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The Great Mouse Detective

  • 1986
  • G
  • 1h 14m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
52K
YOUR RATING
Vincent Price, Val Bettin, Eve Brenner, Candy Candido, Diana Chesney, Barrie Ingham, Melissa Manchester, Susanne Pollatschek, Frank Welker, and Alan Young in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
Watch Trailer
Play trailer1:16
2 Videos
99+ Photos
AnimationAdventureFamily

Basil, the rodent Sherlock Holmes, investigates the kidnapping of a toy maker and uncovers its link to his archenemy, Professor Ratigan.Basil, the rodent Sherlock Holmes, investigates the kidnapping of a toy maker and uncovers its link to his archenemy, Professor Ratigan.Basil, the rodent Sherlock Holmes, investigates the kidnapping of a toy maker and uncovers its link to his archenemy, Professor Ratigan.

  • Directors
    • Ron Clements
    • Burny Mattinson
    • David Michener
  • Writers
    • Peter Young
    • Vance Gerry
    • Steve Hulett
  • Stars
    • Vincent Price
    • Barrie Ingham
    • Val Bettin
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    7.1/10
    52K
    YOUR RATING
    • Directors
      • Ron Clements
      • Burny Mattinson
      • David Michener
    • Writers
      • Peter Young
      • Vance Gerry
      • Steve Hulett
    • Stars
      • Vincent Price
      • Barrie Ingham
      • Val Bettin
    • 141User reviews
    • 57Critic reviews
    • 73Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 3 nominations

    Videos2

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:16
    Watch Trailer
    The Great Mouse Detective
    Featurette 1:10
    Watch The Great Mouse Detective

    Photos103

    Val Bettin in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Val Bettin and Barrie Ingham in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Vincent Price and Susanne Pollatschek in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Barrie Ingham and Susanne Pollatschek in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Barrie Ingham and Susanne Pollatschek in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Val Bettin, Barrie Ingham, and Susanne Pollatschek in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Vincent Price in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Val Bettin and Barrie Ingham in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Barrie Ingham and Susanne Pollatschek in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Val Bettin, Barrie Ingham, and Shani Wallis in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Vincent Price, Val Bettin, and Barrie Ingham in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    Val Bettin and Barrie Ingham in The Great Mouse Detective (1986)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Vincent Price
    Vincent Price
    • Professor Ratigan
    • (voice)
    Barrie Ingham
    Barrie Ingham
    • Basil
    • (voice)
    • …
    Val Bettin
    Val Bettin
    • Dawson
    • (voice)
    • …
    Susanne Pollatschek
    • Olivia
    • (voice)
    Candy Candido
    Candy Candido
    • Fidget
    • (voice)
    Diana Chesney
    • Mrs. Judson
    • (voice)
    Eve Brenner
    Eve Brenner
    • The Mouse Queen
    • (voice)
    Alan Young
    Alan Young
    • Flaversham
    • (voice)
    Basil Rathbone
    Basil Rathbone
    • Sherlock Holmes
    • (archive sound)
    Laurie Main
    Laurie Main
    • Watson
    • (voice)
    Shani Wallis
    Shani Wallis
    • Lady Mouse
    • (voice)
    Ellen Fitzhugh
    • Bar Maid
    • (voice)
    Walker Edmiston
    Walker Edmiston
    • Citizen
    • (voice)
    • …
    Wayne Allwine
    Wayne Allwine
    • Thug Guard
    • (voice)
    Tony Anselmo
    Tony Anselmo
    • Thug Guard
    • (voice)
    Melissa Manchester
    Melissa Manchester
    • Miss Kitty Mouse
    • (voice)
    • Directors
      • Ron Clements
      • Burny Mattinson
      • David Michener
    • Writers
      • Peter Young
      • Vance Gerry
      • Steve Hulett
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      During the recording of Vincent Price's lines, animators sketched his exaggerated Shakespearean gestures and worked them into the animated poses for Ratigan.
    • Goofs
      Fidget somehow finds Olivia at Basil's apartment, yet it's evident that Ratigan did not instruct him to go there. The arch-villain was surprised when Fidget told him he ran into Basil at the toy shop, and obviously didn't realize that Basil was already working on this particular case.
    • Quotes

      [last lines]

      Dr. Dawson: [voice over] From that time on, Basil and I were a close team. We had many cases together, but I'll always look back on that first with the most fondness; my introduction to Basil of Baker Street, the great mouse detective.

    • Alternate versions
      The 1992 re-release altered the title to "The Adventures of the Great Mouse Detective". This was formerly the dominant version until the 2010 DVD release, which brings back the original 1986 version, complete with the original title card.
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Club Paradise/Desert Bloom/Under the Cherry Moon/The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
    • Soundtracks
      The World's Greatest Criminal Mind
      Music by Henry Mancini

      Lyrics by Larry Grossman and Ellen Fitzhugh

      Performed by Vincent Price and Chorus (uncredited)

    User reviews141

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    7/10
    Holy cripes, I like this one.
    By no means does it rank among the greatest Disney films. Its animation is mostly Saturday Morning level and its plot is as simplistic as a Sherlock Holmes knockoff story can get, complete with plotty, expository script and pretty typical archetypes throughout. Yet, it has something that has been missing in Disney movies for years: likability. It's lightweight, well crafted fun, like all the best Saturday morning cartoons, with inventive set pieces and terrific voice acting that helps make up for the fact that the losses incurred on The Black Cauldron show quite clearly. Unfortunately, it was shoveled under the hype over Don Bluth's An American Tail, a film that I have a bit of a soft spot for but which I'm not sure was that much better despite more involved animation. Of course it's no masterpiece, but it does deserve some appreciation for its virtues.

    The plot's rather simple, and a bit too dialogue driven. Basically, you can figure out what happens before you even see it. What makes it work are the personalities. True, Olivia's a bit cloying, but Basil himself is as manic and fun to watch as any good Holmes knockoff, due in no small part to Barrie Ingham's performance. However, the show stealer, like with many Disney films, is the villain, Professor Ratigan as brilliantly voiced by the great Vincent Price. What I love about his character is that he comes off a narcissistic buffoon most of the time, but when pushed he shows himself to be a ruthless maniac able to wring whatever he wants from people by sheer force. In many ways, he's the villain that Captain Hook should have been. He even gets one of the only song numbers in this movie, one of the finest villain numbers in its jaunty bombast and how it shifts to a dead stop when a henchman double crosses him then shifts back after a rather grim moment in the film.

    Unfortunately, one wishes the animation was better than Toon Disney on a production level. There's lots of conservative pose-to-pose stuff and very little in the ways of spontaneous character stuff. The angles are all very flat and straightforward. It especially shows in the dog character, who is much larger than the others but has too lightweight a feel to him. It's still a better looking film than The Black Cauldron, however less lavish it may be, and it has a few highlights. Ratigan, again, is superbly animated by Glen Keane, who gives him much more nuance and presence than the other characters. There's also a steep improvement toward the end, where Disney really ratchets up on some terrific set-piece direction. The CGI may show its age, but it's incorporated quite well. One also suspects that Disney first started to look at Hayao Miyazaki's work around this time, since there are more than a few similarities to the climax of Castle of Cagliostro.

    All in all, these elements, along with a great Henry Mancini score, add up to another overlooked gem of a Disney movie, if not an essential work. It's light nature makes it understandable that some people tend not to care for it, but I enjoy it like I do any decent childhood cartoon. For me, it's the best Disney picture between the end of the golden age in the 60s and the renaissance at the end of the 80s, despite not being especially ambitious or innovative. It's just good fun, and what more can one ask for?
    helpful•6
    1
    • MyNeighborFanboy
    • Dec 5, 2010

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    FAQ2

    • Who are the two human silhouettes supposed to be?
    • Is this movie based on a book?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 2, 1986 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official site
      • Official Facebook
    • Languages
      • English
      • French
      • German
      • Italian
    • Also known as
      • Basil of Baker Street
    • Filming locations
      • Walt Disney Feature Animation - 500 S. Buena Vista Street, Burbank, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Walt Disney Pictures
      • Silver Screen Partners II
      • Walt Disney Animation Studios
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $14,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $38,625,550
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $3,220,225
      • Jul 6, 1986
    • Gross worldwide
      • $38,625,550
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 14 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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