One of the more whimsical Disney outings the Little Mermaid is now, after 26 years, firmly concreted as a classic. With signature tunes, such as Under the Sea and Kiss the Girl it still gets my foot tapping.
What is interesting about this particular Disney cartoon, for me at least, is that it is the first Disney animation that I watched as an adult when it first came out. Up to this point, every other outing could be considered a childs movie for a child.
The story itself is harmless enough. Spoiled teenage girl, growing up in a single parent household, with an overbearing protective father who doesn’t want her to grow up. She gains the attention of a man, an much older man incidentally, who seduces her into a whole new world. With the help of a scheming enemy of her fathers, she manipulates her way to get what she wants and is thrown into this new foreign world.
Father not too happy and goes off on one.
Throw in some musical numbers and you have yourself a great family movie about a very dysfunctional family.
Ach … Disney movies shouldn’t be looked beyond the surface. Just let yourself go and be seduced with a fairy tale.
#102 in the series
Viewing Date Saturday, 28th November 2015 (Orlando)
The date is 21st October 2015 and of course it is Back to the Future day. The day Doc and Marty travel forward to fix his children who have managed to screw things up that a little help from our time traveling duo. So it is very fitting that we watch this movie on this very iconic day, following on from my earlier Back to the Future outing.
So this is what we thought the future was going to be 30 years ago. Flying cars, hover boards, power laces and rapid justice. We can lament on how off the film makers got it in some respects, but they got it spot on in many other respects. What is such a joy with these movies is the attention to the detail in all respects. Keep an eye on the background and the small things the writers have put in.
While not as iconic as the first, there are so many quotable lines and beautiful scenes. Doc and Marty travel to the future, but of course they have to go back to 1955 as they have screwed up the time line and need to recorrect. This gives us a peek back into the first movie but seen from a completely different perspective. It plays in the background while Marty of the second movie, interacts and ensures the Marty of the first movie completes his mission without deviation.
Crispin Glover was a difficult chap to deal with both on and off set. He demanded equal salary as Michael J Fox for example to sign on for this movie. The movie producers naturally didn’t agree, and instead, cast a different much cheaper actor, but took the unusual step, or having Jeffery put on a Crispin face mask to make him look like the original George McFly. Crispin wasn’t too pleased and took the studio to court.
Doc can only be played by Christopher Lloyd and is such a joy to watch on screen. The man has captured the mad scientist just perfectly. I love the scene near the end, when the Doc of the first movie rejoices after sending Marty from the first, back to the future after sliding down from the clock tower. He dances in the street and when Marty from the second movie comes running in and asks him for help to do it again, the way Lloyd plays that surprise/shock/horror and wrap it up in humor is genius.
This movie was made along side the third one and to that end, they have this wonderful opportunity to give you more than just say “To be concluded” but a full trailer to the last installment. How torturous is that? Takes you on edge of your seat ride and then asks you to wait a year to conclude! Rotters. But at the time it was a revolutionary film production technique.
Think on this. We live in a world where our time line has caught up with the Back to the Future universe and we are now further ahead in the future than we have seen Doc and Marty travel. I don’t know about you, but that makes me a little sad, and a little excited all at the same time.
Great movie, not the best of the trilogy, that honor will always be the first one but a wonderful setup and stands on it own very well. Hands off beautifully to the last one, which I will watch later on in this marathon series.
Viewing Date Wednesday, 21st October 2015 (Back To The Future Day)
alan williamson 