A Goofy Movie

Note: This review contains spoilers for A Goofy Movie.

While there are many motivations to watch a film, as we’ve discussed before on this blog, sometimes you’ve seen a film during childhood, but either didn’t pay attention or memories of it faded until you’re reminded of its existence years later. This was the case with A Goofy Movie, an animated Disney film based on Goof Troop that turned 25 this year. While looking for something short to watch, I remembered wanting to watch A Goofy Movie while actually paying attention to the plot, which led to buying a cheap DVD copy. At the next opportunity, I finally gave it a watch and realized I had just seen an underrated Disney classic.

On the last day of school before summer vacation, Max Goof (Jason Marsden) and his friend P.J. (Rob Paulsen), along with acquaintance Robert “Bobby” Zimuruski (Pauly Shore), hijack Principal Mazur’s (Wallace Shawn) speech so Max can perform a small concert while dressed as pop singer Powerline. Max, P.J. and Bobby are sent to Mazur’s office for their stunt and, while waiting his turn, Max finds out that his performance impressed his love interest, Roxanne (Kellie Martin), so much that she agrees to go with him to a party where Powerline’s upcoming concert will be viewed on live TV. Meanwhile, Goofy (Bill Farmer), Max’s father, is warned by Mazur that Max’s behavior may lead to capital punishment. Wishing to spend more quality time with his son, Goofy decides to take Max on a cross-country trip to Lake Destiny, Idaho, much like his own father did with him years ago. Before they leave town, Max stops by Roxanne’s house to call off their date, but when she mentions seeing someone else, Max lies and states that his father knows Powerline and that they’ll be on stage with him at the concert.

Although the road trip backbone of the film isn’t an original concept, the story uses it to effectively show Max and Goofy’s growing bond. Max’s rebellious teenage phase felt very realistic, since he didn’t want to become anything like his father, even feeling embarrassed when he accidentally copies Goofy’s signature “Ah-hyuck!” laugh. As a result, he feels nothing but animosity towards his father for half the trip, since he’d rather be with Roxanne. Even when he does start to warm up to his father, however, his own desires get the better of him and he ends up lying to try and fulfill his original lie to Roxanne, which comes to a head in a very climactic moment when Goofy feels a sting of betrayal from his own son.

Max's (Jason Marsden, Right) early decision to lie to
Roxanne (Kellie Martin, Left) has major repurcussions later on.

The bonding moments that Goofy and Max have during the latter half of the trip feel very emotional and are handled in a believable way. One that stands out in particular comes during a camping scene where Goofy recalls how Max would spell words in alphabet soup, or “Hi Dad” soup, which ends with a touching moment where Max once again spells “Hi Dad” with their lone can of soup. There’s also the scene where Goofy and Max end up riding their car along a roaring river, which gives them the opportunity to really talk and grow closer to each other, leaving any animosity behind them. Fishing also comes off as very important to the story, since later on that same river, Max uses the “perfect cast” that Goofy had taught him at the campsite earlier.

In an interesting move, Goofy and Pete (Jim Cummings) also have a few interactions regarding their own ideas of being a good father. These conversations felt surprisingly grounded, especially considering Pete’s more traditionally antagonistic nature, and help organically push Goofy’s character arc forward. One interaction in particular, where Pete tries to warn Goofy that Max altered the road trip map, leans a little into Pete’s traditional depiction based on his body language, but also makes him look genuinely concerned for Goofy by the end of their conversation. When Goofy does inevitably discover what Max has done, he also seems genuinely broken, which, considering Goofy hardly ever has such an expression, hits pretty hard.

While I didn’t have much of an issue with the story or plot, a couple things stood out to me. The emotional core of the story feels timeless, but certain aspects of the film accidentally date it, from the very 90s vibe, including a skateboarding sequence and era-appropriate pop music, to Pete literally calling Max and P.J. part of the “MTV Generation” (aka Generation X). I also couldn’t help making the casual observation that if Goofy and Max actually talked things out before the road trip, the film wouldn’t happen. But then, of course, that would rob the audience of their character development.

After 25 years, the theater-quality animation holds up very well. Aside from the high-quality designs, fluid movements and strong attention to detail, the film’s story takes advantage of the medium to draw out and heighten the tension of otherwise mundane scenes. One of the biggest examples is when Max is given an opportunity to secretly alter the map to point Goofy to California instead of Utah. The lighting highlights Max’s golden opportunity and the careful camera shots and editing choices add a sense of tension and desperation to his actions. His decision here comes back to bite him later when he’s in the navigator role and Goofy comes to a fork in the road, where the highway can take them to either California or Utah. There’s a good amount of dramatic irony already in the scene, since Goofy has by this point seen the altered map, but the editing helps turn Max’s decision into a “moment of truth” for both characters, culminating in Goofy displaying a rare moment of anger and disappointment.

Goofy (Bill Farmer, Right) displays a rare moment of anger and disappointment.

On that note, the voice acting is really good. Jason Marsden is perfect for a teenage Max and Jim Cummings shows a good range as Pete. The big highlight, however, is Bill Farmer, who has his tour de force as Goofy. Goofy's depiction in the film does lean into his traditional dim-witted and clumsy character traits, but also gives him room to have a much wider emotional range than usual, which Bill Farmer takes full advantage of as Goofy shows not just happiness and optimism, but also worry, anger, desperation and disappointment. The movie also has an uncredited Pauly Shore as Bobby, though his screentime is mercifully short.

Perhaps not surprisingly, this film is also a musical, though the songs are fortunately good and are spaced pretty organically. The original songs tie in well with the themes, with “On the Open Road”, "Nobody Else But You” and “After Today” highlighting the emotions of the scene they’re in. The two Powerline songs, “Stand Out” and “I 2 I”, are also good songs in their own right, helped by Tevin Campbell’s vocal performance. There are also a couple licensed songs, though they’re used sparingly during moments that make sense to have them.

As an interesting bit of trivia, this film was originally paired in some countries with the theatrical short Runaway Brain, which Disney has made notably difficult to find afterwards. Additionally, the events of both Goof Troop and A Goofy Movie are canon to the events of DuckTales (2017), with Goofy making a guest appearance in one episode as a photographer, much like in A Goofy Movie, and discussing his bond with Max.

If you’re a fan of Goofy or looking for a great road trip film with a believable bonding story, A Goofy Movie is an easy recommendation. The animation and well-timed humor will certainly keep you entertained, but the strong character writing will keep you invested.