D52–Home On The Range

Originally slated to be released in 2003, ahead of Brother Bear, numerous story problems led to their release dates being switched, with Home on the Range arriving in theatres in 2004. Unfortunately, the extra time was not enough to salvage the film, and the result was yet another box office failure, failing to recoup more than half of its budget. The film also put the final nail in the coffin of Disney’s 2D animation division. Upon its release, the studio shut down its 2D unit, sold the remaining artists drawing tables, and moved other divisions into the animation building.

Home on the Range was heavily reworked at least twice during its production, and the seams definitely show in the final product. The plot is a hodgepodge of western tropes, with characters, such as they are, rapidly switching views and motivations, all for the sake of trying to get the film to limp onto the next scene. Overall, the film feels like a poor attempt at making a Tex Avery film from the height of Warner Bros animation history, but it is devoid of the humour and kineticism those shorts were filled with. The art direction is clearly taking its cues from those cartoons, but without the humour and character to back the minimal, slightly abstract design, the whole thing just looks flat.

I did not have good memories of this film, and I was not looking forward to revisiting it. Though I was hoping I  had exaggerated its deficiencies in my head over the years, I was disappointed to find that this was not the case. Though young viewers may find some distraction in the colors and flaccid attempts at humour, this is a difficult film for anyone over ten to get through. The only bright side is that in recent years Disney has resumed limited production on 2D films, since this would have been a truly tragic way to a (at that point) 65 year legacy of 2D animation from the Disney company.

Original theatrical trailer

Up next: Chicken Little (2005)