Hello friends, happy Friday! I hope you’re all doing well. Today I’m back with my Disney Movies project, watching all the movies in chronological order. Today I’m here with the first three years of the 1970s. Let’s jump right into it!

I haven’t given up on this project… finding time to watch movies, read books, work and also live life has been a tricky balancing act… but I’m trying. That said, I finally finished watching all the Disney movies from the 70s! So for the next three Fridays I’ll be posting all my thoughts on all 46 movies… when I write it out like that, it doesn’t sound like a lot… but it sure has felt like a lot!
What a trip it’s been, from the fashion to the acting, it’s been, a for the most part, enjoyable ride. There have been a few hiccups along the way, but I think for the most part a good time. Not a lot of rewatching happening here… I’m still waiting for my era, but at the rate I’m going… I won’t be there for a while, but that’s okay. It’s a marathon, not a sprint, as they say.

I started my 1970s journey in November and it took me until June to finish the first the three years of the 70s. So today, here are the first 18 films.

King of the Grizzlies: I wish we were off to a better start in the 70s… I feel like we’ve gone back in time because this felt like it fit right in to the late 50s/early 60s vibe that Disney had with its animal films. This one also wasn’t on Disney+, but it’s available on YouTube to rent. So to begin, I honestly don’t know what the point of this film really was. This film didn’t know if it wanted to be a documentary or a drama, it was kinda a cross between the two, but leaned more heavily on the documentary. We see Wahb, the bear grow from cub to full size adult with the help of our narrator. I have to say, I didn’t mind the narrating in this one, but it did have the same feel as the past true life adventure films, I think it was the same actor narrating. I had a feeling going into this, this would be a slow drawn out plot. Watching the bear was fun, but like the documentaries before it, it got tedious in its repetition. Also how much of it was the bears naturally doing things, like were they really sliding down snow hills on tree bark like sleds… or was that Disney forcing them? The second half of the film was more ‘drama’. We meet Moki, a Cree Indian whose tribe has ties to the grizzly. Over the course of this film the two keep running into each other. According to summaries that I’ve read there’s supposed to be some sort of soulful or mystic connection, but we don’t really see any of that. At some points Moki wants to shoot Wahb and others Wahb wants to attack Moki, in the end nothing really happens. They just go on their way. It felt a little lacklustre in resolution because it didn’t really resolve anything; this film spend more time on Wahb than anything else and at least they made that part somewhat entertaining. I read that this was based on a book (much like all Disney films) but it felt like they tried to add too much into this. This probably would have been a fine nature documentary on bears without the addition of Moki, but clearly they were following the book. This wasn’t a bad film, it just wasn’t that exciting and was pretty forgettable in the grand scheme of Disney films. (1970)

The Boatniks: The 70s have really been off to an interesting start. I’m not even sure what I watched here. This one wasn’t on Disney+ and it’s probably for the best. So this opens on Lieutenant Thomas Jordan reporting for duty on his first day as a coastguard, and following in the footsteps of his father, who everyone holds in high regards. This makes Jordan want to perform even better, but all it does is make him clumsier. Meanwhile, three guys who have stolen a bunch of jewels happen along the harbour. From there they steal a boat in order to get away, but the harder they try, the harder it is for them to actually make a getaway. Jordan notices the men and tries to put a stop to them, but no one believes him. Could this be the case that breaks him and gives him the respect he’s seeking? I mean, I feel like it’s pretty predictable in where this goes and how it ends. My thing was I wanted to know how they were going to catch them. We don’t exactly get that though, because this ends on them going after the helicopter the thieves are on, but we’re just left to assume they’ve been caught. Instead, this focused on the romance to end it off. I don’t think this film really needed a romance, but at least it wasn’t in your face. The plot was just really wacky and unbelievable, but you have to go in with that mindset. I thought this was slow in parts, which made it drag, I just wanted them to get on with it, but they kept going back and forth with all the antics that I got bored. I also didn’t like the use of the Japanese girl. The thieves go and call for a Japanese girl to come and retrieve something for them and it was so unnecessary and overall icky both in terms of using a woman and a race. I do like that she duped them, but still could have gone without that subplot. I mean, I could have gone without seeing this film because I didn’t find it very funny. It’s supposed to be a slapstick comedy, but this was just a downright bore. You can guarantee I won’t be watching this again. The acting wasn’t even that great, so all around there was just nothing to see here. (1970)

The Aristocats: This was one of my favourite Disney movies growing up, and still probably is. I remember watching this over and over, and all the scenes were so familiar to me. I remember each scene, what I didn’t remember was 1) how short they all were and 2) what the actual plot of this movie was. For some reason my little brain had these scenes as longer, but this film is just over an hour long so it makes sense that everything was really snappy and to the point. I don’t remember the last time I saw this, but it has been a long time. Also, this opened with a sensitivity warning, which I had to Google why – it’s for the representation of the Asian cat and how they portrayed the character, which watching it was very cringy and problematic; the song it sings it also pretty terrible. But aside from that, this was such a fun film to go back to. So the actual plot is that this retired opera singer starts drawing up a will, leaving everything she owns to her cats. Once they’ve passed on, it’ll be left to her butler, Edgar. When Edgar catches wind of this, he does what any greedy man would do and tries to get rid of the cats. But the cats are resourceful and befriend an ally cat, Tom O’Malley, who helps guide them back home. I had no idea as a kid that this was about a butler trying to get rid of cats for money. I just liked this for the cats, the songs and the way it looked. The painted streets of Paris were animated so well, like a painting – it was really beautiful to watch. I think I’ve always been drawn to the imagery in this movie as well as the cats, because it clearly wasn’t the plot since I never knew what it was about. I also really liked how sassy Duchess was; she could get along fine with or without Tom’s help, it was just nice to have and I thought it was a very positive female role. I would rewatch this one in a heartbeat because it’s fun, the songs are catchy, and the way it’s so fast-paced, yet tells a really good story in a short amount of time without feeling like something is missing, really well done. (1970)

The Wild Country: We have another Western… my favourite, although I have to say, this one wasn’t too bad. The last twenty minutes really sucked me, too! I was watching this to watch it, not really invested in much, it was slow going and the characters weren’t really exciting or memorable, if anything they reminded me of the family from Ol’ Yeller. I have to admit though, there were moments I really connected with the oldest son, Virgil. He felt so overworked with his dad hurt (and he felt to blame for it) and his younger brother doing nothing, as an eldest, I felt that. I could also see the bigger, family dynamic picture, too since his younger brother is all of what 7/8 years old. I’m sure Virgil wasn’t taking care of a ranch at that age. Well, we know he wasn’t because this movie starts with this family moving from big city life in Pittsburg to little country life in Wyoming to fix up a ranch. It’s never explained why they decided to move other than they got the land for really cheap. As the movie continues, we see that the family finds out the hard way it’s a lot more work than they thought. It doesn’t help they’re out in the lands where there are no laws in the 1880s, so people did whatever they wanted… like cut off water supplies. Most of the people are friendly enough, but there’s one guy who is so set dead on chasing this family out, going so far as to try and kill them. I’m telling you, the last twenty to thirty minutes had me glued to the screen wanting to know what was going to happen to this family. The first hour was a lot more set up and slow progression on ranch life. The way this was shot at times was interesting. The camera angles, especially the zooms, were used a lot. We’d be in a scene, then all of a sudden the camera would just zoom in real tight and it was a little jarring and kinda strange. The acting wasn’t bad, the kid who played the young boy (who I just found out is Ron Howard’s brother… and Ron played Virgil… so they were real life brothers, playing brothers, how cool!) basically yelled all his lines, which got really tedious to watch. But you could tell this movie had heart. There was of course an Indian in this, but it wasn’t a cowboys and Indians type movie, this Indian, Two Dog (although I’m pretty sure the actor wasn’t a native Indian) was one who lived among the people of that land, helping out with his medical advice. It was nice to see he wasn’t being mocked, made fun of or threatened in this. It was a nice film that I’m glad I saw once, but it’s not something I need to rewatch. Plus this one isn’t on Disney+. (1971)

The Barefoot Executive: This was another goofy movie that had a chimp in it. I have to say though, this wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be, I actually enjoyed this. As soon as I saw it had the chimp I was a little weary on where it was going to go, but it was actually pretty entertaining. This also had Kurt Russel and that’s always a plus, he’s become a favourite of mine and I can now see how the older generation who grew up with him, really love him. His character started off a little rough, but he turned around. So this is about Russel’s character, Post, who works at a TV station. The stations ratings are in the tank and they’re trying everything to boost them. It’s not until Post realizes that his girlfriend’s chimp, raffles is able to magically guess what show is going to pull in the ratings. So Post steals the chimp and starts using him to basically get rich and promoted in the company. No one knows how Post does it, but they want to, so the second half of the film is an executive and his driver stalking Post to figure it out. When they realize it’s a chimp, they want to deport him to the jungle. Like I said, really goofy and at times outright strange. There were quite a few jokes and gags that weren’t really that funny because they were so overacted and overwritten, most of the middle of the movie was like that. Everything with the exec and his driver were nonsensical and almost felt boring because it went on longer than it needed to. But for the most part this was enjoyable and seeing the chimp in all those adorable outfits was just too cute. Knowing it was a happy ending also made this heartwarming. This film isn’t on Disney+ but can be found online for free. This is one of those movies that I wouldn’t be mad rewatching or having it on in the background because it was different worthy of rewatching. (1971)

Scandalous John: I honestly don’t know what to make of this movie. Every time I tried to give it some credit, it turned around and showed me that I really shouldn’t. First up, this isn’t on Disney+ and it’s really no wonder that it’s not. Not only does this play into stereotypes, it gets racist and it’s so long and drawn out that you lose the plot so many times. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Disney cooperation wants to hide this. You can rent it on YouTube, but I found it for free online, and you’re better off doing that if you’re going to watch this… which I don’t even suggest you do. This was another Western… my favourite and the movie follows John an old (a review I saw called him a crotchety old man, and I laughed but I agree) man who doesn’t want to sell his land to developers. His granddaughter is trying to help him save the land in the best way she can, because she also knows he needs help. Ever since the loss of his wife, he hasn’t been the same. I will admit this takes a good look at grief and what it does to a person, but everything else can go. Somehow John joins teams with a Mexican named Paco (at least played by a Mexican actor, but my gosh does he play the stereotype so hard, it’s so cringy and just not fun to watch) and the two of them go off to fight the land developers. I feel like that went on for way too long. They honestly didn’t need to go on adventure after adventure, maybe if this had been done better it would have been fun to watch. But seeing two men come along, start shooting guns and shooting their mouths off to everybody around it just wasn’t entertaining at all. This was supposed to be like the book Don Quixote, I haven’t read that… yet… but this movie makes me not want to read it. All I can say is do yourself a favour and skip this Disney film (unless you’re a completist like me) not worth the time… I actually fell asleep twice trying to watch this, that’s how much of snooze this is. Needless to say, no I will never be watching this again. (1971)

The Million Dollar Duck: This falls into that weird, quirky, science fiction category that Disney has where some kooky professor or other makes the weirdest discovery and then the government is after them. Like this has got to be at least the tenth film like this, if not fifteen to twentieth. It’s also full of these outrageously over the top characters, who are basically caricatures of people and it’s done in a way that’s quirky to mask and hide the fact that it’s predictable, stereotypical, and at times could be offensive. You have your typical noisy neighbour, who was only good at making himself look like a fool; you had the ditsy, doting housewife who was used to hide their plans because “no one would believe a woman” *eye roll*. We’ve got our main character, Albert Dooley who’s the scientist who makes the discovery and is obsessed with both it and making money, all he sees is green; we have the best friend sidekick who’s “smart” (he’s a lawyer) but not really smart, and then you’ve got a bunch of secondary characters who fill out the goofy cast. We also can’t forget Charlie the duck, the star of the show. So this is about Albert, a scientist who is financially struggling and all he wants is to make a discovery that will hopefully cure his money woes. Just when he’s about to give up, his duck starts to lay golden eggs and things start to turn around. I will give it to this film for being weirdly entertaining at times. Like how they discover they can get the duck to lay eggs, is hilarious in such a kid way. I can see how this would be an amazing movie to kids, because they’re seeing all the comedy and just taking that in; they’re not seeing all the dynamics between the characters and how badly its been done. Clearly this was a movie made strictly for kids, without thinking parents/adults would watch. If I was a kid watching this, I may not love it, but I could have seen myself very entertained by it. Now, aside from the terrible greedy characters, I also thought the theatrics of it all got boring fast and the chase scene went on too long. But for an hour and a half movie, it did a good job of telling a story that in the end had a moral, which is surprising. Would I rewatch this one, probably not. But if I happened to see I again, I also wouldn’t be mad that it was on, there are worse Disney movies. At least this one is on Disney+ and easily accessible. (1971)

Bedknobs and Broomsticks: I can see why people compare this movie to Mary Poppins – it has magic, singing, animation mixed with live action and it takes place in London. But aside all of that, and you look at it as its own separate movie, this had such charm to it. This takes place in 1940, just as WWII was ramping up. The city of London is evacuating all the children in an effort to protect them. There are three children left when Miss Eglantine Price stops by to pick something up and it’s there that these three children are thrust upon her. It’s clear, neither she nor the children like this arrangement very much, and when they try to escape, they catch Miss Price flying in the sky! She a witch, but a novice one who needs some help in order to take down the German troops that are quickly coming to invade Britain. So it’s with the children’s help, and the head of her witchcraft training, Mr. Brown and a magical bed, they are able to travel to fantasy places to put a stop to the war. Wacky plot, yes, but entertaining nonetheless. I’ve never seen this movie, but I’ve heard of it and I know it’s a beloved classic and I can see why. Angela Lansbury completely steals the show with her singing and her presence alone is so bold and commanding. She’s so much fun to watch. I don’t know if it was supposed to be a romance between her character and David Tomlinson’s character, since the kids called him dad and she was like the mother figure to them, but I liked that they didn’t make it seem that way, they more so implied it. The two of them together was a hoot to watch, they really played off each other. The children’s acting was good; there were moments when it felt more wooden, but it got better as the movie progressed. And progress this movie did, this was just shy of two hours, and it probably could have been a tad tighter, the twenty minute dancing sequence in the middle kinda lost me, and then the animated soccer game lost its lustre after ten minutes, small things like that, that kids probably loved, but me as an adult thought got boring rather quickly. The whole fighting the Germans off with magic was such a strange plot, but I loved it. Like watching Miss Price come into her magic at just the right time when everyone she cared about believed in her, to bring her invisible army to life, it was magical and just loads of fun. My mom saw I was watching this and she goes “oh I loved this movie as a kid” and I can see why. It’s great for all ages! I could see myself rewatching this one in years to come. It’s both visually and cinematically amusing and full of life and colour. (1971)

The Biscuit Eater: For a strange title, this had a lot of charm. I went into this with apprehension, which I feel I do for most Disney movies I don’t know, I guess when I come out pleasantly surprised it makes me feel even better about the movie. This is about two young boys, Lonnie and Text. Lonnie’s dad is a bird dog trainer. When he receives a dog he finds he can’t train, he sells it, leaving the boys devastated. Determined to get it back, they buy it off the person his father sold it to and train it themselves. They’re so proud of what they’ve accomplished that they eventually enter the dog (named Moreover, which is such a strange name, too) into the Grand National Field Trials. It’s there that they learn they’ll be competing next to Lonnie’s father, a grand prize winner. This movie was so wholesome and sweet. Watching two boys put all their effort into this one dog really showed heart and perseverance. Even though this could be a little dry at times, this didn’t run too long and for the most part it wasn’t on the boring side, and the scenes all felt like they had a purpose. Even the adults in this were great to watch; they felt supportive and showed up for their children, it was really nice to see. Apparently calling someone a ‘biscuit eater’ is an insult, which I’ve never heard of, and so calling the dog that was an insult because it liked to suck eggs… yes this movie could be really strange at times, but it also had a lot of heart that I can overlook the strangeness. In the end though, I probably wouldn’t rewatch this, even though I did enjoy it just because I’ve seen it once I don’t feel I need to see it again. If it happened to come on, I wouldn’t be mad about it, it does have a rewatchability quality to it. (1972)

Napoleon and Samantha: I don’t know how many times I’m going to say “this was a strange movie” in this decade. So far, the 70s have really proven how bizarre they can get. We know Disney can be strange, but I feel like the 70s are a different kind of strange, one where the movies make almost zero sense, yet they have this endearing quality to them that makes you go “huh, that wasn’t actually bad”. Like this and the ones that came before it weren’t bad movies, they were just outrageous in plot. In the case of this movie, we follow Napoleon a young boy who lives with his grandfather. They meet a clown in the woods (which is weird in and of itself) who has a lion named Major, who he’s trying to sell because he can’t look after it anymore. Napoleon begs his grandfather to keep him. His grandfather is reluctant because where are they going to keep it? But in the end, he relents and now they have a lion. Next thing we know Napoleon’s grandfather dies and because he’s afraid of orphanages he lies, claiming his grandfather is still alive, but he pays this guy, Danny (a young Michael Douglas) to bury his grandfather. Napoleon then wants to live with Danny, so it becomes this adventure movie where Napoleon and his friend Samantha, along with the lion go on this quest to find where Danny lives. I can’t forget that this ends with the longest, craziest motorcycle police chase with Michael Douglas. There are so many weird things that happen one after another it makes it so unbelievable, which I guess is great for kids, but my gosh was it hard to watch as an adult. I think kids get the goofiness out of this, whereas for me, I felt for the young boy who was grappling with the death of his grandfather and trying to find a replacement in Danny. That was the endearing part of this movie, but the rest of it was just absurd. This one was also on the slower side so it felt like it took forever for things to move. You’d think with all this happening, and the movie being an hour and a half, things would move quickly, no, no they did not. It was a very slow pace to the end. I probably wouldn’t watch this one again, it’s also not on Disney+ for some reason, but it’s not like it doesn’t have a rewatchability quality to it, I just don’t see myself wanting to go back to this. (1972)

Now You See Him, Now You Don’t: Not a really clever name for a movie, but I can’t expect too much from something as kooky as this. Kurt Russel comes back to reprise his role as Dexter in this, the sequel to The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes. In this film, Dexter doesn’t become a very smart computer, but accidentally figures out how to turn invisible. Of course the film goes on and on about all the crazy ways they can use this new power, at least it didn’t go on for too long; actually I thought this film had the perfect length at an hour and a half. There were parts that dragged, but they didn’t for long and everything felt like it was added for a purpose to advance the plot. My first thought when we find out what Dexter can use his invisibility for, was why is this school always in need of funding?! Every time we see it, and we’ve seen it a lot over the last two decades, it always needs funding and it’s always a student with a crazy invention or idea that has to come to the rescue, this film was no different. So Medfield needs money and Dexter believes he can use his new ability to help save them, and to help figure out why this guy has come and taken an interest in the school. I mean, this did have some good plot twists, some were more predictable than others, but it was still a solid plot. I really liked the computer wore tennis shoes and this one was just as entertaining and hilarious as that one. It was really goofy, in a fun way. The only thing that was over the top goofy was the way the adult characters were portrayed. It was like they couldn’t figure anything out and the students had to help them. I get it, it’s a movie for kids and that’s funny to them, but my gosh the way the dean is so clueless can be annoying at times. I already know this is a film trilogy, but the way this one ended left no room to doubt it. The way Dexter says he saved the school for another year and he’ll see them again next year, makes it very obvious. Lastly, this film joins the not on Disney+ camp for some reason. The first film was, but this one isn’t, boo. It’s not hard to find online, just annoying. Otherwise, solid, good, fun! (1972)

Run, Cougar, Run: I wonder how long we’ll be seeing these mocumentary style films. This didn’t know if it wanted to be a documentary or a western and I feel like this has become a common theme for Disney. This film follows Seeta, a mountain lion, who is being hunted because they’ve been known to kill horses and sheep. These hunters come out and try and catch her, but Etio, a Shepard who calls Seeta his friend tries to defend and save her. This got one star from me for heart; you could feel that Etio really cared for the cat, and wanted nothing more than to let her be on her own. But that’s all it got from me. This film was way too long and it was only an hour and a half. This could have easily been a 45 minute special and the point would have been made without all the extra fluff in between. This was tediously long and stretched out. We spent the first twenty minutes at least watching this cat as she roamed the caves she lives in; we had a boring narrator tell us what we were seeing and nothing was really added for entertainment. I can’t believe I’m saying it, but bring back the narrator from the True Life Adventure films – even though he could get way over the top, at least there was some sort of excitement there; this guy was so boring. To top it off, even the acting was rough, it felt wooden and made watching this so hard to bear. The last half was watching these hunters try and capture Seeta in all the ways they knew how, and failing at every turn. Needless to say, this is definitely not one that I would watch again. It had a decent plot, but the execution of it all was not it. Plus, it’s not on Disney+ (shocker!) but you can find the lowest quality on YouTube… which at least it’s free for anyone who is a completest like me. (1972)

Snowball Express: This was another kooky Disney movie starring Dean Jones. I’ve probably said it before, but I’ve really come to like his weird movies since he’s been in quite a few of them. In this one, he plays Johnny Baxter, a man who finds out he’s come into an inheritance of a hotel in Colorado. So he quits his job and moves the family out there, without having seen it first. It turns out to be this big dump, but Johnny has big plans for it. He wants to turn it into a ski lodge and resort… but that’s more work than he thought and so when everything that could go wrong, does go wrong, he’s left trying his hardest to ensure he keeps the place. This movie was a little on the long side; there were a lot of gag moments that could have been cut shorter or cut out entirely, but for the most part this was really entertaining. I think what I found to be the most entertaining was the dialogue; it was really witty with tight comedy. The acting was really good, Jones always puts on a good performance and this was no exception. His comedic acting was great and he had great chemistry with the other actors so it all flowed together nicely. Obviously the special effects weren’t great in the early 70s so there were a lot of cheesy green screen scenes, probably more than there needed to be, but looking past that, this still did what it set out to do and that’s entertain the audience. This may not be something I come back to, but I don’t hate that I’ve watched it, nor do I feel like I wasted my time, it was a good fun romp. (1972) 

The World’s Greatest Athlete: This was another interesting film from Disney. They have some weird obsession with running schools that need help or saving, this is becoming a strange theme. In this one, coach Sam Archer needs to fix the athletic department because currently every team aren’t good; they’re all losing really badly. So what does he do, he takes a trip to Africa to gain inspiration from his ancestors on how he can improve the athletes. It’s there where he sees Nanu, an Tarzan-like man who can do it all. He spends the first of the film trying to get Nanu to go home with him so he can, essentially use him. But of course he can’t just pluck him out of his home. He learns about the custom of the island, where if a man saves your life, he’s subjected to following you forever. So that’s actually what coach Archer does. Then the second half of the film is spent with Nanu learning American life, and being a human. I have to say, this was more entertaining than I originally thought it was going to be. Did I enjoy all of it, no, there were a few scenes that I didn’t think were needed, plus Archer’s assistant coach who was supposed to be comedic relief, came off as more annoying than he did funny. He was supposed to be slap-stick funny and he felt cringy at best. Like the whole scene where’s he’s made extremely small was over the top and I couldn’t wait for it to be over, it’s dragged on for way too long. The conflict of having Nanu taken back home because he was tricked into coming was good, but it was layered with weird plots that it was just ok. In the end, not my favourite movie, but not the worst one either. It’s safe to say I won’t be rewatching this one again, which is okay because it’s not on Disney+ but can be found online. (1973)

Charley and the Angel: Another Disney film starring two of my favourites, Fred MacMurray (I thought his days at Disney were done by this point, although I read this was his last Disney film) and Kurt Russel (although we didn’t get nearly enough of him in this) in a fantasy film mixed with a little crime. Charley is a workaholic dad and when an Angel comes to visit him to tell him his time is up, well now he starts to realize what’s really important in life. He starts wanting to be with his family more, and to ensure they’ll be okay once he’s gone. This leads to his two young sons finding a job, one that pays very well as they end up delivering alcohol around town and get mixed up with a couple of bootleggers. This had a corny plot, but there were actual moments when I truly thought MacMurray’s character was going to die. As much as his performance in this was a little lacklustre at times, he really pulled off convincingly that it was going to be the end for his character. Like I mentioned above, I really wish we had gotten more Kurt Russel. We got him more in the end, but it still wasn’t enough. The two actors who played the young boys did a great job. The whole plot of them driving a car was wild to me. I guess we had to suspend our belief on that one; that or in the 1930s (when this movie was set to take place – which side note, I thought the clothing choices were interesting because you could see the 70s fashion shine through even though they were going for 1933) that’s just what kids did, which I doubt. Again, a strange plot that had me entertained throughout, I honestly didn’t think it was a bad film. Characters learned lessons, especially Charley, he learned to live a more full life, which was a good lesson to watch. The only thing about this film is it belongs in the not on Disney+ camp. I unfortunately had to rent it off of YouTube because finding it online was hard to do. Would I rewatch this one, to be fair probably not, but does it have that rewatchability to it, I think it does. (1973)

One Little Indian: I don’t really know what to make of this movie; it’s another one to add to the not on Disney+ camp, and as I read on one of the 21 reviews for this movie on Letterboxd (that should give you an idea of how received this movie is), there’s a reason some of these older Disney movies aren’t available on streaming and they would be right. This movie was downright boring. No matter how many times I wanted to pay attention to it, there was nothing redeeming about it. If I’m being honest, I don’t even remember the plot, all I know is we meet this young Indian boy, Mark who is apparently a white boy turned Indian, because he was stolen and raised by a tribe. So, not only boring, but racist. It’s also really weird how they all discovered he was white… they all pulled his pants and saw his butt was white and went ‘huh, this kid is really white’, it was just so weird to me. So we’ve got a kid playing brown face, who then meets an army deserter, Keyes, played by James Garner, which surprised me he was in a Disney movie. Together the two are riding through the desert on camels, of all animals, while both are being chased. It was just a strange sequence of events that didn’t feel like it amounted to anything. Keyes just wants Mark to have a real family, but Mark just wants to be with Keyes and his mother, or well the woman who raised him. I mean, it’s Disney so of course the ending was happily ever after, but I just didn’t care enough. There were a few comedic moments with Garner and the camels, because he is funny, but it’s not long enough to keep the viewer engaged. I’m not one for westerns, and Disney has made a lot, none of them really any good, this one was no exception to that. This was not for me, and I won’t be watching it again; at least it was easy to find online. (1973)

Robin Hood: It’s been such a long time since we’ve had a Disney move that’s 1) on Disney+ and 2) an animated film. It’s so good to be back in the world of animation. Yes, a lot of it was as I’ve read ‘recycled animation’ but I’m not mad at it. Sure, I could pick up on many of the same things from the Jungle Book, but this was so much better than that. This was never boring and was super entertaining from the start. The story of Robin Hood… in an animal form where Robin is a fox, with a bear sidekick named Little John. He’s out there stealing from the rich Prince John, to give to the poor. The way they wrote up Prince John as a whiney baby was actually really hilarious. That could have gone one of two ways, horrendously annoying, or dramatically funny and luckily it landed on the funnier side. It follows the same premise as the live action film Disney did back in the 50s, although I think I liked this version better. The plot was engaging and the songs were catchy. I liked Robin and Little Bear in their quest to share the wealth. I also liked that they gave Prince John a sidekick as well, Sir Hiss. Now, Sir Hiss saw and guessed most things before they happened and no one would believe him, and I found that to be a good use of comedy. This was also a good film to show kids the meaning of sharing and how greed is bad. Obviously this had a happy ending and everything turned out alright for the good guys, and the bad guys got punished – if only the real world worked that way. All that to say, this was a lot of fun to watch. I feel like I’ve probably seen this film before because a lot of it felt familiar, I wouldn’t be surprised if I have the VHS kicking around somewhere, but this is definitely a film that I could see myself rewatching again. (1973)

Superdad: This movie screamed 1970s. From the clothes, to the attitude it was all there in plain sight. I didn’t love nor hate this film, I’m very in between because on the one hand, I was fully engaged in this, but on the other, the plot was so all over the place that it was hard to say what this is really about. For a movie that’s called super-dad, our main character, Wendy’s father sure wasn’t super. Instead he spends the whole movie trying to find her a better boy to marry over Bart, played by the lovely Kurt Russell. I have to say though, Kurt’s roles have gotten very, very similar. Don’t get me wrong I think he’s a fine actor, but Disney doesn’t know how to utilize him better than him being in a film for less than 15 minutes, playing the bad boy fathers don’t want their daughters to be with. The role is getting stale and I feel bad for Kurt. So that is exactly the role he plays here and Wendy’s father can’t stand it. So he gets her into the best college, but that ends up being an even worse decision because she ends up finding someone worse than Bart, shocker! The whole point was basically to prove that Bart isn’t as bad as her father thinks. I guess they were leading up to the fact that Wendy was going to get married, but I didn’t expect this to end on the actual marriage, that kinda felt like it came out of left field. I know there was talk about Wendy getting to ‘marrying age’ but I didn’t think they’d actually go there. It was such a weird way to end the movie… plus you don’t even see Bart. The whole plot of the father controlling the daughter was icky. I get for the 70s that was still a very predominant thing to do; I mean, they did try to play it like the dad knew he couldn’t tell his daughter what to do, but ultimately he could. It was just a strange concept for a plot. One that, like I said, I couldn’t stop watching because for some reason I was entertained, even if the content wasn’t great. The green screens in this made me laugh out loud though, because they were so bad. Overall, it’s another movie to add to the not on Disney+ camp, but you can rent it on Prime. This isn’t a movie I’d watch again, seeing it this once was good enough for me. (1973)

Have you seen any of these movies? Let me know in the comments below!