(If this is your first time on this blog, I ask you to read my “About” page first! You can find a link to it at the top left-hand corner of this blog. Thanks!)
Sigh…sometimes you have to review bad live-action Disney movies….and sometimes….you pray that you don’t have to review bad live-action Disney movies. And today’s film is an excellent example of a bad live-action Disney movie. Starring Robin Williams and John Travolta as lifelong pals, let’s take a look at “Old Dogs”.
Sorry for the delay again, but you know how school can be. So my next review will be on the following Monday, October 7th. Thank you for your patience!
(If this is your first time on this blog, I ask you to read my “About” page first! You can find a link to it at the top left-hand corner of this blog. Thanks!)
Hayley Mills, what can we say about her? She was an English actress, daughter of actor John Mills, and shot to fame as a child actress in many early Disney films. She acted in a total of six theatrical films for Walt Disney, many of them being hits. After her time with Disney, she would go on to acting in more mature film roles as well as starring in the Disney Channel 80’s sitcom, “Good Morning, Miss Bliss” as the titular character.
“TV Stardom, here I come!”
(Fun fact: The show didn’t do well and was soon canceled. The rights were bought by NBC and then remade as the hit 90’s sitcom, “Saved by the Bell”, completely without the character of Miss Bliss. Imagine how that must have made Hayley Mills feel!)
“TV Stardom, there you go!”
But in today’s post, we’re going to be looking at her very first film at the Disney Studios. And that film is none other than “Pollyanna” based on the classic children’s novel by Eleanor H. Porter. I’d just like to say that I’ve never read the book, so I have no idea what’s supposed to happen. Hence I won’t be comparing the film to the book. With that said, let’s dive into the review.
(If this is your first time on this blog, I ask you to read my “About” page first! You can find a link to it at the top left-hand corner of this blog. Thanks!)
Andrew Stanton is best known for directing “A Bug’s Life”, “Finding Nemo”, and “WALL-E” for Pixar Animation Studios. But his most recent directorial attempt had him tackle a live action film, a live action film based on Edgar Rice Burroughs’ “Barsoom” series of novels.
Because, you know, EVERYBODY was reading them in 2012!
The novels were about a man named John Carter and his adventures on the planet Mars aka Barsoom. The novels were quite popular and attempts to make them into full-length films have been around since as early as the 1930’s. Actually, animator Bob Clampett, wanted to make an animated film based on these books, but failed to do so. Had he succeeded, he would have probably beat Walt Disney in creating America’s first full-length animated feature.
“And I would’ve gotten away with it too if it wasn’t for the meddling negative reception!”
But, that failure wouldn’t stop other filmmakers from trying to adapt these novels to the big screen. And finally, 70+ years later, the Disney Studios became the lucky company to achieve this feat. The film, entitled “John Carter”, sadly flopped at the box office. Could the lengthy period in development hell be to blame? Or is the film really bad? Well, let’s find out for ourselves in this review. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you “John Carter”.
(If this is your first time on this blog, I ask you to read my “About” page first! You can find a link to it at the top left-hand corner of this blog. Thanks!)
After Disney had HUGE success with “Mary Poppins”, they naturally looked for a way to recreate that success. This is where “The Happiest Millionaire” comes in.
Based on a non-musical play which was in turn based on a true story of an eccentric millionaire in early 1910s Philadelphia, this movie musical featured much of the same crew who worked on “Mary Poppins”.And sadly, this was also the last film that Walt Disney personally worked on as he died during its production in 1966. The film would be released to theaters in 1967.
And would the film be a hit? Umm….no.
The film didn’t do well at all, not even coming close to the unprecedented success of “Mary Poppins”. One factor that may have caused its downfall was its extremely long running time. The film was actually 172 minutes long, making it the longest live-action Disney film till date. Heck, it’s STILL the longest live-action Disney film ever!
“You mean there’s actually a Disney movie longer than me?”
So, due to the failure of the film, it was later cut down to 164 minutes and even later cut down to 144 minutes!
But, we are lucky to be living in this era because the film in its entirety (all 172 minutes of that entirety) would be released on DVD in a special “Restored Roadshow Edition” of the movie. Yay, us!
So the question arises, was the film actually “bad” or was it because the runtime was just too darn long? Well, let’s find out together! Ladies and gentlemen, this is “The Happiest Millionaire”. Continue reading “The Happiest Millionaire (1967)”→
(If this is your first time on this blog, I ask you to read my “About” page first! You can find a link to it at the top left-hand corner of this blog. Thanks!)
I can easily say that my most awaited film for this year is “Saving Mr. Banks”. Releasing in December, the film is about the story of how the Disney film, “Mary Poppins” was made. Well, it’s more about how Walt Disney took years to convince the author, P.L. Travers, to sell him the rights to her book. And as the stories have said, P.L. Travers wasn’t the biggest fan of what Walt did with her story!
In other words, “Saving Mr. Banks” is about Disney history which is like the Disney fanatic’s dream come true! Firstly, we get to see Walt Disney as a character in a film!
Unfortunately, my attitude towards Tom Hanks playing him is best shown in Emma Thompson’s face in this picture!
And secondly, this movie looks like it’ll let us venture into P.L. Travers’ past and see what exactly was her inspiration in writing the book. Maybe this can help us understand why Ms. Travers felt so disgusted by Walt Disney’s film.
So while we wait for that film to come out, why not take a look at the film, “Mary Poppins” itself? So without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, here’s everybody’s cherished “Mary Poppins”!
(If this is yourfirsttimeon this blog, I ask you to read my “About” page first! You can find a link to it at the top left-hand corner of this blog. Thanks!)
Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking-Glass” opened up a wonderful fantasy land to us, one that was driven by nonsense, rather than logic.
And people around the world fell in love with this wondrous, illogical Wonderland. The appeal of this fictional place as well as that of its characters naturally inspired filmmakers to adapt Lewis Carroll’s books to film numerous times over the years. Walt Disney was one of these filmmakers, hence he created the animated classic, “Alice in Wonderland”, as well as an animated/live-action “Alice Comedies” series 20 years earlier!
Due to the popularity of both those projects, it was inevitable that the Disney Studios would create yet ANOTHER film based on the Wonderland characters. This time, the film would be a live-action/CGI film directed by visionary director and ex-Disney artist himself, Tim Burton. It would be called, “Alice in Wonderland”.
This film would go on to make over a billion dollars which convinced the Disney studios to remake more of their animated classics into live-action films. Some films currently in production include live-action adaptations of “Cinderella”, “Beauty and the Beast”, “The Jungle Book”, and “Sleeping Beauty”. This “animation-to-live action remaking ideology” has been met with opposition from many Disney fans around the world.
We pray that you’re a good movie…we really pray that you’re a good movie!
And this controversy would never have arisen had it not been for Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland”! So the question arises, was Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland” THAT good of a movie to convince the Disney Studios to remake many of their animated classics? Sure, it was profitable, but was the film of good quality or not? Well, to answer those questions, let’s take a look at the film together! Ladies and gentlemen, this is Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland”!
(If this is yourfirsttimeon this blog, I ask you to read my “About” page first! You can find a link to it at the top left-hand corner of this blog. Thanks!)
L. Frank Baum’s “The Wizard of Oz” was probably the first major American children’s tale that wasn’t inspired by either European fairy tales nor by tales from other Eastern cultures. It affixed itself to be the true American children’s story; so it seemed imminent that it would get adapted for the screen in a matter of time. And after the success of Disney’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, MGM went on to do just that and created the 1939 musical classic, “The Wizard of Oz”.
The one that started it all…despite it not being the first film adaptation of “The Wizard of Oz”!
It wasn’t until after a few re-releases did the film become a megahit and a household name! And it wasn’t long after that people would try to recreate the magic of this musical masterpiece and the books that inspired it. Walt Disney himself would be one of these people. He had even begun working on a film entitled “Rainbow Road to Oz” featuring his Mouseketeers. It was supposed to be Walt’s first live-action musical, but due to his lack of satisfaction with it, he quickly gave up on that idea and made “Babes in Toyland” instead.
Annette Funicello, we miss you!
But the Disney Studios wouldn’t give up on the wonderful world of Oz so easily! Oh no, they would eventually make two live-action Oz-related films! The first was a sequel to the 1939 film entitled “Return to Oz”. Released in 1985, it sadly was a financial disappointment, but has since gained cult status!
I haven’t seen it, but I know it ain’t as cheerful as this cover is portraying it to be!
And the second was an official prequel to the 1939 film entitled, “Oz: The Great and Powerful”, which is the subject of today’s review! So sit back and enjoy as we venture through this 2013 box office sensation!
(If this is your first time on this blog, I ask you to read my “About” page first! You can find a link to it at the top left-hand corner of this blog. Thanks!)
My Live Action Disney Project 