MovieChat Forums > Oliver & Company (1988) Discussion > Anyone saw this back in 1988?

Anyone saw this back in 1988?

posted 16 years ago by TalesfromTheCryptfan
40 replies | jump to latest

I sure as hell did when i lived in Omaha in 1988 when i was 7 years old, i saw this after thanksgiven that year and i loved it. I had some of the merchandise especially the Mcdonalds finger puppets and Mcdonald singing ornuments and saw it 3 more times. i was disappointed it never came out on video until 1996 but i still had great memories of it. I also enjoyed seeing it again on the big screen when i was 14 as did some of my junior high friends who remembered seeing it in theaters when they were kids too and i still enjoy the film as i watch it every thanksgiven and christmas time as a tradition.

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[–] HigherHusky 16 years ago

I wasnt born until Decemeber of 1989. But I watched this movie a lot when it came out on VHS. This movie, Lady and the Tramp and Lion King were like the movies I watched all the time. And I still do. xD Yay! Theyre are amazing movies. hahaha!

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[–] Naylie 16 years ago

I was born in June 1989 and I enjoy the movie so much when I was little. I can't wait to get the 20th anniversary next Feburary.

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[–] HPfanonezillion 16 years ago

I was only 2 when it came out, but my sister was 4 and she loved it. So I watched it when I was a kid. And I even still, to this day, have a stuffed Dodger. My sister had one too. The legs had wire in them and were pose-able. My little brother still has it somewhere in his room (he's 4.) I am watching it again for the first time all these many years later. Ah, memories!

ET steal home.

[–] thereseuphemiaabernathy 16 years ago

You might have the same Dodger as me! I also have Oliver, Rita, and Georgette in plush...and a collection of other O&C merchandise. :)

[–] peeaecee 16 years ago

I did. It's actually the first film I can remember seeing in a theater.

[–] LuckyLucius (342) 5 years ago

The Disney Store had a set of bean bag plush characters of Oliver And Company when the film was rereleased in 1996 but so far only the series had Oliver and Dodger in bean bag plush characters but no Georgette plush Rita or plush Tito were released. I just started to develop a crush on Billy Joel and since I learned about him in Oliver And Company I also want a stuffed Dodger as well and have one on my birthday list. Hope I get it

[–] LuckyLucius (342) 5 years ago

I still don't have my Dodger plush yet but I got to see Oliver And Company in parts on Disney+ today and to this day it's a cool movie. I especially love Why Should I Worry and think Dodger's so cool when he dances and sings. I also think Tito's a bit of a scaredy cat and has a lot of fear but he manages to be nice and doesn't let anyone down

[–] lilysky101 16 years ago

I was born in 1992...and we have it on VHS...I love this movie!

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[–] stefkate14 16 years ago

I didn't, I was born 2 years after it came out and mum got the video for us in the late 90's.

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[–] tapdancer 15 years ago

I was 10 in 1988 and I remember seeing it in a movie theatre. :) I've always loved the soundtrack; it's one of my favorites from Disney.

[–] feelingsoalive 15 years ago

I thought it came to video before '96. I loved that movie when I was a kid. I was 7 when it came out!!!

[–] lyris1 15 years ago

This is the first film I ever saw at the cinema, when I was 3. I think in the UK, it came out in 1989. I was surprised it took so long to appear on VHS.

[–] TalesfromTheCryptfan 15 years ago

Nice to know that i'm not the only here who saw it back in 1988 as a kid.

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[–] 15 years ago

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[–] TalesfromTheCryptfan 13 years ago

Ooh cool those happy meal toys were cool and so were the Ornaments.

"You killed Captain Clown, YOU KILLED CAPTAIN CLOWN"-The Joker on Batman TAS

[–] NothingButDVD 14 years ago

I did! I was 11 and I still have fond memories of that trip to the mall when I got to see it. It was a holiday release and the whole mall was decorated, total richness (I was a poor kid who never got to go to the movies, so it was a whole, wealthy experience). Also, the line to get in was really long ! This was a popular one that broke records at the time.
I even got to see a night show, and it was SO GOOD! I loved it. From the opening track (Once upon a time in NY), I just adored this movie.

Then, it VANISHED. Disney just *would not* release it. I waited for years for it to show up on video. I got a plushy too! The Dodger stuffy with the red bandana.

It's a cute movie. Fun. Not Disney's best (by far), but just a good movie all around and better than some of the crap they've made recently. (Frog Princess, ugh.)

[–] rocketXpert 14 years ago

I remember seeing it in a theater with my family, and that was the first and last time I ever saw this movie. But I remember really enjoying it at the time.

[–] vnisanian2001 14 years ago

Unlike the OP, I didn't see Oliver & Company in its entirety, until its rerelease in 1996. My earliest memory of it was on one of the Disney Sing-Along-Songs, that featured a couple of songs from it.

I don't get why Disney didn't release it on home video until 1996. Perhaps if they had released it on home video in 1989, it might have been even more successful than it actually is.

One piece of merchandise that I wish I had are the 1988 and 1996 presskits/pressbooks. I wonder if they give detailed bios on all the principal voice actors and photos of them?

[–] 14 years ago

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[–] vnisanian2001 14 years ago

Of the four pre-Mermaid Disney animated films of the 80s, it seems that Oliver & Company was the most harshly criticized. A quick look into rotten tomatoes reveals the following:

The Fox & the Hound: 71% positive reviews
The Black Cauldron: 57% positive reviews
The Great Mouse Detective: 81% positive reviews
Oliver & Company: 42% positive reviews

Poor Oliver. I'd like to think of its percentage of positive reviews as a metaphor for that opening scene where no one wanted Oliver in the beginning.

I didn't know that they were originally going to come out sometime in 1990/1991. That's interesting.

[–] PopSixSquish 14 years ago

I didn't see the movie in 1988 either, because I was only born in 87. I was in the same boat--I became a fan before I ever saw the whole film because of the Oliver merchandise my parents bought--including some plushies, a Christmas ornament, a poster, and storybooks--and the Sing-Alongs. I saw it in the theater at the re-release and was as enamored as I knew I'd be. From there, I pre-ordered the VHS and got my lithograph with it, then later sold that on eBay in a set of VHS tapes I was replacing with their DVDs. I also wish I had the presskits and books; that's one bit of O&C memorabilia that sadly never fell into my eager hands.

I think that those four less successful 80s movies are all absolutely wonderful, classic masterpieces, and criminally underrated...I'd rank Oliver first, followed closely by The Fox & the Hound, The Great Mouse Detective, and The Black Cauldron.

[–] vnisanian2001 14 years ago

There was a lithograph that came with the VHS release? What was on it?

[–] PopSixSquish 14 years ago

It's a blue-framed image of the main animal cast (Dodger's gang, Oliver, and Georgette) posing in a group shot on a New York sidewalk. :)

[–] 14 years ago

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[–] PopSixSquish 14 years ago

Yeah, I've never really set too much store by that site either. Sometimes it's an accurate indicator, but you can't trust it implicitly...especially since my opinion often differs from several critics'. At any rate, I feel this film is worthy of much higher than a 6.4 as well, but that's my opinion, and at least it's above average. :D

[–] 14 years ago

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[–] PopSixSquish 14 years ago

Mm, I guess that's fair enough. ^^ I can sorta understand why most don't consider it one of the greatest Disney films, but I do think it's horrendously underrated...the worst of classic Disney is still amazing, and light years ahead of a lot of more recent productions, imo.

[–] candylover1 12 years ago

Yes, I saw it when it was in theatres. Depending on the month I was 9 or 10 years old (currently 33).

I was so sad no one wanted to adopt Oliver! Honestly, as a cat lover, I would have taken them all!

[–] thereseuphemiaabernathy 12 years ago

So lucky! +D And yes, I don't think I'd have been able to resist helping the whole boxful of adorable, appealing kitties, either. ;3;

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[–] Merry-Go-Girl 12 years ago

Yes, when I was 5 I dragged my mother to the cinema to see it with me. The merchandise we got were badges of the main charterers you could send away for with coupons from cat food. Yep, still got them all today. Oh my gosh the wait for it to come out on video seemed huge at the time!

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[–] thereseuphemiaabernathy 12 years ago

Oh, I know, I know!! How well I remember my hyper excitement, waiting to see it in the theater and then own it. I brought my soundtrack and sang the songs out loud everywhere, listened to for hours on car rides...poured over my storybooks and the illustrations, got some of my friends at school into it with me in various ways, pretended to be Rita and Dodger and Georgette and others...this movie was one of the biggest obsessions of my childhood. Really, anything with animated animals--especially dogs--was fair game...and still is, hehehe.

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[–] zakima2 11 years ago

I remember television commercials for this movie and begging my mom and dad to take me to see it. At that time they were going through divorce and my aunt took us to see this amazing little film about a kitty that nobody wanted.
Well I was pumped because Tito was forsure my favorite character without even seeing the movie. I remember a line on the commercial where he would say ( awh man why do I always end up looking like the fuzzy end of al lollipop man) I was jumping in my seat waiting for that single line to blurt out of his mouth but it never came. I remember the power going out and the film picking up further down the line. I didnt even know that the song streets of gold was in this movie until it had its theatrical re-release. I am so happy that oliver and co made its way to video and dvd and now on August 6 2013 it will make its way to Bluray, sadly it will not have the hype of the other releases but as long as the transfer is as good as it was on vudu in 1080p I will be pleased

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[–] thereseuphemiaabernathy 11 years ago

Awwww!! XD Maybe they replaced that line with "Yeah, well, it's hard to watch anything when you're getting barbecued, man!" I've never seen the old trailer with that other "lollipop" line. Aha, it stinks that the power went out while you were finally getting to see it!! But I'm glad to hear that it'll finally be coming to Blu-Ray. That's great for anyone who doesn't own it yet. Unless the disc has some kind of excellent new bonus material, though, I don't think it's worth replacing my DVD...since to me, DVDs and Blu-Rays are virtually the same exact thing (still not 100% clear on just what makes Blu-Rays slightly superior), and my players take both, so...^^