Home on the Range (2004)
After the legendary Disney Renaissance, Disney struggled to find a successful pathway forward with changing audiences and a rapidly growing animation industry. Comparable to the studio's low periods in the 1940s and 1970s, the 2000s marked a rough patch for Disney releases with both limited financial success and lasting cultural impact. Perhaps the lowest of these lows comes in the form of 2004's Home on the Range. A bizarre butchering of what, at one point, was meant to be a focused cowboy narrative, Home on the Range follows a trio of cows who go on an adventure to save their farm from being closed due to an inability for the farm owner, Pearl (Carole Cook), to pay what she owes the bank. Included in this trio is the snobby Mrs. Calloway (Judi Dench), the clueless Grace (Jennifer Tilly), and the obnoxious Maggie (Roseanne Barr).
Immediately it is painfully obvious that Home on the Range is one of the most annoying Disney features to date. Lacking any sense of comedic craft and instead filling its 76-minute runtime with loud and crude attempts at jokes, the viewing experience can be torturous. While hardcore fans of Barr's comedic sensibilities might find something enjoyable here, her presence is overall unpalatable with horribly forced attempts at finding a comedic pathway that never leads to something actually worthwhile. The jokes are consistently distasteful with non-stop humor given to concepts like body shaming and trying to make Maggie's weight be an entertaining identity for her character which is not only offensive, but also simply lazy. Disney once stood as a leading home for creativity and passion making Home on the Range an embarrassment for what the studio once stood for. The one point of comedic joy comes from Tilly's performance, but she consistently is plowed over by the cast and writing around her.
While the comedy and character work is clearly awful, the story of Home on the Range is also quite weak. On a base level, the emotional weight and stakes of the film is a confusing choice. Much of the film centers around the concern of Pearl's farm, Patch of Heaven, going out of business if these cows fail to find a way to pay the bank. Naturally, this is a compelling enough angle yet the choice to center Maggie as the main lens of this story is odd considering the character has just arrived on the farm. She has no history or connection to these animals or this home, creating a strange amount of distance between the audience and the weight of the story. The film tries to justify this angle in two ways: the first being a basic story of the other cows, specifically Mrs. Calloway, learning to see the heart of Maggie and accept her despite her annoying attributes. The second is an attempt to actually increase the weight of the conflict by having Maggie experience previous trauma being sold from a farm that was forced to close. Due to the inability within the film's screenplay, neither of these angles are truly pushed to create worthwhile emotional reactions.
Deeper within the plot is a conflict regarding cattle rustler Alameda Slim (Randy Quaid) who is stealing cattle as part of a larger scheme to create a monopoly over the land. This is a plot that has natural potential. While many might not expect a Disney film to get into the politics of land ownership and abusive practices used by those in power to gain control and power, this is a narrative backbone that could allow this conversation which would add a depth and purpose to the plot that feels reminiscent of some of Disney's best previous works. Of course, the film fails to have this conversation in any meaningful way. Slim is turned into a generic villain and the conclusion to his arc feels hollow and boring, like the film just going through the motions which is a continued complaint throughout Disney's filmography when it comes to third act movements.
With Home on the Range missing the mark at so many points, it is easy to want to claim the film is completely worthless. This isn't totally true however as the film has to be praised for some of its animation work. Especially with backgrounds, the film employs a unique eye for color and style that helps it stand out against the rest of Disney's catalog. The character design is equally as interesting with portions and shaping in a way that does feel creative and like heart was put into it. There is also a couple standout sequences where the film completely gives itself over to trippy visuals and a total switch in visual design, almost reminiscent of the Pink Elephants on Parade scene in Dumbo.
Outside of its animation, Home on the Range is a painful miss that shows Disney at its absolute lowest. Between the off-putting humor, Roseanne Barr's annoying performance, the lackluster plot, and overall absence of craft or inspiration, the film finds very little of value. The film's cultural impact has started and stopped with the identity of it being one of Disney's worst efforts, and it is hard to find any argument against this truth.
Immediately it is painfully obvious that Home on the Range is one of the most annoying Disney features to date. Lacking any sense of comedic craft and instead filling its 76-minute runtime with loud and crude attempts at jokes, the viewing experience can be torturous. While hardcore fans of Barr's comedic sensibilities might find something enjoyable here, her presence is overall unpalatable with horribly forced attempts at finding a comedic pathway that never leads to something actually worthwhile. The jokes are consistently distasteful with non-stop humor given to concepts like body shaming and trying to make Maggie's weight be an entertaining identity for her character which is not only offensive, but also simply lazy. Disney once stood as a leading home for creativity and passion making Home on the Range an embarrassment for what the studio once stood for. The one point of comedic joy comes from Tilly's performance, but she consistently is plowed over by the cast and writing around her.
While the comedy and character work is clearly awful, the story of Home on the Range is also quite weak. On a base level, the emotional weight and stakes of the film is a confusing choice. Much of the film centers around the concern of Pearl's farm, Patch of Heaven, going out of business if these cows fail to find a way to pay the bank. Naturally, this is a compelling enough angle yet the choice to center Maggie as the main lens of this story is odd considering the character has just arrived on the farm. She has no history or connection to these animals or this home, creating a strange amount of distance between the audience and the weight of the story. The film tries to justify this angle in two ways: the first being a basic story of the other cows, specifically Mrs. Calloway, learning to see the heart of Maggie and accept her despite her annoying attributes. The second is an attempt to actually increase the weight of the conflict by having Maggie experience previous trauma being sold from a farm that was forced to close. Due to the inability within the film's screenplay, neither of these angles are truly pushed to create worthwhile emotional reactions.
Deeper within the plot is a conflict regarding cattle rustler Alameda Slim (Randy Quaid) who is stealing cattle as part of a larger scheme to create a monopoly over the land. This is a plot that has natural potential. While many might not expect a Disney film to get into the politics of land ownership and abusive practices used by those in power to gain control and power, this is a narrative backbone that could allow this conversation which would add a depth and purpose to the plot that feels reminiscent of some of Disney's best previous works. Of course, the film fails to have this conversation in any meaningful way. Slim is turned into a generic villain and the conclusion to his arc feels hollow and boring, like the film just going through the motions which is a continued complaint throughout Disney's filmography when it comes to third act movements.
With Home on the Range missing the mark at so many points, it is easy to want to claim the film is completely worthless. This isn't totally true however as the film has to be praised for some of its animation work. Especially with backgrounds, the film employs a unique eye for color and style that helps it stand out against the rest of Disney's catalog. The character design is equally as interesting with portions and shaping in a way that does feel creative and like heart was put into it. There is also a couple standout sequences where the film completely gives itself over to trippy visuals and a total switch in visual design, almost reminiscent of the Pink Elephants on Parade scene in Dumbo.
Outside of its animation, Home on the Range is a painful miss that shows Disney at its absolute lowest. Between the off-putting humor, Roseanne Barr's annoying performance, the lackluster plot, and overall absence of craft or inspiration, the film finds very little of value. The film's cultural impact has started and stopped with the identity of it being one of Disney's worst efforts, and it is hard to find any argument against this truth.