Disneying the Classics #12: Cinderella

Woah baby! It's the first actual Disney animated movie since I dunno like ever! You know, as in not a shorts compilation, it's a movie that's actually considered a classic. It has a Platinum Edition DVD and everything. This is one of those movies with a serious presence in Disneyland, and let's be honest, I'm only doing this so I can fully get the Disneyland experience. Now, on to Cinderella.

Previous relationship with movie: I'm pretty sure I've seen this, because I have the VHS tape. But I don't really remember anything about it besides having seen Bippity Boppity Boo many, many times on a Disney Sing-a-long tape.

So I watched it: Gotta say, I didn't love it. It's definitely a beautiful movie but man is this thing slight. Like how in Pinocchio how the first half hour of the movie is pretty much real time Gepetto creating Pinocchio, this movie starts out with at least a half hour of a real-time day in the life of Cinderella, except a lot less happens. Really, I'd say it's fair to call this movie "inessential," if you watch a clip reel of the best parts of this movie then you pretty much get what the movie's about. You probably don't NEED to see the whole thing. Oh, who am I to bash this movie, just see it anyway, it's gorgeous. Yeah I'm backpedaling but olde-tyme Disney has one of those "lifetime passes" you hear so much about. I'll try to make the next write up better (how many times have I said that now? every time?!).

Best part of the movie: When Selena Gomez sings Tell Me Something I Don't Know In the Bippity Boppity Boo segment when the Fairy Godmother turns Cinderella's rags into a gown. If it was Walt Disney's favorite piece of animation, who am I to argue? The face the stepmother makes in this article's screenshot is a close second.

Up next: Alice in Wonderland. Hey, I know that one!

Disneying the Classics #11: The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad

I've done eleven of these? And it only took me ten months? Wow!

I'll level with you: this is the last of the Disney "package films," and as such I watched it with more of a "let's get this over with" mindset than like I wanted to watch an actual movie. That's the same mindset I'm bringing to this write-up. You've been warned.

Previous relationship with the movie: I've been on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

So I watched it: It was decent I guess. I mean none of the Disney movies yet have been horrible or anything it's just that I'm sick of the package films and I want to get onto the actual classics. This movie is made up of two long-ish segments, the one about Ichabod and the one about Mr. Toad. The Mr. Toad one is first, so I'll talk about it first.

Mr. Toad was a pretty good segment. Mr. Toad is a rude toad who just wants to slack off and have fun, and the rest of the town gets on his case about it and tells him to grow up. I can relate to that. Mr. Toad sees a motorcar and he just goes NUTS, he has to have it. Cut to later, he's been blamed for stealing a car! You don't even get to see the incident, it's like the Hangover of that generation. What happens next, I'll never tell!

Then the Ichabod Crane segment. It was pretty good too mostly. Ichabod Crane is an ugly nerd who somehow gets chicks. Boo, I hate ugly nerds (I am self-loathing). Ichabod and the town bully try to win over the town hottie, Katrina Van Tassel. The town bully tries to pull a trick on Ichabod by telling him the story of the Headless Horseman. Then the Headless Horseman actually comes after Ichabod! Weird. What happens next, I'll never tell.

Overall, this was a good movie. As good as these package films got. I'm glad to be done with them, though.

Best part of the movie: When the Headless Horseman throws his head at Ichabod and disintegrates him (whoops, spoilers).

Up next: Actual classic, Cinderella.