Rock-A-Doodle (1991)

User Rating:

5.3/10   

Directors:

Don Bluth
Gary Goldman (co-director)

Writers:

Don Bluth (story) &
John Pomeroy (story) ...

Release Date:

3 April 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Adventure | Family | Music

Plot:

A little boy named Edmond learns that the crowing of Chanticleer the rooster did not make the sun rise...

Plot Keywords:

Sun | Farm | City | Flood | Rooster

Cast

Phil Harris	...	Narrator / Patou (voice)
Glen Campbell	...	Chanticleer (voice)
Eddie Deezen	...	Snipes (voice)
Kathryn Holcomb	...	Mother
Toby Scott Ganger	...	Edmond
Stan Ivar	...	Dad
Christian Hoff	...	Scott
Jason Marin	...	Mark
Christopher Plummer	...	Grand Duke (voice)
Sandy Duncan	...	Peepers (voice)
Will Ryan	...	Stuey (voice)
Charles Nelson Reilly	...	Hunch (voice) (as Charles Nelson-Reilly)
Ellen Greene	...	Goldie (voice)
Sorrell Booke	...	Pinky (voice)
Dee Wallace	...	Mother

Runtime:

USA:77 min

Country:

Ireland | UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.77 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:All | Argentina:Atp | Sweden:7 | USA:G

Company:

Goldcrest Films International

Trivia:

Last film role for Phil Harris.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The Grand Duke and the rest of his clan hate the sun and any particular light source, yet he bakes a pie near a bright, crackling fire.

Quotes:

[first lines; narration]
Patou: Once upon a time, back before I knew how to tie my shoes, the sun came up. Now, I know an everyday sunrise may not seem like such a big deal to some folks. But, imagine for a moment: if instead of rising up like this one morning where you lived, she took a look around and decided to go back to sleep. It happened once to us. Let me tell you all about it.

Soundtrack:

Kiss 'N' Coo

it's not that bad! as far as I can remember

Clearly this wasn't Don Bluth's finest day as a filmmaker- it's nowhere near the imagination present in The Secret of NIMH and An American Tail, but it's still entertaining for kids. It certainly worked when I first saw it, and I remember watching it several times (maybe cause of the songs which were like filtered but enjoyable Elvis-type tunes, or some of the designs with the characters like the evil owls). It's about a little boy who gets transformed into a cat- his storybook, which comes to life, is about a rooster on a farm who can't do his patented COCKADOODLE call- and soon he's swept up in a quest to bring Chaunticlair back from his fall into a career as an Elvis star.

It's not really too amazing, and it's probably even cliché by the standards of any animation let alone Bluth's. But there's enough invention and fun and quirks to make it worthwhile as a children's film, if not as an overall family flick (adults will most likely enjoy the final performance of Phil Harris, the voice of Baloo). Some of it is even very funny, like when the dastardly inept small owl who keeps spouting exclamations like "ANNIHILATION!" tries to skewer the heroes while tied up. It's like a minor rockabilly farm comedy, and there's certainly worse out there for your kids.