Oliver & Company

Great movie and value!

I have always been a fan of Oliver and Company, since I had seen it as a child on the Disney Channel. I was not fortunate to own it on VHS as a kid, but over the years it is a part of my collection because I had purchased the "main" Disney Renaissance hits I wanted. In the final bits of collecting movies from the 90s I wanted, give or take a few that I didn't yet (Toy Story, Hunchback, A Bug's Life), albeit not truly Renaissance movies but still part of the 90s lineup. This movie came to mind and I was reminded of how much I truly loved it, despite it not being the strongest of the Disney films that came out. The story is not as strong as say "The Little Mermaid," or even the "The Lion King," but Oliver and Company truly shines in its storytelling and grows better with age. However, introducing this movie to say a child would be quite different given that this movie is pretty dated. It is a 80s film, and in that aspect there are tons of things within it that may not be understandable to a child. However, it's truly a capsule in time about how the 80s and entry to the 90s was. Also, this movie has some remnants of other films within it, such as "The Brave Little Toaster." It bears similarity to the same overall feel, and was pre-renaissance for Disney. So it's truly interesting to see what was considered a flick back then. The story is something most of us know if we're long-time fans, however... It takes place in 80s New York, where a cat who is unnamed until the middle of the film is sold along with other kittens. No one claims the kitten, so the cat wanders only to find how harsh life truly is in the city. The cat meets Dodger, a sly and witty dog who knows the city well. The cat follows Dodger back to his home, after being tricked, only to accompany new friends and companions, and also a future home. Oliver is conflicted with his own set of issues, where he realizes what he's been searching for is a home, and is torn two ways. It's an emotional story about "home," family, and companionship. I truly love the songs, as they are classic reminders of Disney prose. However, the story is lacking in some parts. There are so many questions, and sometimes it feels rushed. But Oliver and Company is a great film that ages well, despite its dated story. I highly recommend anyone purchase this if you're a Disney fan seeking to complete your collection, or to relive the movie for the first time on DVD.

Firstly I would like to say something a bit off topic. I would never have known about this movie if it wasn’t for my late grandmother, she had this movie recorded on VHS and would play it for me and my brothers all the time. This movie will always remind me of her. Thank you Grandma. Anyway, despite the fact that this movie was on Disney Plus, I wanted to have it on Blu-Ray to have a theater experience, because Disney Plus is fine, but nothing beats a Blu-Ray. I don’t know why I expected a slip-cover for this movie, but I’m not mad at all. I got a Blu-Ray and DVD and a code to redeem for Disney Movie Insiders (Note: this code will not redeem a digital copy. Believe me, I tried). The main menu is basic, and the song that plays over it is a heroic, upbeat, instrumental version of Huey Lewis’ song “Once Upon a Time in New York City”. When you play the movie, the pop-up menu shows “Resume” and “Menus” meaning that you cannot go directly to the bonus features without going to the menu first. (Though can I say it’s funny that the image on the main menu is a scene from the film, but Dodger is looking at us with sunglasses? Lol.) I did expect a digital copy, but I’m not mad. This movie is so timeless, that I will buy the digital version separately if I have to. This plays perfectly on a PS4 and looks beautiful with quality. You should definitely buy it, because like I said, Disney Plus is good, but the quality is sharper on Blu-Ray. Thanks Amazon, and thank you grandma for introducing me to this film. You will be missed.

Oliver & Company is one hour and thirteen minutes and was released in theaters on November 18, 1988. This would be the last Disney movie to be around seventy minutes or less; all future movies would be eighty to ninety minutes or even longer. Oliver & Company tell the story of a young kitty cat named Oliver who is abandoned in New York City and is taken in by a group of dogs who leader is named Dodger; the dogs owner is Fagin who is a petty thief and not a good one at that. Fagin takes in Oliver as part of the gang. Later on in the movie Fagin kidnaps Oliver after he is taken in by a girl named Jenny. Fagin does this so he can get ransom money from her to pay off his debts to Sykes. The plan backfires and Sykes kidnaps Penny. Fagin, Dodger, Oliver, and the rest of the dogs go after Sykes to rescue Jenny. Jenny is saved and is reunited with Oliver once again. This is mainly the cliff note version of the movie. I mainly want to write about some of the facts and trivia about the movie itself. Oliver & Company was a box office smash, but mainly received negative reviews. This was Disney's first musical animated movie in eight years since they released the Fox and the Hound and the last movie before the Little Mermaid kicked of the Disney Renaissance. Just like the Lady and the Tramp, 101 Dalmatians, and the Aristocats, they made this movie from a cat\dog's point of view and the animators shot photos eighteen inches off the ground from the streets of New York City. Oliver & Company was to be a sequel to the Rescuers and have given the character of Penny more development, but the producers scrapped the idea because they thought it would not sell. Two final pieces of information about this movie are: Peg and Jock from Lady and the Tramp and Bongo from 101 Dalmatians make a cameo appetence in Oliver & Company in the only names used from the Oliver Twist story are Dodger, Fagin, Oliver, and Sykes. Now a few words about the DVD, in my opinion some of the extras in the Bonus Features could have been left out or included more information and a good example is the Making of Oliver & Company. The Making of Oliver & Company is a short segment that gives you a cliff note version for the making of this film and should have more information. The same goes with Disney's Animated Animals was a joke in itself; too little information. The two shorts: Lend A Paw and Puss Café are enjoyable to watch. Oliver & Company gets an AAAA++++. DVD FEATURES Chapter Selection Set Up I. Spoken Languages a. English b. French c. Spanish II. Captions a. English for the Hearing Impaired b. None Bonus Features I. The Making of Oliver & Company II. Disney's Animated Animals III. Oliver & Company Scrapbook IV. Why Should I Worry Sing - Along Song V. Streets of Gold Sing - Along Song VI. Publicity Materials a. T.V. Spot (1989) b. Original Theatrical Trailer (1988) c. Rerelease Trailer (1996) d. "Return of a Classic" Theatrical Release of Oliver & Company VII. Lend A Paw VIII. Puss Café Sneak Peeks I. Beauty and the Beast II. Lilo & Stitch III. Snow Dogs IV. Peter Pan: Return To Neverland V. Max Keeble's Big Movie VI. Air Bud: 7th Inning Fetch VII. Teamo Supremo Play VHS PREVIEWS I. 101 Dalmatians - Live Version II. James and the Giant Peach III. Muppet Treasure Island IV. Toy Story

Watched this 20+ years ago with my daughter when she was a little and I love it. Music is fun, actor voices are spot on FUN! Great way to intro kids into an alternative viewpoint....something that teaches them that there is a larger world that their life interacts with but on fun level. One of the best kid's movies I've seen in 30 years.

This movie was in my movie selection as a kid, so of course I'm going to buy the dvd! Disney sometimes have hit and misses now a days with their movies, but THIS movie from the past, can I just say, wow! The music, the art direction, the voice talent and acting, all wonderful. In my opinion this movie is certainly in my top tens for Disney movies! If you haven't seen this movie you are missing out! Oliver and Company, a freaking diamond in the crowd for sure!

The pre Little Mermaid 1980s are called "Disney's dark age" but it's only because of the comparisons to the classic animated movies of the past. If you take them for what they are movies like The Great Mouse Detective, Robin Hood, The Black Cauldron, and Oliver and Company are nice, fun movies that are pure family entertainment. O&C has a lot of music and singing as one would expect, I think kids will love it but it might be hit-or-miss with teens and adults. All these Dark Age movies are reasonably priced and come in packages with both Blu ray and DVD and some come with a digital copy as well, but often times they have expired so I wouldn't buy from amazon if the digital copy is important. I have all the Dark Age movies on Blu ray and they all got a good transfer from good prints. Is O&C a great movie? Some think so, I would say it's a good movie and would have given it 3 1/2 stars if that was available, but I certainly recommend it.

This was bought for my daughters birthday this is one of her favorites from childhood. Her generation was really the first to have so much access to VHS tapes and later to DVD's. So many of the Disney (and other studios) classic animated movies have only been seen at home. We always took her to see whatever Disney (or DreamWorks, etc) animated movie that was released when she was young but movies like Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Pinocchio, etc have only been seen at home. This is kind of a shame but that's the way the world works today. The picture is clear and crisp - colors seems to pop like they should - sound was very good as well. I think the story (plot) is interesting as well. However, this movie is not in the same class as say Peter Pan or Little Mermaid - it's very good but quite simply not great. This was made when Disney just showing some signs of entering another classic period. I think most young children will enjoy this movie - I would rate this a very good 8.5 to 9.0 out of 10 - well worth the money - especially if it is one of your personal favorites!