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WALT & EL GRUPOMovie Reviews
Documentary about the 1941 South American goodwill tour made by Walt Disney and his hand-picked group of animators. Cast:Juan Carlos Gonzalez, Mariuza Barroso Salomao, Marcelo Nino, Virgilio Roig, John Canemaker, Blaine Gibson, Diane Miller, Harriett Woltcott, J.B. KaufmanDirector:Theodore ThomasRelease Date:September 9, 2009DVD Release:November 30, 2010From:Walt Disney PicturesRating:PGLength:1 hr 46 min
NOVEMBER 30, 2010
Walt & El Grupo, Good (Not Great) Reviews (Doc) Key Cities
Walt & El Grupo played in key cities to good not great reviews. • Claudia Puig wrote in USA Today, "...a compelling story of one of Hollywood's most indelible figures told with grace and style." • And Chris Foran wrote in the Dallas Morning News, "...while the movie captures the tone of the time and its subject, its sepia-tinged nostalgia smooths away too many rough edges." More Reviews Below...
Walt & El Grupo Positive Reviews (19 Reviews, reviews below)
Claudia Puig, USA Today: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a journey of self-discovery and an artistic re-invigoration.... a compelling story of one of Hollywood's most indelible figures told with grace and style."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 430 words, 09/11/09
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (7 Reviews)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: WEAK "A relentlessly upbeat vanity project destined for the Disney family archive... Disney -- and his static celebrity -- fills the screen and blinds the mind."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 308 words, 09/11/09
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "Walt made sure that the studio's work was guarded like the family jewels.... No other studio could produce historical treasure like this from its vaults."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 640 words, 10/22/09
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "It's always been hard to connect the virile empire builder of legend with the sight of Disney in his tamer golden years, and this appealing film fills in the gap."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 612 words, 09/09/09
Lou Lumenick, New York Post: MODERATE(cg) "...endless, repetitive stories told by and letters read by the children of the Disney junketeers... not a whole lot of perspective on Disney himself.... superficial..."(See all of Lou Lumenick's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 330 words, 09/11/09
Ernest Hardy, Village Voice/LA Weekly: MODERATE "...flutters into the realm of hagiography, painting Disney as a baffled, almost saint-like victim of the ungrateful animators who demanded a larger piece of the pie."(See all of Ernest Hardy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 09/09/09
KEY CITIES (6 Reviews)
Jan Stuart, Washington Post: FAIR(cg) "Riding a comforting crest of Latin-inflected folk music, this indulgent, postcard-pleasant documentary piles uneventful reminiscences atop studio home movies."(See all of Jan Stuart's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 320 words, 10/02/09
Chris Foran, Dallas Morning News: VERY GOOD(cg) "...while the movie captures the tone of the time and its subject, its sepia-tinged nostalgia smooths away too many rough edges."(See all of Chris Foran's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 346 words, 10/09/09
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: MODERATE(cg) "...how did the trip influence Disney himself, as an artist and as a person? That is just one of the questions the film never gets around to answering."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 493 words, 10/23/09
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD(cg) "While skimming over the troubled waters of impending war and ongoing labor unrest, it's both a vicarious vacation and a crash course in animation."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 275 words, 10/23/09
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (3 Reviews)
Ernest Hardy, Village Voice/LA Weekly: MODERATE "...flutters into the realm of hagiography, painting Disney as a baffled, almost saint-like victim of the ungrateful animators who demanded a larger piece of the pie."(See all of Ernest Hardy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 09/09/09
HIGHBROW PRESS (4 Reviews)
Bob Mondello, NPR All Things Considered: GOOD "Disney would develop a reputation as a control freak with a dark side. But on this trip, he was not yet 40 and still willing to wear a gaucho costume and twirl a lasso..."(See all of Bob Mondello's reviews...)(Listen to the full review...) 256 seconds, 09/10/09
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: WEAK "A relentlessly upbeat vanity project destined for the Disney family archive... Disney -- and his static celebrity -- fills the screen and blinds the mind."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 308 words, 09/11/09
Anthony Lane, New Yorker: MODERATE "There is only just enough here... this may be the first documentary that contains not a single American, living or dead, who is anything but merry of disposition."(See all of Anthony Lane's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 320 words, 09/21/09
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "It's always been hard to connect the virile empire builder of legend with the sight of Disney in his tamer golden years, and this appealing film fills in the gap."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 612 words, 09/09/09
Sura Wood, Hollywood Reporter: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...sanitized, though informative... The film truly comes alive with excerpts from the Latin-American themed 'Saludos Amigos' and the witty 'The Three Caballeleros'..."(See all of Sura Wood's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 380 words, 07/03/08
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "It's always been hard to connect the virile empire builder of legend with the sight of Disney in his tamer golden years, and this appealing film fills in the gap."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 612 words, 09/09/09
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: WEAK "A relentlessly upbeat vanity project destined for the Disney family archive... Disney -- and his static celebrity -- fills the screen and blinds the mind."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 308 words, 09/11/09
18.6 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Walt & El Grupo's reviews are separated by an average 18.6 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Walt & El Grupo (19 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Walt & El Grupo's reviews cover 28.6% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 7,411 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 390 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Walt & El Grupo Coverage, Volume & Length (19 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 8 Days After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Walt & El Grupo's reviews on average broke 8 days after opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Walt & El Grupo's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Walt & El Grupo (19 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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