Home on the Range (2004 film)
Home on the Range | |
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Directed by |
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Written by |
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Story by |
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Produced by | Alice Dewey Goldstone |
Starring | |
Edited by | H. Lee Peterson |
Music by | Alan Menken |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution |
Release dates |
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Running time | 76 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $110 million[1] |
Box office | $103-145.3 million[1] |
Home on the Range is a 2004 American animated
Named after the popular cowboy song
Home on the Range premiered at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles on March 21, 2004, and was released in the United States on April 2. It received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $103–145.3 million at the box office.
Plot
Amidst the
That night, they hide among a large herd of steers when Alameda Slim arrives with his henchmen, the Willies. Before Maggie can attack him, Slim starts yodeling, which puts all of the cattle except the tone-deaf Grace into a hypnotic trance, allowing Slim to lead them away. Grace brings Maggie and Mrs. Calloway back to their senses before Slim uses a landslide to cover his escape. Narrowly missing him, Rico and his men discuss their next move while Buck argues with the cows, leading Rico to believe he is unreliable and return him to Sam. However, Buck escapes, determined to capture Slim for himself to prove his worth.
The cows continue their search in the hopes of capturing Slim before Buck until they lose the trail during a flash flood and have a falling out, with Mrs. Calloway believing Maggie only wants revenge and Patch of Heaven would be better off without her. Along the way, the cows are joined by a peg-legged jackrabbit named Lucky Jack, who also lost his home, an old mine, to Slim. The cows decide to follow him, with Mrs. Calloway and Maggie making a deal that after the farm is saved, they will go their separate ways. With Lucky Jack’s help, the cows discover Slim converted the mine into his hideout and stole cattle from his former patrons to render them unable to support their land. When the subsequent auctions occur, he then disguises himself as respectable businessman "Yancy O'Dell" to buy their land using the money he makes from selling off the stolen cattle.
The cows and Jack capture Slim and rush back to Patch of Heaven with the Willies and Rico in pursuit. Learning Rico works for Slim, a devastated Buck helps the cows fight him, setting the stolen cattle free in the process. Slim escapes and dons his disguise to buy Patch of Heaven, but the cows return and join forces with Buck, Jack, and the rest of Patch of Heaven's farm animals to defeat and expose him. As Sam arrests him, Pearl uses the reward money to save her farm.
At first, Mrs. Calloway—who had come to like Maggie—and Grace are sad that Maggie had seemingly left, but their spirits are lifted when they see that Maggie decided to stay. The three cows—along with two bulls they had encountered earlier—celebrate with a square dance.
Cast
- show cow and the newest animal on Little Patch of Heaven farm, Chris Buckserved as the supervising animator for Maggie.
- Holstein cowwho serves as the leader of the animals on the farm, Duncan Marjoribanks served as the supervising animator for Mrs. Calloway.
- cow, Mark Hennserved as the supervising animator for Grace.
- Thoroughbred horseand Rico's biggest fan that dreams of being a hero, Michael Surrey served as the supervising animator for Buck.
- cattle rustler wanted by law, Dale Baerserved as the supervising animator for Slim.
- Charles Dennis as Rico, a famous bounty hunter and Buck's idol, Russ Edmonds served as the supervising animator for Rico.
- wooden legthat he says brings good luck, Shawn Keller served as the lead animator for Lucky Jack.
- Carole Cook as Pearl Gesner, the farmer, and owner of Patch of Heaven, Bruce W. Smith served as the supervising animator for Pearl.
- Joe Flaherty as Jeb, a grumpy goat who lives in Patch of Heaven, Sandro Cleuzo served as the supervising animator of Jeb.
- Steve Buscemi as Wesley, a black market businessman and magician who negotiates with Slim, Mark Henn served as the supervising animator for Wesley.
- Sam J. Levine as the Willie Brothers, Slim's three nephews and henchmen, Russ Edmonds served as the supervising animator for the Willies.
- Richard Riehle as Sam Brown, the town's sheriff, and Buck's owner, Sandro Cleuzo served as the supervising animator of the Sheriff.
- Lance LeGault as Junior, Alameda Slim's pet buffalo, Dale Baer served as the supervising animator for Junior.
- G.W. Bailey as Rusty, Sam's dog, and Buck's best friend, Mark Henn served as the supervising animator for Rusty.
- Estelle Harris as Audrey, a chicken who lives in Patch of Heaven.
- Charlie Dell as Ollie, a pig who lives in Patch of Heaven.
- Bobby Block, Keaton Savage and Ross Simanteris as The piggies, Ollie's childrens.
- Marshall Efron as Larry, a duck who lives in Patch of Heaven.
- Mark Walton as Barry and Bob, Texas longhorns.
- Dennis Weaver as Abner Dixon, Maggie's former owner.
- Patrick Warburton as Patrick, a horse that takes Rico to Slim's lair.
- Ann Richards as Annie, a saloon owner.
Production
Before he pitched Pocahontas (1995), director Mike Gabriel considered adapting Western legends such as Annie Oakley, Buffalo Bill, and Pecos Bill into animated films. While he pitched both projects at the Gong Show meeting, the executives were more interested in Pocahontas, which went into production first.[2][3] When Pocahontas was finished, Gabriel went back to his Western pitch and came up with an "idea that might combine Captains Courageous with a Western."[4] The initial story involved a young boy from the Far East whose father owns a railroad and sends his son to the Western United States to teach him maturity. According to Gabriel, "the train gets held up by outlaws over a train trestle, and the little boy gets knocked off the train ... He splashes in the river and ends up on a cattle drive."[5] Gabriel developed his story into a forty-page film treatment, which was well received by then-Feature Animation president Peter Schneider. Soon after, the project, then titled Sweating Bullets, went into development.[4]
Inspired by the song "Ghost Riders in the Sky",[6] the story was then revised into a supernatural western about a timid cowboy who visits a ghost town and confronts an undead cattle hustler named Slim.[7] In this version, he and the Willies rode their ghost herds through the clouds and constantly drove livestock off cliffs to increase their herd.[6] It was later reconceived into a story about a little bull named Bullets,[7] that wanted to be more like the horses that led the herd.[8] In 1999, in an attempt to salvage the production and retain the existing characters and background art, story artist Michael LaBash suggested a different approach to the story with one that involved three cow protagonists who become bounty hunters to save the farm. Building on the idea, fellow story artists Sam Levine, Mark Kennedy, Robert Lence, and Shirley Pierce developed a new storyline.[8] However, by October 2000, Gabriel and co-director Mike Giaimo were removed from the project because of persistent story problems.[9] Will Finn, who had returned to Disney Feature Animation after co-directing The Road to El Dorado (2000) at DreamWorks Animation, and John Sanford were hired as the new directors.[9][10]
By this point, there were twelve storyboard artists and four screenwriters, including
Music
Home on the Range: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack | ||||
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Soundtrack album by Various Artists | ||||
Released | March 30, 2004 | |||
Recorded | Alan Menken | |||
Length | 42:57 | |||
Label | Walt Disney | |||
Producer | Alan Menken Glenn Slater | |||
Walt Disney Animation Studios chronology | ||||
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In February 1998, Alan Menken had signed a long-term agreement with the Walt Disney Studios to compose songs and/or scores for animated and live-action films.[12] Following this, according to Menken, he was attached to provide music for Sweating Bullets "maybe a year and a half after Hercules".[13] Shortly after winning the ASCAP Foundation Richard Rodgers New Horizons Award, lyricist Glenn Slater was brought to the attention of Menken, who invited Slater to work with him on Sweating Bullets.[14]
Together, they wrote the first of the film's six original songs back in 1999; the first of which was "Little Patch of Heaven" recorded by
The soundtrack album of the film was released on March 30, 2004 by Walt Disney Records.[17] It contains vocal songs performed by k.d. lang, Randy Quaid, Bonnie Raitt, Tim McGraw, and The Beu Sisters along with the film's score composed by Alan Menken.
Songs
Original songs performed in the film include:
No. | Title | Performer(s) | Length |
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1. | "(You Ain't) Home On The Range" | Chorus | |
2. | "Little Patch of Heaven" | k.d. lang | |
3. | "Yodel-Adle-Eedle-Idle-Oo" | Randy Quaid; partial dubbing by Randy Erwin and Kerry Christianson | |
4. | "Will the Sun Ever Shine Again" | Bonnie Raitt | |
5. | "(You Ain't) Home on the Range (Echo Mine Reprise)" | Chorus | |
6. | "Wherever the Trail May Lead" | Tim McGraw | |
7. | "Anytime You Need A Friend" | The Beu Sisters |
Release
Home on the Range was initially scheduled for a 2003 release, while Brother Bear was originally slated for a spring 2004 release.[18] However, Disney announced that the release dates were switched with both movies. Contrary to speculation, news writer Jim Hill stated the release date switch was not because Home on the Range was suffering from story rewrites, but to promote Brother Bear on the Platinum Edition release of The Lion King.[19]
Home media
Home on the Range was released on VHS and DVD on September 14, 2004.[20] The DVD came with an animated short, A Dairy Tale, featuring the film's voice cast, and animated intros to the DVD menu featuring the same cast. The film was released on Blu-ray on July 3, 2012.[21]
Reception
Critical reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 52% of 128 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The website's consensus reads: "Though Home on the Range is likeable and may keep young children diverted, it's one of Disney's more middling titles, with garish visuals and a dull plot."[20] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 50 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[22] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.[23]
Nathan Rabin, reviewing for The A.V. Club, praised the film describing it as "a sweet, raucously funny, comic Western that corrects a glaring historical injustice by finally surveying the Old West through the eyes of cows rather than cowboys."[24] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 2+1⁄2 stars out of 4, saying that "A movie like this is fun for kids: bright, quick-paced, with broad, outrageous characters. But Home on the Range doesn't have the crossover quality of the great Disney films like Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King. And it doesn't have the freshness and originality of a more traditional movie like Lilo & Stitch. Its real future, I suspect, lies in home video. It's only 76 minutes long, but although kids will like it, their parents will be sneaking looks at their watches."[25] Claudia Puig of USA Today wrote favorably in her review that "Home on the Range is a throwback to old Disney cartoons: fun, rather than message-laden, with broad humor and entertaining action. The cheerful, plucky characters have heart and loyalty, and that's enough to make this a worthy family-friendly animated fest."[26] Nell Minow of Common Sense Media gave the film four out of five stars, saying that "I love it when Disney doesn't take itself too seriously. No one tried to reach for the stars or make this into a classic. Home on the Range is just a cute little story about some not-so-contented cows who save the day. It modestly aspires to be nothing more than a lot of fun, and it does that job very well.[27]
Box office
On its opening box office weekend, Home on the Range grossed about $14 million in box office estimates, opening fourth behind
Accolades
Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result |
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Annie Awards | January 30, 2005 | Character Design in an Animated Feature Production | Joseph C. Moshier | Nominated |
Directing in an Animated Feature Production | Will Finn and John Sanford | Nominated | ||
Storyboarding in an Animated Feature Production | Chen-Yi Chang | Nominated | ||
Young Artist Award | April 30, 2005 | Best Family Feature Film - Animation | Home on the Range | Nominated |
References
- ^ a b c "Home on the Range". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
- ^ Siegel, Robert (August 20, 2012). "The Making of Walt Disney's Pocahontas". Blu-ray.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2013. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
- Animation. Archivedfrom the original on May 24, 2015. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
- ^ Animation (Interview). Archivedfrom the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ Ghez 2020, pp. 118–119.
- ^ a b Ghez 2020, p. 119.
- ^ a b c d Trailblazers: The Making of Home on the Range (Documentary bonus feature). Will Finn, John Sanford, Alice Dewey, Shirley Pierce, Mark Henn, Duncan Marjoribanks, Chris Buck. Burbank, California: Walt Disney Home Entertainment. 2004. Archived from the original on April 12, 2023 – via YouTube.
{{cite AV media}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ a b c Singer, Gregory (April 2, 2004). "Home Sweet Home". Animation World Network. Archived from the original on December 23, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ a b Linder, Brian (November 29, 2000). "Disney Wrangles Cuba, Dame Judi Dench for Sweating Bullets". IGN. Archived from the original on December 24, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ "#26. A Conversation with John Sanford". Fulle Circle Magazine (Interview). December 10, 2008. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 22, 2015.
- ^ a b Wickham, Rhett (March 25, 2004). "Honing the Range". Laughing Place (Interview). Archived from the original on April 9, 2004. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
- ^ "Eight-Time Oscar(R) Winning Composer Alan Menken Signs Exclusive Long-Term Deal with Disney" (Press release). Burbank, California: PR Newswire. February 5, 1998. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ "Fresh From the "Range," Alan Menken Takes New "Leaps"". Yamaha Corporation of America. August 13, 2004. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ Hill, Jim (April 12, 2003). "Hey, smack my big old rump if that ain't art ..." Jim Hill Media. Archived from the original on April 9, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ "Drawing to A Close 'Home on the Range Maybe be Disney's Last Stand at Hand Animation". Los Angeles Daily News. April 1, 2004. Archived from the original on February 20, 2016. Retrieved December 21, 2015 – via HighBeam Research.
- ^ Whitson, James (April 5, 2004). "Randy Quaid reveals secrets behind his yodeling in Home on the Range..." Animated Views. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
- All Media Network. Archivedfrom the original on November 12, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
- ^ Eller, Claudia; Verrier, Richard (March 19, 2002). "Disney Confirms Animation Cuts". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 5, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ Hill, Jim (January 6, 2003). "Why "Treasure Planet" tanked". Jim Hill Media. Archived from the original on April 8, 2023. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
- ^ a b "Home on the Range (2004)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on January 29, 2023. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
- ^ Brigante, Ricky (August 15, 2012). "Review: Home on the Range Blu-ray – For a film that nearly killed hand-drawn animation, it isn't all bad on home release". Inside the Magic. Archived from the original on August 19, 2012.
- ^ "Home on the Range Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on February 7, 2023. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
- ^ Manfredi, Lucas (November 24, 2022). "Strange World CinemaScore Might Be the Lowest Ever For a Walt Disney Animation Studio Film". TheWrap. Archived from the original on November 25, 2022. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
- ^ Rabin, Nathan (March 20, 2004). "Home on the Range". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on July 24, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (April 2, 2004). "Home on the Range (2004)". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on October 30, 2015. Retrieved August 9, 2015 – via RogerEbert.com.
- ^ Puig, Claudia (April 2, 2004). "Movies". USA Today. Archived from the original on August 10, 2014. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
- ^ Minow, Nell (September 16, 2004). "Home on the Range Movie Review". Common Sense Media. Archived from the original on October 30, 2014. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
- ^ Mitchell, Elvis (April 2, 2004). "FILM REVIEW; A Western With Watercolor Vistas and a Passel of Parody". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 7, 2018. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
- ^ Turan, Kenneth (April 2, 2004). "'Range' takes off at a frenzied trot". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 15, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
- ^ Wilmington, Michael (April 2, 2004). "Movie review: 'Home on the Range'". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on April 9, 2004. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
- ^ Lowe, R. Kinsey (April 5, 2004). "Bad day in the barnyard". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ Verrier, Richard (April 6, 2004). "'Range' Is Not Looking Idyllic". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 15, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ Amdur, Meredith (April 12, 2004). "For Disney, it's a season on the brink". Variety. Archived from the original on December 23, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
- ^ Johnston, Lauren (April 12, 2004). "Disney's 'Alamo' A Box Office Bomb". CBS News. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
Bibliography
- Ghez, Didier (2020). They Drew as They Pleased Vol. 6: The Hidden Art of Disney's New Golden Age. ISBN 978-1-79720-093-4.