joseph-51 Reviews

Song of the South (1946)

The importance of being Dopey

[20 December 2003]

I have recently discovered thet "Song of the South" has been somewhat disowned by Disney. It has never been released on DVD or video in America, supposedly for being too racist. The film has, however, been released various times on video in England. The first time was in 1991, when it was released for the first time along with The Little Mermaid. The following year, it was rereleased, along with Alice in Wonderland, Dumbo and the Sword in the Stone. In 2000, it was yet again given a third video rerelease, along with Pete's Dragon. It has also been shown on the BBC television channels several times, therefore I recorded it.

The film follows the story of Jonny, the grandson of a rich plantation owneress, who is going through a large crisis (for 1946 standards anyway). His parents have had a fall out! His little girlfiend's bent brothers bully him! Who's he going to call? Not the Ghostbusters, but Uncle Remus, a mysterious old plantation worker famous for his stories about the Brer Animals. Through animated versions of these stories, Jonny copes through his social problems.

I am annnoyed to see the way "Song of the South" has been treated. The film is a happy one, the animated parts are incredible and I personally feel that it is not 100% unpolitically correct. We must remember that a lot of Disney/Buena Vista films can be racist/stereotypical without one noticing it. Aladdin, Sister Act, Mary Poppins and Lady and the Tramp are prime examples. When are you going to ban them, eh?

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

You've got to like it...whether you like it or not

[26 November 2003]

For almost 70 years, Walt Disney Pictures have brought you classics such as Pinocchio, Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, Alice in Wonderland and ...erm...The Fox and the Hound (something went wrong there). But you wouldn't have been able to be able to watch forty-three animated hits, plus many semi-cartoon classics like Mary Poppins if it weren't for the first fairy tale adaptation:

SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS.

You've got to like it. One must appreciate it was the first of its genre. I must admit I prefered Pinocchio (the second Disney classic which followed) as a child. And that's not saying Snow White is rubbish. It's a beautiful and jolly film. It's got a lot of good points, as well as bad points. Note possible spoilers.

The film opens as a white book helping set the scene that the Queen is vain and selfish. We then zoom into the Queen's bedroom in which see her see who is beautiful and if she's the sexiest woman in Cartoonland. Unfortunately, the Mirror says Snow White is. The Queen starts to show her evil by her bid to kill ther mysterious princess stepdaughter. The Queen's dialogue is beautiful, similar to that of Lady Macbeth (Walt did partially base the Queen's character on the Shakespearian villainess). The language is at it's beat in the transformation scene.

The next scene is where we meet Snow White. This is where the film falls flat. Snow White is a giggly bimbo with a freaky voice. If a pop singer had that kind of voice these days, she would fade away. Since when did Britney Spear's voice vibrate rapidly in a nausiating fashion? What's more, as the film progresses, the character gets even more nausiating. Snow White is even more stupid than the Mad Maddame Mim from Walt Disney's Classic The Sword in the Stone. In the last scene where she talks, she lets a strange stranger in, despite the warnings from the Dwarfs. And that didn't get her anywhere, did it now?

The Prince is equally as stupid. Unlike in Sleeping Beauty or The Little Mermaid, the Prince did not join in the Let's-Kill-The-Witch scene, which destroys his character as a Robin Hood hero and changes him into a lazy slob of a Prince.

The Dwarfs, on the other hand, are loveable and believable, mainly due to the fact that everybody is like one of the Seven Dwarfs. But my favourite character is the Henchman. By keeping him out of the story a lot, he is the only fully believable true-human character. Just shows how Disney works wonders with people, doesn't it?

Pollyanna (2003 TV Movie)

A slightly sentimental adventure, yet at the same time doing no harm to anybody and is good at making one happy.

[2 January 2003]

This was on TV in England the other night, and it was rather cringe making thanks to being a very sweet story. But it was also entertaining.

SLIGHT SPOILER COMING UP**** A young girl goes to stay with her Aunt Polly after her father passes away. However, Aunt Polly is rather strict and wants no mention of Polltanna's father. In the local village, she teaches some of the rather grumpy inhabitants the Glad Game, which helps people look on the bright side of life. However, look out for that motorcar Pollyanna! **** SPOILER ENDS HERE

Unlike the classic Disney version (which is still good), it isn't as apple pie and the setting is England instead of USA (I don't know if the actual book had an English or American setting). The film certainly follows the original storyline of the book.

Pollyanna- A wonderful story and a film for all.

The Sound of Music (1965)

Hard to sum up in just one word

[28 December 2002]

Suprisingly, this film is full of emotions. Sometimes it's dark, happy, sad, funny, ironic, adorable, naive and moving. Like in Mary Poppins, Julie Andrews stars as a nanny who comes to look after naughty children and heps them bring music into their lives. She eventually falls for their father. Together, they make the Von Trapp family singers.

It's not my favourite film, but it's good. The film can be too long(almost 3 hours), and the cast can just sprout into song all of a sudden, and they don't always fit the storyline very well. But we have to like it.

Grease (1978)

....IS THE WORD

[19 November 2002]

This film was on TV a few days ago. Great musical, despite cast that look too old to be between 16 and 18. The songs (Greased Lightning, Summer Nights, Look at me! I'm Sandra D!) are catchy, but not in that cheesy "BARBIE GIRL" sense. Olivia Newton John's singing voice is beautiful, especcially in Hopelessy Devoted to You.

ONE BLOOPER: in the song You're the one that I want and Sandy pushes Danny into some dust, there is some dust on his top (unsurprisingly). However, seconds later, it's gone!

Blind Date (1985–2019)

Cosy never to end TV!

[8 November 2002]

Cilla Black, now with a better dress sence (no more cheesy checkered suits!) hosts a show where a man/woman chooses a partner out of three people and they go on holiday. The thing is, they've never met and the questions are usually really stupid and how you can find the love of your life through these three questions is daft. The following week, the couple come back. Will they get together? Probably not!

However, it's cosy, easy to watch, funny programming. And Cilla seems the perfect scouse-matchmaker (even though we don't know what one of them is). Good TV never to end.

So if you're single and up 4 a laugh, go on BLIND DER-DATE with your host Miss Cilla Black!

The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends (1992–1998)

Wonderful adventures

[13 October 2002]

In 1993, a TV series brought the classic tales of Beatrix Potter to life. This is great, unscary cartoons for kids without being too twee for grownups. Characters such as Peter Rabbit, Benjamin Bunny, Mr McGregor, Jemima Puddle Duck and Mr Jeremy Fisher wetre brought to life. Every Easter, they re-run them on the BBC. Advice: WATCH THEM.

The Wind in the Willows (1949)

Cute, but somewhat mistreated.

[7 September 2002]

It's a shame that the Wind in the Willows was made into a 30 minute film. It would've made a good feature length film, as it's not too long or too short a story to dramatize in under 90 minutes. And where was the rowing boat, the Otter, the rabbits and the willow tree? Needless to say, the characters are cute and it's better than some films like Lady and the Tramp and The Jungle Book.

Alice in Wonderland (1951)

So misunderstood.

[9/10 · 11 August 2002]

People say Alice is a poor film. They say it's meaningless and lacks the warmth of classics like Snow White, 101 Dalmatians and Bambi. But what happens in Alice. It's just a perculliar dream. Snow White is about jealousy and attemptive murder. 101 Dalmatians is about illegally poaching animals to make a coat. And Bambi contains hunting, murder and setting a forest alive. Along with Pinocchio, this is my favorite Disney movie because the characters are more colourful than any other. Characters like Mad Hatter, Walrus and The Queen are fun. The marijuana smoking Caterpillar doesn't look very high. Originally, the characters were going to look more like the Teniel drawings, but they went with a more cartoony approach. This is a bit disappointing, but never mind.