, even the tyke.
 
They rush to the palace, where Ratigan’s plan
So far has been going as planned,
But after our heroes recover the queen,
His brilliant scheme gets out of hand.
Then Ratigan flees, having lost his one chance
To be the great mouse of the land.
 
A chase through the city in two big balloons
Ends up with a terrible crash.
High up in Big Ben, dodging clockwork and gears,
Both Basil and Ratigan clash.
Though Ratigan hates to be branded a rat,
He turns into one in a flash.
 
The face of the clock sees their final showdown,
And both plummet from a great height,
But Basil’s inventiveness saves him again,
And everyone’s gladly all right.
Together, the Flavershams take their leave, but
Dawson’s now Basil’s new partner, quite.
_________________
 

The Great Mouse Detective, based on Eve Titus’s Basil of Baker Street book series, was a ray of hope for Disney’s animation department when it was released to good reviews in 1986. After Disney’s dark ages of the 1970s and ‘80s, with such good but unimpressive fare as Robin Hood, The Rescuers, and The Black Cauldron, this film proved there was still interest in well-made animated movies. Oliver and Company came next, but The Great Mouse Detective paved the way for 1989’s The Little Mermaid and the whole of the Disney Renaissance.

The movie is an enjoyable little Sherlock Holmes parody, translating the characters into mice and rats. While the film has few big names in it, Vincent Price steals every scene as the treacherous Ratigan, and the celebrated actor sounds like he had a lot of fun recording his lines. The other characters are appropriately likable (Basil, Dawson) or cute (Olivia), though not quite as memorable as later Disney efforts. The filmmakers even used some recorded dialogue from one of the original Sherlock Holmes, Basil Rathbone.

The Great Mouse Detective is obviously aimed at children but does feature some aspects unusual to most popular animation, such as smoking, drunkenness, a burlesque-style musical number, and a scene in which a mouse is eaten whole, which made my mother uncomfortable the first time I saw it as a child. It’s nonetheless a fine kid-friendly mystery and even has some fairly exciting scenes. Though the climax was clearly inspired by the end of Miyazaki’s The Castle of Cagliostro, in this film it’s less cartoony, and the gears (made using early CGI) are more evocative of size and danger for the characters.

The Great Mouse Detective is one of those films I always enjoyed while growing up, and, though it may not have the same magic as it once did, it’s still a short but entertaining jaunt through Mousedom.

Best line: (Basil) “There’s always a chance, Doctor, as long as one can think.”

 
Artistry: 5
Characters/Actors: 6
Entertainment: 7
Visual Effects: 6
Originality: 5
Watchability: 7
 
TOTAL: 36 out of 60
 

Next: #257 – Trading Places

© 2014 S. G. Liput

79 Followers and Counting

 

Joseph: King of Dreams (2000)

20 Sunday Apr 2014

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In Canaan, Jacob’s simply thrilled
To have his prayers at last fulfilled.
For barren Rachel’s borne a son,
A miracle to everyone.
 
As Joseph grows and sings in key,
He’s Jacob’s favorite, plain to see.
His ten half-brothers grow quite tired
Of the way he is admired.
 
He wears a coat of many hues
And flaunts his standing, in their views.
They’re also irked that it now seems
Their brother has prophetic dreams.
 
At last, they say they’ve had enough
And make a move that’s not a bluff.
They trap their brother in a cave
And sell him as a meager slave.
 
To Egypt, Joseph’s taken far
And sold again to Potiphar.
Through labor, he starts earning praise
And all his perseverance pays.
 
Now high within his master’s house,
He’s slandered by his master’s spouse
And thrown in jail in utter gloom,
A dark and rat-infested tomb.
 
He solves some fellow inmates’ dreams,
Interpreting their common themes.
He’s left alone for two years till
He comes to terms with his God’s will.
 
When Pharaoh has a dream as well,
He calls on Joseph from his cell.
His dream predicts some years of famine,
Spread from Egypt unto Ammon.
 
Pharaoh is indeed impressed,
And Joseph soon is heaven blessed.
As Pharaoh’s second-in-command,
He helps prepare the entire land.
 
When famine withers shoots and seeds,
All Egypt has the food it needs.
When Joseph’s brothers come for food,
He acts conspicuously rude.
 
He quickly locks up Simeon
Till they bring brother Benjamin.
They come back with his newest brother,
Born of Rachel, his dead mother.
 
A trick gets them at last to leak
Their crime, which they’ve been loath to speak.
Then Joseph says he’s their estranged
Half-brother, when he’s sure they’ve changed.
 
They beg forgiveness, which he gives,
And he is glad his father lives.
Then Jacob and his family
Move down to Egypt joyously.
___________________
 

Joseph: King of Dreams is a prequel to DreamWorks Animation’s The Prince of Egypt but skipped theaters and was released directly to video, the only animated DreamWorks film to do so. Though the story of Joseph had been done as a musical before with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s pretty good adaptation Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, this animated film is much closer to the spirit of the Biblical story, as the opening disclaimer tries to convey. Some creative license was taken, such as removing Leah from the picture to avoid the depiction of Jacob having two concurrent wives, but Joseph: King of Dreams is a wonderful introduction to the Biblical story for all young viewers.

The animation and music are all right but do not measure up to the masterpiece that DreamWorks pulled off with Prince of Egypt, and I bet the filmmakers knew that; hence, its direct-to-video status. Many of the songs are catchy while you hear them but aren’t as memorable as they try to be, but the best ones are the opener “Miracle Child” and “Better Than I,” a very Christian song beautifully recounting Joseph’s memories while in captivity (though, can a tree really grow that much in two years?). While the voice acting was never advertised much upon release, it does feature Ben Affleck as Joseph, Mark Hamill as Judah, and Richard Herd as Jacob, among various other known and obscure voice actors.

It’s always enjoyable to see a well-produced adaptation of a Bible story since so many are obviously low-budget affairs. At the same time, there’s a danger of departing too far from the source material in order to build characters or tension (a la the recent Noah); Joseph: King of Dreams is an admirable Biblical movie that remains faithful to the text, telling a timeless story for all ages and audiences.

Best line: (lyrics in the song speaking of God while Joseph is imprisoned) “You know better than I.”

 
Artistry: 6
Characters/Actors: 5
Entertainment: 7
Visual Effects: 5
Originality: 5
Watchability: 7
 
TOTAL: 35 out of 60
 

Next: #260 – Galaxy Quest

© 2014 S. G. Liput