It is a known fact that I am always late to everything. So it was no surprise to me that I just now tonight, watched my new favorite Disney Animated Cartoon for the very first time. It was my daughter who watched part of it at school who first came home last week and said, "Mom, we watched Disney's "The Princess and the Frog" today at school, and you would really like it." "It's set in New Orleans, and has Mardi Gras and VooDoo." So tonight we all sat down to watch it and boy was she right! I absolutely LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it! I have always been a sucker for Disney's animation anyway. I was totally enchanted by both TinkerBell movies. But this one had the BEST villain of them all, in my humble opinion. Dr. Facilier aka 'The Shadowman', embodies everything that's ever intrigued me about old New Orleans. The rich history and magic of VooDoo, the hauntingly beautiful cemeteries, the bayous, the Cajun people and the back drop of the Old South. It illuminates the culture of the French/American city, replete with its lively jazz music, the raucous Mardi Gras celebrations, the spicy Creole cooking, stately plantations, wisteria covered porches, moss strewn oaks, alligator infested cypress swamps and my favorite Southern mascot....the Firefly! Dr. Facilier, voiced by Keith David (also voiced the black cat in Coraline), is one of the most fantastically evil villains to ever grace a Disney Animation. Dr. Facilier's Emporium is a feast for the eyes with its tarot cards, voodoo dolls, alters, candles, talismans, potions, masks and other visually appealing tools of the necromancy trade. His booming bass voice, long lean figure and top hat with a skull all upped his creepiness factor. (You can make your own skull top hat here!) But it was probably the 'shadow people', or his 'friends on the other side' that sealed the deal for me. I loved them! My son was very disliking of them however....they really struck a nerve, and I think they scared him just a bit. That is how great they were....fantastically creative animation as always from Disney. But I admit that I also equally loved the lighter animation of the Fireflies and the Frogs dancing on the lily pads as well. Everything about this movie was appealing to me, but most especially 'The Shadowman'! I've posted my favorite song clip from the movie below. It's a fantastic song called "I've Got Friends on the Other Side"...enjoy! (Warning: the volume increases at 1:49 so beware.) And I've also posted for your enjoyment, a little behind the scenes video clip called "Conjuring the Villain", featuring Keith voicing his sinister character, and the villain's brilliant animator, Bruce Smith. If you haven't seen the whole movie....then I highly recommend that you do! (All Rights belong to Disney of course.)
Oooooh, thank you SO much for the critique! I too love animated films, especially Disney. .something that I shared with my Dad, but my hubby just isn't into them. .he says they're "not real". But when I saw the previews for this one, I so wanted to see it for all the reasons that you mentioned, and am now going to get the DVD. Hubs can just read a book. He has firmly locked away his inner child, although I do see him peeking out every so often, so there's still hope. Your son may grow to appreciate the true depth and feeling of Disney's villains someday. When I was litle, they scared me a LOT! As for the jigsaw puzzles, put Halloween jigsaw puzzles in on ebay, and save the search. More will come up as it gets closer to the big day, but some are usually listed all year around. You can get them for very cheap prices, and even shipping isn't expensive since they are so light, and many will fit into standard shipping boxes. I've gotten quite a number of neat Halloween ones that way, and more are coming out all of the time. One of Will Moses' Headless Horseman has been released. It is a 550 piece one, but the image is delightful, and puzzles are great family fun. And even now, when my kids drop in, if I have a puzzle going, I can be assured that they will wind up sitting down, jut to "put in a piece or two" lol
Thanks again for showing the clips and the review! I truly enjoyed it!
I've been meaning to rent this. I REALLY wanted to go see this at the theaters but I just didn't get around to it. I'll have to try to get it some time this week.
How weird, I just watched this 2 nights ago... LOVED IT!!! It was absolutely delightful! It's one of those that I don't think that I'll get tired of since it has a little bit of everything I love in it, New Orleans, voodoo, Cajun accents and cooking!
Glad to see I'm not the only one who loves animation. I forgot to mention that this was also Disney's first foray back to 2D 'old school' animation since 2004's Home on the Range. A nice break from today's high tech, 3D in-your-face animation.
Belle, Ali and Suzie...you have to at least rent it, if not own it, because the more I watch it the more I love it. The actual story may not be as great as the animation but I loved it all. And thank you Suzie for the great jigsaw puzzle info, much appreciated. :o)
Guilluame you point out an observation that I saw made by several other people on the animation blogs as well, and you are right....he does appear to be based on Baron Samedi! People also said he reminded them of Jafar in Aladdin, but I agree that he does look a lot like the Baron.
And Mr. Macabre...I'm not surprised that you and I liked this for most of the same reasons. We both live in the South, so this resonates with us! And I won't tire of it either. In fact, I loved the Shadowman, the Frog Prince, Ray the Firefly, Mama Odie and all of those incredible Shadow People! It feels like getting lost in a magical, romanticized, Disney-washed version of the Old South! LOVE IT! :o)
I bought it. .just HAD to. From the previews that we saw at the theatre, and then from your critique, I knew that I would love it, and we did! My hubs, who I said doesn't normally like animated movies, said that he truly enjoyed it too!
I loved all of the elements that created the whole atmosphere, but especially loved the characters of t\The Shadowman and Mama Odie. The Shadowman especially had to be fun to draw and animate. And his shadow! SO clever!!! It will be one for me to watch over and over again!
Oh, and Wendy, I'm doing a very casual, small Midyear Halloween Blog Crawl, finding Halloween in Blogland, and featured your blog on my Cat In The Moon blog today! :-) I don't think that you'll be swamped with new visitors, being that this is the first year that I'm doing this, and people are into springtime, but I thought you'd like to know.
Yes RUN Rue....you'll love it and so will your nieces if they haven't seen it already!
And Suzie, I am so happy that you enjoyed it. I just loved it so and I agree that it's something I just won't get tired of. I catch new things every time I watch it. And I'm glad that the hubster actually enjoyed as well. Ha! And thank you Suzie for including me in your Halloween blog crawl. I am most honored! :o)
A Whimsical Witch, Gypsy Soul, Eclectic Introvert, Free Spirit, Photographer and Graphic Artist! Possessed of Wry Wit, a Creative Mind, Magical Enchantment and a Cat named Coventina!
Wendy the Good Witch aka Artful Gypsy on Etsy
Fiendish Followers
I've Been Stalked
Hallowe'en Comes Soon!
The Good Witch's Luna Data
Swingin' at the Séance
Jump, Jive & Shriek! Swinging Halloween Songs of the 1920's-1940's Order Now on CD Baby
I have always been a sucker for Disney's animation anyway. I was totally enchanted by both TinkerBell movies. But this one had the BEST villain of them all, in my humble opinion. Dr. Facilier aka 'The Shadowman', embodies everything that's ever intrigued me about old New Orleans. The rich history and magic of VooDoo, the hauntingly beautiful cemeteries, the bayous, the Cajun people and the back drop of the Old South. It illuminates the culture of the French/American city, replete with its lively jazz music, the raucous Mardi Gras celebrations, the spicy Creole cooking, stately plantations, wisteria covered porches, moss strewn oaks, alligator infested cypress swamps and my favorite Southern mascot....the Firefly! 
Dr. Facilier, voiced by Keith David (also voiced the black cat in Coraline), is one of the most fantastically evil villains to ever grace a Disney Animation. Dr. Facilier's Emporium is a feast for the eyes with its tarot cards, voodoo dolls, alters, candles, talismans, potions, masks and other visually appealing tools of the necromancy trade. His booming bass voice, long lean figure and top hat with a skull all upped his creepiness factor. (You can make your own skull top hat here!) But it was probably the 'shadow people', or his 'friends on the other side' that sealed the deal for me. I loved them! My son was very disliking of them however....they really struck a nerve, and I think they scared him just a bit. That is how great they were....fantastically creative animation as always from Disney. But I admit that I also equally loved the lighter animation of the Fireflies and the Frogs dancing on the lily pads as well. Everything about this movie was appealing to me, but most especially 'The Shadowman'! I've posted my favorite song clip from the movie below. It's a fantastic song called "I've Got Friends on the Other Side"...enjoy! (Warning: the volume increases at 1:49 so beware.) And I've also posted for your enjoyment, a little behind the scenes video clip called "Conjuring the Villain", featuring Keith voicing his sinister character, and the villain's brilliant animator, Bruce Smith. If you haven't seen the whole movie....then I highly recommend that you do! (All Rights belong to Disney of course.)
![](<img src="http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i149/fotobabe1111/My%20Photos/Me%20Witch%20Halloween/Magickal-Moon-Animated-GIF.gif">)
9 comments:
Oooooh, thank you SO much for the critique! I too love animated films, especially Disney. .something that I shared with my Dad, but my hubby just isn't into them. .he says they're "not real".
But when I saw the previews for this one, I so wanted to see it for all the reasons that you mentioned, and am now going to get the DVD. Hubs can just read a book. He has firmly locked away his inner child, although I do see him peeking out every so often, so there's still hope.
Your son may grow to appreciate the true depth and feeling of Disney's villains someday. When I was litle, they scared me a LOT!
As for the jigsaw puzzles, put Halloween jigsaw puzzles in on ebay, and save the search. More will come up as it gets closer to the big day, but some are usually listed all year around. You can get them for very cheap prices, and even shipping isn't expensive since they are so light, and many will fit into standard shipping boxes. I've gotten quite a number of neat Halloween ones that way, and more are coming out all of the time. One of Will Moses' Headless Horseman has been released. It is a 550 piece one, but the image is delightful, and puzzles are great family fun. And even now, when my kids drop in, if I have a puzzle going, I can be assured that they will wind up sitting down, jut to "put in a piece or two" lol
Thanks again for showing the clips and the review! I truly enjoyed it!
I've been meaning to rent this. I REALLY wanted to go see this at the theaters but I just didn't get around to it. I'll have to try to get it some time this week.
He looks a lot like Baron Samedi, maybe they should have called him by that name. Or maybe that would have been too scary for the children?
How weird, I just watched this 2 nights ago...
LOVED IT!!! It was absolutely delightful! It's one of those that I don't think that I'll get tired of since it has a little bit of everything I love in it, New Orleans, voodoo, Cajun accents and cooking!
I loved to firefly too!
Thanks so much for sharing that. I'm adding it to my must-see list!
Ali
Glad to see I'm not the only one who loves animation. I forgot to mention that this was also Disney's first foray back to 2D 'old school' animation since 2004's Home on the Range. A nice break from today's high tech, 3D in-your-face animation.
Belle, Ali and Suzie...you have to at least rent it, if not own it, because the more I watch it the more I love it. The actual story may not be as great as the animation but I loved it all. And thank you Suzie for the great jigsaw puzzle info, much appreciated. :o)
Guilluame you point out an observation that I saw made by several other people on the animation blogs as well, and you are right....he does appear to be based on Baron Samedi! People also said he reminded them of Jafar in Aladdin, but I agree that he does look a lot like the Baron.
And Mr. Macabre...I'm not surprised that you and I liked this for most of the same reasons. We both live in the South, so this resonates with us! And I won't tire of it either. In fact, I loved the Shadowman, the Frog Prince, Ray the Firefly, Mama Odie and all of those incredible Shadow People! It feels like getting lost in a magical, romanticized, Disney-washed version of the Old South! LOVE IT! :o)
I haven't seen this yet!! Running out to get it now....
Thanks!
I bought it. .just HAD to. From the previews that we saw at the theatre, and then from your critique, I knew that I would love it, and we did! My hubs, who I said doesn't normally like animated movies, said that he truly enjoyed it too!
I loved all of the elements that created the whole atmosphere, but especially loved the characters of t\The Shadowman and Mama Odie. The Shadowman especially had to be fun to draw and animate. And his shadow! SO clever!!! It will be one for me to watch over and over again!
Oh, and Wendy, I'm doing a very casual, small Midyear Halloween Blog Crawl, finding Halloween in Blogland, and featured your blog on my Cat In The Moon blog today! :-) I don't think that you'll be swamped with new visitors, being that this is the first year that I'm doing this, and people are into springtime, but I thought you'd like to know.
Yes RUN Rue....you'll love it and so will your nieces if they haven't seen it already!
And Suzie, I am so happy that you enjoyed it. I just loved it so and I agree that it's something I just won't get tired of. I catch new things every time I watch it. And I'm glad that the hubster actually enjoyed as well. Ha! And thank you Suzie for including me in your Halloween blog crawl. I am most honored! :o)
Post a Comment