The Tigger Movie

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The Tigger Movie
The Tigger Movie film.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJun Falkenstein
Screenplay byJun Falkenstein
Story byEddie Guzelian
Based onCharacters created
by A. A. Milne
Produced byCheryl Abood
Starring
Narrated byJohn Hurt
Edited by
  • Makoto Arai
  • Robert Fisher, Jr.
Music byHarry Gregson-Williams
Production
companies
  • Walt Disney Television Animation[1]
  • Walt Disney Animation Japan[1]
  • Walt Disney Pictures[1]
Distributed byBuena Vista Pictures
Release date
  • February 11, 2000 (2000-02-11) (United States)
Running time
78 minutes[1]
CountriesUnited States[2]
Japan (animation services)[3]
LanguageEnglish
Budget$15 million[4][5]–$30 million[6]
Box office$96.2 million[6]

The Tigger Movie is a 2000 animated musical comedy-drama film produced by Walt Disney Television Animation and animation production by Walt Disney Animation (Japan), Inc.,[3] written and directed by Jun Falkenstein from a story by Eddie Guzelian. It is the second theatrical Winnie the Pooh film after The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and features Pooh's friend Tigger searching for his family tree and other Tiggers like himself.

The film was the first feature-length theatrical Pooh film that was not a collection of previously released shorts.

It is also the first in the original films in which Tigger is voiced entirely by Jim Cummings (in addition to Pooh) following the retirement of Tigger's original voice actor Paul Winchell in 1999. Winchell was originally cast as Tigger, but was dropped after the studio considered his voice to be too raspy. Cummings had previously shared the role with Winchell since 1988 and provided his singing voice in most later projects with Winchell as the character's speaking voice.

The film features original songs from the Sherman Brothers. Originally, the film was slated for a direct-to-video release, until then–Disney CEO Michael Eisner heard the Sherman Brothers' songs, and decided to release the film in theaters worldwide. The film received mixed reviews from critics and was the highest-grossing film in the Winnie the Pooh franchise until it was surpassed by 2018's Christopher Robin.

The film received three nominations on the Annie Awards, including the Annie Award for Directing in a Feature Production, the Annie Award for Voice Acting in a Feature Production, and the Annie Award for Music in a Feature Production.

Plot[]

Tigger interrupts the start of the story, fed up with most of the stories being about Pooh. After rearranging the title page to spell out the movie's title, the story resumes. In the Hundred Acre Wood, Tigger searches for someone to bounce with him, but all of his friends are too busy preparing for the upcoming winter. Tigger's closest friend Roo wants to play with him, but arrives too late to do so. While he searches for a playmate, Tigger inadvertently destroys Eeyore's house with a boulder. Rabbit gathers Pooh, Piglet, Kanga, and Roo and they build a mechanical pulley system to remove the boulder, with little success. Tigger arrives and helps out, but his actions wreck the machine and send everyone into a muddy lake (except Roo, who lands in a tree, and Eeyore, who lands in a thorn bush). Frustrated, Rabbit and the rest of Tigger's friends reprimand him for his troublesome rambunctious nature while saying that they are not like him, hurting his feelings. Roo, seeing Tigger's sadness and alienation, asks him if he has any family members of his own. Tigger is fascinated by the concept and decides to search for his family, hoping to finally be within similar company.

Misunderstanding advice from Owl, Tigger begins searching for his family tree, mistakenly believing it to be a centuries-old tree covered in stripes and with many Tiggers upon it. After his search fails, they return to Tigger's house. After finding a golden, heart-shaped locket, they believe that a picture of Tigger's family is inside it. However, the locket is empty. Roo suggests that he writes a letter to his family and he does so. He lets the wind carry it away with hopes that it will reach his family, but receives no response after days of waiting and begins to lose hope. Tigger's sympathetic friends decide to write him a letter; everyone contributes a bit of friendly advice and signs it "your family". Tigger misinterprets the content of the letter and comes to believe that his family exists and is intending to visit him, with the others unable to tell him to truth. He organizes a large and absurd party in preparation for a family reunion. Roo, wishing to uphold Tigger's spirits, encourages his friends to disguise themselves as Tiggers and attend his party. Rabbit refuses to join in and instead berates the others for not preparing for the harsh conditions ahead before leaving, but Roo convinces everyone to continue with the plan.

After a great effort in disguising themselves and learning to behave like Tiggers, Tigger's friends arrive at his party. He completely falls for the disguises until Roo's mask falls off after an attempt to imitate a complex bounce that Tigger had taught him earlier. In light of his friends' deception, the disappointed and betrayed Tigger sets out into a blizzard in search of his real family, taking his letter and locket with him. After falling down a cliff in an attempt to recover his locket, he finds an immense tree that the snow has whitened with stripes, convincing him that it is the family tree he had sought, but is saddened when he finds no one waiting for him there. His friends (joined by Rabbit) set out on an expedition in search of him, but they fail to persuade him to come home. Their argument causes an avalanche, which drives Tigger to rescue his friends by carrying them up into the tree branches. When Tigger is swept away himself, Roo successfully performs Tigger's bounce and saves him. The two perform the bounce together to escape the avalanche and land back on the tree. When the avalanche subsides, Owl and Kanga find them. Christopher Robin also arrives and after finding out what happened, tells Tigger he never needed to go looking for his family. Tigger protests, saying he got a letter from his family. He tries to show it to them, but discovers it was lost in the avalanche (it was actually lost before the avalanche happened). Tigger's friends reveal their authorship of the letter by reciting its pieces from memory. Tigger finally realizes that his friends are his true family and he throws a new party in honor of them while handing out presents for them: a new home for Eeyore (made from the family room meant for Tigger's nonexistent family), a toy plane for Christopher Robin, a yo-yo for Owl, and hat for Kanga, a large amount of honey for Pooh, lots of firewood for Piglet, a promise to Rabbit that he will watch where he's going from now on, and the locket for Roo (whom he finally accepts as a brother figure). Christopher Robin then takes a picture of everyone to put inside the locket. The film ends with the newly taken photo shown inside the locket while the camera backs away as it closes up.

Cast[]

Production[]

The Tigger Movie was produced by Walt Disney Television Animation's WDTVA division of Disney MovieToons, Walt Disney Animation (Japan), Tandem Films, Cornerstone Animation Inc., Studios Basara, Tama Productions, Creative Capers Entertainment, Telecom Animation Film Co., Ltd., Studio Fuga, Studio Moonflower, Buena Vista Imaging, and SimEx Digital Studios, and the Executive in Charge of Production at WDTVA was Sharon Morrill Robinov.

Paul Winchell, the original voice of Tigger, was originally cast to voice Tigger for the film, which was then titled Winnie the Pooh and the Family Tree.[7] During Spring 1998, Paul participated in a single recording session for the film. However, he was dropped from the project after the studio found his voice too raspy.[7][8] The role was given to Jim Cummings, who was already voicing Winnie the Pooh for the film, and doing Tigger's voice on various Disney television shows and for Disney consumer products.[7] When the Disney Imagineers heard about Paul's dismissal, they hired him to perform the voice of Tigger for the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh attraction at Walt Disney World, which opened a year before The Tigger Movie's release; it was Paul's final performance before his retirement from acting in 1999 and his death in 2005.[7]

Music[]

The songs for The Tigger Movie were written by Robert and Richard Sherman who had not written a feature for Disney in over 28 years. Their last fully original feature film score was for the Oscar nominated film, Bedknobs and Broomsticks which was released in 1971. Originally slated for video or television release, the score was so well received (in demonstration form) by then Disney CEO, Michael Eisner, that the project's priority level moved up to feature theatrical release. This was due in great part to the perceived caliber of the song score throughout the studio. The score of the film is composed by Harry Gregson-Williams with additional music by Klaus Badelt and Steve Jablonsky and the score was conducted by Nick Glennie-Smith.

All the songs were original ones created for the film except for "The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers" which was originally written in 1968 for the featurette, Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (released in 1968). That song was also by the Sherman Brothers. The "punch line" of the song: "But the most wonderful Thing About Tiggers is I'm the only one..." provides the basis of The Tigger Movie's storyline. The vast majority of the songs, including "Someone Like Me", "Whoop-de-Dooper Bounce", "Pooh's Lullabee", and "Round My Family Tree" were performed by Jim Cummings, while "How to Be a Tigger" was performed by the cast.

"Your Heart Will Lead You Home" was the last song written for the film and is a collaborative effort between the Sherman Brothers and singer Kenny Loggins. Richard Sherman described the song as "a song about the picture, as opposed to songs of the picture." It marks the only time the trio worked together on a song.[9]

The original theatrical trailer for the film featured the song "Semi-Charmed Life" by alternative band Third Eye Blind. A Disney spokeswoman said that she was not aware of the sexual content within the song's lyrics.[10]

Songs[]

Original songs performed in the film include:

No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers"Jim Cummings 
2."Someone Like Me"Jim Cummings 
3."Whoop-de-Dooper Bounce"Jim Cummings & Nikita Hopkins 
4."Pooh's Lullabee"Jim Cummings 
5."Round My Family Tree"Jim Cummings 
6."How to Be a Tigger"Cast 
7."Your Heart Will Lead You Home"Kenny Loggins[1] 

Release[]

After a Hollywood red carpet premiere on February 6, 2000 at El Capitan Theatre,[11] the film was released theatrically on February 11, 2000. The movie was on screens for 23 weeks.[6]

Home media[]

The Tigger Movie was originally released on August 22, 2000, on both VHS and DVD.[12] The VHS and DVD included the Kenny Loggins music video "Your Heart Will Lead You Home." The DVD included additional special features. The film was later re-released on a 2-disc DVD on August 4, 2009 to coincide with its 10th anniversary. The 2-disc release includes a DVD and a digital copy. It contains all the 2000 DVD bonus features, but has more language tracks and special features. The film was also re-released as a Bounce-a-rrrific special edition on Blu-ray on August 21, 2012. It contains the Kenny Loggins music video "Your Heart Will Lead You Home" and "Round My Family Tree" sing-along song video but includes the 10 Mini Adventures of Winnie the Pooh segments.[13]

Reception[]

Box office[]

The film opened at number 4 at the US box office making $9.4 million in its opening weekend. The film was a box office success, earning $45,554,533 in the United States and Canada and a further $50,605,267 overseas, resulting in a worldwide gross of $96,159,800.[6] Its budget is estimated at between $15 million[4][5] and $30 million.[6] On its initial release on home video, it earned $90 million.[14]

Critical reception[]

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 62% of critics gave the film positive reviews on 71 reviews with a 5.9 rating. The site's consensus states, "The Tigger Movie may lack the technological flash and underlying adult sophistication of other recent animated movies, but it's fun and charming."[12] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 53 out of 100, based on twenty three critics, indicating "Mixed or average reviews".[15] William Thomas of Empire Magazine gave the film a three out of four stars, saying: "And while the one-dimensional nature of the plot is unlikely to entertain anyone over the age of 11, the end result certainly includes enough pre-pubescent prerequisites to ensure that the furry fella will never bounce alone."[16] Common Sense Media gave the film a three out of five stars and said: "Tigger's bouncy quest will appeal to younger viewers."[17]

Accolades[]

Award Category Recipient Result
Annie Awards Annie Award for Directing in a Feature Production Jun Falkenstein Nominated
Annie Award for Voice Acting in a Feature Production Nikita Hopkins as Roo
Annie Award for Music in a Feature Production Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman for the song "Round My Family Tree"
Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards Best Family Film Jun Falkenstein and Cheryl Abood
Golden Tomato Awards 2011[18] Best Animated Film The Tigger Movie 4th Place
Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award[19] Best Animated Feature Jun Falkenstein Nominated

In other media[]

Sequels[]

Disney released various theatrical and direct-to-videos in the years that followed. There were two theatrical animated films: Piglet's Big Movie in 2003 and Pooh's Heffalump Movie in 2005. Two direct-to-video animated films also followed, Winnie the Pooh: Springtime with Roo in 2004 and Pooh's Heffalump Halloween Movie in 2005.

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e Newman, Kim (2000). "The Tigger Movie (2000)". Sight & Sound. British Film Institute. Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
  2. ^ "The Tigger Movie (2000)". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  3. ^ a b Ball, Ryan (September 23, 2003). "Pencils Down at Walt Disney Animation Japan". Animation Magazine. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
  4. ^ a b Orwall, Bruce (December 14, 2000). "Disney Hopes to Get Its 'Groove' Back in Suffering Family Films". The Walt Street Journal. Archived from the original on July 5, 2015. Retrieved September 11, 2015. February's "The Tigger Movie," produced for a bargain-basement $15 million,...
  5. ^ a b Natale, Richard (February 14, 2000). "Moviegoing's Much More Than a 'Scream'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on September 11, 2015. Retrieved September 11, 2015. The low-budget ($15-million) "Tigger"...
  6. ^ a b c d e "The Tigger Movie Summary". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on June 30, 2012. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
  7. ^ a b c d Hill, Jim (June 27, 2005). "Remembering John Fiedler (1925-2005)". Jim Hill Media. Archived from the original on July 19, 2015. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  8. ^ Graham, Jefferson (November 25, 1998). "Original Tigger voice bounced from 'Pooh'". USA Today. Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved July 19, 2015. Fiedler completed that movie, but Disney let Winchell go after his first day, telling the actor's representative that Winchell's voice was now too "raspy."
  9. ^ Susan King, The Pair Who Write Songs for Nannies and Pooh Bears" Archived 2012-11-28 at Wikiwix, Los Angeles Times, February 11, 2000.
  10. ^ Kim, Ellen (2000) [1999]. "NEWSMAKERS: 'Veronica's Closet' star offers settlement". Hollywood.com. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  11. ^ McCarthy, Todd (February 10, 2000). "Review: 'The Tigger Movie'". Variety. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  12. ^ a b "The Tigger Movie - Rotten Tomatoes". Archived from the original on August 3, 2012. Retrieved July 2, 2012.
  13. ^ "Amazon.com: The Tigger Movie: Bounce-A-Rrrific Special Edition (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack in Blu-ray Packaging): Jim Cummings, Nikita Hopkins, Ken Samson, John Fielder, Peter Cullen, Andrew Stojka, Kath Soucie, Tom Attenborough, Jun Falkenstein: Movies & TV". Archived from the original on April 12, 2016. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
  14. ^ "Top 2000 Homevideo titles". Variety. January 8, 2001. p. 79.
  15. ^ https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-tigger-movie/critic-reviews
  16. ^ https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/tigger-movie-review/
  17. ^ https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/the-tigger-movie
  18. ^ Tapley, Kristopher (March 2018). "2nd Annual Golden Tomato Awards". Archived from the original on December 2, 2017. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  19. ^ "Early School Years: Feature-Length Films". Oppenheim Toy Portfolio. Archived from the original on October 26, 2011. Retrieved April 22, 2009.

External links[]

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