Tag Archives: Animated Feature Film

August 3

Posted on August 3, 2013 by disneydetail

August 3, 1990 – Ducktales: The Movie, Treasure of the Lost Lamp is Released to Theaters

“Big wishes always spell big trouble. The bigger the wish, the bigger the trouble!”

On August 3, 1990, the animated film Ducktales: The Movie, Treasure of the Lost Lamp was released to theaters. Based on the popular animated television series and comic series by Carl Barks, the film was an international production, with tasks done in the United States, England, France, and China. The film was directed by Bob Hathcock, with screenplay by Alan Burnett. It stars Alan Young as Scrooge, Terence McGovern as Launchpad, Russi Taylor as the nephews and Webby, Rip Taylor as Gene, Richard Libertini as Dijon, and Christopher Lloyd as Merlock.

The film begins with Scrooge’s plane speeding through canyons, with Scrooge dismayed in finding that Launchpad never went to flight school. Scrooge, his nephews, and Webby are approaching an archaeological site where, supposedly, the treasure of Collie Baba and his forty thieves was hidden in a secret chamber. Unfortunately, Launchpad destroys most of the ancient ruins, and the plane, in the process of landing. The workers take Scrooge to a chest they found, and Scrooge believes it to be the treasure. When he opens the chest, however, he only finds old robes. Louie finds a map in one of the coat pockets, and Scrooge takes the map. One of the workers named Dijon runs off to his master, the warlock Merlock, who has been looking for the treasure for centuries. Merlock demands that Dijon follow Scrooge to the location on the map and steal the treasure, which he knows is a magic lamp. Scrooge soon heads out into the desert, and they arrive at the location on the map.

Scrooge is thrilled to discover that he’s found the secret hiding place of Collie Baba

After digging up the secret pyramid where the treasure is located, the group goes inside to explore, and end up falling down a trap door. As they do, they find the location of the treasure, and excitedly leap across a rope bridge to get to it. Webby finds a lamp, and asks if she can keep it as part of her tea set. Scrooge agrees, and Dijon makes off with the rest of the treasure, joined by Merlock, who destroys the rope bridge before Scrooge and the gang are able to make their way back across. Seeing several large scorpions waiting below, the nephews and Launchpad come up with a quick plan to get out alive. Outside, Merlock is digging thought the treasure, unable to find the lamp. Believing that Scrooge has it, Merlock turns into a large bird and searches for Scrooge. After escaping the pyramid, Scrooge is depressed, as he has lost the treasure he’d been searching for forty years. Webby offers the lamp, but Scrooge allows her to keep it. Merlock is unable to find Scrooge, and demands that Dijon finds Scrooge and retrieves the lamp.

Back in Duckburg, Webby is polishing the lamp, when it starts to move. Huey then rubs the lamp, and a genie pops out. Although he’s at first confused as to where he is, he soon is grateful for the kids letting him out. The four kids are excited about their prospect of having three wishes each, with Webby making the first wish for a baby elephant as a pet. The genie is worried that by granting such a huge wish, people will know he exists and come to take him away. Their nanny, Mrs. Beakley, finds the elephant, and Huey begrudgingly wishes away the elephant before she can show Scrooge. The kids take genie to hide in their room, but he slips on a skateboard when Scrooge is lecturing the kids on teasing Mrs. Beakley; fortunately, he takes on the guise of a kid, with the kids naming him Gene. After Scrooge begrudgingly allows Gene to stay the night, the kids set to work on asking Gene for their wishes. Gene reveals to the kids his desire of wanting to be just like the kids, and his fear of his meanest master, Merlock. The kids tell Gene that Merlock has to be dead by now, but Gene reveals that Merlock’s first wish is to live forever. The biggest problem, he then explains, is that Merlock holds a magic talisman that, once placed on the lamp, allows the wearer unlimited wishes. The kids reassure Gene that Merlock has no idea that Gene is with them before going to sleep.

The kids take turns with playing with Gene, with Webby taking him to join her tea party

The next morning, Merlock and Dijon arrive at Scrooge’s mansion, ready to steal the lamp, while the kids play with Gene as if he were a real boy. Merlock sneaks into the house as a rat, and unknowingly catches the attention of Mrs. Beakley, who beats him with a broom. Gene isn’t enjoying playing tea party with Webby, and accidentally gives her the idea to wish that all of her toys and dolls would come to life. The toys begin to terrorize the house, and when Gene asks Webby to turn them all back to toys, she regretfully tells him that she’d just used her last wish. Scrooge leaves his office to find the house run amok by toys, and demands an explanation. Louie angrily uses his last wish to turn everything back to normal, revealing to Scrooge Gene’s true identity. Scrooge takes the lamp from the kids, and his first wish is to have the treasure of Collie Baba. Scrooge then attends the Archaeological Ball, taking Gene with him. Merlock and Dijon follow him to the party to steal Gene. At the party, Scrooge start to announce that he found the treasure, but Gene takes Scrooge away in order to avoid capture by Merlock. Merlock turns into a bear to better attack Scrooge, but Gene helps Scrooge to hide by taking him inside the lamp.

After Merlock leaves, Gene tells Scrooge that he wishes to be a real boy, and Scrooge softens at this confession. When they see Merlock searching for him from the sky, Scrooge demands that Gene return to the lamp for his own protection. As Scrooge makes his way out, he trips over a food cart, knocking its contents to the floor. Thinking it’s the lamp, Scrooge grabs a gravy boat by mistake, leaving the lamp and Gene behind to be picked up by Dijon. As Dijon rushes to take the lamp to Merlock, Gene convinces Dijon to instead keep the lamp for himself. When Scrooge arrives home at his mansion, he is shocked to find that Dijon has wished for Scrooge’s fortune, and Scrooge is promptly arrested. As Scrooge sits in a jail cell, he is soon visited by his nephews, Webby, Mrs. Beakley, Duckworth, and Launchpad, who paid for his bail. The nephews get an idea to sneak back into the mansion to get Gene and Scrooge’s possessions back. Scrooge and the others plan a full scale attack to get inside, but don’t realize that Merlock, disguised as a cockroach, has also snuck in after them. Inside, while Dijon is distracted, Merlock steals the lamp, and his first act is to turn Dijon into a pig. He then turns Scrooge’s home into a fortress, and sends it flying to his home in the desert.

Merlock decides to get rid of Scrooge once and for all, using Gene to send him flying out of the fortress

When Scrooge threatens to attack Merlock, Merlock retaliates by sending Scrooge flying from the fortress, but the nephews use their marbles to knock the lamp away from Merlock. As Scrooge and the lamp hurtle towards the Earth, Merlock chases after them in the guise of a griffin. The two struggle in the air, and Scrooge manages to knock Merlock’s talisman away, grab the lamp, and wish everything back to normal. Scrooge uses his last wish to make Gene a real boy, much to Gene’s excitement. Dijon, who was crawling around as a pig in Scrooge’s vault, turns back into a human, and the movie ends with the kids playing and Scrooge chasing Dijon down the streets of Duckburg for stealing Scrooge’s gold.

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Posted in Uncategorized and tagged 1990s, Animated Feature Film, Color, Feature Film. Bookmark the permalink.

July 26

Posted on July 26, 2013 by disneydetail

July 26, 1951 – Alice in Wonderland Premieres at London’s Leicester Square Theater

“I give myself very good advice, but I very seldom follow it.”

On July 26, 1951, the world premiere of Walt Disney’s 13^th animated feature film Alice in Wonderland took place in London’s Leicester Square Theater. Walt Disney attended the premiere, as did Kathryn Beaumont, the voice of Alice. The film was also due to premiere the same day in New York City, but the date was delayed two days, as it coincided with the release of another adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s work: a feature-length puppet version by French filmmaker Lou Bunin (this film would fail at the box office). Unfortunately, the film was criticized for “Americanizing” a British classic, and was a disappointment on its release, earning only $2.4 million at the box office. Walt Disney would later say that the film failed because the character of Alice had no “heart.” It would find its audience in the 1970s, and became a success on home video.

July 20

Posted on July 20, 2013 by disneydetail

July 20, 1890 – Character Actress Verna Felton is Born

“Walt found her voice wonderful, and he used her again and again.” – John Culhane, Author and Film Historian

On July 20, 1890, Verna Felton was born in Salinas, California. She began her career in radio, working on Red Skelton’s radio series and The Jack Benny Program. In 1941, Felton was hired as a voice actress for the Disney animated feature film Dumbo as Mrs. Jumbo (Dumbo’s mother) and the Elephant Matriarch. She would continue to be hired by the studio in a variety of roles, including the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella, the Queen of Hearts in Alice in Wonderland, Aunt Sarah in Lady and the Tramp, Flora in Sleeping Beauty, and Winifred the Elephant in The Jungle Book. The Jungle Book would be her last role, as she would pass away from a stroke on December 14, 1966, the day before Walt Disney passed away.

July 15

Posted on July 15, 2013 by disneydetail

July 15, 2011- The 51^st Animated Feature Film Winnie the Pooh is Released to Theaters

“But his favorite things are his stuffed animals. Ah, there they are now: a charming and eccentric cast of characters. And his best friend among them is a bear named Winnie the Pooh, or Pooh, for short. Together, they had many unusual adventures that all happened right here in the Hundred Acre Wood.”

On July 15, 2011, the 51^st animated feature film Winnie the Pooh was released to theaters. Based on the stories by A. A. Milne, this is the second film in the Disney animated canon to feature Winnie the Pooh and his friends. Although the film was critically acclaimed, it only made a small amount at the box office, due to its unfortunate timing of opening the same weekend as the last Harry Potter film. The film drew inspiration from three different stories: “In Which Eeyore Loses a Tail and Pooh Finds One,” “In Which Piglet Meets a Heffalump,” and “In Which Rabbit Has a Busy Day and We Learn What Christopher Robin Does in the Mornings.” The music for the film was written by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, and performed by actress Zooey Deschanel, with Deschanel’s band She & Him writing the end-credit song. The story was written by Stephen J. Anderson, Clio Chiang, Don Dougherty, Don Hall, Brian Kesinger, Nicole Mitchell, Jeremy Spears, and Kendelle Hoyer, and was directed by Stephen J. Anderson and Don Hall. It stars John Cleese as the narrator, Jim Cummings as Pooh and Tigger, Travis Oates as Piglet, Tom Kenny as Rabbit, Craig Ferguson as Owl, Bud Lackey as Eeyore, Jack Boutler as Christopher Robin, Kristen Anderson-Lopez as Kanga, and Wyatt Hall as Roo.

The movie opens in the room of Christopher Robin, with the narrator introducing his stuffed animals, including his bear Winnie the Pooh, and explains that Christopher Robin and his friends had many adventures together. The adventure begins with the first chapter of the book, “In Which Winnie-the-Pooh has a Very Important Thing to Do.” The narrator catches Pooh asleep in bed, reminding him that he must wake up as he has a very important thing to do. Pooh excitedly searches for honey, but soon realizes he is out of honey. He comes across Eeyore, glum as always, and discovers that Eeyore’s tail is missing. Owl then flies by, landing in the tree where he was hatched and begins to write his memoirs. Pooh asks for Owl’s help to find Eeyore’s tail, and Owl agrees, suggesting they give out an award for finding Eeyore’s tail. Pooh then sends out messages that there’s “a very important thing to do,” and everyone gathers with Christopher Robin.

Eeyore is placed on display as Exhibit A when Christopher Robin announces the search for Eeyore’s tail

As everyone gathers, Christopher Robin explains the situation, declaring a contest for finding the tail. Pooh comes up with the idea of a large pot of honey for the winner, and the search is on. Pooh puts a cuckoo clock on Eeyore’s end in place of its tail, and is declared the winner, until Eeyore sits on the clock and smashes it. Piglet suggests a balloon, but this doesn’t work well either. The group tries and tries until they run out of things to try, until Kanga gives Eeyore her scarf as Eeyore’s new tail. Pooh is disappointed he didn’t win the honey, and wanders the woods, until he comes across a loose thread, finding that Eeyore’s tail has unraveled. As Pooh continues to Christopher Robin’s, he finds a note at the front door and takes it to Owl’s to read. Although the note says that Christopher Robin will be “back soon,” Owl interprets the letter as their friend being captured by a creature known as “the Backson.” Rabbit comes up with the idea to catch the Backson and save Christopher Robin.

Piglet digs the pit and Pooh assists in setting the trap for the Backson, and the rest of the group sets up the Backson bait. Tigger, however, goes deep into the woods to capture the Backson himself, but ends up catching Eeyore instead. Tigger, in an effort to cheer Eeyore out, takes the donkey under his wing to “Tigger-ize” him, which includes Tigger dressing up as the Backson and attempting to have Eeyore pounce him. In the end, howeverr, Eeyore hides from Tigger, having had enough of the lessons. As Pooh and Piglet continue setting up, Pooh gets the idea to send Piglet up a tree to retrieve a beehive, which ends with the bees chasing the pair across the woods. As everyone continues to prepare the trap, Pooh continues to think only of honey, and how hungry he is. As he is distracted by his daydream of honey, he falls into the pit for the Backson. The rest of the team searches for Pooh and, hearing Pooh’s groaning from the pit, thinks they caught the Backson. They realize Pooh is in the pit, and come up with a plan to save him, only to get caught in the pit themselves, save for Piglet. Piglet is tasked with getting everyone out of the pit, and nervously looks at the woods.

Pooh uses letters to help everyone get out of the Backson pit

As Piglet travels through the woods to get Christopher Robin’s jump rope to pull everyone from the pit, he comes across Tigger, who is still dressed like the Backson. They both quickly flee the woods, and Piglet knocks into the narration of the book, sending letters flying all over the place before landing into the pit. Tigger, seeing Eeyore again, tries to convince him to be a Tigger again, when Eeyore claims that “the very best thing about Tiggers is you’re the only one,” which makes Tigger very happy. As Rabbit despairs being caught in the hole, Pooh spies the honey pot at the top, and uses the fallen letters to create a ladder to reach it, effectively helping everyone escape the pit. After they escape, Christopher Robin comes through the trees, letting the group know that he wasn’t taken by any Backson, but that his note said “back soon,” indicating that he’d been at school and would be returning soon.

Still hungry, Pooh continues to search, arriving at Owl’s house. When he rings Owl’s bell, he notices that Owl’s bell rope looks awfully familiar. Pooh is distracted by Owl’s offer of honey, but goes back to the bell rope and takes it from Owl, vowing to return it to Eeyore. Owl still offers him honey, but Pooh refuses, knowing that his friend comes first. Christopher Robin quickly attaches the tail, and awards Pooh with a giant pot of honey. Afterwards, Christopher Robin and Pooh go walking through the woods hand in hand.

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Posted in Uncategorized and tagged 2010s, Animated Feature Film, Color, Feature Film, Walt Disney Animation Studios. Bookmark the permalink.

June 18

Posted on June 18, 2013 by disneydetail

June 18, 1999 – The 37^th Animated Feature Film Tarzan is Generally Released

“Somewhere, something is calling for you. Two worlds: one family.”

On June 18, 1999, Disney’s 37^th Animated Feature Film Tarzan was released generally to theaters. The film was based on Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Glen Keane, animator for adult Tarzan, designed the character after watching his son perform skateboarding stunts and by watching extreme sports, giving the character a feel of “surfing” through the jungle. For the jungle, a new 3D painting and rendering technique was created for film, called Deep Canvas. This technique allows animators to create a computer animated background that still has the feel of a traditional painted background; it was awarded a special Academy Award in 2003. The songs for the film were written and performed by singer-songwriter Phil Collins, with score by Mark Mancina. Collins’ song “You’ll Be in My Heart” won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for best Original Song. The film overall was a critical and financial success, and was the last film of the Disney Renaissance to have a box office impact. The screenplay was written by Tab Murphy, Bob Tzudiker, and Noni White, and was directed by Chris Buck and Kevin Lima. It stars Tony Goldwyn as Tarzan, Minnie Driver as Jane, Glenn Close as Kala, Lance Henriksen as Kerchak, Brian Blessed as Clayton, Nigel Hawthorne as Professor Porter, Rosie O’Donnell as Terk, and Wayne Knight as Tantor.

There’s been a shipwreck, but a couple and their young child have been able to make it out alive. They look to the jungle as a place of safety in their small boat, and sail towards it. In the jungle, a gorilla couple is also enjoying family time with their baby. The scenes switch between the two families as they work on creating homes for themselves. One night, the baby gorilla wakes up and goes after a frog to play with it, unaware that the leopardess Sabor is nearby and on the prowl. The baby is unable to escape, and is viciously attacked and killed by Sabor. As the gorillas migrate, the mother, Kala, sadly trails behind, until she hears the sound of a baby cry, and takes off in its direction. She comes across the tree house that the human family has built, and opens the door to find that Sabor has killed the parents inside. She hears the baby cry from its crib, and finds that he has not been harmed. Kala takes to the child, and adopts him as her own. However, she soon discovers that Sabor never left the house, and runs to escape, the baby still in her hands. Sabor chases the baby after Kala accidentally drops him into netting nearby, but they manage to escape, and Kala brings the baby back to her herd.

Kala tells Kerchak her intentions of adopting the baby as her own, but he refuses to accept the child

When Kala joins the herd, she declares that she will be the baby’s mother, although her mate Kerchak refuses to accept him. He begrudgingly accepts that Kala will raise him, but tells her that he will never acknowledge him as his son. Kala decides to call the baby Tarzan. The years pass, and Tarzan has grown into a willful child, who still has a hard time fitting in with the herd. Although he is friends with another gorilla named Terk, the other children want nothing to do with what they call the “hairless wonder.” The kids play a prank on him, telling him he can play with them if he retrieves a hair from an elephant and, desperate to fit in, goes to get one, but nearly ends up stomped to death by the elephants. He accidentally starts a stampede that breaks through where the gorillas are nesting, incurring the wrath of Kerchak. Saddened that Kerchak believes that Tarzan will never fit in with the herd, he runs away. Kala finds him later, and tells him that they are family, as their hearts are exactly the same. With renewed vigor, Tarzan is determined to prove his worth to the family.

After adapting to everything in the jungle, Tarzan grows into a strong man, able to hold his own against anything. One day, Tarzan senses something nearby, and narrowly escapes when Sabor breaks through. Kerchak tries to defend the family against Sabor, and Tarzan assists him by taking on the leopardess. In the end, Tarzan manages to kill Sabor, and the whole herd cheers. It looks like Kerchak is about to accept Tarzan as a member of the herd, when a strange sound pierces through the jungle. Kerchak informs everyone they need to move, but Tarzan goes off to explore the strange sound. He comes across a trio of people, and studies them carefully: a trigger-happy guide named Mr. Clayton, Professor Porter, and his daughter, Jane. Jane takes a moment to draw a baby baboon, but is soon chased by the baby’s entire herd. Tarzan soon jumps in to save her. She is rather frightened by Tarzan, but soon discovers that he is rather gentle and nothing to fear. He introduces himself, and starts mimicking her, quickly picking up English. He then helps take her back to her camp.

Tarzan and Kerchak clash over the idea of whether the humans are dangerous or not

Terk, elephant friend Tantor, and other members of the herd go looking for Tarzan, and come across the camp set up by the Professor and Clayton. The group starts trashing the camp, but are soon chased away by an angry Kerchak. The Professor and Clayton return to the camp after Tarzan leaves with the frightened herd, and Jane relays the story of how Tarzan saved her to her companions. Back at the nest, Kerchak decrees that no one is to go near the strangers, and gets into an argument with Tarzan, as Tarzan does not believe Jane to be dangerous. Tarzan is furious, wondering why Kala never told him that there were creatures that looked like him. Jane tells her father about Tarzan, and Tarzan soon returns to the camp to see her. Jane then decides to teach Tarzan about the world outside of the jungle, while Clayton wishes to use Tarzan to find the gorillas. Tarzan and Jane grow closer, and Jane asks if Tarzan will take them to the gorillas, but he refuses, as he wishes to obey Kerchak. Unfortunately, the ship soon arrives to take the professor and Jane back to England, and Jane asks Tarzan to come with her. Tarzan says he can’t, and asks her to stay. Clayton then takes advantage of Tarzan’s feelings for Jane, and has Tarzan take them to see the gorillas, as Clayton says Jane will wish to stay if she sees them.

Terk and Tantor keep Kerchak occupied as Tarzan takes Jane to the camp. Unfortunately, Kerchak arrives to find the group there, and attacks Clayton. Tarzan saves them from Kerchak, but also alienates himself from the family in the process. Kala finally reveals the truth about Tarzan’s parents, and leaves him to make up his mind about if he should stay in the jungle or go with Jane. In the end, Tarzan decides to go back to England with Jane, much to the sorrow of Kala. As the humans head to the ship, Clayton reveals his true intentions of capturing all of the gorillas, with Jane and the professor trapped in cages to prevent them from stopping Clayon’s plan. Terk and Tantor, hearing Tarzan’s cry for help, set out to rescue their friend. In the jungle, Kerchak and the herd sense danger, and as he tries to protect the herd, he is soon captured. As the herd is trapped in cages and tied down by ropes, Tarzan appears in the mist, bringing with him a whole herd of jungle animals to free the herd. Kerchak asks in surprise that Tarzan came back, and Tarzan tells him that he came home. As Clayton tries to shoot Tarzan, Kerchak takes the bullet. Angered, Tarzan fights Clayton, destroying his gun. As Clayton tries to attack Tarzan with his knife, he is caught in the vines, and dies by hanging as a vine stays wrapped around his neck. Tarzan returns to the herd to fine Kerchak dying. Kerchak finally accepts Tarzan as his son, and asks that Tarzan take care of the family from then on.

Jane, deciding to stay, is welcomed into the family

Jane still has to return to England, and the two say goodbye on the beach. Jane is heartbroken with having to leave Tarzan behind, and her father tells her that she needs to stay. Realizing that with Tarzan is where she belongs, she returns to the beach and embraces Tarzan. The Professor decides he wishes to stay as well, and the two effectively join the family.

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