Winnie the Pooh (2011 film)
Encyclopedia
Winnie the Pooh is a 2011 American animated musical
children's family film
inspired by the A. A. Milne
stories of the same name. The film is a reboot of Disney's Winnie the Pooh
franchise and is the fifth theatrical Winnie the Pooh film released and the second from the Walt Disney Animation Studios. It is the 51st animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. In the film, Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Rabbit, Piglet, Owl, Eeyore, Kanga, and Roo embark on a quest to save Christopher Robin from an imaginary culprit while Pooh deals with a hunger for honey
. The film is directed by Stephen Anderson
and Don Hall, written by A. A. Milne
and Burny Mattinson
, produced by Peter Del Vecho, Clark Spencer, John Lasseter
, and Craig Sost, and narrated by John Cleese
.
The film was distributed by Walt Disney Pictures
and was released on April 15, 2011 in the United Kingdom
, and on July 15, 2011 in the United States
. The film was originally planned to be released theatrically in Australia
, but after a very brief run in limited cinemas in September 2011 was instead released direct-to-video
on October 5, 2011. Production for the film began in September 2009 with John Lasseter
announcing that they wanted to create a film that would "transcend generations." The film also features six songs by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
, as well as a rendition of the "Winnie the Pooh" theme song by actress and musician Zooey Deschanel
.
: "In Which Eeyore Loses a Tail and Pooh Finds One" and "In Which Piglet Meets a Heffalump". The other story is found in The House at Pooh Corner
: "In Which Rabbit Has a Busy Day and We Learn What Christopher Robin Does in the Mornings". Some elements, such as the gang thinking that Christopher Robin has been captured by a monster, are based on events from the film Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin
Pooh
wakes up one day to find that he is out of honey
. While out searching for more, Pooh discovers that Eeyore
has lost his tail. Pooh, Tigger
, Rabbit, Owl, Kanga, and Roo
come to the rescue, and Christopher Robin
decides to hold a contest to see who can find a replacement for Eeyore's tail. The prize for the winner is a fresh pot of honey. After many failed attempts for what would replace Eeyore's tail (such as a cuckoo clock
), Kanga suggests they use a scarf, but it unravels.
The next day, Pooh goes to visit Christopher Robin and he finds a note that says "Gon Out Bizy Back Soon". Because Pooh is unable to read the note, he asks for Owl's help. Owl's poor reading comprehension skills lead Pooh and his friends to believe that Christopher Robin has been abducted by a ruthless and mischievous monster they call the "Backson". Pooh and his friends plan to trap the Backson in a pit, which they think he'll fall into after following a trail of items leading to it. Meanwhile, Tigger, wanting a sidekick to help him defeat the Backson, recruits Eeyore to be a second Tigger. He dresses up like the Backson and tries to teach Eeyore how to fight. Eeyore, who is doing this against his will, escapes from Tigger and hides underwater.
After a failed attempt to get honey from a bee hive, Pooh's imagination combined with his hunger get the better of him, and accidentally falls into the pit meant for the Backson. Rabbit, Kanga, Roo, Owl and Eeyore (who had found an anchor whilst he was hiding to replace his own tail) try to get him out, but fall in themselves. Piglet attempts to get Pooh and friends out of the trap (though continuously irritating Rabbit with overintrepretations of his instructions), but he runs into Tigger, still in his Backson outfit, and mistakes him for the actual monster. Piglet escapes from Tigger on a red balloon, which knocks some of the storybook's letters into the pit. After the chase, Tigger and Piglet fall into the trap as well, where Eeyore reminds Tigger that he, being "the only one", is "the most wonderful thing about Tiggers". Eventually, Pooh figures out to use the fallen letters to form a ladder, and the animals are able to escape the pit. They soon find Christopher Robin, and tell him about the Backson, but he clarifies, saying he meant to be "back soon".
Later, Pooh visits Owl only to find that Owl was the one that took Eeyore's tail, not realizing it belonged to Eeyore. Owl had been using Eeyore's tail as a bell pulley for his door. Pooh chooses to leave and return the tail to Eeyore instead of sharing a pot of honey with Owl. Christopher Robin is proud of Pooh's kindness and rewards him with a large pot of honey.
In a post-credits scene
, it is revealed that the rumored Backson actually exists deep in the woods, but is much friendlier than imagined. He discovers the trail of objects that the animals left, and picks up each one, planning to return them to whoever owns them. He ends up falling into the pit that was originally meant for him and waits for someone to arrive and help him out. He adds, "I sure hope that fellow will be back soon".
, a Disney veteran who worked as the key animator on Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too, served as lead storyboard artist
for the film, with Stephen Anderson
and Don Hall directing. Director Stephen Anderson is best known for his effort on Meet the Robinsons
, Journey Beneath the Sea, Brother Bear
, The Emperor's New Groove
, and Bolt. Director Don Hall also has veteran status at Walt Disney Animation Studios, significantly contributing to The Princess and the Frog, Meet the Robinsons
, Brother Bear
, Home on the Range, The Emperor's New Groove
, and Tarzan
. Supervising animators for the film included Mark Henn
(Winnie the Pooh, Christopher Robin), Andreas Deja
(Tigger), Bruce W. Smith
(Piglet, Kanga, Roo), Randy Haycock (Eeyore), Eric Goldberg
(Rabbit) and Dale Baer
(Owl). and Wesley Singerman
(Kessie). Similar to The Princess and the Frog, the film also uses Toon Boom Animation
's Harmony software. Instead of using live-action book scenes (in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
), the book scenes are CGI
-animated with the characters interacting with the text (such as when they escape the pit they wanted to trap the backson in).
Originally, the film was supposed to feature five stories from the A. A. Milne
books, but the final version ended up drawing inspiration from three stories. Lasseter had also announced that Rabbit's friends and relatives would be in the film, but they appear only in a deleted scene.
short, Mordecai and Rigby: Ringtoneers, which was only played in Regal First Look
. Another one was The Ballad of Nessie
, which was about a friendly Loch Ness Monster
named Nessie and how she and her best friend MacQuack, the rubber duck, came to live in the moor they now call home. In some international screenings, the episode "Cubby's Goldfish" from the Disney Junior
series Jake and the Never Land Pirates
also appeared.
reports that 91% of 118 critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 7.2 out of 10. Its consensus states "Short, nostalgic, and gently whimsical, Winnie the Pooh offers young audiences – and their parents – a sweetly traditional family treat." Metacritic
, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film received an average score of 74 based on 26 reviews. CinemaScore
polls reported that the average grade moviegoers gave the film was an A minus on an A plus to F scale.
Gary Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times
says the film "proves a fitting tribute to one of the last century's most enduring children's tales." The film has been praised for not only being able to charm the children audience but the parents as well. Roger Ebert
, giving it 3 stars out of 4, said in his review "In a time of shock-value 3-D animation and special effects, the look of the film is gentle and pleasing. It was hand-animated, I'm told, and the backgrounds use a subtle and reassuring watercolor style. It's a nightmare-proof experience for even the youngest viewers."
While Platform Online stated that Winnie the Poohs "handdrawn animation is such a welcome relief", it found the film's runtime length to be more of an issue, which it stated "At just 70 minutes, even aiming at kids this could have been longer – Pixar have been pushing films well over 90 minutes for years now, and it’s clear the children can handle it. Just as you really get into the film it's over, and you’re left wanting more."
, earning $7,857,076 in its opening weekend from 2,405 theaters, averaging about $3,267 per theater, and ranking #6 for the weekend. The film closed on September 22, 2011, with a final domestic gross of $26,692,846, with the opening weekend making up 29.44% of the final gross. It also has made $6,460,000 overseas, bringing its worldwide gross to $33,152,846, according to Box Office Mojo. The international grosses include $4.13 million in Japan, $1.33 million in Germany, $1.29 million in Poland, $1.18 million in the UK and $1.14 million in Russia.
, and Digital Download on October 25, 2011. The release will be produced in three different physical packages: a 1-disc DVD; a 2-disc combo pack (Blu-ray and DVD); and a 3-disc combo pack (Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital Copy
). The film will also be released as a Digital Download option in both standard and high definition. The DVD and Digital Download versions will include The Ballad of Nessie
and Mini-Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: "Pooh's Balloon" animated shorts, as well as three deleted scenes. Both combo packs include all of the same features as the DVD and Digital Download versions, plus the "Winnie the Pooh and His Story Too" behind-the-scenes feature, two additional deleted scenes, the "Sing-Along with the Movie" feature, and the "Disney Song Selection" feature.
and his wife Kristen. Hence, the Lopez's wrote seven songs for the film, including "The Tummy Song", "A Very Important Thing to Do", "Everything Is Honey", "The Winner Song", "The Backson Song", "Pooh's Finale", and "It's Gonna Be Great". Zooey Deschanel
performs three songs for the film, including a take on the Winnie the Pooh theme song, "A Very Important Thing to Do" and an original end-credit song "So Long," which was written by Zooey Deschanel and performed with She & Him
band mate M. Ward
.
The film was scored by Henry Jackman
, with additional music by Christopher Willis
.
In the trailer, the song "Somewhere Only We Know
" by English alternative rock band Keane was used instead of the music written by Henry Jackman. The song by Keane is not included on the soundtrack. All musical scores and songs were composed by Henry Jackman, except as noted.
The song "So Long" recieved a Grammy nomination.
Musical
Musical is the adjective form of music. It may also refer to:*MusicAL: Albanian Television channel which broadcasts Albanian folk music*Musical artist*Musical composer...
children's family film
Family film
A family film is a film genre that is designed to appeal to a variety of age groups and, thus, families.In December 2005, Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial came first in a poll of the 100 Greatest Family Films. The genre today generates billions of dollars per annum.Family...
inspired by the A. A. Milne
A. A. Milne
Alan Alexander Milne was an English author, best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various children's poems. Milne was a noted writer, primarily as a playwright, before the huge success of Pooh overshadowed all his previous work.-Biography:A. A...
stories of the same name. The film is a reboot of Disney's Winnie the Pooh
Winnie the Pooh (Disney)
Winnie the Pooh is an American Walt Disney Company franchise, based on animated fictional characters who have been featured as part of the Disney character line-up. The Winnie the Pooh franchise is based on A. A...
franchise and is the fifth theatrical Winnie the Pooh film released and the second from the Walt Disney Animation Studios. It is the 51st animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. In the film, Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Rabbit, Piglet, Owl, Eeyore, Kanga, and Roo embark on a quest to save Christopher Robin from an imaginary culprit while Pooh deals with a hunger for honey
Honey
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
. The film is directed by Stephen Anderson
Stephen J. Anderson
Stephen John Anderson is an American animator, film director, screenwriter and voice actor who made his feature-film directorial debut with Meet The Robinsons. Anderson joined Walt Disney Feature Animation in 1995 as a story artist on Tarzan. Prior to joining Disney, Anderson worked as an animator...
and Don Hall, written by A. A. Milne
A. A. Milne
Alan Alexander Milne was an English author, best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various children's poems. Milne was a noted writer, primarily as a playwright, before the huge success of Pooh overshadowed all his previous work.-Biography:A. A...
and Burny Mattinson
Burny Mattinson
Burnett "Burny" Mattinson is an American story-boarder for the Disney Feature Animation studio. Starting work in 1953, Burny has been, and still is part of Disney today....
, produced by Peter Del Vecho, Clark Spencer, John Lasseter
John Lasseter
John Alan Lasseter is an American animator, director and the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He is also currently the Principal Creative Advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering....
, and Craig Sost, and narrated by John Cleese
John Cleese
John Marwood Cleese is an English actor, comedian, writer, and film producer. He achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report...
.
The film was distributed by Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
and was released on April 15, 2011 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and on July 15, 2011 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The film was originally planned to be released theatrically in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, but after a very brief run in limited cinemas in September 2011 was instead released direct-to-video
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
on October 5, 2011. Production for the film began in September 2009 with John Lasseter
John Lasseter
John Alan Lasseter is an American animator, director and the chief creative officer at Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios. He is also currently the Principal Creative Advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering....
announcing that they wanted to create a film that would "transcend generations." The film also features six songs by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
Robert Lopez
Robert Lopez is an American composer and lyricist of musicals best known for co-writing the Broadway musical Avenue Q and for co-creating the musical The Book of Mormon, receiving Tony Awards for both works....
, as well as a rendition of the "Winnie the Pooh" theme song by actress and musician Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Claire Deschanel is an American actress, musician, and singer-songwriter. In 1999, Deschanel made her film debut in Mumford, followed by her breakout role as young protagonist William Miller's troubled older sister Anita in Cameron Crowe's 2000 semi-autobiographical film Almost Famous...
.
Plot
The film is based on three stories found in the Milne books. Two stories are from Winnie-the-PoohWinnie-the-Pooh (book)
Winnie-the-Pooh is the first volume of stories about Winnie-the-Pooh, by A. A. Milne. It is followed by The House at Pooh Corner. The book focuses on the adventures of a teddy bear called Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends Piglet, a small toy pig; Eeyore, a toy donkey; Owl, a live owl; and Rabbit, a...
: "In Which Eeyore Loses a Tail and Pooh Finds One" and "In Which Piglet Meets a Heffalump". The other story is found in The House at Pooh Corner
The House at Pooh Corner
The House at Pooh Corner is the second volume of stories about Winnie-the-Pooh, written by A. A. Milne and illustrated by E. H. Shepard. It is notable for the introduction of the character Tigger, who went on to become a prominent figure in the Disney Winnie the Pooh franchise.- Plot :The title...
: "In Which Rabbit Has a Busy Day and We Learn What Christopher Robin Does in the Mornings". Some elements, such as the gang thinking that Christopher Robin has been captured by a monster, are based on events from the film Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin
Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin
Pooh's Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin is a 1997 direct-to-video film from Walt Disney's The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh. The film follows Pooh and his friends on a journey to find and rescue their friend Christopher Robin from the "Skull"...
Pooh
Winnie-the-Pooh
Winnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear, is a fictional anthropomorphic bear created by A. A. Milne. The first collection of stories about the character was the book Winnie-the-Pooh , and this was followed by The House at Pooh Corner...
wakes up one day to find that he is out of honey
Honey
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
. While out searching for more, Pooh discovers that Eeyore
Eeyore
Eeyore is a character in the Winnie-the-Pooh books by A. A. Milne. He is generally characterized as a pessimistic, gloomy, depressed, anhedonic, old grey stuffed donkey who is a friend of the title character, Winnie-the-Pooh....
has lost his tail. Pooh, Tigger
Tigger
Tigger is a fictional tiger-like character originally introduced in A. A. Milne's book The House at Pooh Corner. Like other Pooh characters, Tigger is based on one of Christopher Robin Milne's stuffed animals...
, Rabbit, Owl, Kanga, and Roo
Roo
Roo is a fictional character created in 1926 by A. A. Milne and first featured in the book Winnie-the-Pooh. He is a young kangaroo and his mother is Kanga...
come to the rescue, and Christopher Robin
Christopher Robin
Christopher Robin is a character created by A. A. Milne, appearing in his popular books of poetry and stories about Winnie-the-Pooh. He has subsequently appeared in Disney cartoons....
decides to hold a contest to see who can find a replacement for Eeyore's tail. The prize for the winner is a fresh pot of honey. After many failed attempts for what would replace Eeyore's tail (such as a cuckoo clock
Cuckoo clock
A cuckoo clock is a clock, typically pendulum-regulated, that strikes the hours with a sound like a common cuckoo's call and typically has a mechanical cuckoo that emerges with each note...
), Kanga suggests they use a scarf, but it unravels.
The next day, Pooh goes to visit Christopher Robin and he finds a note that says "Gon Out Bizy Back Soon". Because Pooh is unable to read the note, he asks for Owl's help. Owl's poor reading comprehension skills lead Pooh and his friends to believe that Christopher Robin has been abducted by a ruthless and mischievous monster they call the "Backson". Pooh and his friends plan to trap the Backson in a pit, which they think he'll fall into after following a trail of items leading to it. Meanwhile, Tigger, wanting a sidekick to help him defeat the Backson, recruits Eeyore to be a second Tigger. He dresses up like the Backson and tries to teach Eeyore how to fight. Eeyore, who is doing this against his will, escapes from Tigger and hides underwater.
After a failed attempt to get honey from a bee hive, Pooh's imagination combined with his hunger get the better of him, and accidentally falls into the pit meant for the Backson. Rabbit, Kanga, Roo, Owl and Eeyore (who had found an anchor whilst he was hiding to replace his own tail) try to get him out, but fall in themselves. Piglet attempts to get Pooh and friends out of the trap (though continuously irritating Rabbit with overintrepretations of his instructions), but he runs into Tigger, still in his Backson outfit, and mistakes him for the actual monster. Piglet escapes from Tigger on a red balloon, which knocks some of the storybook's letters into the pit. After the chase, Tigger and Piglet fall into the trap as well, where Eeyore reminds Tigger that he, being "the only one", is "the most wonderful thing about Tiggers". Eventually, Pooh figures out to use the fallen letters to form a ladder, and the animals are able to escape the pit. They soon find Christopher Robin, and tell him about the Backson, but he clarifies, saying he meant to be "back soon".
Later, Pooh visits Owl only to find that Owl was the one that took Eeyore's tail, not realizing it belonged to Eeyore. Owl had been using Eeyore's tail as a bell pulley for his door. Pooh chooses to leave and return the tail to Eeyore instead of sharing a pot of honey with Owl. Christopher Robin is proud of Pooh's kindness and rewards him with a large pot of honey.
In a post-credits scene
Post-credits scene
A post-credits scene is a short clip that appears after some or all of the closing credits of a film have run...
, it is revealed that the rumored Backson actually exists deep in the woods, but is much friendlier than imagined. He discovers the trail of objects that the animals left, and picks up each one, planning to return them to whoever owns them. He ends up falling into the pit that was originally meant for him and waits for someone to arrive and help him out. He adds, "I sure hope that fellow will be back soon".
Cast
- Jim CummingsJim CummingsJames Jonah "Jim" Cummings is an American voice actor who has appeared in almost 100 roles. He has appeared in classic animated movies such as Aladdin and The Lion King, as well as taking on roles in more current films, such as Bee Movie, Princess and the Frog, and Winnie the Pooh.-Personal...
as Winnie the PoohWinnie-the-PoohWinnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear, is a fictional anthropomorphic bear created by A. A. Milne. The first collection of stories about the character was the book Winnie-the-Pooh , and this was followed by The House at Pooh Corner...
and TiggerTiggerTigger is a fictional tiger-like character originally introduced in A. A. Milne's book The House at Pooh Corner. Like other Pooh characters, Tigger is based on one of Christopher Robin Milne's stuffed animals... - Travis OatesTravis OatesTravis Oates is an American actor who is best known for continuing the role of Piglet in My Friends Tigger & Pooh and other Winnie the Pooh-related media since the death of John Fiedler on June 25, 2005. He also voices Piglet in the Winnie the Pooh film...
as Piglet - Tom KennyTom KennyThomas James "Tom" Kenny is an American actor, voice actor and comedian. He is especially known for his long-running-role as SpongeBob SquarePants in the television series of the same name, as well as the live-action character Patchy the Pirate, Gary the Snail and the French narrator based on...
as Rabbit - Craig FergusonCraig FergusonCraig Ferguson is a Scottish American television host, stand-up comedian, writer, actor, director, author, and producer. He is the host of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, an Emmy Award-nominated, Peabody Award-winning late-night talk show that airs on CBS...
as Owl - Bud LuckeyBud LuckeyWilliam "Bud" Luckey is an American cartoonist, animator, singer, musician, composer and voice actor. He is best known for his work at Pixar as a character designer for Toy Story, Boundin, Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, Cars, The Incredibles, and Ratatouille...
as EeyoreEeyoreEeyore is a character in the Winnie-the-Pooh books by A. A. Milne. He is generally characterized as a pessimistic, gloomy, depressed, anhedonic, old grey stuffed donkey who is a friend of the title character, Winnie-the-Pooh.... - Jack Boutler as Christopher RobinChristopher RobinChristopher Robin is a character created by A. A. Milne, appearing in his popular books of poetry and stories about Winnie-the-Pooh. He has subsequently appeared in Disney cartoons....
- Kristen Anderson-Lopez as Kanga
- Wyatt Hall as RooRooRoo is a fictional character created in 1926 by A. A. Milne and first featured in the book Winnie-the-Pooh. He is a young kangaroo and his mother is Kanga...
- Huell HowserHuell HowserHuell Burnley Howser is an American television personality best known for California's Gold, his travel show for the Los Angeles based KCET.-Early career:...
as the Backson - John CleeseJohn CleeseJohn Marwood Cleese is an English actor, comedian, writer, and film producer. He achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report...
as the narrator
Production
Burny MattinsonBurny Mattinson
Burnett "Burny" Mattinson is an American story-boarder for the Disney Feature Animation studio. Starting work in 1953, Burny has been, and still is part of Disney today....
, a Disney veteran who worked as the key animator on Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too, served as lead storyboard artist
Storyboard artist
Storyboard artist is a profession specialized in creating storyboards for advertising agencies and film productions.A storyboard artist is able to visualize any stories using quick sketches on paper at any moment...
for the film, with Stephen Anderson
Stephen Anderson
-Arts and entertainment:*Steve Anderson, birth name of American wrestler Stone Cold Steve Austin *Steve Anderson , British musician*Steve Anderson , musician and songwriter*Stephen J...
and Don Hall directing. Director Stephen Anderson is best known for his effort on Meet the Robinsons
Meet the Robinsons
Meet the Robinsons is a 2007 American computer-animated family film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures on March 30, 2007. The forty-seventh animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, the film was released in both the United States and the...
, Journey Beneath the Sea, Brother Bear
Brother Bear
Brother Bear is a 2003 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures, the forty-fourth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics. In the film, an Inuit boy pursues a bear in revenge for a battle that he provoked in which...
, The Emperor's New Groove
The Emperor's New Groove
The Emperor's New Groove is a 2000 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures through Buena Vista Distribution on December 15, 2000. It is the 40th animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics...
, and Bolt. Director Don Hall also has veteran status at Walt Disney Animation Studios, significantly contributing to The Princess and the Frog, Meet the Robinsons
Meet the Robinsons
Meet the Robinsons is a 2007 American computer-animated family film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures on March 30, 2007. The forty-seventh animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics, the film was released in both the United States and the...
, Brother Bear
Brother Bear
Brother Bear is a 2003 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures, the forty-fourth animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics. In the film, an Inuit boy pursues a bear in revenge for a battle that he provoked in which...
, Home on the Range, The Emperor's New Groove
The Emperor's New Groove
The Emperor's New Groove is a 2000 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures through Buena Vista Distribution on December 15, 2000. It is the 40th animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics...
, and Tarzan
Tarzan (1999 film)
Tarzan is a 1999 American animated feature film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures on June 18, 1999...
. Supervising animators for the film included Mark Henn
Mark Henn
Mark Henn is a Disney animator, whose contributions to animation have included several Disney leading or title characters, most notably heroines. He studied in the Character Animation program at the California Institute of the Arts in the seventies. His work includes Princess Jasmine in Aladdin,...
(Winnie the Pooh, Christopher Robin), Andreas Deja
Andreas Deja
Andreas Deja is as an animator most noted for his work at Walt Disney Animation Studios. Deja's creations include the Disney villains Gaston from Beauty and the Beast, Jafar from Aladdin and Scar from The Lion King. He is a recipient of the 2006 Winsor McCay Award.-Early life:Andreas Deja was born...
(Tigger), Bruce W. Smith
Bruce W. Smith
Bruce W. Smith is an American character animator, film director, and television producer, best known as the creator of Disney's The Proud Family....
(Piglet, Kanga, Roo), Randy Haycock (Eeyore), Eric Goldberg
Eric Goldberg (film director)
Eric Goldberg is an American animator and film director. He is best known for his work at Walt Disney Animation Studios. He's also well known as the creator of Disney character Genie in Aladdin...
(Rabbit) and Dale Baer
Dale Baer
Dale Baer is a character animator for Walt Disney Animation Studios. He has been supervising animator of many characters.- Supervising Animator :* Yzma/Yzma Kitten - The Emperor's New Groove * Alameda Slim, and Junior - Home on the Range...
(Owl). and Wesley Singerman
Wesley Singerman
Wesley Steven Singerman is an American voice actor. He is most recognized for his role in the 2007 Walt Disney animated film Meet the Robinsons as Wilbur Robinson. Singerman also voiced Charlie Brown in A Charlie Brown Valentine, Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales and Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie...
(Kessie). Similar to The Princess and the Frog, the film also uses Toon Boom Animation
Toon Boom Animation
Toon Boom Animation Inc. is a Canadian software company that specializes in animation production software. Founded in 1994 and based in Montreal, Quebec, Toon Boom develops animation and storyboarding software for film, television, web animation, games, mobile devices, and training applications...
's Harmony software. Instead of using live-action book scenes (in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is the 22nd full-length animated film produced by Walt Disney Productions and first released on March 11, 1977....
), the book scenes are CGI
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
-animated with the characters interacting with the text (such as when they escape the pit they wanted to trap the backson in).
Originally, the film was supposed to feature five stories from the A. A. Milne
A. A. Milne
Alan Alexander Milne was an English author, best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various children's poems. Milne was a noted writer, primarily as a playwright, before the huge success of Pooh overshadowed all his previous work.-Biography:A. A...
books, but the final version ended up drawing inspiration from three stories. Lasseter had also announced that Rabbit's friends and relatives would be in the film, but they appear only in a deleted scene.
Short films
The movie was preceded by two animated shorts, one of them being the Regular ShowRegular Show
Regular Show is an American animated television series created by J. G. Quintel...
short, Mordecai and Rigby: Ringtoneers, which was only played in Regal First Look
Regal Entertainment Group
Regal Entertainment Group also known as REG is a movie theater chain headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. Regal operates the largest and most geographically diverse theater circuit in the United States, consisting of 6,775 screens in 548 locations in 39 states and the District of Columbia as of...
. Another one was The Ballad of Nessie
The Ballad of Nessie
The Ballad of Nessie is a 2011 traditionally-animated short film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. It was directed by Stevie Wermers-Skelton and Kevin Deters, and produced by the team behind How to Hook Up Your Home Theater....
, which was about a friendly Loch Ness Monster
Loch Ness Monster
The Loch Ness Monster is a cryptid that is reputed to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is similar to other supposed lake monsters in Scotland and elsewhere, though its description varies from one account to the next....
named Nessie and how she and her best friend MacQuack, the rubber duck, came to live in the moor they now call home. In some international screenings, the episode "Cubby's Goldfish" from the Disney Junior
Disney Junior
Disney Junior is a current program block on Disney Channel and an upcoming American basic cable and satellite television network intended to replace SOAPnet in February 2012. It began airing on February 14, 2011, replacing Playhouse Disney....
series Jake and the Never Land Pirates
Jake and the Never Land Pirates
Jake and the Never Land Pirates is a musical animated Disney Junior show based on the successful Disney franchise, Peter Pan. It is the first Disney Junior original show following the switch from Playhouse Disney...
also appeared.
Critical reception
Winnie the Pooh received critical acclaim. Review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reports that 91% of 118 critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 7.2 out of 10. Its consensus states "Short, nostalgic, and gently whimsical, Winnie the Pooh offers young audiences – and their parents – a sweetly traditional family treat." Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film received an average score of 74 based on 26 reviews. CinemaScore
CinemaScore
CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data.-Background:...
polls reported that the average grade moviegoers gave the film was an A minus on an A plus to F scale.
Gary Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
says the film "proves a fitting tribute to one of the last century's most enduring children's tales." The film has been praised for not only being able to charm the children audience but the parents as well. Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
, giving it 3 stars out of 4, said in his review "In a time of shock-value 3-D animation and special effects, the look of the film is gentle and pleasing. It was hand-animated, I'm told, and the backgrounds use a subtle and reassuring watercolor style. It's a nightmare-proof experience for even the youngest viewers."
While Platform Online stated that Winnie the Poohs "handdrawn animation is such a welcome relief", it found the film's runtime length to be more of an issue, which it stated "At just 70 minutes, even aiming at kids this could have been longer – Pixar have been pushing films well over 90 minutes for years now, and it’s clear the children can handle it. Just as you really get into the film it's over, and you’re left wanting more."
Box-office performance
The film has been a moderate success at the box office, considering its opening being the same weekend as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 is a 2011 epic fantasy film directed by David Yates and the second of two films based on the novel of the same name by J. K. Rowling. It is the eighth and final instalment in the Harry Potter film series, written by Steve Kloves and produced by David...
, earning $7,857,076 in its opening weekend from 2,405 theaters, averaging about $3,267 per theater, and ranking #6 for the weekend. The film closed on September 22, 2011, with a final domestic gross of $26,692,846, with the opening weekend making up 29.44% of the final gross. It also has made $6,460,000 overseas, bringing its worldwide gross to $33,152,846, according to Box Office Mojo. The international grosses include $4.13 million in Japan, $1.33 million in Germany, $1.29 million in Poland, $1.18 million in the UK and $1.14 million in Russia.
Home media
The film was released on Blu-ray, DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
, and Digital Download on October 25, 2011. The release will be produced in three different physical packages: a 1-disc DVD; a 2-disc combo pack (Blu-ray and DVD); and a 3-disc combo pack (Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital Copy
Digital copy
Digital Copy provides consumers who purchase a film on DVD or Blu-ray Disc with an additional, digital copy of the movie for devices capable of operating with a file in contrast to a DVD.-Features:...
). The film will also be released as a Digital Download option in both standard and high definition. The DVD and Digital Download versions will include The Ballad of Nessie
The Ballad of Nessie
The Ballad of Nessie is a 2011 traditionally-animated short film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. It was directed by Stevie Wermers-Skelton and Kevin Deters, and produced by the team behind How to Hook Up Your Home Theater....
and Mini-Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: "Pooh's Balloon" animated shorts, as well as three deleted scenes. Both combo packs include all of the same features as the DVD and Digital Download versions, plus the "Winnie the Pooh and His Story Too" behind-the-scenes feature, two additional deleted scenes, the "Sing-Along with the Movie" feature, and the "Disney Song Selection" feature.
Soundtrack
Hoping to find the right songwriters for their film, Winnie the Pooh directors Stephen Anderson and Don Hall sent visuals to five songwriting teams. The duo instantly fell in love with the demos returned by Robert LopezRobert Lopez
Robert Lopez is an American composer and lyricist of musicals best known for co-writing the Broadway musical Avenue Q and for co-creating the musical The Book of Mormon, receiving Tony Awards for both works....
and his wife Kristen. Hence, the Lopez's wrote seven songs for the film, including "The Tummy Song", "A Very Important Thing to Do", "Everything Is Honey", "The Winner Song", "The Backson Song", "Pooh's Finale", and "It's Gonna Be Great". Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Claire Deschanel is an American actress, musician, and singer-songwriter. In 1999, Deschanel made her film debut in Mumford, followed by her breakout role as young protagonist William Miller's troubled older sister Anita in Cameron Crowe's 2000 semi-autobiographical film Almost Famous...
performs three songs for the film, including a take on the Winnie the Pooh theme song, "A Very Important Thing to Do" and an original end-credit song "So Long," which was written by Zooey Deschanel and performed with She & Him
She & Him
She & Him is an American indie pop duo consisting of Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward . The band's first album, Volume One, was released on Merge Records in March 2008...
band mate M. Ward
M. Ward
Matthew Stephen Ward, known by his stage name M. Ward, is a singer-songwriter and guitarist who rose to prominence in the Portland, Oregon music scene. In addition to his solo work he is known as a member of She & Him and Monsters of Folk.-Career:...
.
The film was scored by Henry Jackman
Henry Pryce Jackman
Henry Pryce Jackman is a film score composer and keyboard player.-Early life and career:Jackman studied classical music at St...
, with additional music by Christopher Willis
Christopher Willis
Christopher Willis is a British composer. He has written music for a number of film scores with several other British film composers including Harry Gregson-Williams, Rupert Gregson-Williams and Henry Jackman...
.
In the trailer, the song "Somewhere Only We Know
Somewhere Only We Know
"Somewhere Only We Know" is a song performed and composed by English alternative rock band Keane, officially released as their third commercial single, and appearing as the opening track of their debut album, Hopes and Fears as the first single...
" by English alternative rock band Keane was used instead of the music written by Henry Jackman. The song by Keane is not included on the soundtrack. All musical scores and songs were composed by Henry Jackman, except as noted.
The song "So Long" recieved a Grammy nomination.
Track listing
External links
- Winnie the Pooh at Walt Disney Animation Studios