Classic Pixar Shorts Showcase: Geri's Game

Hello & welcome back to Classic Pixar Shorts Showcase.  Today, we are taking a look at Geri's Game.  After Knick Knack, last week, this one was a huge improvement.  It was a lot of fun.

The Plot

The plot is so simple, it's an old man playing a game of chess with himself and the antics come through in watching him play.

Character

Geri

It's interesting to note but there were clearly two different sides of Geri,  the persona playing with the white parts came across and the more innocent old man just trying to have fun whereas the persona playing with the black pieces was the one that was in it to win it and was rubbing it in his opponent's face.  

My Final Thoughts

This short was fun and I can't ask much more then that.  It was also a good look into all people act in competitions and how we may react differently regarding the situation.  I highly suggest this short.  So far, this is in my opinion the best Pixar short.  Join me next time as I take a look at...

For The Birds

Sterling Holloway Spotlight : Winnie The Pooh

Hello & welcome to A Look at Disney and welcome to the Sterling Holloway Spotlight. Today, we are closing in our last character as I take a look at Winnie The Pooh.  Most of the categories will remain the same save for the last one, it'll be  First Appearance, Personality Favorite Moment,  & Legacy.  I'm cutting out role as he has been in multiple shorts and the only reason he is last is because of the release date for The Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh coming  after everything else.  With that out of the way, let's begin.

First Appearance

Pooh made his first appearance in the Winnie The Pooh and the Honey Tree back in 1966. Interesting note, this was the only Pooh featurette to be finished before Walt's death. As he would 10 months later of lung cancer.   Pooh would return in '68 in Winnie The Pooh and the Blusterly Day and this was released in front of The Horse in The Gray Flannel Suit.  Sterling would voice Pooh in one last short,  Winnie The Pooh and Tigger Too!   In  1977 all three of these would be packaged together to bring us The Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh.

Something interesting I learned while doing my research for this article is that this was Sterling's favorite character.

Which  I can see,  Pooh is just so lovable and he never gets angry or upset with his friends.   He tries to keep his cool.

Personality

Pooh is always described as a bear of very little brain but I would counter that with he has a very big heart and cares for his friends and  go beyond that, they are his family.   Let's further this a bit.  It is widely known and accepted that all of Christopher Robin's toys aka his friends represent his different emotions and Pooh in that sense is heart,  his love and caring nature.  However even when we do not see Christopher Robin in the shorts or other material, Pooh's good natured attitude still shines through.  

Favorite Moment

Hmm,  it is so hard to choose a favorite moment and I feel kinda bad because when I did my Top 6 Pooh Bear Moments,  all but one where Jim Cummings moments.  To be fair, he is the voice of Pooh, I grew up with.   But in the end, I had to go with Pooh trying to get the hunny in Honey Tree.

Legacy

Winnie The Pooh is one of the most popular and most enduring and endearing characters from Disney. In some countries, he is more popular then Mickey Mouse and all these years after Sterling first voiced him, he is still around with Jim Cummings providing the voice for over 20 years now.   I mean for goodness sake, I won't get into all of it here but he has probably the most TV shows of any Disney character at 5 separate TV shows one of which spawned 4 Holiday specials.  Because there was Welcome To Pooh Corner,  The New Adventures of Winnie The Pooh, The Book of Pooh,  My Friends Tigger and Pooh, and now Tales of Friendship with Winnie The Pooh

   

And do I even need to mention how big New Adventures was back in the day. It remains alongside Many Adventures as one of the most popular things that Pooh ever starred in while My Friends Tigger and Pooh and Too Smart For Strangers are two of the worst things that he was in. And besides that he has also appeared in 5 films since The Many Adventures came out. In order, they are Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search For Christopher Robin, The Tigger Movie, Piglet's Big Movie, Pooh's Heffalump Movie,  Winnie The Pooh (2011)  and not to mention that he also appears in Kingdom Hearts.  I may be incorrect but I believe that he is the only character from this retrospective that does so.

 

And just a few years back, Pooh received his very own ride in the parks and when I went on it at the Magic Kingdom for the first time,  I felt like a child again because it perfectly captured the youthful innocence that one would associate with this character and this franchise.

And also, he is the only one of Sterling's characters to ever receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Anybody else feel the urge to hug Pooh Bear?   Ahem, back on topic, this is a testament to his popularity.   While some of the other characters I've covered during this event may have faded away, Pooh will remain for a very long time to come because is just so lovable and we need more characters like him.   He along with most of the 100 Acres Wood can just brighten your day by just looking at them.  Well now, we've looked at every animated character that Sterling has played but we still aren't done as we have two more articles to go.   Join me next time, when I take a look at his narration work by looking at his narration from three of my favorite shorts and explain why I place his narration work above any of his character work.

Music Fridays # 103: Finishing Up Oz: The Great and Powerful Pt. 1

Hello & welcome back to A Look at Disney.  A while back,  I did a review of Oz: The Great and Powerful but with how large and massive that review was, I chose not to cover all of the score. Well, I am here to finish what I started as complete my look at the score from this film. With that out of way, let's begin.

Great Expectations/The Apple

This piece really plays with you as it starts out strong and hopeful and mysterious.  That is a key word, there with this score but as it goes on, it changes into something much more sinister signifying the birth of The Wicked Witch.  You can truly feel the pain and the anguish that the transformation has brought upon Theodora and in a way, this song brings about the transformation better then Mila  Kunis did in the film.  Because the latter half is cold and distant and a little eerie.

Meeting The Troops

 

It's strange but there are two conflicting emotions that come through in this number, worry and hope.   The opening gives off a sound of worry but there are dashes of hope spread throughout this number as well.  Though, I think that works as it fits with what we saw of The Wizard and Glinda in this instance.  The Wizard was concerned or worried, if you will that the troops that Glinda had introduced him to could not succeed in their mission whereas Glinda was hopeful that her Ozians would prevail.  

What Army

This is a great intimidation piece, where you get the sense of the Wicked Sisters taunting our heroes and they are ready to laugh them off and wipe the floor with them.





Theodora's Entrance/Puppet Waltz





This piece isn't bad and again it continues to build upon what the last piece was doing with intimidation but I do feel that the previous was better because it wasn't so bombastic and in your face unlike this one.   The latter half, The Puppet Waltz, I have to admit is a little creepy but at the same time, almost feels out of place.



A Threat






This one is pretty good,  it's loud, when it needs to be but it also knows when being quiet and coming up on you is the better thing to do. This is a great piece as I feel it highlights the characters getting ready to go into battle and duke it out.   Not my favorite but still very good.




Well, I hope that you have enjoyed Pt. 1 of my continuation at the look at the score of Oz: The Great and Powerful.  Join me next week,  when I complete this and finally put Oz behind me.

Classic Pixar Shorts Showcase: Knick Knack

Hello & welcome back to A Look at Disney and welcome back to Classic Pixar Shorts Showcase.  Today's short was okay.  Not one of the better ones but not bad.  So far, none of these shorts have been bad per se. This is Knick Knack.

The Plot

The plot was simple, almost too simple.  It was just a simple short where a snowman was trying to escape his snow globe to be with a sexy looking Sunny Miami knick knack.  And while his actions, were funny such as trying to blow up the snow globe with dynamite or using a jackhammer.  But other then that, there was nothing to this short.   So, I was kinda glad that the snowman got his comeuppance in the end of the short when he got out of the snow globe and landed in a fish tank and was about get it on with a sexy mermaid until his snow globe fell on him and trapped him.   By the way, when this short was re-released with Finding Nemo,  the Miami knick  knack had a bit of a breast reduction.  Compare the two.

   

Okay, normally  I'm not someone that likes changes made to shorts but  I don't really mind this one because there were no need for her breasts to that big.  Then again,  I have seen a few souvenirs like that in real life.




Character



Knick

This character was there.  I didn't like or dislike him but his actions did seem a wee shallow but I get it and other then that, there is not that much to say on him.





My Final Thoughts


This short is okay but skippable.  You might enjoy it but it's not all that memorable in my opinion.     Join me next time, when I take a look at...


Geri's Game

Sterling Holloway Spotlight: Roquefort (The Aristocats)

Hello & welcome back to the Sterling Holloway Spotlight.  After a change up with last week's article,  we return to the regular format with Roquefort from The Aristocats and... like the rest of the movie,  he didn't leave much of an impression.  This is undoubtedly Sterling's weakest character because there is nothing to him.   Now, for those that need a reminder, the categories are First Appearance,  Role, Personality,  and Is The Character Still Around?  You may have noticed that I excluded Favorite Moment and that is simply because he was barely in the film to have any memorable moments.  With that out of the way, let's begin.

First Appearance

Roquefort first appeared while our main characters, Duchess and her kittens are eating dinner.   It appears that he is a friend to the cats.

Role

To give  Roquefort some credit,  he is the one that first notices the cats missing and does know that the butler, Edgar did it.  And he does take it upon himself to find them but the film spends so little time showing him trying to find the cats, that I had to remind myself that Sterling was in this film.  Yes, I understand that he is not the main character but it would've been nice if we could've had more time with him in the film.

Personality

He's nice and cares for the cats but that's about it.  He's not dumb  (I've had my feel of idiotic characters, this week) but being nice and caring is all that he had to him.

Is The Character Still Around?

No, he's not and really the only character that people seem to remember from this film is Marie.  I mean at one point, there was supposed to be a direct-to-video starring Marie as the lead.  I think for a while, Disney was trying to tap into the girl market with her but back to Roquefort,  I found him like the rest of this film to just be forgettable.  This film was boring.  I can already tell you when I do my re ranking of Sterling's characters, Roquefort will come in dead last.  Well,  now we've look at one of Sterling's most forgettable characters.  Join me next week for the final character article as I take a look at Sterling's most memorable character....

Winnie The Pooh

My Top 6 Favorite Fusionater Moments From The Revenge of Darkfan21 (with Fusionater)

Moviefan12: Hello & welcome back to A Look at Disney.  Today, I continue my countdown of my favorite moments from The Revenge of Darkfan21 by taking a look at my favorite Fusionater moments.  However joining me today to go over them with me is of course is Fusionater.


Fusionater: Happy to be here Moviefan, I had a lot of fun writing that with you, and it's always fun to take time to look back at these things. 


Moviefan12:  Indeed,  I feel that this is one of the best things, we have ever worked on.  Now  onto my favorite moments starring you!



6.  There's a good chance we'll end up in Narnia.  - Finale


Moviefan12:  For those that may not recall, this moment came after everything had finished up and our characters were ready to go home and Fusionater had built a device to take us home. Well at least myself & Fus as DisneyOtoko stayed behind.   Fusionater had this one off joke about how we might end up in Narnia. I don't know what it is about this moment but I think it's funny and in my opinion,  you had some of the funniest lines in the entire story.   I think what made this one work though was the pay off.  Though,  thankfully we didn't end up in Narnia and we were able to get back home.




Fusionater: Well, I wouldn't have hated it if we had ended up in Narnia, the place is all right. I suppose it is better that we ended up back here though, you're right.

5.  Seeing The Corpses of  Moviefan12 & DisneyOtoko & himself - Pt.  3

Fusionater: What? Where are you!? Where am I??? *looks around* Is this some kind of cavern, is that a window? *walks over to window*


*GASP*


*Fusionater is on his knees, gagging, inside the window is the mutilated corpses of DisneyOtoko and Moviefan12*


Fusionater: *gag* Looks again* That's a neat trick I suppose, but we both know that you couldn't beat them...


*Gasp*


*Fusionater is now in the room, and he is seeing DisneyOtoko and Moviefan12 looking at him*


Fusionater: What the hell...*looks down and sees his own mutilated corpse*
*Fusionater passes out*

Moviefan12: This was the ending to your review and this was a really well done creepy moment.   I remember the first time, I read this part in our group inbox,  it sent chills down my spine.   Just the idea of seeing corpses of people you know is creepy,  even if as Fusionater pointed out it was a cheap trick but then you end by seeing your own corpse.  That knocks the creepy factor up another notch.


Fusionater: I had fun writing that one, I thought to myself "at this point, just how can I make this a threatening situation" and, I think I found a way. 

4.   Stopping Moviefan12 From Sacrificing Himself - Alt. Ending

Moviefan12: What the...


Fusionater: YOU IDIOT!!! YOU WOULD DIE, OVER HIM!?!?!


Moviefan12: He needs to die!!!


Fusionater: He does, does he? At what cost? Is it worth the pain that I and all your friends will feel when your gone? Is it worth those endless hours of sorrow we would inevitably be plagued with!?!?


Moviefan12: He's done so much evil...


Fusionater: HE HAS! But that's no excuse, now, because of how foolish you're being, I have to take care of this.


Moviefan12: I can't let you do that. *stands to fight*


Fusionater: You're really gonna make me do this aren't you? *pulls out gun*


Moviefan12: Fusionater... *Fusionater fires, and a net comes charging from the gun, binding Moviefan12 to the wall*

Moviefan12:  As I said, when counting my moments, I feel that each of us had a big hero moment and as odd as this may seem, I feel as though, yours actually got cut because this in my opinion was your big hero moment.  Though it was only featured in the alternate ending.  Still, it was a great moment with you giving my character a much needed wake up call.






Fusionater: That was an example of some of my crazier writing, and as for it being my "Big hero moment", I'm just as happy fighting off a robot as I am pinning you to a wall. 

3.  Trying To Move The Site To Wordpress-  Pt. 1

Fusionater: I was busy preparing a crack team of web developers to move manic-expression.com over to wordpress...they all ran away when the dark hole in the wall appeared...and than I was sucked in.

Moviefan12: I believe this is the only time that the site was mentioned in the entire arc and it was a nice shot at webs.com. Which sadly, we are still here. Ah well, the site may have it's flaws and a lot of bugs and this sums my feelings.  I gotta ask, what was the deal with the dark hole, though?

Fusionater: The hole was the door to Darkness, naturally, and the whole Wordpress developers thing was because at the time, I was actually looking for people. 



2.  The Robot Fight  - Finale

(Meanwhile back with Fusionater)






*Fusionater has just finished a device*


Fusionater: BRILLIANT! Now, I need to get this to the other 2...


Mysterious voice: You're not going anywhere.


Fusionater...!?!? Darkfan21?!?


Darkfan21: I am a version of Darkfan21, I am the Deviously Actualized, Rebel Killing, Force Abusing, Neutralizer. Version 21.


Fusionater: That's a stretching acronym.


D.A.R.K.F.A.N. 21: I am a dangerous robot, and you shall die.


*Shoots lazer from eyes, Fusionater ducks*


Fusionater: It's a fight than! *pulls out new weapon*


D.A.R.K.F.A.N. 21: 'Analysis' Carbon based metal allow with a phase shifting nuclear core. Threat level: Intermediate.


Fusionater: ...Well your face looks funny.


D.A.R.K.F.A.N. 21: 'Analysis' Quip designed to distract enemy attention. Threat level: Zero.


Fusionater: Hm? uh...*pulls out candy bar*


D.A.R.K.F.A.N. 21: 'Analysis' Glucose based stick of fat. Threat level: Minimal.


Fusionater: Cool. *pulls out spare shoe lace*


D.A.R.K.F.A.N. 21: 'Analysis' Enemy agent attempting to take advantage of this units primary functions. Threat level: High. 'Adapting.' *fires a new lazer*


Fusionater: Oh shi...*ducks*Shoots his gun weapon thing*


D.A.R.K.F.A.N. 21: *Is hit with the weapon, no apparent affect* 'Declaration' You cannot win.


Fusionater: "correction" (God do you realize how annoying that is?) I cannot destroy you...apparently, so, later! *pulls out new device, activates it*


*a portal is opened, and D.A.R.K.F.A.N. 21 is being pulled to it*

Moviefan12: There was no way, this one was getting left off the list.  It is one of the best moments of the entire story arc and the big thing that made this one work was how silly and over the top it was, while compared to my portion of the story, it was pretty straightforward and serious.   I feel, we had a nice balance of silly and serious here.  Forgive me for saying this but The Robot Fight is in my opinion, a classic.


Fusionater: Forgive you, I'm not against the compliment.  I had a lot of fun writing that, it actually came about when I was thinking "Just what would Darkfan have as his sort of battle commander that I would fight" And it ended up being robot with an adaptive tendency, much like Darkfan himself. 



Moviefan12:  And my # 1 Fusionater Moment is...







1, Fusionater: Right than, good luck with that one...wanna trade? - Pt. 1


Moviefan12:  This is my favorite line from the entire story because it is just so funny.   For those that do not recall this was Fusionater's reaction to what we had to review.   It's just so deadpan and when I saw it,  I knew it was the perfect line to use as the last line for Pt. 1.  A little behind the scenes,  this story started out as three parts but it became so large that it had to be broken down into 5 parts.  You see  Pt. 1 and the review of Too Smart For Strangers were meant to be the same article.  I'm actually glad that I broke them down because I feel something would've been lost from this line if it had not been used at the end of an article.



Fusionater: Now see, that's the comedy I see in it, I had never intended for it to be a climax line, it was just supposed to be a quick joke, moving on, I couldn't have expected that you would love it so much, but I'm glad you did.


Moviefan12:  And that just goes to show that sometimes executive decisions can make lines that were meant to be throwaways, memorable.  


Fusionater: Moviefan12 the Executive Producer, who knew? Maybe you should get in touch with Holl E Woods sometime, you seem to have ideas. 


Moviefan12: Hmm....



Moviefan12:  Well anyways, thank you for joining me on this trip down memory lane.  It was a pleasure to get to talk about these 6 moments again.







Fusionater: It was great working with you and I look forward to seeing your next lists. 

The Picnic (Wander Over Yonder Episode Review)

Hello & welcome back to A Look at Disney.  On Friday after Phineas and Ferb: Mission Marvel.  Disney Channel aired a sneak peak of Wander Over Yonder.  The newest cartoon to come from Craig McCracken.  My thoughts, eesh!  This was bad, real bad.   It was one of the dumbest things, I've ever watched.  Where to begin? Where to begin?  Let's start with the intro!

Intro

Make It Stop!    Make  It Stop!  THIS IS ANNOYING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   A good theme song gets you excited to watch the show, you are about to view. NOT MAKE YOU WANT TO COVER  YOUR EARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   Gah, I already hate this show and I haven't even gotten to the actual review yet.

The Plot

We open the episode on the main antagonist, Lord Hater (really,  you gonna stick with that!) standing on a podium where the planets will align and it will grant him one wish.  He wishes to rule the universe but he has to put up with Emperor Awesome trying to stop him in a gigantic battle.  So far, this sounds okay but who came with those names.  An 8 year old?   Well, okay to be fair,  stuff like Doctor Horrible, which I like also does this with the names but at least those characters are entertaining.  Back on topic,  Wander then shows up and distracts Lord Hater from getting his wish as Wander is there for a picnic.  Wander is an idiot!!!   I mean,  he is so stupid that he can't figure out how to undo the latch on his picnic basket.  No lie, that is actually a joke in this episode at one point.  Wander is the biggest weakness of this series.  The stuff between Hater and Emperor Awesome,  was a little interesting but Wander had to come in and distract from the cool stuff. He shouldn't be the main character of the series.  Idiot characters rarely work as main characters.  I've seen people elsewhere compare Wander to Pinkie Pie.   My reaction....

First off, Pinkie is not a goddamn IDIOT.   She is a comedic character, yes!  But unlike this thing,   she has depth and her personality does not rely on her being annoying.  She's funny, caring,  thoughtful and yes, there are times that she can be annoying but unlike Wander, she has people to tell her, when she's being annoying and to reel it in.  The biggest mistake this show made was making Wander the main character, when he shouldn't even be a part of the show. And in actuality,  Wander was NOT the main character.  Lord Hater was.   He was the Pinky to Hater's Brain.  Or a better example, Wander is what Spongebob is to Squidward.  How apt considering that Tom Kenny voices Lord Hater's second in command.  So,  the fight between  Hater and Awesome continues and then the planets align and it's a race to get there first.  Hater gets there first and we see see this hippie looking thing that reminded me of Face from '90s era Nick Jr. and Hater gets one wish.  Well Wander starts to annoy Hater again and he gets so peeved that he wishes Wander would leave him alone for 5 seconds.  And his wish is granted and Wander is frozen for 5 seconds.  The best 5 seconds of this episode.  Personally,  I would've wished this show out of existence.   And then it pretty much ends with Hater being defeated and Wander's steed, Sylvia (voiced by April Winchell) coming out of the bathroom as she'd been going the entire episode.  Lovely!   And he tells her how about his picnic.   Y'know I normally save this for the end of the review but I'm going to break this out right now....

You see what this made me do.  It made me break out the Disney Face Palm, during the middle of the review.  Anyways, let's move onto the characters just to get this done.

Character

Wander voiced by Jack McBrayer 

Wander is an idiot!   There really isn't all the much to his character.  The Disney Wiki describes him as being  optimistic and wanting to spread happiness.  That's great and all but he doesn't have to be a moron to accomplish that goal.   And y'know, the worst part, his voice actor is talented.  Jack McBrayer, best known for playing Kenneth on 30 Rock also provided the voice to Fix-It Felix and while I may not care for Wreck-It Ralph or that character in particular,  he wasn't stupid and actually thought things through.   He also provides the voice for Irving on Phineas and Ferb. A character that fans are split on,  as he is a P&F fanboy and I like Irving,  I think Irving is actually funny.   Here McBrayer's talents are being wasted.  He's not the only one as Keith Ferguson is wasted in this show too.

Supporting Character

Emperor Awesome voiced by  Sam Riegel  

This character exists.  That's about the extent of what I can say on him.  Though,   it did feel as though they were trying to make him a gnarly '90s surfer dude type person  err shark thing.  That's about it!

Villains

Peepers voiced by Tom Kenny

If  I'm to be honest,  I found Kenny's voice for this role a wee bit distracting because unlike his portrayal or Rabbit, where he changed it up,  he used his Spongebob voice for this role and that was a little distracting.  And I'd rather watch Spongebob over this and  I don't even like Spongebob.  I mean, I don't get it.  Tom Kenny is a talented voice actor, and as Rabbit proved, he can do more then just the Spongebob voice. I don't know, maybe it was the direction he was given but it didn't work.  All it made me do was picture Spongebob.

Lord Hater voiced by Keith Ferguson

Keith,  I like you.  Your a good voice actor. You are above this piece of garbage.  This character was perhaps the one saving grace of this train wreck.   Sure, his character was just a flat as everyone else in the show and he'll never make a list of memorable villains but at least, he was somewhat entertaining.  Honestly, the show should've focused on him and not Wander.   

My Final Thoughts

I understand that I am in the minority as most opinions of this show have been rather positive but this was bad. I just don't understand how the man behind Powerpuff Girls can stoop this low. This is supposed to be Craig McCracken's  big comeback.    Well, it didn't work for me.   I honestly hope this show gets cancelled because it in no way can sustain an entire season from what was shown.  Now you may be thinking that it's unfair to judge a show based off on one episode but the first episode is the most important as it is supposed to let you explore the world and introduce you to the characters of the show. Well,  none of the characters here have enough to sustain. I am sorry but this was a stupid thing for Disney to green light.  I know I've already used this once but I need to use it again.

If you want a Disney Channel show, that is funny.  Go watch Gravity Falls, Alex Hirsch knows what he is doing with that show whereas I am convinced Craig McCracken doesn't know what he is doing with this show. Peace!

5 Other Well Liked Disney Films I Don't Care For

Hello & welcome back to A Look at Disney.  If you saw my third anniversary announcement,  you saw that I will be reviewing The Incredibles,  one of my least favorite films. Well, today we are going to get a wee bit controversial as I countdown 5 other well-liked Disney Film,  I didn't really care for.   Now just keep in mind, that these are just my opinions.  Do not take them as fact but I hope to explain, why I don't like these films.  With that out of the way, let's begin.

5.  Sleeping Beauty

Okay, this one is only at # 5 because well,  I've seen other people speak out against this film.  My big issue with this film, it's incredibly boring.  And being boring is the worst sin, a film  and if you really want a good deconstruction of this film, read Ratin8tor's In Too Deep Into Disney on it.     I mean to start off with Aurora is in my opinion, the worst Disney princess and  she is the bad example that people like to make fun of when stereotyping the Disney princesses and there is the dragon in the room that we need to discuss.  I like Maleficent....  in her dragon form that is but other then that I HATE HER!!!!!!!!   I know this is going off topic a wee bit but when I saw the description for her upcoming film label her as the most iconic Disney villain.  I found that to be rather offensive and I think villains such as The Wicked Queen from Snow White are more deserving of that title.  My issue with her is the same as Aurora, she has no character.    Her motivation is flimsy and weak.    Prince Phillip like Prince Charming from Cinderella (a film I like and adore, mind you)  is not a character but rather a plot device.  There are no truly memorable characters in this film save for Maleficent and that is mostly because of her look.  She looks menacing and scary but she doesn't live up to it.  Going back to Maleficent for a moment,  you can say some villains don't need motivation to be evil and cause their schemes and I understand her not being invited was just a taunt but it comes across as though, she was evil just to be evil.   Other great villains had better and more clearly defined motives then this.  Let's step outside of Disney but stick with fairy tales and look at a classic villain.  The Wicked Witch of The West from The Wizard of Oz.   From the get go, we knew what she wanted.  The ruby slippers, it was clear and defined.   She wasn't doing evil deeds just for  the sake of being evil,  she had a motivation.  Something that the character of Maleficent sorely lacks.   And if I were to rank the Disney princesses, Aurora would come in dead last because I feel as though this film really never introduced to who she was.  Now to be fair, this one thing I like this film.  I like Once Upon A Dream but other then that,  I don't watch this film all that often.  

4.  Wreck-It Ralph

And here is where people are going to start disagreeing with me.  Let me clarify, I like Ralph,  I like Vanellope Von Schweetz and I like King Candy.  That was a wonderful Ed Wynn impression. Then what are my issues with this film,  I can't explain but again I found this one to be boring.  Maybe because I don't have a very large video game knowledge and therefore a lot of the references were lost on me but that's a minor issue.  Ralph becomes a supporting character in his own film, once we enter Sugar Rush and that was a bit of a turn off and it feels like a tonal shift.  Mind you, as I said I like Vanellope, she's cool but the film was called Wreck-It Ralph but during the time, the film was in Sugar Rush, it felt as though the focus was shifted to Vanellope.  And  I have to mention that I feel Jane Lynch was typecast because  as I've said this about film,  it's feel Sgt. Calhoun is just Sue Sylvester from Glee but without her tracksuit. She's playing the same character.  It's a character good at, that was a little bothersome.   

3.   Pinocchio

I  haven't made dislike of a certain character from this film, a secret.  Each time, I see him, I want to call Terminix.  Yep, I HATE Jiminy Cricket but he isn't the only thing I dislike about this film.  I just feel it's way too dark.  I've already gone over this in the past with my issue with the donkey scene.  Now again, there are things I like about this film such as Gepetto and the music but that can't save the film for me.  I understand it's importance as the second animated film from Disney but I just don't like it.

2.   Toy Story 3

Ooh,  boy I'm taking on a sacred cow here but let me try to explain before you pick up the pitchforks and form an angry mob.  I wanted to like this film, I really did.  Especially considering how much I loved Toy Story 2.   But to me there are just too many things holding it back such as let's start with obvious,  if the toys had just listened to Woody, none of this would've happened.  And then there is the issue with Lots-O' Huggin' Bear.  He's not a bad villain but the film  NEVER LETS YOU FORGET HE"S THE BAD GUY!!!!!!   It's like they have to hammer it in every 5 seconds.  And then there is Spanish Buzz, the stupidest thing to ever come from Pixar.  Spanish Buzz added nothing, you could cut out all of his scenes and you'd probably get a better movie. And I'm sorry but for a film that is supposedly closing a trilogy, there are way too many new characters introduced and the only ones that are worth hanging out with are Bonnie's toys.  Because they're cool, I like them.  But  there is not enough time with them and I feel like this film drags in parts and there are just so many things keeping me from enjoying this.  I've liked everything related to Toy Story save for Toy Story 3.  I personally think that it is the weakest film in the trilogy.



And now we come to my  # 1.  (Thankfully, I know of at least one other reviewer who doesn't like this film all that much)...


1.  Enchanted

Where do I even begin?  Y'know  unlike most other films on this list,  I had a pretty good inkling I was going to hate this film, when I saw the trailers and I was right.  Okay,  let me start off by saying I understand that this was meant to be a satire.  But I don't think worked in that department.  I understand that Giselle was meant to be a parody of the older princesses a la Cinderella or Snow White but that's the problem, by the time this film had come out,  we already had more progressive female characters from Disney such as Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Mulan etc.. etc.. etc...   And as Doug Walker pointed out in his Disneycember review,  some of the big things that were turned on it's head such as Patrick Dempsey's character being the one that needed saving wasn't shocking.  We'd seen that before and  Giselle being the one to save the day, big deal!   Again much better female characters before her had accomplished that and also is a minor nitpick but all the references to the Disney films, just make want to watch those films instead.  I think this is most blatantly obvious, when you see Patrick Dempsey in a suit that is identical to the one, Beast wore.

And to be honest, some of the moments in this film  didn't  feel like homages to Disney but rather  Disney of today laughing at how silly, Walt's Disney films were.   See this is perhaps one of the few Disney films, I knew I wasn't going to like and I didn't.  Truthfully,  I can't stand this film because I feel it falls flat on it's face, when they try to satirize and some of it is just a little bothersome.   And in a way,  this film to me almost comes across as a slap in the face to all of the great Disney films have come before it.  And that's why as a Disney fan, this film bugs me so much.  This doesn't feel like a Disney film, it feels more like a Freidberg and Seltzer parody of Disney film.   Just better put together.   Now there is one thing from this film,  my beloved Carrie Underwood did the song, Ever Ever After and I really like the song and makes me want to see Carrie as a Disney princess.  Hey, a guy can dream right.

Even animated, she's pretty. Oh, Carrie, I wish you could've been in the film.  Then at least I'd have something pretty to distract me from the rest of the film.  But I didn't get that.


So, there you have it, 5 other Disney films, I don't like.   Keep in mind,  I purposefully chose not to use the words, Bad or Worst because that is not true of these films, but I just can't stand these 5 five films.  Particularly, my top 2 entries in this list.  I understand if others like these films but  I don't.   We all have beloved films, that we don't like.  What are some of yours?  Let me know in the comments.  Peace!