But to my astonishment Bolt was actually pretty good. For everything going against it, I’d say it was remarkably good. The movie still has its problems, it felt less like great Disney and more above average Pixar, but I can’t believe Bolt of all things is actually Disney’s best animated film since Lilo & Stitch!
Bolt is the pet dog of a teen actress called Penny with whom he stars on a popular show about a dog with superpowers fighting crime in Los Angeles. The director feels that in order to get the best performance out of Bolt they have to convince him that the show is real, by not letting him see any crew-members, and with really tight special effects and stunt choreography. However when the network pressures the director into doing a cliffhanger wherein Penny is captured until the next episode, a stressed Bolt breaks out of his trailer and is accidentally shipped to New York. Believing he’s the heroic dog of the show, he embarks on a cross-country mission to rescue Penny with a cat hostage called Mittens and a hamster fan called Rhino.
You can easily see the similarities this movie has to the likes of Toy Story from that synopsis alone. Most of Bolt’s arc is pretty much the same as Buzz Lightyear’s, and Mittens’ alluded-to backstory …well if you’ve seen the Toy Story movies, you’ll find it familiar, if you don’t guess it early on. But if Bolt was just a rip-off of a much better Pixar film it wouldn’t work. It does set itself apart. For one, it’s really clever in the various ways the studio tricks Bolt into believing the world of the TV show. Stuff like training him to believe all cats are henchmen of his evil nemesis isn’t that creative, but Styrofoam being his kryptonite and his being fooled by mistaking the dailies for Penny are good touches. In this I also love how the catalyst for the plot is something as trivial as a network-sanctioned cliffhanger. The world of the show-within-a-show is distinctly modern despite the idea feeling like Hanna-Barbera; and while I don’t quite believe it would be a hit, it does make for something interesting and new, not least in the action and visuals. Part Superman dog, part Mission Impossible dog. And while the agents being assholes trope has been done for years, it’s still kind of enjoyable here. It shows Disney’s not above admitting to a little cynicism. But Bolt’s journey is the most interesting part of the story. Inevitably given the premise, you know Bolt’s going to learn he’s not really a super-dog; and without revealing how it comes about, I get how someone would have a problem with its pace, but I actually like it. For a subdued reaction, I think it’s mature and in keeping with the tone. And this film’s tone is pretty relaxed despite the fact it’s got some decent action and energy. There are scenes marked by a slow pace, but the road trip atmosphere is really wonderful. Oh and this is something I didn’t expect from Disney recently, good comedy! In fact more than that, some of the jokes and scenes have an edge to them I wouldn’t have expected from Disney. Like one bit where Bolt is dangling Mittens over a busy freeway, or when during a rescue attempt Bolt says “there’s a guard” to which Rhino responds “I’ll snap his neck”. There are a number of one-liners particularly from Rhino that get great laughs, but Mittens gets her fair share as well. There’s recurring pigeon characters who are funny, even if the initial trio we meet in New York are clearly ripping off the Goodfeathers from Animaniacs (their L.A. counterparts more than make up for it in what may be the film’s single funniest scene).
The movie does have a few irritating problems though. For as clever as they can be, you could have a field day nitpicking the hell out of the sheer mechanics of hiding the fictitious world from Bolt. It raises a lot of questions. Like how do they do scene transitions? And of course this means they have to film each episode in sequence. And where would they get that effects budget? There are other plot holes like how Bolt could possibly survive being transported across country in a box with no air-holes. And the ending bothers me a little in a few of the contrived and unnecessary choices they make.
Bolt is a surprisingly likeable character, his naïvety not only making for a funny personality, but the fact he’s not completely inept. He does have finesse and a certain degree of cunning, and even after he learns the truth, he’s no less brave. And in one scene at an RV park we see that he’s a capable actor (though how he doesn’t know his tummy growling and doesn’t really get “food” was pretty dumb). So he is worth investing in and John Travolta actually brings out the heart in this character successfully. It’s been a while since Travolta’s turned out a good performance, and this is a better one, even if it’s just his voice. Penny is a pretty generic teen star, so Miley Cyrus didn’t have far to go. A lot of focus is put on her relationship with Bolt, it’s his love for her that’s his motivator throughout, and while it’s nice, I don’t think it’s the heart of the film. His relationship with Mittens is much more endearing. Mittens is the best character in this movie. She starts off as a perfect foil for Bolt and their interactions are really fun. But as their relationship evolves on their cross country journey, it’s actually really sweet. In some ways she’s a stereotypical tough and sharp cynical female with a good heart, but when done well that’s a stereotype I personally like. If you can’t enjoy that though, there is still stuff to like about her. Again, like her really sympathetic backstory and some of her actions in the latter half of the film. And Susie Essman from Curb Your Enthusiasm is really good as her voice. Rhino voiced very well by Mark Walton, in addition to being funny as hell, is a manic ball of energy who’s constantly enjoyable. The RV park and animal shelter scenes which are already pretty good, he excels in. He even gets to inspire Bolt at one point and it works. Rhino’s fanatic obsession with Bolt, coupled with Mittens’ attitude and scepticism, and Bolt himself make for a really good and often pretty funny trio. And the fact they’re essentially pets on a journey home reminds me a lot of Homeward Bound. The cast also includes Malcolm McDowell in a cameo as Bolt’s in-universe villain, Grey DeLisle as Penny’s mother, Diedrich Bader and Nick Swardson as cats, and the curious choice of James Lipton as the director. The voices of the pigeons are funny for as shameless as they are (Warner Brothers probably should sue), except for that one running joke where they’re trying to recognize Bolt. And this movie even features Randy Savage of all people!
Compared to the last couple Disney films, the animation on this is much better. The backgrounds look so much more realistic (in the case of the in-universe show a little too much so) and even the humans are expressive and interesting looking. Bolt’s design in particular is really good, you can tell they were dedicated to making him feel like an actual dog. I was also very impressed by the detail in his sound effects: his barking and whimpering and what-not. Nothing in the animation ever feels over-the-top like in Meet the Robinsons or Chicken Little, and even though it’s humourous it doesn’t come off as often that it’s trying to imitate someone else. If it is, it’s going for Pixar, which is much more noble. The visual effects and action scenes especially when used for comedic effect are a lot of fun. Because Miley Cyrus stars in this movie she also does the soundtrack which isn’t great, but not awful either. It’s country, and if that’s your thing, you’ll like it. The song that plays over a cute montage of Bolt learning to be a regular dog is one of the few country songs I’d listen to a second time, though maybe only in context. The shot that montage ends on with its three characters in front of the Bellagio fountain in Vegas I do really like.
I remember when Bolt came out seeing ads for it for about a week before it disappeared, which is probably another reason I thought the movie would be crap. Really though, it just had the misfortune to open against Twilight, and an endearing comedy about a dog who thinks he’s a superhero is no match against a vampire stalker flick disguised as a romance. But in fairness, Bolt didn’t look like much more than story about a girl and her dog that we haven’t seen before. It does borrow from those kind of stories, a cartoony set-up, Toy Story, Homeward Bound, and even The Truman Show, and there are problems you can’t ignore, a few of which do really bug me. But that doesn’t change the fact that I’ve never gone into a Disney movie expecting less and ultimately getting more than I did out of Bolt, and I definitely recommend it. It’s easily one of Disney’s best movies of the 2000s, miles ahead of anything they’d been doing the past half decade, and a sure sign the studio was beginning to get back on track.
Next Week: The Princess and the Frog (2009)
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