The Black Cauldron/Oliver & Company

Alright everyone, it’s time we go back to the medieval times with the 1985 underrated Disney movie, “The Black Cauldron.” A superb return to the days of Disney when animation was full and everything was detailed. “The Black Cauldron” is weakened by a usual storyline which fails to capture the imagination in the same way that other classics, like “Pinocchio” or “Dumbo” did, but it’s quite an achievement nonetheless.

With a familiar sword-and-sorcery tale, the story is about Taran (Grant Bardsley), an aspiring warrior, and his ultimate fight with the evil Horned King (John Hurt), who wants to obtain the Black Cauldron, a source of supernatural power. Taran knows that if the Horned King gets the Cauldron, all mankind will die. Taran is joined in his fight by Eilonwy, a princess (Susan Sheridan); a psychic pig named Hen Wen; Gurgi (impressionist John Byner), a flattering animal; and a crowd of minifairies.

TVGuide said in their review, “Only the second animated feature to be shot in 70mm (the first such widescreen extravaganza being 1959's SLEEPING BEAUTY), THE BLACK CAULDRON used more than 2.5 million drawings to bring its tale vividly to life. Every leaf has been patiently drawn, the depth of field is remarkable, the angles are chosen with care, and the result is a state-of-the-art cartoon that should be seen by anyone who loves the craft.” Despite that it doesn’t really have much of entertainment; it still is one of the best cartoon movies ever made by Disney.

Now it’s time for another Disney dog movie for all you dog lovers out there. I’m talking about none other than “Oliver & Company,” released in 1988. This film is a twist on the Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist, which I’ve never read.

PeterStack said in his review, “Almost overshadowed by the hoopla around Disney's other big 1988 release, "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?," which mixed cartoons and live action, the film did respectably at the box office. It was Disney's 27th full-length animated feature.”

An orphaned kitten, Oliver (Joey Lawrence), becomes friends with a gang of streetwise dogs in crowded Manhattan. The gang is led by Dodger (singer Billy Joel), and includes a snappy Chihuahua, Tito (Cheech Marin), a Great Dane, Einstein (Richard Mulligan), a Saluki, Rita (Ruth Pointer), and a bulldog, Francis (Roscoe Lee Browne). The gang’s human caretaker is Fagin (the late Dom DeLuise). Oliver is then taken in by a lonely rich girl (Natalie Gregory), whose stuck-up poodle Georgette (the nice Bette Midler) becomes his hilariously arch nemesis. The villain is Sykes (Robert Loggia), who has two Doberman Pinschers, Roscoe and DeSoto (Taurean Blacque and Carl Weintraub).

Stack mentioned that, “The film offers a fanciful, lush urban setting, unusual for Disney animated features, and a couple of good songs, "Once Upon a Time in New York City" performed by Huey Lewis and "Perfect Isn't Easy" sung by Midler.” However, I think Joel’s “Why Should I Worry?” and Ruth Pointer’s “Streets of Gold” are far more memorable than any of the other songs in this movie.

“Oliver & Company” was noticed for its high use of computer-generated imagery, techniques used highly by Disney in the 90s, from “The Little Mermaid” to Pixar’s very first feature film, “Toy Story.”

I noticed that these two films I reviewed were not very well received and not a lot of people liked these films, but I still think that they should get a chance. At least watch them and see for yourself instead of just passing them by in your Disney collection. Don’t gloss them over, give them a watch at least once and see for yourself if you like it or not. If you don’t, I get it, these films are not meant for everyone.

Hopefully everyone liked my reviews today. Stay tuned tomorrow for the next entry in “Disney Month.”