Once Upon A Disney #24: The Fox and the Hound

It's not the '70s anymore. Wave the cute mice and moderate peril behind. Things are taking a dark turn this week with the gut-wrenching... 

The Fox and the Hound (1981) 

I approached this film with a fair degree of trepidation — having only watched it once as a child, it was promptly banished from my family's rotational Disney viewing for being deemed too upsetting. Sitting down to watch it again, some 20 years later, I was sure it couldn't have been quite as distressing as I remembered. I was wrong. 

Back when swimming pools were a thing... sigh

From the opening titles, you can tell that this isn't going to be the fuzzy family favourite that most Disney animations promise. In place of a romantic orchestra or a cheesy choir, is a score more akin to a thriller.  Spooky strings are the only form of music, underlying the sound of a stark breeze, and the occasional forest creature. In fact, it's like we've been plunged straight into the most harrowing part of Bambi — complete with the protagonist's parent, this time a fox, being shot in the first 5 minutes. Welcome to the danger zone, kids. 

While large portions of the proceeding story try to lighten the mood — with the introduction of a kindly old lady who takes care of our orphaned fox Tod, and an unlikely friendship forming between Tod and the neighbouring hunting dog, Copper — the film never quite shakes off the sense of doom set up at the beginning. 

We could all do with a Big Mama hug right now — especially after watching this traumatic film

A motherly (if racially stereotyped) owl, called Big Mama — yes, really — narrates the story in a reassuring fashion, bolstering the more light-hearted moments. Baby Tod and Copper are genuinely adorable, playing together in the innocence of youth. Big Mama doesn't seem to think it wise to bring up the fact that one of them will be conditioned to kill the other at some point. Boys will be boys, after all. There's also a forced comical sub-plot with a couple of other birds trying to hunt down and eat a worm, that evades them all year round. But they're not distracting us from the inevitable heartbreak and trauma. 

It's difficult to tell exactly what message this film is trying to portray. If it's anti-hunting, then picking on this one highly unusual tale doesn't quite do the job. If it's anti-men, then it's a bit more effective. Copper's owner, Amos, is a hunting man through-and-through, and absolutely brutal when it comes to adding foxes to his collection. For some reason, even though his truck is chock-full of pelts, he's determined to shoot his neighbour's pet fox — his neighbour being a ridiculously sweet old widow. 

Guaranteed he'd refuse to wear a mask

For Widow Tweed, Tod is the only thing that brings her joy. She gives all her love to this abandoned fox, who becomes like a child to her. And now this DICK, Amos, makes her drive all the way to a game reserve to say goodbye to her beloved pet, for fear of him being unnecessarily killed out of pettiness. It's horribly upsetting. But at least Tod is safe now right? WRONG. Amos only goes and trespasses on to the reserve with newly-killer-trained Copper in tow, still intent on finishing off the poor guy. This is getting psychotic. 

No-one has business creating these kinds of scenes 😭

Here's where I was really left fuming though. After a traumatic chase, involving Tod and his lady fox being trapped in a fiery tree, a fight with a colossal and terrifying bear, and falling down a huge waterfall, Copper and Tod finally put their rivalries aside and save each other.  Very sweet. And Amos finally yields and lets Tod live. The bloody least he can do. 

But — get this — while Widow Tweed has every right to never speak to the bastard again, and move far, far away, she actually warms to Amos. She nurses his injuries with simply an eye roll. Guys, I'm done. 

My anger levels when Amos called Widow Tweed a soft 'female' 

Anyway, that was The Fox and the Hound, a waste of tears. It's going back in the vault for me. 

Villain Rating: I realised I lost this section part-way through this challenge, but I think Amos the demon allows me to bring it back. You guessed it — 10/10 for sheer malice and persistence to kill, just for the glory

Best Song: All the songs are pretty weak, but I'll pick 'Goodbye May Seem Forever,' because the whole sequence is genuinely heart-breaking 

Disney Detail: Copper's mentor dog, Chief, has that distinctive Disney drawl given to many of its hounds, especially the duo in The Aristocats. Also, the Bambi parallels are suitably unsettling. 

Why it's a Classic: The character animation is up-to-scratch, and I suppose we can call it 'the traumatic '80s one.' Unless one of the next movies blows it out of the water.