How's It Hold Up?

It's finally here - the latest, at least at the time of this writing, Disney (live-action) remake! It would be a stretch to say most people were looking forward to it, and in fact some people are actively boycotting it, but still it has arrived. Is it any good? And how does it compare to the original, or heck, even the sequel? We've got lots of opinions - some good, some bad, some in-betwe...

It's Disney direct-to-video sequel time again! These are renowned for being universally terrible, but we've found them to be a bit more of a mixed bag so far. Is this one of the better ones, or one of the worse ones? Or perhaps middling? There are easily-accessible scenes that were cut from the movie, too - did those hint at a better movie that could have been, or were they best left on th...

If you're looking for a trailer to show your friends what this podcast is all about, or you stumbled across us yourself and are wondering what our deal is, then this should clue you in! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Kool Kats Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under...

The time has come! The Mulan remake has an official release date, so it's time for us to cover all three films! Let's go back now to 1998, when 98°  was more than just a temperature (actually, they're apparently still around but I'm keeping that joke). One of the last movies in the Disney Renaissance, Mulan came after relative disappointments Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame...

The very first Disney sequel, as well as the first Disney sequel to be released theatrically! For a long time after this Disney sequels would only be direct-to-video, until that whole enterprise was stopped in the late 2000s. This is also one of the early Disney Renaissance films, as well as the one most often forgotten when discussing that period. Should it be? Is this one worth revisiting, and h...

( Warning : The audio for Danika and Valerie in this episode isn't at the usual quality level. Fortunately we fixed the issue before recording the next episode, but in this one we definitely sound a bit off. To the best of my ability, I have made it listenable, but still, I apologize for it not being at our usual quality level. ) The Rescuers is one of Disney's later features in their &quo...

An 80s cult classic by a new (at the time) studio called Nelvana, Rock & Rule is a film filled with music, rat people, and that 80s aesthetic. But why is it considered a cult classic, and does that reason help it hold up after all these years? Listen to find out! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons...

One of Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli's best known works, Spirited Away is a movie most people know about even if they haven't seen it. But it came out close to 20 years ago now... Does it still hold up? Is this a shining example of traditional animation that helps prove superiority over 3D animation? Are Chihiro's parents bad at parenting? And how much time passed by the end of the movie?...

Though Prince of Egypt is not as well known as most Disney films or Dreamworks' later works, its prequel, Joseph: King of Dreams is even less well known. It is, perhaps, the least well known of any of Dreamworks' films. Is it a lost gem, or does this one deserve to be lost to the sands of time? Listen to find out! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Co...

Dreamworks' first animated movie that they produced, even if it ended up releasing second, is not the sort of movie that the name 'Dreamworks' brings to most people's mind nowadays. But before the company shifted direction following Shrek's success, they made several traditionally animated movies - and this was the first. Following the story of Moses, this particular version ta...

Known to some as "that live-action Disney musical with an animated part that ISN'T Mary Poppins" and to others as "better than Mary Poppins", Bedknobs and Broomsticks is a film that has a complicated legacy. And that legacy is only further complicated by the fact that there are multiple versions of the film, and that Disney Plus chose the less good version to host on their...

After 2011's Winnie the Pooh, traditionally animated films in the United States virtually stopped being made, at least on a theatrical level. But just because the US gave up on them, doesn't mean the rest of the world did. And I don't just mean Japan! A French, Belgian, Canadian co-production, April and the Extraordinary World is a fascinating film - but is it a good one? And more than...

The first of the movies based on the anime/manga series Ranma 1/2, and also the first movie based on an anime/manga series that we're watching! I have a lot of love for this series, Valerie has a little nostalgia, and my Mom knows nothing about it. Will we all enjoy it? With characters like Happosai at the fore of the movie, will it hold up? Listen to find out! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod...

The only sequel to his movies that Don Bluth has ever worked on, Bartok the Magnificent is also, perhaps, the least well known. Also, it's technically a prequel, rather than a sequel, though good luck figuring out how the two movies connect. All that said... how's this Anastasia follow-up that has none of that movie's characters besides Bartok hold up? Listen to find out! The Curtain R...

Generally hailed as a return to form for Don Bluth after a string of less-than-well-received movies in the 90s, Anastasia is that one movie that everyone keeps thinking is a Disney Princess movie, even though it's not. Or wasn't? Who knows now with Disney owning so much of Fox's stuff. But though it was loved in its time, it's been over twenty years since it came out - how's th...

We're on to the second of the four live-action Disney remakes that were released in 2019. Was this one better than Aladdin? Worse? And how does it compare to the original? Is it a good movie in its own right? And how does this remake manage to essentially double the screentime of the original when that movie had such a simple plot? All those answers await in this week's episode, so give it...

Dumbo came at an important time for Disney, when the really needed a financial win and this movie was able to provide it. It's no wonder its been celebrated ever since, despite also being infamous for racism. It's been around 80 years, but people still show this movie to their kids - should they? Listen to find out! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative...

Our second Soyuzmultfilm movie! This one's a straight-up morality play, told for a communist audience rather than a capitalist one, which isn't something we've seen before. But how does the movie actually hold up? Listen to find out! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/...

The first non-Miyazaki Studio Ghibli movie that any of the three of us have seen, we were excited but nervous about what this film would have in store. Pretty much all I knew about it was that it involved tanuki - but also, I didn't know a lot about tanuki. You might not either, in which case I recommend this informative video! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icyOAc_pAvY But what is Pom Poko a...

Due to the whole Coronovirus thing as well as personal issues, no new episode this week. But please enjoy this bonus episode we recorded back in October for Coco! WARNING: This episode is barely edited, and has cursing and no spoiler jump. Might not be appropriate for children. We should be back next week with a new episode! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative...

Hey everyone, no regular episode this week, unfortunately. But we didn't want to leave y'all empty-handed! The links mentioned in the episode: http://bit.ly/animatedpopballadsspotify and http://bit.ly/animatedpopballads The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Kool Kats Kevin Ma...

In the 90s, many studios attempted to copy the success that Disney was having with their films, including Warner Bros, whose efforts were a little all over the place. After Space Jam and Cat's Don't Dance, but before The Iron Giant, there was this film, based on a novel and Arthurian legend, and stuffed to the brim with singing talent, including Eric Idle, Bryan White, The Coors, and Celin...

Considered a classic of Chinese animation, Nezha's Triumph Against the Dragon King is a 1979 movie filled with dragons, fighting, and fabulousness. Did we enjoy it? And how does it hold up so many years later? Listen to find out! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Kool Kats Ke...

Let's jump back to 1979 with a Toei Animation movie based on an old Japanese folk tale! This is an interesting one, because of how heavily it's based in Japanese mythology and story structure. This movie's got a message to send, but is it good? The answer is complicated. Listen to find out! The Curtain Rises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attributio...

Starting from Zombie Island, this is the third Scooby-Doo movie in what would become a long line of them, and also the final one to be animated with traditional cells. It played on Cartoon Network often, maybe even more often than Zombie Island, so for a certain age demographic, it's considered a classic on principal. But how does it actually hold up, in the year 2020? Listen to find out! The...