As the song goes, Christmas is "the most wonderful time of the year." In spite of the cold, the slush and the sun setting around mid-afternoon the days still feel warm and bright - at least for those who have Christmas spirit. And those who don't...woe betide you; as Mary Steenburgen learns in a movie that proves once again Disney had no idea what the hell they were doing in the 1980s. Because in One Magic Christmas, the way to get a woman struggling to keep herself and her family afloat in tough times to start feeling Christmas cheer (aka blow their meager savings on presents) is to send a grim Christmas Angel of Death to literally kill her family. This week on We Want The D, Vicky is rendered virtually speechless, Nolan becomes so enraged he can't stop yelling, and Jill delights in the fact that she's added two more people to the list of those that have been tortured by a film she inexplicably watched multiple times throughout her childhood. Merry Christmas, D Lovers!
With only a few weeks left in this godforsaken year, Vicky, Nolan and Jill take a look back at all that Disney had to offer in 2016. On top of Scrooge McDuck levels of money earned at the box office, our favourite film company had a good year with a healthy mix of originals, re-imaginings, and third party movies - and only a few flops! They also had television shows end, start, and chug along into triple digits episodes numbers. Join We Want The D for a special look back at the year that was, and a glance forward to what the next year has in store for us.
On this week's very special episode of We Want The D, Vicky, Nolan and Jill are taking a deep dive into the man without whom this podcast wouldn't be possible - Walter Elias Disney; better known his friends (and enemies and underpaid workers) as 'Walt.' If we learned anything from our discussion, it's that Walt was a complicated figure. Sure, he may have creating Mickey Mouse (kinda), but he also thought Song of the South was a good idea. He may have changed the world of film and animation, but he also named names in front of HUAC while wearing a silly tie. He thought up Disneyland, but only after falling down a bizarre rabbit hole of toy train obsession. We hope you enjoy this departure from our regular format as we celebrate and scrutinize the life and works of the man who built the empire that this podcast gluttonously gorges itself with each week.
Vicky, Nolan and Jill emerged from their podcast cave this week to watch the latest Disney offering in theatres. With the generally steadfast team of Musker and Clements (Treasure Planet aside) handling directing and current musical darling Lin-Manuel Miranda making his Disney debut as a composer, the hype was high for Disney's return to an animated South Pacific among our hosts. Listen to our spoiler-free first half of the episode to hear our thoughts, and keep listening for a more spoiler-laden discussion of MOANA's swole characters, stupid sidekicks, and sailing songs.