Review of Bolt (1995) by Michael M — 22 Apr 2013

I fully expected this movie to suck. I remember seeing the giant cardboard cutouts for it at theaters and just groaning in disgust. But then I watched it and...I liked. Not only did I like it, I loved it.

The premise is sort of silly, but they make it work surprisingly well. It's been compared to The Truman Show, and for good reason as their premises are very similar, but its focus and themes are radically different. Still, the "he doesn't know he's a star" concept presents a lot of intriguing options for moments of drama and comedy, and both are explored to their fullest here. Its writing is practically perfect, and everything feels very tight and well thought out; there wasn't a single moment where I started to get bored. It's character roster is pretty small, but that's fine, and fortunately our three leads have great personalities and play off each other great.

I think this was the turning point for Disney into what I call their "second renaissance." It feels more like a Disney movie that anything else they had done up to that point in close to a decade. It has all the warmth, humor, and characters that make up a Disney classic. And Bolt IS a Disney classic.