Get Your Copy Mouse Under Glass: Secrets Of Disney Animation And Theme Parks Imagined By David Koenig Available In Print
stories, Hidden Mickeys, Tales of deceit and lies, movie bloopers and scandal can all be found in this book, This book brought to light all the carefully kept secrets Disney has held for succeeding in animation and amusement park attractions, I a selfproclaimed Disney fan have never gone this far behind the scenes of how the "classics" were made and how Disney might have been, The politics astounded me. They take so much care on the outside in being "the happiest company on earth," but below the surface they're desperately trying to hide their own personal villains.
What I like the most about this book is how simple Disney's winning formula really is, PostWalt animators thought the formula was wondering "What would Walt say" when really the key is asking "Is this the absolute best idea" and listening to what your audience wants.
This explains to me why's animated features were stale bread compared for the most part to past and future Disney cuisine,
I also didn't realize how many animators, directors, producers, etc, left Disney to create or join other companies, Big companies like DreamWorks, Fox and Warner Bros, lured away some or in worst cases most of the Disney staff,
It's true that you learn something
new about Disney every day, whether good or bad,
A fun book, but not as good as Koenig's others, He's a much better storyteller than historian, which is why his anecdotal Mouse Tales books work so well and his more historic Mouse Under Glass just doesn't flow as well.
Not to mention the whole cookbook analogy seemed kind of forced and irrelevent, But nevertheless, I did learn many fun things about Disney films, although the book skips over some of the more obscure Disney films, which in my opinion are the most interesting to learn about, like The Three Caballeros, Make Mine Music, The Black Cauldron, etc.
But its still a fun read, A bit outdated, Koenig presents an interesting and straightforward look at Disney animation and what made it tick through the mids, I liked the format of the book each movie is presented separately with a synopsis of the original story, the Disney version storyline, hidden images, bloopers and theme park tieins.
The book ends on a high note, the end of the second golden age but it would be interesting to see what Koenig would say about the lackluster movies that followed and the new direction the studio is currently heading in.
A little harsh if you can't stand any criticism towards the Mouse, but a true look at how Disney Animation develops behind the scenes, I borrowed this from my brother's girlfriend to continue my behindthescenes Disney reading,
As the subtitle indicates this book discusses each Disney animated feature up to Tarzan in terms of the original story source, how it was altered for the movie, bloopers, hidden elements amp cutting room floor tidbits, as well as what, if any, impact the movie has or had on the theme parks.
Since music is such an integral element of every Disney animated feature, there is usually a discussion of the songwriting process for the movie as well,
The history of the Disney company, with its ups and downs is neatly encapsulated in this timeline, and I enjoyed getting an insider's view of moviemaking in particular and Disney specifically.
The sidebars and quizzes are a fun addition, Koenig does cite his sources in a general manner, as well as specific items for each movie, There is an index as well,
Recommended for Disney fans or for anyone interested in the world of animated features, David Koenig has written several Disney behindthescenes books, most notably MOUSE TALES and MORE MOUSE TALES I have only read MORE, . . so far which give an allencompassing look at the inner workings of Disneyland,
Here Koenig tackles the crown jewel of the Disney empire the Animated features, Onebyone each feature starting with SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS gets a full chapter that begins with an outline of the original source material, followed by the Disney development of the final film including elements which didn't make it past the development or testing stages a list of perceived plot holes, bloopers and hidden images or "Easter eggs", then ending with the critical and public reception and what impact in terms of rides, attractions or presence each film has had on the theme parks again even including abandoned ideas and outline the evolution of many of them over time.
Not every feature gets a dedicated chapter, Fun and Fancy Free, Melody Time both which really are just lowrent cousins to Fantasia, The Adventures of Ichabod Crane and Mr, Toad and the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh are relegated to minor mentions perhaps because they are essentially short films compiled together to make a feature, and Saludos Amigos, The Three Caballeros, The Black Cauldron and The Rescuers Down Under for some reason again just get mentions and not dedicated chapters maybe for space.
In addition, the liveaction/animated hybrids Mary Poppins, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Pete's Dragon and Who Framed Roger Rabbit make the cut,
Each section of the Disney animation period is prefaced with an overview of what was going on in the studio and the animation department at the time, and these are much stronger than the separate film sections which eventually feel tiresome and repetitive.
It is obvious that Koenig is most passionate about the theme park rides as those seem to be stronger than his breakdown of the movies themselves, His perceived "plot hole" gaffes sometimes feel as though he is reaching and missed the point of the fact that it's a animated film and some creative license is taken for gags and characterization one for instance why would the prince that is transformed into the Beast answer his own door and meet the Gypsy who turned him into a Beast when he has a staff of servants.
I mean, the opening narration never actually SAYS he opens his own door, Again this and many of the other observations aren't all that necessary compared to the hidden items and bloopers,
Some of the movies feel like they get shorted, Like for instance P. L. Travers' interference in the making of Mary Poppins gets a paragraph or so, even though thanks to the recent SAVING MR, BANKS we all know that it was quite an ordeal, The Lion King as well when released, the highest grossing animated film of alltime gets only a few pages whereas Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast get more real estate.
I think what makes his theme park books more interesting is that many of the stories he covers oral and otherwise are simply not well known, while the production and history of the Animated films has been covered countless times in other books, not to mention that the films themselves are readily available for viewing in theaters, on TV, on Disc and now through Digital Applications like Disney Movies for the iPad.
A lot of this stuff is already out there and most Disneyphiles have it covered and beyond,
Released in, the final feature covered in the book is thefilm THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, so nothing is covered from HERCULES through FROZEN of course not the fault of the book just pointing it out and no mention of Pixar which at that point had only released TOY STORY.
Then again this is about the DISNEY animation studios, and the impact of TOY STORY and PIXAR at that point was far from being felt, so not faulting the book for that either.
Worth reading if you want to get all the information you can about the Disney animated features, however almost better as a resource that is digested when you view one of the films and feel like getting the backstory on it rather than sitting down and reading it all the way through like I just did.
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