Sure Mickey Mouse was cute and fun, but there's always room for one more. Warner Brother's Studios were just as big and rivals to Disney. Their animations were as entertaining and exciting as the next big thing and WB weren't about to be beaten on the film scene. Even today, they're as big, if not bigger, than Disney; children of all ages know exactly who Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Porky Pig are.
The three big faces of WB are, of course, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Porky Pig. Each just as famous as the other, they've made some of the greatest animations ever known. However, the most famous face of all, is Mr Bugs Bunny himself; although developemtn many times over the years, he is always recogniable for his fun charm and witty catch phrases.
The following video is just one of the many hilarious moment that Bugs Bunny has to offer.
As I mentioned before in a previous entry, Mickey Mouse wasn't the first famed animated character on the scene; characters such as Gertie the Dinosaur, Felix the cat and even Betty Boop were around before Walt created his mousey friend.
Miss Betty Boop had made her mark before Mickey Mouse graced our screens; she was the ever famous 1930's sex symbol, with her won mini TV series and guest appearances in different animations such as Pop Eye:
I suppose Mickey Mouse and other Disney characters became more famous because they were more childish and their animations were targeted at audiences of all ages. Also because Walt put more of his heart and soul into his characters; with every film, you could feel the life of each characters.
Nevertheless, regardless was decade the characters were created in, not everyone can reach high level fame. Even today, there are many inspiring animations ready to be shown to the world, but only the most dedicated, heartfelt ones will be truly acknowledge.
Walt Disney was quickly rising to fame, but at the same time World War 2 was under-way. Making films for the US military and government was his job to help spread news to all those about the war and get as many young soldiers involved as possible. Disney's studio made over 68 continuous hours of footage that became well known among the public. Der Fuehrer's Face being the most famous of them all, it featured Donald Duck on the road to become an american citizen.
Although at the time is was a great way for the army to get attention and recruits, I can't help but think that this was a risk for Disney to do. He risked being targeted for spreading animations about Germany; if the Germans found out, they may have been angered and attacked america and Disney's studio.
Nevertheless, Walt showed support for his country and the success of his animations for the army may have played an important part in winning the war.
Where would animation be without the great Walt Disney?
Sure many people have contributed to the world of animation over the past century, but would animation really be as entertaining and amazing today if Walt hadn't come along? I doubt it...
We probably would have still achieved high levels with new technology, but even if he wasn't the first to bring forward famed characters such as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, he certainly brought forward the wonders of animation through them.
For me Walt Disney is a great inspiration; he didn't come from a rich family and was literally an ordinary guy with a big imagination, who set up his own little business for the love of it and that love for his characters and work was felt by the whole world.
Of course, Walt wouldn't be Walt without his mousey friend. Probably the most famous character in animation history, Mickey Mouse is, by far, Walt's greatest creation. Mickey has led the animation world to success; his charm, wit and cuteness is the whole package; when creating a new character, he's the one to look to. Mickey has made some of the most fun and entertaining films ever such as the ever famous and personal favourite of mine, Steam Boat Willie.
Just a thought I wanted to add. I truly believe in the fact that your character is only as good as it's silhouette; if you can recognise a character by its silhouette, you have a character that will be known and recognise forever.
One of my favourite silhouettes is Petter Griffin from Family Guy because not matter what part of his body is shown, you can always recognise it's him.
Walt Disney's Peter Pan was first released in 1953 and almost 50 years later, Disney studios released a sequel called Peter Pan 2: Return to Neverland. Both films were huge successes despite being released so many years apart. One big difference between then though is that the first film took only $4'000'000 to make were as the second took $20'000'000.
The main thing I wanted to talk about here is the design, graphics and animation of both films; 50 years later and better technology, does the second film really look any better than the first?
Above you can see the difference between the two picture and most likely tell which one is from what film. The very top is the first film and the lower is the second.
Looking at this picture, there isn't much difference apart from the clearer drawings and higher definition look which, I think, is something to praise as Disney have kept all the original looks and feel about the story. The colour's may be more vibrant and Peter's outfit is slightly different coloured, but the style is still the same which is a huge plus for the film.
The first thing I want to talk about is the difference in the characters attitude and overall 'acting.' In the second film, the characters are a lot more open and involved; they act a lot more childish and you get this fun feeling every time you watch them. In the first film, although fun, they act more 'simple' and more traditional. By this I mean that back in the 50's, children were more 'behaved' and groomed at a early age to be presentable and although Peter was childish and adventurous, you cant help but notice he still has this groomed feeling about him when comparing him to the second film. I don't think was intentional, I think the main reason is because there is a big difference in the attitude between children from the 50's and children today and that reflects upon the acting of the children in the film.
The second thing is the flow of the animation. The first film definitely holds that traditional and Disney style to it and really makes the film feel special, but the second film is more up to date and flows a lot better so the film looks more appealing.
So, is the second film better than the first?
I guess you could say yes ever so slightly, only because the flow of the animation has improved and the detail is a lot better, but the first film definitely keeps that traditional Disney feel which makes a great classic movie.
There isn't much to say this week as what I wrote last week for sound, was spoken about this week. I guess the two mostly fresh things in my mind are two videos we watched today; a little film about a cheating couple, with the actors all being insects and a remix version of Disney's Snow White called 'Wishery'.
The insect film was a humorous one; a husband who leaves for work, but actually goes drinking and cheating whilst the wife stays home and invites her lover round. Ironically, her lover is an artist and the character who reveals the cheating husband is a cameraman. The sound in the background was instrumental music all the way through; the music was carefully written and well adapted to the mini movie.
Snow White became Disney's first major Princess in an animated feature in 1937. Many people doubted the films success and tried to discourage Walt to give up it entirely, but after completion, the film went on to be the number one best animated film of the year.
The music in this film really is amazing, every tone, key and pitch are perfect and suit every scene. Even if this video is a remix version of the original songs mixed together, you can still enjoy and appreciate what Walt created many years ago. The beats that mix together with the vocals and sounds from the film create an almost '21st Century' version of the songs, but keeps true to the original music.
Snow White's voice is exceptionally suited to her character, young and sweet; being a princess, she sings almost opera style. In fact, a lot of her notes are opera like. Her voice actress was Adriana Caselotti, daughter of Guido Caselotti, a teacher of music and a vocal coach and Maria Orefice, an opera singer, so naturally, she would have a beautiful voice.
To accompany Snow White's sweet singing was the seven dwarfs and their uplifting 'cheeky' singing. Their renditions of 'Dig, Dig, Dig' and 'Hi Ho, It's Off To Work We Go' and two of the greatest songs in Disney history; they're two of the type of songs that people randomly sing today jokingly.
Snow White is one of my favourite Disney films; I prefer the older versions when they are hand drawn as everything seems in so much more detail and helps me to appreciate the long process it took to make it. The sounds and vocals are perfectly assigned to each scene making everything spectacular.
