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The Swan Princess |
| The Swan Princess | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster. |
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| Directed by | Richard Rich |
| Produced by | Nest Family Entertainment Richard Rich Terry L. Noss Thomas J. Tobin Jared Brown |
| Written by | Brian Nissen Richard Rich |
| Narrated by | Brian Nissen |
| Starring | Michelle Nicastro Howard McGillin Jack Palance John Cleese Steven Wright Sandy Duncan |
| Music by | Lex de Azevedo |
| Editing by | Armetta Jackson-Hdamlett James Koford |
| Distributed by | New Line Cinema Columbia TriStar Turner Home Entertainment |
| Release date(s) | November 18, 1994 |
| Running time | 90 min. (approx.) |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| Gross revenue | $9,771,658 (domestic) |
| Followed by | The Swan Princess II: Escape from Castle Mountain |
The Swan Princess is a Golden Globe nominated 1994 animated film based on the ballet "Swan Lake". Starring the voices of Jack Palance, Howard McGillin, Michelle Nicastro, Steven Wright and John Cleese, the film is directed by ex-Disney animation director Richard Rich, with a music score by Lex de Azevedo. There were two sequels: The Swan Princess II: Escape from Castle Mountain and The Swan Princess: The Mystery of the Enchanted Kingdom.
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King William, father of Princess Odette, and Queen Uberta, mother of Prince Derek, conspire to matchmake their two offspring in the hopes of bringing their kingdoms together. As children and adolescents, Derek and Odette cannot stand each other, but when they meet as adults, they suddenly see each other in a different light and fall in love. ("This Is My Idea") When Derek announces that they may go ahead and plan the wedding, Odette protests, asking Derek, "Is beauty all that matters to you?" to which Derek mistakenly says, "What else is there?"
Odette and her father leave Uberta's castle, and during their journey they are attacked by Rothbart, an enchanter whom King William had banished years before. King William's Captain makes it back to Derek's castle to tell them that they were attacked by a "Great Animal". When Derek rides out to the site of the attack, he only finds King William, who dies after telling Derek, "It's not what it seems" and that "Odette is gone." The people of the kingdom take this to mean that Odette is dead, but Derek believes that she is still alive, and vows to find her. To this end, he constantly practices his archery skills with his semi-nervous friend, Bromley. ("Practice, Practice, Practice")
In truth, Rothbart has cast a spell on Odette, keeping her captive at a lake in the woods. Although she is free to leave the grounds whenever she likes, as soon as moonlight leaves the lake, she transforms into a swan. In order to turn human again, Odette has to be on the lake itself, and moonlight has to touch her wings. Rothbart explains that he wants King William's kingdom legally, and can only do so by marrying Odette. Every night Rothbart visits her to ask her to marry him, and every night she says no. While staying at the lake, Odette befriends three animals: Jean-Bob the deluded French frog that thinks he's a prince, Speed the Eeyore-sounding turtle, and Lieutenant Puffin the Irish puffin. Odette believes that Derek is looking for her, just as Derek believes that he will one day find her. ("Far Longer Than Forever")
Working together with her animal friends ("No Fear"), Odette manages to lure Derek to the lake, where she transforms in front of him. She explains that the spell can only be broken by a "vow of everlasting love", which Derek must "prove to the world". Derek asks that Odette attend the ball that is being held at his castle the following night, so that he may make the vow in front of all the guests. After Derek leaves, Rothbart arrives and reveals that he has heard their entire plan. He transforms his sidekick, Bridget, into a likeness of Odette so that she may attend the ball instead; if Derek makes the vow to the wrong woman, Odette will die. ("No More Mr. Nice Guy") Rothbart locks Odette in the watery dungeon of his castle.
At the ball, numerous princesses are introduced to Derek. ("Princesses on Parade") Odette manages to escape the dungeon, but she arrives at the ball too late. Derek realizes his mistake, and chases Odette as she flies back to the lake and transforms back to her human form, though she is dying. Rothbart appears and transforms into the Great Animal, and a fight ensues between him and Derek. As the animals fetch Derek his lost bow from the lake, there was no arrow. Luckily, Brom sent an arrow to Derek, helping him kill the Great Animal in the heart. Derek manages to explain his love to Odette, and it revives her back to life. The pair are married in a royal wedding, with the entire kingdom rejoicing.
The Swan Princess had a theatrical release in November 1994 to a lukewarm response of $2,445,155 on its opening weekend. It eventually had a total domestic gross of $9,771,658.1 Currently has a "C" At Boxofficemojo. as of 2008 38% of the critics at Rottentomatoes give positive reviews (based on 8 reviews).
The Swan Princess was originally released on home video on August 1, 1995. In certain European countries, the full The Swan Princess trilogy was released in a 2-disc double-sided set on February 16, 2004. On March 30, 2004 the film was re-released to mark its 10-year anniversary, with a new cover for the video and Special Edition DVD. The Special Edition DVD contains a few extras, including trailers, a read-along feature, a sing-along feature and games. On August 2, 2005, The Swan Princess was released as a double-feature DVD with its sequel The Swan Princess: The Mystery of the Enchanted Kingdom.
Two sequels were made to the movie: The Swan Princess II: Escape from Castle Mountain and The Swan Princess: The Mystery of the Enchanted Kingdom. The sequels are alternately titled The Secret of the Castle and The Mystery of the Enchanted Treasure respectively in certain European DVD releases. Both sequels deal with the heroes having to face other dark arts magicians who are connected with Rothbart, the villain of the original movie. Most of the main voice cast did not return for the sequels except Michelle Nicastro who reprised her role as Odette, and Steve Vinovich who reprised his role as Puffin. The two sequels featured re-used animation and background shots from the original film, as well as the original music score.
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