Review of One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) by Matthew F. J — 14 Jan 2014

101 Dalmatians feels heavy and dark for an early Disney film. I am not sure whether it was trying to raise a message on animal cruelty or were they just trying a good tale and just using it as a backdrop, but either one it's still something that is worth seeing.

This story is based on a children's story by Dodie Smith and written for the screen by Bill Peet. The film's premise is that there is this scary lady who wants to steal Pongo and Perdita's children and turn them into coats. Peet has done four films with Disney and those are Cinderella, Sword In The Stone, 101 Dalmatians and Peter Pan. Out of all of these films, I felt that his best was Peter Pan but his darkest is 101 Dalmatians. This film gets into a dark place once Cruella De Vil is introduced and some children may find her frightening, when her eyes went red it was one of the most frightening things Disney has ever done. Once the stealing of puppies begins, I started to see the themes of genocide and imprisonment. After when they escape it becomes like a survivalist film. It feels similar to world war 2 films like Schindler's List and Defiance which I admired. The beginning of the film feels a little misleading, as it feels positive like something from Lady and the Tramp but then that adds to that shock you would feel when this woman comes in with evil intentions and a horrible personality. It was pretty funny though when the film starts and thinking that the narration is from the human's perspective but rather from the dog and we find out through calling of the human from Pongo, a "Pet".

This film is directed by Clyde Geronimi and Hamilton Luske. These guys have directed some well known Disney classics, in particular Lady and the Tramp, and so there is some expectations with this film. I think with their experience from Lady and the Tramp, it was easier to animate and needing not to do a lot of research in animating it. The third director for this film is Wolfgang Reitherman. This is his first feature length film for Disney and I bet he was the reason that this film had that edge to it, whether it's the music or the animation. This is the guy who used Jazz and R&B for his future Disney flicks. I feel that they did a decent job. I can't say that this film will be the most remembered but with a memorable villain and edgy feel to it, it is deserving of its status as a Disney classic.

The animation of this film is a start of a string of films that uses a dirty look. The animation is not as clean as compared to Cinderella or Lady and the Tramp but it is effective as it captures urban London so well that it won't be so much of a distraction. The dalmatians are drawn very well but can get rather repetitive, then they did half to draw 99 dalmatian puppies. The animators have improved from their last Disney efforts, Sleeping Beauty, as there is more personality in the characters, especially the people. They drew Cruella very menacingly and so uniquely in the film. She stands out when she is in the scene, especially near the beginning when standing next to Roger and Anita.

The music of this film has a mix of both orchestral and jazz. It feels like a bridge between their orchestral dominated film, Sleeping Beauty, and the film soon to follow, The Jungle Book. I enjoyed the songs that Roger plays as it feels catchy and edgy. I like that the film did not decide to become too melodramatic with its score and dis something a little more simple.

This film is not Disney's top classic but it is fun and something different from the films that Disney usually puts out, aside from Alice In Wonderland. I suggest let your child be a little bit more mature or have seen at least a decent amount of Disney animations before watch this. I recommend it to anyone but don't get your hopes too much on it.