Voices of Gabriel Damon, Mickey Rooney, Rene Auberjonois, and Laura Mooney
Directed by Masami Hata and William Hurtz
Music by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman
This Japanese-American co-production has a complicated history. Producer Yutaka Fujioka first became interested in turning the whimsical early 20th century Little Nemo comic strips drawn by Windsor McKay in 1975. He got permission from McKay's family in 1978, but couldn't get funding until 1981. He tried to interest veteran animators in making a Japanese film with the quality of Disney, eventually bringing aboard two of their famous "Nine Old Men" and, initially, later Japanese Legend Hayao Miyazaki. It was suspended in 1984 when they couldn't find a director or more funding, then ran through many scripts in 1985 and 1986 in search of an appropriate story. They didn't really get going with a director and funds until 1987. Was all that trouble worth it, or should this dreamy fantasy be left with the Nightmare King? Let's begin flying on a bed in the mind of Little Nemo (Damon) himself and find out...
The Story: Nemo is excited about a circus in town and is disappointed when his parents say they can't take him, and then tries to steal a pie and is caught. He dreams that the circus people are all from Slumberland, and want him and his pet flying squirrel Icarus (Danny Mann) to be princes and take over from King Morpheus (Bernard Erhard), as well as be a companion to daughter Camille (Mooney). His dream gets a lot scarier when mischievous Flip (Rooney) convinces him to open the door to Nightmare Land, just for a peek. That "peek" lets The Nightmare King (Bill Martin) escape and capture Morpheus. Now it's up to Nemo, Camille (Mooney), his advisor Professor Genius (Auberjonois), Flip, and a group of good-natured demons called Boomps to return the magic scepter to the King and save Slumberland and all beautiful dreams.
The Animation: For all the trouble he had in other areas, Fujioka did manage to make the quality animation he wanted. This is nearly on par with Disney movies of the period, especially with eye-popping designs like the steampunk-esque Dream Dirigible that brings Nemo to Slumberland and the black mist grabbing King Morpheus at the coronation. The characters move fairly well, as if they're floating on the clouds of those dream lands.
The Song and Dance: I remember hearing about this as a kid in the early 90's, but I didn't get to see it until many years later. Now I wish I had caught it then. It's charming and funny, with a dark streak in Flip's destructive mischief and the unleashing of The Nighmare King. Rooney has by far the most fun as Flip, the hobo whose thoughtless antics eventually gets Nemo - and everyone in Slumberland - into major trouble. Demon and Mooney make an adorable couple, too, even vocally, and Mann manages to make the most out of Icarus the Flying Squirrel's squeaks.
Favorite Number: "Slumberland" is heard twice, as Princess Camille, Nemo, and Bon Bon play in giant balls in the sky and ride a goat-driven sleigh and in the closing credits. Every instructor in the palace tries to teach Nemo "Etiquette" in one of the last of the Shermans' tongue-twisting tunes, but he's more baffled than anything. "The Boomps Song" explains who they are and why they don't get along with the Nightmare King.
Trivia: The original American dub had 11 minutes of more violent content cut out; recent DVD copies add it back in, but usually keep the dubbing. (Some recent DVDs do keep the Japanese audio as an extra.)
This was a huge box-office bomb, especially in North America, where it had little advertising.
The tie-in video game Little Nemo: The Dream Master did far better and is actually quite well-remembered by gamer fans to this day. The video was also a big seller, eventually turning this movie into something of a cult favorite.
What I Don't Like: The first half with the circus and in Slumberland is meandering and slow, with little going on other than the musical numbers. The movie kicks off with a strange sequence involving Nemo outrunning a train that's never mentioned again (though it may have been a nightmare Nemo understandably forgot). To be fair, the first half is probably closer to the original comics. The Nightmare King, Nightmare Land, King Morpheus, and Icarus were all added for the film, and the padding does show. Icarus can be funny, but he's basically your standard comic relief critter and doesn't have that much to do with anything outside of the finale. There's also Flip's makeup and heavy lips making him come uncomfortably close to racist caricature for some people.
The Big Finale: I'm glad I finally found my way to Nemo's dream world. Recommended for families with older dreamers and anime fans who'll enjoy the action and Disney-esque fantasy.
Home Media: The American dub is easily found on disc and streaming; Amazon Prime has the full uncut American dub version for free with a subscription.
No comments:
Post a Comment