Holds Up To Repeated Viewings

Rating: 7/10 (26 July 2009)

I always considered this one of Disney's lesser efforts, with Cruella DeVil being it's saving grace. One of the great movie villains of all time, she seemed to be the life of this story. However, after my two year old daughter became obsessed with several scenes, I found that I was able, after watching it over and over, to appreciate many of the little details.
101 Dalmatians is the story of a family of puppies who are kidnapped by an evil fur-loving heiress who wants to make them into a coat. It's a fairly simple story, and not everything about it is entirely novel. The climactic car chase, for example, doesn't really have much to it when you break it down. Most of the characters are pretty bland, in contrast to the outrageous Cruella.
Yet, I find myself appreciating these attributes, having grown tired of every children's movie since Aladdin showcasing at least one smart-alec, pop-culture referencing sidekick to plant the story firmly in the age of irony. It is refreshing to return to a time when we didn't have Eddie Murphy or Nathan Lane doing hyperactive voice-overs filled with in-jokes meant for the adults.
In addition, I like the visual style, which other reviewers noted came about through a process meant to finish the film more cheaply, and which would be used for nearly twenty years of Disney movies. I especially enjoy the detail in the London street scenes, but I also like to watch the way the characters move, at times almost breaking out of the two-dimensional plane. Watch as Anita tries to walk around Roger while he is singing about Cruella. He jumps to the side to block her, and you feel the depth of the room better than you expect you could. There are also some great facial expressions (my favorite being the exasperated Anita as Roger descends the staircase at the reprise of "Cruella DeVil"). Throw in a couple hidden references (some characters from Lady and The Tramp and some older Disney cartoons), along with a score that's fun to whistle, and I find that I don't really mind watching this one over and over.
The animated sequel, 101 Dalmatians part 2, offers some laughs for fans of the original by bringing back some of the little details, such as showing Cruella's reconstructed car, and employing Thunderbolt and Kanine Krunchies as plot devices. However, comparing the new movie with the original, you can see how much has changed in the expectations for family entertainment. I get the idea that as long as movies are animated and don't contain anything outright offense, there will be people who praise it as decent children's viewing. Disney deserved his success because of the care he put into his movies--not just the look, but the story, the feel, the characters, what audiences would take from it. (For a jaw-dropping example of just how much thought went into a story, listen to one of the extras on the Bambi DVD where you "listen in" on some of the planning sessions Disney had with his creative teams). Pixar seems to be the only ones doing anything that comes close to this today. That's why they deserve their success, too.