Thursday, May 13, 2010

Top 10 Disney Villans

Here, we move on to what are (in my opinion) some of the greatest Disney villans. Unlike the previous list, however, this one mostly consists of classic characters. Enjoy!
10. Pete










First Appearance:
Alice Solves the Puzzle (1925)
Voiced by:
Billy Bletcher (1933-1960)
John McLeish (1942)
Will Ryan (1983, 1987)
Arthur Burghardt (1990)
Jim Cummings (1991-Present)
Description:
Ever since 1925, he's been torturing just about every character imaginable, such as Alice (not to be confused with the Alice from "Alice in Wonderland), Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and Mickey Mouse, as well as various others. He also went through many occupations, as well as species changes, before finally becoming a cat in Mickey's 2nd short, "The Galloping Gauncho".
9. Cruella de Vil









First Appearance:
One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)
Voiced by:
Betty Lou Gerson
Description:
She's PETA's worst nightmare. She wants to skin all 101 dalmations ALIVE, just so she can get a new furcoat... oh yeah, did I mention that she's insane too?
8. Jafar








First Appearance:
Aladdin (1992)
Voiced by:
Johnathan Freeman
Description:
He's an evil sorceror/advisor who with the help of his Parrot, Iago, attempts to retrieve the magic lamp and use the Genie in order to rule the fictional city of Agrabah... and he'll use ANY underhanded scheme to do it too.
7. Gaston









First Appearance:
Beauty and the Beast (1991)
Voiced by:
Richard White
Description:
This is an interesting one. He's wasn't a bonafide villan to start out with. At first, he was just an egotistical jerk, that was used getting everything he wants and was admired by everyone... everyone except for Belle, that is. Afterwards, this pretty much drove him to madness and he led a mob through the forest, in order to kill the Beast (although unfortunately for him, the reverse ended up happening).
6. Hades












First Appearance:
Hercules (1997)
Voiced by:
James Woods
Description:
The ruler of the underworld himself, he's pretty much Satan and the Grim Reaper combined. Not at all happy with his position, he later sends his [useless] lackies, Pain and Panic to kill an infant Hercules (which fails), as well as release all of the Titans in an attempt to overthrow the Gods and take over the world.
5. Ursula









First Appearance:
The Little Mermaid (1989)
Voiced by:
Pat Carroll
Description:
An ugly seawitch/octopus-thing, she used to live in Atlantica's palace... until she was banished for all of eternity, that is. She apparently got a little pissed about that. How was King Triton supposed to know that Ursula would enslave him, grow 50 ft. tall, and try to kill his daughter? Live and learn, I guess.
4. Captain Hook









First Appearance:
Peter Pan (1953)
Voiced by:
Hans Conried
Description:
Most likely the wimpiest villan ever, he is almost completely incapable of his job... which makes him so damn funny.
3. Maleficent








First Appearance:
Sleeping Beauty (1959)
Voiced by:
Eleanor Audley
Description:
Man, don't ever piss THIS chick off. She attempted to kill an innocent princess, and even turned into a giant dragon, just because she didn't get invited to a party. Sheesh...
2. Evil Stepmothers










First Appearances:
Wicked Queen - Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937)
Lady Tremaine - Cinderella (1950)
Voiced by:
Lucille La Verne (Queen)
Eleanor Audley (Tremaine)
Description:
They are both combined into one category, because they're both just f**king bitches. But admittebly, the Queen is much MUCH worse. Infact, in the very first version of the original fairy tale, the Queen was Snow White's MOM. Yikes. But even the authors (the Brothers' Grimm) decided that it was too disturbing.
1. Yzma







First Appearance:
The Emperor's New Groove (2001)
Voiced by:
Eartha Kitt
Description:
Most likely the funniest villaness ever made, nothing more, nothing less.
Just this part alone should convince you:

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Top 10 Disney Sidekicks










In this entry, we'll take a break from movie reviews and move on to Disney's most comical sidekicks.
This was a hard list... not so much on how to choose the characters, but in what class they're in, because they're all so great.
10. Lumiere
First Appearance:
Beauty and the Beast (1991)
Voiced by:
Jerry Orbach
Description:
He's a suave, smooth guy who doesn't play by the rules. He also has the distinction of being the only character with a French accent, despite the fact that the movie takes place in France.
9. Phil






First Appearance:
Hercules (1997)
Voiced by:
Danny DeVito
Description:
Just as you'd expect from Danny DeVito, he's a wise-talking S.O.B., with an Italian accent to boot.


8. Sebastian


First Appearance:
The Little Mermaid (1989)
Voiced by:
Samuel E. Wright
Description:
As you'd expect from the official court composer of Atlantica, he is an awesome singer. He also has a Jamaican accent... despite the fact that the series takes place in England.
7. Mushu






First Appearance:
Mulan (1998)

Voiced by:
Eddie Murphy
Description:
A smooth-talking (yet not entirely useful) Chinese dragon. I guess the fact that he has an African American accent in Feudal China is excusable, seeing as he's a supernatural force.

6. Kronk











First Appearance:
The Emperor's New Groove (2000)
Voiced by:
Patrick Warburton
Description:
His look says it all. He is DUMB.AS.A.BRICK. Still gotta love the guy, though.
5. Donald Duck











First Appearance:
The Wise Little Hen (1934)
Voiced by:
Clarence Nash (1934-1985)
Tony Anselmo (1985-Current)
Description:
Who the hell DOESN'T know who Donald Duck is?

4. Iago








First Appearance:
Aladdin (1992)
Voiced by:
Gilbert Gottfried
Description:
The semi-reluctant, constantly complaining sidekick of Jafar; he later becomes another protagonist.

3. Timon & Pumbaa








First Appearance:
The Lion King (1994)
Voiced by:
Nathan Lane (Timon)
Ernie Sabella (Pumbaa)
Description:
So awesome, that they merged together on one number.

2. Ray










First Appearance:
The Princess and the Frog (2009)
Voiced by:
Jim Cummings
Description:
Probably the funniest depiction of a hick EVER (study this, King of the Hill writers). Too bad they had to freaking *INSERT SPOILER HERE* at the end of the movie.
1. Genie







First Appearance:
Aladdin (1992)
Voiced by:
Robin Williams [1st and 3rd movies]
Dan Castellaneta (aka: Homer Simpson) [Everything Else]

Description:
After much hard decisions, the Genie ended up being at the top of the list, due to his madcap nature and his magical 4th wall-breaking abilities (the pop culture refs help too).

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Kaiju Reviews #8 - Gamera vs. Barugon


Honestly, this is much more Barugon's movie than Gamera's (it seems that they wrote themselves in a corner and couldn't find out a way to get rid of Barugon, so they shoe-horned Gamera in to kill him), but nonetheless, it still has Gamera in it, so it's considered to be a Gamera movie. But I digress, let's get on with the plot:
Generally, Gamera's still in a rocket... but it gets by a meteorite, which instantly destroys it, thus freeing Gamera. He flies back to the Earth and pissed as ever, starts destroying Osaka... but that's not important! Meanwhile, as we go through many subplots, there seems to be some kind of gem thingy (which is really a freaky-ass egg) that somehow wakes up Barugon (who certainly isn't confused with Godzilla's Baragon). And what do ya' know, someone ends up picking it up. Whoops. Barugon's powers are the ability to stretch his tongue out very far (it can also spray a mist that can freeze things) and shoot a rainbow out of his back ("Look, a Skittles commercial!"). Sounds pretty stupid, huh? But believe it or not, he's actually more intimidating than most of Gamera's other opponents. But back to business, Barugon arrives in Osaka and ends up freezing Gamera with his tongue, thus disposing of him for most of the movie. As Barugon wreaks havoc, the human populace attempt several tactics to get rid of Barugon. They all involve luring him into the water, however, since he can easily drown. They end up using both his egg and a diamond (seeing as he likes shiny things) to lure him into the ocean, but neither plan works. Eventually, though, Gamera ends up thawing out of the ice and after a brief battle, ends up holding Barugon down in the water, drowning him. Gamera then flies away... and then the humans don't attack the very monster that started destroying Osaka first and damn near obliterated Tokyo a year prior, despite the fact that he's perfectly vulnerable. Man, the Japanese army is USELESS. Get some more Americans down there.
SCORE:
3.2/5.0

Monday, April 19, 2010

Kaiju Reviews #7 - Gamera the Invincible

Seeing as I'm still somewhat frustrated at the last Kaiju Reviews effort, I'm taking a tiny break from Godzilla. In celebration of his upcoming DVD releases by Shout Factory, I'll move on to Godzilla's fiercest competitor:
GAMERA! As you can probably tell from the picture, Gamera's a giant turtle... what you probably can't tell is that he's a giant flying, fire-breathing turtle... yes, I meant it when I said "flying". If the flying part is any evidence to you, the older films are gigantic cheese-fests... although this one is definately one of the more serious ones out of the bunch (which isn't saying much). But before I start rambling, let's get on with the plot!
To start off, we have Japanese people in the Artic conducting tests... 'kay. But all of a sudden, they blast an icecap with an atomic bomb, freeing Gamera from his icy tomb. Unfortunately, he's really pissed off. As such, he destroys a Japanese research ship and heads towards Japan to wreak havoc (what has Japan ever done to him, anyway?!); but in an attempt to stop him, the Americans use explosives to knock Gamera onto his back, appearing to leave him helpless just like any other turtle... unfortunately, though, this isn't the case, seeing as he just flies away to Japan. Way to go, shitheads. In a semi-related story, a boy named Kenny had to give up his pet turtle, Tibby (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFN7WmmBc8k) because, um... he was getting too big, I guess... okay, maybe his mom's just a bitch. Meanwhile, Kenny is nearly crushed by a Lighthouse, but is saved by... Gamera? As we later find out, this is either foreshadowing at its best, or it's a complete fluke, because Gamera later starts to go on a rampage throughout the city of Tokyo (sound familiar, anyone?), possibly causing thousands of innocent people to die. Hell, he even deliberately sets many of the buildings on fire! Despite this, though, Kenny still cares for Gamera... more than a city with his own people being killed.
Kenny: A Perfect Role-Model for Everyone! :D
Anyhow, as Gamera is satisfied with the destruction that he made, he retreats. But thankfully, the government actually finds a way to dispose of Gamera, with the helpful guidence of... KENNY?! Oh dear, this will not go well. But somehow... it does. Awhile later, Gamera goes back to smash some more buildings, only to end up finding himself enclosed in a rocket enroute to Mars. Apparently, giant fire-breathing turtles can breathe in space, so he'll be just fine... but will he get out of that rocket somehow?! {To answer my own question: Yeah, he will.}
3.5/5.0: Enjoyable

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Movie Mania #1 - Clash of the Titans [2010]


Sorry, no Kaiju Reviews today (I nearly finished a really long one and it deleted itself for no apparent reason, which really pissed me off). But this one still has a giant monster in it! That's good, right?







{WARNING: PLOT MAY CONTAIN EXTRA STUPIDITY}:

I won't try to reveal TOO much, for people who haven't seen it yet. Generally, Zeus has SECKS with Acrisius' wife, Danae, which makes her later give birth to a son and main protagonist, Perceus. Acrisius gets pissed, shutting his wife and the baby into a coffin and dumping them into the water. God, what a jerk. Perceus is then saved and many years later, he is finally all grown up... but unfortunately, the gods get pissed and Hades unleashed THE KRAKEN! He's one of the coolest monsters ever... even though he looks like a green Orga with tentacles in this movie:
















Similar, ain't it?
Anyhow, Perceus goes on an epic quest with his trusty black pegasus (and somewhat useless allies), defeating creatures such as a giant Scorpion and even Medusa, before having a final showdown with Hades... but most importantly, THE KRAKEN! Ohhhhh yeahhhhhh...
Er... anyway, yeah, this movie was pretty good.
SCORE:
7.5/10: Enjoyable









Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Kaiju Reviews #6 - Godzilla vs. Monster Zero

Who could Godzilla's new mysterious foe be?!
He's probably the most Evil,
Menacing,
Vicious,
Diabolical,
Strong,
Indestructible,
Ugly--




... Oh, alright, it's King Ghidorah again.

Once upon a time, in the unfortunate land known as Tokyo, Japan, aliens (known as the Xiliens) arrive. It turns out that when Godzilla & Friends drove King Ghidorah back into space, he ended up flying to THEIR planet (Planet X). Generally, they want to borrow Godzilla and Rodan to defeat King Ghidorah (Mothra's in her cocoon at this moment) and in exchange, they'll give us a cure for all known diseases. Freakin' sweet! Naturally, they accept the offer, and the Xiliens ship off Godzilla and Rodan (who's also in the ocean... for... some reason...) to Planet X, to do battle with Ghidorah. Even without Mothra, Godzilla and Rodan quickly defeat Ghidorah with their combined efforts. After that, Godzilla performs the best victory dance ever (you'll have to see it to believe it):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMxrXMjPMcc
A happy moment indeed. But happiness does not remain for too long... it turns out that all along, this was a ruse by the Xiliens to take over the Earth (But then again, who DIDN'T see that coming?), because they don't have any water. It turns out that shortly after King Ghidorah had arrived on Planet X, they took control of him, dubbing him Monster 00 (which explains the title). Now that Godzilla and Rodan are on their turf, they put them under their control as well (with the Xiliens referring to them as Monster 01 and Monster 02, respectively, due to their naming system consisting entirely of numbers). As such, they unleash Godzilla, Rodan, and King Ghidorah to wreak havoc on the Earth. Geez... if they really need water THAT bad, couldn't they just borrow some from us? Well, anyhow, the monsters start their rampage on the cities of Japan (making wonder how there's actually anything left to destroy). All seems lost... and seeing as Mothra won't be coming out any time soon, Nick Adams saves the day! He and his friend... some-other-guy destroy the source that's taking control of the monsters, as well the Xiliens' spaceship. Planet X then decides to withdraw its invasion of Earth, as Godzilla and Rodan kicks King Ghidorah's ass again. King Ghidorah might as well be called "Puss Ghidorah" by now, because this is the THIRD time that he's retreated into space. Man...

SCORE:
3.2/5.0

Monday, April 12, 2010

Kaiju Reviews #5 - Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster


Here's another one, folks! And by the way, this film marks several milestones in the Godzilla series:
1. It is the only Godzilla film to be released in the same year as another one, Mothra vs. Godzilla (aka: Godzilla vs. The Thing (aka: Whatever they had going on in Germany)).
2. This is the first Godzilla movie to feature more than two monsters fighting at one time (it has 4).
3. It is the first of many Godzilla films where he battles a monster from outer space (particularly the titular monster, King Ghidorah).
4. Last, but most definitely not least, it is the first movie to feature Godzilla... as a hero (more on that later).
Now, let's get on with the plot! We're in for a wild ride here...
okay, a princess from... um... somewhere comes along and gets possessed by an Alien (Venus in Japan, Mars in the US). She then predicts that Godzilla (which is predictable by now) and Rodan (in a goofy-looking, almost Muppet-esque suit) will arise... and it comes true! They then have an epic battle to the death... and by the way, do you remember those two Mothra larvae that defeated Godzilla in the last movie? Well, the male one is dead (Or maybe not... http://tohokingdom.com/media/toons/toon_16.htm) and the female one is still only a larvae, living on the island. And what does she do about Godzilla and Rodan? ... Absolutely nothing. Meanwhile, as the Japanese government are crapping in their pants, wondering what the heck they're supposed to do, a meteor strikes the Earth (conveniently near Japan), and out comes... King Ghidorah: The Three-Headed Hydra--er... Monster! He then wreaks havoc on the Earth by flying around and... shooting lighting-bolts out of his mouth... yeahhhhhh... Anyhow, Mothra finally decides to get her lazyass off of that island, once she learns that King Ghidorah has arrived. As such, she travels a long journey towards Japan and meets up with Godzilla and Rodan, kindly breaking up the fight with them (and by kindly, I mean by spraying them both with silk). Once they both calm down, Mothra tries to convince them to join the fight against King Ghidorah... and both of them don't really want to. They both have somewhat of a vendetta against the humans (Godzilla claims that the only reason that he didn't like them was "unprevoked attacks", which means that this Godzilla was never a villan to begin with). Mothra then decides to fight Ghidorah alone. Amazed by her courage, Godzilla and Rodan end up allying themselves with Mothra after all, resulting in a somewhat unfair battle against Ghidorah (although 3-to-1 is nothing, compared to the battle in Destroy All Monsters...). With their combined efforts, the trio defeats Ghidorah, and like the puss he is, retreats back into outer-space, saving the entire Earth from destruction... although it won't be safe for long...
SCORE:
4.2/5.0