Featured Audience Ratings

• Daniel M

  
  Considering the large number of Disney films I have reviewed, it would be easy to call me jaded when I go after certain offerings from their much-loved back catalogue. In other words, my heightened familiarity with Disney tropes, character conventions and storylines leads me to… More
  Considering the large number of Disney films I have reviewed, it would be easy to call me jaded when I go after certain offerings from their much-loved back catalogue. In other words, my heightened familiarity with Disney tropes, character conventions and storylines leads me to dismiss as disappointing works which are in all reality perfectly passable. In this case, however, my disappointment is entirely justified, since The Great Mouse Detective is neither more nor less than solidly mediocre. The 1980s is an odd period in Disney's history - a brief and confusing interregnum between the conservative malaise of the 1970s and the bright, glossy renaissance of the 1990s. The animated films produced by Disney in this time vary wildly in quality and exhibit characteristics of their surrounding decades, with The Fox and the Hound being very much of the Wolfgang Reitherman era and The Little Mermaid (rightly or wrongly) epitomising the renaissance. The three films in between see Disney attempting to return to or re-approach old-fashioned stories, whether fairy tales or classics of English literature. The films are united by the fact that none of them entirely work, but the reasons behind their failings are all different. The Black Cauldron was enjoyable and adventurous in its flaws, being a spirited return to fairy tales and folklore that was let down by poor characterisation and rows behind the scenes. Oliver & Company failed because it was lazy in its adaptation and worked against Disney's strengths with the modern setting and visual style. The Great Mouse Detective fails because it never surprises us; it is the kind of film that Disney could have made in his sleep, and promptly thrown away when he woke up. This is all the more puzzling when we consider the wealth of material that the animators had at their disposal. Not only were Eve Titus' novels quite popular, but they drew on the stories and reputation of one of the most famous and much-loved fictional characters in history. There are any number of aspects to Sherlock Holmes which are appealing: the Victorian period detail and nostalgia, the thrilling adventures, the emphasis on mental ability over physical strength, and arguably one of the greatest villains in the English language. Sherlock Holmes also has genuine international appeal - something that would have reassured Disney bosses, who were sceptical over the viability of their animation department. His appeal extends to appearances in Allied propaganda during World War II, where he and Watson faced off against the Nazis in Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon, based very loosely on 'The Dancing Men'. Basil Rathbone even makes an appearance, with recordings of him from the 1960s being played over silhouettes of Holmes and Watson. In this rich context, the greatest crime of The Great Mouse Detective is that it is completely forgettable. It's not a bad film by any means: it just leaves very little impression because none of its creative decisions stick in our minds. The story meanders along, meeting our expectations, and all the plot points happen in the order that we expect. The characters are all standard, ticking all the boxes for their archetypes but not being distinctive on top of that. And the action scenes are paint-by-numbers and feel more than a little threadbare. Had Disney attempted to directly adapt or restage one of the classic stories, the film might have worked a lot better. Notwithstanding the quality of the source material, the film is at its strongest when it directly references or replicates events from the stories. The climactic fight between Basil and Rattigan on the hands of Big Ben is a very good set-piece, which takes the dynamic and outcome of the fight in 'The Final Problem' and puts its own spin in it - even if its pay-off is a whole lot sillier. The film is also successful in making us believe in a mouse world or society running parallel to ours. With The Rescuers, not enough effort was expended to show how the mouse society worked or resembled our own: the rules were either never laid out or constantly changed, making it difficult to suspend our disbelief. In The Great Mouse Detective there is a lot more effort, with all the direct parallels making sense, and all the adaptation of human technology for new purposes being explained in sufficient detail for us to invest in the story surrounding them. When it comes to the characters, however, it is a case of not enough effort rather than too much. The film's invocation of the Rathbone era is nice, except that it continues the error of those films by making the Dr. Watson character a bumbling fool. Playing Dawson constantly for laughs actually cheapens the film; rather than feeling or being funny, it feels like it would do anything for a laugh. Basil has just enough of Holmes' antisocial traits without being unlikeable, but even he has his moments where he becomes annoyingly earnest. Then we come to the villain, who is much more Oliver & Company than The Black Cauldron. Rattigan is an interesting concept, having a large amount of anger caused by pent-up self-denial. And you would expect Vincent Price to give a knock-out performance, considering his record with Hammer in particular. But while his motivation makes a lot more sense than Sykes', he's ultimately too much of a caricature to take seriously. None of the villains in Sherlock Holmes would be constantly aware of their evil nature; it goes against the basis of these stories in logic and deduction, in which the villains always act as though they are in the right. The actual plot of The Great Mouse Detective is not particularly memorable. The script makes no effort to emphasise the various clues or McGuffins, preferring to just toddle along to the next location or stop for the next joke. At times it can feel like a collection of set-pieces, with the bar scene feeling like a Pink Panther cartoon in its emphasis on physical humour and more suggestive content. While Rattigan's plan is a compelling one, its execution is completely silly; we don't believe for a second that Flaversham's invention could pass for the real Queen. The film is found wanting even if we just look to enjoy it as a series of set-pieces. In each case the set-up is promising but the result is underwhelming. Rattigan's elaborate method of killing Basil and Dawson is quite funny, particularly the line where he gleefully explains the manner of their impending doom. But when Basil begins to enact his escape, the script briefly gives way to nonsensical jargon so that the actual escape feels lucky rather than something that they earned. The animation in The Great Mouse Detective is something of a mixed bag. It's a lot more fluid than the films surrounding it, with more CG layering in the backgrounds and what CGI there is being well-integrated. The Little Mermaid was commissioned partly on the basis of these technologies being successfully trialled, and for some people that would justify this film on its own. But there are still rough edges and blatant re-use of animation, including a totally out-of-context appearance by Bill the Lizard from Alice in Wonderland. The Great Mouse Detective is a solidly mediocre effort from Disney which meets our lowest expectations and barely rises above them. It's not a bad film by any stretch of the imagination - certainly there's nothing here that one could object to, as one would object to The Little Mermaid. But the film suffers from a lack of real ambition which fatally affects both its characters and its plot. The Black Cauldron may not be perfect, but it is more memorably interesting.

• Melvin W

  
  Basil: Ratigan, no one can have a higher opinion of you than I have, and I think you're a slimy, contemptible sewer rat!  "Can he bring the dirty rat to justice?" The Great Mouse Detective is fun from start to finish for me as an adult. Unfortunately, I never got the… More
  Basil: Ratigan, no one can have a higher opinion of you than I have, and I think you're a slimy, contemptible sewer rat!  "Can he bring the dirty rat to justice?" The Great Mouse Detective is fun from start to finish for me as an adult. Unfortunately, I never got the chance to watch this during my childhood, but I can guarantee it will be a staple of my children's childhood. The movie is perfectly paced and a perfect length to keep the kids attention throughout. Also, the film doesn't have so many songs that it kills the overall flow of the story. That's something I really appreciate from a children's animated movie. So many of these movies throw song after song at the audience and to me, that just ruins the pace of the film. In this one, there are only a few songs throughout, and the ones that are in it are actually quite good. The Great Mouse Detective follows a story of a Sherlock Holmes like mouse named Basil, his new assistant Dr. Watson, and a little girl. The little girl's toy making father was kidnapped by the always elusive and highly sinister rat, Ratigan. Basil has been after Ratigan for a long time, so he jumps at the chance to solve the case. Ratigan's motive for kidnapping a toy maker involves his overall plan to overthrow the queen and take complete power.  There's a lot of stuff to like about this one. It has a great, London late 1800's atmosphere to it. The voice cast does a phenomenal job. The animation looks great and the set pieces are extremely well done. There really isn't anything to complain about. This is definitely a new favorite of mine when it comes to Disney films, and it's just a shame that it isn't more well known. 

• Matthew Samuel M

  
  A fun, though flawed, adventure film with somewhat memorable songs yet a forgettable plot.

• Dead A

  
  Cartoon version of Sherlock Holmes! It was really good.

• Jennifer X

  
  Basil of Baker Street is one of the sexiest Disney characters in the history of animated cinema, and this is not just because he is a mouse. I do not have a mouse fetish. Rather, I am really into detectives. I even find Poirot attractive at times, though he is a ridiculous, flamboyant… More
  Basil of Baker Street is one of the sexiest Disney characters in the history of animated cinema, and this is not just because he is a mouse. I do not have a mouse fetish. Rather, I am really into detectives. I even find Poirot attractive at times, though he is a ridiculous, flamboyant fop.

• AJ V

  
  A good kids cartoon movie from Disney, fans of Vincent Price should note that he does the voice of the villain in this one. It's pretty much a kids version of Sherlock Holmes, but with mice. It's cute, and I liked it.

• Anthony L

  
  One of the few Disney films that I actually rather love. I have very fond memories of seeing this one in the cinema with my Grandmother.

• KJ P

  
  Great enjoyment for people of all ages! I has a good heart and soul to it and the tone is just averaging on dull. However, it is still a really well made animated kids classic!

• Conner R

  
  Essentially Disney doing Sherlock Holmes. It's very fun and one of the most beautifully haunting depictions of London and its rat infestation. I love it when kids movies can have a logical plot and this definitely does. The characters are nice representations of their human… More
  Essentially Disney doing Sherlock Holmes. It's very fun and one of the most beautifully haunting depictions of London and its rat infestation. I love it when kids movies can have a logical plot and this definitely does. The characters are nice representations of their human counterparts and you can't help but love the film noir aspect to an animated movie.

• Luke B

  
  My favourite Disney animated movie. Unlike much of Disney's output, this is one for the boys. There's only so much of that princess crap a guy can take. Basil is pretty much the mouse worlds Sherlock Holmes. He's a genius, arrogant and a bit emotionally disconnected… More
  My favourite Disney animated movie. Unlike much of Disney's output, this is one for the boys. There's only so much of that princess crap a guy can take. Basil is pretty much the mouse worlds Sherlock Holmes. He's a genius, arrogant and a bit emotionally disconnected from other mice. However, he leaps at the chance to rescue a young girl's father when he discovers it might lead to his arch nemesis. Professor Ratigan is probably the greatest Disney villain. Voiced to utter perfection by Vincent Price. Ratigan has it all. The charm, the humour, the incessant unstoppable drive, not to mention he's fucking terrifying when he's angry. The dark stages, characters and events make it all the more enjoyable. Fidget is a twisted creation and causes a jump every time he shoves his face at the camera. Great action, great humour and the most goosebumpily climax in any Disney film.

• danny d

  
  great disney, one of the best

• Jason S

  
  One of my favorite of the Disney flicks and also one of the ones that no one has ever heard of. It was a fun story and I thought the music really set the tone and feel of the flick perfectly.

• Bradley W

  
  The Great Mouse Detective is a colorful and fun animated film and one of the favorites of my childhood.

• DOCTOR P

  
  7th of the "Do it like Walt" Era The animation here is amazing, a major improvement over the last film, which says a lot considering the last film from the studio looked great as well. The cg implemented in the film is done so well and is a must watch for anyone who loves… More
  7th of the "Do it like Walt" Era The animation here is amazing, a major improvement over the last film, which says a lot considering the last film from the studio looked great as well. The cg implemented in the film is done so well and is a must watch for anyone who loves looking at animation. There's a joy that one can find in the scenery though it's dark look. The music is nothing special, but there's very few songs and one is worth listening to, that is "The World's Greatest Criminal Mind" performed by the late, great Vincent Price. The characters are all very entertaining, very amusing, and hard to find a single annoyance with. Though if one character must be named as the best it would have to be Ratigan voiced wonderfully by Vincent Price, always ranging from hilarious to downright psychotic and frightening. This film had a cast that put so much effort into bringing the characters to life. The story is fun and incredibly well placed. Featuring dark moments that compliments it's animation and mystery story, it's hard to point out a single bump. All the characters provide fun entertainment to the story it's hard to even try to nitpick. "The Great Mouse Detective" is a great film for all ages, even when it gets a little darker then the usual family film. As dark as it may get, "The Great Mouse Detective" may just be the brightest spot for Disney in it's era. Up next: Please sir may I have some more for this era?

• Bradley J

  
  Probably one of the most underrated Disney films ever, The Great Mouse Detective has dark visuals, some heartwarming moments, and one of the coolest Disney villains. It is also surprisingly dramatic and is very entertaining. Overall Rating:91

• Matthew Y

  
  I don't know if there were some copyright complications (I probably should have researched this) but The Great Mouse Detective goes through painstaking efforts to give an incredible Sherlock Holmes feel without ever mentioning the famed character directly. The detective here is… More
  I don't know if there were some copyright complications (I probably should have researched this) but The Great Mouse Detective goes through painstaking efforts to give an incredible Sherlock Holmes feel without ever mentioning the famed character directly. The detective here is Basil (an obviously homage to Basil Rathbone the famed actor who played the detective in a series of films in the 30's & 40's) who is approached by a young girl whose father was kidnapped. Typical Holmes-like detective work and witty banter ensue as a nefarious plot in slowly unmasked. Basil is portrayed with excellent character development as he is incredibly neutral to the young girls feelings, caring only for the case at hand, and gradually warms up to the young girl at a practical snails pace. Even at the films end the only emotion he musters is a huge so warm it comforts even him. Vincent Price voices a memorable villain the dreaded Professor Ratigan who hates his rathood and posses himself as a mouse. The character wishes to outsmart, outmaneuver and ultimately eliminate Basil. He is played with wit and charm though with enough fury and menace hidden beneath the surface that his violent and aggressive assault at the end is not outlandish and instead almost foretelling. The strength and depth of the leads elevate the films quality far beyond it's reputation. An underrated near masterpiece.

• Nick C

  
  I love the style of this film, although Vincent Price as the main antagonist, Ratigan, basically stole the show, but this movie did break new ground because the gears of the Big Ben were made from computer technology which are amazing while they last, at least at the time. Next to… More
  I love the style of this film, although Vincent Price as the main antagonist, Ratigan, basically stole the show, but this movie did break new ground because the gears of the Big Ben were made from computer technology which are amazing while they last, at least at the time. Next to the American Tail, the Great Mouse Detective is the best animated film of 1986 and the audience was warmed up for great movies to come from the House of Mouse in the very near future.

• Anthony L

  
  Disney Movie #18: The Great Mouse Detective Although it can be slow at times, when The Great Mouse Detective starts up with it's thrills, there is no stopping it. Arguably one of the most thrilling Disney films, The Great Mouse Detective suceeds because of it's charming… More
  Disney Movie #18: The Great Mouse Detective Although it can be slow at times, when The Great Mouse Detective starts up with it's thrills, there is no stopping it. Arguably one of the most thrilling Disney films, The Great Mouse Detective suceeds because of it's charming characters, great animation and a worth villain. Although it never gained the popularity of other Disney classics, The Great Mouse Detective is a hidden gem, one that should not be forgotten.

• Jackson W

  
  While not without its moments, The Great Mouse Detective's formulaic plot with overall uninspiring characters save Ratigan has it come off as a rehash of the American Tail series rather than a Disney classic.

• Alec B

  
  Its one of the most entertaining films Disney ever made, I love the idea of exposing kids to Sherlock Holmes. And honestly putting Vincent Price in a children's movie was a great/horrifying idea.

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