Anaheim, we have a problem.

Rating: 6/10 (21 October 2000)

I am afraid Disney is losing its movie making magic.
A couple of months ago I went to Disneyland with a couple of friends (30ish, I myself am 25), and had the time of my life. We all agreed this place had a strange magic in it, a redeeming quality that went beyond its 100 acre site and went deep into your subconscious. We were grinning the minute we went in, and we were still like that 12 hours later. We went 2 days in a row to the park, and we were delighted. OTOH, we all think Disney World is the blandest, most artificial theme park ever.
Tarzan, Pocahontas, Hunchback and everything else after "Lion King" seems to be like Disney World to me. Excess, excess (CGI animation, hyper-expensive songs by worn-out semi-pop stars (Phil Collins? how can you have Elton John do "Lion King" and then Phil Collins???), an ultra-expensive cast) doesn't mean a good movie. Beauty and the Beast is a hauntingly beautiful movie. Lion King is a very good movie. Tarzan is not.
The only hope I still have is that the Disney Studios sometimes release very, very good stuff (Toy Story 2 has to be the best animated feature I've ever seen in my life). Sadly, people seem to ignore them in favor of the commercial, "safe" features.
I can only hope my kids can still see Disneyland the way my grandmother, my mother and myself saw it. Yet, Disney wants to corrupt this park, too. Have you seen "California Adventure", the new park opposite Disneyland? The Disney people seem only to care about money nowadays.
Needless to say, Walt wouldn't be proud.