After the abysmal failures of the late 90s, Disney’s hand drawn animation efforts had taken a turn for the worst and no one expected much from them. But from 2000 to 2002, they came out with a trifecta of movies that defied expectations and, to my mind, resurrected their hand-drawn talents for a while longer.
All three movies that came out in that period were re-released on Blu-ray recently (along with their cheapquels of less quality.)
Each of them are worth owning and re-watching. All of them look stunning on Blu-ray. All of them are a delight.
We’ll take them chronologically.
The Emperor’s New Groove (2000)
Off the heels of the well received but fairly standard retelling of Tarzan from the year before, The Emperor’s New Groove was something different altogether. Settling in with a highly stylized indigenous South American vibe, the film took all of the things I hated about Hercules and seemed to make them good, somehow. Like Hercules, it has too much anachronistic pop culture and self-awareness to it, but instead of being annoying, this film makes it charming and timeless.
David Spade, John Goodman, Eartha Kitt, and Patrick Warburton assembled to create a memorable voice cast that still gets quoted around my house to this day because the film is just so fun and funny. On rewatching, it still has a very breathless pacing to it that helps. And, like I said, it takes the weaknesses of Hercules, does them right, and turns them into strengths.
Perhaps they’d been paying attention to the Pixar model and fashioned a story that works on a variety of levels, with jokes that still go over the heads of my children and land squarely on my funny bone.
This film belongs in your collection, for sure.
Moving on to my favorite of the three films released:
Atlantis was as much a departure from The Emperor’s New Groove as The Emperor’s New Groove was from Tarzan. The directors took the bold adventure storytelling of Disney’s early live-action films and married it with the visual style of Mike Mignola and created a pulpy steampunk-like adventure, years before it had hit the mainstream.
Rewatching this film, I truly believe it was ahead of its time. The storytelling is fantastic, it’s equally funny and dramatic, it feels like the period it’s set in, and, above all, the visuals are gorgeous.
The story revolves around Milo Thatch, voiced by the always great Michael J. Fox, and his quest to find the lost city of Atlantis with the help of mercenary adventurers. The voice cast is filled out with the likes of Don Novello, James Garner, Leonard Nimoy, and Corey Burton, making it truly pop. It took risks most Disney films don’t, as well, making it all the more daring and alluring to an audience member like me. There’s a femme fatale character, strong and sultry. There’s a good guy turned villain in a twist with a voice perfect for the part. There’s just the right mix of comedy and adventure and excitement and it culminates into a battle the likes of which was clearly inspired by Star Wars.
It’s a breathtaking film and truly the first time I saw Mignola-like images moving in a way that seemed organic.
This is an underrated masterpiece of Disney animation and I hope it stops being overlooked.
This is definitely worth picking up for your collection. Immediately. Watch it and I dare you to tell me otherwise.
Last on the list of this renaissance is:
This film is a fun sci-fi adventure with a heart, set in a very stylized, water-color backgrounded Hawaii. The main protagonists are a bratty little girl and a bratty little alien who learn lessons about loyalty and who they are and what the meaning of family is.
This film works for me to a degree. It’s not one I rewatch with any regularity, the story after a few viewings seems bland, but that’s not really what you’re watching it for. For my money, this film shines the most in the animation and vibe. Who would ever think to match beautiful water-color backgrounds of Hawaii and the tone set by Elvis music to a science fiction fish out of water story? The vibe is the thing I love the most about this movie and it’s the thing I’m saddened to see go the most with this push for all 3D animated filmmaking.
There’s a charming warmth to the look and feel that you simply can’t replicate with 3D animation.
I do like this movie, but it’s the least of these three. It’s one my kids like much more than I do, and will probably watch it much more often than I do.
If you want this movie, don’t hesitate to add it to your collection as well.