Review of One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) by Patty M — 29 Dec 2009

If I were to give one compliment to Disney it would be the effectiveness of the villains. I'm certain every child who has ever seen 101 Dalmatians has been scared out of their minds by Cruella. I was! Every time she enters a room there's thunder and lightening.

And she drives like a mad woman! In the famous words of the cartoon truck driver who also starred in this film, "Crazy Woman Driver!" It's terrible that a woman has so much determination just for a coat.

And I've read the book! I like the take on Horace and Jasper in this film. Disney was A; the first company to produce 101 Dalmatians and B; portrayed Horace and Jasper as comical characters. This tradition would continue into other films like the 1996 version with Glenn Close.

Horace and Jasper are actually ruthless and and have brains to track and kill dogs. Which was why the book was so good because the dogs wits outwitted the human's. Another note was the movie's animation.

The animators used an illustration process that looked more storybook than any other movie they had made. The background was sketchy and appeared stationary while the characters in the foreground looked the typical cartoons.

It was a nice contrast demanding your eyes to travel where the attention must be put.