28th Apr 202328th Jun 2024 by The Disney Purist

#52 Wreck-It Ralph (2012)

BACKGROUND

After the smashing success of Tangled in 2010, the Walt Disney Animation Studios needed to prove that they wouldn’t be going back to their mediocre film releases of the 2000s.

With the 2006 purchase of Pixar Animation, the Disney Studios now had more resources at their disposal, not to mention John Lasseter being named the Chief Creative Officer of both animation studios. Disney didn’t have to follow their tried-and-tested method of basing features on fairy-tales or novels; they could do something different, and this time, make it work. That’s exactly what they did with their 2012 release: Wreck-It Ralph.

When I first saw the trailer for Wreck-It Ralph and saw it was about video games, I was sceptical. I’m not much of a gamer so I thought the whole story would be completely lost on me and there was no way it would be able to keep me interested. But we watched it at the cinema during its release and I actually really liked it. It had emotional moments and important messages that struck a chord with me, and I thought the whole video game premise was incredibly clever.

Wreck-It Ralph is very different to the majority of Disney animated features that came before it, but it started a precedent for Disney not to just do the same type of movie; that they could come up with unique concepts and those movies could still be hits with audiences. Apart from Frozen (2013), which is a phenomenon all of its own but still based on a fairy-tale, although twisted, Disney have continued to push the boundaries of story-telling and have moved away from their popular Broadway-style princess film territory to make memorable, popular films around independent characters going on hero’s journeys, discovering things about themselves and exploring the world around them. Disney had tried this in the 2000s, during their “Post-Renaissance Era” but had been unsuccessful for whatever reason. In the 2010s, they found it was finally working.

PLOT

Wreck-It Ralph begins by showing us the character of Wreck-It Ralph (or just Ralph), who is the villain in the 80s arcade game, Fix-It Felix Jr. He is struggling to accept his lot in life, and wants to be the good guy for once, because he doesn’t feel inherently bad. After finishing “work” for the day, i.e., when Litwak’s Arcade has closed, Ralph attends a “Bad-Anon” meeting with various other video game villains, but doesn’t get anywhere. After seeing the other characters in his game, the Nicelanders and Fix-It Felix Jr. (or just Felix), having a party to celebrate their game’s 30^th anniversary, Ralph invites himself over there, not wanting to be left out. He isn’t treated well by the Nicelanders and snaps, smashing cake all over the apartment. He makes a deal that if he can prove that a bad guy can get a hero’s medal, then he can live in the Penthouse apartment, and not the dump.

Ralph sees a soldier from the new game Hero’s Duty having a breakdown, telling him that it’s bad in there, even if you do get a medal. Ralph just wants a medal, so steals the soldier’s costume and heads in to the game via Game Central Station, the hub where the video game characters can go in to other games, though, as Sonic the Hedgehog warns, if you die outside your game, you won’t regenerate. Ralph heads in to Hero’s Duty, a first-person shooter game, a bit like Halo, in a dystopian world where you have to shoot “cy-bugs” and their eggs to prevent an invasion. Ralph immediately finds himself overwhelmed. After he disrupts the first-person shooter, a robot with a screen to them, a little girl playing the game in Litwak’s Arcade to us, the game is reset and Ralph takes the opportunity to climb the game’s tower. He receives his hero’s medal, even though he didn’t really earn it, but wakes the cy-bug eggs. He stumbles into an escape shuttle, with a cy-bug, and ricochets around Game Central Station before entering the über-sweet land of Sugar Rush, a kart racing game. At the same time, Sergeant Calhoun, the leader of the Hero’s Duty crew, and Fix-It Felix have seen Ralph in the shuttle, and figure out he’s gone into Sugar Rush. Calhoun and Felix follow; Felix to get Ralph back to their game so they can continue their lives as normal, as currently, their game is “out of order” and will be unplugged if it can’t be fixed, and Calhoun going to check the cy-bugs don’t start invading Sugar Rush.

Ralph crash-lands in a lake of taffy, and loses his medal up a candy-cane tree. He climbs up but before he can reach it, it is snatched away by Vanellope von Schweetz, a Sugar Rush character with a “glitch”. She races away, using the medal in lieu of a gold coin so she can enter the random roster race, to find out who will be able to race for the arcade-goers the next day. King Candy does not want Vanellope to race, and is annoyed to find she has managed to enter it. Ralph barrels in, demanding his medal back. Eventually, he is detained within a cupcake and taken to King Candy’s castle, where he orders Ralph to leave the game, as he doesn’t want anyone “going turbo” and taking over his game. Ralph runs away to confront Vanellope. Except, as he’s about to, he sees that Vanellope’s kart is being destroyed by the other racers. He scares them off to help her. They make a deal that if Ralph helps her build a new kart, then she will win the race and return his medal. They go to the mini-game kart builder where Ralph helps build the kart, until he breaks the containers, spilling candy all over her kart. Luckily, Vanellope loves it! As King Candy and his guards are chasing them out of the area, Vanellope and Ralph head into Diet Cola Mountain, her secret home. Ralph builds her a track, so Vanellope can practise racing.

King Candy has not managed to scare off Ralph, so goes into the game’s programming and adds the medal into his character’s code so he can return it to Ralph. When he does this, he implores Ralph to tell Vanellope not to race, as he believes that if she becomes part of the race roster, then the players will see her “glitching” and will think the game’s broken. When it gets unplugged, the other characters will be able to take refuge in Game Central Station but Vanellope, being a “glitch”, will not be able to leave and will die with the game. Ralph, having just received a homemade hero’s medal from Vanellope, is torn over what to do, but tries to explain to her that she can’t race or she’ll die. When this doesn’t work, Ralph destroys her kart. Vanellope is devasted, simply telling him “You really are a bad guy” before running off in tears.

At the same time, Felix is falling in love with Calhoun. Felix tells her about Turbo, and the phrase “going turbo”. Turbo was the main racer in a popular game, until a new racing game got plugged into the arcade. Jealous, he entered the new game in his 8-bit form, disrupting the new game’s more modern format. Both games were considered broken and were both unplugged. He is presumed to have gone down with the games, and has not been seen since. Calhoun soon leaves Felix, after he calls her “a dynamite gal”, something her husband-to-be called her before he was eaten by cy-bugs on their wedding day. Yes, Calhoun is programmed with the world’s saddest backstory! Felix walks to King Candy’s castle to find Ralph, but is thrown into the “fungeon” (fun dungeon).

Sour Bill, King Candy’s sidekick, tells Ralph that King Candy messed with Vanellope’s code, trying to delete her from the game, but failed, causing her “glitch”, and locked up the other characters’ memories so he could take over the game. Ralph realises everything Candy said to him earlier was a lie, so Ralph crashes in to the “fungeon” to save both Felix, and Vanellope who has been chained up too. He encourages Vanellope to race, and get over the finish line to reset the game. She starts the race late, but manages to get to second place without too many issues. Calhoun then arrives to say that the cy-bugs are everywhere, and they start to consume Sugar Rush. Calhoun tells everyone not racing to evacuate, and tries to shoot as many as she can until Vanellope gets over the finish line.

But King Candy is horrified to find Vanellope close to taking the lead, and tries to push her off the track. When Vanellope “glitches”, it is revealed that King Candy is in fact Turbo! GASP! He took over Sugar Rush after he put the other two racing games out of order. Vanellope manages to tactically “glitch” and moves into first place, away from him, and King Candy gets eaten by a cy-bug. As Vanellope nears the end, the cy-bugs start to take over the finish line and she crashes, out of surprise. Ralph realises they can’t get the game to reset and tries to take her out of the game, but King Candy was right – she cannot leave. Calhoun says the game is doomed without a beacon, a beam of light that is in Hero’s Duty, to attract and kill all cy-bugs between resets of the game. Ralph has an idea and rushes over to Diet Cola Mountain. There are Mentos at the top of it, so Ralph punches the top of the mountain to try and get the Mentos to fall into the boiling Diet Cola below.

When he is one punch away, King Candy, now a cy-bug, because cy-bugs become what they eat, attacks Ralph trying to stop him from saving the game and Vanellope. King Candy flies him up high and says they should watch Vanellope die together, but Ralph breaks free, not caring what happens to him, and falls to the top of the mountain, delivering one last punch, which sets off the Mento-Cola reaction, creating the beacon. The cy-bugs fly towards it and are destroyed, including King Candy. Vanellope has raced over to catch Ralph in her kart. Thanks to her “glitching” she makes good time and he is saved. Felix fixes the finish line, and they push her kart over it, where it is revealed that Vanellope is actually Princess Vanellope, ruler of Sugar Rush. She jokes that she will execute anyone who was ever mean to her, before deciding that she’d rather just be herself, “glitch” and all, making Sugar Rush a democracy instead.

In the epilogue, we find that Ralph has returned to his game. The Fix-It Felix Jr. characters have become nicer to Ralph, and they build him a house within the dump so he no longer has to sleep in a pile of bricks. They have also taken in the “game less” characters, like Q*bert, and given them homes and a “job” within the bonus round of the game. Vanellope is a popular choice of racer within Sugar Rush, and the gamers love her “glitch” as it helps them win! Felix and Calhoun get married, with Ralph as best man, and Vanellope as bridesmaid. Finally, and most importantly, Ralph has realised that he’s happy being himself. The best part of Ralph’s day is when he gets thrown off the roof in his game, because he can see Sugar Rush clearly, and sees Vanellope happy with her racing career. He knows that he can’t be such a bad guy because he has a friend like her.

CHARACTERS & CAST

Wreck-It Ralph spends the whole movie on a journey of self-discovery. He doesn’t like being thought of, and treated, as an everyday arcade game villain, where he’s either ignored or dismissed. This is what leads him to attend his first “Bad-Anon” meeting at the start of the film, because he doesn’t want to be the bad guy anymore. The other villains just tell him that they’ve all felt that way before, but have now come to terms with it and he needs to as well. When he returns to his game and finds they are throwing a 30^th anniversary party without him, he feels upset and angry, deciding to prove he can be a hero and get a medal as evidence. Though Ralph does successfully get a medal, he doesn’t really get it for being brave or completing Hero’s Duty; he’s actually terrified of it and cheats to get his medal. Once he meets Vanellope in Sugar Rush, soon he realises that this little girl needs his help to be accepted in her game, and they bond over the fact that they’re both treated as outcasts. Ralph gets taken in by King Candy, and ends up destroying Vanellope’s kart, with Vanellope saying that he really is a bad guy, and that hurts him. By the end of the movie, he mends his relationships with Vanellope and Felix, and proves himself a hero when he stops the cy-bug destruction, even though he almost pays the ultimate price for it. Ralph has quite the journey, and eventually realises that all he can be is himself, and that he has to accept that. Though he may be a game villain, it doesn’t mean he’s not worthy of friendship or happiness, and that he isn’t inherently bad; he has many sides to him, like everyone.

The design for Ralph was changed many times during production. Originally, the animators wanted to make Ralph in 8-bit for the entire movie, but they decided that he wouldn’t be lovable enough in that form. Ralph then became an animal dressed a bit like a hobo, and then a big white gorilla. It took around five or six re-designs before Ralph finally became human, as he needed to resonate with the audience to get the viewers rooting for his end-goal[1]. John C. Reilly, known for his varied film roles such as Scorsese’s Gangs of New York (2002) and Step Brothers (2008) with Will Ferrell, is the voice actor for Wreck-It Ralph, as the team at Disney felt that Reilly could be both comedic and dramatic, and would make Ralph likeable. I think Reilly did a great job with the character.

Vanellope von Schweetz is kind of bratty, but very funny, with most of her opening scene featuring her making jokes about “hero’s doody”, which I think were added to the script purely to make kids laugh, though I know plenty of adults who laugh out loud at those too! Vanellope is a “glitch” within the Sugar Rush game, so she is isolated from most of the other game characters, being seen as either a threat or a nuisance, depending on who you ask. When her go-kart is destroyed by the other racers, you instantly feel sorry for Vanellope, as she is essentially being bullied just because she’s a bit different. It’s very heart-warming to see Ralph swoop in and scare the others off, as we know that the two have a similar problem in their respective games. Vanellope also learns to accept herself as she is by the end of the movie like Ralph does; she spends most of her time trying to control her “glitch” but then finds she can use it to her advantage and that instead of suppressing it, she should be learning how to use it more consistently. I like how after the game has reset at the end, she becomes a princess and learns she was the original ruler of Sugar Rush, but decides she just wants to be herself exactly as she is. Ralph and Vanellope have a great friendship, both helping each other out in times of need and learning from their mistakes. Vanellope is voiced by stand-up-comedian-turned-actress Sarah Silverman. Her iconic voice is perfect for Vanellope, as well as her comedic timing, making Vanellope lovable and easy to relate to.

Then, there’s Fix-It Felix Jr., the hero to Ralph’s villain. Though the other game characters seem to deliberately exclude Ralph, Felix isn’t like that. He doesn’t know how to act around Ralph, it seems, because Felix looks awkward about the party, like he wants to be kind to Ralph and invite him, but he knows the Nicelanders won’t like it. Felix isn’t mean to Ralph at all; he’s very positive, and upbeat, wanting to be friends with everyone, but it’s not that easy when everyone around him doesn’t want anything to do with Ralph. Felix is a bit irritating at the start of the movie because he believes his own publicity, accepting all the attention, praise and credit from his other game characters, but he does go to find Ralph. Felix wants Ralph back to get the game back to working order, but I believe Felix also wants to understand why Ralph left and try to amend his own behaviour. Felix then goes on his own journey, where he realises that not everyone’s life is perfect, not everyone is put up on a pedestal to be admired. He also does not become the hero at the end of the movie; Ralph is the one to save Sugar Rush, so I think Felix is humbled by that. Most importantly, Felix finds love with Sergeant Calhoun, something he was not expecting when he set off to find Ralph that day. Felix is voiced by Jack McBrayer, another very recognisable voice! McBrayer is potentially best known for portraying the roles of Kenneth Parcell in 30 Rock (2006-13) and Dr. Goodwin in The Middle (2013-18).

As I mentioned, Felix and Calhoun are married by the end of Wreck-It Ralph, but their relationship isn’t smooth-sailing. Sergeant Calhoun is the lead character of Hero’s Duty. She’s a strong, brave, independent woman, and does not tolerate fools, like Ralph, going in and destroying her game! She only follows Ralph into Sugar Rush to monitor the cy-bug invasion that could occur as one escaped from Hero’s Duty with him. Calhoun then finds herself liking Felix whilst stuck in the “Nesquik-Sand” in Sugar Rush; it’s a funny scene, especially as when the “laughy taffy” vines start to get lovey-dovey, she fires shots from her gun and they soon shrink away! When Felix calls her a “dynamite gal”, something her deceased fiancé said to her before his untimely death, she is horrified and throws Felix out of the space cruiser, leaving him on his own. The two are reunited at the time of the cy-bug invasion. Once Ralph sets off the beacon, destroying the cy-bugs, Felix kisses Calhoun on the cheek. She pulls him up to her face level, and we all expect him to get a sharp slap round the face – but he doesn’t get one; instead, she kisses him back. Aww, cute. They’re a strange couple, but they make it work, somehow! Jane Lynch, off the back of four seasons of Glee (2009-15), playing cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester, voices Sergeant Calhoun.

Then, there is the actual villain of Wreck-It Ralph: the surprise villain of King Candy. At first, King Candy seems overly enthusiastic and overly protective of his kingdom. He doesn’t want Vanellope to race, because he claims that her “glitching” will put the game out of order and just wants Sugar Rush to go back to how it was, before these other game characters came in and ruined it! Little did I know that a big twist was to come. We learn that King Candy messed with Vanellope’s code in the game programming to try and delete her but it ended up just making her “glitch”, and that the only reason he doesn’t want her to race is because she’ll reset the game and he’ll no longer be King. I thought that was it, but it got worse! We then discover that he’s Turbo, the jealous racer from long ago. That was a brilliant plot twist from Disney. I’m very in-the-moment when I watch movies, not wanting to try and work things out before they’ve happened, so I didn’t see it coming, but maybe some people did. I just thought it was clever! Actor Alan Tudyk voices the character of King Candy. He was inspired by comedian Ed Wynn, who had voiced the Mad Hatter in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland (1951). The character of the Mad Hatter was also a reference point for the design of King Candy, and it’s very plain to see[2]! Alan Tudyk won an Annie Award for his voice work on this movie. He has had voice roles in many more Disney animated movies since, basically becoming Disney’s “good-luck charm”, like John Ratzenberger is to Pixar, by getting a role in every new release!

That’s it for the main characters in Wreck-It Ralph, but there are many others. Some other voice artists worth mentioning are Modern Family (2009-20) actor Ed O’Neill as Mr. Litwak, the arcade owner, and The Office (2005-13) actor and writer Mindy Kaling as Taffyta Muttonfudge, one of the Sugar Rush racers. Both would go on to voice roles in Pixar films: O’Neill as Hank in Finding Dory (2016) and Kaling as Disgust in Inside Out (2015). Fun fact: the two doughnut-shaped policemen in Sugar Rush are named Wynnchel and Duncan, referencing two American donut chains – Dunkin’ Donuts and Winchell’s Donut House. There are almost 200 characters in the movie, including some from “real” video games, such as Bowser, Sonic the Hedgehog, Pac-Man, and my personal favourite, Q*bert[3]. I don’t know much about video games – though I was disappointed to find Crash Bandicoot didn’t get a cameo – so I’m sure a gaming fan can spot many more than me! One that many people commented was missing, though, was Mario. This was due to the fact that Disney couldn’t find a good enough reason to include him in the story, and wanted to do the character justice. It’s also possible Mario would’ve pulled focus away from the main characters.

PRODUCTION

Disney had to create five different “worlds” for Wreck-It Ralph: the retro arcade game of Fix-It Felix Jr., the sugar-filled racing game of Sugar Rush, the more modern shooter game of Hero’s Duty, and then Game Central Station, the characters’ portal to other games, and Litwak’s Arcade, where these are all based. Game Central Station, the portal for all the arcade games, but really a power strip or extension lead in real-life, was inspired by New York City’s Grand Central Station, unsurprisingly. It’s a large space, and feels like a train station, with it also having grubby-looking subway-style areas, with graffiti sprayed on the walls. Litwak’s Arcade is obviously the most real of the worlds, based on arcades from the past and present. It’s a dark area, with just light coming from the door, but with flashing lights coming from every game station. It’s fascinating to see how the video game characters perceive these real gamers, and to see how their actions affects the real-life players[4]!

The world of Fix-It Felix Jr. was based on a sketch by director Rich Moore. It resembles a small, quaint town, with a little train and lights in the trees like Central Park. It is an 8-bit game, so it consists of simple repeating patterns, square shapes, and simple, clean landscapes. No complex animation was required here, but I like how authentically the characters move, by bopping, making staccato movements, and never moving diagonally, always on a grid. The high score for Fix-It Felix Jr. is displayed as 120501, a nod to Walt Disney’s birthday: 5^th December 1901. Hero’s Duty was made to look aggressive, with sharp lines and triangular shapes, to really a place so different to Ralph’s game. He had to be seen to be completely out of his depth. Hero’s Duty is hyper-realistic and is the most high-definition of all the games. There are strobe lights, mist shoots, ash falling from the sky, with something happening in every shot. It’s very busy and action-packed. They also made simple colour choices, by making the area dark, with orange to show the good guys, and acid green for the bad cy-bugs. For Sugar Rush, initially the team struggled to get away from the overused tropes of sugary lands like Candyland and the gingerbread house in Hansel and Gretel, so they went in a different direction; they looked at Gaudi’s architecture. His designs almost looked like cracked candy to them. Art Director Mike Gabriel asked for a candy model of Sugar Rush to be made, which was then used as a reference point for months. The land had to look appealing to everyone, so it’s very colourful, with soft shapes, and fantasy elements.

Wreck-It Ralph is an original story idea, however, in the 1990s, there was an early version of a film based around video games being developed, called High Score. For whatever reason, this did not go forward. In 2006, a movie called Joe Jump also themed around video games was being worked on at Disney, but again, this did not go ahead[5].

In 2008, Rich Moore joined the Walt Disney Animation Studios after working for animation studio Rough Draft Studios for a number of years. Soon after his arrival, John Lasseter approached him about directing a new movie for Disney. Lasseter suggested basing the movie around video games, with Moore agreeing as he liked gaming. Neither of the concepts from the older story ideas were considered; it was a brand-new idea. Producer Clark Spencer said he loved the concept as he grew up being a big gamer, and he liked that the initial idea about going behind-the-scenes of video game characters, in a similar way to Toy Story (1995), by seeing what toys get up to when their owners aren’t around.

It was decided early on that they wanted a Donkey Kong dynamic for their two main characters of Ralph and Felix, with Ralph being the villain, like Donkey Kong, and Felix, like the hero of Mario. It’s clear that the design of Ralph was partly inspired by the gorilla character of Donkey Kong, and Felix is kind of similar to Mario, in that he’s small, but upbeat and positive, working hard to defeat the villain’s destructive ways. Originally, Felix was going to be the protagonist of the whole movie, with the plot structure already being decided just a month or so into development. But then, it was decided that the plot might be stronger if they had the 8-bit villain of Wreck-It Ralph having an existential crisis, so the film was re-structured around this new idea[6].

Obviously, there were some other changes between the movie we know today and how it was doing production. Firstly, there were deleted scenes detailing Ralph being thrown into the prison of the then-military-style Hero’s Duty. Ralph would be persuaded by a new prisoner, a lazy, surfer-dude kind of person, to break them out and go to a relaxed new online game called X-Treme EZ Livin’ 2. Ralph would be left alone and end up in Sugar Rush. After things went wrong there, Ralph then did travel to X-Treme EZ Livin’ 2. The game was meant to be a mixture of The Sims and Grand Theft Auto. These scenes were dropped as there is no game like this, and it would’ve been on Mr. Litwak’s laptop in the arcade, so they felt it would’ve been too complicated to have a different way for arcade characters to get in there, with cheat codes and things like that.

Another unused concept was that Vanellope’s home was actually in the abandoned nugget mines of “Mount Fudgsuvius”. There wasn’t any Diet Cola or Mentos, but it would’ve still erupted at the end of the movie. In this deleted scene, Felix is already with the duo, and Ralph and Vanellope would have been trying to explain to Felix what it was like to be an outcast and not have everyone love you. Also, there were going to be individual mini games to get different parts to rebuild Vanellope’s kart, and King Candy would show up at the start of each one to make them harder, but Ralph’s “wrecking” would help Vanellope win[7].

MUSIC

The score for Wreck-It Ralph was composed by English composer Henry Jackman, who had written the score for Disney Animation’s previous release, Winnie the Pooh (2011) and would go on to do the score for Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018) and Strange World (2022), also for Disney. He has won and been nominated for other awards too, for example, a nomination at the BAFTA Awards in 2014 for Best Film Music for Captain Phillips (2013). Jackman researched for the Wreck-It Ralph score by revisiting video games from his youth, as he had to be in touch with the vast world of video game music, which varies from many different genres, such as pop, rock, heavy metal and electronic music[8]. I like the music in Wreck-It Ralph but only one piece really stands out to me and that is the instrumental piece titled “Wreck-It Ralph”. It plays during the scene where Ralph is leaving the game Pac-Man after his “Bad-Anon” meeting. It’s electronic and bouncy, and sounds very video-game-like.

There are also a few songs in the movie, though none are sung by any of the characters. Apparently, a song was written by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez but it was cut. The Lopez duo would go on to write the songs for Frozen (2013), the Disney animated release to follow Wreck-It Ralph, so I doubt they were too disappointed[9]! Wreck-It Ralph features three original songs, as well as incorporating three tracks from other artists. The song “Celebration” by Kool & the Gang is played at the party at the start of the movie, in the Nicelanders’ penthouse suite. It’s a classic song, perfect for a party, so not much to say on that one really. Another one is “Bug Hunt (Noisia Remix) by Skrillex. This was an original song by Skrillex which was remixed specifically for the opening of the Hero’s Duty game. It is perfect for that game. Plus, Skrillex even has a cameo in the movie – as the DJ at the anniversary party. The biggest surprise addition to the Wreck-It Ralph soundtrack to me is the use of Rihanna’s “Shut Up and Drive”. It’s a great song, and works really well in the scene of Vanellope learning how to race on her Ralph-built Diet Cola Mountain track.

For original songs, the best one is “When Can I See You Again?”, written by Adam Young, Matt Thiessen and Brian Lee, and performed by Owl City – the American band that had that big hit “Fireflies” back in 2009; I heard that song so much around then! “When Can I See You Again?” fits in with Owl City’s electronica style of music, as well as the video game brief. It does only play as the first song of the End Credits, but I watch the credits until the song is finished without fail, because it’s so good. Then, there is the song “Sugar Rush”, which is played intermittently in the scenes within Sugar Rush. It was written by Jamie Houston and Yasushi Akimoto and performed Japanese girl group AKB48. It’s very much “bubble gum pop”, which fits the tone of the game very well. I like the parts of it you hear in the movie, mostly just the chorus part, but I don’t particularly like the full song! The full song is the second song to play during the End Credits. Finally, there is the song, “Wreck-It, Wreck-It Ralph”, written by Jamie Houston, and performed by Buckner & Garcia. It’s the third song in the End Credits, so I hadn’t heard it before! It’s a bit weird, kind of electronic, to match the 80s vibe of the game Fix-It Felix Jr., as it tells the storyline of the game itself, but it also almost sounds a bit country. I’m not a fan of it, personally. Buckner & Garcia released an album in 1982 called Pac-Man Fever, with each song in the album being themed to a classic arcade game so it makes sense for them to feature in Wreck-It Ralph’s soundtrack.

RECEPTION

A first look at the first five minutes of Wreck-It Ralph was revealed at the D23 convention in the summer of 2011, where it was confirmed to be released in November 2012. Wreck-It Ralph was released in November 2012, along with the short Paperman. The movie was received well by many critics, who praised the artistic styling and cleverness of the whole theme of the movie, along with the entertaining plot and nostalgia factor, thanks to the retro video game references. Though some critiques were more negative, with them claiming that this was Disney trying to pull off a Pixar concept and failing in comparison[10]. A “mockumentary” titled Garlan Hulse: Where Potential Lives was made to promote the home media release in 2013. It follows the fictional journey of child gaming prodigy, Garlan Hulse, trying to reclaim his title as the high-score holder on Fix It Felix Jr. as a down-on-his-luck adult.

Regardless of the critics’ opinions, Wreck-It Ralph was a hit at the box office, making $471.2 million worldwide against a budget of $165 million. It had a brilliant opening weekend, staying at Number 1 for one week, until the James Bond movie Skyfall (2012) was released. But that didn’t matter, because Wreck-It Ralph was still nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 85^th Academy Awards in 2013. Though it lost out to Pixar’s own release of the year, Brave (2012), Wreck-It Ralph did win the Annie Award for Best Animated Feature, along with music and directing, as well as winning the Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Award for Favorite Animated Movie of the Year.

LEGACY

Wreck-It Ralph was such a success for Disney Animation that they decided to make a sequel: Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018). The sequel would prove to be even more popular than the original with many viewers, though I personally prefer the first one. Apart from that, the Wreck-It Ralph franchise isn’t all that big, at least not compared to other Disney animated hits. Both movies had their own video game releases, and the characters feature in other Disney-aligned video games, such as Disney Infinity and the Kingdom Hearts series. Ralph and Vanellope have made cameo appearances in episodes of television series, such as Futurama (1999-present), and The Simpsons (1989-present). Rich Moore worked on both series before joining the Walt Disney Animation Studios in 2008.

At the Disney Parks, both Vanellope and Ralph used to feature in the annual Once Upon a Christmastime Parade at Walt Disney World during the festive season for many years. Until 2023, when, although Vanellope still appears in her sugar-covered kart, Ralph is no longer on the gingerbread house float; Clarice the Chipmunk has taken his place. They also used to both feature in the annual Mickey’s Boo To You Halloween Parade, with Ralph riding in a truck carrying a load of candy corn and Vanellope pedalling a float of a candy train with a huge container of gumballs on the top, however, Ralph was removed from this parade in 2023. Wow, what did Ralph do to deserve that? They both used to meet and greet guests in the now-closed Magic of Disney Animation building at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World Resort soon after the film was released, before moving to a different location, this time at Epcot. Ralph and Vanellope did also meet guests at the other Disney Parks soon after their movie’s release, such as at Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland, however, they are now much rarer to encounter. The Wreck-It Ralph characters are appearing in the Harmony in Color Parade at Tokyo Disneyland to celebrate the park’s 40^th anniversary.

There have been rumours, circulating for years, of a Wreck-It Ralph-themed attraction coming to the US Disney Parks, with some even expecting one to be announced at the D23 Expo in 2022; it never was. Permits were apparently filed in 2020 for a Wreck-It Ralph attraction to replace Stitch’s Great Escape at Tomorrowland at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, but there has been no further news on this. Many people also wish for Walt Disney World’s Tomorrowland Speedway to be rethemed to Sugar Rush, but this is also not confirmed. A real Fix-It Felix Jr. arcade game was built, though, for guests to play within Disneyland’s Tomorrowland[11]. These machines have since been removed.

Recently, it was announced that Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters at Tokyo Disneyland will be closing at the end of 2024. The area will house an attraction themed to Wreck-It Ralph instead, with an apparent storyline around defeating sugary bugs that have taken over the Sugar Rush game, courtesy of the evil King Candy. This indoor interactive attraction is due to open in 2026.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Wreck-It Ralph turned out to be a hugely successful film, becoming the 14^th largest film of 2012 at the worldwide box office, which is good going, seeing as releases from Pixar had been dwarfing those from Disney Animation for years. It’s even more impressive when you consider that audiences loved it despite it not being a traditional Disney movie with the usual format and structure, like the popular movies of Disney’s “Renaissance Era”. It cemented the future of Disney Animation, which, more or less, is still continuing today[12].

Though Wreck-It Ralph is an entertaining film, with a clever concept, memorable characters, and amusing jokes, it is also a journey of self-discovery. It reminds us that we shouldn’t let labels define us; we are all different and we aren’t just one thing, or one emotion, all the time. As the “Bad-Anon” meeting motto goes: “I’m bad and that’s good. I will never be good, and that’s not bad. There’s no-one I’d rather be than me.”

Wreck-It Ralph teaches its viewers to accept themselves as they are, just as Ralph and Vanellope learn to do, and if the gaming theme doesn’t already pull you in, then Disney hoped that message would do it instead. It certainly worked with me!

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘Wreck-It Ralph’, pp. 154-156.

[2] Credit: Chris Morgan, ’20 facts you might not know about ‘Wreck-It Ralph’, YardBarker.com, 11^th November 2022.

[3] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘Wreck-It Ralph’, pp. 154-156.

[4] Credit: Disney, “Bit by Bit: Creating the Worlds of Wreck-It Ralph”, from Wreck-It Ralph (2012), Blu-Ray 2-Movie Collection (2018).

[5] Credit: Douglas Laman, ‘These Wreck-It Ralph Details Are Boss Level’, Looper, 7^th November 2022.

[6] Credit: Disney, “Bit by Bit: Creating the Worlds of Wreck-It Ralph”, from Wreck-It Ralph (2012), Blu-Ray 2-Movie Collection (2018).

[7] Credit: Disney, “Deleted Scenes”, from Wreck-It Ralph (2012), Blu-Ray 2-Movie Collection (2018).

[8] Credit: Douglas Laman, ‘These Wreck-It Ralph Details Are Boss Level’, Looper, 7^th November 2022.

[9] Credit: Chris Morgan, ’20 facts you might not know about ‘Wreck-It Ralph’, YardBarker.com, 11^th November 2022.

[10] Credit: Christopher Orr, ‘‘Wreck-It Ralph’ Aims for Pixar…and Misses’, The Atlantic (online), 2^nd November 2012.

[11] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘Wreck-It Ralph’, pp. 154-156.

[12] Credit: Douglas Laman, ‘These Wreck-It Ralph Details Are Boss Level’, Looper, 7^th November 2022.

21st Apr 202327th Jun 2024 by The Disney Purist

#12 Cinderella (1950)

BACKGROUND

Just think: without Cinderella, there may not have been a Disneyland.

After the success of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), the following full-length feature animated releases from the Walt Disney Studios were a mixed bag, with only Dumbo (1941) making a profit. When World War II began, the Disney Studios were contracted by the government to create training videos and, alongside that, they released their “package films”, multiple short films that had been pieced together. These sustained the company, but just barely, and were nothing to be excited about.

After the war, the Disney Studios were in $4 million worth of debt and needed a hit animated film release to not only recoup the costs of producing it, but also to wipe away that debt, otherwise the Studios may have been forced to closed. Luckily, Cinderella was a huge success, financially and critically, and the movie cleared all the debts, and allowed Walt Disney to fund other projects, such as movies, television shows and, of course, Disneyland.

The story of Cinderella has been adapted many times in just about every possible medium: television, films, theatre productions, books, and even ballet. Yet it is Disney’s 1950 version of Cinderella that has become the most recognised and the most iconic. Disney’s original Cinderella is likely the first introduction to the story that most children will have. It was for me, and I have always liked Disney’s version of the film, though I do prefer the “princess” films that came after it, especially Sleeping Beauty (1959), and Beauty and the Beast (1991). I also like other retellings of the story, whether that is Hilary Duff in Warner Bros. A Cinderella Story (2004), or Anna Kendrick in Disney’s Into the Woods (2014).

PLOT

The Disney movie begins with the standard opening of the storybook, with a narrator reading out the first few pages to us: a motherless girl lives with her father in a majestic chateau in a “peaceful, prosperous land”, full of “romance and tradition”. One day, he decides the girl needs a mother and marries another woman, who has two daughters. The father unexpectedly dies, leaving the girl to be “cared for” by her stepmother, but instead is used as a servant, as the chateau falls into disrepair and the fortune is squandered.

We then find Cinderella waking up in the attic, after being woken from her lovely dream, by her bird and mice “friends”. She is told by one of the mice, Jaq, that another is stuck in a trap; she goes to save him, bringing him clothes and naming him “Octavius”, shortened to “Gus”. Cinderella then gets on with her daily chores, feeding her stepmother’s cat, Lucifer, the dog and the chickens, sorting out the breakfast trays, and starting on laundry. Lucifer is chasing Gus, who hides underneath one of the teacups on the trays. One of Cinderella’s stepsisters, Anastasia, is the unlucky one to find Gus, shrieks and runs to tell her mother. Cinderella is soon punished for the “prank”, by being given extra chores.

At the palace, the King is discussing his annoyance at his son, the Prince, for not being inclined to marry and give the King some grandchildren. He plots to put on a grand ball that night, and invite every unmarried woman in the kingdom to attend. The overworked Grand Duke is put in charge, much to his chagrin as he doesn’t believe this plan will work.

Then, we see Anastasia and Drizella having a music lesson: Anastasia on the flute, Drizella singing “Sing, Sweet Nightingale” – badly, I should add – with their mother, Lady Tremaine on the piano. Cinderella is busy cleaning the floors, but distractedly sings along to the tune, doing a much better job of it! The doorbell rings, and Cinderella is passed an invitation to the ball. She disturbs the music lesson to give it to Lady Tremaine, who reads it out loud. The girls are naturally excited and start discussing what they’ll wear. Cinderella mentions that as every eligible woman has been asked to attend, that she should go too. Lady Tremaine reluctantly agrees, only if she can finish all her chores and find something suitable to wear. Cinderella is then given more chores, so thinks she will not have time to alter her mother’s old dress. Her mice friends overhear and decide to make the alterations.

At the end of the day, Cinderella is upset that she has not been able to sort her outfit for the ball and sadly says she will not be attending. As she goes into her room, she finds the dress exactly as she wanted it, quickly gets dressed, and rushes downstairs to meet the carriage with the others. Anastasia and Drizella are furious, but Lady Tremaine seems at peace with this. She compliments Cinderella on her dress, particularly her necklace and sash, which are actually Anastasia and Drizella’s. The girls had said they didn’t even want them, so the mice picked up their “cast-offs” and used them. The two sisters rip apart Cinderella’s dress until it is shredded and tattered. The others leave, but Cinderella is distraught and runs into the garden to cry. There, her Fairy Godmother appears. The Fairy Godmother magics a pumpkin into a carriage; her dog, Bruno, into a footman; her horse into the coachman; and four mice into the horses. She almost sends Cinderella on her way with her tattered dress, before transforming it into a beautiful blue-white ballgown, complete with choker, headband, and, of course, glass slippers. Cinderella is warned that the magic will run out at the stroke of midnight, and she heads off to the ball.

At the ball, the Prince is bored of meeting all these women, much to the dismay of the King who can’t believe how uncooperative he’s being! Then, Cinderella arrives. The King sees her first and knows she’ll be the one to turn the Prince’s head. Sure enough, she does. The two dance together, first in the ballroom before heading out into the garden. Just as they are about to kiss, the clock strikes midnight and Cinderella rushes off. Despite the Prince and the Duke’s attempts to stop her, Cinderella gets away, leaving only a glass slipper on the stairs. The magic wears off in the middle of the forest. Cinderella is left with the other glass slipper as a memory of her night, which she is thankful for. The Duke tells the King of the events of the evening, and is ordered to try the slipper on every woman in the kingdom, and whoever it does fit, the Prince will have to marry her.

When Lady Tremaine is informed of this, she tells Cinderella to bring up the girls’ breakfasts. Cinderella overhears what has happened, and is surprised to find it was in fact the Prince she’d danced with all evening and that he is determined to find her. Cinderella is overjoyed, and dizzy with daydreams, leading Lady Tremaine to believe she was the girl at the ball. To stop her interfering with Lady Tremaine’s plans for one of her daughters to marry the Prince, she locks Cinderella in her room. Soon, the Duke arrives with the slipper, but no matter how hard Anastasia and Drizella try and dupe him, the slipper is much too small for their feet. At the same time, Jaq and Gus have taken the key to Cinderella’s room from Lady Tremaine’s pocket and walked it up hundreds of stairs to try and free her. Just as they arrive at the door, Lucifer pounces on Gus and the key, not letting go. Cinderella tells the mice to get her dog, Bruno. Bruno scares Lucifer off successfully, and Cinderella is freed.

As the Duke is about to leave, Cinderella rushes down the stairs and asks if she may try on the slipper. Despite Lady Tremaine’s protests, Cinderella is allowed; she takes a seat. One of the palace servants brings over the slipper, but Lady Tremaine trips him and the slipper smashes on the floor. The Duke is distressed over this and Cinderella offers to help; the Duke bats away her suggestion, saying there is nothing she can do. Except there is – because she has the other slipper! The Duke is delighted, and tries the slipper on Cinderella. It fits, and she is whisked away to meet the Prince. The two are married shortly after in a big royal wedding, with her mice friends watching over her, pleased she finally got her wish and that she is now far away from her stepfamily. The storybook tells us that the Prince and Cinderella live happily ever after, before it closes.

The story for Disney’s Cinderella was based on the fairy-tale written by Charles Perrault, not the Brothers Grimm. Perrault wrote the story in 1697, adding into his story the Fairy Godmother; the pumpkin carriage and mice transformations; and the glass slippers. At the time that Perrault wrote his version of Cinderella, glass was more expensive than gold by weight, so it was the costliest accessory that someone could have at the time, though nowadays we see glass as cheap, commonplace and breakable, therefore making it potentially hazardous footwear! But it was meant to be a symbol of wealth. In later versions of Cinderella, such as that by the Brothers Grimm, the slippers were no longer glass, but made of silver and gold, which we see now as much more luxurious than glass[1]!

Yet Perrault’s version of Cinderella was not the original story. Cinderella-like figures have appeared in stories for centuries. The first recorded story of this type of character comes from Greece in 6^th Century BC, with the story of Greek courtesan, Rhodopis, whose shoe is stolen by an eagle and flown to Egypt, where it falls into the lap of the king. The King goes on a quest to find the owner of the shoe, eventually finding Rhodopis, and marries her. One European version from the 17^th Century has the most similar plotline to what we know today: Italian writer Basile’s Zezolla, the Cat Cinderella. Zezolla is a woman forced to be a servant to her stepmother, her former governess, and six stepsisters. The King of a nearby kingdom holds a ball, which Zezolla attends. The King falls in love with her, but Zezolla runs away before he can find out who she is. On two occasions, she manages to escape him, but on the third, one of her slippers is seized. The King gets all the maidens in the kingdom to try it on, with Zezolla being the one it fits, and she marries the King. Charles Perrault’s version appeared in the late 17^th Century, and became the basis for most other versions[2].

CHARACTERS & CAST

In Disney’s version, Cinderella is kind, and respectful of others. She rescues mice from traps, is loved by all animals, and, despite her life as a servant in her father’s home, she tries to be positive and keeps hoping that something will change. Eric Larson and Marc Davis were the animators for Cinderella. They couldn’t agree on what direction to go with the character, as Larson wanted her to be a simple rural girl, whereas Davis wanted her to be elegant, graceful and with some intelligence to her. In the end, Cinderella became a mixture of the two! I like Cinderella as a character. There are better “feminist role models” for children now, even in the Disney Princess group, but I don’t think there is anything wrong with Cinderella being kind, respectful, and dreaming of love. People today probably think Cinderella is a pushover for doing what’s she’s told by her stepmother, but really, she didn’t have much choice. This isn’t set in modern day – it’s 1800s France – so there weren’t many options for her. The Prince is her way out of this life in the movie, yes, but the point still stands that if you want to change your circumstances, then you should do something about it. Cinderella is forceful in her choice to go to the ball; she didn’t have to ask her stepmother to go, but she chose to. Ilene Woods voices Cinderella. She knew the songwriters on the movie from her career in radio, and was asked to sing their songs for the “demo”. Over 300 girls had auditioned for the role, but no-one suitable had been found. When Walt Disney heard Woods’ voice on the “demo”, he offered her the role, as he loved her “fairy-tale voice”.

Lady Tremaine is the villain of the movie, with her evil stepmother character being similar, but obviously more real as she is human, to the Evil Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). She is a scary character, with her sharp tongue, and piercing eyes. Frank Thomas was the animator for Lady Tremaine and was surprised to be tasked with the villain, as he had animated Snow White and Pinocchio previously. Lady Tremaine is a menacing villain, and not difficult to dislike – even me, who generally loves the villain! Her locking Cinderella in the attic is pure evil, wanting her to stay as her servant and never move forward in her life. She is voiced by Eleanor Audley, who would later voice “the mistress of all evil”, Maleficent, in Sleeping Beauty (1959), as well as Madame Leota in The Haunted Mansion attraction. Her voice has such authority and command, delivering the lines sharply with sarcasm and menace. She’s perfect. One other thing to mention is that Betty Lou Gerson narrates the opening of Cinderella. She has such a kind, gentle voice, so I was very surprised to find that she is also the voice of another iconic Disney villain: Cruella de Vil in One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)!.

The two “ugly” stepsisters, Anastasia and Drizella, are mean, by giving Cinderella lots of work to do, and of course tearing her dress to shreds in that awful scene, but they are also kind of funny – I like them both! Ollie Johnston animated the two, and gave them quite strange ugly facial expressions, so Cinderella would always look good in comparison! Their music lesson of Drizella singing “Sing, Sweet Nightingale”, with Anastasia on the flute is so terrible that it makes me smile every time. And them trying to ram that tiny shoe onto their feet does the same thing, and they’re so obvious in front of the Prince at the ball. The girls are just funny, even though they’re bratty and their voices are kind of grating and screechy! Drizella is voiced by Rhoda Williams. She had roles in radio, TV and film but was also active in work relating to film industry unions in her later life. Lucille Bliss voices Anastasia, in her first movie role. She was known for her voice-over work, voicing Smurfette in The Smurfs (1981-1989), as well as uncredited parts in the Disney animations that followed Cinderella.

Milt Kahl did work on numerous characters, including the Fairy Godmother. The Fairy Godmother is a kind, motherly figure, very compassionate, though she is also a bit absent-minded, losing her wand and not realising that Cinderella needs a new dress for the ball until she’s about to send her on her way. Unfortunately, she only features in that one scene but she makes an impact on the audience, making a lot of us wish we had a Fairy Godmother just like her! Verna Felton voices the Fairy Godmother. She voiced many other Disney characters during her career, including one of the elephants in Dumbo (1941) and Flora in Sleeping Beauty (1959), however, everyone at Disney felt she was being the truest to herself as a person when she voiced Fairy Godmother. She died on 14^th December 1966, just one day before Walt Disney. Walt’s favourite piece of animation was the Fairy Godmother’s scene, particularly the transformation of Cinderella’s tattered dress to her blue-white princess ball gown[3]. Her ballgown was inspired by a similar gown by Christian Dior for his Zemire piece. Cinderella also sports a choker and headband, which were popular accessories in the USA after World War II[4].

For the Grand Duke and the King, they have a fun dynamic together. The Grand Duke is clearly overworked by the King, and unable to state his opinion without being either ignored or dismissed completely! He looks so tired by the end of the movie, and every time something goes wrong and he has to tell the King, he seems so scared by the reaction he’ll get. The King is furious when he finds that Cinderella has disappeared after the ball, even attacking him with a sword. If it weren’t for that huge, crazily bouncy bed helping the Grand Duke avoid the swings, who knows what he would’ve done? The King is very set on his son marrying and giving him some grandchildren – that’s seemingly all his bothered by for most of the movie, but he is very happy for the couple at their wedding, and seems quite pleased to have Cinderella as his new daughter-in-law, as we see when the King picks up her shoe and she kisses him on the head; he blushes and waves them off – it’s very sweet. Milt Kahl and Norman Ferguson worked on these characters. Both are voiced by Luis Van Rooten, an actor known mostly for his villainous roles.

Milt Kahl also worked on the Prince; he apparently always got stuck with the princes who didn’t used to do much, say much, or have much personality – and that’s the case here as well! The Prince doesn’t have many lines in the movie, and we only see him look bored at the ball, having to meet all these women he isn’t interested in, and then goes and dances with Cinderella. Then he appears at the wedding, obviously, but that’s about it! He doesn’t even have a name! Contrary to belief, he is never referred to as Prince Charming in the movie. His character name is used in merchandising and at the Disney Parks though, such as Prince Charming’s Regal Carrousel. Apparently, his real name may be Prince Henry (Henri), as revealed by Disney France. Mike Douglas provides the singing voice of Prince Charming, as he does mostly sing, but due to his strong accent was not allowed the voice part too, so his few lines are voiced by actor William Edward Phipps instead[5]! The Prince was going to have more of a role in the movie, with an opening sequence set to be him hunting a deer, only to find that he’d be friends with the deer; he was given more personality, but then it was shrunk to not very much at all!

Cinderella was also going to have a pet turtle called Clarissa originally, who would become her lady-in-waiting during the Fairy Godmother scene. Clarissa would then have fallen in love with the Prince’s valet. There were also plans for a crow called Jabber to be included, along with the clothes-wearing mice, who would all talk when Cinderella wasn’t around, except the birds – they would only be allowed to chirp. This was simplified so there would still be chirping birds, but then there would just be the mice, with the parallel relationship between them and Lucifer the cat going on at the same time as the rest of the story. Ward Kimball animated Lucifer, and had a lot of fun with the pure comedy of the cat-and-mouse games. I like Lucifer; he’s a typical over-indulged cat, who thinks the world revolves around him – as cats do! He’s a bit of a menace to the mice, though again, that’s his job as a cat, to get rid of mice – how is he supposed to know that Cinderella is friends with them? The mice are very kind to Cinderella, as she is to them, and Jaq and Gus are the most prominent ones. They have the most dealings with Lucifer too, with the scene of them trying to get the attic key to Cinderella being a very suspense-filled, tense one. Just as they’ve struggled up all those stairs, Lucifer comes in and traps Gus and the key under a teacup. That scene came from Wolfgang Reitherman, who was good at coming up with ideas to build tension and suspense.

PRODUCTION

The first time the Disney Studios told the story of Cinderella was in a Laugh-O-Gram cartoon in 1922, from Walt Disney’s original studio, Laugh-O-Gram Studios in Kansas City, Missouri. In 1933, over ten years later, Walt expressed interest in developing the story again, this time into one of Disney’s Silly Symphony shorts. However, soon they realised that the story was too long to fit into the short film format, and it was decided to make it into a full animated feature film instead. This feature film was considered further, but was still not working and was set aside. The studio returned to the idea in 1938 with a draft by writer Al Perkins, followed by more drafts and storyboards being made and then discarded[6].

In 1947, the Walt Disney Studios were suffering from debts, due to a lack of income during the war. They had made government training films for the war effort, as well as their “package films” of the 1940s, but this had not been enough to keep their finances consistent, leaving them in $4 million worth of debt. Walt Disney knew he needed a big hit to keep them afloat. Alice in Wonderland (1951), Peter Pan (1953), and Cinderella were all in development at this time, but Walt felt that Cinderella was a similar type of story to their big success, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), and would have the better release, so all resources were committed to it. Cinderella became the first Disney single story full-length animated feature since Bambi (1942), and only the second feature based on a princess fairy-tale.

One of the most interesting things about how Cinderella was made is that it was actually filmed in live-action first. Filming certain scenes in live-action, in costumes with props, had been done before for the previous Disney feature-length animated films, however, they decided to complete a full live-action shoot for Cinderella to save time and money, by eliminating the trial and error of hand-drawing everything. The animators didn’t like the fact that this method stunted their creativity, but they tried to use it as a reference and enhance it in their own way[7]. For the stylisation of the movie, Disney artist Mary Blair did much of the concept artwork. The paintings she did were almost translated exactly to screen, with her costume choices, settings, and particularly her bold use of colour. For example, when Cinderella’s dress is being ripped to pieces – a big cinematic scene – you can see the background colour change from a burgundy to a bright red as the anger for Anastasia and Drizella builds and Cinderella becomes more and more embarrassed. Mary Blair was a huge influence to the works of Disney in the 1940s and 50s, with it being rare for a woman to be in such a key position at the time. Blair left the Disney Studios in 1953 to go into children’s illustration but would be requested to return by Walt Disney to work on it’s a small world in 1963 for the New York’s World Fair. That became one of the works she is most known for her, however, her work appears in films like Saludos Amigos (1942) and The Three Caballeros (1944), as well as Peter Pan (1953) and Alice in Wonderland (1951)[8].

As with all movies, some ideas are discarded early on in the production process, as well as fairly late on. With Cinderella, two songs were still included in the film as late as 1948. The first was “Cinderella’s Work Song”, which would have happened right after Lady Tremaine had told Cinderella that she could go to the ball if you got all her work done. The sequence involved Cinderella daydreaming about multiplying herself to get her chores finished faster, with the numbers doubling, before becoming a huge band of working Cinderellas. This idea then became “The Work Song”, with the mice singing when working on Cinderella’s dress. The second song was called “Dancing on a Cloud” and involved a fantasy sequence of Cinderella and the Prince dancing on the clouds, during their first dance at the ball together. Though I think the concept would’ve been nice to see, I didn’t like the song at all, as it felt a bit too quick and loud to fit the quiet, magical mood of the scene, so I’m glad they chose to rewrite this scene and go with “So This is Love” instead. Walt’s dream of having an animated scene of two people dancing on the clouds would become a reality with Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip at the end of Sleeping Beauty (1959)[9].

MUSIC

Walt Disney wanted to make sure that the songs in Cinderella would both fit into the movie, without taking away from the story, and that they would be deliberate commercial hits. In previous years, the music within Disney shorts and feature films had not been considered for the commercial factor – they had become hits accidentally. However, Walt Disney knew that if Cinderella was going to be a financial success, he needed the music to do the same. Disney decided to publish the music for Cinderella through their own company for the first time as they hoped the music would be popular so they could benefit from it.

This is why Walt Disney looked for commercial songwriters for the movie, finding Mack David, Jerry Livingston and Al Hoffman, who were part of the “Tin Pan Alley” set, a group of songwriters from New York City who dominated the music industry in the US, around the late 19th/early 20th centuries. They had previously written the song “Chi-Baba Chi-Baba”, which Walt had heard on the radio and wanted something similar for the Fairy Godmother scene. They came up with “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo”, which is still used frequently within Disney projects. The song and scene also inspired the “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boutiques” at the Disney Parks, makeover centres for children to become a Disney princess.

The trio also wrote the five other songs in the movie, like “The Work Song”, which became a big hit. It’s my favourite of all the songs in the movie, probably because watching mice sewing a dress is apparently very satisfying to watch! “Sing, Sweet Nightingale”, sung by Ilene Woods as Cinderella, was ground breaking for its use of overdubbing, a technique where multiple vocal tracks are recorded and played together as harmonies. This technique had only become mainstream in the mid-1940s so it was a relatively new concept. Cinderella also sings the emotion-filled song “A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes”, as she’s getting ready in the morning. It’s upbeat and positive, yet with a strong heartfelt message behind it. “So This Is Love” is the love theme of the movie, sung by Cinderella and the Prince during the ball. It’s a quiet, romantic song, which has been re-recorded by other artists for Disney projects, along with “A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes”, meaning they are still remembered today. The only song in the movie I don’t like is the Main Title song “Cinderella”, just because of that strange whispery choir sound that Disney used frequently in title songs!

Oliver Wallace and Paul Smith composed the score for the film. Smith had worked for Disney before, for many Disney shorts and “package films” such as Saludos Amigos (1942) and Fun and Fancy Free (1947). Oliver Wallace joined Disney in the 1930s, and composed the score for Dumbo (1941), for which he won the Oscar for Best Original Score. He worked with Disney for decades, doing the film scores for many of the Disney animated films and some live-action ones until his death in 1963[10].

RECEPTION

Cinderella opened on 15^th February 1950. It needed to make more than its $2.9 million budget. If it had failed, then the Disney Studios may have been forced to close. But it was a success, and was the most successful film for Disney since Dumbo (1941). It grossed $8 million, and was praised for its storytelling and artistic details. It also received two Academy Award nominations: one for Best Score for Oliver Wallace and Paul Smith and the other for Best Original Score for “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo”, written by Mack David, Al Hoffman and Jerry Livingston. Unfortunately, neither won, losing out to Annie Get Your Gun (1950) and “Mona Lisa” from Captain Carey, U.S.A (1949)[11].

Cinderella was released at a good time, as by 1950, the world was recovering from the war and needed a morale boost. The whole idea of a “rags to riches” story appealed to the classic “American dream” that exists in North America and in Britain, Cinderella boosted spirits after continuing austerity and rationing. The Royal Wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten in 1947, as well as the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, put royalty and fairy-tale love at the forefront of people’s minds, reigniting the romantic notion of young women meeting and marrying a prince[12].

LEGACY

Disney’s animated movie would span two direct-to-video sequels. The first, released in 2002, was Cinderella II: Dreams Come True, with the second in 2007 called Cinderella III: A Twist in Time. Cinderella II is made up of three individual segments connected together, detailing Cinderella adjusting to life as a princess after her marriage to the Prince. I don’t believe I have seen this film, but I think I have watched Cinderella III once or twice on the Disney Channel. Cinderella III is set one year after the first film, and is about Lady Tremaine stealing the Fairy Godmother’s wand to reverse time and stop Cinderella marrying the prince, and attempting to replace Cinderella with her own daughter, Anastasia.

There was also a 1997 television film, produced by Walt Disney Television, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella, based on the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical written for television, which was originally broadcast in 1957 with Julie Andrews playing the title role. The 1997 Cinderella stars Whitney Houston as the Fairy Godmother, singer Brandy (Norwood) as Cinderella, and Whoopi Goldberg as Queen Constantina. It was a huge ratings success, being nominated for seven Emmy Awards, winning for Outstanding Art Direction. It was ground breaking for its diverse cast, especially casting a Black actress as Cinderella.

Disney’s live-action remake of Cinderella in 2015 saw British actress Lily James cast as the title role, with other big names such as Cate Blanchett as Lady Tremaine, and Helena Bonham Carter as the Fairy Godmother. The movie performed well financially, and received positive reviews from critics. I have not seen it, nor do I want to, for obvious reasons – it’s a live-action remake, so no, thanks! – but I’ve heard it’s one of the better live-action remakes.

Cinderella was unofficially the most popular princess at the time that Walt Disney World was being planned in the 1960s. Disney knew they wanted Cinderella to have her own castle and that it should be the centrepiece of the Magic Kingdom Park, to dwarf Anaheim’s Sleeping Beauty Castle. It opened 1^st October 1971 with the park, and has become the iconic structure of not just Magic Kingdom, but the whole of the Walt Disney World Resort. At 189 feet high, it is also the second tallest Disney castle, after Shanghai Disneyland’s. There is an urban myth that Cinderella Castle can be dismantled in a hurricane. This is not true. The castle was assembled in two separate sections, but they were then bolted together permanently. As it has a steel frame and a concrete foundation, it can withstand winds of at least 90 miles per hour. Cinderella Castle was inspired by the French courts of Versailles and Fontainebleau and the chateaux of Loire Valley. It was designed by Imagineer Herb Ryman. Inside the walkway, there are also five mosaic murals, each 15 feet high and 10 feet wide, designed by Dorothea Redmond, detailing the story of Cinderella. At the top of Cinderella Castle, there is a restaurant called Cinderella’s Royal Table, one of the most popular character meals in Walt Disney World, where you can dine with the princesses for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It was previously called King Stefan’s Banquet Hall up to April 1997, even though King Stefan is the name of the king in Sleeping Beauty (1959). There is also a Cinderella Castle at Tokyo Disneyland.

The castle has been temporarily transformed a few times over the years. From October 1996 to January 1998, the castle was decorated to look like a pink birthday cake, in celebration of Walt Disney World’s 25^th anniversary. This was the first time I would’ve seen the castle, and I loved it! In November 2004, the castle was “vandalised by Stitch” for one day, for the opening of the Stitch’s Great Escape attraction, with toilet paper covering the castle. These two transformations were not popular with the masses! In 2005, the castle received a gold trim for the “Happiest Celebration on Earth” celebration and was recently painted rose gold for Walt Disney World’s 50^th anniversary. I’d prefer if they painted it back to blue and white soon, to match Cinderella’s dress colours! There is also a private suite built into the castle. It was a planned private suite for the Disney family originally, but it was not built until 2005. Stays in the castle were awarded during the “Year of a Million Dreams” in 2007. Some celebrities have been known to stay in it occasionally in recent years[13].

At Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom Park, Cinderella used to have her own carrousel. The carrousel was constructed by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company in 1917, was run in small East Coast parks, before being purchased by the Walt Disney Company for the opening of Magic Kingdom in 1971 and being refurbished and themed to the movie Cinderella, with hand-painted scenes on the top panels. It was later renamed from Cinderella’s Golden Carrousel to Prince Charming’s Regal Carrousel in 2010[14]. The renaming story is that Prince Charming had a carrousel built for him to practice jousting. A second one was built for visitors to go on closer to the castle, with regal theming instead of knights jousting. There is also another myth surrounding “Cinderella’s Horse”. There is a horse on the carrousel with a golden bow on its tail, second row from the edge. This is not an official story from Disney Imagineering, but many people like to sit on this horse anyway!

Cinderella is a popular meet-and-greet character at the Disney theme parks, and can be seen at Princess Fantasy Faire in Disneyland; within Cinderella’s Royal Table, she has a personal meet-and-greet on entry for diners, and at Princess Fairytale Hall at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom; and at Princess Pavilion at Disneyland Paris. At Hong Kong Disneyland, Cinderella Carousel and the Royal Banquet Hall feature nods to the movie. At Tokyo, a walkthrough attraction called Cinderella’s Fairy Tale Hall exists within their Cinderella Castle, depicting parts of Cinderella’s story. She can also be spotted within parades, shows, and at other meet-and-greet locations throughout the Disney Parks.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Despite Cinderella not exactly being a feminist icon, the character has become, and continues to be, one of the most well-known, most celebrated, and most popular princesses in the Disney Princess franchise. Her story is well-known, and her belief in dreams coming true is a strong message to people. Sure, Cinderella is focused on romance and love, but that doesn’t mean that the message can’t be applied to other aspects of life, like careers. I disagree with people who claim Cinderella is not a good role model. She may not be as progressive as the princesses that have come since, but there is nothing wrong with teaching children to be kind, respectful, and not to lose hope in difficult situations, because positive things can happen if you change your attitude and work towards them.

Thanks to the success of Cinderella, the world got to see much more from the Walt Disney Company, with further projects being able to be funded, like Disneyland. Cinderella lived up to the expectations from the Disney Studios, that it could be a success and would save the future of Disney Animation. It is also the most remembered retelling of the story.

Cinderella is first and foremost a romantic love story, though at the heart of it is the message to stay positive through times of adversity, and to never give up on your dreams – no matter what they may be – because perhaps with enough hope, belief and perseverance, maybe someday, that dream that you wish will come true.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Jim Korkis, ‘The Disney Cinderella Story’, MousePlanet.com, 24^th August 2022.

[2] Credit: Kelsey McKinney, ‘Disney didn’t invent Cinderella. Her story is at least 2,000 years old.’, Vox.com, 15^th March 2015.

[3] Credit: Disney, “From Rags to Riches: The Making of Cinderella”, from Cinderella (1950) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2005).

[4] Credit: Jim Korkis, ‘The Disney Cinderella Story’, MousePlanet.com, 24^th August 2022.

[5] Credit: Disney, “From Rags to Riches: The Making of Cinderella”, from Cinderella (1950) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2005).

[6] Credit: Disney, “The “Cinderella” That Almost Was”, from Cinderella (1950) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2005).

[7] Credit: Jim Korkis, ‘The Disney Cinderella Story’, MousePlanet.com, 24^th August 2022.

[8] Credit: Disney, “The Art of Mary Blair”, from Cinderella (1950) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2005).

[9] Credit: Disney, “Deleted Scenes”, from Cinderella (1950) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2005).

[10] Credit: Disney, “From Rags to Riches: The Making of Cinderella”, from Cinderella (1950) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2005).

[11] Credit: Brittany DiCologero, ‘Cinderella Was Released in Theaters in 1950 – Here’s How it Went’, WDW Magazine (online), 15^th February 2021.

[12] Credit: Carol Dyhouse, ‘What the Rise and Fall of the Cinderella Fairy Tale Means for Real Women Today’, Time (online), 19^th April 2021.

[13] Credit: Jim Korkis, ‘Walt Disney World Chronicles: Cinderella Castle’, AllEars.Net, 15^th April 2014.

[14] Credit: Brittany DiCologero, ‘Cinderella Was Released in Theaters in 1950 – Here’s How it Went’, WDW Magazine (online), 15^th February 2021.

14th Apr 202327th Jun 2024 by The Disney Purist

#32 The Lion King (1994)

BACKGROUND

Does anyone not like The Lion King?

Come on, raise your hands. No, nobody? Maybe a few?

That response doesn’t surprise me. I have heard so many people, at least those of a similar age to me, who state, without hesitation, that The Lion King is their favourite Disney animated movie. But, as with any movie, there will be ardent fans, and there will be “haters”.

Now, don’t be concerned. I don’t hate The Lion King, but it took me a while to grow to like it. I always preferred the romantic princess films – I still do – and anything that wasn’t in that category, as a child, I mostly ignored. As I’ve gotten older and rewatched these animated films, I’ve found that I like the stories and the messages more, because I now actually understand them! But it is not my favourite, and just misses out on my Top 10.

At one time, Disney executives thought The Lion King wouldn’t amount to much; it was the “B movie”, something experimental that hadn’t been done before, compared with the “A movie” of Pocahontas (1995), which was to be a typical love story. Of the two films, I would choose Pocahontas every time, but the majority would choose The Lion King. And that’s fine, because I have to admit that The Lion King is a phenomenon. It is one of the best movies that Disney has ever made, if not the best, and its legacy speaks for itself. So where do I start with potentially the most popular, most loved, most iconic Disney animated feature?

PLOT

I doubt there are many people who haven’t seen The Lion King at least once in their lives, so the plot is pretty well-known. It starts with the presentation of Simba, a new born lion cub, who is the heir to the kingdom of Pride Rock. He is the son of King Mufasa, and Sarabi. We see that Mufasa’s brother, Scar, is annoyed at having been pushed down the line of succession, and that generally he is ignored and forgotten about, leaving him with plenty of time to brood and plot his revenge.

The movie jumps forward a few years to find Simba very curious about his kingdom, wanting to explore and to be brave like his dad, who has tried to tell him about being part of the “Circle of Life”, but this message falls a bit flat! He convinces his friend, fellow cub Nala, to join him on an exploration of the Elephant Graveyard, beyond the borders of the kingdom, something that Simba’s uncle Scar told him about. They manage to ditch their guard, the king’s major-domo, Zazu, and find themselves in the Elephant Graveyard, where there are three hyenas waiting for them: Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed. Zazu comes back to help the cubs, but he is caught and thrown in the “birdie boiler” which sends him flying up into the air, and back towards Pride Rock. The cubs are chased by the hyenas, and trapped. As the hyenas are about to attack, Mufasa arrives, and fights them. They are much too scared of Mufasa to fight back, and run off, leaving Mufasa angry with Simba, and leading to a very awkward walk home.

Mufasa tells Simba that he shouldn’t go looking for trouble, and that he was scared he might lose Simba today, showing Simba that everyone gets scared at times. He also tells Simba that the stars above are the kings of the past looking down on them, and that when Mufasa is no longer there, he will be right up there, watching over him. Again, this is all a bit lost on Simba! Then we find Scar, talking to the hyenas, as they have formed a coalition of sorts. He plans to kill Mufasa and Simba, leaving him the sole heir to the throne. The next day, Scar takes Simba to a gorge, and sits him on a rock, telling him to wait there for a surprise. Unsurprisingly, Simba doesn’t do what he’s told and starts following a lizard, trying to scare it off with his roar. Suddenly, a stampede of wildebeest appears over the hill, coming right towards Simba; they’ve been startled by Scar’s hyena pals. Simba is soon outrun. Scar has gone back to get Mufasa to help – all part of the plan. Mufasa dives in to save Simba, managing to place him on a rock, before he is taken by the wildebeest. Mufasa leaps out of the stampede and climbs the rockface, but Scar is waiting for him, and throws him to his death; something Simba does not see. Simba finds his father lying motionless on the ground, and thinks his death is all his fault. Scar then tells him to run away, with the hyenas told to kill him. They don’t succeed but don’t believe Simba will ever return.

On a strip of desert, Simba has passed out from exhaustion and dehydration. A group of vultures are about to get him, when a meerkat, Timon, and warthog, Pumbaa, come by and scare them off. They find Simba, and, despite being concerned about being so close to a predator that will likely eat them, they decide to “keep him”, offering a home with them. Simba is reluctant, too depressed to want to talk to them, but they teach him to forget about his past, and just relax – “Hakuna Matata”; it means “no worries”. Simba learns to eat bugs, swim and just generally chill with Timon and Pumbaa. Soon, Simba’s past catches up with him, as his old pal Nala arrives at the trio’s haven one day, looking to find food and finding Pumbaa! Nala is confused as Scar told the pride that Mufasa and Simba were both dead, because of the stampede, but is relieved to find Simba alive, and tries to convince him to return. He won’t, and angered by her persistence, he walks off into the night. Thankfully, Rafiki, the High Priest of the savannah, who knows Simba from birth, comes by and tells Simba that he has forgotten who he is. Rafiki also tells Simba that he has seen his father, with Simba chasing him through the savannah to get a glimpse of his dad. Rafiki tells him to look into the water, saying that his father lives in him. Simba is disappointed by this, but then sees his father within a storm cloud. Mufasa tells Simba that he has forgotten who he is, and has therefore forgotten him. He urges him not to shirk his responsibilities. The encounter is over too soon, and Simba still hasn’t gotten the answers he wanted. Rafiki tells him he can either run from his past or learn from it, giving Simba the last bit of motivation he needs to get back to Pride Rock and challenge Scar.

Rafiki goes to tell Nala, Timon, and Pumbaa of Simba’s plan, and they go to help. Timon and Pumbaa are used as live bait to distract the hyenas, and Nala is sent to rally the lionesses. Simba goes over to Pride Rock, and sees that many animal herds have moved on, there is no food or water, and it is in the middle of a drought, looking completely barren. He finds Scar striking his mother, Sarabi, for comparing him to Mufasa. Scar is surprised to see Simba alive, and baits him into owning up to the murder of Mufasa; he moves toward Simba until Simba loses his footing, and falls over the rock edge, digging into the front of it, to stop himself falling. Scar holds his paws down, telling Simba this is just how his father looked before he died, and whispers that he killed Mufasa. Simba leaps up and pins Scar down, telling him to admit that he is in fact the murderer, not Simba. He does, so the lionesses strike, only for the hyenas to do the same. They pounce on Simba, with the lionesses, Timon, Pumbaa and Rafiki, throwing them off so Simba can deal with Scar.

In one final encounter, where Scar tells Simba it was the hyenas’ idea, not his, and that he isn’t to blame, a fight ensues and Simba accidentally throws Scar over the rocks. He falls, but survives. The hyenas approach him. Scar, unaware that they have overheard him betraying them, encourages his friends to help him. They are angry, and instead attack him. A rainstorm begins, nourishing the Pride Lands again, as Simba is encouraged to finally take his place on Pride Rock. He walks up to the top and roars, with the lionesses roaring in response, cementing him as their new king. We skip forward again, to find a similar scene to the opening sequence; this time Nala and Simba’s cub is being celebrated and presented to the animal herds, all of whom have returned, with Pride Rock restored to its former glory.

Although The Lion King was not based on a historical figure, or a fairy-tale, or a novel, unlike many other Disney animated features, the story was influenced by certain other tales, such as those of the Old Testament, with those involving Joseph and Moses having been mentioned specifically as inspiration by Disney. There are also similarities to Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, with the family betrayals and fights for position. At one point, Disney leant in quite heavily to the Hamlet angle, even including specific dialogue from the play, but felt this would be too much, and too heavy. At one time, Scar was going to be an evil lion outside of the pride, however, the team felt that Scar’s revenge would be more threatening and interesting if it came from within the family, as it does in Hamlet. In essence, it is a story about community, belonging, family, betrayal, and redemption; themes that appear in many stories and works of literature. Disney also used their own movie, Bambi (1942), as inspiration with the initial pitch even being titled “Bambi in Africa”[1].

However, there has been controversy around this “original” story idea from Disney, as there is a competing version of events from Japan, with this question being asked: did Disney rip-off Kimba the White Lion? Kimba the White Lion was a Japanese anime series illustrated by Osamu Tezuka, known as Japan’s Walt Disney. The series aired in the USA in the 1960s. Controversy around this has bubbled up time and again. The TV series is about Kimba, a white lion cub, whose father, the king, is murdered. Kimba is captured by humans but escapes and tries to find his way back to the jungle, where he encounters an evil lion named Claw, with a scar under his eye, and his hyena henchmen, who have taken over the kingdom. The death of the lion cub’s father, the apparition of his father after he has died, and an evil lion trying to kill Kimba are very similar to scene in Disney’s The Lion King, however, it is difficult to say whether or not these ideas were “borrowed” from Tezuka’s series as Disney have continued to deny it, stating that they had not heard of the show, and that they had their own inspirations and influences for the film. There have been no formal claims of copyright brought against Disney, but in general, people are annoyed that Disney either denied using the work as inspiration or are angered by Disney not knowing about other animators’ work. Disney will stick to their story on this one, I believe, that they have not heard of Kimba. Matthew Broderick stated in an interview that when he was hired to voice adult Simba, he believed his character was called “Kimba” as he had seen the cartoon as a child, and thought it was for a remake of that[2].

CHARACTERS & CAST

But we’re talking about Simba now, not Kimba. Simba literally means “lion” in Swahili – not the most creative name for a Disney character but it works! We see Simba grow up throughout the movie, both physically and emotionally. I love seeing baby Simba right at the start because he looks so confused, with all the animals just looking at him, and the sneeze he does is so cute! Then, we get young Simba, who is very curious, which gets him into trouble often. He’s looking to be exactly like his dad, wanting to be brave, and tough, and strong. He soon learns, thanks to Mufasa, that just putting yourself in danger is no way to become, or prove you are, any of those things. Simba is a bit naïve about what he thinks being a king is, as we see during his song “I Just Can’t Wait to be King”; he’s looking forward to being king just because it means he’ll be able to do whatever he wants, and that the likes of Zazu won’t be able to tell him what to do anymore! He is just a kid, so it’s not a big surprise that’s his way of thinking! After the tragic death of Mufasa, which Simba blames himself entirely for, he runs away, only to be found by Timon and Pumbaa, who teach him how to be carefree, and that “when the world turns its back on you, you turn your back on the world”. It helps Simba for a time, but it’s quite clear that eventually adult Simba realises he can’t keep running from his past and his responsibilities; he has to confront them, which is why he returns to Pride Rock to challenge Scar for his kingdom again. Adult Simba is clearly still full of guilt and uncertainty about how his life should be, thinking the others won’t understand what he’s gone through. Simba does see that he has true friends by the end of it, as they help him in the final battle, and even finds love with his childhood friend, Nala. Young Simba is voiced by Jonathan Taylor Thomas, who starred in the TV series Home Improvement (1991-99). Matthew Broderick, whose acting credits speak for themselves, voices Adult Simba, although rock singer Joseph Williams provides his singing voice, which is incredibly strange as Matthew Broderick would later sing on Broadway in The Producers!

On the opposite side, there is Scar, the evil brooding villain of the movie. He is Mufasa’s brother, and therefore also Simba’s uncle. He has been plotting revenge all his life, ever since Mufasa became king and wants nothing more than to take his place. When Simba comes along, since he was first in line “before the little hairball was born”, it makes Scar’s task more difficult but also more necessary, as it motivates him to take action sooner rather than later. Scar needs to get the hyenas on side to help carry out his plans, but he also does the same with Simba. Though Scar is never kind to Simba, Simba still believes them to be friends and thinks that Scar’s sarcasm is just his way of being funny. Scar doesn’t care about Simba at all. Scar is one of the best Disney villains, in my opinion, and I think a lot of that has to do with his voice. British actor Jeremy Irons voices Scar, and he delivers his lines with such dryness and sarcasm that he is potentially the most quotable of all the Disney villains, with “I’m surrounded by idiots” being my favourite quote. Irons felt he could be very free with his vocals, twisting the words and injecting menace into them, whilst also staying very smooth, calm, and almost elegant. This gave Andreas Deja, supervising animator for Scar, as well as other villains such as Jafar and Gaston, lots of information to work with, so he could catch both the humour and the wickedness in his animation. Scar gets one of the best Disney villains’ songs with “Be Prepared”. Irons blew out his voice whilst recording the song. It was finished by Disney voice actor, the current voice of Winnie the Pooh, Jim Cummings[3].

Mufasa, Swahili for “king”, though a short-lived character within the movie, is the voice of reason. He keeps Simba on the right path throughout his life, even after his death. Mufasa is a strong figure in the movie, and is very protective of his family and the entire Pride. He is a respected king, and his presence is sorely missed by the Pride when they hear of his death. The scene of him saving Simba and trying to free himself from the stampede is incredibly emotional; the way Mufasa leaps out of there and tries desperately to claw himself up the rockface to get out is amazing. If only Scar hadn’t been at the top to throw him off… Mufasa is voiced by James Earl Jones, the man behind the iconic voice of Darth Vader in the Star Wars franchise. His voice is so distinctive and commanding that it makes everyone sit up and take notice. Apparently, Sean Connery was Disney’s first choice for Mufasa, but I can’t imagine anyone else voicing the character, which is why he was the only returning actor to the live-action film[4]. Sarabi, Simba’s mother, which is Swahili for “mirage”, is a caring mother, though unfortunately she is not seen too much in this movie. She is voiced by Madge Sinclair, who appeared in Coming to America (1988) as the Queen of Zamunda, alongside James Earl Jones as the King of Zamunda!

Nala is Simba’s love interest in the movie, with her name meaning “gift” in Swahili. She is kind and compassionate but also strong and straight-talking. The dynamic between her and Simba is powerful throughout their time together; even as cubs. They initially can’t imagine ever being together romantically, as we see when Zazu tells the cubs that they are “engaged”, but then we see them fall in love over the “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” scene. They are a great couple, and balance each other out perfectly. Moira Kelly voices Nala. Kelly would later have regular roles in The West Wing (1999-2000) and One Tree Hill (2003-09). Matthew Broderick said that he had no idea Kelly was the voice of Nala until the premiere of the movie, as he had recorded lines with a completely different voice actor[5]!

Rafiki is the High Priest of the Kingdom, another voice of reason, but he is more philosophical, wanting those around him to figure out the meaning of what he’s saying, instead of being frank about it, which particularly irritates Simba when he’s trying to work out if Rafiki is telling him his father is alive, or whether he more exists as a spirit – turns out it was the latter! Rafiki is fun, and well-meaning, imparting wisdom along with some humour. He cares about the future of the kingdom and for Simba’s well-being, wanting him to find himself again after he becomes lost with the grief of his father’s death. Robert Guillaume voices Rafiki, who had acted in many television series before The Lion King.

Then, there is Zazu, the king’s major-domo, as he likes to tell everyone! Zazu is a bit of a know-it-all, and he feels superior to everyone, except Mufasa! When Scar takes over the kingdom, Zazu is kept in a cage and no longer feels like he’s better than everyone else. He despises Scar but is easily scared by him and the hyenas so keeps quiet, and complies with the new order of things. He is almost bullied in places, even by the lion cubs, as Simba and Nala go to elaborate lengths to ditch him, settling for a rhino sitting on him to stop him following them to the Elephant Graveyard. I feel bad for Zazu a lot of the time, but he does redeem himself in the final battle, and does keep his position as the second-in-command. Zazu is brilliantly voiced by Rowan Atkinson, known for his roles as Edmund Blackadder and Mr. Bean, particularly in the UK.

The trio of hyenas were animated by Alex Kupershmidt, who would later go on to animate Stitch. He wanted the hyenas to be like mad clowns, one minute being evil, then funny, then back to being evil, which describes them pretty well! Around Mufasa and Scar, they are quite scared, but around anyone else, they can be quite menacing and evil, even going so far as trying to kill a young lion cub. But together they are comedic, bouncing off each other, Shenzi and Banzai in particular. Ed is the mute hyena of the group, and the most dim-witted, not seeming to know what’s going on most of the time! Shenzi and Banzai are voiced by comedic actors Whoopi Goldberg and Cheech Marin. Marin had previously voiced Tito in Disney’s Oliver & Company (1988). Ed’s “vocals” were provided by Jim Cummings.

Now for the best characters in the whole movie, Timon and Pumbaa, who are most definitely the comic relief in The Lion King. They mean well, even though they like to take the easy way out and just relax through life with no cares, no responsibilities – and no worries, as we hear through their song “Hakuna Matata”. The two lean heavily into the fart jokes at times, which aren’t as funny now as they were when I was younger, but sometimes you need to speak directly to the children watching! Timon and Pumbaa are voiced by Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella. I love Nathan Lane thanks to this movie; I think he’s hilarious and like to watch anything he is acting in. I was very pleased to find he had a recurring role in Only Murders in the Building (2021-present), alongside Steve Martin and Martin Short. It’s also fun to watch him and Matthew Broderick together in The Producers (2005), the film of the Broadway musical, which they performed together in also. Broderick and Lane had not met before when working on The Lion King. Fun fact: there is a deleted scene in The Producers where Timon, Simba, and Pumbaa are reunited, in a pub during the opening performance of “Springtime for Hitler”. Nathan Lane had originally auditioned for the part of Zazu, but then came in to audition for the hyenas, with Ernie Sabella. The team found them so funny that they were then hired as Timon and Pumbaa instead[6].

PRODUCTION

In terms of animation and new technology being used in The Lion King, one of the most impressive is the use of CAPS. The team tried to hand-draw the wildebeest stampede but found it was impossible to make it look realistic, and just couldn’t make it work. Animator Ruben Aquino made a few sketches of wildebeest running. Those sketches were then put into CAPS, to create a full cycle of a wildebeest running, before being multiplied to make the herd. The background was then added and the sequence was run; it worked. It is a very impressive scene, though I struggle to watch it, at least without crying, because it’s so tense and horrible. I can’t stand moments of peril, especially with young cubs! CAPS also allowed for small details to be added, such as layers of dust, dirt and fog, as well as raindrops, to increase the atmosphere of the backgrounds.

For the animals, it was very important that the animators observed them in real-life. Animal expert Jim Fowler brought adult lions and cubs into the studio so they could be sketched. He explained their natural behaviours and the movements they were making, and the reasoning behind them to increase the animators’ knowledge of these animals. They also went to zoos, and wildlife parks, where supervising animator for Timon, Mike Surrey, noticed that meerkats are agile and quick, and Tony Bancroft, animator for Pumbaa, found that, though robust, warthogs are quite light on their feet and have a bouncy kind of walk[7].

During the team’s research trip to Africa in November 1991, they found African art designs of patterns and textiles in bold colours. They wanted to use them for the backgrounds but felt they would be too abstract for the movie, instead choosing natural landscapes that would show the grandeur of Africa and the mystical atmosphere that they encountered, choosing not to just focus on the savannah and the plains, but to also include the mountains and plant life, as well as the rainstorms that they experienced. They did still want colour and tribal art stylisations, so this was included, thanks to Chris Sanders, future director of Lilo & Stitch (2002), in the abstract backgrounds of the “I Just Can’t Wait to be King” scene[8]. As well as this, Andy Gaskill Art Director wanted to bring in as many natural sounds and effects into the atmosphere, wanting to see the wind in the grass and hear it, and hear the sound of animals moving and leaping. This culminates in the epic ending with the rainstorm, where we can see and hear, and almost feel, the strength of the storm.

The first idea for The Lion King came from a conversation between some of the Disney executives, including Roy E. Disney, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Chairman of the Walt Disney Studios, and Peter Schneider, Head of Walt Disney Animation, at the time, where the topic of Africa came up in conversation and Katzenberg said they should do a movie in Africa. It was called “King of the Jungle” at the start, and Roger Allers was brought on as director, along with George Scribner. Allers had done story work for Beauty and the Beast (1991) and Scribner had directed Oliver & Company (1988). Right after Beauty and the Beast was released, the Disney team went straight to Africa for their research trip in 1991, where they were overcome by the intensity of the African savannah. They were taught Swahili phrases from their guides, including “Hakuna Matata” and “Asante Sana Squash Banana”, which were added into the movie.

A few months later, Scribner was taken off the movie and replaced with Rob Minkoff, who had worked as animator on previous Disney movies such as Oliver & Company and The Little Mermaid (1989). Then came the infamous breakfast meeting with Katzenberg, where he sang the praises of Pocahontas, and aired his concerns about The Lion King. After that meeting, many animators wanted to work on Pocahontas, leaving mostly younger animators and some, like Andreas Deja, who wanted to work on an “animal movie” instead. The fact that Katzenberg didn’t believe in the movie did mean that the team felt they could be more experimental and have more freedom with this “B movie”. A new story started coming together, with everyone pitching in, working long hours. The title of the movie was changed to The Lion King around this time.

Problems struck in 1994, with the Northridge earthquake hitting Los Angeles on 17^th January, just after the team had returned from the “disastrous” preview of the movie in Atlanta with Elton John, and only six months before The Lion King was due to be released. Bridges were destroyed, and highways were shut, meaning that people were either working on the movie from home, or having to sleep in the office in Burbank to ensure work was completed[9]. Another major tragedy struck in April 1994 – the death of Frank Wells, Chief Operating Officer of The Walt Disney Company. Wells died in a helicopter crash in Nevada. This was the first fatality in the company’s history, hitting everyone hard, including the CEO at the time Michael Eisner. An almost parallel tale of leadership to that within The Lion King started to happen with The Walt Disney Company, as Wells kept the other executives steady, but now there were three headstrong men, competing with each other for position within the company: Eisner, Roy E. Disney, and Jeffrey Katzenberg. Katzenberg made no secret of the fact he wanted Wells’ job, and started gunning for it much too soon after Wells’ death. Eisner did not like this. A news article proclaiming Katzenberg as the saviour of Disney animation would be the final straw, with rumours surfacing of Katzenberg’s imminent departure from the company. At the red-carpet premiere of The Lion King in June 1994, Katzenberg refused all interviews, knowing his position was on unsteady ground. He was forced to resign from the company in October 1994[10].

MUSIC

Tim Rice was approached to work on the music for The Lion King. He first wanted ABBA to work with him, but as they declined, he went to British rock ‘n’ roll artist Elton John. The team at Disney appreciated Elton had a gift for telling stories through music, but he had nothing to do with African music! Hans Zimmer was brought in to compose the score, and added plenty of African influence, bringing in his friend South African producer and composer Lebo M to form and conduct the African choir. It was a collaborative experience[11].

Let’s start with the opening sequence, “Circle of Life”. The original song was written by Elton John and Tim Rice, but the opening sequence including African inspiration added to by Hans Zimmer and Lebo M, to create the full all-encompassing opening that it became. The opening scene was meant to include dialogue but when Allers and Minkoff heard the final version of the song, they felt that the song and beautiful animation spoke for itself[12].

“Can You Feel the Love Tonight” was the first song that Elton John wrote, as he had always wanted to write a Disney love ballad, written for Simba and Nala. However, during a preview of the movie in Atlanta, he saw that the song was now being sung by Timon and Pumbaa. Elton had no idea and was furious with Disney for ruining his ballad. He even called Jeffrey Katzenberg to air his annoyance. Obviously, the scene was changed back to be a love song sung by Simba and Nala, though Timon and Pumbaa do still sing the opening and the ending! I like the movie version of this song, but not John’s single version[13].

“Hakuna Matata” was inspired by the Swahili saying, meaning “no worries”. This was going to be called “Warthog Rhapsody” but this song was cut. It would later be recorded for the 1995 album “Rhythm of the Pride Lands”, and would also be included in The Lion King 3 (2004), with Rice writing new lyrics to the melody and it becoming Timon’s song. I like “Hakuna Matata”, as it’s catchy and a fun song, as some of the others are quite serious and deeply expressive. I also like “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” for this same reason. “Be Prepared” was going to be a song called “Thanks to Me”, which would’ve been Scar singing about all the good things he’d done during his new reign as king, however, the team felt it would make more sense for him to sing about his plan. I love this song, and it’s definitely one of the best Disney villains’ songs. Finally, the little hula number with Timon singing was almost going to be him singing “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees, as Katzenberg requested. Luckily, there was no time to change the scene before the next test screening and the audience loved it! I love it too; it’s hilarious, even if it’s only about thirty seconds long[14]!.

The brilliant score, though, is my favourite thing about The Lion King. Hans Zimmer and Lebo M do a fabulous job of putting in the African influences, as well as making the music celebratory, pensive, perilous and sometimes threatening. It’s a crazy ride of emotions but they do it so well. My favourite piece is “King of Pride Rock”, which plays at the end of the movie when Simba fights Scar, and takes his place on Pride Rock. It journeys from the threat of Scar, and moves to the culmination of Simba’s whole journey, of finally finding where he belongs, and accepting his responsibility as King of Pride Rock. It’s so moving, with the soaring violins and choir, before moving into a triumphant ending where all of Pride Rock is back to how it should be, with accepting your place in the “Circle of Life” being the final message to the audience. It gets me every time. The Lion King has one of the best scores of any movie, Disney or otherwise.

RECEPTION

The Lion King was released in June 1994 and generated $312 million in the US, and $545 million worldwide. It was a huge success both financially and critically, with the film being lauded as one of Disney’s best animated films, for story, characters, animation and music. The Lion King won two Academy Awards, one for Best Original Score by Hans Zimmer, and one for Best Original Song for “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” by Elton John and Tim Rice, with “Hakuna Matata” and “Circle of Life” also being nominated in the same category – so there wasn’t much chance of them losing. The Lion King was the most successful film of 1994[15].

LEGACY

The movie would be re-released in theatres and on home media, such as VHS and later DVD and Blu-Ray, but biggest thing to have come out of The Lion King is the stage show, with Michael Eisner pushing for it the most, despite others not being sure about it. Julie Taymor was approached to direct the musical, and was sent the movie soundtrack, the album “Rhythm of the Pride Lands”, which was released as a “sequel” to the original soundtrack, and a video. Taymor had had no previous commercial hit, but was happy to accept the challenge. She loved African masks and wanted those for the characters, but wanted the actors faces on show at all times, meaning the masks would sit on their heads. She figured out how to mechanise the stampede, as that was a huge challenge to replicate on stage[16].The Lion King stage show opened in 1997 at the New Amsterdam Theatre before moving to the Minskoff Theatre in 2006, where it continues to delight audiences today, even after a break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The show has been played on every continent except Antarctica, in over 100 cities in 21 different countries. The show won six Tony awards in 1998, including Best Musical, Best Scenic Design, Best Lighting Design, Best Choreography, Best Costume Design, and Best Direction of a Musical for Julie Taymor, which made her the first woman to win a Tony for Best Director[17].

As well as this, The Lion King also got two direct-to-video sequels, one being The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride (1998), which follows Simba and Nala’s daughter, Kiara, as she learns to become a princess, and falls in love with Kovu, Scar’s adopted son, in a retelling of Romeo and Juliet. I love this film, and its music. The second is The Lion King 3 (2004), or The Lion King 1 ½ in some territories, which details Timon and Pumbaa’s backstories and how they came to be friends. I’ve only seen that movie once and I didn’t think much of it, I don’t think! Many of the film’s original actors returned to voice their characters in the sequels.

It also spanned two television series, Timon & Pumbaa (1995-99), which focuses on the lives of Timon and Pumbaa, mostly after the events of the first movie, and their misadventures in other countries. Ernie Sabella returned to voice Pumbaa, whereas Nathan Lane only reprised Timon in early episodes I vaguely remember watching this series as a child – I think I liked it. The other TV series is more recent, The Lion Guard, beginning as a TV movie, before becoming a TV series (2015-19). The Lion Guard focuses on Kion, Simba and Nala’s second cub, and him becoming the leader of the Lion Guard, protecting the Pride Lands. The series takes place during the time jump in The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride, which is confusing for the audience that have seen that movie as Kion is not mentioned at all!

Then there is the live-action remake, The Lion King (2019), and its future sequel, Mufasa: The Lion King (2024), which will be a prequel with James Earl Jones returning as Mufasa, not a remake of The Lion King II movie. The Lion King (2019) did well at the box office, with many rushing to see the movie – I was not one of them – mostly thanks to the nostalgia that revolves around the original movie. The film was not considered better than the animated movie, though it did fill in some “plot holes”, such as why Nala leaves the Pride Lands, with the heart and the magic of the original being lost in the photo-realistic almost shot-by-shot remake. Elton John was disappointed that the music was “messed up”.

Within the Disney theme parks, first, there was The Lion King Celebration parade at Disneyland from 1994 to 1996. Four of the six floats were moved to Walt Disney World to be included in Festival of the Lion King, a show celebrating the story and music of The Lion King, though not a re-telling, which has been running at Disney’s Animal Kingdom since 1998, moving theatres in 2014. There is a variation of the show at Hong Kong Disneyland 2005, though this is a retelling of the story narrated by Rafiki. Disneyland Paris had The Legend of the Lion King show from 2004 until 2007, and debuted The Lion King: Rhythms of the Pride Lands in 2019. At Disneyland, Tale of the Lion King is another version of the show, which began in May 2022.

An extinct attraction called The Legend of the Lion King also existed at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom from 1994 to 2002, which I remember seeing. It used huge puppets to retell an abridged version of the story with the same music. There were ten puppeteers, trained by Jim Henson, doing three shows an hour. This was replaced with Mickey’s PhilarMagic in 2003, a 3D attraction showcasing popular Disney musical scenes, including “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King”[18]. There was also the show Circle of Life: An Environmental Fable (1995-2018) at Disney World’s Epcot, where Simba told Timon and Pumbaa the dangers of taking the environment for granted, and not respecting it properly. Along with this, there are also meet-and-greets with characters from the movie, like Timon and Rafiki, and a whole section dedicated to The Lion King sits within the Art of Animation hotel in Florida, with outdoor scenes of the characters, Pride Rock and the Elephant Graveyard being available for photo-ops.

The Lion King celebrated its 30th anniversary in June 2024, with new merchandise lines, specialty treats, and character meet-and-greets, which included Timon and Rafiki being spotted at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Walt Disney World.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It’s crazy how much of a franchise The Lion King has become, but, like I said, many people consider The Lion King to be their all-time favourite Disney movie. There are multiple reasons why The Lion King continues to remain popular today. It is relatable as a coming-of-age story, as well as a fable, detailing the importance of responsibility and remembering where you come from. It also describes how everyone, no matter how big or small, has a place within the “Circle of Life”.

Nobody working on the movie knew how it would be received, and had no idea of the impact it would have, even so many years later. It’s a movie that speaks to people for whatever reason, but I find it most touching for its story of loss and grief, of losing a family member. It will have helped so many people, especially children, get through the pain of losing a loved one[19].The Lion King is special to so many people, and will likely be treasured forever.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Disney, “Story Origins”, from The Lion King (1994) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2003).

[2] Credit: Hannah Denham, ‘’Lion King’ has been clouded by intellectual property controversy for 25 years. Here’s the story behind it.’, The Washington Post (online), 26^th July 2019.

[3] Credit: Dan Boothe, The Making of the Lion King (1994).

[4] Credit: Blake Taylor, ‘The Untold Truth Of The Lion King (1994)’, Looper.com, 20^th May 2022.

[5] Credit: Disney, Pride of the Lion King (2011).

[6] Credit: Don Hahn, The Lion King – A Memoir – Don Hahn (2011).

[7] Credit: Dan Boothe, The Making of the Lion King (1994).

[8] Credit: Disney, “Art: African Influence”, The Lion King (1994) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2003).

[9] Credit: Don Hahn, The Lion King – A Memoir – Don Hahn (2011).

[10] Credit: Don Hahn, Waking Sleeping Beauty (2009).

[11] Credit: Disney, Pride of the Lion King (2011).

[12] Credit: Jim Fanning, The Disney Book: A Celebration of the World of Disney (2016), ‘Animals Rule’, pp. 88-91.

[13] Credit: Credit: Don Hahn, The Lion King – A Memoir – Don Hahn (2011).

[14] Credit: Blake Taylor, ‘The Untold Truth Of The Lion King (1994)’, Looper.com, 20^th May 2022.

[15] Credit: Jim Fanning, The Disney Book: A Celebration of the World of Disney (2016), ‘Animals Rule’, pp. 88-91.

[16] Credit: Disney, Pride of the Lion King (2011).

[17] Credit: Disney, ‘Celebrating ‘The Lion King’ on Broadway’s 25-Year Legacy’, The Walt Disney Company (online), 14^th November 2022.

[18] Credit: Jim Korkis, ‘A Friday Visit with Jim Korkis: The Legend of the Lion King’, YourFirstVisit.net, 7^th February 2020.

[19] Credit: Disney, “Reflections”, from The Lion King (1994) 2-Disc Special Edition DVD (2003).

7th Apr 202327th Jun 2024 by The Disney Purist

#15 Lady and the Tramp (1955)

BACKGROUND

The 1950s was a busy time for Walt Disney and the Disney Studios.

Along with the usual slate of animated film releases, Disney were working on live-action films, the True-Life Adventures series of nature documentaries, and television projects. As well as that, Walt’s theme park project Disneyland opened on 17^th July 1955, just one month before Lady and the Tramp was released, in June 1955, squarely in the middle of the eight animated features produced during the “Silver Age” of Disney Animation (1950-1967).

It’s no secret that Walt Disney’s attention had been split between these various projects, with animation not being at the forefront of his mind at times, however, despite his attention seeming to dwindle around this medium, Lady and the Tramp was an animated feature that Walt Disney himself was very much involved with. Not only that, but Lady and the Tramp marked a series of firsts: the first Disney animated feature to be based on an original story written by the studio, and have an everyday American setting, and it was the first animated film to be photographed in the widescreen format of CinemaScope[1].

And yet, I don’t like Lady and the Tramp. I hadn’t watched it fully for many years before this week, as it’s not an animated film I would choose to watch. I can’t quite decide why I don’t like it: possibly because I’m scared of dogs, a lot of them anyway; maybe because nothing very exciting happens and the music isn’t very cheery; or perhaps it’s just because it falls into that category of “animal films” that I don’t generally connect to! I certainly didn’t finish watching Lady and the Tramp and think my initial impression was wrong, as it was, at least in part, with other “animal films” like The Fox and the Hound (1981) and Bolt (2008), which I surprised myself by liking more than I thought. Lady and the Tramp wasn’t like that, and, despite only being around 75 minutes in length, I was bored through the majority of it! Having said that, there are a few scenes and sequences that I like, though they only total around a third of the whole movie, and the backgrounds and colours are quite pleasant.

PLOT

Lady and the Tramp is a love story, basically Romeo and Juliet but with dogs! The movie begins on Christmas night in a quintessential New England town, on a street filled with rows of Victorian houses. A woman opens a present from her husband, a golden cocker spaniel puppy, placed in a hat box with a bright red ribbon round its neck. The woman, “Darling”, names her Lady. Soon, it is time for Lady to go to bed in the kitchen, but she doesn’t want to be alone, so after hours of barking, crying, and attempts at escape, she successfully climbs the stairs to their bedroom, and is allowed to sleep on their bed. The movie then skips six months to find Lady still sleeping on their bed, and waking the couple up early every morning, including on Sundays, where she begins her daily routine of fetching “Jim Dear’s” slippers, burying bones, chasing rats out of the garden, and fetching the paper, which gets ripped as she pulls it through her dog door, followed by coffee and doughnuts – not something I think would be recommended for a dog’s breakfast these days!

Soon after, Darling gets Lady a new blue collar and a license, which all dogs in their area need to avoid being sent to the pound. Lady shows off her new collar to neighbourhood friends, Jock, a Scottie dog, and Trusty, an elderly bloodhound. The next day, across town, we see a mongrel waking up in the railway yard, Tramp, before going to a nearby restaurant, Tony’s, where the owners give him leftover bones to eat. He rescues his friends from a dog catcher who is en route to the pound, before stumbling into Lady’s part of town, the posh residential streets. Tramp overhears Lady talking to Jock and Trusty about how Jim Dear and Darling are acting strangely, generally ignoring her, calling her “that dog”. Jock and Trusty figure that Darling must be expecting a baby, with them telling Lady that babies are cute and special. Tramp comes in to correct them, telling Lady that a baby is the worst thing to happen to a dog’s home, and that she’ll be replaced as soon as it arrives. Lady doesn’t know what to believe but over the next six months, she notices many changes to their house, before the baby finally arrives. Lady is curious to know what a baby is and finds her way to the baby’s room where Jim Dear and Darling introduce her to their new born son. Lady decides that actually babies are cute, and this will be fine.

Then, Aunt Sarah arrives to look after the baby while Jim Dear and Darling are away. She doesn’t much like Lady, finding her a nuisance and a threat to the baby. When Sarah’s cats, Si and Am, who she brought with her, start to try and eat the family’s canary and goldfish, Lady stops them and fights them off, causing a total mess, with curtains ripped, water spilt and furniture destroyed. Sarah sees her cats (pretending to be) injured and decides the only way to fix this dangerous dog is to put a muzzle on her. Whilst at the pet store, Lady is scared and runs away, still with the muzzle and lead attached, almost getting runover by cars and wagons, and then finding herself in an alley, where dogs try to attack her. Luckily, Tramp arrives to save her, and sneaks her into the zoo to find an animal to remove the muzzle for her. After an alligator almost bites Lady’s head off, they settle for a beaver, who is sold on the muzzle being used as a log-pulling device for his work-in-progress dam.

After this, Tramp tells Lady that he doesn’t have just one family, but multiple ones who he visits for dinner on different days during the week, getting a new cuisine each day. Which reminds him that it’s time for dinner. Tramp takes Lady to Tony’s restaurant, where the owner, Tony, and chef Joe, make a fuss of the couple who are on their first date, feeding them spaghetti and meatballs and singing a romantic song for them, “Bella Notte”. The two continue their evening in the park, settling down for the night. The next morning, Lady is anxious that she didn’t return home last night. Tramp wants her to trade in that domestic life for one of freedom and adventure with him, but she wants to go home to look after the baby. On the way, though, Tramp decides he wants to chase chickens from a farmer’s coop. Lady doesn’t, but Tramp sets about it anyway, making the farmer mad, who starts shooting at them. Tramp and Lady run, but Lady is caught by the dog catcher and taken to the pound.

At the pound, Lady is teased by the stray dogs for her license, with Peg, a Pekingese dog, and Boris, a Russian hunting dog, leaping to her defence, saying she’ll be on her way home soon and that the others are just jealous. They live in fear of the day they must take “the long walk”. We see a shadow of a human leading a dog down the corridor, presumably on his way to be “put down”…Then, the strays mention knowing Tramp, telling Lady that he has a weakness for the ladies, and listing off his numerous girlfriends. Lady is annoyed, but is picked up by Aunt Sarah to go home before she can find out anymore. Sarah chains Lady up in the doghouse in the garden as punishment for running off. Jock and Trusty come over and offer to marry her so she can leave this abusive house. She declines, just as Tramp arrives. Lady talks with him, telling him she knows about “Trixie and Fifi and all the others”, and that she doesn’t want to see him again. Tramp reluctantly leaves. Lady then sees a black rat climbing up into the house, sneaking in through the window in the baby’s room. Lady barks to try and stop it but it doesn’t. Tramp comes back to help her, and rushes into the house to fight this rat. Lady manages to break her chain and comes to his aid. The rat is killed by Tramp, however, in the chaos, the baby’s crib is overturned. Sarah believes they tried to attack the baby, and Tramp is taken to the pound.

At this moment, Jim Dear and Darling return, releasing Lady from the cellar, who shows them the rat that tried to attacked the baby. Jock and Trusty overhear this and follow the dog catcher’s wagon to save Tramp, who they were wrong about. Jim Dear and Lady follow. Trusty and Jock try to get the wagon to stop, but spook the horses and the wagon tips, with Trusty hit by one of the wheels. He lies motionless on the ground…The movie ends at Christmas, with Tramp now a member of the family, and him and Lady having had a litter of four puppies, three girls like Lady, and one boy like Tramp. The dogs get on well with the baby. Then, they see some visitors walking up the path – Jock, in a tartan waistcoat, and Trusty, who just has an injured leg from the incident. The film ends with all of them celebrating together.

CHARACTERS & CAST

The “Juliet” character in Lady and the Tramp is Lady, the pampered, golden cocker spaniel who lives on one of the most upmarket streets in town. Because of this background, she is quite naïve and is scared of the world around her whenever she leaves her comfy house. Lady is a caring dog though, and very protective of her owners, and their new born baby when it comes along. She even tries to fight a huge evil rat to save it, and not forgetting the mischievous cats who want to eat and destroy anything in their sights! Unfortunately, I find Lady a bit one-sided, which is why Tramp was a necessary character to come into the movie, but I think she’s just a bit too sweet, and a bit too naïve, that I start to find her annoying after a while! Though I do like her opening sequence with Jim Dear and Darling, both as a puppy, because she’s so cute as a puppy, and as she’s older doing her “normal routine”. But as the movie progresses, I don’t find her particularly interesting. Barbara Luddy voices Lady, with Lady and the Tramp being Luddy’s first Disney voice credit, although she would later voice characters in subsequent Disney animated features, including Merryweather, in Sleeping Beauty (1959) and Kanga in the Winnie the Pooh series.

Tramp, therefore, is the roguish “Romeo” character. He lives a very different life to Lady, having to fend for himself most of the time, scavenging and begging for food, and having to dodge the dog catcher frequently. He’s a loyal friend to his fellow strays, risking himself to free them from the pound in one section. Tramp also tells it like it is, not wanting to sugar-coat the potential fallout that Lady could experience from this new baby coming into her cosy life, whether that makes him unpopular or not. And, despite the fact I hate Tramp’s pet name for Lady – “pigeon”, come on, really? – he does genuinely care about her. So, of the two, I find Tramp the most interesting; he’s the lovable bad boy, who turns good after meeting his perfect girl – that’s the foundation that most romcoms are built on! Tramp is voiced by Larry Roberts. He had been active in the Hollywood theatre scene, but retired from show business altogether in the 1950s. Lady and the Tramp was his only film credit. Walt Disney settled on the name of “Tramp”; the character had been called Homer, Rags, and Bozo before that. Walt Disney went with it against the objections of the majority of the team who felt the word had negative connotations attached to it. The live-action reference model for Tramp was spotted on story artist Erdman Penner’s way home. He found the dog in a local pound a few hours later, and rescued the dog. Everyone agreed he had the right look for Tramp – though they were later shocked to find it was a female dog! The dog then lived out the rest of her days at Disneyland’s Pony Farm with the Popes, who managed the Disneyland horses.

Then, there are Jock and Trusty, Lady’s neighbour friends. Jock and Trusty are quite protective of Lady, who feel like Lady is being led astray by Tramp, and being neglected at home. I like the first scene where we are introduced to them, especially Jock’s song where he’s singing about burying his “bonnie bones”, because he’s a Scottie dog, so naturally he has a strong Scottish accent! Trusty is a sweet, old dog, who we are led to believe has lost his sense of smell, though he still likes to track and hunt things. He shows everyone they’re wrong at the end of the movie though, when he follows that dog catcher wagon! I like these two; it’s a shame they don’t feature in the movie much. Jock is voiced by Bill Thompson, a veteran Disney voice artist who had also voiced the characters of Scrooge McDuck, and Mr. Smee in Peter Pan (1953). Thompson also voiced Bull the English bulldog, and Dachsie the dachshund, in the pound. Trusty is voiced by Bill Baucom.

There are multiple other dogs in the scene at the pound, with Pedro, Boris and Peg being the other “main ones”. Peg was originally going to be called Mame, as she has a big fringe, like President Eisenhower’s wife, Mamie. However, they felt this could be offensive so they named her after Peggy Lee, her voice artist, instead. Eric Larson had a great time animating Peg, as Peggy Lee was a big inspiration to the animation of the character. Pedro, a Chihuahua, and Toughy, a stray mutt with a Brooklyn accent, are voiced by Dallas McKennon, who is also the voice of Benjamin Franklin in The American Adventure show at Epcot in Orlando. Boris is a Borzoi, or Russian Hunting Sighthound, who naturally sounds incredibly Russian! Boris was going to have a much bigger role in Lady and the Tramp at one point, as him and “Homer”, the character that would later become Tramp as we know him, would’ve been neighbours, with them both fighting for Lady’s attention. Boris was a show-off, narcissistic dog, who couldn’t stop talking about himself, which was off-putting to Lady! Alan Reed, the original voice of Fred Flintstone, voices Boris. It’s a shame that we don’t see more of these dogs in the pound, because I feel like they would’ve been able to be funnier if they’d had more screen time; they seem like a random addition or afterthought.

For the remaining characters, one is Aunt Sarah. She already doesn’t like Lady before she even gets into the house, and keeps Lady outside for most of the time. I don’t think she is meant to be evil or mean-spirited; she’s just trying to do her job as the babysitter, after all, and I think she is generally upset when she realises Lady and Tramp were trying to save the baby from a rat at the end, knowing she’s got things all wrong. I don’t think she is forgiven by Jim Dear and Darling, as she is noticeably absent from the Christmas celebrations… Disney veteran voice artist Verna Felton voices Aunt Sarah. She had previously been the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella (1950), and the Queen of Hearts in Alice in Wonderland (1951). She would also voice Flora to Luddy’s Merryweather a few years later for Sleeping Beauty (1959). Felton’s son, Lee Carson Millar Jr., voices Jim Dear, with Peggy Lee voicing Darling. They are a well-meaning couple, who naturally become distracted by their new baby, and accidentally forget Lady at times, though they come together at the end[2].

One other character that I like is the beaver at the zoo. It’s a fun scene, one of the few others I like, where the beaver is being sold Lady’s muzzle as a log puller. The beaver is easily persuaded, and removes the muzzle so he can use it, even offering to pay, but is given it as a free sample. Walt Disney wanted the beaver to have a lispy, whistling sound to his voice. Stan Freberg, the voice artist, couldn’t quite do the whistle at all the right points, so held a whistle under his lips whilst recording his lines to make just the right noise!

PRODUCTION

The story used for Lady and the Tramp was an original story idea, with the first iteration of it being considered in 1937. Story artist Joe Grant came up with the first idea, being inspired by his own dog, a springer spaniel, named Lady Nell the Second. She had championship credentials but was not suited to the dog show business life so became a domesticated pet. When Grant and his wife had their first baby, they found that Lady was a good nanny and looked after the baby. This gave Grant story ideas and situations for the movie. This version of the story involved Lady being a pet to “Mister Fred” and “Missis”, with the baby already being six months old. The grandmother came to stay with her two Siamese cats, leaving Lady to protect the canary, Trilby, from being eaten by them. Lady was blamed for attacking the baby and was put out in the rain. Mister Fred later found pieces of lace and ribbons in the cats’ claws, and realised that it was them that had done the damage. The grandmother and her cats left the house, and Lady was welcomed back in[3].

Walt Disney did not like this idea. He thought Lady was the issue, as she was just a charming, sweet dog, with nothing much to her, and with little to no conflict for the story to take off. It was put on hold. This could’ve been the end to the whole thing, as so many stories end up being put on hold and destined to fade away. That would seem to have been the likeliest fate for Grant’s story, as World War II began just a couple of years later, with Disney resources then being devoted to making war effort training films for the government. After the war, society changed quickly, and television became the new exciting form of entertainment, leaving filmmakers unsure where this left them[4]. In the mid-1940s, Walt Disney was inspired by a short story he’d read in Cosmopolitan magazine, when it was a literary magazine, called “Happy Dan, the Whistling Dog”, which was published in 1943. Walt met with the writer, Ward Greene, to discuss his story, and specifically the main canine character, further. Walt wanted to combine this carefree dog with the delicate, lady-like spaniel from Grant’s original version of the story. The main bulk of the storyline was worked through, with Greene publishing the first edition novel in 1953 with the title: “Lady and the Tramp: The Story of Two Dogs”. It included illustrations from Disney story man Joe Rinaldi. The novel was published prior to the movie being completed so that audiences could become familiar with the story before the film’s release, as many of the animated films that had come earlier were based on known children’s books or fairy-tales. Despite using elements from Joe Grant’s original story idea, Ward Greene is credited as the sole writer. Joe Grant left the studio in 1949, though he would return in the 1989, and contribute to many of the Disney “Renaissance” films.

There were many changes to the movie during its production. One of the biggest ones is that Trusty was meant to die after being crushed by the dog catcher’s wagon. Walt Disney had been considering whether the scene was too intense, as he was not wanting to receive the backlash he had received when Bambi’s mother died in Bambi (1942). Walt was also influenced by Peggy Lee who said that people would be devasted if Trusty died, meaning that he was added into the final Christmas scene at the end of the movie as a surprise “twist”. There was going to be a sequence reminiscent of “Pink Elephants on Parade” from Dumbo (1941), with Lady having a nightmare where baby booties continued to multiply around her. She would then wake up to find the baby had been born. There were some minor changes as well, such as Aunt Sarah’s cats being named Si and Am instead of Nip and Tuck; Jim Dear and Darling becoming the new names of Lady’s owners, based on what she would hear them being called instead of their actual, full names; and Aunt Sarah being less of an evil character.

One change that many people will be glad to see did not happen was the iconic spaghetti-eating scene. Walt didn’t like it and wanted to cut the whole scene, as he felt it was awkward and unromantic. Disney veteran artist Frank Thomas was determined to win Walt over with this scene, and spent a lot of time looking at dogs eating spaghetti, sketching how it could look, and how it would work. Walt must have been convinced because it stayed, and is one of the most recognisable, iconic scenes in any Disney animated movie[5].

Another aspect of Lady and the Tramp’s initial story that is disputed is the legend of whether Walt Disney actually gave his wife a puppy for Christmas, disguising it in a hat box. Some people don’t believe it to be true, believing this “spark” for the movie was used as a story-telling device for interviews and not based in fact; others have mixed up elements of the story so it isn’t recounted consistently. Walt Disney himself stated that he’d always wanted a dog, however his wife, Lillian, was reluctant to have one, especially as dogs can shed hair everywhere. Walt did some research and found that Chows do not shed so much, so he bought a Chow puppy a few weeks before Christmas, keeping it hidden from Lillian, until Christmas Day when he put the puppy into a hat box, and tied a ribbon around it. Lillian was annoyed, as she believed the present to be a hat, and didn’t like anyone buying her hats, but luckily, it was the Chow puppy and Lillian loved it, naming it Sunnee[6]. I believe this story to be true, and as it happened so many years before the movie was even in production, that it is not only factual, but clearly helped Walt with situational ideas for the movie, with the whole opening sequence referencing the Christmas present to Lillian.

The inspiration from the movie is taken partly from Walt’s childhood in Marceline, Missouri. Lady and the Tramp was released at a time of big societal and political changes in the 1950s, so this gave audiences an opportunity to almost long for the simpler times. Disney wanted to make Lady and the Tramp so full of detail of the bygone era of turn-of-the-century America that it evoked nostalgia in people, and would get people interested in it for that “Americana” feeling. Disney also tried the new “big thing” for movie theatres: CinemaScope. This meant that backgrounds needed to be stretched to fill this new widescreen layout, with characters being spread out to fill space, and additional details being added to backgrounds, giving them more chance to experiment with the larger canvas. The only problem was not every theatre had CinemaScope so Disney actually had to make two versions of the movie to cover all bases! The CinemaScope format only lasted from 1953 to 1967.

MUSIC

The music played an important part in Lady and the Tramp, as it had to tell the story and work well with the animation, without overpowering it. The background score was composed by English composer Oliver Wallace, with songs being written by Sonny Burke and Peggy Lee. Lee performs three of the songs, and voices four characters in the movie: Si, Am, Peg, and Darling. She was very pleased to work with Burke and Disney on the movie. There is also a small performance by The Mellomen, who perform as the dog quartet in the pound. It’s fascinating to think of humans howling like dogs, and keeping it all in key but it gets a bit annoying after a while! The Mellomen were used by Disney for both film soundtracks, like Peter Pan (1953), as pirates and Indians, as well as Disney theme park attractions, such as the “singing busts” in The Haunted Mansion.

Oliver Wallace joined Disney in the 1930s, and composed the score for Dumbo (1941), for which he won the Oscar for Best Original Score. He worked with Disney for many years, doing the film scores for many of the Disney animated films that came after that, with Lady and the Tramp being his last one, though he would still score some of Disney’s live-action movies until his death in 1963. I really like the score for Lady and the Tramp, particularly the music that plays during the first fifteen or so minutes of the film, as it’s bouncy and joyful, matching the optimism of a dog’s life being full of possibility and no worries. The dramatic music at the end really helps build tension for the scene of them trying to rescue Tramp too. Wallace gave a nod to Victorian era and marching band music in this score, to match the setting and sentimental feel of the movie[7].

As for the songs, I am not a big fan of any of them, other than “Bella Notte”, though I only like when Joe and Tony sing it; I don’t like the whispery choir that sings it afterwards during the evening in the park scene! The other songs that Lee and Burke co-wrote were “Peace on Earth”, which plays during the opening sequence. I find it kind of haunting, which I don’t like because this is meant to be a happy scene; and “He’s a Tramp”, which is performed by Peggy Lee, as the burlesque “Dog and Pony Follies” former show dog Peg. It’s not a terrible song, as it is quite catchy but it’s a bit too burlesque-like for an animated movie, I think, so it feels a bit awkward to watch. “The Siamese Cat Song” is another one that is kind of awkward to watch these days, due to its stereotypical undertones. It’s not a great song, anyway, not really doing anything for the film; it’s just a comic way of introducing the two cats, who don’t even feature much! Lee enjoyed working on it though, and had a lot of freedom with how the cats would sound, and what sound effects could be used, choosing a mixture of bells, chimes and cymbals to accompany the music. Then there’s “La La Lu”, the lullaby that Darling sings, which is currently being used in a John Lewis advert in the UK. It’s alright, but it’s a bit grating after a while, for me!

Peggy Lee would sue Disney in 1988 over Lady and the Tramp for due royalties. She was embarrassed during an interview in 1987, when she realised that Disney had allowed Robie Lester to cover her song, “The Siamese Cat Song”, and change some of the lyrics. After a lengthy legal battle, the case was settled in 1991, with Lee winning $2.3 million, but the case did Lee no favours with her already frail health. She was not happy with the outcome and planned to write a book about the incident, but never did. Lee died in 2002.

RECEPTION

Lady and the Tramp was released in June 1955, one month before Walt’s dream theme park Disneyland opened in Anaheim, California. Some of the setting for the movie turned out to be inspiration for some of the Main Street, U.S.A, area of Disneyland, due in part to some of the film’s animators pulling in to help finish the park. Lady and the Tramp took four years and $4 million dollars to make. This was a huge amount of money considering that the Disney company were also building Disneyland at this time[8]. The movie received mixed reviews, with one review from The New York Times stating that the movie was “sentimental”, detailing a “conventional romance”, with nothing surprising. They found some scenes amusing, such as the burlesque-like dogs, and the funny Siamese cats, as well as appreciating the music in the movie. However, it did also state that the CinemaScope view of the movie magnified flaws in the animation[9]. Other reviews were more positive, saying that the characters were well-done, including the multiple different dialogues and accents, and that the artistic approach was beautiful. Walt Disney won one award for the movie, Best Foreign Producer at the David di Donatello awards in 1956, and received a BAFTA award nomination for Best Animated Film that same year, but got no “Oscar nods”.

LEGACY

As well as the movie inspiring architecture at Disneyland, and the theme parks that would follow, Tony’s Town Square Restaurant, themed to Lady and the Tramp and serving Italian fare, exists at Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World, within Main Street, U.S.A, and the town square. There are also two pairs of paw prints pressed into the cement around the restaurant, which is a nod to the scene of Lady and Tramp doing this during their evening in the park. You can also find topiaries of the two leading canines at the Italy Pavilion in Epcot during the annual Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival. At Disneyland Paris, you can eat at Pizzeria Bella Notte, a quick service restaurant also serving Italian fare, and themed to Lady and the Tramp.

Lady and the Tramp was “lucky enough” to receive a live-action/CGI remake adaptation, which I have not, and will not watch, but if you liked it, then fair enough! There are too many of these remakes, and I don’t think they ever improve on the original, however, the live-action remake in this case, Lady and the Tramp (2019), did go some way to dealing with some issues that have not aged particularly well from the original movie. This includes the removal of the stereotypical accents of the animals, including Si and Am who were replaced as two Devon Rex cats, with the song changed. The film is set in New Orleans, and includes a more diverse cast. It was released exclusively on Disney’s streaming service, Disney+, on 12^th November 2019[10]. There was also a direct-to-video sequel released in 2001 titled Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp’s Adventure, which follows Lady and Tramp’s son, who we see at the end of the original movie. Scamp runs away from home to join a pack of stray dogs called the “Junkyard Dogs”. I vaguely remember watching this and I think I liked it, but I can’t recall most of the plot!

FINAL THOUGHTS

Nowadays, Lady and the Tramp is a beloved classic for many. For me, I still don’t enjoy watching Lady and the Tramp, and wouldn’t choose to watch it. I think it’s quite boring in places, and doesn’t really get particularly deep into a story; it’s mostly just different situations and sequences put together to make a feature-length film. But I know plenty of people like it, and it has some particularly iconic scenes and moments that stick with viewers. There are some sequences that I like, and I agree that the world would be a much less romantic place if it weren’t for that well-loved moment of Lady and Tramp accidentally sharing a kiss over a plate of spaghetti and meatballs!

As the movie states after the opening credits, a quote by Josh Billings: “so it is to all dogs – be they ladies or tramps that this picture is respectfully dedicated.” Lady and the Tramp is a story of love, both romantic and familial, and shows us just how important our pets are to us, and we are to them, especially the bond between humans and dogs.

But please remember, dogs are for life – not just for Christmas!

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Jim Fanning, The Disney Book: A Celebration of the World of Disney (2016), ‘Cache of Classics’, p. 73.

[2] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt Volume 3 (2014), ‘Lady and the Tramp’, pp. 87-95.

[3] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt Volume 3 (2014), ‘Lady and the Tramp’, pp. 87-95.

[4] Credit: Frank Teurlay, ‘Recap: Lady and the Tramp – A Technical Triumph’, The Walt Disney Family Museum (online), 28^th May 2014.

[5] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt Volume 3 (2014), ‘Lady and the Tramp’, pp. 87-95.

[6] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt Volume 7 Christmas Edition (2018), ‘Walt’s Christmas Puppy’, pp. 23-25.

[7] Credit: Disney, Lady’s Pedigree: The Making of Lady and the Tramp (2006).

[8] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt Volume 3 (2014), ‘Lady and the Tramp’, pp. 87-95.

[9] Credit: Bosley Crowther, ‘Screen: Dogs and Lovers; Disney’s ‘Lady and the Tramp’ at Roxy’, The New York Times Archives (online), 24^th June 1955.

[10] Credit: Monica Castillo, ‘Lady and the Tramp’, RogerEbert.com (online), 11^th November 2019.