Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 29th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 21st, 2005
Pocahontas is Disney’s animated version of the Pocahontas myth. This movie is not history, but a Disney-fied version of it. European settlers came to North America and disrupted the Native American way of life. John Smith (voiced by Mel Gibson) and his British plunderers attempt to rob the “New World” of its riches. Chief Powhatan, and his daughter Pocahontas (voiced by Irene Bedard), might have something to say about this. In the end, in typical Disney fashion, a moral emerges: both cultures have a lot...to learn from eachother.
Pocahontas hits all the right Disney animated film notes, but not as strongly as other films. The villain, the scheming leader of the expedition Ratcliffe (voiced by David Ogden Stiers), is no one to be scared of, really. He comes off more like a goofball. Ratcliffe is not in the tradition of the great Disney villains we’re used to. The cute cuddly comic relief characters (a raccoon, a hummingbird, and a dog) are not as funny or endearing in comparison to, say, Poombaa or Scuttle (from Little Mermaid). And the romance between Pocahontas and John Smith isn’t as charged as Belle and the Beast, for example. It seems a little forced here. So without a great villain, funny comic relief characters, or a believable romance, what does Pocahontas have? It has scope. The “New World” is a wonder to behold. The animators have done an amazing job. And the “Colors of the Wind” song (an Oscar winner) is quite lovely.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 29th, 2005
Synopsis
The Rugrats extend their pop culture empire with this TV series, where the kids are now inearly adolescence. The central story here involves a trip to summer camp, with all the usualassortment of spooky plot elements (combined with the fact that one of our heroes is trying tomake a horror movie). There are also two other episodes. No one is going to compare the level ofwit on display with The Simpsons or The Family Guy, but I’ve seen worse. Muchworse.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 15th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 11th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 13th, 2005
Ahh, Scooby-Doo. The cartoon of my youth is back with all new episodes. Luckily, the new episodes haven’t meddled too much with the classic formula, as so often happens with remakes of movie and TV shows. There are four episodes included in this collection, each dealing with a different spooky mystery. Trampy Fred and Daphne, sexually confused Velma, baked Shaggy and their English-speaking dog are all here, and their trippy hippy van as well. You know them, you love them. Scooby is back!
Audio
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 7th, 2004
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 30th, 2004
Secret agent/crime fighter by night…high school cheerleader by day…Disney brings us Kim Possible. The DVD is subtitled The Villain Files. Kim Possible is an original TV show made by Disney. The Villain Files have four episodes for Possible fans. In each segment, Kim battles an arch enemy all the while trying to keep up her pom poms at the local high school. Her buddy, Ron Stoppable, is along for the ride.
Kim Possible has an intriguing premise. For kids watching, it has the best ...f two “possible” worlds. You have the high school “like” and “as if” aspect, and you have the secret agent butt kicking part. How does Kim manage to juggle both lifestyles? That’s the fun of the series. Just when you think Kim is managing to have a “normal” teenage life, there’s Dr. Drakken mucking things up with those world take-over plans.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 19th, 2004
There have been umpteen movie adaptations of the Dickens classic, “A Christmas Carol”. Some of my favorites include the Alastair Sim version, the Henry Winkler version (yes, the guy who played Fonzie), the Bill Murray version, the Muppet version, and the Mister Magoo version. This 1997 version of A Christmas Carol is an animated feature featuring the voices of Tim Curry, Whoopi Goldberg, Ed Asner, and Michael York. It’s a story that we all know well.
But what makes this different from the other ve...sions? What sets this horse apart from the rest of the pack? Well, this version of A Christmas Carol has musical numbers, a child character as the ghost of Christmas past, and a sassy black woman Whoopi Goldberg type (voiced by Whoopi Goldberg) as the ghost of Christmas present. Oh…and they give Scrooge a dog. Finally! It’s about time.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 11th, 2004
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