I will admit that the set-up for this film is quite ingenious. The concept of a superstar dog learning that there is more to life than his hit television show is wholly original and rather brilliant. With Bolt, it is evident that Disney is returning to their Renaissance roots with their selection of stories. However, it would still take another year before they finally fully return to masterpiece level because Bolt ultimately falls short of applying the signature Disney emotion we have grown accustomed to over the years. Sure, the relationship with Penny and Bolt is nice, but due to the minimal backstory (we see Penny buy Bolt at the store; then suddenly, we jump forward five years with no character development on display), we never find ourselves becoming fully invested into these characters beyond simply acknowledging the sweetness of the situation upon their reunion. Therein lies the crux of my problem with Bolt. It relies almost exclusively on sentimentality and evoking the "how sweet" response while never providing the appropriate substance to make that intention work. Yet again, the Disney standard strikes again. Bolt is a good film, but I expect greatness from Disney, and this film is unable to take that next step towards classic territory.
You may have forgotten that John Travolta provides the voice for Bolt and Miley Cyrus is Penny. Travolta is actually quite good in this role as he is clearly having a blast playing this super serious canine, but Cyrus is, well, Cyrus. She is simply unfit for this role and therefore oftentimes comes off as an actress simply earning a paycheck and going through the motions, which makes Penny a wasted character. While Travolta and Cyrus are the film's big name attractions, it is the vocal work from Susie Essman (Mittens) and Mark Walton (Rhino) that truly save this film. Essman's Mittens is the film's highlight. Not only does she become the film's most well developed character, but in the process, she causes Bolt to become a nicely developed character too (you guessed it: more on Mittens below). Rhino is the scene-stealer, hilariously injecting commentary into each situation. Odds are that you will finish watching Bolt and immediately begin quoting Rhino's lines.
It is clear that John Lasseter is slowly gaining creative control of Disney in Bolt. You can sense a great film in there somewhere, but instead, Bolt is seemingly content with above average mediocrity. The music is fine, but rather unmemorable. The animation is spectacular while the psuedo-television show is playing out, but whenever the scene shifts to reality, the animation is simply good instead of Disney great. There are some truly fantastic scenes that can be found in Bolt, though. After the five year time jump, the opening introduction to Bolt's TV show is a wonder to behold in every phase. It exquisitely kicks off the characterization of both Bolt and Penny while also being insanely thrilling and supremely entertaining. In fact, each unique scene from the show is fantastic. I would definitely watch that show! Furthermore, each time the different sets of pigeons appear to talk to Bolt, I laugh hysterically due to the simplicity of the humor.
It feels as if Bolt is a lame duck film as Disney apparently knew it had something greater coming up the pipeline one year later with The Princess and the Frog. Bolt is by no means a bad film; there are definitely worse films in the animated canon, but the frustrating thing about this film is that it had all the potential to be great. It had the characters, the production team (Byron Howard co-directed this film, the genius who also co-directed Tangled and Zootopia), and clever story, but far too often, Bolt comes off as an unwanted ripoff of Oliver & Company. If you're looking for a nice, thoroughly entertaining film for the whole family, you cannot go wrong with Bolt, but if you're looking for a Disney masterpiece, you might want to look elsewhere.
Rating: 7.5/10
Historical Significance: The original concept for the film was first developed by Lilo & Stitch star/co-director/mastermind Chris Sanders. Bolt was initially entitled American Dog, and Bolt was named Henry instead while Mittens was called Ogo. Henry was modeled, appropriately enough, after Stitch himself, and Ogo was a male kitten with an eye patch who worked as a mechanic in a junkyard. Rhino was suppose to be a radioactive rabbit, and the setting of the film was first set in the American Southwest. The reason for the immense overhaul was threefold. First of all, the setting needed to change due to its deemed similarity to Cars which was released two years earlier. Secondly, Sanders departed Disney to work on Dreamworks's How to Train Your Dragon (released in 2010). Finally, John Lasseter's creative genius acquired by the studio's purchase of Pixar caused the current stories in production (Meet the Robinsons and Bolt) to be almost entirely altered. Bolt would go on to become the first Disney animated film to be presented in 3D (Chicken Little and Meet the Robinsons were converted to 3D in post-production) and also became the first Disney animated to be released on Blu-Ray before it was offered on DVD.
Behind the Scenes: Miley Cyrus was not the original choice to voice Penny. Chloe Grace Mortez was actually brought in for the role and even recorded all of Penny's lines, but Disney decided to bring in Cyrus while keeping Mortez on to voice the younger version of Penny. We are not quite sure why Disney decided to make such a change to this day. On the other hand, John Travolta was the first and only choice to voice Bolt. Additionally, Disney has always believed in realism for their animation, and in order to properly capture the movements of Rhino while inside his hamster ball, the animators placed a hamster inside its ball and allowed it to roll around on top of a piece of Plexiglas. They filmed the movements from underneath the Plexiglas and studied the hamster's movements to apply it to their animation. Also, Sovereign Productions in the film may look familiar to some of you. That is because it is designed after the Disney Studio lot located in Burbank, California.
Favorite Character: I have kind of spoiled the surprise of my selection here already, but Mittens is my favorite character from Bolt. From the moment we are introduced to Mittens, we know she is going to be a phenomenal character. She is essentially steeped in legend from the beginning thanks to the pigeon's description of her to Bolt, and she more than lives up to the legend. We know she is probably a victim to a dark backstory, and while that prophecy is eventually fulfilled, the film does not unnecessarily present her backstory as its signature dramatic moment because it just would not have meshed with the film's tone. Instead, Mittens mentioned in passing that she comes from owners that did not understand how to properly care for a pet. This subtle reference allows for Mittens to come full circle as a character in a nice way. She also inspires change in Bolt's life. By hanging around Mittens, Bolt comes to the realization that he is just a humble dog, not a world-saving hero. Any character that can develop on her own while also developing other characters is almost guaranteed a spot on my favorite character section.
Favorite Scene: Since I just praised the character changes of Bolt and Mittens, it is only appropriate for me to choose a scene displaying their change as my favorite. The "Barking At the Moon" sequence is as close as Bolt comes to achieving classic status. Bolt has finally had his breakthrough and accepted the fact that he is not the immortal superhero he plays on television. He is an ordinary dog, but the problem is he has never been an ordinary dog a day in his life, so Mittens and Rhino take it upon themselves to teach Bolt the ins and outs of being man's best friend. The following sequence is one of pure delight and sheer entertainment. The song being played in the background here is a nice tune and provides the perfect counterpart to the action occurring on screen. This scene affords all three main characters an opportunity to shine and develop as characters, and you know I am all about scenes like that!Updated Ranking: I honestly wanted to rank Bolt higher on this list, and it had the potential to work its way up. However, it is what it is, and so is its ranking.
- Beauty and the Beast
- The Lion King
- Aladdin
- The Little Mermaid
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
- The Hunchback of Notre Dame
- Peter Pan
- Cinderella
- The Jungle Book
- Sleeping Beauty
- Lilo & Stitch
- Hercules
- Mulan
- The Emperor's New Groove
- Tarzan
- Pinocchio
- Lady and the Tramp
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Alice in Wonderland
- Dumbo
- Bambi
- 101 Dalmatians
- Pocahontas
- Treasure Planet
- The Great Mouse Detective
- Fantasia
- The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
- The AristoCats
- Fantasia 2000
- Meet the Robinsons
- The Rescuers Down Under
- Fun and Fancy Free
- The Fox and the Hound
- Robin Hood
- Bolt
- Dinosaur
- Melody Time
- The Three Caballeros
- Saludos Amigos
- Brother Bear
- Oliver & Company
- The Rescuers
- Atlantis: The Lost Empire
- The Sword in the Stone
- Make Mine Music
- The Black Cauldron
- Chicken Little
- Home on the Range
Tomorrow, we'll discover that adventure is indeed out there with Pixar's Up!
-Cody Fleenor
No comments:
Post a Comment