Disney Marathon: ‘The Rescuers’

Disney Marathon: 'The Rescuers'

Here's a movie that holds a special place in my heart. The Rescuers got more than expected attention by audiences down-under, mostly due to the the sequel taking place in Australia. The release of the second film came with a tour of Australian cities by the animators, so young me got to meet some of those cool folk in person and see them work. Being the adult Disney nerd I am, this would have been a bigger deal to me now, but seeing them work stuck with me.

For those just joining us, this is a movie marathon with a twist. Myself (cranky 40 year old blogger), my son Josh (stoic 10 year old Nintendo obsessive) and my daughter Amelia (drama llama 8 year old princess) are watching Disney movies in a random order and ranking them. We hope to see interesting differences in how we organise our lists.

Released: 1977

Director: Wolfgang Reitherman, john Lounsbery, Art Stevens

Cast: Bob Newhart, Eva Gabor, Geraldine Page, Michelle Stacy, Joe Flynn, Jim Jordan, John McIntire

Plot: A kidnapped girl Penny reaches out for help, and gets the attention of the Rescue Aid Society, an international group of mice hidden within the United Nations. Hungarian representative Bianca and janitor Bernard are dispatched to save her.

Review: This is a pretty understated movie. It's very much from the era of cost cutting in the Disney studio, and whilst it entertains it does very little to advance the art of animation. The animated characters have sketchy line work and the backgrounds are flat and lifeless. It's the world building and the dynamic behind the characters who keep it watchable.

Penny (Stacy) is an orphan unable to find a family to take her in, only to be abducted by the villainous Medusa (Page) and her henchman Mr. Snoops (Flynn). She's kept prisoner on a disused river boat in the Louisiana bayou where she's forced to explore a narrow cave that only she can fit into. The stakes certainly feel high in these sequences, as the little girl being lowered into a dark cave to search for a diamond amid dead bodies with the risk of drowning when the tide comes in are actually horrifying. There's not a lot of personality to the bad guys, but Medusa's willingness to subject a child to this nightmare makes her more than a little scary.

What does help us get involved with the movie is the world of the mice and how it all operates. Like The Great Mouse Detective, the utilisation of everyday objects to create their functioning underworld society is imaginative and fun. We get introduced to the Rescue Aid Society as the members arrive by hiding among the luggage of their equivalent UN members, and the stereotypical representatives of each country gather in their own secret chamber. It's an imaginative set-up for young children, although as an adult it's weird that 'Africa' just has one person to represent the 50+ countries.

The adventures of sophisticated Bianca (Gabor) and down-to-Earth Bernard (Newhart) are pretty standard odd couple fare. Their hijinks sometimes feel like filler, especially the song sequences performed by Shelby Flint tend to bring to the story to a halt rather than being integrated into it. In between the songs and the long travelling sequences it honestly feels like they struggled to complete the run time on this one.

If it wasn't for the chemistry between Bianca and Bernard, it would be a forgettable little adventure.

Best Song: I...don't remember any.

Coolest Easter Egg: What, waiting for me to reveal the famous nude woman scandal? Not only does everything know about this one, it's not even in the movie any more! Instead, take note of Rufus the cat, a caricature of legendary Disney animator Ollie Johnston.

Weirdest Trivia: Medusa was originally going to be Cruella De Vil. We don't know why this idea was cut, but there are clear parallels in the designs of the characters. Also some awesome concept art.

Rating: SIX out of TEN

THE RANKING ME

Not particular great, not especially bad. Somewhere around the middle for this one.

Click those titles if you want to see what we said about the other movies.

AMELIA

1. Frozen
2. Moana
3. Tangled
4. The Little Mermaid
5. The Rescuers
6. Emperor's New Groove
7. Zootopia
8. Lilo & Stitch
9. Atlantis: The Lost Empire
10. The Great Mouse Detective
11. Home on the Range
12. The Nightmare Before Christmas
13. Mulan
14. Hercules
15. Alice in Wonderland
16. Cinderella
17. Wreck-It Ralph
18. Bolt
19. Pocahontas
20. Dinosaur
21. The Aristocats
22. The Princess and the Frog
23. Robin Hood
24. The Jungle Book
25. Fantasia 2000
26. The Lion King
27. Beauty and the Beast
28. The Three Caballeros
29. The Fox and the Hound
30. The Sword in the Stone
31. Saludos Amigos
32. Oliver & Company
33. Aladdin
34. Treasure Planet
35. Big Hero 6
36. Fun and Fancy Free
37. Sleeping Beauty
38. A Goofy Movie
39. Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
40. Chicken Little
41. Fantasia

JOSHUA

1. Zootopia
2. Big Hero 6
3. Aladdin
4. Emperor's New Groove
5. Treasure Planet
6. Moana
7. Ralph Breaks the Internet
8. The Three Caballeros
9. Saludos Amigos
10. Wreck-It Ralph
11. The Rescuers
12. Frozen
13. Mulan
14. The Princess and the Frog
15. The Lion King
16. Lilo & Stitch
17. The Jungle Book
18. Robin Hood
19. Bolt
20. The Sword in the Stone
21. Beauty and the Beast
22. Oliver & Company
23. Sleeping Beauty
24. Tangled
25. The Great Mouse Detective
26. Cinderella
27. The Little Mermaid
28. Home on the Range
29. Pocahontas
30. A Goofy Movie
31. The Aristocats
32. Fantasia
33. Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
34. Atlantis: The Lost Empire
35. Fun and Fancy Free
36. The Fox and the Hound
37. Fantasia 2000
38. The Nightmare Before Christmas
39. Dinosaur
40. Hercules
41. Alice in Wonderland
42. Chicken Little