And, In Conclusion -- Bolt
Pete Holland Jr.
It's an odd contradiction in the entertainment world that the things
with dedicated artists behind them, trying to bring something new to
audiences and push the boundaries of their arts, will often be ignored
in favor of things that go for general recognition. It happens in
television (Mr. Show gets a cult following, Two And A Half Men is a
massive hit), video games (Beyond Good And Evil gets a cult following,
countless derivative first person shooters get the bucks), music (I
think I'm the only one in my area who has even heard of Hepcat, while
American Idol singers sell tons of discs)...it goes on and on.
Now, there's nothing wrong with earnestly trying to entertain a
crowd. After all, that is why it's called entertainment. The problem
happens when the crowd-pleasers start reading from the same script.
What was once an original idea that caught audiences by surprise is
done so often, it becomes a cliche. One need look no further than
American computer animated family flicks to see this phenomena up
close.
"Bolt" is Disney's newest computer animated flick. Disney has a nasty
tendency to become complacent with its talent. They succumbed to
their own cliches in traditional animation for years before Don Bluth
made An American Tail and gave them a wake-up call. The more mature
animation that Dreamworks started with Prince Of Egypt and Spirit
yielded the amazing Atlantis and the horribly cliche Treasure Planet.
And then, with Pixar, Disney started competing with itself. In an
effort to show they didn't need Pixar, they made the way-too-long and
not-funny-enough Chicken Little, the horrible The Wild, and the
hastily-fixed-in-post (but not enough to push it over the top) Meet
The Robinsons.
When Disney is firing on all cylinders, they understand that what made
their movies work was that the story connected with the audience on an
emotional level. Pixar understands that, as the scene in "Finding
Nemo" where Marlin is frantically screaming for Nemo in total panic as
his journey kicks off still sends chills down my spine. Here, Disney
goes for a perfectly valid shortcut to emotional resonance -- a kid
losing their pet. Bolt is the pet of Penny, a little girl. Together,
they are the stars of a TV show, with Bolt as a superdog that at times
seems like all the Road Rovers rolled into one. Bolt, however, is a
forced method actor -- he is completely unaware that this is a TV show
(just ignore the logistics problems of a boom mic in a shot without
Bolt noticing the operator, or when exactly Penny was cast on the
show. It just ain't worth it). One day, seeing an opportunity to
escape his trailer and rescue Penny, he winds up on the other side of
the country and begins a trek back to rescue her, abducting an alley
cat named Mittens along the way.
The start of the movie plays like an odd cross between The Truman Show
and the South Park episode The Fellowship Of The Lord Of The Rings.
Perhaps unconsciously realizing this is kind of thin material to hang
a whole movie on, the movie is peppered with scene-stealers that keep
the momentum going during the slower parts. There are several pigeons
put to good use (the ones in Hollywood are especially hilarious), but
the best is Rhino, a hamster in a ball who meets Bolt and completely
geeks out, not only meeting his idol but living his own adventure.
So, the movie is a crowd pleaser. What's the first order of
business? STUNT CASTING! Bolt is voiced by John Travolta. And he
does pretty good, I guess. I mean, I can't really fault what he does,
but it seems more like a functional performance. The guy can act.
But it just doesn't seem like he invests everything he has in the
movie. When Bolt has his Buzz Lightyear moment, realizing that it is
just make-believe, you can't help but feel more could have been done.
However, Travolta runs rings around Miley Cyrus as Penny. Keep in
mind, the awesome force of nature that is the Hannah Montana
juggernaut has completely passed me by. I'm only vaguely aware of the
plot. I haven't seen a single episode. The only songs I've heard
were from the few times I played the DDR Disney Channel mix before
putting it away forever because the step detection was so lousy. I'm
really only familiar with her as tabloid fodder. Her readings are
flat and uninvolving. Considering how relatively minor her character
is in the grand scheme of the movie, they really should have cast a
voice actress who knows how to work the crowd.
The supporting cast does pretty good. Susie Essman brings a solid
Bronx sensibility to Mittens. Mark Walton sells his role as Rhino
with everything he's got. Malcolm McDowell, best known as Admiral
Tolwyn in Wing Commander (joke! joke! joke!) makes the most of his
scant screen time as the TV show's villain.
The music by John Powell is his usual expert work. He actually
composes two distinct music tracks for the movie. The first is the
action movie stuff. He fills it will all the musical cliches from
allegros during chase scenes to bombastic brass for emphasis without
giving it any distinct identity. It's like a musical parody bordering
on scathing satire. The rest is during the quieter moments for Bolt,
which have a flow the underscores things wonderfully.
The movie, however, ultimately succeeds because it does just enough
right. The directing is brisk, using pacing to keep you from noticing
the inconsistencies in the logistics of the plot. It does lack the
Pixar polish, like a scene that calls direct attention to Bolt's
fading mark on his side. But it employs cartoon speed and transitions
to keep things from lagging. The opening, showing a protracted chase
scene from the TV show, is corny, but is actually pretty
entertaining. Likewise, the writing does just enough right. Some
moments are obvious, like Mittens accidentally revealing the source of
her ire towards humans. But it also hits the right notes once in a
while. In a touch I loved during the climax, Bolt decides to risk
saving Penny even though he is convinced she never loved him.
Ultimately, what makes Bolt enjoyable is not so much Bolt as the way
he is handled. The movie could easily have presented him as a
clueless loser and played him for laughs. Instead, they present him
in a way that you sympathize with. Characters that inspire empathy
are rare nowadays (Adrian Monk, Harry Dresden...I think that's about
it). By treating Bolt with some respect, the movie lands on the right
side of the line. It doesn't have Pixar's care and polish, but you
don't leave the theater feeling like you wasted your time.