No Songs in ‘Mulan’? That’s Good!

So... No songs in the live-action Disney remake of Mulan... In a recent interview, Niki Caro, the director of Disney's live-action Mulan said that she is aiming to make her version more of a martial arts film, something rougher around the edges. She had apparently commented that the picture wouldn't really have songs in it. …

‘Mulan’ and the Wasted Potential of Disney’s Remakes

A few days back, Disney announced the release date for one of their many live-action remakes in development: Mulan. It is currently set to open on November 2, 2018. If Mulan is to be a near-exact remake of the 1998 Disney animated film, then I will have problems. Yet again. It'll also show, I think, …

‘The Jungle Book’, ‘The Lion King’ and the Future of Animation

Updates made to this article on September 28, 2016 following the announcement of a remake of 'The Lion King'... Original article follows, then the updated thoughts... The other day, I finally got around to watching Jon Favreau's The Jungle Book, which was made by Walt Disney Pictures and released earlier this year to unanimous critical …

Disney’s Marketing Problem…

Back in April of 2013, Disney had excitedly announced at the annual CinemaCon expo that their plan was to release at least *eight* tentpole films every calendar year. This was when movie division chairman Alan Horn - pictured above - was relatively new to the studio. A veteran from Warner Bros.' heyday, Horn was the …

A Better Beast?

The 2017, Disney-made live-action Beauty and the Beast remake is only happening for one reason, and it rhymes with honey. Disney's animated adaptation of Beauty and the Beast is still loved 25 years after its 1991 theatrical debut, and is often called one of the greatest animated films. Of course Disney wants to mine from …

The Current State of Disney Live-Action

A year ago, it seemed like the message was clear: Stay the course... Walt Disney Studios, the live-action end of Disney's whole movie monolith, has seen a lot of success in the recent years, but a lot of crushing flops as well. As a result, they seem to want to specialize in one kind of …