One Hundred and One Dalmations
I didn’t grow up on Disney films, so for a lot of the pre-1989 movies, I’m coming to them for the first time as an adult. I feel like I had to have watched “One Hundred and One Dalmations” at some point growing up, but if I did, it just cleared out of my mind right away. I did watch the 1996 live-action remake with Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil, but other than Close, it was a forgettable stop in my moviewatching education, at that point. With “Cruella,” I thought I should finally watch the 1961 animated film with fresh eyes.
On the basis on this film, I would suspect that the novel by Dodie Smith is pretty dark- I mean, the story does hinge on a woman wanting to skin 99 dalmation pups for a fur coat- because this has moments that are fairly bleak. After an act one that starts with Pongo initiating a “meet cute” for his “pet” with a woman who also owns a dalmation, and builds up to the birth of 15 puppies, we get dognapping, Pongo and Perdita leaving their home to go find them and the threat of 99 puppies getting bludgeoned to death before possibly freezing to death in the escape. Then again, Disney didn’t mind going too dark when Walt was still around; now, they’re a bit hesitant to do so, even in their best films, although really what’s changed has been narrative darkness for thematic maturity, which isn’t really found in this film.
Cel animation was a gift of craftsmanship and art that is, sadly, missing from the major American animation studios, who gave themselves over to CG animation years ago. That’s not intended as a knock on CG animation, which has produced numerous leaps and bounds in creativity over the years, but the beauty of cel animation is something to take in. There’s a clip that makes the rounds every few months of repurposed animated drawings from “The Jungle Book” to “Winnie the Pooh,” but while a lot of people look at it and think, “My life was a lie,” it’s simply an animator’s shorthand that is employed only when deemed necessary; I’m sure the animators of “One Hundred and One Dalmations” probably did the same here- some of these designs certainly look familiar- and with 99 puppies to hand draw, I would hope they found ways to make it easier on themselves. What makes a movie like this memorable, however, isn’t necessarily the initial pencil drawings but the coloration and depth of field, and that’s what makes a scene like the snowy escape from De Vil’s mansion so powerful to watch- the full impact of the image is what makes a scene emotional or funny or serious. This is what a movie like “One Hundred and One Dalmations” reminds us of.
It’s surprising to see how little Cruella is actually in this movie; when she does appear, she is a terrifying person to watch, but she’s only in a few scenes. The main evildoers in the film are ultimately Jasper and Horace, whom are a couple of clods in the classic Disney henchmen vein. Roger and Anita as Pongo and Perdita’s humans are fine, but thankfully, not in it long after the opening act. The dalmations are why we watch, and things like the dog version of telephone that gives Pongo and Perdita information on where their puppies are are enjoyable. This is a solid effort from the studio, but not really much more than that. I may not watch it again; that doesn’t mean I dislike it, though. If anything, I appreciate the reminder of what Disney used to be like in its films.
