Grimerlana
Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike
Acensbart
Excellent but underrated film
Juana
what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de)
I wonder what Mark Twain would have said, had he lived to watch this animated adaptation of one of his most notable works "The Prince and the Pauper". I'm confident he would have liked it as 25 thoroughly entertaining movies with lots of funny sequences and a good morale. I won't go too much in the story as it's kinda known to most. Prince coincidentally meets pauper and they realize they look very much alike. They decide to change roles for a day. Prince witnesses the social ills he never got to see inside the palace. Pauper is in danger of coronation. Prince gets there in time, beats the bad guy and becomes the new king.Voicing initially silent animated characters is always quite a risk. I've seen some approaches which really destroyed the whole experience. i'm looking at you, Tom and Jerry. But I applaud Wayne Allwine (rip) and Bill Farmer for their work in this one. What they did with the characters could indeed be described as career-defining as that is exactly the way they should be speaking. Of course the well-written dialogs also help the matter. What I also like about the Disney version is that, besides telling the story centered on the two Mickey's, they made all the supporting characters hilarious to watch. I laughed so hard when Pluto is the only one to realize it's not his real master. Donald gets his fair share of misfortune and reacts hilariously as always and stuck-up Horace Horsecollar delivers as well.All in all, a very well-crafted piece of animation for viewers from all age-groups.
MartinHafer
This Mickey Mouse cartoon is one of the best looking Disney cartoons I have seen. Oddly, it was shown along with "The Rescuers Down Under"--yet this short was much better animated than this feature film! The artistry was phenomenal. I especially loved the wonderful muted color pallet and the lovely snow scenes.The story begins as 'the good king is dying'! This obviously was NOT inspired by the original Mark Twain story or history, as the 'good king' was Henry VIII--one of history's biggest self-indulgent jerks! His admonition to rule justly and wisely is hilarious in light of his abominable record during his rather bloody reign! And, throughout the cartoon, many liberties were taken with the Twain story and it obviously was used only broadly. Some of this can be understood--the story was not originally written for Mickey, goofy and Donald! But a lot of it just showed indifference to the story--and that is a shame. However, the art is so wonderful and the overall film is still a lot of fun...hence in light of all my complaints, I still give this one a 10.good king pizza
Atreyu_II
"The Prince and the Pauper" is a cartoon which stars some of the most famous Disney characters, such as the humorous Goofy, the hilarious and quick-tempered Donald Duck, the adorable dog Pluto and Mickey Mouse in two distinctive and equal roles at the same time.We have two Mickey Mice here: one is a prince who's tired of royalty life and dreams about freedom; the other one is the real Mickey Mouse as a poor guy who wants to know what it's like to be a prince. The irony of destiny brings them together and they exchange their roles - after all, they look identical.However, there's an obstacle: they must fight against the tyrant Pete (the Royal Captain of the Guard), who takes advantage of the King's illness to rob the population «in the name of the King». The Crown Prince realizes this once he knows what it's like to be free. And once the King dies, Pete advances on his evil aims even more.The ending is a bit weak, but fair enough.Overall, this is an okay cartoon featuring popular Disney stars, although it isn't among the finest Disney's creations. Nevertheless, the humor is present, the story is different and the artwork is reasonable.
Bianca
I don't know if Disney is the only animation company that can pull off a good mix of genuine drama and comedy in a 25-minute cartoon, but they probably are the only ones willing to try.This cartoon is fantastic! It has more class in its short length than some "hit" animated movies these days have in their whole digitized-thrill-ride selves. The emotional depths reached here are jaw-dropping, from the Prince hearing children complain of hunger (and then say that it's normal), to the death of the king, and some of Captain Pete's reign of terror thrown in for good measure. And that's just the dramatic side.The comedy here also works well. As usual, the Disney crew hits Goofy and Donald with everything they can, extracting every possible gag and joke from the scenes they're in. Even Pluto is granted some fine moments (with some very memorable expressions that remind you of why you own a dog in the first place). Plus, there's a rollicking arrangement of "La donna è mobile," when Mickey and Goofy sing about what they'd do if they could live like the king.The cartoon also works as an adventure film on par with those of Errol Flynn. Both Mickeys are granted some subtle moments: Pauper Mickey, for instance, just before he orders Pete's arrest, has a rather shifty expression you wouldn't expect for a Disney movie of any length (don't blink or you'll miss it). The musical score also raises the cartoon to a level unthought of by other cartoonists; I turn up my TV's volume whenever the coronation scene starts because the music is phenomenal. It's almost too good for the movie.In short, if you want a great adventure that works for all ages (not just young kids--I'm 18 and watch this almost every other week), with a great mix of comedy and drama, plus a well- written score, please watch this.Unfortunately, it's not widely available. It was originally released as a short film before "The Rescuers Down Under," I believe, during the latter's theatrical run. I own it on video, as part of the Disney Mini-Classics series, but I think it's been discontinued. I would like to find this on DVD, but I don't know if it's available, either alone or with other cartoons. If it's not out, it should be.
