Oliver & Company

 

Following the financial failure of The Black Cauldron, Disney CEO Michael Eisner and Chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg invited Disney animators to pitch ideas for future animated features. Among the many pitches, story artist Pete Young suggested “Oliver Twist with dogs”, which manifested in 1988 as Oliver & Company, the final film in Disney’s “Dark Age” of animation. Although critics had a divisive reaction on release, it still did very well enough at the box office, making an estimated $121 million against a budget of $31 million, enough that justified Katzenberg’s mandated yearly release schedule.

In the years since its original release, Oliver & Company has also gained a cult following, much like other overlooked Disney films like Treasure Planet or Atlantis: The Lost Empire. One key factor in this film receiving comparatively little attention, however, may be that it came out only one year before Disney’s take on The Little Mermaid, which kicked off the Disney Renaissance. Regardless, there are plenty of things to like about Oliver & Company that make it worth watching it today, even if the finished product is far from perfect.

The Emperor's New Groove

Note: This review contains spoilers for The Emperor’s New Groove.

In 1994, Disney started production on a musical epic titled Kingdom of the Sun. Over the course of four years, however, the project went through a troubled production period (as detailed in the documentary The Sweatbox, viewable through Internet Archive), only reaching about 25% completion. As a result, studio executives stepped in and, after some discussion, the film changed direction to a lighthearted comedy. The final product, renamed The Emperor’s New Groove, would see a theatrical release in early December, 2000. Though it received a generally positive reception from critics, with an 86% on Rotten Tomatoes, the film underperformed at the box office, making only $169.9 million on a budget of $100 million.

Although I was only eight at the time The Emperor’s New Groove came out, I distinctly remember watching it in a theater and enjoying it. However, it would be about 20 years before I would watch it again through a TV broadcast, which reinforced the fond memories I had of the film. After watching the first episode of  the Disney+ series Sketchbook, in which Story Artist Gabby Capili drew Emperor Kuzco, we felt compelled to watch the film again, which led us to conclude that even after 22 years, The Emperor’s New Groove still holds up as a Disney classic.

Hercules (1997)

Note: This review contains spoilers for Hercules (1997).

Towards the end of the Disney Renaissance, Disney released their 35th animated feature, Hercules, to good reviews from critics, but underperformed at the box office, especially in comparison to the Disney films that came before it. At the same time, the liberties taken with Greek mythology, especially the Hercules myths on which the film is based, angered Greece enough that the film didn’t have its planned premiere in the country. As a kid at the time, however, I was completely unaware of this and only remember watching it through someone else’s VHS copy, though only certain parts of the film stuck with me. Growing up, however, I got more familiar with the different elements of the film through the heavy representation in the Kingdom Hearts series until, eventually, I finally rewatched the film in time for its 25th anniversary. While I can see now how it’s not that great as an adaptation of the Hercules myth, I did still find it a great film in its own right.

The Great Mouse Detective

With a film library as large as Disney’s, it’s inevitable that regardless of quality, some films slip through the cracks. One such film, The Great Mouse Detective, has also gained somewhat of a cult following over the years. After finally watching the film for myself, it’s hard not to see why, especially considering it was successful enough on its initial release that it saved Disney Animation from bankruptcy. However, while it’s certainly underrated, it’s also not one of Disney’s best.

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.

Mulan (1998)

Mulan, based on a Chinese ballad known as the Ballad of Mulan, was a film I had seen at least once when I was a kid, albeit on home video. Though it had been years since I had seen the 1998 movie, I remember liking it at the time, however I had sometimes considered re-watching it in order to pay more attention to the story and see if my opinion on it had changed. That opportunity came when a live-action remake of the movie was announced by Disney, though I would not actually jump on that chance until recently, in the wake of the remake’s release on Disney+ (for the low, low price of $30 on top of the regular subscription) in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. After viewing the 1998 Mulan again, I though it not only managed to hold up well after 22 years, it was a lot better than I remembered.

Chicken Little (2005)

In 1943, Walt Disney produced a short film based on the fable Chicken Little (aka Chicken Licken), which tells a story about the consequences of falling for hysteria. During the Walt Disney company’s more experimental years, they decided to release another take on the same source material in 2005, simply titled Chicken Little. I will admit I only recall ever seeing maybe parts of the movie beforehand, and even then, what I remember the most was the marketing for it around that time (I recall not being that enthusiastic about actually watching it when I was a kid), as well as a cameo appearance from some of the characters during a televised awards show. After watching it in full through a Disney XD airing, I will say it was somewhat better than I expected from it, however, it’s definitely not one of Disney’s stronger animated films.

Treasure Planet

Since first being published in 1883, Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island has gone on to become one of the most ubiquitous novels, receiving a number of adaptations in the coming centuries while also arguably setting the initial default for pirate stereotypes; one of the most famous of these adaptations is Disney’s live-action film adaptation of the same name in 1950, with Disney’s own Pirates of the Caribbean from 2003 arguably overwriting the pirate stereotype into Jack Sparrow clones. The year 2002 would see Disney adapt Treasure Island again, this time fully animated and given a space/steampunk aesthetic under the name Treasure Planet. I had somewhat of an interest as a kid when it first came out, however I never ended up actually being able to watch it until recently, after having heard how good it actually was. Though it’s not without flaws, I did find myself enjoying it for what it was.

Tarzan (1999)

In the midst of the Walt Disney Company’s countless releases, a number of them have fallen off the radar for one reason or another, even those once popular enough to spawn their own successful franchises. We’ve covered some of them on this blog before, but the one we’re looking at here is Tarzan (1999), released at the very end of what is known as the Disney Renaissance, a decade where the studio had been a critical and box office powerhouse. I remembered watching Disney’s Tarzan when it originally released in theaters, but was motivated to watch it again when I noticed we owned a sealed 2005 DVD copy, meaning it had been 14-20 years since we had last seen it. After finally re-watching the film, I can confidently say that it not only held up well after 20 years, it’s also an underrated Disney classic that deserves renewed recognition.

Lilo & Stitch

When Lilo & Stitch first came out in 2002 (following Atlantis: The Lost Empire), I will admit I was not too interested in it as a kid, mainly due to its advertising campaign, however I was aware enough of it and its subsequent franchise that I knew who the character of Stitch was without knowing his full backstory. However, after seeing the character make appearances in the Kingdom Hearts series as well as positive word of mouth in recent years, I decided it was time I actually gave the film a chance. To my own surprise, the movie was far better than I initially expected it to be.

Atlantis: The Lost Empire

When I first saw Atlantis: The Lost Empire in the theater as a kid in 2001, I remembered liking it, however I had missed the first few minutes due to arriving a little late; this small gap was filled in when I saw it again on DVD in 2002, which turned out to provide some additional context to the story. I had not thought about watching the movie again until a couple years ago, when I took a Quick Sketching class with Disney animator Ron Husband, who was the supervising animator for the character Dr. Joshua Sweet (Husband’s other Disney animation work also includes the goat Djali in The Hunchback of Notre Dame). It was also through that class that I learned legendary comic book artist and Hellboy creator Mike Mignola was involved in Atlantis’ production and his art was the inspiration for its art direction, which got me more curious about seeing it again. It wasn’t until recently that I actually got around to re-watching Atlantis, upon which I had begun to appreciate it more after a 17-year gap in viewings.