Toon Talk: Top Ten of 2004
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(c) Disney
#9 - THE PRINCESS DIARIES 2: ROYAL
ENGAGEMENT
Walt Disney Pictures
And
(c) Disney
#10 - ELLA ENCHANTED
Miramax
While other teen queens got mired in unseemly public feuds, bad movies and unlistenable pop albums, Anne Hathaway rose above her contemporaries in a darling double feature that poises her as her generation’s answer to Audrey Hepburn, with a little Lucille Ball thrown in for good measure. Royal Engagement re-teamed her with her Princess pals for a romantic romp, while Ella proved that she can not only thrive outside of Genovia, but that dang that girl can sing!
Honorable Mention:
ONE BY ONE
‘Bonus’ Short
Out of the two new additions to Disney DVDs this year, Deleted Songs and New Bonus Shorts, the latter certainly outclass the former (which mostly just prove why they were deleted in the first place). The best of these new shorts was found on the Lion King II Special Edition, hidden amongst the Timon and Pumbaa games, an irresistible musical gem, rescued from the abandoned Fantasia III project, that literally soars with wonder and awe.
Special Thanks…
… To all the artists and filmmakers who have contributed to Disney films and video this year, with special mentions to:
Julie Andrews, Roseanne Barr, Brad “Edna�? Bird, Patricia Clarkson, Sean Connery, Andreas Deja, Judi Dench, Karen Dotrice, Hector Elizondo, Cuba Gooding Jr., Anne Hathaway, Holly Hunter, Nathan Lane, k.d. lang, Leonard Maltin, Alan Menken, Rick Moranis, Viggo Mortensen, Craig T. Nelson, Clive Owen, Randy Quaid, Bonnie Raitt, Ernie Sabella, Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman, Glenn “Avocado�? Slater, Dave Thomas, Billy Bob Thornton, Jennifer Tilly, Dick Van Dyke and Patrick Wilson.
Coming Soon … in 2005:
In theaters*:
- James Cameron goes under the sea once more with the IMAX release Aliens of the Deep (January 28).
- Winnie the Pooh and friends return once more to the big screen in Pooh’s Heffalump Movie (February 24).
- Vin Diesel takes on a new job - babysitter - in The Pacifier (March 4).
- Ewan McGregor will be very busy next year … or at least his voice will be, with two computer-animated comedies: Blue Skies’ Robots (March 11) and Vanguard’s Valiant (April 15).
- Michelle Trachtenberg aspires to figure skating stardom in Ice Princess (March 18).
- Don’t panic! Douglas Adams’ cult classic novel The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy finally makes its big-screen debut (May 6).
- Two Disney stars, Herbie the Love Bug and Lindsay Lohan, team-up for the first time in Herbie: Fully Loaded (June 3).
- A school for super-heroes is the setting for Sky High, starring Kurt Russell and Kelly Preston (August TBA).
- Everyone’s favorite Oscar-winning Claymation characters make their feature debut in Aardman Animation’s The Wallace and Gromit Movie: The Curse of the Wererabbit (October 7).
- The sky is falling! Disney’s own computer-animated comedy, Chicken Little (November 4).
- Hoping for its own Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter, Disney adapts the first book in the C.S. Lewis classic series, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (December 9).
- Other films scheduled for 2005: The Shaggy Dog remake starring Tim Allen, The Greatest Game Ever Played, Glory Road and Annapolis, release dates TBA.
On video and DVD*:
- Four volumes of the new Walt Disney Cartoon Classics series, starring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and Chip ‘n’ Dale (January 11). Other upcoming collections include Growing Up with Winnie the Pooh (February 8), various Disney Princess titles (February 15), Playhouse Disney: JoJo’s Circus and Disney Learning Adventures (both March 22).
- Recent live action favorites: M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village (January 11), Bernie Mac in Mr. 3000 (February 1), Rene Zellweger in Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, John Travolta in Ladder 49 (both March 8), the Robert Redford narrated Sacred Planet (April 5) and Nicholas Cage in National Treasure (TBA).
- Next year’s slate of video premieres will bring a double feature set of Aladdin: The Return of Jafar and Aladdin and the King of Thieves (January 18) as well as the brand new Mulan II (February 1). Other possible new sequels for 2005: Lilo and Stitch II (may be released theatrically), The Emperor’s Newer Groove and Tarzan II.
- Three Studio Ghibli titles make their U.S. DVD special edition DVD debuts: The Cat Returns, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind and Porco Rosso (February 22). The classic My Neighbor Totoro may also be released next year in a two-disc set.
- Not one, but two Platinum Edition DVDs will be released in 2005: the highly awaited Bambi (March 1) and Cinderella (August 4).
- More favorite TV series box sets: Felicity: Season 4, Popular: Season 2 and Sweet Valley High: Season 1 (all March 8). Also next year, release date TBA: The Golden Girls: Season 2, Home Improvement: Season 2, Boy Meets World: Season 3 and, at last, The Muppet Show: Season 1.
- The Incredibles flies onto DVD with a special two-disc edition (March 15).
- Catalog releases will include The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin, The Barefoot Executive, Million Dollar Duck and Lt. Robinson Crusoe, U.S.N. (all April 5).
- Other possible titles for 2005: two-disc special editions of Pocahontas, Lilo and Stitch and Dumbo; Tiger Town; the original The Shaggy Dog and its sequel The Shaggy D.A.; Dr. Syn, Alias the Scarecrow; the Oscar-nominated short Destino; Duck Tales: The Movie - Treasure of the Lost Lamp; and the next wave of Walt Disney Treasure titles, rumored to include the True-Life Adventures series and a collection of assorted shorts, as well as the next volumes for Donald Duck and Pluto.
* All release dates subject to change.
So be sure to ‘toon’ in to Toon Talk in 2005!
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-- Kirby C. Holt
-- Logo by William C Searcy, Magic Bear Graphics
Kirby is a lifelong Disney fan and film buff. He is also an avid list maker and chronic ellipsis user ...
Took Talk: Disney Film & Video Reviews by Kirby C. Holt is posted whenever there's something new to review.
The opinions expressed by our Kirby C. Holt, and all of our columnists, do not necessarily represent the feelings of LaughingPlace.com or any of its employees or advertisers. All speculation and rumors about the future plans of the Walt Disney Company are just that - speculation and rumors - and should be treated as such.
-- Posted December 31, 2004