Day 113 - 4/23/09 - Movie #112
BEFORE: So, the other night as I was watching "The Secret of NIMH", our cat Data jumps up on the bed with me, with a long tail sticking out of his mouth. I could not see what was inside his mouth, and Data would not spit out the (presumed) mouse long enough for me to catch it and remove it from the house, so now its whereabouts are unknown. Presumably Data played with his new toy and either "broke" it, or it's still somewhere in the basement.
THE PLOT: Basil, the rodent Sherlock Holmes, investigates the kidnapping of a toy-maker and uncovers its link to his archenemy, Professor Ratigan.
AFTER: This Disney film is based on Conan Doyle, but it looks like they couldn't get the rights, since the main character is named "Basil of Baker Street", and Dr. Watson is named "Dawson" throughout. You know, I'm glad someone stood up to DisneyCorp. - they've strip-mined enough of Western literature and fairy tales over the years. Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan became "Disney's Tarzan", Victor Hugo's "Hunchback of Notre Dame" became "Disney's Hunchback", plus the Three Musketeers, "Mickey's Christmas Carol", etc. Well, you can't co-opt Sherlock Holmes! Anyway, for this film, there's just not much there - I'm not even sure what the villain's evil scheme actually was - and again, if I can't follow the story, how can a kid be expected to?
Vincent Price is fine as Moriarty - sorry, Ratigan - but the other voices are low-rent. I suspect this was done just to keep the Disney animators busy between real films.
RATING: 3 out of 10 wind-up toys
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"The Great Mouse Detective" is based on BASIL OF BAKER STREET by Eve Titus, published in 1958 with permission from the Conan Doyle Estate. Disney paid both Eve Titus for the use of her book and the Conan Doyle Estate for the character rights in making "The Great Mouse Detective."
ReplyDeleteJon Lellenberg
for the Conan Doyle Estate
Well, thanks for clearing that up. I kept meaning to check Wikipedia to see exactly what the rights situation was, but I didn't get around to it - I deal with entertainment contracts sometimes, so I actually find this legal stuff fascinating.
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