|
The Many Adventures of Winnie
the Pooh was a Disney classic! Children of all ages have grown up on the wonders of Winnie the Pooh and
his Hundred Acre Wood friends – and now it’s time to introduce an all new generation to this cute and cuddly bear
named Pooh!
On a journey to find a pot of honey, Pooh and the rest of the
Hundred Acre Wood crew embark on a journey full of mystery, suspense and adventure! It would have been
easy for the creators of this movie to write their own material, but instead the movie is actually inspired by three stories
that were featured in A.A. Milne’s books.
I have been anticipating
this movie ever since I saw the theatrical trailer featuring a song by Keane, the trailer was beautifully put together and
thought out. I was finally able to catch the movie when the Blu-ray combo pack hit the shelves, and I’m
glad I did! I don’t use the word “cute” much in my reviews, but that’s exactly
what this movie is. It gives us a nostalgic look into the world of Winnie the Pooh – something that
Disney has never been able to accomplish in any other movie sequel they have ever done.
The animation is perfect. In fact, some of my favorite animators worked
on this title: Andreas Deja (known for giving life to Jafar and Scar) worked on Tigger, Mark Henn (Jasmine from
Aladdin) gave life to Pooh and Christopher Robin, and Eric Goldberg (Genie from Aladdin) put a hop in Rabbit’s
step. This is a perfect example of an all-star team giving everything they have to make perfect animation.
Unfortunately the voice acting wasn’t as beautiful as the animation. I love the fact that
some Winnie the Pooh veterans are still involved, but for the most part – it seemed liked a fresh new cast.
They did remarkably well, but it’s odd to hear the voice change from the previous releases. Jim
Cummings once again gives voice to Pooh and Tigger, and he sounds great, but other characters such as Owl, Eeyore and Kanga
just didn’t sound right voiced by other voice actors. And it wouldn’t be a Winnie the Pooh
movie without the narrator – John Cleese lends his talent to be the narrating voice behind the movie… and it’s
another stellar performance by Cleese.
The special features are a little lacking.
There are two worth watching: An animated short called “The Ballad of Nessie” and the documentary talking
about the history behind the book series and movies. The documentary is a classy tribute to a Disney classic
– you will learn how the characters were created and hear the story behind the original classic movie.
My main concern was the length of the movie, the entire movie is just shy of one hour. When was
the last time you went to a theater and paid your hard earned money on a movie that only lasted one hour? I
can’t think of any other movie (in theaters) that was that short. I wish they would have
included more stories like the original did. But I guess it’s better to leave you wanting more than
overstaying their welcome.
The Bottom Line:
This is a great movie! And over time it will definitely be remembered as another classic Winnie the Pooh
movie.
|
