The Jungle Book

The Jungle Book is another one of those Disney movies that I know I watched when I was young, but I don't remember it too well. It turns out to be fairly significant in terms of Disney history, because it is the last film that Walt Disney himself actually had a hand in before he died. We watched a fun little "making of" that was on the VHS after the movie ended, so we learned some interesting things about how the movie was put together.

Overall it's a cute Disney movie, I liked it, but it's not one of my favorites. Jason liked it more than I did. There are some fun characters, like Baloo and King Louie, but to be honest I really just did not like Mowgli. I mean yes, he is a child, but he's one of those annoying children that thinks they know everything and don't want to listen to anyone else. So the entire time I'm watching, I keep saying things like, "stop being stupid, Mowgli! You probably should be afraid of that snake, if you know what's good for you."

I haven't actually read the stories by Rudyard Kipling, but my understanding is that they are not very similar. Apparently Walt Disney told everyone involved in the movie, "Don't read the book. I want to do this my own way." And I think it definitely worked. The ending is a good one - it works and it's pretty darn cute.

The Music

This is definitely The Jungle Book's strong point. There are so many good songs in this movie, from a variety of genres. You can King Louie's jazz/scat number, "I Wanna Be Like You," Baloo's catchy "The Bare Necessities," and the vultures' Beatles imitation in "That's What Friends Are For." Only Kaa the snake's song was rather weak ("Trust in Me"). We learned from the making of video that the entire movie was actually written, and then re-written because it was too dark. The only song that was kept from the original was "The Bare Necessities."

The Villain

Shere Khan is kind of a lame villain. I mean, he's okay - he's a tiger and all - but he doesn't really do all that much. Kaa, while not exactly the main villain of the piece, is certainly more interesting and entertaining. But neither of them are making it into the top five (or even the top ten) or all time greatest Disney villains. A lot of the opposition comes from Mowgli himself anyway, and his desire to stay in the jungle and not go to the man village.

The Disney World Connection

To my knowledge there are not currently any Jungle Book themed rides or attractions in Walt Disney World. At one time there may have been a show in the Animal Kingdom, but I'm not 100% sure on that. I don't think there's any restaurants or shops either. I do know that Baloo can be seen wandering around the parks - I have a picture with him from the last time I was there!

My rating: 7 out of 10

Jason's rating: 8 out of 10

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

When I think of the Hunchback of Notre Dame, I think of a movie that I enjoyed as a kid but didn't leave as a big an impression on me as, say, The Lion King did. However, when watching it again this time I liked it a lot more than I expected to. It was much, much better a movie than I had remembered. It was also a Disney movie that Jason hadn't seen (gasp!), and so it was completely new to him.

First of all, I really like the story. It was, as Jason said, a very action-packed Disney movie. There is romance, suspense, all that good stuff. Although it's certainly altered from the original novel (like any Disney movie), they do a really good job adapting it into its own story.

Jason's one complaint was that he felt that most of the characters were not realistic enough because they were too good and didn't have faults, except for Quasimodo. But he felt this way about Esmeralda and Phoebus. Personally, I thought they were all interesting character. I really like Esmeralda a lot. If she was one of the princesses I would certainly count her as one of my favorites. She's tough but she's got a good heart. She's beautiful but she really cares about people. She's not naive or stupid, like Meg from Hercules, but she's also a lot more likable than Meg. I suppose Phoebus is probably the weakest character, he's your typical good guy.

Some of the themes were really good - interesting and meaningful. Standing up for what you believe in, and the idea of someone you trust who has been constantly lying to you your whole life. Also, of course, our judgement of others based on their looks and how we treat people different than us. As a teacher I immediately see bullying - even in 15th century Paris, people are not so different than how they act today when confronted with people that are different or unusual.

The ending was perfect, in my opinion. Although you certainly want Quasimodo to end up with Esmeralda, something about that would be really hard to buy. It's just not probable, so it makes sense that she ends up with Phoebus. However, that doesn't mean it's a sad ending for Quasimodo. He gets friends, and he gets to know that people finally see the real him and he'll be able to go out into the world now. He doesn't seem too upset about it by the end either.

The Music

Again, this is another area where it just seems like Hunchback doesn't get much credit - but I really loved the music. "Out There" is by far my favorite song from the soundtrack. It's perfect for Quasimodo - semi-sad, semi-happy, but pulsing with energy. When discussing Hercules, I mentioned that I never really liked his big song, "Go the Distance," because something about it just fell flat or didn't work. I feel like "Out There" is what "Go the Distance" could have and should have been. Anyway, The Hunchback of Notre Dame has lots of other good songs, including "The Bells of Notre Dame," "Topsy Turvy," "God Help the Outcasts," and a few others.

The Villain

Frollo is really an evil villain, more evil than many of the others if only because he is completely real. He doesn't have magical powers, spellbooks, or evil spirits to do his bidding for him. There is nothing supernatural about him. Instead he is a cruel, heartless man, treating people terribly because they are different from him, and doing it all in the name of God. There have been very real people like this throughout history, which just makes him a little more scary. He acts so nice and caring to everyone, but he is really terrible inside. He gets what he deserves. I find his death to be rather similar to what happens in The Lion King. They're both on the ledge, and Frollo confesses that he killed Quasimodo's mother. (Very reminiscent of Scar's "I killed Mufasa"). However, instead of Frollo plunging to his death because of Quasimodo's anger, he quotes the Bible, saying "God shall smite the wicked." And then he is indeed smited. Score.

The Disney World Connection

Quasimodo and friends don't make too much of an appearance in WDW. You might be able to find the characters occasionally, but the one attraction dedicated to the movie, a show in MGM studios, didn't stick around very long.

My rating: 9 out of 10

Jason's rating: 8 out of 10

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a very special Disney movie because it was the first full length animated Disney movie ever made. It dates back to 1937, so that certainly has to be taken into account when viewing it and comparing it to more modern Disney films. Snow White was definitely important for its time, and is still enjoyable today, though our tastes may have changed and it may not be a popular favorite anymore.

The story is pretty simple and fun. The dwarfs are so charming and funny, and Disney throws in a lot of cute little things for the dwarfs. It stays fairly true to the original fairy tale, much more so than many later Disney films, though it does leave a few things out. The biggest difference would be the kiss from the Prince at the end - in the original story, it is not a kiss from her true love that wakes Snow White, but the fact that her coffin gets bumped and it knocks the piece of poisoned apple out of her throat. Realism is all well and good, but I like the Disney ending better.

Snow White as a character is not all that realistic or even interesting, however. She is unbelievably nice and naive, which makes her likable but not too real. She is unfailingly kind to everyone and so naive that she seems a bit stupid. Really, if you grew up with that stepmother, don't you think that you would have developed a bit more sense or been a bit more alert? I didn't get the idea that she was really that sheltered. Of course, she is young, but still, probably around 16, which isn't that young. Don't be surprised if you're screaming at the screen, "No, Snow White! Don't talk to strangers! Especially really creepy looking ones with evil laughter! Even 5 year olds know better than that, and they know they definitely should not take food from them!" Add in the fact that the dwarfs warned her that her stepmother might disguise herself and try to come visit, well, you really have to wonder just where Snow White's head is.

Another interesting thing to note is that like many later Disney movies, Snow White's mother is dead and her father is virtually non-existent. We do not see any sign of him, and no explanation about who he is, who her mother was, or what happened to her. It wouldn't be a stretch to say that the stepmother might have killed the mother with witchcraft in order to become queen. I do find it curious that the father does not appear, as he is presumably still around.

The Music

There is a lot of music in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and it's old fashioned (as to be expected), but a lot of it is good. The dwarfs have a lot of fun songs, and the movie has several well known songs, such as "Heigh Ho" and "Whistle While You Work." There's also "Someday My Prince Will Come," a song which Jason finds extremely boring but I think is quite pretty.

The Villain

The stepmother/queen is an excellent villain, and as we were watching the movie she seemed more and more crazy and evil than I remembered. There is no redeeming quality to her and no sign of real human-ness. She has extremely powerful dark magic on her side. She wants to kill an extremely innocent and kind young girl. And why? Just because she wants to be the prettiest woman around! She's doing all this just to be "the fairest in the land." Wow, can't you settle for second best? It's not like Snow White is that much competition, she's just going to marry the prince and go off with him so you won't have to worry about her flaunting her looks around or anything. To me, the queen is by far the most evil villain we've seen yet, though Jason thinks Jafar ranks just above her. At least she met a satisfying death.

The Disney World Connection

Snow White has her own ride in the Magic Kingdom, called Snow White's Scary Adventures. I've never been on it because when I was little I was certainly not going on anything with the word "scary" in the title, and I didn't return until much later when I was too old for the ride. However, I'm curious, so I think this is one that we'll have to do. Snow White makes appearances with many of the other princesses, and she can be found around the parks.

My rating: 7 out of 10

Jason's rating: 7 out of 10