Review of Bolt (2008) by Kyle20Ellis — 20 Mar 2022

I have been a big Disney fan all my life. After quite a solid Renaissance, with only Hercules and Pocahontas lacking that extra Disney magic, the Disney movies of the 00s have been mixed. Emperor's New Groove and Lilo and Stitch were great, on the other hand Home on the Range and Chicken Little were forced, predictable and forgettable.

Bolt did have me interested, but I wasn't as enthused with the initial casting of Miley Cyrus, who I can't stand. Actually in the movie, she does okay and her character is quite cute.

While it is far from amazing and far from a Disney classic like Beauty and the Beast, Pinocchio, The Lion King, Bambi and Sleeping Beauty, Bolt is one of the better Disney movies of the 00s. It does have its rushed and predictable spots, especially with the ending, and the human characters excepting Penny aren't as appealing and aren't given as much attention to detail as they ought to have done.

But what does compensate are some stunning animation with excellent character design, amazing colours and beautiful background art, a rousing soundtrack, a fast-paced and heart-warming story overall and witty scripting. The voice work is top notch, while John Travolta is suitably eloquent as the title character the real plaudits go to Susie Essman as the best character of the movie Mittens and Malcolm McDowell as Dr.Calico.

In conclusion, a surprisingly enjoyable family movie and one of the better Disney efforts to come out so far in this millennium. 7.