The Emperor’s New Groove is one of the best Disney movies, in my opinion, for more than a couple of reasons. Number one, there’s no singing. There’s way too much singing in Disney movies. There’s always a song going on about somebody being sad, or somebody misses their grandma or something. I’ve always hated that about Disney movies. Even when I was a little kid, there was just too much singing. There’s some intro music, and some outro music at the beginning and the end of this movie. That’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with that. But I wanted to see The Emperor’s New Groove, not The HMS Pinafore. If I wanted to go see a play, I’d go.
And I’ll tell you something else about Disney movies. Disney movies are not written for kids. Disney movies are written for the parents of the kids that they take to go see those Disney movies. Pacha gets back to that house, mom’s in control, pregnant and taking care of the kids. “Don’t tell her I said that…” It’s called pandering. Disney knows who their demographic is. Disney knows who’s going to see these movies.
Because The Emperor’s New Groove came out at exactly the wrong time. It did poorly in theaters. Not actually poorly; it still made its money back, and then some. But The Emperor’s New Groove came out at a time between generations when the operatic style of animated movies like Alladin, The Little Mermaid, and Beauty and the Beast were becoming a thing of the past. And the new type of animated comedic movies that were appealing to the older viewers were beginning to enter the market, like Shrek and Monsters INC. And all of the sudden, Disney wasn’t doing the same thing it was doing for the last 50 years.
Ironically enough, though, The Emperor’s New Groove found its own home on the DVD and VHS sales market after it was done playing in theaters. It gained a huge cult following in the years since it’s been available to buy. I personally have owned a copy of The Emperor’s New Groove for many years.
So, yeah. Go out and see The Emperor’s New Groove. If not for yourself, then because he’s an emperor, and he commands you to. Or, because he’s a llama and he commands you to. Although, I don’t know if that one holds as much sway. Either way, stay groovy. And as always, keep on watching, with a smile on your face…
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