The Jungle Book (1967)
Inspired by Rudyard Kipling’s novel, Bagheera, a black panther, takes an orphaned boy he finds in the jungle to live with a pack of wolves. Years later, the wolf tribe learns Shere Khan (George Saunders) has returned to the jungle and realize the young boy, Mowgli, is in danger. Despite his protests, Bagheera (Sebastian Cabot) escorts him back to civilization. During their journey, they encounter a Baloo, a fun loving bear; Kaa (Sterling Holloway), a dangerous python; a pack of musical apes; and pack of vultures doing their best impression of The Beatles.
Sterling Holloway was the original voice of Disney’s Winnie the Pooh and voiced the Cheshire Cat in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland (1951).
George Sanders was married to two of the Gabor sisters (Zsa Zsa and Magda), won an Oscar as Addison Dewitt in All About Eve (1950), then committed suicide at the age of 65 as his health began to fail.
Director Wolgang Reitherman was one of the Nine Old Men, the Disney animators who built the company. He directed most of the their animated films in the 1960s and 1970s including 101 Dalmatians (1961), The Sword in the Stone (1963), The Aristocats (1970), Robin Hood (1973), The Rescuers (1977), and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977).
Despite its hallowed reputation, the movie’s narrative is plagued with inconsistencies. Why was Mowgli abandoned in the first place? A newborn baby is safe in the jungle raised by wolves, but a ten-year old boy is not? Apparently, the jungle was a safe place for children until the dreaded Shere Khan returned.
The movie is redeemed by the fantastic musical sequences, especially the swing number “I Wan’na Be Like You” by King Louie (voiced by big band leader Louis Prima).
The ridiculousness of the plot is excusable because the music is so energetic, but the last five minutes are a chaotic mess and send horrible signals to children. Mowgli sees a girl for the first time, and abandons his friends without saying goodbye? Baloo had just pledged he’d never allow the boy to leave, but seconds later shrugs off his departure? Finally. Bagheera’s “he’s better off with his own kind,” attitude seems weirdly misplaced in a children’s film.
This is a good movie, but a tad overrated because of Walt Disney’s death during its production and the Disney dry spell which followed. The musical numbers are amongst the best Disney has to offer, but the story is too light and aimless.
The Wag Dog (1997)
When the President of the United States is embroiled in sex scandal with an underage girl shortly before the election, he calls Conrad Brean (Robert DeNiro) to manage the crisis. Brean enlists film producer Stanley Motts (Dustin Hoffman) to stage a fake war with Albania as a distraction from the scandal, but their plan is plagued with difficulties.
This cynical movie argues political process is simply a game to the people in power; making an impassioned explanation for your beliefs is beside the point in contemporary politics.
It also explores the nature of art, particularly the collaborative process. Motts gladly agrees to help, but cannot imagine not getting credit for his work.
This movie has no moral center, no hero struggling to do the right thing. These people are very good at what they do, but they’re not very good people. This updated Dr. Strangelove is a fascinating movie because of how little outrage it provokes.