The Incredible Mr. Limpet

The Incredible Mr. Limpet

Warner Bros.

March 28, 1964

Historical Comedy, Fantasy

DVD

C-

I grew up in the '70s watching Don Knotts comedies, so I saw this a lot, but both times as an adult I haven't been able to stick with it, especially with Limpet's unhappy human life, including marriage.  Arthur Lubin directed the live action part, and I didn't get up to the animation this time. 

Chicken Little

Chicken Little
Walt Disney
November 4, 2005
Children's, Comedy, Fantasy
DVD
D+

Unfunny expanding of the fairytale, which doesn't make any sense, because in fact a very large object falls on the town and causes damage and havoc, yet somehow the title character is a loser for warning everyone?  Still, it was kind of fun recognizing the voice cast (and the Barenaked Ladies on the soundtrack), so yeah, D+.

Mark Dindal directed and co-wrote, as he did for Cats Don't Dance, and there's the same lame level of pop-cultural references.

Cats Don't Dance

Cats Don't Dance
Warner Bros.
March 26, 1997
Children's, Musical, Fantasy, Historical Comedy
DVD
D+

Like its feline hero (voiced by Bakula), this movie tries too hard and has little to show for it.  Mark Dindal directed and co-wrote.

Big Bully

Big Bully
Warner Bros.
January 26, 1996
Comedy
DVD
C+

Well, this is better than you might expect-- it was a box office bomb and earned Tom Arnold a Razzie Award for Worst Actor*-- which is not to say it's good, but I found it mildly entertaining.  There are a bunch of plot holes (like why does a tiny little town have such a huge middle school?), and certainly Carol Kane could've been used more effectively.  (Don Knotts's age of 71 is used to good effect though.)  But the movie held my interest throughout and I did want to see what would happen next, despite the odd twists and turns.  And that's more than I can say about most of the movies on this blog.

Steve Miner directed.


*I may be wrong, but I think that Tom Arnold is the first performer to appear in four movies on this blog, not counting people who have a collection devoted to them, like Alec Guinness.