The Closing of an Era
Throughout its seven decades of animated films and shorts, Walt Disney Animation Studios had created some of the most indelible icons in pop culture history. While it was all started by a mouse named Mickey, Disney’s cavalcade of animated stars had ballooned to dozens upon dozens of adorable animals, brave heroes, and nefarious villains. But if there was one character to challenge Mickey’s status as the face of the studio, it was undoubtedly that chubby little cubby all stuffed with fluff, Winnie the Pooh.
Since making his debut in the 1966 short film Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree, Pooh had quickly become one of Disney’s most beloved characters, with enduring popularity that only seemed to grow stronger with each new generation of young fans. More importantly, Pooh merchandise was a major cash cow for the studio. With a staggering estimated worth of $5.5 billion, Winnie the Pooh was one of the most valuable franchises in the world.
Winnie the Pooh had remained a constant figure at Disney since the early 90s, with several animated television shows and a host of smaller-scale straight-to-DVD and theatrically-released feature films produced by DisneyToon Studios, which had collectively grossed over $200 million at the worldwide box office. After taking creative control of Disney’s animation department in 2006, John Lasseter felt it was wise for the studio to take advantage of Pooh’s perpetual popularity with a feature film produced by Disney’s A-list team of animators, particularly after the traditional animation department was revived and needed new projects to develop.
In November 2008, Lasseter approached animator/director Stephen J. Anderson and screenwriter Don Hall with the idea of producing a new Pooh feature film. Anderson had been with Disney for over a decade as a supervising animator on films like Tarzan, Brother Bear, and The Emperor’s New Groove, while also making his directorial debut with 2007’s Meet the Robinsons. Hall had also been with the studio since the late 90s, significantly contributing to the creations of films likes The Princess and the Frog, Home on the Range, and Chicken Little.
The pair were both hugely enthusiastic at Lasseter’s concept and immediately accepted the project. In early 2009, Anderson, Hall, and Lasseter spent hours viewing every Pooh short film, television series, and feature film to assist with their creation of the new film, which would simply be titled Winnie the Pooh. Later that year, Anderson, Hall, and key members of the production team spent several days in Sussex, England to explore Ashdown Forest, which was the inspiration for the Hundred Acre Wood in A.A. Milne’s original Winnie the Pooh stories. The team took photographs, video footage, and drew sketches of the countryside to provide references for the film’s animation.
Upon their return, Anderson and Hall enlisted legendary veteran Disney animator Burny Mattinson to serve as the lead storyboard artist on Winnie the Pooh. Mattinson had been with the studio since 1953 and worked as a key animator on the 1974 Oscar-nominated short Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too. Mattinson is still a member of the studio to this day and is officially recognised as the longest-serving employee of The Walt Disney Company. With his guidance and personal experience, the team began crafting the narrative of Winnie the Pooh.
THE STORY
While out searching for his beloved “hunny,” Pooh and his friends would embark on an adventure to locate Eeyore’s missing tail. During the hunt, the group believes Christopher Robin has been kidnapped by a mysterious monster called The Backson and set out to rescue their dear friend.
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For the voice cast, the natural choice for Pooh and Tigger was legendary voiceover artist Jim Cummings, who had been voicing both characters since 1988 and 2000 respectively after the retirement of the characters’ original voice actors, Hal Smith and Paul Winchell. This was also the case with Piglet, who would be voiced by Travis Oates. Oates had taken over the role after the death of original voice actor John Fiedler in 2005. For the role of Owl, the filmmakers enlisted comedian and late-night talk show host Craig Ferguson, while Tom Kenny was hired for the role of Rabbit. Apparently, Kenny is best known for voicing the title character in the SpongeBob SquarePants television series and films.
While Peter Cullen had the character of Eeyore since 1988, the actor was currently busy voicing Optimus Prime in Transformers: Dark of the Moon at the time of production. The filmmakers instead chose veteran Pixar animator Bud Luckey to voice the role. Luckey had been with Pixar since 1990 and had worked as a key animator on films like the Toy Story trilogy, Finding Nemo, and Ratatouille. Luckey had also provided the voice of Rick Dicker in The Incredibles and Chuckles the Clown in Toy Story 3. After his death in 2018 at the age of 83, Lasseter dedicated Incredibles 2 in his memory and called him the “one of the true unsung heroes of animation.”
Rounding out the voice cast were Kristen-Anderson Lopez as Kanga, who was also the composer of the film’s original songs with her husband Robert, and child actors Jack Boulter and Wyatt Hall (who is also the son of director Don Hall) as Christopher Robin and Roo respectively. Anderson and Hall enlisted legendary comedian John Cleese to narrate the film, with the filmmakers feeling his native British accent would add a touch of authenticity and sophistication to the film.
MY VERDICT
This film is special for two reasons. Firstly, it is the second shortest animated film in Disney history, beaten only by Dumbo at 62 minutes. Secondly, and more importantly, it is the true final hand drawn animated film in Disney history. Like the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh in 1977, it’s a charming, brief little film that is far more than a distraction for the little ones. It’s a refreshing change of pace from the usual big budget blockbusters that throw all manner of effects and lavish musical numbers at you for an hour and a half. The filmmakers clearly and keenly understand the simplicity of A.A. Milne’s books and the adventures therein and sough to recapture what made him a Disney icon. The story is short and simple and sweet, with no complications for its characters. The animation is nostalgic and luscious, perfectly echoing the gorgeous designs of past shorts. And the voice cast is a perfect substitute for their original counterparts. Hopefully hand - drawn animation will return one day, but the middling box office numbers of Winnie the Pooh proved it was time for Disney to move on. Rest in peace, traditional animation.
Is Winnie the Pooh a Disney Classic? There’s nothing particularly groundbreaking about Winnie the Pooh, it’s always a treat to venture back to the Hundred Acre Wood to revisit the gorgeous cast of characters who have been delighting audiences for over five decades. Winnie the Pooh is undoubtably a Disney Classic in his own right. And, by virtue of being the final hand drawn animated film, as well as other reasons, so is this,
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