Newsies

Super Aurora · Post by **Super Aurora** » Tue Mar 18, 2008 10:16 am

I love this movie a lot. The era, the music, everything about this movie made me love it.

singerguy04 · Post by **singerguy04** » Tue Mar 18, 2008 10:39 am

Well being a musical, I'm not sure what kind of realism anyone could possibly hope to look for. As a musical however I feel it's great. I havn't looked into the historical context at all to see how accurate it is, but whether its right or wrong it's fun!

One of the things that amazed me the most is the choreography. It's genious in my opinion. I can't imagine so many young guys and girls being able to dance like that. It blows anything that recent disney films (High School Musical 1 & 2) have done out of the water.

I also love Alan Menken, so his score for this really helps make it special.

I would love to see Disney put this on stage!

kbehm29 · Post by **kbehm29** » Tue Mar 18, 2008 11:27 am

This movie is at the top quarter of my DVD "wish list". I've been waiting for a re-release to buy it. Any chance of that happening, or am I better off buying the version already released?

Wasn't there also rumor of a re-release of Annie (1999)? I'm sorry to change the subject.

Flanger-Hanger · Post by **Flanger-Hanger** » Tue Mar 18, 2008 5:19 pm

kbehm29 wrote:This movie is at the top quarter of my DVD "wish list". I've been waiting for a re-release to buy it. Any chance of that happening, or am I better off buying the version already released?

Wasn't there also rumor of a re-release of Annie (1999)? I'm sorry to change the subject.

Why wait for a re-release? The current collector's edition has great picture and a good selection of supplements (read the UD review to see more). I have a feeling it will be a long time before we see another edition (maybe never for DVD).

Anyway for the movie itself, after watching it recently my only problem with the film was the gap between songs. The first hour is very music oriented, but during the second half I almost forgot I was watching a musical. The songs don't really tell the story the just emphasize whatever is already happening. A better musical would have told the story through the songs. Still the movie is one of Disney's best IMO (live action or animated) and deserved none of the crap it got when it was initially released. Razzie Award nomination for Worst Picture? Honestly.

blackcauldron85 · Post by **blackcauldron85** » Tue Mar 18, 2008 8:31 pm

I absolutely adore "Newsies"!!! It's my favorite Disney live-action theatrical film. I used to watch it at least once a day, but I haven't seen it in a little while. I love the music and the setting. And, about Christian Bale's accent- he is Welsh, ya know- I think he did a fine job with the New York accent.

The music and choreography are spot on- the soundtrack is so good! And the dancing- just excellent! The shallow part of me has always enjoyed the cute boys in it- I admit it.

I wish this movie would get more recognition, because it is such a fine film. "Santa Fe" is one of my all-time favorite songs- I have always been able to relate to it, even when I was maybe 8 years old, when I watched the film whenever it came on Disney Channel.

And, I'd say buy the current DVD- it really is a good one.

skippy · Post by **skippy** » Tue Mar 18, 2008 11:53 pm

I love this movie.

The one thing I find VERY out of place and ridiculous is the Spot Conlon character. The guy who plays him does not look like a tough guy, but everyone acts afraid of him.

Other than that I find it to be excellent.

gardener14 · Post by **gardener14** » Wed Mar 19, 2008 8:04 am

I remember seeing Newsies when it first came out and absolutely loving it. I saw it again in under a week. By the second weekend, I believe, it was gone from my local cinema. I was only a teen at the time, but I remember being amazed and disappointed that what I considered to be a fantasitic movie could be so discarded by others and perform so poorly. It was probably the first time I became conscious of loving a movie that was not a mainstream hit on some level.

To me, the interesting thing about Newsies is that, for a movie that was a theatrical flop and unheard of by most, it developed a sort of "cult classic" following among a certain age group. Over the many years since Newsies premiered I've been amazed by groups of kids or young adults who know all the music and say how much they love Newsies just becasue someone brought it up or started singing a song, especially at a summer camp or in a dorm room. I'm surprised when kids who were babies when Newsies was in theaters know and love it or when strangers who know nothing about each other find something in common over knowing the songs.

Even in this thread, there are nothing but glowing responses thus far despite the fact that the original post tore apart the movie. All you have to do is mention Newsies, and it elicits fond memories from its many fans.

Disney Lover · Post by **Disney Lover** » Wed Mar 19, 2008 8:57 am

This has always been one of my favorite disney life action movies/musicals. My high school choir always sang songs from it every other year. SO its been engrained in my memory I think :lol

SpringHeelJack · Post by **SpringHeelJack** » Wed Mar 19, 2008 9:15 am

I love "Newsies". I saw it for the first time my freshman year in college, aka about two and a half years ago (wow, it sounds so much longer when I say it out loud). I love the music, I love the story, and most of all, I love Ann-Margret. I admit the music and the story don't always mesh well, and that the second half is more historical drama than musical, but it's still fun. And the homoerotic undertones make it for great family viewing (note how Jack is more interested in David than David's bland sister).

Also, you may as well buy the DVD, it's surprisingly solid.

Flanger-Hanger · Post by **Flanger-Hanger** » Wed Mar 19, 2008 4:07 pm

SpringHeelJack wrote:And the homoerotic undertones make it for great family viewing (note how Jack is more interested in David than David's bland sister).

Sure, why not? David's sis is just not as cute as those other paper boys.

blackcauldron85 · Post by **blackcauldron85** » Fri Mar 21, 2008 5:08 am

Flanger-Hanger wrote:
SpringHeelJack wrote:And the homoerotic undertones make it for great family viewing (note how Jack is more interested in David than David's bland sister).
Sure, why not? David's sis is just not as cute as those other paper boys.

That's funny. True, but funny!

(sorry that this doesn't contribute much at all...but I like to let people know when I find them funny...!!!)

2099net · Post by **2099net** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 4:06 am

I find it interesting that some people here have singled out the choreography in the film as a plus point, because to me it was sometimes a negative point. I found some of the time the dancing was just to "happy" and "hyperactive" for the storypoints being made.

I'm not saying that all of the active dances were wrong (we are after all talking about a story about boys and teenagers who are full of life) but I feel including such movements did somewhat distract from the historical hardships the characters did suffer.

I also find myself totally torn over "Sieze the Day" because much as I love the song (and I do), I find the frantic hopping and leaping that accompanies it to be totally counter productive tone wise to what is happening in the story.

But I don't want this to become a post of me just critisising the film, as the film does lots of things right. The music is superb, the choreography (while I may find it inappropriate in spots) is complex and performed to perfection. But most importantly it's something which I treasure more in these modern times of musical films being simply stage shows transposed to the screen, or existing songs simply put in an "all new" musical, it's original.

It must have been a hard sell for the creators to pursuade Disney to make a musical film about child labourers, in the depression era, holding a strike. None of these topics are traditional musical topics, and put all three together and combine it with the fact it is a musical - and it appears that you are on a fast train to bankruptville. How wonderful that Disney actually made this film in the first place.

It shows Disney thought more of its child audience in those days than it does now.

Super Aurora · Post by **Super Aurora** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:06 am

2099net wrote:
It must have been a hard sell for the creators to pursuade Disney to make a musical film about child labourers, in the depression era, holding a strike.

1899 is not the depression era. That's 1930's that is the depression era

Mr. Toad · Post by **Mr. Toad** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:31 am

Super Aurora wrote:
2099net wrote:
It must have been a hard sell for the creators to pursuade Disney to make a musical film about child labourers, in the depression era, holding a strike.
1899 is not the depression era. That's 1930's that is the depression era

SuperAurora - there was a depression in the 1890s. It wasnt the great depression but it was an economic depression none the less. It was precipitated by the failure of the Reading Railroad, the withdrawal of international money from the US and a run on the gold supply.(The latter two the US is currently experiencing)

As for the movie, I thought it was unbelievably bad for many of the reasons Ichabod and Netty have already pointed out. There really isnt a saving grace - good/great actors who dont appear to want to be there, bad dancing/choreography and a movie that wants to stick itself in every genre known to man.

Matt · Post by **Matt** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 8:20 pm

I've had this in my DVD shelf for a while now, about 3 to 4 years in the shrink wrap and never opened it lol. today I was bored and since it is always sticking out in front of me, I finally opened it and relived the magic! I really enjoyed this film all over again! I was a kid when this first came out and I never really liked it, maybe because I never really understood it back then lol but I LOVED IT!

I download the soundtrack off limewire lol.
I cannot believe it didn't have a chapter insert as well. What gives!

Do you think Disney will release this as a 2-disc DVD?

Flanger-Hanger · Post by **Flanger-Hanger** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 8:24 pm

You should be thankful it got a single disc special edition. A 2-Disc set? Not with today's Disney.

Matt · Post by **Matt** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 8:33 pm

^ that's true, it did have great bonus features. All the behind the scenes documentaries put together was almost an hour.

Escapay · Post by **Escapay** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 11:13 pm

I had this on as background noise while I was doing some writing and I have since learned never to put it on as background noise, as I eventually stopped writing and just kept watching the film.

"King of New York" is still my favorite song.

Les and Spot are still my favorite characters.

Crutchy is still my least favorite character.

Les and David's sister is still the most useless character.

I wouldn't mind a two-disc set (yeah right, this is Disney we're talking about). The extras that are on the current disc are great (especially since so few of the 90s live-action Disney movies have extras at all), but if they wanted to do a better edition in the future, I'd love for them to include a cast commentary, a retrospective documentary, a "Where Are They Now?" feature, the home movies shot by Kevin Stea (Swifty, and you can find clips on youtube), extended versions of the songs/dances (such as "Carrying the Banner" which we see some extra portions in one of the docs, and Jack's "Santa Fe" lasso bit that got deleted), deleted scenes (I remember reading about some on a Newsies site), and of course, the infamous Blood Drips Heavily on Newsies Square (though I doubt that will ever be included!).

Albert

Matt · Post by **Matt** » Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:56 pm

Yeah David's sister we could have done without lol. I guess someone needed a girlfriend in the film.

Flanger-Hanger · Post by **Flanger-Hanger** » Thu Mar 26, 2009 8:16 pm

BUMP! I want to see if we can get people talking about these live action films more.

OK I just watched this again the other day and I have a few points:

- Sometimes the plot moves along better when everyone's talking and not singing. This is especially true for the 3rd quarter of the film after "King of New York" where it just becomes a songless (I don't count "High Times hard Times" because it's done in a presentational way) drama.

- I think they should have tried harder to show how awful some of these child labour working conditions are. The song lyrics for "One and for All" relate to this but some imagery of kids begin abused spliced in during the number and some footage earlier could have really taught kids something about working back then and given the adults more information to soak in and think about without needless dialogue. Maybe a song before or during the scene where Jack and Pulitzer meet might have been good and given Jack a chance to tell everyone what he's really fighting for (Critics forgot apparently when watching the film). Only problem would be Robert's singing voice, but they could have dubbed him.

- Jack's decision not to go to Santa Fe in the end is kind of random and awkward. A reference to a conversation made off camera between Jack and Teddy is done but a quick 1 or 2 minute scene showing the two of them talking might have made Jack's change in mind less sudden.

- Ann-Margaret should have been in the finale to cheer the boys victory. her disappearance after the music hall scene seems awkward. However, it's one of those things you don't notice when watching the film.

This begin said, I still love the film and it completely did not deserve the harsh criticism or mockery it got in it's initial run.

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