The Walt Disney Company places value in some of the strangest things, or so it seems sometimes. For example, they lavish attention on anything princess-related, but have had a long and checkered history of not catering to the young male audience in the same way. If you travel to a Disney theme park, there’s princess-related …
Quack! Quack! Quack! Yes, friends, it’s time to show some team spirit and get into a Flying V, because this week’s new episode of Mousterpiece Cinema takes a look at where it all began for one of Walt Disney Pictures’ most popular modern franchises, The Mighty Ducks. Josh is joined by Sound on Sight contributor …
Treasure Island Directed by Byron Haskin Written by Lawrence Edward Watkin Walt Disney and the word “simple” don’t go together. Disney and the concept of simplicity don’t go together, either. This isn’t to say that some attractions at the various Disney theme parks aren’t simple in their design or their impact, or that some classic …
Let’s close out 2011 with a bang, mateys! We may be three months past National Talk Like A Pirate Day, but Josh is ready to walk the plank with that old scoundrel Long John Silver after watching the first full-length, live-action feature from Walt Disney Productions, 1950’s Treasure Island. You know he’s had some rough …
The Muppet Christmas Carol Directed by Brian Henson Written by Jerry Juhl Is it right for us to see the Muppets out of their natural habitat? That question was posed to audiences in the 1990s, as Walt Disney Pictures brought us The Muppet Christmas Carol in 1992 and Muppet Treasure Island in 1996, two adaptations …
The Santa Clause Directed by John Pasquin Written by Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick So many high-concept ideas for big-budget blockbusters come from the deep, dark recesses of screenwriters’ fevered psyches. One wrong twist, and a comedy for the whole family turns into a warped vision of a group of seriously screwed-up individuals wreaking havoc …
“It’s in the singing of a street-corner choir, it’s going home and getting warm by the fire. It’s true, wherever you find love, it feels like Christmas.” Who else knows those lyrics by heart? Admit it, you’re a closet fan of The Muppet Christmas Carol, aren’t you? With Christmas only 7 days away, Josh takes …
Across the world, he has many names: Kris Kringle, Pere Noel, and Topo Gigio. But we all know him as…Tim Allen? Yes, friends, with Christmas two weeks away, Josh takes a look at another Christmas movie from Walt Disney Pictures on the new Mousterpiece Cinema: 1994’s The Santa Clause. He may have liked it as …
The Muppets Directed by James Bobin Written by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller What is so special about Kermit the Frog? What is about Kermit, Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, the Great Gonzo, and others that make us treasure them so dearly, so closely? I don’t ask because I don’t get it–just a couple of days …
It’s time to play the music, it’s time to light the lights. It’s time to meet The Muppets on Mousterpiece Cinema tonight! Yes, friends, after a 12-year hiatus, the furry felt creatures that sprung from the imaginations of such visionaries as Jim Henson are back on the big screen. Is the new movie a return …
Pete’s Dragon Directed by Don Chaffey Written by Malcolm Marmorstein Being original is hard. I don’t think we appreciate that as much as we should in modern popular entertainment. Being original is hard mainly because everything has been done. With very few exceptions, every type of story has been told countless times. Unless you’re Charlie …
What is the old saying? “The night is darkest before the dawn, but the dawn is coming?” That has never seemed as true as it does this week, when Josh sees what an ambitious failure looks like: why, it’s 1977’s Pete’s Dragon, of course! Yep, friends, if you want another patented Mousterpiece Cinema rant, this …
So Dear to My Heart Directed by Harold D. Schuster and Hamilton Luske Written by John Tucker Battle Nostalgia fuels the Walt Disney brand. No one can deny this, and when the various movies, TV shows, CDs, toys, and attractions under the Disney umbrella work, it’s not a bad thing. Nostalgia is why I go …
Hold your breath, everybody: this week on Mousterpiece Cinema, we’re submerging ourselves deep in nostalgia with 1949’s So Dear to My Heart, one of the first hybrid live-action/animated movies from Walt Disney and Buena Vista Distribution. This movie is meant to be a heartwarming story about family, friendship, and hard work, but was Josh’s heart …
The Black Hole Directed by Gary Nelson Written by Gerry Day and Jeb Rosebrook Something that has become a subtle poison over the years among the Disney fan community is the idea that we know what Walt Disney would have wanted. Most of the truly dedicated fans are predominantly obsessed with the Disney theme parks; …
Every once in a while, Josh takes one for the team on Mousterpiece Cinema. This is one of those times, as Josh descends into the madness of the 1979 sci-fi adventure The Black Hole, which didn’t exactly blow his mind. If you want to know what really gets Josh mad, what frustrates him about some …
Greetings, programs! It’s time to get sucked into the world of computers and video games as, for this week’s episode of Mousterpiece Cinema, Josh looks back at the 1982 action-adventure Tron. This was Josh’s first time seeing the movie, so you may be surprised at what he thinks. Those 80s-era special effects may not be …
It’s been just over 20 years since Walt Disney Pictures released The Rocketeer (“The Rocke-Who?”), and Josh rediscovers it on this week’s Mousterpiece Cinema! You’ll have to listen to the show to find out his full opinion, of course, but it’s a lovefest all around! Watching Cliff Secord don a rocket suit in the Los …
Josh begins a three-week sojourn into the world of Disney live-action films with 1954’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea! He’s never read the book, and this is the first time he’s seen the movie. Did he marvel at the Nautilus and the mysterious Captain Nemo? Is he more like the brash Ned Land or the …