Firstly, I’m going to discuss Bolt (2008). Now, clearly, a film about a dog who plays the part of
a canine superhero with Miley Cyrus providing voiceover is not going to be to
everybody’s taste. What’s more, Bolt’s belief that he is a real superhero seems
vaguely familiar (Toy Story, anyone?).
But the fact of the matter is that this film is a vast improvement on those that preceded it. Ever since their foray
into the realms of CGI, with the disappointing Chicken Little in 2005, not to mention their succession of rather
flat (but sometimes intriguingly experimental) traditionally animated features
of the early noughties, it seems most everybody had lost faith in Disney’s
ability to deliver quality. That’s the buzzword. ‘Quality’. Then, Bolt came along: while far from perfect,
it nonetheless boasted a refreshingly cohesive and engaging plot, interesting
characters that had chemistry, and, most notably, a TV-obsessed talking
hamster! Don’t get me wrong, Meet the
Robinsons (2007) was good, but its tortuous time travel inconsistencies,
excessive cast and occasional ‘twee-ness’ damaged the film’s narrative flow, at
least for me. Bolt, meanwhile, got
the balance just about right, in that it was humorous and heart-warming, while
not being sickly sweet. Sadly, while far
from a masterpiece, this film never got the praise it deserved.
Our next film, set way down in the deep, dark bayous of
Louisiana, took us back to the glorious tradition of hand-drawn animation.
Disney’s 2009 release The Princess and
the Frog, a 1920s-set, jazz-infused musical extravaganza saw the first
black Disney princess grace our theatres, a feat that was surprisingly
underplayed in the run-up to its release. With an equally dazzling score by
composer Randy Newman, this new twist on The
Frog Prince had music and artwork reminiscent of the Renaissance era, so
much so that it would probably fit right in there. Another interesting thing to
note is that the character voices also performed the songs – this marked the
first time this had been done since Beauty
and the Beast in 1990, and, in my opinion at least, this undoubtedly works
in favour of the film in the long run. For me, this film is near-perfection,
for a Disney musical at least. Yet this isn’t enough to constitute another
‘golden age’. Instead, one can only conclude that this is a ‘great’ film. So as
of yet, we can’t really say we have a ‘golden age’ on our hands. We’re just
‘almost there’.
But subsequently things only seemed to get better. The
following year, it appeared Rapunzel’s magic-imbibed hair instilled new life in
Disney, as their 50th animated feature Tangled hit the big screen. Though promoted as a new, alternative,
almost Dreamworks-esque take on the traditional Grimm fairy-tale, Disney
nonetheless proved to have remained in touch with their roots by delivering a
true classic, reminiscent of the Disney fairy-tales we know and love (whether
we admit it or not), and for which the House of Mouse are perhaps most renowned
for. The film was an extraordinary success, indicating that we might be
witnessing the onset of a second Renaissance era. Now, some might argue that,
at this point, it’s still too soon to make that assumption. Sure, we’ve had a succession
of decent, even exceptional, films. But a ‘golden age’? Who can say?
Disney’s following release was much more low-key, which is
surprising considering the film itself, 2011’s Winnie the Pooh, happened to be the very last traditionally animated
feature (as of yet) to be released by the company. Based on A.A. Milne’s
classic stories, and representing a sequel to the 1977 release The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh,
the new movie ironically conveyed nothing new, but more of the old. This isn’t really
a bad thing. In fact, it corroborates my assumption that Disney were trying to ‘recreate’
their former selves, or at least prove to audiences that they still had that
Disney ‘magic’ that the previous batch of movies from the early noughties
seemed to lack. All the same Winnie the
Pooh seemed all too familiar and, as charming as it was, paled in
comparison to its 1977 predecessor. Having said that, it was still a decent
effort, and it was a shame it seemed to come and go with very little publicity
or acknowledgement.
Regardless, as of that point, things looked promising. After
several successful films in a row, Disney appeared to be on a bit of a winning
streak. But something was missing. It took me a while to put my finger on
precisely what it was. And then it came to me: a standout image. Think of The Lion King. Undeniably, this was a
monumental success, and still reigns supreme as the largest grossing traditionally
animated feature of all time. When we think of it and even when we just hear
the title, we see Rafiki the baboon triumphantly presenting baby Simba atop
Pride Rock to a congregation of creatures down below. And what about Aladdin? Who can forget Aladdin and Jasmine’s
romantic magic carpet ride to ‘A Whole New World’? These films all have
memorable scenes, memorable characters and standout musical numbers. And therein
lies the issue. Assuming we are currently in the midst of a ‘golden age’, in
comparison to the previous golden ages of Disney, we’re lacking an image, a standout
film or moment. But their next feature, in this reviewer’s humble opinion,
changed that.
That’s right. Disney’s 2012 arcade game-inspired feature Wreck-It Ralph truly came to life as one
of their most original films. While it is true that the film received a large
amount of media attention (a factor that usually precipitates my disappointment),
this appraisal, in retrospect, was deserved. The story focuses on protagonist
(or is that antagonist?) Ralph’s efforts to prove that he has what it takes to
be a good guy, having played the role of the bad guy his whole life in arcade
game ‘Fix-It Felix’. It’s clever, it’s fast-paced and above all, it’s
memorable. There may not be any musical numbers, but the characters are
well-developed, the plot is engaging and the concept and environments are
unique. This overwhelming success was surpassed the following year with the
release of Frozen, which has since
achieved the title of the highest grossing animated film of all time, in a
sense conveying itself as the modern equivalent of The Lion King. Contrary to much of the appraisal the film has
received, it is not flawless. But that’s of little importance. The characters
are engaging, the music is memorable and its success has been undeniably overwhelming.
But the question remains as to whether this success constitutes
a golden age. Again, maybe it’s too soon to say. There’s a chance these films
may not have the same lasting appeal as those from the 1990s. Let’s face it – The Princess and the Frog has
essentially been forgotten about already, while Winnie the Pooh slipped quietly under the radar without being
noticed. All the same, there are those that have had more of an impact,
including more recent efforts such as Wreck-It
Ralph and especially Frozen. Whether
or not their recent success constitutes a golden age or a second Renaissance is
open to debate. More importantly, will this success continue? Only time will
tell.
