The Rescuers “Rescue Aid Society” (1977)

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The Rescuers “Rescue Aid Society” (1977)

The Rescuers is yet another example of an older Disney film that is slowly falling into obscurity. Based on Margery Sharp’s novels The Rescuers and Miss Bianca, the film follows two mice (Bianca (Eva Gabor) and Bernard (Bob Newhart)) as they set out to rescue a girl named Penny from the clutches of Madame Medusa.

“Rescue Aid Society” is sung at the beginning of the film and serves as the official anthem of the (you guessed it) Rescue Aid Society, an organization of mice that mirrors the United Nations in that it is made up of mice from all around the world. As the picture on the wall shows, the group was founded in ancient times by the fabled mouse that pulled the thorn out of the lion’s paw.

R-E-S-C-U-E
Rescue Aid Society
Heads held high, touch the sky
You mean everything to me

In a fix, in a bind
Call on us anytime
We’ll appear from nowhere
Mighty are we

R-E-S-C-U-E
Rescue Aid Society
Honesty, loyalty
We pledge to thee

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R-E-S-C-U-E
Rescue Aid Society
Heads held high, touch the sky
You mean everything to me

In a jam, in a scrape
And you think, “no escape”
Do not fear, we’ll be here
Courageous are we

R-E-S-C-U-E
Rescue Aid Society
Heads held high, touch the sky
Our hearts we pledge to thee

Although not credited, that is actually Robie Lester providing the singing voice for Miss Bianca when she makes her entrance. The song (in the film) is accompanied by what look like a group of Boy Scouts (or would it be Mice Scouts?) who are playing trumpets and drums to keep the group together as they sing. Humorously, one of the mice (from Germany I think) sings with such a loud voice that many members pause in their singing to look over at her.

Let me know what you think of “Rescue Aid Society” in the comments below and have a great day!

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Moana “Know Who You Are” (2016)

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Moana “Know Who You Are” (2016)

The climax of Moana has one of my favorite twists in recent memory. For most of the story, we have been told that in order to restore Te Fiti, Moana and Maui will have to avoid and/or defeat Te Ka. However, while Maui distracts the fiery demon, Moana scrambles up a rocky slope and realizes the space where Te Fiti should be is empty. And that’s when Moana puts the pieces together and realizes that Te Ka IS Te Fiti, this is what happens when her Heart is taken from her. Moana knows what she has to do now, and in a beautiful scene commands the ocean to make a dry path so that Te Ka can come directly to her. As the enraged demon claws her way through the sand, Moana sings her realizations:

(Ou mata e matagi)
I have crossed the horizon to find you
(Ou loto mamaina toa)
I know your name
(Manatu atu)
They have stolen the heart from inside you
(Taku pelepele)
But this does not define you
(Manatu atu)
This is not who you are
You know who you are

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I take particular notice of the line “They have stolen the heart from inside you/But this does not define you.” A lot of people have interpreted the Te Ka/Te Fiti dichotomy to be an analogy for rape. While Maui can claim all he wants that he was trying to help humans, the fact remains that he forcibly took Te Fiti’s heart away from her, scarring her and filling her with rage. It’s easy to let the bad things that happened to you define your identity, but Moana’s song assures the goddess that it doesn’t have to be this way. Deep down, she is still Te Fiti, despite the pain she is in. The goddess clearly hears Moana’s message, because as she comes face to face with this mortal who holds her Heart, Te Ka slowly cools and is practically stone when Moana places the Heart back where it belongs.

What do you think of the song “Know Who You Are”? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below and have a great day!

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See also:

Moana “Where You Are” (2016)

Moana “How Far I’ll Go” (2016)

Moana “How Far I’ll Go (reprise)” (2016)

Moana “We Know the Way” (2016)

Moana “You’re Welcome” (2016)

Moana “Shiny” (2016)

Moana “I am Moana” (2016)

My Thoughts On: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)

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*note: To be fair I’m trying to keep spoilers to a minimum

I have a confession to make: while I’ve seen the original Spider-Man trilogy and I enjoy Tom Holland’s performance in the MCU, I’m actually not the biggest fan of Spider-Man (not sure why, it’s just not my first choice when it comes to picking a superhero movie to watch). On that basis, I was nervous going into the theater, because despite the critical acclaim surrounding the film, I wasn’t sure I was going to like it. Now after having seen it, I can definitely say that I *do* like, love and enjoy Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, but it took me a little bit to get into the film.

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I’m convinced that I must suffer from secondary embarrassment (feeling someone else’s embarrassment/awkwardness as if it were my own), because without fail, every time I see a superhero go through that awkward phase where they’re trying to figure out what’s happened to them (like what happens with Miles), instead of finding it funny (which I think we’re supposed to), I find it all very awkward and hard to watch. Happily, the film doesn’t linger on this part for too long. But before I move on to what I loved about this film, I have to make it clear that I found the sequence (after Gwen loses some of her hair) where Miles is overwhelmed by the fact that the entire school knows what happened and is laughing at him to be very triggering for me (having gone through extensive bullying and isolation during grade school). Again, I’m happy and relieved that the film didn’t linger on this aspect.

Now for what I loved, which is quite a lot: first, I love the animation style of this film, especially after Miles is bit by the spider. Once Miles begins to change, the film resembles an actual comic book, down to thought-bubbles and commentary boxes. It’s incredible to watch and for the first time I felt like a studio had actually succeeded in bringing a comic book to life.

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Second, I’m in LOVE with the other Spider-People. To be honest, apart from Spider-Gwen, I didn’t really know anything about these other versions of Spider-Man but I loved all of them. Seeing Spider-Gwen in action makes me really excited for the Spider-Women spin off (which will include Gwen, Spider-Woman and Silk). I loved Spider-Ham a lot more than I thought I would (especially when he whips out the anvil and mallet during the final fight). I’d never heard of Peni Parker but it was cool to see a character drawn in an anime style

Third, the film certainly does not lack for surprises. In hindsight, I should’ve seen the outcome of that first Spider-Man fight coming. Anytime you hear a character say “No matter what happens, I always manage to get back up” that should tell you something bad is coming. I also was not expecting Liv to be revealed as Dr. Octopus (to be honest, that was the first moment I really began to enjoy the film). But the surprise that got me the most was the reveal of the Prowler’s identity. Composer Daniel Pemberton wrote a heart-wrenching piece of music for this moment that makes it just so devastating.

 

A full-length review of Into the Spider-Verse‘s score will have to wait until I have a chance to listen to it again, but I can say the score is amazing. Daniel Pemberton did a fantastic job creating a score that is engaging and keeps you engrossed in the story. I also like that the score includes rap and hip-hop songs (meant to represent the music Miles would listen to).

In conclusion, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a fantastic film, and I can see why it’s being called the greatest Spider-Man film ever made. Let me know what you think of this film in the comments below and have a great day!

See also:

Animated Film Reviews

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Reviewing Looney Tunes: Forward March Hare (1953)

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Released: February 14th, 1953

Directed by: Chuck Jones (credited as Charles M. Jones)

Bugs Bunny has been put in some interesting situations over the years: he’s encountered Martians, evaded hunters and even been made a Super-Rabbit. But would you believe he was also drafted into the Army? It really happened in Forward March Hare, a cartoon released during the final months of the Korean War. Due to a comedy of errors (mistaking a draft letter sent to “B. Bonny” as being for him), Bugs is summarily inducted into the United States Army and proceeds to (unwittingly) wreak havoc, much to the chagrin of his drill sergeant.

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This is the army?

One of the most hysterical gags in this cartoon is that almost no one seems to realize that Bugs is a rabbit (the one soldier who does at the beginning merely looks at the camera and mutters “So they’re inducting rabbits.”) Another running gag is the drill sergeant slowly but surely getting demoted for each mess Bugs makes (he’s a buck private by the end of the cartoon, the realization that Bugs is a rabbit finally pushes him over the edge). Another favorite moment is when Bugs is shocked awake by the blaring of “Reveille” and vows to “moider that bugler,” running to silence the music with a baseball bat. For some reason, every time I watch that moment I imagine a theater full of soldiers bursting into laughter and cheers (having secretly wished to do the deed themselves).

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Upon being discovered and informed that rabbits cannot serve in the military, Bugs is given a new job: testing artillery shells to see if they’re duds. He happily informs the audience “In 30 years I can retire!” but the joke is that, given his job, he likely won’t make it that long.

Forward March Hare is a wonderful example of Warner Bros. animation in its prime (before the quality dropped in the 1960s). They certainly don’t make cartoons like this anymore. Let me know what you think about Forward March Hare in the comments below and have a great day!

See also:

Reviewing Looney Tunes

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Peter Pan “The Elegant Captain Hook” (1953)

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At its core, “The Elegant Captain Hook” is nothing more than an elaborate sales pitch designed to get the Lost Boys (and the Darling children) to join Captain Hook’s crew. I imagine Hook views this as one last opportunity to stick it to his longtime nemesis Peter Pan before he’s blown to pieces by a bomb left in his hideout. After all, what could be more satisfying than having Peter Pan’s followers become pirates? Also, given the cyclical nature of events on Neverland (“All of this has happened before, and all of it will happen again”), I can’t help but wonder how many times the Lost Boys have been made this offer in the past. Who knows, maybe there were a few times where the boys did join Captain Hook’s crew, for a while anyway. But I digress…

(the song is delivered while the children are tied to the mast)

Yo Ho, Yo Ho, Yo Ho, Yo Ho, Yo Ho
So, try the life of a thief
Just sample the life of a crook
There isn’t a boy
Who won’t enjoy
A-workin’ for Captain Hook
The World’s Most Famous Crook

In typical oblivious fashion, Mr. Smee tries to interject about how the crocodile is still after Captain Hook (“Crook, Crook, Crickety-Crockity-Crickety-Crook The Croc is after Captain-) but the pirate knocks him silly with his hook before he can finish the line.

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As a special offer for today
I’ll tell you what I’ll do.
All those who sign without delay…
Will get a free tattoo.
Why, it’s like money in the bank!
C’mon, join up, and I’ll be frank:
Unless you do, you’ll walk the plank!
The choice is up to you!

The choice is up to you!
Yo Ho, Yo Ho, Yo Ho, Yo Ho, Yo Ho
You’ll love the life of a thief
You’ll relish the life of a crook
There’s barrels of fun enough for ev’ryone!
And you’ll get treasures by the ton
So come and sign the book
Join up with Captain Hook!

It’s no wonder the boys are so eager to join: Hook has just threatened to make them walk the plank if they don’t (so it’s really not a choice at all). Fortunately, Wendy is there to bring the boys to their senses before any of them can sign up.

“The Elegant Captain Hook” is a rousing song (though rather short) and one that I’ve always liked. I do wonder from time to time why the song is called “The Elegant Captain Hook” as the phrase never turns up in the song!

What do you think of “The Elegant Captain Hook”? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below and have a great day!

See also:

Peter Pan “You Can Fly!” (1953)

Peter Pan “Following the Leader” (1953)

Peter Pan “What Made the Red Man red?” (1953)

My Thoughts on: Peter Pan (1953)

Disney/Dreamworks/Pixar/etc. Soundtracks A-Z

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Reviewing Looney Tunes: Hair-Raising Hare (1946)

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Released: May 25th, 1946

Directed by: Chuck Jones (credited as Charles M. Jones)

Hair-Raising Hare is the debut of one of my favorite Looney Tunes characters: the huge, red, furry, sneaker-wearing monster. He’s been known by several names over the decades: “Monster,” “Rudolph,” and “Gossamer” though in this first appearance he doesn’t appear to have a given name. For some reason, the sight of this huge monster has always elicited a fit of giggles from me (I think it has something to do with the sneakers, they look so incongruous).

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The plot is simple: Bugs is lured to a mad scientist’s castle (how do these mad scientists always have castles?) to be dinner for the aforementioned monster. When Bugs gets wise to this plan, he makes a break for it and the chase is on (interestingly, the scientist is not seen again for the rest of the short). The rest of the cartoon follows Bugs as he outwits and evades the monster, before finally subduing the monster by breaking the fourth wall (making the monster aware of the audience watching him).

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This cartoon has one of Bugs Bunny’s best known gags: at one point he stalls the monster by pretending to be a stylist who declares the monster needs a manicure. Suddenly Bugs whips out a table, chairs and begins to file the monsters nails, all while holding a conversation that you might hear in a nail salon. This is Bugs in pure mischief mode; once he gets over his initial fright, the monster doesn’t stand a chance.

I feel like Gossamer (the furry monster) doesn’t get enough attention compared to better known characters so I like to bring attention to him when I can. Let me know what you think about Hair-Raising Hare in the comments below and have a great day!

See also:

Reviewing Looney Tunes

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My Thoughts on: Peter Pan (1953)

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Prior to getting a copy of Peter Pan for Christmas this year, it had been a number of years since I’d seen the film, so it was nice to sit down and revisit one of my favorite Disney films. Very loosely based on J.M. Barrie’s novel, Peter Pan follows the Darling children: Wendy (Kathryn Beaumont), John (Paul Collins), and Michael (Tommy Luske) as they fly off to Neverland with Peter Pan (Bobby Driscoll) and Tinkerbell for a series of adventures.

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Upon arriving at Neverland Peter has to deal with his long-time nemesis Captain Hook (Hans Conried), who is bound and determined to get revenge on Peter for cutting off his hand some years ago and feeding it to the Crocodile, who has been following him ever since in anticipation of getting the rest of him someday. The scenes with the Crocodile are probably my favorite apart from the flying sequences. You’re never quite sure when or where the Crocodile is going to show up, and Hook’s reactions are priceless each time he hears the “tick tock” of the clock inside the Crocodile’s belly.

Speaking of Captain Hook, he’s one of my favorite Disney villains. Hook was created at a time when Disney took a more comedic approach to their villains, so despite his many, MANY threats (including shooting a pirate in the middle of his cadenza), you never really get the impression that Hook is a major threat, because Peter will always find a way to get the upper hand. Also, I have to add that Mr. Smee is also one of my favorite characters: he’s so nice and polite that one wonders how he ended up on a pirate ship. Throughout the story, Smee tries again and again to get Hook to give up his pursuit of Peter Pan and go back to sea, and finally at the end he gives up and heads off in his own boat.

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The film does contain a number of what are now considered troubling sequences with Indians (the film employs practically every stereotype associated with Native Americans). As a child these scenes didn’t bother me because I didn’t know any better, and even now I don’t let it bother me too much only because I remind myself that the film was made in 1953 when things were very different culturally. Years afterward the animators admitted that if they could do it all over again they would animate the tribe differently.

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I feel very badly for Wendy throughout this film: she’s so eager to head off to Neverland but her adventure is hardly what she expects. First of all, she gets shot down (literally) by the Lost Boys; then the mermaids (whom she expressly wanted to see) try to drown her while Peter laughs; and worst of all, Peter ditches Wendy to celebrate with Tiger Lily. It’s no wonder Wendy decides to head for home not long afterward. I do like the reveal at the end that George Darling (the father) vaguely remembers going on his own adventure with Peter Pan and the flying pirate ship. It’s a twist that breaks the trope of parents reassuring the child that whatever happened was “just a dream.” Because in this case both parents take notice of the flying ship, which means Wendy was telling the truth!

One last thought: I love the scene at the end when Tinkerbell covers the pirate ship with pixie dust and it flies into the sky.

What do you think about Disney’s Peter Pan? Was it a favorite when you were growing up? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below and have a great day!

See also:

Animated Film Reviews

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My Thoughts on: A Fistful of Dollars (1964)

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I’ve known about A Fistful of Dollars for years from its reputation as a shameless rip-off of Kurosawa’s film Yojimbo (1961). I thought I’d seen at least part of it before, but it turns out I was remembering The Good, The Bad and the Ugly instead. So as it turns out, this was my first viewing of the film.

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If you’ve ever seen Yojimbo, the similarities between that film and A Fistful of Dollars become obvious almost immediately. A lone gunslinger rides into a rural town that is being dominated by two rival gangs. The Man with No Name (Clint Eastwood) decides to eliminate both groups by playing them off against one another. Except for minor plot differences, this is the exact story presented in Yojimbo. One difference I couldn’t help but notice is that in A Fistful of Dollars, the gunslinger initially allies with the Rojo brothers (analogous to Ushitora and his brothers); in Yojimbo, Sanjuro initially joins Sebei’s side (analogous to the Baxter family).

Now excluding the fact that this film is a rip-off, A Fistful of Dollars is a really good film. It wasn’t the first spaghetti western ever made, but it was the first to become really big, which is why director Sergio Leone is often credited as the founder of the genre. Eastwood’s performance as the Man with No Name is really something to see: he doesn’t say much but his expressions say plenty. I’m still not quite sure if he enjoys what he’s doing or if he just sees it as something that needs to be done.

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Ennio Morricone’s score for the film provides a perfect complement to the action though, in atypical fashion, a large portion of the score was actually written before most of the film was created. I like how whenever the gunslinger does something like sits in a chair or shifts his cigar in his mouth, the music plays a little trill that comments on it.

If you’ve never seen a spaghetti western before, A Fistful of Dollars is a good place to start. One word of warning though: the film is obviously dubbed (it was filmed silent and the voices looped in after the fact) so yes you’re going to see mouths that don’t match up to the words. In fact the actors in this film spoke a plethora of languages: there were Germans, Austrians, Italians, Spaniards and Americans of course. And most if not all spoke their lines in their own languages (I can only imagine what filming a scene was like).

Let me know what you think about A Fistful of Dollars in the comments below and have a great day!

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My Thoughts on: Westworld Season 1 (2016)

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As a lifelong fan of the science fiction genre (so much so that I made it my specialty in graduate school), I knew it would only be a matter of time before I watched this show. I was curious from the start to see what an adaptation of the 1973 Westworld film would look like and yet I hesitated a long time before finally starting the series. I think deep down I delayed because I was afraid I wouldn’t like the story, as it is very easy to do robot/A.I. run amuck badly. But it turns out I was worried over nothing: Westworld‘s first season is sheer brilliance.

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In ten episodes, we are introduced to the unbelievably lavish park that is Westworld, a place where the obscenely wealthy can come live out whatever fantasy they desire, from the innocent pleasures of living on a homestead to more depraved activities up to and including murder and rape. The human guests can act as they please since the robotic ‘hosts’ are incapable of harming them. In such an environment, many guests let loose with repressed fantasies of murder and sexual freedom (the series comments several times that most guests come to either “shoot or f*ck” whatever they want) in a way that can be very disturbing to watch (this show does not hold back on showing blood).

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The plot is divided between several arcs that follow different characters. The primary hosts we follow are Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood), her programmed lover Teddy (James Marsden), Maeve, a saloon madam (Thandie Newton) and recurring visits from Hector (Rodrigo Santoro) and his group of bandits. On the human side, in the park, we follow the mysterious Man in Black (Ed Harris) and a newcomer to the park named William (Jimmi Simpson), whose coming to the park with Logan (Ben Barnes), his future brother in law. Outside of the park, Dr. Robert Ford (Anthony Hopkins) is the director of the park and is assisted by Bernard (Jeffrey Wright). The show clearly takes place sometime in the future as the technology is far beyond anything that currently exists, but it’s not known how far in the future we are, as so far as I know, no year is ever given.

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It is clear from the first episode that there is something odd going on in the park, with the hosts in particular, but it takes almost the entire season before enough pieces come together to provide answers. That’s not a bad thing: half of the reason I love Westworld is because the fragmented plot arcs keep you guessing at the truth and eager to see the next piece of the puzzle (so to speak). And when the answers do begin to come, you start to question everything you’ve seen in the series. Not only that, there are some twists that lead you to wonder if anyone in this series is actually human. Like many films and tv series that explore the concept of A.I., the border between robots and humans becomes so thin that it is practically non-existent (unless one of the hosts has a glitch).

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Anthony Hopkins turns in a magnificent performance, a particularly favorite moment coming at the end of episode 7 “Trompe L’Oeil.” In that episode, Hopkins switches from affable to pure menace so effortlessly that I was glued to the screen for the entirety of the scene. The episode also features one of my favorite plot twists in the season, simply because there’s almost no hint that it’s coming.

If you like robots and science fiction, then I think you will enjoy Westworld season one. The plot is very well crafted and as I said before will keep you guessing almost until the end. I’m looking forward to watching season two.

Final thoughts:

-I ended up feeling sorry for the Man in Black by the end of the season. Even though he was warned multiple times that what he was searching for wasn’t meant for him, he persists anyway and is eventually disappointed.

-Teddy (James Marsden) has so many death scenes it’s almost ridiculous. To be fair though, he pulls it off beautifully each time.

-I can’t stand Logan (Ben Barnes) and I feel like he deserves everything he gets.

What do you think of the first season of Westworld? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below and have a great day!

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My Thoughts on: The Favourite (2018)

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Having not seen any of Yorgos Lanthimos’ work before now, I went into The Favourite excited, but not sure what to expect. The film caught my attention because it’s set during the reign of Queen Anne of Great Britain (1665-1714), a royal that you don’t usually see depicted in film. The film is based on the true story of Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) and the struggle between two of her court favorites: Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough (Rachel Weisz) and Abigail Masham (Emma Stone), her cousin. The film traces Abigail’s rise at court alongside Sarah’s simultaneous fall along with the various intrigues going on at the British court in the early 18th century.

 

The film is undeniably beautiful, both visually and musically (the soundtrack features a number of classical compositions that would have been appropriate for the time period). I love the dresses that Sarah and Abigail wear. I also like the attire Sarah wears whenever she goes shooting or riding (the tricorn hat and the grey coat). Most of the costumes are black, white or shades of grey, and I like that generally muted color palette.

One thing that surprised me is how sexual the film was. I knew there was going to be some romantic intrigue from the previews, but I had no idea (or I wasn’t paying enough attention) that there would be so much between Sarah and the Queen (and later Abigail and the Queen!) Watching Sarah and Abigail each manipulate Anne in their own way leads you to feel nothing but sympathy for the unhappy monarch. Having lost 17 children, all Anne wants is to be loved but she certainly doesn’t get any from Sarah, who at times is downright abusive in her behavior. I’m not sure if we’re supposed to feel any sympathy for Sarah or not (I certainly didn’t).

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Overall I enjoyed The Favourite very much, but I have some trouble with the ending. Given the story up to that point, the last scene felt like a strange way to end the film and I wasn’t quite sure what message I was supposed to receive from it (though I suspect a rewatch would help to enlighten me). That still didn’t stop me from enjoying the film and I highly recommend it if you haven’t seen it yet. Colman, Stone and Weisz fully deserve all of the nominations they’ve received thus far.

What did you think of The Favourite? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below and have a great day!

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Film/TV Reviews

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