Piglet's Big Movie

Piglet's Big Movieis a 2003 Americananimatedmusicaladventurecomedy-drama filmproduced by the Japanese office ofDisneytoon Studiosand released byWalt Disney Pictures.The animation production was byWalt Disney Animation Japan, Inc.with additional animation provided by Gullwing Co., Ltd., additional background by Studio Fuga and digital ink and paint by T2 Studio. The film features the characters from theWinnie-the-Poohbooks written byA. A. MilneandE. H. Shepardand is the third theatrically releasedWinnie the Poohfeature. It was released on March 21, 2003, to generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $62.9 million worldwide. In this film,Pigletis ashamed of being small and clumsy and wanders off into theHundred Acre Wood,leading all of his friends to form a search party to find him.

Piglet's Big Movie
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Francis Glebas
Screenplay by	Brian Hohlfeld
Based on	Winnie the PoohandThe House at Pooh Cornercreated byA. A. Milne(Books)
Produced by	Michelle Pappalardo-Robinson
Starring	John Fiedler Jim Cummings Nikita Hopkins Ken Sansom Peter Cullen Kath Soucie Andre Stojka Tom Wheatley
Edited by	Ivan Bilancio
Music by	Carl Johnson(score) Carly Simon(songs)
Production companies	DisneyToon Studios Walt Disney Pictures
Distributed by	Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Release dates	March 16, 2003(2003-03-16)(Premiere) March 21, 2003(2003-03-21)(United States) July 29, 2003(2003-07-29)(Disney DVD and video)
Running time	75 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$46 million
Box office	$62.9 million

Plot

Piglethas made a scrapbook containing pictures that depict all of the adventures he has went on with his friends. He soon findsWinnie the Pooh,Tigger,Rabbit,andEeyore,who exclude him from a plan they're working on because of his small size, even after Piglet saves them from an attack by a group of bees. Disheartened, Piglet sets out to discover how he can be useful. Meanwhile, Piglet's friends discover his disappearance and decide to search for him; using Piglet's scrapbook as a guide, the four use its pictures to tell the stories depicted therein, leading to several flashbacks.

The first story told is whenKangaandRoofirst moved to the Hundred Acre Wood. Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, and Rabbit are afraid of the newcomers and Rabbit concocts a plan to use Piglet as a decoy, so they can ransom Roo to force Kanga to leave. When Kanga finds out about the plan, she plays along by pretending that Piglet is Roo, eventually causing Piglet to realize Kanga's kindness, which prompts his friends to accept the kangaroos into theHundred Acre Wood.Back in the present, Roo joins the others in searching for Piglet.

The second story tells the story of how everyone in the Hundred Acre Wood went on an expedition to find theNorth Pole.During the search, Roo falls into a river, prompting Piglet to use a long stick to launch him out. Unfortunately, his heroism is overlooked when he gives the stick to Pooh to try to catch Roo (where he is caught by his mother), causingChristopher Robinto mistake the stick for the North Pole and credit Pooh for finding it. Back in the present, the friends begin to realize how much they have ignored Piglet's actions.

The third story concerns the building ofthe House at Pooh Corner.Pooh, Piglet, and Tigger get the idea of building Eeyore a house in an area they name "Pooh Corner",using some neatly stacked sticks for building. After many failed attempts, Pooh decides to offer Eeyore to move in with him only for Eeyore to reveal that the sticks Pooh, Piglet and Tigger foundwashis house. Piglet manages to rebuild Eeyore's house and shows it to him, satisfying the donkey.

Back in the present, an argument between Rabbit and Tigger ends with the scrapbook falling into a river. Without their guide and with a storm coming, the gang sadly return to Piglet's house, where they draw pictures depicting all of Piglet's heroic actions. Eventually feeling reinvigorated, the group decide to resume their search for Piglet.

During their search, the gang find Piglet's scrapbook suspended on a hollow log looming over a waterfall. Pooh goes to retrieve it, but he falls into a hole in the log, and the others are unable to reach him. At that moment, Piglet arrives and, with encouragement from his friends, helps pull Pooh to safety just as the log begins to break in half. Everyone manages to escape just as the front half of the log breaks off, but the scrapbook itself is destroyed by the fall. Although saddened by this loss, the group take Piglet back to his house to show him all of their drawings, much to Piglet's joy.

Sometime later, a party is thrown in honor of Piglet, where Pooh reveals that he renamed Eeyore's home "Pooh and Piglet Corner"to represent all the big things that Piglet has ever done. During this scene, the camera pulls back to show a large shadow of Piglet behind everyone.

Cast

Main article:List of Winnie-the-Pooh characters

• John FiedlerasPiglet
• Jim CummingsasWinnie the PoohandTigger
• Andre StojkaasOwl
• Kath SoucieasKangaand Christopher Robin's singing voice
• Nikita HopkinsasRoo
• Peter CullenasEeyore
• Ken SansomasRabbit
• Tom Wheatley asChristopher Robin

Production

Piglet's Big Moviewas produced byDisneytoon Studios,Walt Disney Animation (Japan),Gullwing Co., Ltd, Studio Fuga, and T2 Studio.

The film was originally intended as adirect-to-videorelease, in February 2002 Disney announced that the film andThe Jungle Book 2would be released theatrically.

Music

Piglet's Big Movie (Soundtrack)
Soundtrack albumby Carly Simon
Released	March 18, 2003
Recorded	2002–2003
Length	43:02
Label	Walt Disney Records
Producer	Matt Walker Carly Simon Rob Mathes Michael Kosarin

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic

American singer-songwriterCarly Simonwrote seven new songs for the film, and performed six of them ( "If I Wasn't So Small", "Mother's Intuition", "Sing Ho for the Life of a Bear", "With a Few Good Friends", "The More I Look Inside", and "Comforting to Know" ), as well as recording her own version of theSherman brothers'"Winnie the Pooh" theme song which she previously recorded inA Very Merry Pooh Year.

"The More It Snows" featuresJim CummingsandJohn Fiedler,as Pooh and Piglet. Simon was accompanied by her children Ben Taylor andSally Tayloron many of the songs.Renée Flemingaccompanied Simon on the song "Comforting to Know". On "Sing Ho for the Life of a Bear" Simon was accompanied by the cast.

The soundtrack also features five tracks of the film's score by Carl Johnson, as well as five of Simon's original demonstration recordings.

Songs

Original songs performed in the film include:

No.	Title	Performer(s)	Length
1.	"Winnie the Pooh"	Carly Simon,Ben Taylor,Richard M. ShermanandRobert B. Sherman	2:53
2.	"If I Wasn't So Small (The Piglet Song)"	Carly Simon	1:57
3.	"Mother's Intuition"	Carly Simon	2:38
4.	"Sing Ho for the Life of a Bear"	Carly Simon& Cast	1:37
5.	"The More It Snows (Tiddely-Pom)"	Jim Cummings&John Fiedler	1:02
6.	"With A Few Good Friends"	Carly Simon,Ben Taylor &Sally Taylor	2:38
7.	"The More I Look Inside"	Carly Simon	4:22
8.	"Comforting to Know"	Carly Simon&Renée Fleming	4:37

Reception

Box office

Piglet's Big Moviewas number seven on the box-office charts on its opening weekend, earning $6 million. The film domestically grossed $23 million,half the amount of whatThe Tigger Movieearned,and it grossed nearly $63 million worldwide.

Critical response

OnRotten Tomatoes,the film received a rating of 70% based on 77 reviews, and an average rating of 6.2/10. The site's critical consensus is "Wholesome and charming entertainment for young children."OnMetacriticthe film has a score of 62/100 based on reviews from 23 critics.Audiences surveyed byCinemaScoregave the film a grade A, on a scale of A+ to F.

Film criticStephen HoldenofNew York Timescalled the film an "oasis of gentleness and wit".Nancy Churnin ofThe Dallas Morning Newsstated thatPiglet's Big Moviewas "one of the nifty pleasures in the process", despite her belief that "Disneymay be milking its classics ".

Accolades

Award	Category	Recipient	Result
Annie Awards	Outstanding Effects Animation	Madoka Yasue	Nominated

Games

Main article:Piglet's Big Game

In 2003, Disney releasedPiglet's Big Gamefor thePlayStation 2,GameCube,andGame Boy Advance,as well as a game on CD-ROM that was also entitledPiglet's Big Game.The latter was developed by Doki Denki Studio and involves helping Piglet assist in the preparation for a "Very Large Soup Party".In their review, Edutaining Kids praised various features including the adventure/exploration aspect (the game is linear instead of using a main screen) and many of the activities (such as the color mixing, which they said offers an incredible variety of hues), but noted that it is much too brief and that Kanga and Roo are absent.

Sources

The film's plot is based primarily on five A. A. Milne stories: "In which Piglet meets a Heffalump," "In which Kanga and Baby Roo Come to the Forest, and Piglet Has a Bath," and "In which Christopher Robin Leads an Expedition to the North Pole" (chapters 5, 7, and 8 ofWinnie-the-Pooh); and "In which a house is built at Pooh Corner for Eeyore" and "In which a search is organized and Piglet nearly meets the Heffalump again" (chapters 1 and 3 ofThe House at Pooh Corner).

Releases

Marketing

Disney released a teaser trailer of Piglet's Big Movie in May 2002 onThe Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh25th-anniversary edition VHS and DVD home video releases and on theWinnie the Pooh:A Very Merry Pooh YearDVD release in November 2002. The teaser was later attached to theatrical screenings ofSpirit: Stallion of the Cimarron,Lilo & Stitch,The Powerpuff Girls MovieandStuart Little 2.The next trailer for the film was released with the theatrical screenings ofJonah: A VeggieTales Movie,Treasure Planet,The Wild Thornberrys MovieandThe Jungle Book 2.The trailers for the film were also attached to other Disney home video releases.

Theatrical

The film premiered on March 16, 2003 and opened in theaters on March 21, 2003.

Home media

The film was released on VHS and DVD on July 29, 2003.

External links

• Official website
• Piglet's Big MovieatIMDb