The Little Mermaid
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I watched the "Making Of" part....
It was....AMAZING!!!!!!
Just getting a whole look at Disney the way it used to be, how they started out in 1984 with the "new regime"....it puts you RIGHT THERE....unbelievable...very, VERY candid, not like ANYTHING we could have possibly seen in the Eisner era.....it sort of feels like post Cold-War Russia/Former Soviet Union, right after the Berlin wall fell down....they talk to everyone....ALL the animators...Jody Benson...Alan Menken...even Mark Dindal and Randy Fullmer....Ron and Jon of course....Roy Disney....
Truly historic. This DVD itself is as important as Iger's ascension, Pixar's marriage to Disney and Disney's decision to continue to do traditional animation in some form.
And yes....JK. I wasn't sure how he would be in the interviews, I thought he might be serious or reflective, but he just seems quite happy, he laughs a lot and it's obvious he was pleased to be a part of the DVD...he gives A LOT of credit to others, especially Ron and Jon. He's very honest and upfront about he didn't know a whole lot about animation at first and had to learn, and that sometimes it was difficult along the way. (He also laughs at himself and how he wanted to cut "Part of Your World" at one point. So funny. 
) SO amazing to see him connected with Disney again...it's like the sun coming out from behind a cloud...
Anyway...a few other thoughts about this...I'm glad they mentioned Eisner positively and showed "young Eisner" circa 1985, you would never in a million years think he's the same person...he's a lot more laid back and just seems much more human somehow. They also showed Frank Wells briefly. And it's so weird, even though I've heard Frank Wells discussed and mentioned so many times over the years, this is the first time I've heard actually him speak (when addressing the Disney employees shortly after joining the company) Incredible.
The thing about "Making of" Disney docs I've watched in the last few years (only bits and pieces) is that they seem very clausterphobic somehow in that they only talk to a few people, certain people and it seems like the people are making a consious effort to seem positive. Here everyone seems much more relaxed and not afraid to say what they think. Truly evidence that Disney is a "friendlier" place now than it's been for years. Leonard Maltin also contributes, Pat Carroll who played Ursela, even John Waters!! (he knew Howard Ashman well.)
So, like i was saying, this documentary's importance is twofold: 1.) To remember how Disney rose from a troubled studio of talented people and once more begin to make quality animation. 2.) To watch it happening all over again, 17 years later.
******BTW, just thought people should know that when Katzenberg wanted to cut POYW, at least according to my understanding, THE ANIMATION ON THAT SCENE WAS NOT AT ALL DONE and it was harder to understand how the song fit into the film...when he saw the animation for it, with Ariel reaching out to the surface and the light, was when he agreed to keep it.
** Also the fact that he thought Little Mermaid would be a "movie for little girls" might seem silly and short-sighted now, but at the time animated films and animated product in general (especially non-Disney) were seen as basically either for girls or for boys--y'know, My Little Pony, Transformers, Rainbow Brite, etc....the 80s toys and cartoons were very gender-specific, as those of you who grew up then no doubt remember.
Of course Disney should always try to transcend that limitation, but that's always been a rare and difficult thing, especially for that time. They really had no way of knowing whether this would be received as a "classic for all ages."
(Nowadays many cartoons, TV and theatrical, are aimed at both sexes--but for a long time that was not the case.)
It was....AMAZING!!!!!!
Just getting a whole look at Disney the way it used to be, how they started out in 1984 with the "new regime"....it puts you RIGHT THERE....unbelievable...very, VERY candid, not like ANYTHING we could have possibly seen in the Eisner era.....it sort of feels like post Cold-War Russia/Former Soviet Union, right after the Berlin wall fell down....they talk to everyone....ALL the animators...Jody Benson...Alan Menken...even Mark Dindal and Randy Fullmer....Ron and Jon of course....Roy Disney....
Truly historic. This DVD itself is as important as Iger's ascension, Pixar's marriage to Disney and Disney's decision to continue to do traditional animation in some form.
And yes....JK.
I wasn't sure how he would be in the interviews, I thought he might be serious or reflective, but he just seems quite happy, he laughs a lot and it's obvious he was pleased to be a part of the DVD...he gives A LOT of credit to others, especially Ron and Jon. He's very honest and upfront about he didn't know a whole lot about animation at first and had to learn, and that sometimes it was difficult along the way. (He also laughs at himself and how he wanted to cut "Part of Your World" at one point. So funny. ) SO amazing to see him connected with Disney again...it's like the sun coming out from behind a cloud... Anyway...a few other thoughts about this...I'm glad they mentioned Eisner positively and showed "young Eisner" circa 1985, you would never in a million years think he's the same person...he's a lot more laid back and just seems much more human somehow. They also showed Frank Wells briefly. And it's so weird, even though I've heard Frank Wells discussed and mentioned so many times over the years, this is the first time I've heard actually him speak (when addressing the Disney employees shortly after joining the company) Incredible.
The thing about "Making of" Disney docs I've watched in the last few years (only bits and pieces) is that they seem very clausterphobic somehow in that they only talk to a few people, certain people and it seems like the people are making a consious effort to seem positive. Here everyone seems much more relaxed and not afraid to say what they think. Truly evidence that Disney is a "friendlier" place now than it's been for years. Leonard Maltin also contributes, Pat Carroll who played Ursela, even John Waters!! (he knew Howard Ashman well.)
So, like i was saying, this documentary's importance is twofold: 1.) To remember how Disney rose from a troubled studio of talented people and once more begin to make quality animation. 2.) To watch it happening all over again, 17 years later.
******BTW, just thought people should know that when Katzenberg wanted to cut POYW, at least according to my understanding, THE ANIMATION ON THAT SCENE WAS NOT AT ALL DONE and it was harder to understand how the song fit into the film...when he saw the animation for it, with Ariel reaching out to the surface and the light, was when he agreed to keep it.
** Also the fact that he thought Little Mermaid would be a "movie for little girls" might seem silly and short-sighted now, but at the time animated films and animated product in general (especially non-Disney) were seen as basically either for girls or for boys--y'know, My Little Pony, Transformers, Rainbow Brite, etc....the 80s toys and cartoons were very gender-specific, as those of you who grew up then no doubt remember.
Of course Disney should always try to transcend that limitation, but that's always been a rare and difficult thing, especially for that time. They really had no way of knowing whether this would be received as a "classic for all ages." (Nowadays many cartoons, TV and theatrical, are aimed at both sexes--but for a long time that was not the case.)
Last edited by ShyViolet on October 9th, 2006, 7:06 pm, edited 12 times in total.
You can’t just have your characters announce how they feel! That makes me feel angry!
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Also, with the move to HD, I can't help wondering if Beauty/Aladdin/Lion King will eventually be re-released again anytime soon, hopefully this time including JK!!!!!!!!
Also, with an official Disney doc this candid, I really do still think it's possible for "The Sweatbox" to see the light of day.
Also, with an official Disney doc this candid, I really do still think it's possible for "The Sweatbox" to see the light of day.
You can’t just have your characters announce how they feel! That makes me feel angry!
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Beauty/Aladdin/Lion King won't be out on any hi-def format for at least four/five years Vi, but hopefully when they do they will include new retrospectives and reflect their productions more.
I think it's awesome that JK has been included, if for no other reason that it puts the personal malarky behind us and basically gets down to talking to who was actually involved in the film and the team there at the time.
The Sweatbox will be released if and when the time is right.
I think it's awesome that JK has been included, if for no other reason that it puts the personal malarky behind us and basically gets down to talking to who was actually involved in the film and the team there at the time.
The Sweatbox will be released if and when the time is right.
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