Yearly Archives: 2016

Pocahontas “Mine, Mine, Mine!” (1995)

After a treacherous sea voyage, John Smith and company have arrived on the shores of the New World (what is now part of the state of Virginia). Governor Ratcliffe dispatches Smith to scout the terrain and see if any Indians are about the area. Meanwhile, the rest of the settlers are going to start digging, wait…digging??

The gold of Cortes
The jewels of Pizarro
Will seem like mere trinkets
By this time tomorrow
The gold we find here
Will dwarf them by far
Oh, with all ya got in ya, boys
Dig up Virginia, boys

Mine, boys, mine ev’ry mountain
And dig, boys, dig ’til ya drop
Grab a pick, boys
Quick, boys
Shove in a shovel
Uncover those lovely
Pebbles that sparkle and shine
It’s gold and it’s mine, mine, mine

Yes, that’s right. Ratcliffe (the greedy lout) is convinced that Virginia, like the Spanish New World (Mexico) is full of gold and precious gems. Barely scratch the surface and they’ll all be rich as kings! Of course, Ratcliffe (David Ogden Stiers) has no intention of sharing any of this wealth; his plan (revealed in the following song) is to return to England filthy rich and be ennobled by King James, and then become the envy of the entire court.

My rivals back home
It’s not that I’m bitter
But think how they’ll squirm
When they see how I glitter!
The ladies at court
Will be all a-twitter
The king will reward me
He’ll knight me… no, lord me!

It’s mine, mine, mine
For the taking
It’s mine, boys
Mine me that gold!
With those nuggets dug…

It’s glory they’ll gimme
My dear friend, King Jimmy
Will probably build me a shrine
When all of the gold… is mine!

All of this is the basis for the song “Mine, Mine, Mine!” Ratcliffe draws a beautiful picture of the treasures that could be discovered, convincing the settlers to begin a digging and mining operation on a grand scale; leveling trees and digging deep pits in search of treasures that actually don’t exist (in real life, the natives of this area primarily had metal decorations made of copper). Ratcliffe is unwittingly sending the settler’s on a fool’s errand by having them dig up the land for something they’ll never find. The song (for the most part) perfectly highlights how greedy and selfish Ratcliffe really is.

Meanwhile, John Smith is out exploring the pristine countryside (while a curious Pocahontas follows at a distance). He’s a man of adventure, and he believes he’s finally found the perfect land to explore. Smith isn’t really interested in gold or treasure of any kind, he’s in this for the glory of the adventure. This leads to the rival statements of “mine”: Smith says, “the greatest adventure is mine” while Ratcliffe boasts “all of the gold is mine!”

All of my life, I have searched for a land
Like this one
A wilder, more challenging country
I couldn’t design
Hundreds of dangers await
And I don’t plan to miss one
In a land I can claim
A land I can tame
The greatest adventure is mine!

Two adventures have been started now: John Smith is out exploring (and soon to meet Pocahontas) while Ratcliffe supervises the settlers with their endless digging. So here begins my return to regular posts on Disney film music, I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving 🙂 This post was relatively short but I think they’ll get longer as I get more comfortable writing again

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Pocahontas “Steady as the Beating Drum” (1995)

Pocahontas “Just Around the Riverbend” (1995)

Pocahontas “Listen With Your Heart” (1995)

Pocahontas “Savages, Part I” (1995)

Pocahontas “Savages, Part II” (1995)

And for more great Disney songs and other animated film music, check out the main page here: Disney Films & Soundtracks A-Z

Thinking about The Emperor’s New Groove (2000)

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(You know, I could’ve sworn I covered this film already, but I can’t find it anywhere in the archive so I guess I didn’t, lol!)

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Over this past weekend, I as I was celebrating my 28th birthday, I managed to pick up a copy of The Emperor’s New Groove (2000) from Best Buy (seriously, if you get the chance, go see what they have, there are a lot of great movies on sale right now before Black Friday). I saw this movie in theaters sixteen LONG years ago, but it’s been a while since I watched it on DVD.

Truthfully, I’d forgotten how FUNNY this film is! While this film takes place after the end of the Disney Renaissance, the animation is well done and the voice acting is hilarious!

The Emperor’s New Groove is set in ancient Peru, in the Incan Empire and follows Emperor Kuzco (David Spade) as he gets the biggest serving of humble pie EVER. See, 17 year old Kuzco’s tiniest whim has been satisfied since the day he was born, meaning that he’s the biggest entitled, egotistical, spoiled BRAT on the face of the Earth. He does what he wants and has no means of understanding the consequences. For example, he summons Pacha (John Goodman), a village leader, to the palace, only to inform him that his home for the last six generations will be demolished the very next day (Kuzco’s birthday) to make room for the emperor’s new summer palace. But there’s a big problem coming for Kuzco….

Everyone, meet Yzma

Earlier that day, Kuzco had fired his royal adviser Yzma (Eartha Kitt) for playing “empress” one time too many. The infuriated Yzma decides (with help from an unwitting Kronk, her latest henchman) to get rid of Kuzco herself. Since Kuzco is barely 18, not married and certainly no children to succeed him, Yzma can easily take over the empire and rule herself. To that end, she tells Kronk to prepare a poison that will kill Kuzco almost instantly at dinner that evening. But instead of poisoning Kuzco, Kronk instead slips in extract of llama, which (you guessed it), turns the spoiled emperor into a llama!!! A subsequently botched attempt by Kronk to “finish the job” leaves Kuzco way out in the distant countryside with Pacha, and the two must find a way to work together so that a) Pacha and his family keep their home b) Kuzco can return to the palace and become human again and c) Kuzco can figure out what it means to actually be a proper ruler!!

The Emperor’s New Groove “Pull the lever Kronk!”

Yzma is played brilliantly by Eartha Kitt (who also played Catwoman in the 1966 Batman television series). The way she’s animated, she clearly has the air of a woman who was once a great beauty back in the day (at least she thinks of herself that way) and stubbornly holds onto that idea in the present.

Kuzco is also well-done, his transformation from spoiled brat to understanding young adult is believable. Kuzco and Yzma easily have my favorite lines in the entire film:

Yzma: “Pull the lever Kronk…WRONG LEVER!!!!

Kuzco: “Don’t tell me…we’re about to go over a huge waterfall…(Pacha: Yup!) Sharp rocks at the bottom? (Pacha: Most likely.) Bring it on!”

If you’ve never seen this film before, go check it out, you’ll have a great time 🙂

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My Thoughts on: The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949)

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So yesterday was my birthday!! I had a wonderful day (though the visit from the family was too short) and got some great gifts. Among which, I finally got a copy of The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949), one of my favorite Disney films from childhood! Although, I should say the Ichabod Crane segment was my favorite. I’d never actually seen the entire feature (with The Wind in the Willows segment) until last night. But the story of Ichabod and the Headless Horseman, that I’d seen, and when I saw it on sale yesterday, I snatched it up!

The Story of Ichabod Crane is narrated by Bing Crosby (crooner extraordinare) and tells the story of how a lanky, gluttonous (and very superstitious) schoolteacher named Ichabod Crane came to Sleepy Hollow and fell in love with the gorgeous Katrina von Tassel, daughter and heiress of the richest man in the county.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow “Ichabod” (1949)

But Ichabod isn’t the only suitor, the burly and fun-loving Brom Bones is in love with Katrina too! Poor Brom does everything he can think of to impress Katrina, but somehow it always backfires with Ichabod around.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow “Katrina” (1949)

Actually, Katrina does prefer Brom (you can tell by the way she looks at him), but she continues to flirt with Ichabod to make Brom jealous (because she wants to make sure that Brom really wants her, enough to fight for her that is). Then, on Halloween night, during a party at the von Tassel farm, Brom remembers that Ichabod is deeply superstitious and he decides to regale the guests with the story of the Headless Horseman, a specter said to haunt Sleepy Hollow.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow “The Tale of the Headless Horseman” (1949)

The song “The Tale of the Headless Horseman” is regarded as one of the darkest Disney songs ever created, and nearly didn’t make the final cut of the film. According to the song, if you should encounter the Horseman, ride for the covered bridge, because the Horseman has no power past that point. By the end of the song, poor Ichabod is scared out of his mind as he rides for home. The hollow is full of crickets, frogs and owls, all seemingly whispering the name of “Ichabod.” The poor man (and his horse) become even more terrified when they think a horse is galloping towards them, but it turns out to only be cattails banging against a log. But just as they begin to laugh in relief…the REAL Headless Horseman appears!!

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow “The Horseman appears!!!” (1949)

This part scared me silly when I was little, and why not? This guy has a diabolical laugh, a big sword, and a black, red-eyed horse that’s every bit as scary as the rider! Ichabod makes a run for it, and after several scary-but-kinda-funny mishaps, he clears the bridge, so he should be safe! But the Horseman has one trick left to play: though he can’t cross the bridge, he sends a flaming Jack-o-lantern hurling at the schoolmaster! The next morning, all that remains of Ichabod is his hat (and the pumpkin). He’s never seen in Sleepy Hollow again. Shortly thereafterward, Katrina and Brom get married, and it’s common speculation that Brom was in disguise as the Headless Horseman. I’ve thought so for years, except there’s one detail that wrecks the theory: during the chase, Ichabod clearly peeks down where the Horseman’s head should be and finds nothing there. If it was Brom in disguise, shouldn’t he have seen Brom’s head?

Regardless of whether the Horseman was real or not, I enjoyed getting to see this story again after so long. It’s a little known Disney gem that I think you will enjoy.

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Lady and the Tramp “The Siamese Cat Song” (1955)

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I just realized it’s been forever since I actually covered a piece of film music, so I thought I’d ease myself back in with one of the less well-known pieces of Disney music: “The Siamese Cat Song” from Lady and the Tramp (1955). Sadly, Lady and the Tramp is not very high on the radar of kids today, which is a shame, as the film is a gem with its animation and songs.

“The Siamese Cat Song”, although one of my favorite pieces, is rather controversial, because it contains a blatant Asian stereotype in the form of Si and Am, the two Siamese cats introduced by Aunt Sarah (after Lady’s owners leave for a short vacation). In keeping with their Asian origins, the song is built around a pentatonic (five tone) melody and begins with the ominous ringing of a gong (also strongly associated with Asian cultures in general).

When Si and Am speak (in unison a lot of the time), they have visible buck teeth. And the way they talk/sing is overly formal with bad English (a parody of Asians speaking in English). For example, here is the first verse:

We are Siamese, if you please

We are Siamese if you *don’t* please

Now we lookin’ over our new domicile

If we like we stay for maybe quite a while

The language is overly formal (note the “if you please”), and the grammar…bad! But stereotypes aside, I really like this song, because while the cats remain very polite in tone throughout their song, their actions reveal that they are nothing but trouble!

Do you seeing that thing swimming round and round?
Yes. Maybe we can reaching in and make it drown.
If we sneaking up upon it carefully
There will be a head for you, a tail for me.

Do you hear what I hear?
A baby cry?
Where we finding baby there be milk nearby.

If we look in baby buggy there could be
Plenty milk for you and also some for me.

In short order, the two cats: topple a vase of flowers, shred the curtains, terrorize the goldfish (narrowly saved from being eaten by Lady), attempt to eat the pet bird, and in general make a huge mess. And then…the baby starts crying upstairs. Being clever cats, Si and Am deduce that there must be fresh milk nearby for the baby (and if so they will gladly help themselves). However, Lady has had enough of these two, and she makes a stand at the top of the stairs. Realizing they’ve gone too far, Si and Am run for it, and all three collide in a heap back in the sitting room, where the two devious felines make it look like Lady started it as soon as Aunt Sarah enters the room. I always hated this part because I knew none of this was Lady’s fault and yet here’s mean Aunt Sarah blaming everything on Lady.

I hope you liked this brief look at “The Siamese Cat Song”

See also:

Lady and the Tramp “Bella Notte” (1955)

Lady and the Tramp “He’s a Tramp” (1955)

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My Neighbor Totoro (1988): One of My All Time Favorite Cartoons Blogathon

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This post is part of the One of My All Time Favorite Cartoons Blogathon hosted by MovieMovieBlogBlog

My Neighbor Totoro is set in post-World War II Japan (presumably in the 1950s based on the types of cars and technology visible in the story) and follows the Kusakabe family as they move to a new house in the countryside because the mother is in a nearby hospital. Mr. Kusakabe is a professor at a university in Tokyo; eldest daughter Satsuki is in grade school, while youngest daughter Mei is only four.The girls encounter a variety of spirits, starting with dust sprites (black puff balls with eyes), and forest spirits collectively known as “totoro”. Mei sees them first, in a hilarious sequence that has me giggling every time. The two smaller totoro she meets end up leading her to the magical home of Totoro, THE forest spirit of the local area. Totoro is a huge grey spirit, with a big fluffy belly, long rabbit ears and the biggest smile you ever saw (and he also loves to sleep a lot).Satsuki is initially skeptical, but once she meets Totoro at a bus stop one night, both of them become good friends with the forest spirit.

I love the bus stop scene; the smile that grows on Totoro’s face is just infectious. He doesn’t have an umbrella of his own at first, so Satsuki offers him the umbrella she brought for her father. When Totoro hears the sounds the rain makes on the umbrella, it makes him really happy, like, super happy! And the Catbus….well, I love it, but you can’t really describe it. The Catbus must be experienced 🙂

Their mom has been in the hospital for what is implied to be a long time. Her illness is never disclosed, but it is believed to be tuberculosis (as Miyazaki’s own mother spent a long time in the hospital for that reason). Towards the end of the film, the girls receive news that their mother will be allowed home for a short visit, but shortly before the visit, Satsuki receives word that her mother actually can’t come home after all due to a small relapse of her illness. The older Satsuki does her best to take this news in stride, but little Mei won’t have it. Frustrated with having to hold in her feelings for so long, Satsuki finally snaps and yells at Mei, asking if she wants their mother to die. A horribly upset Mei ends up running away to bring some fresh corn to her mother (she gets the idea after hearing a neighbor tell her and her sister earlier that if their mom ate some fresh vegetables she would get better right away). The little girl soon becomes lost and the whole village turns out to look for her. Satsuki is guilt-ridden, but she knows what to go to for help: Totoro!! She finds Totoro in his tree and begs for help, and Totoro is more than happy to oblige! He summons the Catbus who takes an astounded Satsuki to where Mei is sitting lost. And once the sisters are reunited, Catbus offers to take them both to see their mother (and of course they agree!)

The story ends shortly thereafterward, with the girls being brought back home. A series of still images during the end credits reveals that their mother finally does come home for a visit (or possibly for good) and alls well that ends well.

My Neighbor Totoro is one of the greatest animated films I’ve ever seen. For me, it embodies what childhood should be, and I highly recommend it for anyone who hasn’t seen it yet!

I also love all the spirits: the dust sprites, the mini Totoros, and of course Totoro himself, they’re all so beautifully animated, I find myself wishing things like them existed in real life.

Thanks to MovieMovieBlogBlog for hosting this great blogathon! -Becky

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Cancelled Too Soon #3: Dracula (2013-2014)

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A little known fact about me is that I have this thing for stories about Dracula. Ever since I read Bram Stoker’s novel in high school, I’ve found myself drawn to the various interpretations of the character. So when I heard that NBC was launching a series with a unique twist on the Dracula story…I was intrigued.

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Dracula (2013) Intro

Dracula takes all the known characters of the novel and rearranges them somewhat. Rather than hunting down Dracula’s trapped body to destroy him, Abraham Van Helsing (Thomas Kretschmann) sets the vampire free….to gain his help. See, the doctor was betrayed by the Order of the Dragon, the same Order that turned Dracula (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) into a vampire in the first place (and killed his beloved wife Ilona). Both have a mutual desire to get revenge on the Order, and so they enter into a pact of mutual cooperation. Until the Order is destroyed, the pair will work together. A side condition stipulates that Van Helsing will also investigate ways to allow Dracula to move about more freely in sunlight (something a vampire normally cannot do).

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Dracula and Van Helsing then spend a significant amount of time in America, where Dracula reinvents himself as an American entrepreneuer named Alexander Grayson. Having built a large fortune creating strange and wonderful inventions, “Grayson” now comes to London, promoting his latest invention: “wireless electricity”, an invention which, if accepted, would render the use of coal and oil obsolete for lighting and bankrupt most of the members of the Order.

Also in London is the beautiful Mina Murray (Jessica DeGouw) (who bears an exact resemblance to Ilona, it should be noted), her fiance Jonathan Harker (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), a sometime writer and lawyer, and Mina’s best friend Lucy (Katie McGrath) (who, in this version of the story, has genuine romantic feelings for Mina and doesn’t know how to express them or understand them). Renfield (Nonso Anozie), in this version, is Grayson’s loyal servant, the latter having saved his life in the United States.

Dracula - Season 1

I loved this show from beginning to end. The backdrop of Victorian England was beautifully arranged, and the complex love triangle between Grayson, Mina and Jonathan was executed perfectly. I even enjoyed the plot arc that followed Lucy trying to understand how she felt about Mina (spoiler: it ends very badly for Lucy).

And yet, despite the brilliant casting, the complex story and a quickly grown cult following…the show was cancelled after a single season. To say I was angry would be an understatement. I don’t try new television shows very often for a reason, because when I invest, I go all the way. As for why the show was cancelled…if I remember correctly it had something to do with high production costs, and also that the ratings weren’t high enough to justify continuing the series, blah blah, which is all ridiculous because, once again, NBC chose to place this show in the Friday night slot (aka the “kill slot” where shows go to die). I don’t know why NBC insists on sabotaging themselves like this, but it is super frustrating.

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Thankfully, the sole season of Dracula has since been made available on DVD (I picked up a copy the first chance I could get.) There are only ten episodes, but it remains some of the best television I have seen in recent years.

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The Lightsaber Duel at Cloud City: A Nightmare in Three Stages

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The lightsaber duel between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back is often referred to as the greatest saber duel of the saga, and for good reason. The staging is perfect, the tension is spot on (and it happens to feature the biggest cinematic twist of all time).

I already wrote about the duel somewhat here but now I’d like to go into a bit more detail.

As I see it, the duel is divided into three stages, with a different setting and feel for each.

Stage One is set in the carbon freezing chamber on Cloud City (where Han Solo was recently frozen into carbonite) and is also where Vader plans to do the same thing to Luke. At the beginning of the duel, Vader believes that Luke will be a pushover, so he’s not really expending a lot of energy. Quite the opposite, he lets Luke initiate the duel (Luke activates his saber first AND he makes the first attack), Vader only parries the blows in response. In fact, Vader isn’t even holding his saber with both hands, whereas Luke is clearly expending a lot of energy early on (and getting nowhere).

There is a bit of taunting (on Vader’s part) but not too much, as he wants this duel to end quickly. It doesn’t take much to get Luke down the stairs and right in front of the pit as Vader activates the machine with the Force. And then Vader gets cocky: forcing Luke down into the pit, he boasts “all too easy” and flips the switch. But Luke (thanks to his training) is able to leap out a split second before the freezing process begins, much to Vader’s surprise (he says he’s “impressed” but I really think surprised is the better word). Clearly, this duel is not going to be a quick pushover, so once Luke kicks Vader off the edge of the platform (and I somewhat believe Vader let that happen), the Dark Lord disappears to regroup for Stage Two.

Stage Two takes place in an abandoned hallway deep inside Cloud City. And even before it begins, Luke has a choice to make: at this point, Vader has vanished to who knows where and Luke doesn’t HAVE to follow him (I know I wouldn’t, I mean really, venturing into a dark hallway in search of a ticked off Dark Lord with a lightsaber? NOPE!), but of course he does.

There’s a literal transition point as Luke comes to a brightly lit service corridor that takes him to the location of stage 2: the abandoned hallway with a large octagonal window looking out into the air shaft of Cloud City. And once Luke reaches that point…the breathing begins (a moment that always sends a shiver down my spine). Luke re-ignites his saber (Vader’s is already activated), but instead of launching back into the duel, Vader decides a “lesson” is in order (this is discussed more in the radio drama version of ESB and as far as I know is canon): sure, Luke is (at best) a competent duelist, a skill surely inherited from his father, but what experience does he have against a veteran Force user who can duel AND manipulate objects in the Force at the same time? Of course Luke doesn’t have any such experience which is why he gets the crap knocked out of him by various flying debris. At this point, Vader is still somewhat toying with Luke, but things are definitely more serious (I’m still not sure if Vader intended to have Luke go flying out the window, cause after that moment Vader comes over to look like “did I kill him?”)

Fortunately, Luke doesn’t go falling to his death, but instead manages to make his way to a platform station of some kind even lower down the air shaft, the setting for Stage Three (and the end of the duel) But he barely has a chance to look around before Vader shows up, and this time the Sith Lord isn’t messing around. His strikes come fast and hard, and Luke is quickly chased backwards out to the near edge of the platform. Vader (holding Luke at saberpoint) declares his opponent beaten, it’s time to give up. Unfortunately, Vader also taunts Luke by saying “Don’t let yourself be destroyed as Obi-Wan did” reminding Luke about how Vader killed Obi-Wan in front of him. This visibly angers Luke and he stages a miraculous (and brief) comeback, which ends when he manages to score a partial blow on Vader’s shoulder.

BAD.IDEA

That this not-even-half-trained-would-be-Jedi managed to score a blow on him enrages Vader and pushes him over the edge. He pushes Luke back again and in a short series of moves deprives Luke of his lightsaber…and his right hand!! (For years I dreaded this moment, because it always seemed to come out of nowhere, and I hated Luke’s scream of pain).

Now the fight is really finished, but Vader isn’t done yet. Now that Luke is cornered (literally), he makes his “pitch” for Luke to join the Dark Side. Of course Luke refuses, pointing out that he (Vader) killed his father. This prompts the biggest cinematic twist of all time:

“No” (Vader says) “*I* am your father.”

On the one hand, it makes no sense because Episode IV clearly establishes Vader and Luke’s father as two separate people. And yet….why would Vader lie? Luke knows there’s no reason for Vader to lie, hence his (understandably) upset reaction.

With the duel over, it appears Luke has no place to go except with Vader, but Luke figures he still has one way out: he’s at the edge of the main air shaft of Cloud City, and he’s not sure what’ll happen down there, but it has to be better than going with Vader…so he lets himself fall! There’s more, but that’s a separate scene.

Fun notes:

I remarked in my earlier post that Vader was played by master fencer Bob Anderson for this entire duel (David Prowse kept breaking the saber blades), hence the reason this duel is shot from so many unusual angles (looking down at Vader, looking up at Vader, a lot of close-up shots) because Anderson was nowhere near the height and size of Prowse.

Only Mark Hamill, George Lucas, and one other writer knew the truth about the big twist. Everyone else was given a fake page of script where the “twist” was given as “You don’t know the truth, Obi-Wan killed your father.” (I mean that WOULD have been a pretty epic twist in and of itself)

The hallway seen in stage 2 is the same hallway Rey sees early in her Force vision in Episode VII. I really hope they explain at some point how Maz got the lightsaber, because last time it was seen, it was tumbling into the atmosphere of Bespin.

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What Disney taught me about life: Things I learned from the Movies

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This post is part of the Things I Learned from the Movies Blogathon hosted by Silver Screenings and Speakeasy.

So, I have a confession to make. Originally I was going to write about what Disney films taught me about humor, but as I got started, I realized I couldn’t think of any good examples. So, I decided to make the subject a little broader, and talk about several life lessons I learned from Disney films (my apologies for the last minute change).

Sometimes when you love a person, you have to let them go. This happens in Pocahontas (1995) when Pocahontas and John Smith know they love each other, but John has to go back to England to be treated for his injuries. Pocahontas could go with him, but she needs to stay with her people, and so they say goodbye, even though it breaks both their hearts.
Imagination is a very powerful tool. I learned this from The Sword in the Stone (1963). Most of Merlin’s lessons are based on the Wart’s ability to “imagine” that he is a fish, or a bird or a squirrel before the magic can actually work. And as the Wart’s imagination is opened up further, he grows further and further as a young man.
You don’t always fall in love at first sight. I know most Disney films portray the opposite, but that’s exactly my point. Until very recently, Disney portrayed true love as being something that could occur in a single meeting. Or, to be more generous, something that could occur over a relatively short period of time. While that’s better, I really think that real love takes closer to a year to happen. The good news is that Disney is slowly moving away from “true love at first sight”.

and the most important thing I learned from Disney films?

4. Sometimes the “bad guy” wins. The big example for this comes from The Lion King, when Scar succeeds with his plan to kill Mufasa. While we all want to believe that the hero always wins and the villain always loses, in real life it’s usually the other way around. And, while it took me years to understand, I think it’s good that Disney includes this concept in some of their stories. It hurts, but it’s a lesson that needs to be shared.

And that’s a small sample of the things I learned from Disney movies. I hope you enjoyed checking it out! Thanks to Silver Screenings and Speakeasy for hosting this great blogathon!

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Cancelled Too Soon #1: Constantine (2014-2015)

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Based on DC’s super-popular Hellblazer comics, the show follows John Constantine (Matt Ryan), his best friend Chaz and a mysterious woman with psychic powers named Zed, as they work to stop the “Rising Darkness” from destroying the world. Constantine has some supernatural help in the form of an angel named Manny (more on him later), and a sometimes ally/sometimes nemesis in the form of Papa Midnite, a Voodoo witch doctor who communes with the Hell-bound spirit of his dead sister for information. Along the way, Constantine must also deal with the consequences of some reckless behavior from years before, behavior that ultimately caused a young girl’s soul to be dragged to Hell (something Constantine has never forgiven himself for).

I’d never read Hellblazer before watching this show, and I was initially going to ignore it, but I decided to try it out. Almost instantly, I was hooked! I discovered later (after speed-reading a few digital comics) that Matt Ryan absolutely NAILED Constantine’s character. He’s the type of actor you dream about; the kind who can embody a role so completely you have no trouble believing he IS that person.

From the beginning though, there were hints that the show was going to be in trouble. First of all, look up at the poster, see what day and time it was set to premiere? Yeah, Fridays at 10pm isn’t exactly the best slot to give a new TV show (they don’t call Friday nights the “kill slot” for nothing). Second, because the pilot wasn’t exactly well-received, NBC refused to give the show a full season of 26 episodes, instead leaving them with only 13 (that’s NEVER a good sign for the future of any show). And third (as I remember it), they kept screwing around with the show’s schedule, one week the new episodes would air, then it would skip a week, and so on. And there would be almost no notice given of these changes. It’s almost like they wanted this show to fail….

Despite these issues, the show quickly gathered a cult following, as the story grew better with every episode. It became clear that SOMEONE had to be manipulating the Rising Darkness, and Constantine needed to figure out who it was so he could stop it. And then the last episode came…remember I mentioned Manny the angel? From day one he’d represented himself as one of the “good” angels, one who served in Heaven (and apparently also served as an Angel of Death, as he was present when one of Constantine’s friends was dying and also personally escorted a soul to the afterlife in a really cool sequence) and (at times begrudgingly) helped Constantine solve a particular mystery. Well, in the last episode, at the very end, Manny reveals to another character that HE has been manipulating the Rising Darkness this entire time, and Constantine doesn’t know it. It was a tormenting cliffhanger because there was no guarantee the show was going to continue, and ultimately, it didn’t. Despite a very vocal petition from the fans and pleas for ANY other network to pick up the show, Constantine was cancelled and remained so, meaning we would never find out Manny’s motives or whether or not Constantine was ultimately successful in stopping him.

The cancellation of Constantine led to me abandoning NBC for good (I’d already been burned once with Dracula); no matter how good the show sounds, if it’s on NBC, I won’t tune in. If there’s one thing I can’t do, it’s emotionally invest in a show only to have it ripped away after only one season or less.

If you’d like to see the show, I have great news: the Warner Archive is (finally!!!) producing Constantine: The Complete Series as an On-Demand Title, meaning you order it and they’ll make one and send it to you, you can find it on wbshop.com, I know I’m going to get a copy as soon as possible. And as far as I know, the CW is still streaming the full series on their online streaming app. Be warned though, once you start, you will get hooked!

Thankfully, this is not the last we will see of Matt Ryan as John Constantine: he already did a guest spot in season 4 of Arrow and he will be reprising the character in the upcoming animated film Justice League Dark (adapting another comic series that features Constantine).

Did you watch Constantine while it was on the air? If you did, did you like it? Wish there was more of it? Let me know in the comments below, and have a great day!

Cancelled Too Soon #11: Kindred: The Embraced (1996)

Cancelled Too Soon #12: The Magnificent Seven (1998-2000)

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Pocahontas “The Virginia Company” (1995)

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In 1995, Disney released Pocahontas, their 33rd animated feature film, and the first Disney film to be based on a real historical person (that being Pocahontas, though the details have been heavily romanticized). To my surprise, I learned that this film received mixed reviews and is in fact considered the “beginning of the end” of the Disney Renaissance. I certainly didn’t get that impression when I saw the film in theaters, but I was only in the first grade at the time, and wasn’t exactly in a position to judge film quality.

Pocahontas “The Virginia Company” (1995)

Whether you like or dislike the film, there’s no denying Pocahontas has another great Disney score, with the songs once again being composed by Alan Menken. And the first song we hear is “The Virginia Company”, a short chorus that introduces the English settlers: Thomas (Christian Bale), the barely adult kid leaving home to make his fortune; Lon (Joe Baker) and Ben (Billy Connolly), two seasoned sailors who are well acquainted with the hero of the film, Captain John Smith (Mel Gibson), a man who’s traveled everywhere and doesn’t think this “New World” will be any different from the others he’s seen.

And last, but not least, there’s Governor Ratcliffe (David Ogden Stiers), his manservant Wiggins (also David Ogden Stiers) and his pompous pooch Percy. Ratcliffe is the nominal leader of the expedition and will be Governor of the new colony (but really, he’s just in it to get really rich so he can come back to England and worm his way into the aristocracy).

In “The Virginia Company”, the settlers sing about how this New World is a paradise full of gold and silver, and they’ll all become really rich:

In sixteen hundred seven
We sailed the open sea
For glory, God and gold
And the Virginia Company

For the New World is like heaven
And we’ll all be rich and free
Or so we have been told
By the Virginia Company

So we have been told
By the Virginia Company
For glory, God and gold
And the Virginia Company

On the beaches of Virginny
There’s diamonds like debris
There’s silver rivers flow
And gold you pick right off a tree

With a nugget for my Winnie
And another one for me
And all the rest’ll go
To the Virginia Company
It’s glory, God and gold
And the Virginia Company

They have this view because of the enormous riches the Spanish found when they plundered the New World and discovered the treasures of the Aztecs, the Inca and so on. Still, it is a stirring song to hear, and a good introduction to the story.

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Pocahontas “Just Around the Riverbend” (1995)

Pocahontas “Listen With Your Heart” (1995)

Pocahontas “Mine, Mine, Mine!” (1995)

Pocahontas “Savages, Part I” (1995)

Pocahontas “Savages, Part II” (1995)

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