From the Shelf: Bolt

A few quick words about a Disney film I seldom come back to, even if I think about it a lot.

A new blog series I’m considering, where I pick a movie from my collection and write a little about it, its place in history and my own personal thoughts. I decided to start with the 2008 WDAS feature Bolt for a couple of reasons (a lot of them due to it being a part of the next Lorcana set), but since it’s going to feature in another blog series I’m working on in the near future, I’m not delving too much into it… this time.

I’ve been thinking about the Disney Revival lately.

Generally considered to take place during John Lasseter’s tenure as chief creative officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios, overlapping with his longer tenure as the same at Pixar, this brought Disney’s beloved studio back to the forefront of animation, commercially and critically, after their fabled Renaissance era’s demise. The timeline tends to be a little fuzzy for when fans consider this era to take place, with most arguing for it to start with either The Princess and the Frog (the studio’s long-heralded return to hand-drawn animation which became a fan favorite but didn’t light up the box office as much as hoped) or Tangled (the studio’s follow-up, a computer animated adaptation of the beloved Rapunzel fable that by all accounts did better business and had Disney retract their plans to pause on fairy tale features after Princess and the Frog’s lukewarm box office), but it’s generally considered to have ended around the time Lasseter was suspended and ultimately relieved of his duties at WDAS and Pixar for allegations of sexual misconduct.

Let there be no mistake- while Lasseter has an impressive resume behind him, most notably his pioneering the integrating computer graphics into the animation industry, his legacy will forever be marred by said misconduct. No matter how much Toy Story still holds up or how vital his contributions to Frozen and Big Hero 6 were, it will never make up for the “Boys club” culture he cultivated at both studios which, at best, was dismissive towards women and was actively hostile at its worst. But dismissing the dozens of features and shorts Lasseter had a hand in would discredit the work many talented artists still deserve to have celebrated, while it doesn’t help at all to confront the reality of his gross behavior. Similarly as to why I continued my Buffy the Vampire Slayer reviews despite similar allegations towards Joss Whedon and continued to find the show’s merits, I won’t let Lasseter’s failings shelter from some quality works he had a hand in.

I’m not sure exactly how quality Bolt is, but it is an important feature, the first Lasseter had almost full responsibility overseeing for WDAS, as Meet the Robinsons was much further in production when he took over (that’s another film worth a look, stay tuned). As a lifelong Disney fan stoked for The Princess and the Frog, I was similarly, if ultimately less excited for this new movie, although I didn’t end up catching it until it was ready to rent.

Maybe I was a little hesitant knowing the origins of the feature. Initially titled American Dog, this was meant to be the follow-up project for Lilo & Stitch co-director Chris Sanders, but that ultimately fell through. Reasons as to why differ; some say that Sanders couldn’t see eye-to-eye with Lasseter and Pixar-co-founder/partner-in-crime Ed Catmull’s contributions, others suggest that the film was too close to Lasseter’s initial concept for Cars 2 over at Pixar, while there’s speculation that Lasseter disliked Lilo & Stitch and had it out for Sanders. This is something I’ll go more in-depth to in the future, but the point stood that Sanders wasn’t happy with the change in direction and left for Dreamworks with his former co-director Dean DeBlois.

So the film changed into something a little more palatable for audiences, at least how Lasseter seemed fit, and Bolt would eventually become a hit, making more than twice its reported budget back and receiving favorable reviews, leading into awards recognition that culminated at a coveted spot for Best Animated Feature at the 81st Academy Awards. Not bad, right?

It doesn’t help that the movie itself isn’t bad, even if the story doesn’t seem like it- Bolt is a White Swiss Shephard adopted by a highly-sought-after scientist who gifted the pup with powers to protect his daughter Penny, who is often an international target due to her father’s abilities. Bolt frequently has to protect Penny from high peril, although the two are always reunited at the end of the day.

Or so he thinks, as Bolt is really the star canine of an adventure show where seemingly everything is staged. The showrunner keeps the action fresh by making sure that Bolt is never aware that this is an act and that he’s always on the quest to save Penny (who is his actual owner). The shtick appears to be getting old, though, if a network representative is any indication, and she demands that the show find a way to keep things fresh. This is done by ending the newest episode with a cliffhanger. Bolt and Penny aren’t reunited and it doesn’t look like it will be easy for them to get back. A good idea, except the dog can’t tell the difference and ends up getting himself shipped to New York. Bolt is determined to get back to the studio in Las Angeles and teams up with Mittens, a street-smart, if apathetic black cat, and Rhino, an energetic hamster who happens to be a big fan of the pooch, as the three begin their cross-country trip to be reunited with Penny.

If you’re familiar with Lasseter’s works, you’ll know that he has a type of storytelling preference- he greatly favors road trips with oddly-matched grouped (traditionally a duo, but often with memorable supporting characters) who learn to bond with each other as they go down the road. It’s a well-worn storytelling choice that I think worked for Pixar when they were only making a movie once year or so, but when the formula starting trickling down to WDAS, it started wearing itself increasingly thin, and that’s why many of the so-called Revival features don’t land as well for me as they used to. Lasseter’s dismissive-too-aggressive attitude towards women was his biggest sin, while his limiting storytelling habits is his next-biggest.

Still, formula can work, and there are exceptions to every rule. It helps that Bolt has well-defined characters and a strong voice cast to back it up. For the most part. The titular pup is voiced by John Travolta during one of his upswings in the industry, a year or so removed from his iconic performance in Hairspray and a good-ways removed from his regrettable turn in Gotti, but I’d argue that he’s not one of the strongest choices, a little too old and tired to pull off the relatively-young dog. Still, Travolta does find some of his trademark charm in the role. His owner Penny is the biggest draw here, being voiced by Miley Cyrus at the height of Hannah Montana’s popularity, but her voice is weirdly a little too strong to pull off the character’s everygirl appeal, as Cyrus’ notoriously gravely southern draw is too distinguishable. Her energy is commendable, but not a highlight. Although I’ll take both of their performances over their credits-leading duet any day, which I wisely skipped over.

For me, the voice acting MVP is Susie Essman as Mittens. The Curb Your Enthusiasm star is delightful as the cat, bringing her trademark sass to the role and nailing the dramatic moments. Also strong is Mark Walton as Rhino- a storyboard artist whose early demonstrations as the character won the crew over so hard that he landed the role, it’s deserved as he nails the little guy’s massive energy and lands as the fan favorite he was destined to become. Malcolm McDowell and the late James Lipton also do memorable voice work as some of the human characters.

The thing about Bolt is that it shouldn’t work. The series that we see looks like a hot mess, a near-indescribable mix between Lassie and Mission: Impossible, while the plot beats are undeniably familiar, yet I think it still has its charms. As a still-early example of WDAS breaking into computer animation, there’s charm to be found in its character design and backgrounds, the mammal leads especially still looking charming. And as a big dog person, it’s hard to not root for Bolt as he wants to head home to his girl. I think that’s why Bolt became a quick favorite and entered many a family’s collection- anyone who doesn’t like pets are soulless, and there’s something human here for everyone to chew on. The need for an undeniable bond to reunite against all odds is something I think anyone at any age can relate to.