From: wbarnes@sura.net (Bill Barnes)
Subject: Re: Robin Hood (was Re: Could Disney do a human-only animation)
Organization: SURAnet, College Park, MD, USA, NA, Earth, Milky Way
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 1992 22:56:43 GMT

In article <6234.29ec1d1e@dcatla.uucp> pibeb@dcatla.uucp writes:
>	Now for the problems.  Don't get me wrong.  I really enjoy the
>music of Roger Miller; but simply put, his particular brand of wimsey is
>much too rooted in the rural United States to be at all convincing in a
>film about Merry Old England, although his old hit song "England Swings"
>may have held promise to the Disney people making the decision on the
>film's music.

Actually, Miller's music was probably the main thing I didn't care for,
although not because of the anachronism of it, but simply because it didn't
appeal to me.  (I must admit I wouldn't've objected to some authenticity
here...)

>	Another problem is a familiar one which was much more forgiveable
>when it was done first in JUNGLE BOOK, that is taking an established actor's
>voice and letting the animators take a shortcut in developing their character's
>traits.  Essentially Little John was no different than Baloo or O'Malley,
>Nottingham no different than Kaa.

Just out of curiosity, why was it more forgivable in the Jungle Book?  Just
because it was the first time it'd happened, or because it seemed more
appropriate?

I thought it was not uncommon to tailor roles to the actors/actresses who
would be filling them; why shouldn't you do it in animation as well?  Granted,
the Disney folks may have gone a bit overboard on this one, putting the
voice actor first and then figure out the character they play, but I don't
really see what's wrong with it.

>	Another problem with the voices is that, with the exception of
>Ustinov(who I thought was the best thing about the movie other than the
>animation and backgrounds themselves) and an actor doing a good Ronald
>Coleman imitation for Robin Hood, wasn't anyone bothered by the fact
>that everyone else had an American accent--in the case of Phil Harris(a
>great entertainer,mind you) a midwestern American accent!  Again, doesn't
>Robin Hood have England as its origin?

Does it bother you that in Pinnochio everyone speaks colloquial English in
what's supposed to be a German(?) fairy tale?  Or the Little Mermaid, another
German(?) fairy tale?  Or the fact they're not using early English in the
Sword in the Stone?

Disney has this (some would call it obnoxious) tendency to Americanize
the stories it chooses to animate, if they aren't Americanized enough
already.  I doubt it's a coincidence that almost all of their animated
films are based on American-written stories, English stories which are
accepted into mainstream Americana, or European fairy tales that have been
accepted into mainstream Americana.  It doesn't surprise me that they chose
to give all the peasantry American accents in Robin Hood (someone already
commented on the peasantry/nobility thing, right?); for one thing, the kiddies
would probably have had a lot of problems with authentic Early English
accents 8^P!

>	In addition, I still can't understand why the project was undertaken
>at all simply because I can see no real merit in taking human characters and
>making them into cute little animal characters when, until PRINCE OF THIEVES
>anyway, the story had been told so much better in previous films by flesh and
>blood actors.

(Anthropomorphics, if you don't mind 8^)  Perhaps the point was that previous
more "accurate" renditions had been done and Disney wanted to do something
slightly different (don't they always...8-/).

I agree that Disney's version was a complete bastardization of the original
legend and bore virtually no resemblance to the "reality" of Robin Hood.
I liked it regardless; heck, maybe because of its quirky idiosyncracies
and anachronisms!
-- 
Bill "I went thru 14 years of school for this?!" Barnes   wbarnes@sura.net
Disclaimer:  Don't assume anything I say is truthful, accurate, or worthwhile.
Datclaimer:  My employers wouldn't WANT to share some of my opinions.