The Rescuers Down Under

The Rescuers Down Under

Director: Hendel Butoy, Mike Gabriel Cast: Bob Newhart, Eva Gabor, John Candy, Tristan Rogers, Adam Ryen. George C. Scott.

I am sure I must have seen this before but I could not remember a single frame, that’s usually a bad sign. So when Giovanni picked it up for his movie night choice (it was his turn tonight) my expectations were pretty low. I have to confess I was actually surprisingly pleased with it. It may not have the charm of the first “Rescuers”, the characters may not be as enduring (even the new Albatross voiced by John Candy is not even half as funny as he thinks it is), and yes the story is a bit generic too (and feels slightly abrupt at the end), but aside from all that the film moves along at a cracking pace and it’s an exciting edge-of-your seat adventure like I had not expected.

The Rescuers Down Under was made in 1990 and it actually sits at the cusp between old-style Disney and Computer animation. Coming up after the quite dreadful Oliver & Co, here you can really see the animators clearly enjoying the new innovating tools at their disposal. Some of the sequences push the boundaries of what animation could do, allowing for more a a sense of three-dimentionality not just to backgrounds and foregrounds but to the way the camera move within the space. The flying sequence with the boy and the eagle works beautifully both visually and thematically as it really helps to enhance the bond between the two. Nothing we haven’t seen before (E.T. anyone) and surely we’ll see later again (Harry Potter 3), but it’s still quite effective. As for the baddie of the piece, though not as memorable and terrifying as Medusa, he’s certainly one of the nastiest I’ve seen in a while.

It’s actually well above the 3 stars rating, but not quite 4.