Bolt (2008)
While the most iconic through-line of Walt Disney Animation Studios' filmography is undoubtedly the Disney Princess lineup, an underrated category of releases is the studio's various canine adventures. Starting with the 1955 release of Lady and the Tramp, Disney has gone back to bringing the adventures of various dogs to life time and time again with classic examples including One Hundred and One Dalmatians, The Fox and the Hound, and Oliver & Company. This is a tradition that would fade out for a number of years until the 2008 release of Bolt. Transporting audiences to the magical and fantastical land of Hollywood where a puppy named Bolt (John Travolta) stars in his own action tv series where he saves his owner, a young girl named Penny (Miley Cyrus), from evil forces every week using an array of superpowers. It is notable, however, that Bolt is unaware of the production behind these adventures. For Bolt, he truly thinks he has these powers and that Penny's life is in danger so when he accidentally gets shipped from Los Angeles to New York City, he rushes home to save Penny but along the way, has to contend with slowly realizing the truth and finding his identity in the real world.
It is safe to say that the premise of Bolt is far from being that original or new. The formula of taking a character unaware that their perceived reality is fictional and sending them tumbling into the real world for comedic effect is nothing new. Even at the dawn of the modern western animation market with 1995's Toy Story, this was a narrative being used with the space ranger Buzz Lightyear, of course from Andy's favorite movie, Lightyear, which audiences got to sit through for themselves in 2022. Bolt plays into every expected trope and and comedic bit associated with this gimmick and very rarely is anything provided truly elevated within it.
It doesn't help that the backbone joke is so over the top that it struggles to land. The opening segment of the film shows Bolt's on screen adventures which often involve massive explosions, insane stunts, and plenty of destruction. Of course, the film peels this back as being the work of the magic of cinema, but this explanation feels hard to fully accept. One cannot look to display Bolt as being just another dog with no special skills while also claiming he can jump off buildings, through a moving helicopter, and roll through a wall of fire on his landing. Even if the bad guys are actors and certain things are exaggerated, the idea that a normal dog can do all of this perfectly without ever needing a second take while also never realizing that this isn't reality feels so forced that it becomes distracting. While it is easy to want to ignore the logical issues considering it is an animated kids film already breaking the logic of reality, Disney films have never tried to be fully realistic of course and that isn't a bad thing inherently, it becomes a problem here because it directly undercuts the actual humor of the story. One cannot believe in the slightest that this reality exists without Bolt being spectacular while the entire joke revolves around Bolt being ordinary. Buzz Lightyear is funny because he has delusions of grandeur and ability that never existed. Bolt should be treated the same, but the world presented goes against this.
Luckily, this is an issue that only plagues the first bit of runtime as the film quickly moves on to the real world and Bolt's journey to return to Penny. While it is easy to condemn the film for being a more basic narrative, the viewing experience of the film rarely actually suffers from this due to the film's natural charm. Sometimes, if done with enough personality and energy a basic story can still feel compelling and moving with Bolt absolutely falling into this category. Largely thanks due to the mixture of animation, voice acting, and writing, the film creates one of the most effective ensembles of basic stereotypes seen in Disney's filmography that are so enjoyable to be around that it is hard to ever feel frustrated or bored by the story they are traveling through.
As with most films focusing on a cute animal protagonist, the animation is of course the first weapon the film will use to break down the audience's guard. While using 3D animation, an artform that was still developing, the film wisely injects style and personality into its non-photorealistic rendering to make a visually pleasing film that centers around one of the cutest animated pets of all-time. Bolt is genuinely adorable and it is hard to imagine no one melting at the sight of his innocent puppy face which helps suck the audience in and make them care for the character. While this might be a cheap win, it is still an undeniable success for the film.
It also helps that the voice casting is near flawless throughout the feature. John Travolta brings a bright innocence to Bolt that never gets in the way of his more serious emotions as he has to question everything he has known in life. Susie Essman plays Mittens, a sarcastic cat that Bolt forces to help him on his journey and also is clearly successful. Again finding a balance in performance and direction, Mittens is sarcastic and rude but eventually opens up more and has a certain innocence herself, she creates a character that is fun to interact with and has a strong chemistry with Travolta. Rounding out the group is Mark Walton who plays Rhino, a TV obsessed hamster that is a huge fan of Bolt and has trouble deciding what is reality and what is fantasy. While Rhino is easily the worst member of the trio, Walton is still able to give him a genuine sense of identity and charisma that makes what easily could have been a complete annoyance and makes him tolerable if not even enjoyable for a few select scenes. These three bring this film to life and give such a strong outing that Bolt might just have one of the more consistent and successful main ensembles of any Disney feature of the modern era.
It helps that the dialogue given to these characters feel natural and effective. As they slowly open up to each-other and slowly begin to work through their individual trauma and problems, even the more basic conflicts feel like they have a true weight and get a satisfying payoff. It really says something about the talent of writing coming from Dan Fogelman and Chris Williams that what on paper appears to be such a boring narrative feels so compelling in practice.
Bolt is one of the rare modern Disney films where everything truly comes together. Even with a simpler concept and a distractingly rough first joke, the film quickly pulls itself together to deliver a heartfelt and worthy viewing experience that feels like a real underrated gem in Disney's larger filmography.
It is safe to say that the premise of Bolt is far from being that original or new. The formula of taking a character unaware that their perceived reality is fictional and sending them tumbling into the real world for comedic effect is nothing new. Even at the dawn of the modern western animation market with 1995's Toy Story, this was a narrative being used with the space ranger Buzz Lightyear, of course from Andy's favorite movie, Lightyear, which audiences got to sit through for themselves in 2022. Bolt plays into every expected trope and and comedic bit associated with this gimmick and very rarely is anything provided truly elevated within it.
It doesn't help that the backbone joke is so over the top that it struggles to land. The opening segment of the film shows Bolt's on screen adventures which often involve massive explosions, insane stunts, and plenty of destruction. Of course, the film peels this back as being the work of the magic of cinema, but this explanation feels hard to fully accept. One cannot look to display Bolt as being just another dog with no special skills while also claiming he can jump off buildings, through a moving helicopter, and roll through a wall of fire on his landing. Even if the bad guys are actors and certain things are exaggerated, the idea that a normal dog can do all of this perfectly without ever needing a second take while also never realizing that this isn't reality feels so forced that it becomes distracting. While it is easy to want to ignore the logical issues considering it is an animated kids film already breaking the logic of reality, Disney films have never tried to be fully realistic of course and that isn't a bad thing inherently, it becomes a problem here because it directly undercuts the actual humor of the story. One cannot believe in the slightest that this reality exists without Bolt being spectacular while the entire joke revolves around Bolt being ordinary. Buzz Lightyear is funny because he has delusions of grandeur and ability that never existed. Bolt should be treated the same, but the world presented goes against this.
Luckily, this is an issue that only plagues the first bit of runtime as the film quickly moves on to the real world and Bolt's journey to return to Penny. While it is easy to condemn the film for being a more basic narrative, the viewing experience of the film rarely actually suffers from this due to the film's natural charm. Sometimes, if done with enough personality and energy a basic story can still feel compelling and moving with Bolt absolutely falling into this category. Largely thanks due to the mixture of animation, voice acting, and writing, the film creates one of the most effective ensembles of basic stereotypes seen in Disney's filmography that are so enjoyable to be around that it is hard to ever feel frustrated or bored by the story they are traveling through.
As with most films focusing on a cute animal protagonist, the animation is of course the first weapon the film will use to break down the audience's guard. While using 3D animation, an artform that was still developing, the film wisely injects style and personality into its non-photorealistic rendering to make a visually pleasing film that centers around one of the cutest animated pets of all-time. Bolt is genuinely adorable and it is hard to imagine no one melting at the sight of his innocent puppy face which helps suck the audience in and make them care for the character. While this might be a cheap win, it is still an undeniable success for the film.
It also helps that the voice casting is near flawless throughout the feature. John Travolta brings a bright innocence to Bolt that never gets in the way of his more serious emotions as he has to question everything he has known in life. Susie Essman plays Mittens, a sarcastic cat that Bolt forces to help him on his journey and also is clearly successful. Again finding a balance in performance and direction, Mittens is sarcastic and rude but eventually opens up more and has a certain innocence herself, she creates a character that is fun to interact with and has a strong chemistry with Travolta. Rounding out the group is Mark Walton who plays Rhino, a TV obsessed hamster that is a huge fan of Bolt and has trouble deciding what is reality and what is fantasy. While Rhino is easily the worst member of the trio, Walton is still able to give him a genuine sense of identity and charisma that makes what easily could have been a complete annoyance and makes him tolerable if not even enjoyable for a few select scenes. These three bring this film to life and give such a strong outing that Bolt might just have one of the more consistent and successful main ensembles of any Disney feature of the modern era.
It helps that the dialogue given to these characters feel natural and effective. As they slowly open up to each-other and slowly begin to work through their individual trauma and problems, even the more basic conflicts feel like they have a true weight and get a satisfying payoff. It really says something about the talent of writing coming from Dan Fogelman and Chris Williams that what on paper appears to be such a boring narrative feels so compelling in practice.
Bolt is one of the rare modern Disney films where everything truly comes together. Even with a simpler concept and a distractingly rough first joke, the film quickly pulls itself together to deliver a heartfelt and worthy viewing experience that feels like a real underrated gem in Disney's larger filmography.