Oliver & Company
Some of the greatest modern fantasy films have been of the animated talking animal variety, and before it became more focused on telling "princess" stories, the Walt Disney company was the largest purveyor of this brand of entertainment.
With Disney releasing one or more animated movies a year these days, it's easy to forget that once upon a time there used to be three or four years between releases, and the premiere of a new Disney animated film was a noteworthy event.
But there's also a reason why the animated Disney films of the 1970s and 1980s are some of the least fondly remembered. With the opening of a number of rival studios much of the top talent was lured away. This resulted in films that often lacked that indefinable creative spark that had been their hallmark all the way back to the Great Depression.
Still these films are worth searching out if for no other reason than to see just how much more they were able to get away with in a less politically correct era. Oliver & Company is an example. The film is basically Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, adapted to the screen. It centers mostly on the London part of the novel substituting in New York City instead. Oliver's a precocious stray kitten who joins Fagin's pack of pickpocket dogs until he's adopted by a young rich girl, inevitably bringing a conflict between the denizens of Lower and Upper Manhattan.
While the film is mostly filled with mediocrity, including a middle of the road Billy Joel soundtrack, it does feature some good action toward the film's climax, including a number of bits of plot and dialogue that are a bit shocking to see in a Disney film.
The Good:
*** out of *****
 |
| Oliver & Company marked the end of an era for Disney |
With Disney releasing one or more animated movies a year these days, it's easy to forget that once upon a time there used to be three or four years between releases, and the premiere of a new Disney animated film was a noteworthy event.
But there's also a reason why the animated Disney films of the 1970s and 1980s are some of the least fondly remembered. With the opening of a number of rival studios much of the top talent was lured away. This resulted in films that often lacked that indefinable creative spark that had been their hallmark all the way back to the Great Depression.
Still these films are worth searching out if for no other reason than to see just how much more they were able to get away with in a less politically correct era. Oliver & Company is an example. The film is basically Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, adapted to the screen. It centers mostly on the London part of the novel substituting in New York City instead. Oliver's a precocious stray kitten who joins Fagin's pack of pickpocket dogs until he's adopted by a young rich girl, inevitably bringing a conflict between the denizens of Lower and Upper Manhattan.
While the film is mostly filled with mediocrity, including a middle of the road Billy Joel soundtrack, it does feature some good action toward the film's climax, including a number of bits of plot and dialogue that are a bit shocking to see in a Disney film.
The Good:
- Cheech Marin steals the show as, what else, a Chihuahua
- Part of Disney's "dark" period (alongside The Fox and the Hound, The Black Cauldron, and The Great Mouse Detective)
- Everything from the animation to the musical numbers seems to fall a little flat
- Other Disney characters from 101 Dalmatians and The Lady and the Tramp, as well as Mickey Mouse (on a watch) make brief appearances
*** out of *****
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