atari2600land's Blog

I remember hiding behind the couch whenever the HBO logo flying through space thing came on. My sister gets HBO and i asked whether they still do that. They DON'T! Dumb bastards!

this? - it's not widescreen and looks really crappy on an HD set. I suspect that's why they don't use it anymore.

I always preferred Warner Bros. to Disney too, but Warner Bros. cartoons never would have existed without Disney. WB got their start by copying Disney. If you look at WB's early stuff (Bosko, Buddy, etc.) they easily rate as some of the worst cartoons ever made. As Disney improved, other studios improved with them. Disney had the resources to basically invent animation as we know it today. They gave their artists everything they needed to figure it out from scratch. There was no place to go and learn it. Other studios didn't have those resources, so they based their work off what Disney was doing, until they got good enough to cut loose and do their own thing.

 

Disney established the art form and broke new ground for animation. The first sync sound cartoon. The first color cartoon. Personality-based characters. Character-driven stories. Virtually all established animation principles came out of what the Disney studio was doing. And this is all in the 30's and 40's - it doesn't cover all of the countless advances in the decades since. Plus, they gave Warner Bros., something to make fun of, and to be different from. Warner Bros., needed Disney. (Plus, artists moved back and forth between the studios anyway.)

 

I never really got into Disney's classic films, but I recognize the artistry in them and their historical significance. Fantasia, for example, is a stunning work of art, but I find it agonizing to sit through the whole thing. Yet I acknowledge it as a masterpiece of animation. To just dismiss their entire history as "stupid" is extremely short-sighted. Disney was the core of the animation industry for decades, and was the meter by which the health of the rest of the industry was judged. As Disney went, so did everyone else. When Disney started churning out box-office bombs in the mid-90's, the entire industry took a hit right along with them, until Pixar became the dominant studio. But Pixar itself never would have existed without Disney, and now the two studios are both owned by Disney.

 

The other thing to keep in mind, is that at least Disney never stopped trying. They're creating new films, new characters. Whether always successful or not, they're still at it. Warner Bros., on the other hand, hasn't cranked out a decent animated short since the late 1950's. All of their attempts since then have been, at best, mediocre.

OK, I realize I may have been a little hard on the Disney company, what I was simply trying to say was I do not like anything Disney has ever done. Maybe I should have added an "IMO" with "Disney is stupid." I don't know, I know all those classic Disney films are supposed masterpieces, but if I were to watch, say, Pinocchio, I would get bored after 5 minutes and wonder where Mike, Tom Servo and Crow were I tried to watch Dumbo once but I couldn't really get "into" the movie. Same thing with the Wizard of Oz. (I know, the Wizard of Oz is not Disney.) I guess what I'm trying to say is that all the kids' movies should stop and think whether an adult would like it, because most of the time, an adult is forced to watch it, too, especially stuff like what is on the Disney Channel nowadays, with all those tween sitcoms. And also, adult shows do NOT have to include sexual humor or violence, contrary to what the media thinks nowadays. I just wish there were more movies and shows that cater to adults and kids alike.

I don't know, I know all those classic Disney films are supposed masterpieces, but if I were to watch, say, Pinocchio, I would get bored after 5 minutes ... I tried to watch Dumbo once but I couldn't really get "into" the movie.

I agree. From an animator's standpoint, I can watch them analytically and admire them, but I can't say I really enjoy watching them (although Lady and the Tramp is excellent). More recently though, some films like Aladdin, Mulan and Emperor's New Groove worked for me. But I hated Lion King (their biggest grossing movie to date), Pocahontas, Hunchback, etc.

 

should stop and think whether an adult would like it, because most of the time, an adult is forced to watch it, too, especially stuff like what is on the Disney Channel nowadays, with all those tween sitcoms. I just wish there were more movies and shows that cater to adults and kids alike.

It would be nice, but it won't happen on The Disney Channel. It is a 'tween' channel. It's geared specifically for that market, not for the long-suffering parents who have to sit through it as well. My nieces love Disney stuff, and my poor sister has to be bombarded by it continually. I did my part by buying them some Warner Bros. cartoon DVDs for Christmas.

 

Disney made a really good short once... (jump ahead 42 seconds to skip Leonard Maltin's intro):

 

Sadly, they didn't follow it up with any more of that caliber. The closest they've come recently is the rather anemic (but still well-made) "Goofy: How to hook up your home theater":

 

They also made some Roger Rabbit shorts that were very good, although these aren't really "Disney" shorts as much as they are homages to Tex Avery:

 

Tummy Trouble:

 

Trail Mix-up:

 

Roller Coaster Rabbit: