OLIVER AND COMPANY

Either I'm not very bright, or the fact that Oliver and Company is simply a 1988 version of Oliver Twist for stray animals is not immediately clear.

Either I'm not very bright, or the fact that Oliver and Company is simply a 1988 version of Oliver Twist for stray animals is not immediately clear. I would consider it very polite if no one weighs in with their own opinions on this matter. The fact that the main character is an orphaned kitten named Oliver didn't tip me off, but when I heard Dom DeLuise voicing a man named Fagin, the wheels started to turn. Fagin. Why do I know this name? Didn't Ben Kingsley play a fellow named Fagin?

Of course Oliver and Company is very much an homage to Oliver Twist, and it brings the story into modern times with the voices of Joey Lawrence, Billy Joel, Bette Midler, and Cheech Marin. With nowhere else to go, Oliver the kitten falls in with a gang of stray dogs involved in petty theft. They take him under his wing and teach him to survive in the streets (generally through impromptu musical numbers), but life has bigger plans for Oliver.

Everything changes when Oliver meets a sweet little girl named Jenny. It is every orphan's dream to be adopted into a loving home, but when Jenny is kidnapped Oliver must fight to make this dream a reality. He and his ragtag friends team up to save the day, and Jenny and Oliver get their happily ever after at last.

Though the first portion of the movie is sort of noisy and aggravating, it's awfully hard to resist the story of a kitten trying to make his way into the arms of a little girl. With music by Billy Joel and Huey Lewis, the movie is something of an 80s time capsule, and the innovations in animation seen here paved the way for the truly brilliant The Little Mermaid, released just one year later. It's not the best of what Disney has to offer, but this well-intended little film could certainly be a lot worse.

DVD NOTES

The 20th Anniversary Edition of Oliver and Company comes with a slew of extra features that will appeal to both parents and kids. The Music and More section offers sing along versions of "Why Should I Worry" and "Streets of Gold", and kids can take on "Oliver's Big City Challenge" in the Games and Activities corner. Backstage Disney takes us behind the scenes and explores how computer animation and hand animation come together in this ground-breaking feature. A segment on Disney's animated animals, a movie scrapbook, publicity materials, and fun film facts round out the Backstage features. Last but not least, the whole family should enjoy the vintage Pluto shorts "Lend a Paw" and "Puss Cafe".