Between Books - Disney Maps: A Magical Atlas of the Movies We Know and Love

 

Disney Maps: A Magical Atlas of the Movies We Know and Love is a book I struggled to match an audience with.  The book is fairly simple.  The book highlights 24 movies from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to Coco.  For each movie featured is a two-page fun map with landmarks and geography from the movie.  There is a page of movie highlights and facts.  And there is a page of characters.  The book also contains a forward by Pete Docter discussing the importance of geography in telling stories.

So who is the audience.  The most basic answer is kids.  The maps and images are fun.  And the facts are fairly simple, like Wikipedia simple.  But the price point of the book at around $20 is really not something that screams buy this for the kids.  The audience is not the adult Disney fan.  The art is cute and interesting, but it is not art of historical significance or produced by Disney legends.  It is just cute and sometimes interesting art.  An adult reader like me might get lost in the art trying to make sense of it at times, I mean Radiator Springs is perfect but the scale is fantastical for The Incredibles.  So maybe one should not take it so serious.  I also attempted to play Where’s Waldo with some of the character pages collating them with the map.  But honestly they were mostly way to easy to find.  To me the audience fit at the moment are adults buying a gift for a child under five and want to give a handsome looking volume with engaging images. 

In the end, as an adult Disney fan, this was cute but did not provide history or insight for me.  And for kids, the price point is a little too high.  Perhaps a cheaper soft cover would make this title find its true audience a little easier.  And also that could get more adults to buy this volume as a gift.  

 

This post contains affiliate links, which means that Between Disney receives a percentage of sales purchased through links on this site.  

 

Mousey Movies - Fantastic Four

Before Pixar was founded, before The Incredibles was a glimmer in Brad Bird’s eyes, before Disney purchased Marvel, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby introduced the world to the Fantastic Four.  Debuting in 1961, Marvel comics brought us the first family of Superheroes.  After an accident in space during an experiment, four astronauts underwent physical transformations that made them truly super.  Dr. Reed Richards or Mr. Fantastic developed the ability to stretch and contort his body into multiple shapes, like Mrs. Incredible.  Susan Storm or Invisible Girl developed the ability to become invisible and project force fields, like Violet.  Richards’ best friend Ben Grimm’s body transformed into rock and became super strong taking the name The Thing, strength being shared with Mr. Incredible.  And Johnny Storm or the Human Torch could turn himself into fire and fly, kind of like an anti-Frozone.  Yes, there are a ton of similarities between the superhero families.  Luckily now that Pixar and Marvel are all part of the same family there is no fear of any legal entanglements! 

In 2005, Marvel and 20^th Century Fox brought the Fantastic Four to the big screen, in the movie Fantastic Four, providing both the origin of the team and showcasing their struggle against Doctor Doom.  I was really hopeful for this film.  The cast had my attention.  I had become a fan of Ioan Gruffudd in the Hortio Hornblower movies, movies that led me to read the entire book series.  And I had really enjoyed Julian McMahon (Doctor Doom) on Charmed, yeah I had watched Charmed!  And it was a superhero movie during a time when I pretty much went to any superhero movie.  And The Incredibles had just come out the year before making me open to the original family.  These things helped me overcome my lack of love for the Fantastic Four, Reed Richards has always been a character I was meh about.  Financially it fared well at the box office which led to the green light of a sequel. 

But for most fans the Fantastic Four was a miss.  I think there are a number of reasons for this result.  First, the Fantastic Four just did not have the fan base of other teams like the X-Men.  And though people came out to see the movie the performances were at times underwhelming.  There is a least one character (who’s indemnity I will protect) to me who seems to be sleep walking through the story. 

Yet, despite the fact that Marvel and Disney were not linked yet, there are still plenty of ties that make this a Mousey Movie:           

·         Cap:  Johnny Storm is pretty much a jerk and Ben Grimm is often a target of his pranks.  At one point he walks into a locker room and startles Grimm into attention by yelling, “Captain on the Deck.”  The irony of this line is that Johnny Storm is played by Chris Evans who would later play another Marvel superhero as the lead in Captain America: The First Avenger.  My guess, and I really mean certainty, is that with Evans ruling the box office in his Captain America projects and The Avengers that the future of this cast in any future Fantastic Four projects is non-existent. 

·         EXTREME:  Johnny along with being a jerk, also enjoys action sports.  He skies areas that have clearly not been cleared for tourists.  After Johnny’s powers manifest he decides to go out and blow off some steam.  Just like any other guy he grabs a motocross bike and performs some jumps at the X Games sponsored by Disney’s ESPN. 

·        Ordinary Hero: Actor Michael Chiklis has had a long relationship with Disney’s ABC.  His breakout roll was as the lead in ABC’s 1991 The Commish.  The Commish ended it’s run in 1996 the same year Disney purchased Capital Cities/ABC.  The show starring Chiklis allowed him to show his range delivering both comedy and drama.  He would later reach greater acclaim leading another police drama The Shield, for FX.   In 2010 having played Ben Grimm in two Fantastic Four movies, Chiklis returned to ABC and the concept of a superhero family in No Ordinary Family.  Chiklis instead of portraying the Frozone character as the buddy took his turn as the Mr. Incredible head of the family, matching super strength.  Sadly, the show failed to find an audience and was cancelled during its first season.  I say sadly, but I have to admit that the show failed to catch on in the Between Household.        

 

·         Lieutenant:  As noted early it was Gruffudd’s work in the Hortio Hornblower franchise that made me think I might really enjoy Fantastic Four.  He brought Hornblower alive from me playing the young British Royal Navy officer both smart and likeable.  Much of Gruffudd’s work, like Hornblower, is British film and television work with him not catching on in the United States as much as I would like.  He does have some Disney connections.  First, he is Harold Godfrey Lowe, the Fifth Officer, in James Cameron’s blockbuster Titanic, an officer lucky enough to survive and pull Rose out of the water.  Okay, the ties between Gruffudd and Avatarland are pretty tenuous.  His true Disney connection is 102 Dalmatians, where he plays Kevin Shepherd, the owner of an animal shelter setup by Cruella de Vil, played by Glenn Close, for the theft of Dalmatian puppies in another attempt to make a spotted coat.  Honestly, as much as I enjoy Gruffudd, I cannot remember if I have ever seen this movie!        

·         The Architect:  I have said it several times about the DC movie franchises, they need a Kevin Fiege.  As the President of Production for Marvel Studios he oversees the film projects and with the Avengers Initiative ensures the films weave a cohesive story.  As Christopher Nolan ends his stint on Batman and a new Superman movie releases summer 2013 some fans ask if the DC universe will mesh together in the same way the Marvel Cinematic Universe does, due to Fiege.  The answer for DC could easily be no as they consider rebooting Batman.  Though not part of the Avengers Initiative, Fiege executive produces this offering.     

With everything going for it, and against it, the Between Family enjoyed Fantastic Four, despite compared to The Avengers it is fairly bland and nowhere as funny.  The Between Wife is not a comic book fan, yet she has been known to ask to watch Fantastic Four on family movie nights.  So those saying they did not see Fantastic Four in the theater are likely lying.  In the end, who can resist a movie that has a Stan Lee cameo and mirrors in live action The Incredibles, even if the cast at times appears to be phoning it in.  If you enjoy this Mousey Movie, please feel no shame in consuming this mindless flick!

Mousey Movie Review - The Avengers

I have been waiting years for the fulfillment of a promise.  In Iron Man Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury told us he was looking to get the Avengers together.  Now Marvel and Disney have paid off on this promise, and most fans will not be disappointed.  If you like action films, if you enjoy things going boom, and if you love superheroes, The Avengers is probably going to be a hit for you.  Here are my initial thoughts about the film after a very early morning viewing (as spoiler free as possible):

·         Laugh-o-Gram:  I underestimated how funny this movie was going to be.  Quick quips, puns, and fun dialogue are traditional comic book tools.  And we have seen some humor in the past films.  But in The Avengers the fun lines are ramped.  I really should have expected this because Joss Whedon wrote the story and screenplay.  Overall my experience with his work is limited.  But the one franchise of his that I love is Firefly which shares this type of witty dialogue.  I quote Firefly lines all the time!   I cannot really tell you all of the lines that clicked with the audience because I missed some payoffs because everyone was drowning out the audio laughing.  I do think Whedon gave the best lines to Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man who continues to shine in this role.   

·         Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.:  We have been introduced over the years to agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. including Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, Black Widow and Clint Barton/Hawkeye.  These agents have also been support but never the stars.  In a film with heavy hitters like Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and Hulk the characters that get the most development are these agents along with the newest member of S.H.I.E.L.D. Maria Hill.  With the big guys we have seen them developed in their own films, so it honestly fells like these are the characters who should be built out further.  Honestly, these are the characters you will probably look forward to the most in the future.    

·         Reality Check:  So villain wise this is probably the most ambitious of the non-human villains to date, therefore a ton more of CGI.  Yet I still felt like these alien invaders fit within our world and were believable.  I think an element that works to help establish reality are heroes with basic earthly weapons.  Having Black Widow and Hawkeye with guns and bows sprinkled throughout scenes with CGI villains and heroes helps to ground the image in our world.   

·         Fearless:  The Avengers breaks the expected conventions.  So be prepared for a ride.  In The Incredibles we get an education on some of these clichés, like monologuing for example.  In The Avengers the story breaks these clichés.  Characters do the things that you would want to do in the real world.  If this was a horror movie, somebody on the screen would say “hey don’t be foolish and walk into the woods unless you want to die first.”  And the story takes risks.  I had done a really good job avoiding spoilers and I am glad I did because within the first 15 minutes something I had not expected had happened and changed what I thought of the story rolling out in front of me.          

As a side note, The Avengers is not really a Mousey Movie except for links to the other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  But I will not be pointing fingers.  There is a lot happening in this film and I would not ask for them to force in hidden Mickeys just to impress a Disney fan!  No, I will take The Avengers as it is a popular and growing Disney franchise that we will love for years to come.  I am sure many of you will be assembling with your fellow avengers at a theater near you, maybe even for a second or third time. 

Mousey Movies - Mission Impossible - Ghost Protocol

Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol is a Mousey Movie…there I said it.   Was it produced by a Disney studio?  Nope!  Is it based on Disney park or story material?  Nope!   Were the other three installments mousey?  Not really!  Not every Mousey Movie gets produced by the House of Mouse my friends.  Regardless of its origins, this Tom Cruise led Paramount Pictures blockbuster has plenty for Disney fans to enjoy: 

·     Brad Bird: It all starts with director Brad Bird.  Bird is a well established animator and director of animated films.  He both wrote and directed Pixar’s The Incredibles and Ratatouille.  And Ghost Protocol has a fast paced action packed feel that would be very familiar to fans of The Incredibles.  He is clearly someone that Disney fans know and appreciate.  Ghost Protocol is his first live action picture and it’s a success.  Bird identifies with his animation and Pixar past as can be seen in his twitter name @BradBirdA113.  A113 is a classroom at CalArts where many Pixar staff were schooled.  A113 can be found in every Pixar movie as an easter egg.  Bird has also used A113 in non-Disney projects including this one.  A113 is used as both a code name and most strikingly on a prop that dominates the movie screen.  With Bird’s fingerprints this movie has a mousey feel.      

·     Jeremy Renner: Marvel is slowly but surely becoming more and more mousey as this relatively new addition gains prominence with Disney fans.  Renner plays William Brandt an analyst that gets added to Ethan Hunt’s (Cruise) Impossible Mission Force (IMF) Team. Renner also plays Hawkeye in the Marvel movies leading up to The Avengers.  And we have already seen Renner as Hawkeye in Thor, giving us two of the best minutes of that superhero film.  And I’m not even a Hawkeye guy. 

·     Michael Giacchino:  Mr. Giacchino is there nothing you can’t score?  Giacchino also scored Mission: Impossible III.  But for us Disney fans he is the current go to musical guy with The Incredibles, Sky High, Ratatouille, Up, Cars 2 and the future John Carter all within his credits.  That impressive list does not even include his ABC television productions.  And we cannot overlook the Disneyland version of Space Mountain’s score which may be my all-time favorite of his work.

·     J.J. Abrams: I have never watched Lost or Alias but these Abrams’ productions have been hits for ABC.  Abrams directed Mission: Impossible III and was a co-producer on this offering.  Between Brad Bird and Abrams, this staff was very familiar with Giacchino who has frequently collaborated with them.  Between these three creative forces Ghost Protocol really is a mousey party.    

·     Laminar Fountains:  What is it with me and jumping water?  In one scene the IMF attends a party at the home of an Indian telecommunications giant.  What does this rich gentleman decorate with….laminar fountains of course!  It just proves, you can bring a piece of Epcot home with you for the right price.  Or at least build a piece of Epcot.  I wonder what the Between family would think if we added this water feature to the living room!    

·     BMW i8: I’m not a car guy, in fact some of you may be laughing thinking about me as a car guy.  I’m not a Tron guy, and now more of you are laughing.  But the BMW i8, a hybrid concept car, needs to be taken out of Ghost Protocol and dropped into the Tron franchise. 

BMW i8

      As Ethan Hunt drives through the streets of Mumbai in this set of wheels I kept looking for it to be trailed by a light wall.  There needs to be a law that you can only drive the i8 driving a glowing jumpsuit. 

It’s true, not every Mousey Movie comes from the House of Mouse.  Out here in Between Disney we have look everywhere to find our connections back to Disney.  And with a movie like Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol that can be pretty easy to do.   

Mousey Movies - Chicken Little

Have you written off Disney’s 2005 Chicken Little?  I had, I found it okay, saw it in the theater and had bought it on DVD years later at a really discounted price.  It was crazy prized, I mean I would pay that just for the Disney Movie Reward points pricing.  Yet it simply was not a film I got excited about though I do love Scrubs’ Zach Braff.  Recently my kids pulled it out and I found myself shocked by all the Disney connections especially amongst the voice talent.

·     From the very opening Chicken Little pays tribute to other Disney movies as the narrator struggles with how to properly open his tale.  In that search that audience gets sound and visual lifts directly out of Lion King.  And he asks if he should use a book to open his story, instantly taking us to princesses and in my mind Sleeping Beauty.

·     Additional video is lifted from Raiders of the Lost Ark and shown at the Oakey Oaks movie theater in full live action glory.  The scene depicts Indiana Jones fleeing from a giant bolder and helps connect Disneyland fans to Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye.

·     Talk about a Disney flashback in this voice cast.  Joan Cusack plays Ugly Duckling, Abigail Ducktail Mallard.  I cannot but think of Jessie from the Toy Story franchise every time I heard her provide a line.  Wallace Shawn voices Principal Fetchit, who is slightly less grumpy than his Gilbert Huph from The Incredibles.  Don Knotts voices Mayor Turkey Lurkey.  Amongst his long and distinguished career, I remember his turn in Disney’s live action The Apple Dumpling Gang fondly from my childhood.  But my favorite two voices give me instant smiles.  Patrick Warburton voices an alien cop.  As someone who loves Soarin’ and Soarin’ Over California, among his other contributions, his voice instantly made me check to see if I had stowed my ear hat.  And Batman’s Adam West as the Hollywood version of Chicken Little was a complete surprise and brilliant.  I loved him in Meet the Robinsons but did not realize that he had done other voices for Disney.  Yeah, this voice cast is super Mousey. 

·     Story elements have a very Disney feel to it.  In fact one of the key themes is does Chicken Little’s father trust him, in fact at one point  he yells at him, “You can’t do this!”  Instantly my mind replaced the image of a father chicken with a father clown fish and I wandered mentally to Finding Nemo.  In fact, Chicken Little like Nemo and many Disney princesses comes from a one parent home.

I am still not in love with Chicken Little.  But I am coming to enjoy it more.  In fact I just have to say can you never go wrong with more Patrick Warburton and Steve Zahn.  As Zahn’s Runt of the Little states, “Just leave me some ammo, a little water, some chips if you have them.”  With those ingredients and a Mousey Movie, you have a night of family fun out here Between Disney.