Set to a limited release March 26, 2010 is director Don Hahn’s documentary Waking Sleeping Beauty. See the trailer here. Hahn produced such Disney classics as Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Beauty and the Beast, The Nightmare Before Christmas and The Lion King (also The Emperor’s New Groove which is a great buddy movie if you haven’t seen it).
Needless to say Hahn knows about Disney, Disney’s failures and Disney’s successes which he documents wonderfully in this film. It seems that before my time there was a period when Disney had “lost it” and wasn’t making animated movies up to the level set by Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia, Bambi, and Sleeping Beauty to name just a few (disclaimer: I heart Disney).
Full-length animated features such as The Great Mouse Detective (a favorite of mine) were not performing at the box office as well as expected and the general feeling at Walt Disney Studios Feature Animation department was grim. A struggle between young and old, and a lot of other things, helped wake the sleeping giant that was Disney Animated Features and create the renaissance that gave us Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King.
I cannot wait to see this documentary, can you? I sure hope Dallas is one of the limited release cities if not then I may be coming to your town and sleeping on your couch just to see this movie! By the way my favorite Disney movie is The Sword in the Stone — what’s yours?
I'd have to say Sword in the Stone is one of my favorites aswell. Thats Magic, Thats Disney. I will be keeping an eye out for this release here in NYC. Thanks