| Aww, it's just the cutest thing
on four legs! This is a film that I've heard about
for a long time, and I've always had a vague idea
of what it was about. I was quite young when it
came out, so I overlooked this particular movie
for years. Instead, my childhood equivalent was
Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey.
Recently, however, I was most interested to discover
that the original version of this film was distributed
by Toho! Intrigued, I sought a copy and finally
rented the US version a few days ago. The
Adventures of Chatran (The Adventures
of Milo and Otis) just gives you a fuzzy
feeling inside. It is a solid, well-put together
movie and easily entertains all ages. There are
some flaws, however. For one, the pacing is very
uneven in several places. Also, some of the scenes
appear somewhat cruel to the animals, and if these
scenes were, in fact, perfectly staged without
any harm inflicted to the furry stars, it is very
difficult to figure out just how the filmmakers
could have pulled off some of these stunts humanely.
Finally, for the US version at least, there's
Dudley Moore. While he does do an alright job
narrating the action, the scenes where he actually
interprets for the animals seems somewhat out
of place. Despite it all, it's far from a widely
disliked film, and is still among the most popular
movies with which Toho has ever been involved.
Cute little Milo was a mischievous
kitten from day one, and was always under the
close and watchful eye of his fretting mother.
In fact, one day, Milo's mother brought her litter
to the dock to see the river, but Milo, curious
as he was, ended up getting pulled downstream.
His mother was forced to go in after him. Perhaps
it would have been too much to hope for that Milo
could have learned his lesson from this incident…
While Milo lived on the farm, he befriended an
adorable pug-nosed pup named Otis. They became
an inseparable pair after a time, and even had
a few adventures together. They even kept a watchful
eye over a solitary chicken egg, and were ultimately
forced to try and convince the hatchling that
they weren't his parents. Of course, as time went
on, Milo was up to his old tricks again. He led
his friend to the dock where the uncomfortable
experience of his earlier days appeared to have
dissipated from memory. During their survey of
the river, Milo hid in a nearby box for a quick
hide-and-seek rematch. Alas, he was rushed away
by the current. Little did the innocent kitten
realize that it would be many months before he
would be reunited with his old home. Luckily,
it wouldn't be quite so long before he would reunite
with his old friend…
Otis sped along the shoreline,
and to his horror, he witnessed an ominous bear
hungrily examining the wooden vessel. Otis managed
to valiantly lead this new peril away from his
sailing friend, but Milo was soon left alone in
the current. His small box tumbled through rapids,
and slid down a waterfall. Day turned to night,
and the fearful sights and sounds of the unknown
weighed heavily upon the poor kitten's heart.
In the morning, Otis came to a barren swamp, where
his good friend's "boat" had washed
ashore. Frightened away by the cackling birds,
Milo had already moved on, leaving the chocking
smoke of the awful bog behind him. He managed
to procure some food that a fox had hid away and
enjoyed a delectable lunch of marsh rat, as Otis'
search brought him to the shore. Exploring the
rocky beach, the determined puppy failed to notice
that the rock on which he was standing had become
surrounded by water. High tide had trapped the
frightened pup, but luckily, a snobbish sea turtle
managed to ferry Otis back ashore. Milo, in the
meantime, followed a railroad track to a lovely
meadow, where he befriended a beautiful fawn.
Otis still kept on his friend's track, but the
day was coming to an end... and as Milo climbed
a tree to safety, little did he expect that the
terrors of the night were soon to unveil themselves.
Squeals for assistance rang from
the ground below, for a piglet was trapped and
separated from his family as screech owls watched
hungrily from their perches above. Milo, who had
been under the watchful eye of a friendly owl,
rushed to the piglet's assistance. He led the
sweet little creature to safety, and the next
morning, Milo was off yet again. The mewing kitten
came across a babbling brook, where he was involved
in a slight confrontation with a greedy raccoon
and a fierce bear. Luckily, he made it to relative
safety near the shore, but in the process of hunting
eggs, a flock of gulls pecked and pushed Milo
away from their nests. Milo plummeted off a cliff
into the sea below. Drenched, but unharmed, he
sought shelter in a shack on the shore, but little
did he know that a bear was soon to follow! Fortunately,
the kitten outsmarted his foe, and after receiving
a blow to the head, the bear ran scared. Milo
escaped and climbed yet another tree. In the branches,
a slithering snake scared the kitten, and Milo
fell from the branches into a shallow pit below.
Sadly, the hole was a bit to steep and a bit to
deep for Milo to escape. Luckily, an old friend
just happened to be walking by…
Otis tossed a rope to Milo and
pulled the plucky feline to safety. The joy of
their reuniting was wonderful, but soon, the duo
came across Joyce, a beautiful cat to whom Milo
took an immediate interest. Unfortunately, Otis
soon became the fifth wheel in the newly-formed
trio, and eventually decided to leave Milo and
Joyce to their fun. He would search for another
way home…
Time passed after the second separation
of Milo and Otis; summer turned to fall, and fall
turned to winter. The forest was coated with snow,
and the animals' journey home was still incomplete.
While Milo and Joyce found a cozy home in an old
tree trunk, Otis found a mate named Sandra, and
they rode out the winter in a strange cave. Both
families gave birth to their respective litters,
and one day, as Otis was searching for food, he
found Milo taking residence in an old barn. Milo
sent Otis away with some fish, and they promised
to reunite in the spring...
When the cold and snow melted away,
Milo's family and Otis' family met each other
for the first time. Their kittens and puppies
played together, but soon it was time to begin
the last leg of their journey home. Milo and Otis
led the way, and soon they were looking on at
that wonderful place where their lives began...
Due to the lack of actors, and
the uniqueness of the plot, it is easy to come
to the conclusion that analysis could be a little
bare. Well, there is character development here,
and it is accomplished to an extent that even
puts some human movies to shame. Milo is, of course,
the mischievous kitten who gets into trouble,
but always manages to use cunning to accomplish
his goals. Otis is Milo's fall guy, who is unexpectedly
led into adventure. Luckily, his bravery sees
him through even the dimmest and most perilous
situation. Several other characters have easily
distinguishable personalities as well. There’s
Sandra the proper pup, Milo's concerned mother,
the taunting and bully-ish crows, the bubbly and
carefree fox, the snobbish sea turtle, the cunning
and thieving raccoon, the kind and friendly deer,
and the helpful owl. Perhaps it helps that this
is a children's movie, because it is very easy
to get away with quick and blunt characterization
in this format. Even still, there are some animals
that don't receive a great deal of development
at all. Of the protagonists, we know very little
about Joyce, for example. The bears, who are among
the most frequent antagonists of the plot, are
rather undeveloped too. They are never given any
dialogue, and are usually portrayed as mindless
eating machines. Of course, the case could be
made: why develop the bears, anyway? It would
have made the confrontations a little more interesting,
at least. Several barnyard animals, the hedgehog,
the crustaceans, seagulls, the pigs, and the snake
also seem to lack any depth. Of course, it would
be foreseeably difficult, especially when dealing
so many live action creatures, to accurately stage
scenes that would allow more of a peek into the
minds of these characters. Nevertheless, in the
end, development is a success, even despite the
fact that this is a movie where such an aspect
is an unusual thing to analyze.
As far as the acting is concerned...
wait a minute, there's acting?!? Well, as far
as how well the animals were trained for their
parts is concerned, this film excels. It rarely
resorts to cheap tricks, and you often lose the
notion that this had to be slowly and meticulously
"choreographed" and edited. Unfortunately,
for those of us who have seen the American version
of the film, we are denied a good 20 minutes of
original footage, and this might easily explain
why some of the pacing seems a little uneven.
Edits are often abrupt, and it is difficult to
judge the passing of time. Of course, one must
remember this was a long and challenging endeavor.
Production of the film took four years,
so if for example, Milo looks like a different
cat from scene to scene, you can guess why. The
near flawless fruit of the filmmakers labor is
still very evident, and the 18 animal trainers
involved with the product did a bang up job. Particular
scenes of interest include Otis and Milo interacting
with the baby chick, the skirmish between Otis
and the bear, and Milo's interaction with the
bear in the shed. Of course, and this is one of
the major objections to the film, certain scenes
seem a little cruel to the animals, and it is
difficult to judge how genuine certain parts of
the movie actually are. The crab clamping onto
Milo's snout, Milo tumbling off a waterfall in
his box, and Milo falling off a cliff into the
ocean are three particular scenes that can make
the audience cringe. Despite the fact that there
are methods by which the latter two could easily
be faked, the crab scene is very realistic and
actually painful to watch. Hopefully, it's only
a well-crafted illusion. Fortunately, to put people's
minds at ease, there is a disclaimer during the
credits that reads: the animals used were
filmed under strict supervision with the utmost
concern for their handling.
Concerning the music, for the American
version at least, it is really a mixed bag. There
are no outstanding sections of the score. The
most memorable music of the unsung track is a
sort of the traditional country farm theme. It's
very charming, especially in the context of this
movie. Much of the music however, is just complimentary
background music and nothing more than space filler
to accentuate the cuteness of the film. There
is one really annoying theme, however.
It plays during the Joyce scenes especially, and
it is a very obnoxious, mockingly sorrowful string
piece. The score could have done without its inclusion.
There is also one song that accompanies that track
called "Walk Outside", performed by
Dan Crow and written by Richard Terrier. It's
actually fun, despite the fact that it's specifically
geared toward children. Unfortunately, it is
an earworm theme, but that's not the bad part.
The only words you might remember are "Gonna
take a walk outside today...” over and over
and over again…
Finally, there’s Dudley Moore’s
narration of the film. While he manages to narrate
action well (which isn’t really necessary),
he does fail in one department. When he tries
to mimic the voices of the characters, it is really
grating on the nerves. He's only a few inches
away from the Bob Saget-style, and while that
kind of thing is fun in a limited format, using
this kind of style for an entire film
just doesn't work. It wouldn’t be so bad
however, if he wasn’t also responsible for
the female voices in the plot. Listening to him
do Joyce and Sandra’s voice is really a
strange mix of hilarity and obnoxiousness, and
it really makes one long for separate voice actors
for each of the characters (or none at all). Nevertheless,
Dudley Moore’s narration still doesn’t
detract too much from the movie, and certainly
doesn’t ruin the overall cuteness of the
film.
Warm, fuzzy, and cozy, this is
definitely a great feel-good movie. Perhaps I
would like it even more had I first seen it when
I was younger. It would have had a deep-routed
sentimental attachment in this case, much like
the one I have for Homeward Bound: The Incredible
Journey. Nevertheless, even at 19 years old,
watching it for the first time, I still found
The Adventures of Chatran (The Adventures
of Milo and Otis) very enjoyable. It's one
of the few kid's movies that can cater to adults
and kids alike. No matter what your age, if you
haven't seen it yet, pick up a copy. I doubt you'll
regret it.
|
(3.5/5)