Hi folks! Welcome to my My Own Personal Nerdy Disney and Animation Scrutinizing Analysis blog. A blog where I'm analyzing several Disney films, Disney or Animation in general! These entries are just meant to be my analyses. Not reviews or statements. Just fun analyses! Though I'll make some personal remarks now and then, the content of these entries are meant to be depicted objectively. They're made for entertainment purpose only and the pictures/clips are copyright Disney or other companies.
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And finally; If you haven't seen the films, beware of spoilers! And the funny lines aren't meant to be nothing than funny. So I hope you won't find them offensive. If so, I apologize
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| I know that it`s rude to show your ass. But I was instructed to do so :) |
Through Disney`s long and ongoing history, there are some years that are significant for the studio`s history. In 1937, Disney pioneered with their first full-length animated movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (which despite wasn`t the first animated full-length feature ever made, was still significant enough on it`s own right). In 1995, Pixar made their contribution with the first full-length CGI picture ever made, Toy Story. And despite how that contribution was Pixar`s doing, it`s fair to say that Pixar is a part of Disney`s division, after all. And ten years later, Disney would essentially follow the norm that most animated studios were doing at the time and eventually drop hand drawn animation completely. 
And while it was something that dismayed the fans, as it was somewhat contradictory (and yes, there were rumors of how Disney fans were ready to tear their first CGI movie down for that reason). As Disney was the first American company who made a full-length Hand Drawn feature (despite how Disney resurged it briefly with The Princess and the Frog and Winnie the Pooh, before it quietly went back to the corner again). However, despite how Disney had already made an semi-CGI movie with Dinosaur five years earlier at the dawn of the new Millenium, the truth is that it only had CGI characters and Live Action background. So the first movie to actually have the (dis)honor to be Disney`s very first CGI movie was Chicken Little (despite how it was briefly considered to be a Hand Drawn and a blend of Hand Drawn and CGI at the beginning).General Information of Chicken Little
Released in November 2005, Chicken Little was directed by the team of The Emperor`s New Groove, Mark Dindal and producer Randy Fullmer. The score was from John Debney. And starred Zach Braff, Joan Cusack, Dan Molina, Steve Zahn, Gary Marshall, Amy Sedaris, Mark Walton, Patrick Warbuton, Wallace Shawn and Don Knotts (his very last film). Dindal voiced Morkubine Porcupine (and the gymnastic teacher). Barenaked Ladies, Five for Fighting, Joss Stone, Patti LaBelle and The Cheetah Girls performed the songs. Peter
del Vecho was the associate producer. Ian Gooding (Aladdin, The Lion King, Mulan) and Dan Cooper (Tangled, Zootopia) were the art directors. Steve Goldberg (Big Hero 6, Tarzan) was the visual effect supervisor. Eamonn Butler (Dinosaur) was the animation supervisor. Joe Moshier (The Emperor`s New Groove) was the character designer.
Chris Williams, Don Hall, Dean Wellins, Nathan Greno and Byron Howard were additional story artists. Thomas Baker and Bob Walker were among the layout. Animators like Nik Ranieri, Tim Allen, Dale Baer, Lino Di Salvo, Brian Ferguson, Randy Haycock, Alex Kupersmidth, James Lopez, Michael Show, Marc Smith, Ellen Woodbury and Dick Zondag animated the characters. Mauro Maressa and Marlon West were the effect supervisors. Ellen Keneshea was among the editorial. Bobbi Page was the vocal conductor. Pam Coats, Jon Lucas and Irene Mecchi were among the helpers. Hi-Hat was the choreographer for the ending dance. Little was the first Disney feature to be released in 3D. Still, regardless of it`s badly critical reception, it still was a success, grossing $135,386,665 Domestically and
$314,432,837 Worldwide. It was going to be released on July 1, 2005. It`s teaser was on the Brother Bear DVD, over a year before it premiered. Little was dedicated to Joe Grant, who died before it`s release.The Disney and Non-Disney Elements of Chicken Little
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| I`m (Buck) tricking you to go to something that looks like a party, but it`s not one :) |
In reality, Chicken Little was continuation and a departurefrom Disney. A continuation for being steeped in Disney`s trademarks, as it`s based on a well-known story and is also a story that the studio has adapted before (in 1943 with the short with the same title). And it`s been expanded and modernized to fit a modern audience. And takes place in a world of anthrophomorphic animals (despite how Disney has usually been tangible by having both anthrophomorphic and naturalistic animals in their movies, the truth is that Robin Hood is the closest cousin to have a World with only anthrophomorphic animals. As with it`s successor, Zootopia). It even has an protagonist who`s an outcast and a single parent dynamic (and yes, with a deseased mother. Who was originally a part of the story, but was scrapped to stress the conflict between Chicken Little and Buck Cluck). It even has a father/child conflict (with a father who`s mostly hated by the majority). And it also has a sweet, unsubstatinal romance between two friends.
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| We were paid to pose like this :) |
However, it`s somewhat a departure for being executed in a zippy, zangy and zany way that makes it feel like a Shrek-like movie. It`s almost an irony how that formula is regarded as anti-Disney, despite how Disney had previously introduced it withAladdin almost a decade priorly. But it was Shrek who solidified that formula and made it known for being non-Disney. And sure, since most American mainstream animated movies (with the exception of Pixar) at the time were capitilazing that formula after Shrek took over the World, it wasn`t strange that Disney jumped on the wagon and followed that formula, too. But with very little critical success. But since it was the very first official CGI made and ushered a new era, it`s remarkable how Little (like Home on the Range) was a lean, middle-of-the-road comedy that wasn`t particularly grand or epic. It was essentially a frivolous and reckless comedy that was the opposite of Disney`s ambitious epics.
The Staple and Reception of Chicken Little
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| Yes, it`s germ-free, despite being from birds :) |
The staple of Chicken Little is not hard to see for any Disney fan. It`s regarded as one of the worst, if not the worst of the Disney canon. A staple that it shares with other black sheeps as The Black Cauldron and Home on the Range (sure, Brother Bear could`ve also been put into that category, but it still has it`s fanbase, regardless of that staple). Little was poorly critically received and rated lowly (despite how it still has it`s 75% fans on Google). Coming off from a half-decade of duds after another successful period (the Renaissance), Chicken Little was essentially the peak of the failures of the new Millenium. And frankly, I must say that I happen to agree with that staple.
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| Don`t ask us what we are :) We were designed to be something weird :) |
The Reasons for Why Chicken Little is Disliked
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| In our World predators and preys can get along :) |
shunned by reviewers and the general public? Well, there are many reasons for that: People disliked the jokes and found the characters mean spirited (especially the townspeople towards the titular character). Others disliked the lackluster animation and the poor plot structure. And the product placements. And yes, people disliked the Pop Culture references (which according to them were badly done) and how the movie was generally awkward and calculated as a whole.
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| I wanted to attract chipmunks. Don`t ask me why :) |
But as for what I thought were bad qualities of Chicken Little, the truth it starts out as good and actually enjoyable (and frankly, the Pop Culture references weren`t the worst part of the movie). But soon becomes incredibly mawkish and awkwardly blatant and boisterous. And many scenes (like the flashback scene) were so badly executed that it`s just too painful to watch them. Even Dindal himself stated afterwards that he would`ve preferred the earlier version of the movie than what it ended up being at last.
How Disney Strayed Away From the Pop Culture Formula After This Movie
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| It`s hard to pose like this with only fins :) |
However, despite the calculated intentions of Chicken Little, we could eventually say that Disney still learned from the critical failure: To not capitalize the success and formula of what most animated studios were doing at the time. And simply following it`s own formula. After Little and the following The Wild (which also was an awkward and lackluster movie), Disney essentially went away from the blatant Shrek-formula and made movies that were essentially more subdued and sincere. Which was evident with Meet the Robinsons and Bolt, following the comeback with the Revival formula with The Princess and the Frog (which introduced the typical Disney formula back). So regardless of how Little was a departure from Disney and could`ve been a success, it`s admirable how they realized how they failed with capitilizing that formula and decided to turn away from it.
Behind the Scenes Information
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| I wanted to show that a rooster can have a hand :) |
The origins of Chicken Little began as Disney wanting to make a story of many famous characters from fables and folk tales. Thomas Schumaker invited Dindal and Fullmer, who actually wanted to make a CGI feature. Originally Chicken Little was a female chicken voiced by Holly Hunter
that went to summer camp to reduce her anxiety, as well to fix her
relationship with her father. And she would uncover a
nefarious plot that her camp counselor (in Wolf-in-sheep's-clothing) was planning against her hometown. And plumped the kids up to cook them for a big wolf feast.
And she ends up saving the day. The reason for her gender was for it`s vulnerability and how she was less likely to be a hero. And how Dindal had two daughters himself. Hunter worked on this film for about eight months. Michael Eisner demanded that Chicken Little be changed into a male, for how short size was more difficult for a boy. But also due to the gender swapping gaining more viewers. Despite initial reluctance, Little became more action-oriented.  |
| Even a rooster can do cardio :) |
Following a test screening, David Stainton disliked the original
story. Despite how Fullmer liked the first version and thought it had charm. That's when Dindal thought back to an earlier version,
where Little and a group of misfit animals lived
on a farm in the middle of the country. While the prize animals went off to win their ribbons on a Country Fair, the rejected animals stayed behind. And they would encounter aliens and it would be their key to redemption. During the next three months. Dindal’s and other writers (six who went uncredited) crafted in half the time. But at the time the production window had narrowed to two years. Dindal focused on the emotional resonance with Little and Buck. It took 2½ years to get back to where they started. Forty actors competed for the title role. Zach Braff pitched his voice slightly to sound like a
junior high kid. But the crew needed an older voice, with a an edge. And also for his ability to talk fast. Sean Hayes (Will & Grace) was to voice Ugly Duckling, but was rewritten to a female. As Abby Mallard, Jamie Donnelly, Jamie Lee Curtis, Sarah Jessica Parker, Jodie Foster, Laura Dern, Geena Davis, and Madonna were considered, but Joan Cusack won for her natural comedy. When Marshall voiced for Buck, he said that he didn't do voices and agreed to do a rooster that talked like him. Before Marshall, James Earl Jones, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Willem Dafoe were considered. But Marshall was cast for being good at angst.
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| We were instructed to wait obediently, so we could get candy :) |
The Hand Drawn animators were trained to do CGI with George Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic. Some of the CGI crew had worked on Dinosaur. The background were inspired from Mary Blair's background designs. The look of the characters were based on cute and vulnerable porportions. Dindal wanted the animation to be like the old Goofy shorts. Ugly Duckling was made in order to not be fixated on beauty. Dan Molina made the voice of Fish out of a water bottle sound and did a voice that he did to his kids. Since Little was the first CGI movie, the studio were asking what it`s demands of the movie would be. But they didn`t know, as they were figuring it out on a daily basis. And getting Knotts features in Turkey`s face was a challenge for his design, so they focused on the descriptive lines. To make defining jawline and a cheek ridge to allow the loose flesh in between. The crew thought they were never going to use the part from Raiders of the Lost Ark, but George Lucas agreed. Marshall and Braff recorded together, and became father and son. Chicken Little loosing his pants was the favorite part of gradeschool kids in previews.  |
| They designed me to look like a clown, even as a fox :) |
When the actors ran out of money for writers, it was good how the actors add-libbed the stuff. The moment where Fish does the King Kong-impersonation was recognized by kids. And originally the crew were considering to end the movie with the baseball sequence. But the studio said that they needed to expand the movie. And Braff is actually a good singer, but was forced to sing falsely for a kid. There were some suggestions that Fish should talk, but they were voted down. But he was a audience favorite. And regarding the final Mickey clock, the consumer products were afraid of not being able to get a third eye on Mickey. But Michael Eisner thought it was funny. Adam West voiced the Chicken Little as an action hero at the end. And Diana Ross was actually approached to use her version of Ain`t No Mountain High Enough. And the movie had the only time where Marshall sang.Epilogue
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| I have a cool hairdo, right? :) |
At the end, it`s really hard to conclude a movie like Chicken Little. A movie that is essentially perceived as lackluster as a whole and is perceived as Disney`s true Black Sheep. But is it truly worth the hate? In many ways, yes. Despite how it actually has it perks, Chicken Little is truly awful at it`s very worst. But there`s always a good side to a failure and it`s how Disney has learned by their mistake by realizing what they did wrong. And even a bad movie can essentially be perceived as significant by itself for those aforementioned reasons.  |
| Since I`m (Chicken Little) is the leader, I needed to look bigger than my buddies :) |
However, it`s not to say that people who likes this movie are not allowed to like it. Cause for all it`s flaws, Chicken Little still has it`s redeemable sides. As it has a good, valuable moral (every day is a new day for success) and does have some genuinely enjoyable moments. It`s just a pity how those good moments and moral doesn`t make up for how truly awful the movie is as a whole. But since this entry is meant to synergize with it`s 20th Anniversary (yes, it`s hard to believe that it`s now that old), there`s nothing left to wish Chicken Little Happy 20th Anniversary and may you continue to have many more.
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| Yes, I`m the Men in Black-version of my species :) |
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References:
Chicken Little Blu Ray
Chicken Little From Henhouse to Hollywood (Monique Peterson)
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