(The Disneycember logo is shown, before showing clips from The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. "Winnie the Pooh" is played throughout.)
Doug (vo): Who doesn't love Winnie the Pooh? Hell, he's like one of the most innocent things on the planet. I think there's a law actually forbidding people not to like him. I know people who despise (image of) Mickey Mouse, but they can't bring themselves to actually say they hate Winnie the Pooh. So what is it? What is it that just makes him so likeable? Well, I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that, while he is very optimistic, he does make mistakes, and he does get in trouble. He's very naive, but he's also very pleasant. And I think that makes him much more interesting than someone like Mickey Mouse. He's still positive, but, there's just much more of a character to play with. And it all started with this one film, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. These characters are so famous now, I don't even have to name them, Kanga, Roo, Tigger, Owl, Rabbit, Piglet, Eeyore, the list goes on.
Story
Doug (vo): The story is very loose, in that there's not that much of a flowing narrative. It's just sort of the life of Pooh and his friends through the course of, I don't know, a year maybe? It's just all the troubles, circumstances, and weird situations they get in, and how they manage to live or get around it.
Review
Doug (vo): As a kid, I liked it fine, but watching it now years later, actually, it's a lot better than I remember it. They actually make a lot of fourth wall jokes using the book that they're in, and even sometimes talk with the narrator.
Narrator: And so we come to the next chapter, in which...
Pooh: But I haven't finished yet.
Narrator: But, Pooh, you're in the next chapter.
Pooh: Oh. What happens to me?
Narrator: Well, let's turn the page and find out.
Doug (vo): But that's not the only reason it's good. There's just this sense to it, this atmosphere, this real likability to this world that they've created. It's very laid-back, it's very slow-paced, but at the same time, these characters are just so interesting and so... nice, that, you really enjoy spending time with them. You don't care if not much is going on, you could just have a conversation with any one of these people and you'd probably be very satisfied. I really like movies like that that don't feel they have to stick to the three-act structure and instead, just let you shoot the shit for a bit. They just let characters breathe and do whatever it is they do. And these characters are really enjoyable, and the situations they get in are really enjoyable. We've got some real creative scenarios with the wind storm, Pooh trying to get more honey, and, of course, another trippy as hell Disney scene with "Heffalumps and Woozles".
Singer: A heffalump or woozle is very confusle. A heffalump or woozle's very sly.
Backing vocalists: Sly, SLY, sly.
Doug (vo): The songs are catchy and clever, the animation I think actually matches the mood and style they're going for, and like I said, there's just a real heavy atmosphere to it. I especially like the ending. There's no big climax, no chase scene, no major discoveries, it's just Christopher Robin talking with his imaginary friend, and the inevitability of the future.
Christopher Robin: Pooh. When I'm away just doing nothing, will you come up here sometimes?
Pooh: You mean alone? Just me?
Christopher Robin: Yes. And Pooh. Promise you won't forget me? Ever?
Pooh: Oh, I won't, Christopher. I promise.
Doug (vo): That's actually kind of heavy stuff.
Final thought
Doug (vo): Winnie the Pooh is not often looked at as one of the great Disney films, but it is looked at as one of the great Disney characters. And that's all the film is, just enjoying this character and all the people that surround him. It's clever, it's nice, it's friendly, I really enjoyed watching it again. In fact, it's one of the few Disney films where I like it just as much as a kid as I do as an adult. It takes me right back to that same place I enjoy, and I always love coming back.
(The end scene with Christopher Robin and Pooh skipping into the distance plays out)