The Rescuers

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Here's another one I hadn't seen since childhood, and a find example of a Disney title that I remembered much more fondly than may have been deserved. It's not like it's a bad movie or anything, it's just... not very exciting for something called 'The Rescuers'. The characters here are kind of bland, and the saving grace that would be the villain makes me think of Cruella DeVil's drinking buddy. She's a villain you hate, but can make you laugh all the same with just how over the top she is. They might as well be sisters.

The film opens as A mystery girl aboard a riverboat casts a message in a bottle out to sea, asking for help. The bottle is received by the Rescue Aid Society, located within the UN; a group of rodents who specialize in, well, rescuing people. The note is addressed to Morningside Orphanage, New York, and suggests that our mystery girl's name is Penny (Michelle Stacy), and she's in terrible danger. Hungarian representative, Bianca (Eva Gabor), volunteers for the mission. But being that this was 1977, she needs a male representative to go with, because of the dangerous possibilities the mission might hold. Of all representatives to choose from, she goes with the janitor, Bernard (Bob Newhart). The pair embark on their journey, and eventually learn of Penny's whereabouts.

Bianca and Bernard follow a woman named Madame Medusa (Geraldine Page), who seems to be Penny's kidnapper, to a desolate swamp area called Devil's Bayou. There, Penny is meanwhile being held by Medusa's partner in crime, Mr. Snoops (Joe Flynn) and a couple of gators named Brutus and Nero. The reason for the kidnapping seems to have something to do with a diamond called the Devil's Eye, and the villains here need Penny's size to head down into a tight, dark and dangerous well to go looking for the diamond. Will the Rescuers be able to save Penny from these brutes before something terrible happens to Penny?

Maybe it's just me, but I tend to find this chapter of 'The Rescuers' very humdrum. As mentioned before, the characters are pretty bland, and on top of that, the soundtrack is something so "lullaby" in tone, it's enough to make you nod off. Again, this isn't something I would call "bad", it's just, perhaps a bit more aimed at the youth of the time than kids today. I would imagine kids today might find this extraordinarily boring. However, things would change in the future with this film's forgotten sequel, 'The Rescuers Down Under', which basically fixes everything this movie may have been lacking. I might recommend a little background reading, then just diving into the sequel, because I don't feel like this is a Disney movie you have to see.

This is another one I can't help but meet in the middle. I don't get much out of it now, but for its time, it was probably considered pretty damn good. The highlights are probably Bianca and Bernard, themselves, who are out to prove that a little mouse can make a big difference. I've always appreciated that message in a movie, and this one does it pretty well. The side characters are fine, Penny's... a touch irritating, but also fine (I mean, you can't help but feel bad for her) and on the whole, this movie is just... fine. I think a lot of that also has to do with 'Down Under' being so good, and completely overshadowing this - but that's a review coming in September, so stay tuned! Bottom line, this is passable, but it's really nothing special.

​3/5

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