The Rescuers Down Under (November 16, 1990)

I looked forward to watching this sequel to the surprisingly enjoyable film, The Rescuers. It was the first Disney Animated theatrical sequel after being stalwartly against the practice since the studio’s inception. I can understand why as The Rescuers Down Under does

not live up to the original. It is still enjoyable and entertaining, particularly for a fan of the first film, but the plot is nearly identical, and the new characters introduced are overall worse. The villain is better as he is just a simple poacher who kidnaps a young boy who has a special attachment to a rare, golden, giant eagle whom he wants to kill, stuff, and sell. And this boy (and his friend eagle) are interesting and provide an excuse for gorgeous areal visuals. But the subplot of a rivalry between Bernard and Jake, a hopping mouse, who are fighting for the affections of Miss Bianca was cliqued and annoying, distracting from the, unfortunately, bland plot. Additionally, the film did not do well at the box office, making significantly less than its predecessor, ending the franchise. I had hopped for another fun and unique adventure with extremely likable characters and was given instead a typical children’s movie, worth a quick watch but otherwise nothing memorable, easily forgettable among Disney’s increasingly large catalog of animated films.

Final Rating: 5/10