Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers

Last updated

Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers
Mickey, Donald, Goofy - The Three Musketeers poster.jpg
VHS and DVD cover
Directed by Donovan Cook
Screenplay by
Based on
Produced byMargot Pipkin
Starring
Edited byBret Marnell
Music by Bruce Broughton
Production
company
Distributed by Buena Vista Home Entertainment [2]
Release date
  • August 17, 2004 (2004-08-17)
Running time
65 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States [1]
LanguageEnglish

Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers is a 2004 American animated direct-to-video musical adventure film based on the film adaptations of the 1844 novel The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas and the Mickey Mouse film series by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks. As the title suggests, it features Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy as the three musketeers in their first full-length feature film together. This film was directed by Donovan Cook, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and the Australian office of DisneyToon Studios. It was released directly to VHS and DVD on August 17, 2004, by Walt Disney Home Entertainment, and was later re-released on Blu-ray Disc on August 12, 2014, coinciding with the film's 10th anniversary. The film received mixed to positive reviews from critics, who praised its musical numbers, action sequences and faithfulness to the original material, but were mixed on certain aspects and elements.

Contents

Plot

Troubadour, a French-accented turtle, inadvertently injures a storyteller just before a live broadcast. Troubadour is hastily made to take the storyteller's place, takes out his comic book, and tells the audience his favored version of The Three Musketeers.

In 17th-century France, street urchins Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, and Pluto are one day harassed by the Beagle Boys but are saved by royal musketeers. Mickey is gifted one of their hats, inspiring him and his friends to follow their example and become musketeers themselves. Years later, the trio are employed as janitors at the musketeers' headquarters, headed by Captain Pete. Pete mocks the trio's desire to become musketeers, deeming them all too unfit for the job in addition to that, the three of them do not do any of the janitorial jobs correctly without messing it up and always end up destroying parts of the headquarters. They are ordered to work in the laundry dungeon as punishment for an earlier incident.

Meanwhile, Princess Minnie narrowly avoids a large safe being dropped on her by the Beagle Boys. Captain Pete, revealed to be their boss, chastises them for attempting to assassinate her, as he wants her kidnapped so that he can take over the kingdom on the night of the Opera, but doesn't want to kill her. In response to the attempt on her life, Minnie summons Pete, demanding he produce musketeer bodyguards to protect her. Pete realizes that with experienced musketeers, his plan will thwart, but after witnessing yet another disaster, he decides to falsely recruit the incompetent Mickey, Donald, and Goofy as musketeers since he believes that they will be easy to get rid of, elating the trio. Minnie falls in love with Mickey at first sight.

While on a carriage ride, the Beagle Boys ambush Mickey, Donald and Goofy, easily defeat them, and kidnap Minnie and her lady-in-waiting, Daisy. Mickey encourages his friends to not giving up and they all hurry to rescue Minnie and Daisy from an abandoned tower. Goofy rushes in first, running up all the stairs and out a window into a series of events that catapults him back into the tower. The musketeers then engage the Beagle Boys in another fight. Donald hides, leaving Mickey and Goofy cornered, but Goofy manages to come up with an idea to jump out the window with Mickey to engage the same events as before in order to force the bandits out of the tower and into the river. Minnie and Daisy are rescued, and Minnie and Mickey spend time together and fall deeper in love.

Pete realizes that the trio is more of a threat than he originally anticipated, so he plans to get rid of them individually. While on night patrol, Goofy is lured away from the palace by Pete's lieutenant, Clarabelle, using a shadow puppet of Mickey. Donald is chased by the Beagle Boys and delivered to Pete, who reveals his true nature after trapping him in a guillotine, though Donald manages to escape, causing Pete to lose his peg leg after he tries to stop him. Donald returns to the palace to inform Mickey what happened. While Mickey chooses to remain and stop Pete, Donald is too frightened and abandons him. Pete then ambushes Mickey, locks him in a dungeon at Mont Saint-Michel and leaves him to die when the tide comes in to flood the cell.

Meanwhile, Clarabelle is about to kill Goofy by throwing him into the Seine. However, the two instantly become smitten with one another and Clarabelle has a change of heart. Clarabelle informs Goofy that Mickey is in danger. Pluto leads Goofy to Mickey's location, with Donald being dragged along. When Donald is still too scared to help save Mickey, Troubadour musically berates Donald for his cowardice, angering him into going with Goofy and Pluto. The duo narrowly saves Mickey. When Mickey despairs that their status as musketeers was a lie, Goofy encourages him by stating that despite their flaws, there is nothing they can't accomplish while together. Rejuvenated, Mickey leads his friends to stop Pete and save the princess.

At the theater, Pete and the Beagle Boys then capture Minnie and Daisy, imprisoning them in a chest. One of the Beagle Boys impersonates Minnie and announces Pete as the new king of France to the public. Mickey, Donald and Goofy arrive and battle Pete and the Beagle Boys onstage. Mickey, Donald and Goofy come together and defeated Pete, allowing them to rescue Minnie and Daisy, who profess their love for Mickey and Donald, respectively. Minnie later officially dubs Mickey, Donald and Goofy as royal musketeers, fulfilling their dream.

Voice cast

Production

An adaptation of Alexandre Dumas's The Three Musketeers , with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy as the Musketeers, was planned during the 1980s at Walt Disney Animation Studios. In 1983, storyboard artists Steve Hulett and Pete Young developed the project with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, and José Carioca as the Musketeers, but it fell into development hell. [4] In 2002, in honor of Mickey Mouse's 75th anniversary, a featurette entitled The Search of Mickey Mouse was announced. The project was about Mickey who gets kidnapped by unknown forces, forcing Minnie Mouse to enlist Basil of Baker Street to investigate his disappearance, and later encounters one character from Disney's animated film canon such as Alice, Peter Pan, Robin Hood, and Aladdin. [5] The project suffered script problems with the multiple cameos being thought to be too gimmicky. [6] After the cancellation of the latter project, a feature film based on The Three Musketeers with Mickey, Donald, and Goofy in the lead roles was greenlit instead, indicating that Hulett and Young's project had been revived but the film did not include José Carioca as in the early development.

Reception

As of October 2020, Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers had a rating of 36% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes based on 11 reviews with an average score of 4.84/10. [7]

Release

The film had a limited theatrical screening in El Capitan Theater. [8] The film was first released on DVD and VHS on August 17, 2004. [2] [9] The DVD was the first to include Disney's FastPlay, which imitates VHS operation by starting play automatically rather than waiting at the main menu for user input. [10] For the film's 10th anniversary, it was released on Blu-ray on August 12, 2014. [3]

Video games

A world named Country of the Musketeers based on the film appears in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance . [11] [12] This is the first time a world in the Kingdom Hearts series has originated from a direct-to-video feature. [13] Like the Timeless River world in Kingdom Hearts II , it is featured as a period of Mickey Mouse's past. All the characters except Daisy, Clarabelle, and the Troubadour appear.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for the film, titled Mickey, Donald & Goofy: The Three Musketeers, was released on August 13, 2004, by Walt Disney Records. [9] In addition to seven classical pieces reinterpreted with new comedic lyrics, [14] it also features a rewritten cover of the Schoolhouse Rock classic "Three Is a Magic Number" by Stevie Brock, Greg Raposo and Matt Ballinger. [9] In 2018, Mickey, Donald and Goofy: The Three Musketeers became the first direct-to-video Disney film to have its full musical score, released on CD by Intrada Records. Like the original album, Intrada's release includes all the songs from the film, though in this release, most of them are put together with the respective pieces of Bruce Broughton's background music that leads up to them. Some of the music cues include pieces of the score that ultimately went unused in the film. The "Three is a Magic Number" cover is also omitted this time.

No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."All for One and One for All ("Can-Can" from Orpheus in the Underworld, by Jacques Offenbach)" Rob Paulsen & Chorus 
2."Love So Lovely ("Dance of the Reed Flutes" from The Nutcracker and "Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture" from Romeo and Juliet , by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky)" Rob Paulsen & Chorus 
3."Petey's King of France ("In the Hall of the Mountain King" from Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, by Edvard Grieg)" Jim Cummings  
4."Sweet Wings of Love (The Blue Danube, by Johann Strauss II)" Rob Paulsen & Chorus 
5."Chains of Love (Habanera from Carmen , by Georges Bizet)" Bill Farmer, April Winchell & Chorus 
6."This Is the End (Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, by Ludwig van Beethoven)" Rob Paulsen & Chorus 
7."L'Opera (The Pirates of Penzance, by Arthur Sullivan)" Jess Harnell & Chorus 
8."Three Is a Magic Number" Stevie Brock, Greg Raposo & Matt Ballinger  

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pluto (Disney)</span> Disney cartoon character

Pluto is an American cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. He is a yellow-orange color, medium-sized, short-haired dog with black ears. Unlike most Disney characters, Pluto is not anthropomorphic beyond some characteristics such as facial expression. He is Mickey's pet. Officially a mixed-breed dog, he made his debut as a bloodhound in the Mickey Mouse cartoon The Chain Gang. Together with Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, and Goofy, Pluto is one of the "Sensational Six"—the biggest stars in the Disney universe. Though all six are non-human animals, Pluto alone is not dressed as a human.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pete (Disney)</span> Disney cartoon character, antagonist of Mickey Mouse

Pete is a cartoon character created by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks of The Walt Disney Company. Pete is traditionally depicted as the villainous arch-nemesis of Mickey Mouse, and was made notorious for his repeated attempts to kidnap Minnie Mouse. Pete is the oldest continuing Disney character, having debuted in the cartoon Alice Solves the Puzzle in 1925. He originally bore the appearance of an anthropomorphic bear, but with the advent of Mickey in 1928, he was defined as a cat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goofy</span> Disney cartoon character

Goofy is an American cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. He is a tall, anthropomorphic dog who typically wears a turtle neck and vest, with pants, shoes, white gloves, and a tall hat originally designed as a rumpled fedora. Goofy is a close friend of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, and is Max Goof's father. He is normally characterized as hopelessly clumsy and dim-witted, yet this interpretation is not always definitive; occasionally, Goofy is shown as intuitive and clever, albeit in his own unique, eccentric way.

<i>Mickey Mouse Works</i> American animated television series

Mickey Mouse Works is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation featuring Mickey Mouse and his friends in a series of animated shorts. The first Disney television animated series to be produced in widescreen high definition, it is formatted as a variety show, with skits starring Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, Pluto and Ludwig Von Drake while Horace Horsecollar, Clarabelle Cow, Morty and Ferdie Fieldmouse, Huey, Dewey and Louie, Chip 'n' Dale, Scrooge McDuck, Pete, Humphrey the Bear, J. Audubon Woodlore, Dinah the Dachshund, Butch the Bulldog, Mortimer Mouse, José Carioca, and Clara Cluck appear as supporting or minor characters. Musical themes for each character were composed by Stephen James Taylor with a live 12-piece band and extensive use of the fretless guitar to which the music of the series was nominated for an Annie Award in both 1999 and 2001. Most of the shorts from the series were later used in House of Mouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minnie Mouse</span> Disney cartoon character

Minnie Mouse is an American cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. As the longtime sweetheart of Mickey Mouse, she is an anthropomorphic mouse with white gloves, a red or pink bow, blue polka-dotted dress, white bloomers and low-heeled shoes occasionally with ribbons on them. The Mickey Mouse comic strip story "The Gleam" by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse, although this is seldom used.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clarabelle Cow</span> Disney cartoon character

Clarabelle Cow is a cartoon character created by The Walt Disney Company. As an anthropomorphic cow, Clarabelle is one of Minnie Mouse's best friends. She was once depicted as the girlfriend of Horace Horsecollar, although now she is often paired with Goofy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mickey Mouse universe</span> Fictional universe involving Mickey Mouse and related Disney characters

The Mickey Mouse universe is a fictional shared universe which is the setting for stories involving Disney cartoon characters, including Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald and Daisy Duck, Pluto and Goofy as the primary members, and many other characters related to them, being most of them anthropomorphic animals. The universe originated from the Mickey Mouse animated short films produced by Disney starting in 1928, although its first consistent version was created by Floyd Gottfredson in the Mickey Mouse newspaper comic strip. Real-world versions also exist in Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland, called Mickey's Toontown.

<i>Mickeys Once Upon a Christmas</i> 1999 American animated film

Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas is a 1999 American direct-to-video animated Christmas anthology comedy fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Television Animation. The film includes three features: Donald Duck: Stuck on Christmas, A Very Goofy Christmas and Mickey and Minnie's Gift of the Magi. Other Disney characters also make cameos in the film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mickey's Toontown</span> Themed land at Disney parks

Mickey's Toontown is a themed land at Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland, two theme parks operated by Walt Disney Parks & Resorts and The Oriental Land Company respectively. At Tokyo Disneyland, this land is named Toontown. A similar land existed at the Magic Kingdom until 2011 and was named Mickey's Toontown Fair. Walt Disney Studios Park in Disneyland Paris has a related land called Toon Studio.

<i>Mickeys House of Villains</i> 2002 film

Mickey's House of Villains is a 2002 American direct-to-video animated comedy-horror film produced by Walt Disney Television Animation. It is based on the animated television series House of Mouse and serves as a stand-alone sequel to the direct-to-video animated film Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse, starring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Daisy Duck, and Disney Villains that appeared in past Disney productions. It was released on both VHS and DVD by Walt Disney Home Entertainment on September 3, 2002.

This is a list of appearances made by Donald Duck in Disney features and cartoons.

<i>Mickeys Birthday Party</i> 1942 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Mickey's Birthday Party is an American animated short film directed by Riley Thomson, produced by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures. The 114th short to feature Mickey Mouse, it was released on February 7, 1942. The animated film was directed by Riley Thomson and animated by Les Clark, James Moore, Ken Muse, Armin Shaffair, Riley Thompson, Bernie Wolf, and Marvin Woodward. It was the 116th short in the Mickey Mouse film series to be released, and the first for that year.

<i>Symphony Hour</i> 1942 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Symphony Hour is a 1942 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The cartoon depicts Mickey Mouse conducting a symphony orchestra sponsored by Pete. The film was directed by Riley Thomson and features music adapted from the "Light Cavalry Overture" by Franz von Suppé. The voice cast includes Walt Disney as Mickey, Billy Bletcher as Pete, and John McLeish as a radio announcer. It was the 117th short in the Mickey Mouse film series to be released, and the second for that year.

On Ice is a 1935 theatrical cartoon short in the Mickey Mouse film series, produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. It was the 79th Mickey Mouse short film to be released, and the eighth of that year.

<i>The Prince and the Pauper</i> (1990 film) 1990 Mickey Mouse animated featurette

The Prince and the Pauper is a 1990 American animated comedy action-adventure featurette produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and directed by George Scribner. Featuring the voice of Wayne Allwine as Mickey Mouse, it is inspired by Mark Twain's 1881 novel of the same name. It was Disney's final use of the traditional ink-and-paint and camera process for a theatrical product, before the CAPS digital-ink-and-paint process rendered the traditional techniques and equipment obsolete. Some objects, such as the carriage, were created on computers before being printed out on paper and photocopied onto animation cels. The animation was given a watercolor look and based on Disney's style from the late 30s, influenced by Fred Moore.

<i>Hawaiian Holiday</i> 1937 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Hawaiian Holiday is a 1937 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The cartoon stars an ensemble cast of Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Pluto, Donald Duck, and Goofy while vacationing in Hawaii. The film was directed by Ben Sharpsteen, produced by John Sutherland and features the voices of Walt Disney as Mickey, Marcellite Garner as Minnie, Clarence Nash as Donald, and Pinto Colvig as Goofy and Pluto. It was Disney's first film to be released by RKO, ending a five-year distributing partnership with United Artists.

<i>Plutos Christmas Tree</i> 1952 Mickey Mouse cartoon

Pluto's Christmas Tree is a 1952 Mickey Mouse cartoon in which Pluto and Mickey cut down a Christmas tree that Chip n' Dale live in. It was the 125th short in the Mickey Mouse film series to be released, and the second for that year. While the chipmunks are usually antagonists of Donald Duck, they have pestered Pluto before, in Private Pluto (1943), Squatter's Rights (1946) and Food for Feudin' (1950).

<i>Mickey Mouse</i> (TV series) American animated television series

Mickey Mouse is an American animated television series produced by Disney Television Animation. Featuring Disney cartoon characters Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy and Pluto in contemporary settings such as Paris, Venice, Tokyo and New York, the series has the slapstick feel of the earliest Mickey Mouse shorts while providing a modern update, and "presents Mickey in a broad range of humorous situations that showcase his pluck and rascality, along with his long-beloved charm and good heartedness". The animation is provided by Mercury Filmworks.

Mickey Mouse Mixed-Up Adventures is an American animated children's television series that was broadcast on Disney Junior. Produced by Disney Television Animation, the series is the successor to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Originally airing as Mickey and the Roadster Racers for its first two seasons, it debuted on its first two episodes consecutively on January 15, 2017.

<i>Mickey Mouse Funhouse</i> American animated childrens TV series

Mickey Mouse Funhouse is an American animated preschool children's television series created by Phil Weinstein and Thomas Hart and is the successor to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Mickey Mouse Mixed-Up Adventures. The series debuted on Disney Junior on August 20, 2021. In October 2021, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on November 4, 2022. In June 2022, the series was renewed for a third season which premiered on February 23, 2024.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers (2004)". Allmovie . Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Desowitz, Bill (August 17, 2004). "Mickey, Donald and Goofy Become Three Musketeers on DVD". Animation World Network. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Wolfe, Jennifer (August 12, 2014). "Five Disney Classics Now Available on Blu-ray". Animation World Network. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  4. Harmetz, Aljean (August 27, 1984). "Animation Again a Priority at Disney". The New York Times.
  5. Harrison, Mark (March 5, 2014). "6 Fascinating Movies From Disney Animation That Never Were". Den of Geek. Dennis Publishing. Archived from the original on March 8, 2014. Retrieved March 7, 2014.
  6. Hill, Jim (December 19, 2002). "Why For?". Jim Hill Media. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  7. "Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers (2004)", Rotten Tomatoes , retrieved October 20, 2020
  8. "In His Own Words: Floyd Norman on Mickey, Donald, Goofy: "The Three Musketeers" (2004) |".
  9. 1 2 3 Walt Disney Records (August 3, 2004). "Walt Disney Records' Summer Soundtrack to Mickey -- Donald -- Goofy: The Three Musketeers is All for Fun and Fun for All". Business Wire. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  10. MODOJO (January 11, 2012). "Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance (3DS) Preview". Business Insider Australia. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  11. Square Enix (July 31, 2012). "KINGDOM HEARTS 3D (Dream Drop Distance) Dives Into Retailers Today" (Press release). PR Newswire. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  12. Diener, Matthew (May 23, 2012). "Newly released Kingdom Hearts 3D (Dream Drop Distance) screenshots highlight two new game worlds". Pocket Gamer. Archived from the original on May 25, 2012. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  13. Ehrbar, Greg (August 20, 2014). "Interview: Director Donovan Cook on "Mickey, Donald, Goofy: The Three Musketeers"". Animation Scoop. Retrieved May 22, 2015.