This particular Disney animated feature, inspired by Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist", was originally released when I was only two years old, and I never heard of it until around the time of its 1996 re-release. It seemed like a new film at the time, and I guess it was new to the VHS format when I saw it. I didn't know it was originally released in theatres years before then until I looked it up, which I believe was sometime in the past few years. I saw it at least once in the 1990's, when I was around ten years old, but after over a decade without seeing it, I've finally gotten around to doing so. By this time, I knew "Oliver & Company" wasn't one of Disney's most popular animated features, but as usual, I thought it was still a good one.
A litter of orphaned kittens are purchased on a street in New York City, but sadly, one of them, an orange cat named Oliver, is left behind. This kitten wanders the streets of the city and can't seem to find anyone to interact with until he meets a dog named Dodger. Oliver helps Dodger steal from a hot dog vendor, but the dog then refuses to share the food with him, so the homeless kitten follows the dog back to where he lives. Dodger's home is a barge, where he lives with several other dogs and their poor owner, Fagin. Fagin is in trouble, as he owes a loan shark named Sykes a lot of money, and only has three days to pay it! The next day, Oliver goes with Fagin and his dogs on a mission to try and somehow get enough money for the man to pay off his debt. While they are out on the streets, the kitten is found and adopted by a friendly little girl named Jenny Foxworth, but this may lead to more trouble.
This 27th Disney animated feature starts on the streets of New York, showing people buying the kittens. This is not a stunning beginning, but it does get rather moving as we see poor Oliver left behind in the rain. More major characters are introduced along the way, starting with Dodger, voiced by renowned musician Billy Joel. We soon hear him sing, "Why Should I Worry", a song I remember from my first viewing of the film. Of all the songs contained in "Oliver & Company", that one might stand out the most. After that, the film soon introduces the rest of the dogs that live on the barge and their owner, Fagin. These are generally likable characters, much like Oliver, and so is Jenny, who first appears a little later in the film. The voice acting is also very good, which helps. As one would expect from a Disney film, there's also humour here. Tito, a Chihuahua voiced by Cheech Marin, can be very funny, and he's certainly not the only one. The plot may not be the greatest ever written, but it's enough to hold one's interest. The animation is also pretty good here, with some nice city backgrounds.
Unlike many of the other animated Disney movies made during the 20th Century, this one is certainly not considered one of the classics, and that's understandable. There are definitely a number of better ones from the company. However, while "Oliver & Company" is nothing TOO special, it's still decent family fare, maybe more for kids, but it still has enough for adult Disney fans. I'm sure quite a few Disney buffs don't like this 1988 release at all, and there are some things which might make it a little different from most of the company's other animations, most notably the songs. These aren't typical Disney musical numbers, and I don't think most of them are among the most memorable, either, but they certainly could be worse. Anyway, while I wouldn't expect this to be one of the best animated movies you've ever seen, it still has my recommendation for those who like this type of film, regardless of age.
