The Rescuers (1977)

Directors:

John Lounsbery
Wolfgang Reitherman
(more)

Writers:

Margery Sharp (suggested by "The Rescuers" and "Miss Bianca" by)
Larry Clemmons (story) ...
(more)

Release Date:

22 June 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Adventure | Crime | Drama | Family | Fantasy | Mystery

Tagline:

Mystery - Fun - Intrigue!

Plot:

Two mice of the Rescue Aid Society search for a little girl kidnapped by unscrupulous treasure hunters.

Plot Keywords:

Rescue | Little Girl | Bottle | Mouse | Bayou

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins

Cast

Bob Newhart	...	Bernard (voice)
Eva Gabor	...	Miss Bianca (voice)
Geraldine Page	...	Madame Medusa (voice)
Joe Flynn	...	Mr. Snoops (voice)
Jeanette Nolan	...	Ellie Mae (voice)
Pat Buttram	...	Luke (voice)
Jim Jordan	...	Orville (voice)
John McIntire	...	Rufus (voice)
Michelle Stacy	...	Penny (voice)
Bernard Fox	...	The Chairman (voice)
Larry Clemmons	...	Gramps (voice)
James MacDonald	...	Evinrude (voice) (as James Macdonald)
George Lindsey	...	Rabbit (voice)
Bill McMillian	...	TV Announcer (voice) (as Bill McMillan)
Dub Taylor	...	Digger (voice)
John Fiedler	...	Owl (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ruth Buzzi	...	German Mouse (voice) (uncredited) (unconfirmed)

Directed by
John Lounsbery
Wolfgang Reitherman
Art Stevens

Writing credits
Margery Sharp		(suggested by "The Rescuers" and "Miss Bianca" by)
Larry Clemmons		(story) &
Ken Anderson		(story) &
Frank Thomas		(story) &
Vance Gerry		(story) &
David Michener		(story) &
Ted Berman		(story) &
Fred Lucky		(story) &
Burny Mattinson		(story) &
Dick Sebast		(story)

Produced by
Ron Miller	....	executive producer
Wolfgang Reitherman	....	producer

Original Music by
Artie Butler

Film Editing by
James Koford		(as Jim Koford)
James Melton

Art Direction by
Don Griffith

Production Management
Don A. Duckwall	....	production manager (as Don Duckwall)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jeffrey C. Patch	....	assistant director (as Jeff Patch)
Richard Rich	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Herb Taylor	....	sound
Ad Roest	....	sound re-recording mixer: foreign language versions (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Jack Buckley	....	effects animator
James L. George	....	effects animator
Ted Kierscey	....	effects animator
Dorse A. Lanpher	....	effects animator
Dick N. Lucas	....	effects animator (as Dick Lucas)

Animation Department
Dale Baer	....	character animator
Daniela Bielecka	....	background painter
Don Bluth	....	directing animator
Ron Clements	....	character animator
Jim Coleman	....	background painter
Leroy Cross	....	key assistant animator
Guy Deel	....	layout artist
Al Dempster	....	color stylist
Andy Gaskill	....	character animator
Gary Goldman	....	character animator
Stan Green	....	key assistant animator
Ann Guenther	....	background painter
Bill Hajee	....	character animator
Joe Hale	....	layout artist
Chuck Harvey	....	character animator
Harry Hester	....	key assistant animator
Ollie Johnston	....	directing animator
Milt Kahl	....	directing animator
Glen Keane	....	character animator
Thomas W. Lay Jr.	....	layout artist (as Tom Lay)
Bob McCrea	....	character animator
Cliff Nordberg	....	character animator
Dale Oliver	....	key assistant animator
John Pomeroy	....	character animator
Sylvia Roemer	....	layout artist
Walt Stanchfield	....	key assistant animator
Art Stevens	....	character animator
Dave Suding	....	key assistant animator
Frank Thomas	....	directing animator
Chuck Williams	....	key assistant animator
Randy Cartwright	....	assistant animator (uncredited)
Ed Gombert	....	assistant animator (uncredited)
Heidi Guedel	....	animator (uncredited)
Ron Husband	....	animator (uncredited)
Glen Keane	....	character animation: "Penny" and "Bernard" (uncredited)
Dick Sebast	....	animator (uncredited)
Tad Stones	....	assistant animator (uncredited)
Hank Tucker	....	inbetween artist (uncredited)

Music Department
Artie Butler	....	conductor
Evelyn Kennedy	....	music editor
María Medina	....	Mexican version (uncredited)
María Medina	....	song performer (uncredited)
Edmundo Santos	....	lyrics: Spanish version (uncredited)

Other crew
Eric Larson	....	titles
Burny Mattinson	....	titles
Mel Shaw	....	titles (as Melvin Shaw)

Production Companies

• Walt Disney Productions (presents)

Distributors

• Buena Vista Distribution Company (1977) (USA) (theatrical) (as Buena Vista Distribution Co., Inc.)
• Suomi-Filmi (1977) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Greater Union Organisation (GUO) (1977) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Filmayer (1977) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Warner Española S.A. (1989) (Spain) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Gativideo (2001) (Argentina) (video)
• Abril Vídeo (1988) (Brazil) (VHS) (First release)
• Audio Visual Enterprises (2001) (Greece) (VHS)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (BVHE) (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Abril Vídeo (1992) (Brazil) (VHS) (Video Collection Disney) (Reissue)
• Abril Vídeo (1998) (Brazil) (VHS) (Reissue)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1981) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)

Also Known As:

"Bernardo y Bianca" - USA (Spanish title)

Runtime:

78 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone Sound Recording) | 3 Channel Stereo (original release)

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Peru:PT | Sweden:7 (original rating) | UK:U | USA:G (Approved No. 24763) | Canada:G (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario/Quebec) | Brazil:Livre | West Germany:o.Al. | Spain:T | Finland:K-8 (1988) (uncut) | Finland:K-8 (cut) (1978) | South Korea:All | Canada:G (video rating) | South Africa:A | USA:TV-G (cable rating) | New Zealand:G | Netherlands:AL | Sweden:Btl (re-rating) (cut) (1988)

Company:

Walt Disney Productions

Trivia:

Orville the Albatross hums the US Air Force theme "Into the Wild Blue Yonder" when he first meets Bernard and Bianca at the airport. He even mentions going to the Wild Blue Yonder before they board the sardine can.

Goofs:

Continuity: Orville the albatross flies the mice with a sardine can attached to his back, however, when he lands at Devil's Bayou, the sardine can disappears after he is hit by Mr. Snoops' fireworks.

Quotes:

Penny:Oh, here. I brought you something.
Rufus the Cat:Grand notion! Cat-nip snaps.
Penny:[giggles] No, they're ginger snaps.
Rufus the Cat:Well, an old codger like me could use a little ginger.
Penny:I taked two extra ones for lunch today. We're not s'posed to do that.
Rufus the Cat:You can trust me. I won't tattletale on you.
Penny:I love you, Rufus.

Movie Connections:

References The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977)

Soundtrack:

For He's a Jolly Good Fellow

Highly underrated

Movies like The Rescuers are simply not made anymore. Nowadays, it's all CGI with retarded, unfunny jokes, with no real seriousness or conflict to be found. The Rescuers has all that it says in the tagline - Mystery, Fun and Intrigue! Despite what others say, this truly deserves to be called a masterpiece.

The very idea of two little mice saving an orphan girl sounds very juvenile and slushy - but here, it isn't. The Rescuers combines dark themes such as child exploitation to light refreshing comedy which does not detract from the seriousness of the whole film. Benard and Bianca are very admirable characters, and the swamp creatures are hilarious. Madame Medusa is an excellent villainness. She's intimidating and funny at the same time. There are plenty of colourful characters, Brutus and Nero, the two crocodiles, Orville the albatross and Penny, the sweet yet strong spirited little girl.

The very idea of two little mice saving an orphan girl sounds very juvenile and slushy - but here, it isn't. The Rescuers combines dark themes such as child exploitation to light refreshing comedy which does not detract from the seriousness of the whole film. Benard and Bianca are very admirable characters, and the swamp creatures are hilarious. Madame Medusa is an excellent villainness. She's intimidating and funny at the same time. There are plenty of colourful characters, Brutus and Nero, the two crocodiles, Orville the albatross and Penny, the sweet yet strong spirited little girl.

The animation is typical scratchy 70s style, but the backgrounds are really top-notch, especially in the swamp scenes. They portray a foreboding atmosphere that works well in the appropriate scenes. The paintings shown in the opening credits were inspirational. There are not many songs in The Rescuers, which is probably one of the reasons why it's such a serious film. The soundtrack is fits in well, and nobody bursts into song. 'Someone's waiting for You' is one of the fews songs that moves me to tears. It is just so touching and beautiful.

Sure, it's not entirely loyal to Magery Sharp's books, but who cares? You might as well just get mad at 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail,' because that doesn't stay loyal to the original Arthurian legend. The Rescuers is a true delight, and deserves a much better DVD than Disney has given it.