I must have seen this film over twenty two years ago now when it was shown at school as part of our Christmas "fun". While I must admit I am nostalgic about this as it was an important part of my childhood I did think the film still has that certain "something" about it. I can't understand what some people want with effects these days, and I agree with some of the comments here; the effects in the film look better, stylistically, than many modern films. You still can't beat a good model and good lighting, there's something about the human eye that can still, at the moment anyway, tell computer generated graphics a mile away and they are never totally satisfying.
As for the plot, I'd forgotten how "dark" it was and it's worth watching again just to get that feel for it. Also in those days, and I guess this may insult some of the people that have written comments here, but frankly when I was young, we could actually, like...sit down and like, actually...watch a film and take in the dialogue without getting bored. My generation could do that you know! That's what surprised me with watching it so many years later, all the intense action really is in the last twenty minutes or so and the film builds up pretty nicely up to the end. There is a sinister mood to this which must have influenced me as a child but was too young to fully pick up on what was happening, for those of you that are older and remember the black "robots" you'll see what I mean.
As for the ending, what a bold move that was! I've read numerous points about what the end is actually supposed to mean but even so, you don't get many films that end as ambiguously as that these days. It's so much the better for it.
If you haven't seen it in a while, take a trip down memory lane. If you're a Sci-Fi buff, give it a whirl as parts of if are thought provoking. If you're a "modern" film viewer looking for popcorn type entertainment it's probably best not to bother, you'll end up disappointed. But if you do, remember this was a Disney film, trying to strike a balance to ensure it was real "family" entertainment and yes, it does absorb a lot of ideas and styles from other films of the decade.
Nonetheless there still is something creepy about Maximillian...
As for the plot, I'd forgotten how "dark" it was and it's worth watching again just to get that feel for it. Also in those days, and I guess this may insult some of the people that have written comments here, but frankly when I was young, we could actually, like...sit down and like, actually...watch a film and take in the dialogue without getting bored. My generation could do that you know! That's what surprised me with watching it so many years later, all the intense action really is in the last twenty minutes or so and the film builds up pretty nicely up to the end. There is a sinister mood to this which must have influenced me as a child but was too young to fully pick up on what was happening, for those of you that are older and remember the black "robots" you'll see what I mean.
As for the ending, what a bold move that was! I've read numerous points about what the end is actually supposed to mean but even so, you don't get many films that end as ambiguously as that these days. It's so much the better for it.
If you haven't seen it in a while, take a trip down memory lane. If you're a Sci-Fi buff, give it a whirl as parts of if are thought provoking. If you're a "modern" film viewer looking for popcorn type entertainment it's probably best not to bother, you'll end up disappointed. But if you do, remember this was a Disney film, trying to strike a balance to ensure it was real "family" entertainment and yes, it does absorb a lot of ideas and styles from other films of the decade.
Nonetheless there still is something creepy about Maximillian...