Review of A Goofy Movie (1995) by Donald Z — 16 Feb 2011

I LOVE A Goofy Movie.

I had seen a bit of this movie when I was about 5 or 6, and when I was 7 my mom bought me the VHS. The instant I watched it, I was HOOKED. I loved *everything* about this movie, from the songs to the characters to the story to the jokes. Somehow my VHS disappeared. However, I recently ordered the DVD from Walmart and am waiting on its arrival.

There you go. I not only love this movie for nostalgic reasons, but because it's just a really good movie. In fact, I'm sure teenagers who give it a chance can relate to it more than many other teen-oriented movies out there. Yes, I do think this movie is more for teens than small kids, though all ages can enjoy it. Max is older than he was in Goof Troop (a show I used to love), and rather than admiring his dad, Goofy, like he did back then, now he's a teenager who's trying to be cool and impress his crush, Roxanne (I know she's a dog, but she's really cute in a human-ish way). Max is actually trying to distance himself from his dad, who is anything but "hip". Max and his friends stage a scheme for Max to impress Roxanne, and it works, but not without it's consequences. The film then becomes a father-son roadtrip with Goofy and Max, during which hilarity ensues.

This is a great, really underrated movie. The songs are all fun and memorable, my favorite probably being "Eye to Eye" at the end. The movie is HILARIOUS too. To me, the funniest scene is when Max slaps the possum upside the head yelling, "Beat it, doofus!" Many of the jokes fly over the heads of kids; Max's friend Bobby, for instance, is your typical high-school stoner. The movie is not without it's emotional moments, however. There are several moments where I feel bad for Goofy because of how Max treats him; Goofy is obviously just trying to make his son happy and Max is a jerk to him. Seeing Max's behavior really makes me regret how I've talked to my parents in the past. The waterfall scene at the end is also very emotional and hard-hitting; thankfully no one dies.

Bill Farmer and Jason Marsden among others do a great job voice acting. The animation in this film is simple, yet very good, and it has a "classic" sort of feel to it.

Every teenage boy (including myself) wants to be able to do what Max does in this film, to overcome the odds and impress the girl of your dreams in a big way. This is what makes the film so fun to watch. Kids dream of growing up to do what Max does, teenagers want to do what Max does, and adults reminisce about been lovestruck teenagers when they watch A Goofy Movie.

I really love this movie, and it doesn't hurt that I'm a big fan of Goofy and classic Disney cartoons. This movie is a classic, and it is probably a bit overlooked because it was released the same year as Pixar's Toy Story, which is an EXCELLENT film. 10 out of 10 might seem extreme, but this movie does what it aims to do incredibly well and is VERY entertaining.