Happy Birthday, Walt Disney!

On this day, in 1901, my hero was born. Walter Elias Disney was born to a poor family in Chicago, and for most of his life, he didn't have much. Throughout the years, he tried to become a success in the film industry, but failed many times, which is hard to believe. Walt Disney was a genius with a dream--to inspire and bring laughter to children and the children at heart. He created the first full length animated feature ever Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which still creates the same emotions in children now that it did over 70 years ago: terrible fright at the sight of the Evil Queen and laughter at the dwarfs' silly antics. The same goes for all of Disney's movies, from animated to live-action, old to new.
When Walt died, I wasn't yet born, but I can imagine how devastated everyone was, especially the Walt Disney company. They thought that animation would cease to exist, and the "Dark Ages" took place at the studio.  But in the late 1980's, up in heaven, Walt Disney looked down and smiled. Disney was back on track with The Little Mermaid.
The wonderful thing about Walt Disney was his storytelling ability. He could make stiff, proper adults break down crying when Bambi's mother died. He could convince stupid, obnoxious teenagers (like some of my friends) that animation wasn't just for little kids. He could tell any story, acting out any part, for his chief animators. He was a visionary.
And his legacy will live on forever, thanks to his classic movies and theme parks.
Happy Birthday, Walt Disney! You are dearly missed.

November 30th Releases

Tomorrow, three Disney movies are being released-a special edition disc of Fantasia/Fantasia 2000, Waking Sleeping Beauty, and The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story. The first DVD includes the 1940 Walt Disney classic Fantasia, which features animation set to classical music with brief live-action introductions between songs. This film started out as a new "comeback short" for Mickey Mouse (as audiences were beginning to get bored of the character), but as the cost of The Sorcerer's Apprentice grew, Walt Disney decided to make it into a full-length feature with other animated segments. It was a box office flop upon its initial release, but is today considered a classic.
I may be a bit biased on the topic of Fantasia, because, while I recognize the beautiful animation and music, it has never been a favorite of mine. And this is coming from Walt Disney's (arguably) number one fan. I find it a bit boring because of the lack of dialogue. I have seen it multiple times, but I can never seem to watch it all the way through because I almost fall asleep. My favorite segment, however, is The Pastoral Symphony, set to Beethoven's Symphony No. 6, because it has wonderful animation and music that I can listen to.
I cannot review Fantasia 2000 because, sadly, I have never seen it. It is a sequel to Fantasia, and from what I realize, the set up is very similar. It has 8 animated segments with live-action interludes, and the pieces are all set to classical music.
On the other hand, I can't wait for Waking Sleeping Beauty! I love love love watching Disney documentaries because the behind-the-scenes information and trivia is really interesting to me. This particular documentary is about Disney animation in the mid-1980's, when the films were box office failures, and how they "regained their magic" (http://www.wakingsleepingbeautymovie.com/) when they created The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, and other movies during the Disney Renaissance.

The final movie being released, The Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story, is also a documentary. The Sherman brothers, Robert B. and Richard M., wrote music for Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book, The AristoCats, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and The Parent Trap, as well as writing the famous song "It's a Small World (After All)". This documentary is the story of their lives and contributions to Disney films (and non-Disney films).

Well, I'll probably review these movies after Christmas, because they might just be in my stocking (wink, wink, if my parents are reading this...). Go out and buy them as soon as you can!

Willy Nilly Silly Ol' Bear

Recently, I watched the trailer for the new Winnie the Pooh movie that will be released July 15th, 2011. I was literally jumping up and down, because Winnie the Pooh holds a special place in my heart. As a very young child, I watched these movies more than any other. My first toys were giant Pooh and Piglet stuffed animals that I danced around the room with. So, naturally, when I heard that another classic, hand drawn Pooh movie was in production, I was extremely excited.

Winnie the Pooh was created for children, which is obvious by Pooh’s childish vocabulary and silly songs and phrases. Little kids like to imagine that when they leave the room, their favorite toys come to life and play in an imaginary world, in this case the Hundred Acre Wood (or the 100 Aker Wood).

The animation in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is very simple, but full of bright colors, perfect for children. The characters are well developed and memorable: Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, Owl, Eeyore, and of course, Christopher Robin.

Winnie the Pooh is a sweet, chubby, bumbling little bear that takes everything literally. He loves honey more than anything and will do just about anything to get to it, even disguise himself as “a little black raincloud”. One of his best friends is Tigger, the only one of his kind. Tigger has a habit of bouncing on his tail (that’s made up of springs) and scaring his friends, but he's really very friendly. Rabbit is a rather uptight, grouchy animal, and tiny, stuttering Piglet is Pooh’s very best friend. Owl, to me, is a very boring character, because all he really does is tell long, wordy stories about his ancestors that he’s told a million times before. My favorite character is Eeyore, because he’s just so sweet and melancholy. His one liners are hilarious, but it’s very hard to not feel bad for him. After all, everything happens to Eeyore. The only human character besides the narrator is Christopher Robin, the owner and playmate of all the animals of the Hundred Acre Wood. He doesn’t have much of a personality, but he’s sort of the peacemaker among the bunch, and he always tries to make Eeyore feel better when he's down. He loves Pooh most of all.

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is a compilation of three original short films: Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day, and Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too. Although they were released individually at first, they were put together almost seamlessly in a feature-length film.

Now, on a personal note, when I woke up this morning I knew I was going to watch Winnie the Pooh and blog about it, but I didn’t know that I myself was going to have a blustery day. The wind at my house was so strong this morning that the latches on my hot tub actually cracked, sending the cover flying across the yard. We ran outside in our pajamas and boots to retrieve it, but it almost flew over our heads as we carried it back up. We now face the problem of fixing the cover, because without it, our new hot tub could burn up. And we don’t want that.

Now back to Pooh.

The voice actors in this movie are incredibly believable. Paul Winchell voices Tigger, Ralph Wright voices Eeyore, and the voice of Pooh is the one, the only, Sterling Holloway. This amazing actor voiced the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland, Roquefort in The AristoCats, and Kaa in the Jungle Book. His voice is soft but deep and has that warm, childlike quality that makes him the perfect Pooh Bear.

As I mentioned before, the one liners in this movie are pretty hilarious, but so are some exchanges between characters. I’ll give you some examples of cute quotes.

Christopher Robin: Did I get your tail on properly, Eeyore?

Eeyore: No matter. Most likely lose it again anyway.

Roo: Good morning, Pooh Bear!

Eeyore: If it is a good morning, which I doubt.

Tigger: But the most wonderful thing about Tiggers is that I’m the only one! I’m the only one!

Pooh: [points to Tigger’s reflection in the mirror] Then what’s that over there?

Tigger: Ooh! What a strange lookin’ creature!

“ Is it raining in there? It’s raining out here, too.” –Winnie the Pooh, talking to his reflection.

“It’s awfully hard to be b-b-brave when you’re such a s-s-small animal.” –Piglet

Tigger: Haloo!

Pooh: It’s a jagular!

Piglet: W-W-What do j-j-jagulars do, Pooh?

Pooh: Well, jagulars always call, “Haloo!” and when you look up, they drop on you.

Piglet: I’m looking down, P-P-Pooh!

Well, TTFN! Ta-ta for now!

Disney's Tangled

This being my first post on this blog, I'd just like to say that I love Disney with all my heart. I grew up watching all of Walt's classics--Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Lady and the Tramp, The Jungle Book--and also the newer films--The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin. Almost every one of Disney's animated movies has made me laugh, cry, or get goosebumps. They're so creative, so magical, that even as a teenager, I love to curl up on my couch and watch them. Walt Disney was truly a born storyteller, and those that work at Disney today continue what he started, enchanting and inspiring the young and young at heart.

That said, this post is about the new Disney animated movie, Tangled. I saw it yesterday in 3D, and let me just say, I'm glad I did. When I entered the theater and saw a HUGE line, I immediately noticed that every person in the line was under the age of nine. Now, while I was a little embarrassed, I was still too excited to see the movie to care that much.
Tangled's heroine, Rapunzel, is a typical Disney princess. When I say that, I don't mean like Cinderella or Snow White, waiting for her prince to come and get her. I mean like Ariel, Belle, or Jasmine. She's curious about the world, headstrong, passionate, beautiful, and, of course, sweet and kind. Oh, and she's a girl that knows what she wants--to see a spectacular light show in person.
But Rapunzel is stuck up in her tower with her mother, Gothel. Now, as the movie shows us, Rapunzel doesn't mind the tower all that much. She really loves Gothel, and she's kind of scared of the world outside. All she wants to do is see thousands of lanterns lit and launched into the sky, which she watches from her window every year on her birthday. This seems like a pretty reasonable request to me. But Gothel doesn't want her daughter to leave the tower for her own selfish, vain reasons (that you have to watch the movie to find out about). So poor, lonely Rapunzel seems doomed to spend the rest of her life trapped in a tower, watching and waiting for someone to come along and save her.
And someone does come along! The swashbuckling thief, Flynn Ryder, steals a crown and runs for cover before the palace guards can arrest him. He just happens to end up in the secluded spot of the forest that Rapunzel's tower is in. He gets one glance of her hair, then is knocked out with a frying pan and shoved in a closet. After coming to, Rapunzel bargains with her prisoner. She'll give him back the crown if he guides her to the lanterns, then takes her home. Flynn agrees.
The music in this film isn't quite up to par with Disney's best (Circle of Life, Part of Your World, etc.), but since it was written by Alan Menken, it's definitely good enough to get into your head--and stay there. The song "When Will My Life Begin", sung by Mandy Moore as Rapunzel, is my personal favorite. The pop/country style is modern but fits the story, and the tune is catchy. The other songs are "Mother Knows Best", "I’ve Got a Dream”, and “I See the Light”.
While Rapunzel and Flynn Ryder are great characters, I have to say that a certain Maximus the horse stole the show for me. The speechless character’s facial expressions and quirky mannerisms are hilarious. He seems to hate Flynn, but he later proves how lovable and loyal he really is. Pascal the chameleon also provides some comic relief, but the one to look for is a short, drunk old man wearing only a diaper and wings. He has very limited screen time, but he always says something hilarious.
I saw this film in 3D, which, although beautiful, probably wasn't a very different experience than it was in 2D, except for one scene towards the end, when Rapunzel and Flynn are surrounded by thousands of glowing lanterns. It was breathtaking.
I rate Tangled a 9.5/10. It’s creative, visually astounding, and possesses that Walt Disney magic that is so hard to find lately. But don’t just take my word for it. Spend the money—you won’t regret it.