"Now, now, Cody. We mustn't lose hope. Bernard is still out there." â Miss Bianca
Initial thoughts before viewing: The Rescuers Down Under was a part of my childhood VHS collection growing up, so I was pretty familiar with this one. I saw this movie before I saw Bernard and Bianca's original film, The Rescuers (1977). I didn't love this one, but also didn't hate it. I was interested to see how it held up upon re-watch.
If you have never seen The Rescuers Down Under or need a refresher, here is a link to the movie's Disney Wiki page where you can read the plot summary.
Highlights:
-Cody + Marahute = Love. The sequence where Cody frees and rides the great golden eagle Marahute is so joyful and fun to watch. The animation is beautiful and truly enthralling. Who hasn't dreamed of flying? Here, we get to see Cody live out our dreams IRL (well, in animation at least).
-Bernard finally gets his time in the sun. Bernard has never been a favorite of mine; I've always considered him to be a safe, grumpy sort of character (and far less likeable than the charming Miss Bianca). Once Bianca, Jake, Cody, and Marahute are all captured by McLeach, however, Bernard is our last hero standing. Against all odds, Bernard GETS IT DONE. He frees the gang and doesn't hesitate to jump in after Cody is sent down a raging croc infested river. I love that he steps up and really gets a chance to shine as a capable, resilient hero. Did I mention that he's also responsible for the defeat of the story's main villain, the poacher McLeach? The power of brain over brawn.
-Our dear Frank. Frank, a green frill-necked lizard, is a blink and you'll miss it secondary character. He's a little hyperactive, a little cowardly, but oh so funny and loveable. He befriends Cody when they are both being held captive by McLeach. Frank is a fan favorite, and I wish be was in the film more. Which leads me to my next point...
Disliked:
-What happened to Frank and the other captive animals?: Once McLeach takes Cody out of the makeshift animal prison, we never hear or see Frank (or the other captive animals) again. Did they ever break out? Did the starve to death after McLeach's demise? Who knows?!
-Where are the Aussies at? Even though the movie is set in Australia, there is only one member of the main voice cast that is actually Australian (Jake, the kangaroo rat, voice by Tristan Rogers). Lord knows why Cody, the main human protagonist, is voiced by a native Norwegian actor using an American accent. Even the villain McLeach, who is supposed to be an Australian poacher, has an American accent. SO STUPID.
Random Thoughts I Had While Watching:
-Is Marahute, the great golden eagle, a real animal? Eh, not exactly. Although her true species is not confirmed in the movie, she most resembles a cross between a wedge-tailed eagle and a white-bellied sea eagle, two species of eagles native to Australia (although she is much larger than either!) I've also read that Marahute could be a Haast's eagle, a now extinct species of eagle that is the largest ever known to have existed. Either way, the "great golden eagle" as depicted in the movie sadly does not really exist.
-Is Joanna the goanna a a real animal? Turns out, yes! Per this Disney Wiki page entry, "Joanna is likely either a perentie or an Argus monitor lizard (both of which are called goannas in Australia). Both are exceedingly large, powerful, fast and intelligent monitors from Australia. However, given her size, it is likely Joanna is a perentie, which is the fourth-largest lizard in the world and the second-longest at 8 feet." Neat!
Closing Thoughts:
-Never forget that The Rescuers Down Under made history. Although it's easily the most forgettable film of the Renaissance age, The Rescuers Down Under has the distinction of being the first 100% digital feature film ever made. Per IMDB, "The animation and backgrounds were done traditionally but all of the coloring, many effects, and the final film printing was all done digitally. This was the first film produced with Disney's Academy Award-winning "CAPS" production system, developed for the film. It cut the production time for an animated movie down by at least six months." Keep that tidbit in your pocket for trivia.
-Where The Rescuers Down Under falls short. It doesn't have as much heart and soul as the original 1977 Rescuers film. A big part of what made The Rescuers so great was its beautifully touching songs (like the Academy Award nominated "Someone's Waiting for You"). I don't really understand why they would make this sequel a non-musical. And while Cody is a decent human protagonist, he can't compare to adorable orphan Penny from the original. Plus, he's an 8 year-old Aussie WITHOUT AN AUSTRALIAN ACCENT. I can't get over it.
At the end of the day, The Rescuers Down Under is a fine, decent movie. It's an enjoyable film with a pretty good re-watchablity score, but I don't think anyone would say it's their favorite Disney flick. I think it suffers from not being a musical, and it's not particularly memorable. And it really can't hold a candle to the other movies in the Renaissance era.
My Rating: 5/10
My Rating Scale/System:
10 - Masterpiece / Award Worthy đ€©
9 - Almost perfect / Exceptional đ„°
8 - Great / Well-crafted đ
7 - Good / Noteworthy đ
6 - Above average / Memorable đ
5 - Solidly average đ
4 - Mixed feelings / Mediocre đ
3 - Uninteresting / Struggle bus đ„±
2 - Barely watchable đĄ
1 - Failure / Why is this a thing? đ©
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