Summer of Magic- "Home on the Range"

It is an extremely rare occurrence when I have very little if anything at all to positively say about a Disney film. Even in the studio's weakest films and my least favorites, I have been able to pinpoint at least one aspect of the film that works, such as the music in The Sword in the Stone and the Casey at the Bat segment in Make Mine Music. Today, however, I am having severe difficulty conjuring up positive thoughts about Home on the Range. Now, I must admit that even Disney's lesser fare is decently salvageable, and it is nearly impossible to completely trash a film outright, but in the entire canon, Home on the Range is the most unnecessary film ever produced by the Mouse House.

Here is my attempt to think positively about this film. As is the case with all the films recently, the cast in Home on the Range is delightful and single-handedly carry this film. The three leading cows, Maggie, Mrs. Caloway, and Grace, are exquisitely voiced by Roseanne Barr, Dame Judi Dench, and Jennifer Tilly respectively. Additionally, Cuba Gooding Jr. voices Buck and becomes the star of the show in the process. Even Steve Buscemi, Estelle Harris, and Patrick Warburton make an appearance in this fantastic ensemble, and while they are all on their game and ready to go, that is also what makes this film so disappointing and frustrating. With a cast like this, you don't want to waste it, and unfortunately, this cast is completely wasted in a preposterous story with weak characters. None of these characters are memorable whatsoever as most of them end up becoming caricatures more than anything. There are no character arcs existing at all (with the exception of one which I'll discuss later), and every single character starts and ends the film with no change occurring at all. How they attracted such a star-studded cast for this disaster is beyond me.

That brings me to our villain, Alameda Slim. When his characterization begins, we discover that he is an infamous livestock thief, stealing hoards of cows at a time and no one really knows how or why. As long as the mystery of his character is present, Slim is a solid villain due to his blurred intentions and dark secrets. However, when it is time to reveal his motivation and methods, the rest of his scenes are nothing more than laughable. He doesn't have some elaborate trap or grand scheme; instead, Slim magically yodels and the cows become instantly entranced. In one of Disney's most bizarre scene in its history (and think more along the lines of the finale in Oliver & Company when I say 'bizarre' instead of the delightfully bizarre "Pink Elephants on Parade" sequence in Dumbo), Slim colorfully entices the cows, Maggie and Mrs. Caloway included, to follow him to their impending death. And what is Slim wanting to do with these cows? Well, of course! Sell them for money and that's it! Slim is such a lame and boring character that we never fear him. He never poses a legitimate threat, and without a threat, why does this story exist in the first place?

Speaking of the story, I am all in favor of more wacky stories being produced in Hollywood, especially from Disney. Some of Disney's most ingenious ideas and best films come when they decide to avoid the stereotypical story and create something fresh and unique (take The Emperor's New Groove and Lilo & Stitch for examples), but there is the risk of telling a story that goes beyond wacky into the insane and entirely unnecessary category. Home on the Range finds itself in that category. A story about three cows setting out to capture a greedy cowboy in order to save their farm is so strange that it becomes intriguing on paper, but the execution in this film is atrocious. I never care about the characters, the stakes are never high enough, and as I much previously, the exterior threats are never legitimatized. If this were a straight-to-DVD release, that would be one thing, but this film is from the same studio that just two years prior to the release of Home on the Range crafted a masterpiece in Lilo & Stitch. This film is an example of a studio trying to make a dollar, and rightfully so, they lost quite bit of money on this project (more on that below).

I'll conclude on a semi-positive note. In addition to the cast, Alan Menken returns to give us good songs, but nothing ever reaches the classical heights. When Menken can't even save the film, you know it is beyond salvageable. As much as I love praising Disney's classics, I cannot stand tearing one of their films down, but it is a necessity when it is deserved. Home on the Range is a trainwreck, plain and simple.

Rating: 5/10

Historical Significance: Home on the Range was budgeted at $110 million for Disney, but only made $103 million at the worldwide box office while only grossing approximately $50 million in the United States. Although the studio had begun experimenting with computer animation, they had yet to full embrace the new technology, clinging to the classic hand drawn method. However, when the box office receipts began coming in for Home on the Range, Disney changed their tune. Witnessing the continued rise of Pixar, Disney's response was to begin producing completely computer animated films. Home on the Range was the last film to be animated the old fashioned way until The Princess and the Frog in 2009. The studio went five years without a hand drawn film, the longest streak ever at the time, but currently, they are on another five year streak and counting (Winnie the Pooh in 2011). Here's hoping Disney never forgets where they came from.

Behind the Scenes: Directors Will Finn and John Sanford originally pitched the idea for the film as a myth based on the legend of the Pied Piper. CEO Michael Eisner despised the idea from the beginning, claiming that no parent would ever take their child to watch a film featuring murdered children (probably a good call, Eisner). However, Finn and Sanford incorporated elements of the story with Alameda Slim, who entices the cows to follow him upon hearing his transfixing yodeling, a method similar to the Pied Piper's method of luring children in by playing his flute.

Favorite Character: It was rather difficult to pick a character for this selection, not because of the embarrassment of riches, but because of the lack of options. I am going to have to go with Buck, though, because he does experience the best character arc of anyone in the film (although that's not saying much). Buck simply aims to impress. He is a legend in his own mind, and he wants the world to know it. So when Rico, the infamous bounty hunter, chooses him as his stead to track down Slim, Buck immediately seizes the opportunity. However, when it is revealed that Rico is partnering with Slim, Buck has an unlikely decision to make: should he cave in and obey his master, or should he join the efforts of the three cows to bring Slim to justice? Buck's heroic decision is a valiant one, and when he returns home rejoicing, against all odds, you can't help but be happy for him.

Favorite Scene: I haven't wrote this in quite some time, but I must write it now: Alan Menken strikes again! Now, Menken's songs in Home on the Range are nowhere near his best, but the "Little Patch of Heaven" sequence is as close this film comes to capturing Disney magic (even though it still significantly misses the mark). There is nothing groundbreaking or earth-shattering going on in this scene. In fact, in the grand scheme of things, it is quite unnecessary, but with Menken's music and Disney's animation, it becomes the highlight of the film. The Patch of Heaven Farm is the reason this story is set into motion to begin with, so naturally, it deserves a nice introduction. With this song and the following action, we are solidly introduced to our setting and our main characters. It gives the three determined heifers an opportunity to gather some motivation for when the farm is threatened to be sold, and therefore, this scene gives us the unfortunate motivation to stay tuned.

Updated Ranking: I never thought I'd see the day. The Black Cauldron is off the hook. We have a new "leader" for Disney's worst film to date.

1. Beauty and the Beast
2. The Lion King
3. Aladdin
4. The Little Mermaid
5. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
6. The Hunchback of Notre Dame
7. Peter Pan
8. Cinderella
9. The Jungle Book
10. Sleeping Beauty
11. Lilo & Stitch
12. Hercules
13. Mulan
14. The Emperor's New Groove
15. Tarzan
16. Pinocchio
17. Lady and the Tramp
18. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
19. Alice in Wonderland
20. Dumbo
21. Bambi
22. 101 Dalmatians
23. Pocahontas
24. Treasure Planet
25. The Great Mouse Detective
26. Fantasia
27. The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
28. The AristoCats
29. Fantasia 2000
30. The Rescuers Down Under
31. Fun and Fancy Free
32. The Fox and the Hound
33. Robin Hood
34. Dinosaur
35. Melody Time
36. The Three Caballeros
37. Saludos Amigos
38. Brother Bear
39. Oliver & Company
40. The Rescuers
41. Atlantis: The Lost Empire
42. The Sword in the Stone
43. Make Mine Music
44. The Black Cauldron
45. Home on the Range

Thankfully, Pixar is here to save the day! Tomorrow, the studio releases another masterpiece: The Incredibles!

-Cody Fleenor