Disney Countdown

Let's take a look at the final film of the original Star Wars trilogy, Return of the Jedi. The Movie: Return of the Jedi is the third Star Wars movie, listed as Episode VI in the storyline.  It was directed by Richard Marquand with a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas.  Return of the Jedi received mostly positive reviews and was yet another box-office hit.  The movie was nominated for five Oscars and received a special award for visual effects. Return of the Jedi opens with the Empire continuing construction on a new Death Star, orbiting the forest moon of Endor.  Meanwhile, Luke, Leia, Chewbacca, Lando, and the droids devise an elaborate plan to rescue Han, still frozen in carbonite, from the gangster Jabba the Hutt.  The heroes' success on this mission is vital to their continued roll as leaders of the Rebel Alliance. When I was younger, this was my favorite of the original trilogy.  I know a lot of people don't like it because of t...

Let's continue the original Star Wars trilogy with The Empire Strikes Back. The Movie: The Empire Strikes Back is the second Star Wars movie, though given the series' unconventional numbering system it is Episode V in the saga.  For this film, George Lucas handed over the director's chair to Irvin Kershner, with the screenplay written by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan.  Though still a massive box-office hit, The Empire Strikes Back was initially met with mixed reviews from critics.  Over time, the movie has gained a more positive reputation.  The Empire Strikes Back won one competitive and one special Oscar and was nominated for two others. The Empire Strikes Back opens with the Rebel Alliance in hiding on the ice planet on Hoth.  Following an attack by the Empire, the Rebel fleet scatters with intents to later rendezvous.  Luke Skywalker however does not rejoin the fleet, instead taking his X-Wing and R2-D2 to the planet Dagobah to find the le...

Let's look at one of Disney's early attempts to make a movie based on a theme park attraction with Tower of Terror. The Movie: Tower of Terror is a television movie produced by Walt Disney Television for the Wonderful World of Disney.  It was broadcast on October 26, 1997.  Tower of Terror was written and directed by D.J. MacHale, who is best known for creating the Nickelodeon series Are You Afraid of the Dark?  The movie starred Steve Guttenberg and Kirsten Dunst.  Though the actual ride is themed around The Twilight Zone, this movie has no connection to that show. Like in the theme park attraction, the backstory is that the Hollywood Tower on Halloween night in 1939 was struck by lightning, and an elevator with five people in it vanished.  In this movie, one of those five people was the child star Sally Shine.  In present day, former journalist Buzzy Crocker is now a tabloid writer, using his niece Anna to help him stage photos for his stories....

And now we look at one last film from the Disney Renaissance, Pocahontas. The Movie: Pocahontas is the 33rd movie in the Disney Animated Canon and the 6th movie of the Disney Renaissance.  The film was in development at the same time as The Lion King and was seen by many at the studio to be the more prestigious product, with then studio head Jeffery Katenzberg envisioning a movie that could even do what Beauty and the Beast couldn't, win the Oscar for Best Picture.  However the resulting movie was one that met with mixed reviews and much criticism from historians and many Native American groups.  Although the film did fairly well at the box-office, Disney considered it a disappointment coming off the heels of The Lion King. Pocahontas is very loosely based on the historical figure, deriving more from the legend as later told by John Smith.  In Disney's version, Pocahontas is a young woman (rather than the 10-12 year-old she was in real life at the time) who ...

Keeping in the Disney Renaissance, let's look at one of their darkest films, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. The Movie: The Hunchback of Notre Dame is the 34th film in the Disney Animated Canon and the 7th of the Disney Renaissance.  This was the follow-up film for Beauty and the Beast directors Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise.  The movie was met with generally positive reviews and performed well at the box-office, though it did face some criticism for the darker tones and from fans of the book for the changes made.  Notably, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is the only movie in the Disney Animated Canon to ever be nominated for a Razzie (in the one-off category " Worst Written Film Grossing Over $100 Million.") The Hunchback of Notre Dame is (somewhat loosely) based off the novel by Victor Hugo.  Set in Medieval France, the movie opens with Judge Claude Frollo capturing a group of gypsies.  A mother tries to escape to save her baby and dies.  The baby is def...

Today we examine a "tale as old as time," Beauty and the Beast. The Movie: Beauty and the Beast is the 30th movie in the Disney Animated Canon and the second animated musical of the Disney Renaissance.  It was released to near-universal praise and was the 3rd highest grossing film of the year.  Beauty and the Beast was the first animated film to win the Golden Globe for Best Movie - Musical or Comedy and the first animated film ever to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars.  Today it is often held as one of the best animated movies ever made. Based on the fairy tale as told by French author Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont, Beauty and the Beast tells the story of a young prince who turns away a beggar woman.  The beggar woman is actually and enchantress in disguise, and as punishment she transforms him into a hideous beast, and the curse can only be broken if he learns to love and is loved in return.  A decade later, an inventor named Maurice get...

Long before Disney got on the live-action remake train in the 2010s, they first tried it in the 1990s with the movie 101 Dalmatians. The Movie: Coming just five years after the last re-release of the animated version and still riding on that movie's popularity, 101 Dalmatians was released to mixed reviews but commercial success, enough so that a live-action sequel was released four years later.  (That movie is not on the docket today.)  Though being credited as another adaptation of the Dodie Smith book, the movie clearly draws much inspiration from the 1961 animated film. 101 Dalmatians uses almost all the major beats and even several chunks of dialogue from the 1961 movie.  The setting is updated to (at the time) the present day.  Roger (who is given his book last name of Dearly instead of the animated movie's Radcliffe) is now an American video game designer living in London.  Anita's relationship to Cruella de Vil is now that of an employee, and Cru...

Ok, so I just finished up my Romeo and Juliet performances, and I am trying to avoid being hit too hard by the post-show funk.  So, the only theme for the time being is that I am choosing movies that I find awesome.  That brings us to Mulan. The Movie: Mulan is the 36th movie in the Disney Animated Canon and part of the period of the Disney Renaissance.  The movie was well-received and performed well at the box office, but like the other later Renaissance movies did not earn as much as the earlier films.  Mulan won several Annie Awards, including Best Animated Film.  It is also slated to have a live-action remake in the near future. The movie begins with the Huns, led by Shan Yu, invading China.  In response, the emperor conscripts one member of every household into the army to add numbers.  Mulan's father, the legendary Fa Zhou, has no sons or other male relatives, and he is old and in poor health.  To save her father, Mulan steals his a...

With a certain dinosaur movie opening this weekend, I thought it would be a good time to take a look at Disney movies and franchises that feature dinosaurs.  And since we've been on a kick with the early Disney films, let's start off today with the movie Fantasia. The Movie: Fantasia is the 3rd film in the Disney Animated Canon.  It was definitely a project of love for Disney, who was hoping to set a new standard in animation by giving the top artists the chance to showcase their craft.  Fantasia was originally presented in a roadshow format, where it would tour the country for special showings with ticketed seats like an orchestra concert.  The movie was never destined to be a big money-maker, but the less than impressive returns from Pinocchio meant the money wasn't there to prop up this film.  Many people at the time didn't know what to make of Fantasia, as it was unlike anything to come before, and in many ways, anything since.  Over the years, F...