"The Rescuers" is not only my favorite animated Walt Disney feature of all time, but it is probably one of the most touching, heart-warming films the studio has ever produced. Production for "The Rescuers" begun back in 1973 and was finally completed and released on June 22nd of 1977. The story is based on two of Margery Sharp's children's novels, "The Rescuers" and "Miss Bianca" and begins when a mice organization in the basement of the United Nations building in New York City, receives a call from help contained within a bottle that has just made its way across the ocean. A little girl named Penny appears to be in trouble in some far-off place and needs someone to go in her rescue at once. Hearing the heart-breaking note, the Hungarian delegate, Miss Bianca, volunteers for the mission. Mr. Chairman hesitates and objects to letting the fair lady go alone on what may be such a dangerous quest, but finally gives in when she chooses for a companion the humble, shy janitor, Bernard. The two mice are soon on their way and must rely as of now in their only clue, the message inside the bottle which was addressed to Morningside Orphanage in New York. When the two mice find the place, they manage to get in and find inside a box full of the girl's belongings, and next to it, an old cat named Rufus' nap is interrupted. Rufus tells the two mice that he is no longer interested in chasing mice, due to his old age and that they need not be afraid for he will not harm them. When the old cat learns of the two mice's quest to find the little girl, Rufus tells them about the last time he saw Penny and how he tried to cheer her up as she found herself in a crisis of faith. The cat also mentions a suspicious woman who had tried to take Penny away for a ride in her car and the two mice soon know that they've found an important clue. After much investigating, Bernard and Miss Bianca learned that the old woman, by name, Madame Medusa, had in fact kidnapped the little girl and taken her far away to Devil's Bayou, an uncharted island off into the Atlantic Ocean. Madame Medusa, who works as a pawn shop owner, is a greedy woman who will not stop until she finds the Devil's Eye, the world's largest diamond and a priceless jewel that rests within a dark, dangerous, underground pirate cave where only a little girl can enter through the small, narrow opening. Bernard and Miss Bianca will have to take Penny away from the dangerous clutches of the evil woman and her two beastly pet crocodiles Brutus and Nero. Not doing so in time could mean a visit to the horrible dark cave where the little girl and the two mice may just as well drown when the tide rises. Luckily for the three, in Devil's Bayou, besides the horrible beasts and the gloomy atmosphere, they find a good deal of helpful friends who are willing to risk their lives to save the little girl and do away with the evil Madame Medusa.

"The Rescuers" came out in 1977, one of the last few years of Disney's second golden age which had begun with Cinderella in 1950. The age which saw the tragic death of Walt Disney. Still, the company managed to produced many wonderful, highly recommended film for a good ten years afterwards such as "The Aristocats", "Pete's Dragon", "Bedknobs and Broomsticks", "The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" and naturally, "The Rescuers". This film was a huge box office success and I can see why, it definitely proved that Walt Disney Productions was up and running with as much creativity as before. Unfortunately, that changed in 1979 as the great financial failure of "The Black Hole" gave way to great financial problems that affected the company until 1989. Anyways, it is a shame that The Rescuers is not as popular now-a-days as it was when it first came out, it is without a doubt one of the most charming films the studios has produced, up there with Bambi, Dumbo, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and others. Sadly, the lack of popularity has kept the film from receiving a proper DVD release and the current one out in the marker is everything but acceptable. The film looks old, dark and crummy, the colors are washed out and the original brilliance and detail of the art and animation is now mostly looking bland and murky. The sound quality is average, nothing to brag about but nothing that was a problem, either. The bonus features included on the DVD are alright, nothing too interesting that relates to the film other than a pretty decent art gallery. The two features included on the DVD are great, those are a Silly Symphonies cartoon, "The Three Blind Mouseketeers" and a True-Life Adventure, "Water Birds". As much as I loved the film, I can't really recommend the DVD but I definitely recommend this film to anyone who hasn't seen it or anyone who loves the best of the Disney classics. Keep in mind though, that what you're seeing when you watch this film is not "The Rescuers" in its original brilliance and glory, but an aged, murky shadow of what it was when it first came out, with its light colors and all. As a last thought, avoid the 1990 sequel produced thirteen years after this one, you'll regret seeing how such a charming story could ever be turned into such an annoyingly comic, silly one despite advanced animation techniques.