When people remember this period of time in Disney's history, they tend to remember the group known as 'The Big Four' comprised of The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King. These films were all box office successes and brought acclaim to the studio. But, sandwiched between these insanely popular films, stands a little and less epic affair that always gets neglected or forgotten by the general audience, and that's The Rescuers Down Under. Released just after The Little Mermaid put the studio back on the map and before Beauty and the Beast took them to new glorious heights, The Rescuers Down Under suffers in comparison with the films that surround it, but nonetheless it offers plenty of charm and great character animation that keeps the family entertained. The first official sequel that came from the studio, this film is not as good or heartfelt as its 1977 predecessor, but it still manages to keep the audience interested and invested in the story, mainly because of the strength of the two lead characters. Bernard and Miss Bianca proved to be excellent heroes in The Rescuers and this time it's no different; the chemistry between the two is what makes this movie worth a watch. It also helps that Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor returned to voice the two mice so the chemistry that we found in the original film is still intact here. That, coupled with some spectacular flight scenes, some colourful new characters and the use of the new CAPS system to animate the film, make it a worthy inclusion in the Renaissance period. All in all, The Rescuers Down Under might not be as widely loved or remembered as most films from this era, but it remains an underrated film that deserves to be seen by any animation lover. Rating: 3.5/5.
Next Week -- Animated Classic #30: Beauty and the Beast (1991)
I personally prefer the adventure of this film to the heart and somewhat slow pace of its predecessor. You can just FEEL the effort put into this sequel, whereas the first film, while full of tenderness, slightly reeks of the "phoned-in" style, particularly in animation, of the Dark Age efforts.
ReplyDeleteStill, I do see the story lines somewhat disconnected. The film could've stretched itself out more in plot and characters. Still, the voice acting is impactful, the flying scenes in the pre-credits sequence are phenomenal, and the tension of Bernard trying to pop the question to Bianca is fun and holds up the film outside of its action.
On the other hand, the marketing was atrocious and continued to become the bane for today's underrated animated films.
I wonder what the threequel could have been like...
4 out of 5 stars