lupercal
07-22-2007, 09:52 AM
Wildanimals, in his/her review, wrote
I do not get why so many people consider this to be 'best Disney movie ever.'
I think there are a few reasons here:
1) Disney made exactly THREE features during the 60's, and hardly anyone else made any at all - plus this was their first in five years - so anything was bound to stand out to someone who was young at the time (it was the first Disney film made in my lifetime, and at the time, I loved it. I was shocked at how medicore it is, watching it as an adult. I'm kinda scared to watch Yellow Submarine, for the same reason)
2) Baloo is a very good character. Like Robert de Niro or Peter O'Toole though, he chose some bad films to appear in.
(also has to be about the only case of a feature film character not coming into his own till a TV series)
3) Some good songs, even if the situations for them were sometimes contrived to the point of ridiculousness.
That's about it. The sketchy drawing style worked well in 101 Dalmatians, but who wants to see a sketchy forest? The film has little plot, wanders about aimlessly, sometimes introducing characters for no better reason than as an excuse for a song, and the ending (to me anyway) is just bad. I think you'd have to wait till 'The Great Mouse Detective' before Disney would dip this low again (note: the one Disney film I've never watched is 'Black Cauldron)
Still, this doesn't really explain why 'The Sword in the Stone' isn't so well-liked or remembered. I mean, it was pretty much equally pointless, didn't have very memorable songs, and rushes to its climax like it has a sexual disorder (and that climax is almost irrelevant to the rest of the film), but I don't think it's any worse overall. Actually I'd probably rather watch it if I had to watch one of them. At least it has interesting bits with humans morphing into animals.
I think it's Baloo and the songs. The paucity of competition didn't hurt.
Loop
BTW - Athena, you once asked me what I thought about having some means in the forums for people to refer directly to reviews and discuss them. I said I thought it was a bad idea because people would just insult each other. FWIW I'm not so sure about that, now. Could be worth a try.
I do not get why so many people consider this to be 'best Disney movie ever.'
I think there are a few reasons here:
1) Disney made exactly THREE features during the 60's, and hardly anyone else made any at all - plus this was their first in five years - so anything was bound to stand out to someone who was young at the time (it was the first Disney film made in my lifetime, and at the time, I loved it. I was shocked at how medicore it is, watching it as an adult. I'm kinda scared to watch Yellow Submarine, for the same reason)
2) Baloo is a very good character. Like Robert de Niro or Peter O'Toole though, he chose some bad films to appear in.
(also has to be about the only case of a feature film character not coming into his own till a TV series)
3) Some good songs, even if the situations for them were sometimes contrived to the point of ridiculousness.
That's about it. The sketchy drawing style worked well in 101 Dalmatians, but who wants to see a sketchy forest? The film has little plot, wanders about aimlessly, sometimes introducing characters for no better reason than as an excuse for a song, and the ending (to me anyway) is just bad. I think you'd have to wait till 'The Great Mouse Detective' before Disney would dip this low again (note: the one Disney film I've never watched is 'Black Cauldron)
Still, this doesn't really explain why 'The Sword in the Stone' isn't so well-liked or remembered. I mean, it was pretty much equally pointless, didn't have very memorable songs, and rushes to its climax like it has a sexual disorder (and that climax is almost irrelevant to the rest of the film), but I don't think it's any worse overall. Actually I'd probably rather watch it if I had to watch one of them. At least it has interesting bits with humans morphing into animals.
I think it's Baloo and the songs. The paucity of competition didn't hurt.
Loop
BTW - Athena, you once asked me what I thought about having some means in the forums for people to refer directly to reviews and discuss them. I said I thought it was a bad idea because people would just insult each other. FWIW I'm not so sure about that, now. Could be worth a try.