Perhaps every now and then
we need an injection of Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Pluto and Minnie into our
lives. Or maybe not but I have to say somewhat to my embarrassment that this
was fun and I enjoyed it. Maybe I am regressing. It happens. This is from
Disney of course and it's packed with so many of our favorite characters
from childhood. It is quite clever and spirited and pulls you along. The
use of great public domain classical music from Beethoven, Bizet, Offenbach,
Grieg, Tchaikovsky with added lyrics from Chris Otsuki and Gilbert and Sullivan's
Modern Major General contribute to the lighthearted frivolity. Our threesome
have dreamed of being Musketeers all their lives but Mickey is too short,
Donald too cowardly and Goofy too dim to become ones. So instead they are
maintenance men in the Musketeer headquarters and make a mess of everything.
A senior Musketeer has designs on the throne and to kidnap the Princess -
Minnie. He makes the threesome her bodyguards. Minnie takes one look at Mickey
and love sprouts as it does between Goofy and Clarabelle, who is the right
hand woman of the villain. Lots of captures, escapes, fights ensue and love
of course. It runs 67 minutes of which the last 7 minutes are credits. Amazing
to see how many animators and other things I don't understand there are in
a project like this. The animation is clever but not sophisticated or innovative
- it looks very much like the old cartoons we grew up with.
