The Rescuers Down Under was the very first Disney animated sequel to a feature film. Even to this day, there are very few sequels in the Disney Animation Canon as most sequels were direct-to-video and made by Disney Toon Studios. Fantasia 2000 and Winnie the Pooh were the only other sequels for many years, but Disney has started including more in the canon with the upcoming releases of Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-it-Ralph 2 (2018) and Frozen 2 (2019).
Premiered on: November 16, 1990
Directed by:
Hendel Butoy
Mike Gabriel
Produced by: Thomas Schumacher
Based on: The Rescuers by Margery Sharp
Sequels: none
Cast:
Eva Gabor – Miss Bianca
Bob Newhart – Bernard
John Candy – Wilbur
Adam Ryen – Cody
George C. Scott – Percival C. McLeach
Frank Welker – Marahute / Joanna
Tristan Rogers – Jake
Douglas Seale – Krebbs
Peter Firth – Red
Wayne Robson – Frank
Russi Taylor – Nurse Mouse
Bernard Fox – Mr. Chairman / Doctor
Carla Meyer – Faloo / Cody’s mother
Directing Animators:
Glen Keane
Mark Henn
Russ Edmonds
David Cutler
Ruben A. Aquino
Nik Ranieri
Ed Gombert
Anthony De Rosa
Kathy Zielinski
Duncan Marjaribanks
Music by: Bruce Broughton
Songs: none
Academy Awards: none
The Story:
The Rescuers Down Under begins with a close up shot of different insects crawling around plants. The scene then zooms through the plants and focuses on Kata Tjuta and Ayers Rock in the distance. The scene rapidly zooms closer to the rock formations as the opening credits play and stops on a house that is located between the two rock formations.
The scene then zooms through an open window of the house where a boy sleeping in a hammock under a pile of laundry. He wakes up to the distance sound of a didgeridoo. He quickly gets dressed and grabs a pocket knife before sneaking out of the kitchen door, where his mom is making breakfast. He closes the door but once outside his mom calls his name and asks “what about breakfast?” Cody assures her that he has some sandwiches in his backpack. She then tells Cody to be home for supper and the boy takes off.
He runs through the desert and into a forest. Some of the forest animals are hurrying him along and he is waking up the other animals that are still sleeping. Cody tells them that Faloo is sounding the call. He reaches the clearing where Faloo the kangaroo is blowing into a hollow log, which is making the didgeridoo call. Cody knows that an animal has been caught in a poachers trap and Faloo says that it is Marahute the great golden eagle who has been caught in a poacher’s net high up on the cliff. Cody jumps on Faloo’s back and the kangaroo brings him to the bottom of the cliff.
Cody climbs up the cliff and finds the trapped eagle asleep. Marahute wakes up when Cody reaches her and starts to panic. Cody slices off the ropes as quickly as he can but then when Marahute is free, Cody is knocked off of the cliff in the process. Marahute soars down and catches Cody on her back and takes him for a ride. The eagle then brings Cody to her nest to show the boy her three eggs hiding under some leaves. Cody asks when they are going to hatch and Marahute shrugs her feathers. Then Cody asks where the daddy eagle is and Marahute hangs her head very sadly. Cody tells her that he understands because his dad is gone as well. They cover the eggs back up and a wind blows a golden feather towards Cody. He places it over the eggs as well but then Marahute picks up the feather and gives it to Cody. The new friends hug.
In the next scene, Marahute has dropped Cody off in the forest and they hug goodbye. Cody runs around the forest, pretending to be soaring like an eagle. The golden feather is strapped to his backpack. He runs past a sign that reads “Wanted: McLeach.” Cody then hears a jingling sound and he finds a little mouse tied to a bell. Cody goes to save the mouse, but the mouse warns him to get away. But Cody does not listen and he unties the mouse, only to fall into a trap below. This also sets off an alarm.
The alarm is read by Percival McLeach in his truck.
Back at the trap, the mouse climbs to the top of the pit and throws a vine down for Cody to climb up. The boy starts to climb up but then a large truck suddenly bursts through the forest. The truck cuts the vine and Cody falls back into the trap. Joanna the goanna appears at the top of the pit and scares Cody. Then McLeach appears and sees that it is a boy in his trap, not an animal. He quickly tries to cover up his story by blaming Joanna for digging holes again but Cody knows that it is a poacher’s trap. McLeach denies this and pulls Cody out of the trap to send the boy on his way. But Joanna spots the mouse in Cody’s backpack and attacks Cody, sending McLeach flying into the trap. He is very angry with Joanna and is going to shoot the lizard when he spots the golden feather attached to Cody’s bag. He asks Cody where he got the feather from but Cody says it is a secret. McLeach says that he has already got the daddy eagle and shows Cody another golden feather. He tells Cody to tell him where the other eagle and the eggs are but Cody still refuses and runs away. Joanna chases him and they reach a cliff where crocodiles are below. McLeach catches up and snatches Cody. He puts the boy in a cage in the back of his truck and throws the boy’s backpack down to the crocodiles below to make it seem like Cody was eaten by the crocodiles.
The mouse sees this and scurries off to go get help. He reaches the Rescue Aid Society telegraph office. He tells the other mouse inside the office what has happened and the message is sent. The telegraph first reaches the Marshall Islands where a RAS mouse receives the message in an old airplane. He transfers the message to the Hawaiian Islands to a security office where the screens suddenly all read “RAS RAS RAS” over and over again. The RAS mice see this message and telephone the office to distract the humans. Then they can receive the message which reads “Attention. Boy kidnapped in Australia. Immediate action required.” They need to get the message to New York and they send it there via Los Angeles to Denver to St. Louis to Chicago to Washington, DC and then finally to New York City.
At the United Nations building in cold and snowy New York City, there is a code red signal and all of the RAS mice gather in the headquarters for an emergency meeting. Mr. Chairman calls for order. He announces that there has been a kidnapping in Australia and so they are in need of the Rescue Aid Society’s finest. He is sure that they all must be thinking of the same two mice and the scene pans to show the Hungary and USA seats, which are empty. Mr. Chairman says that they must find Bernard and Miss Bianca at once!
At a fancy restaurant, a waiter drops a pea and a cricket quickly snatches it up. The cricket flings the pea up in a catapult and it then lands in a thimble where a cricket chef is cooking pea soup. He then gives the pea soup to a cricket waiter who brings the soup out to the chandelier of the fancy restaurant. The chandelier is its own fancy restaurant to the mice and insect world. Bernard and Miss Bianca are having dinner there and Miss Bianca toasts to their wonderful friendship. Bernard is acting very nervous and Miss Bianca asks if there is anything on his mind. Bernard tells her that actually there is and he reaches into his coat pocket only to find a hole where the engagement ring slipped out. He spies the ring bouncing away and crawls after it, leaving a very confused Miss Bianca behind.
While Bernard is gone, Francois the cockroach brings Miss Bianca a note about the mission from the Rescue Aid Society. Miss Bianca says that she must tell Bernard about this at once and Francois volunteers to go find the other mouse.
The ring is now underneath another table and Bernard has gone under the table to find it. Francois finds Bernard and tries to tell him about the mission but Bernard won’t listen; he is too focused on the proposal. Bernard returns to Miss Bianca and they have a confusing conversation where Bernard thinks that Miss Bianca is talking about the wedding and Miss Bianca thinks that Bernard is talking about the mission. Bernard suggests that they hold it next April but Miss Bianca insists that it must be done tonight. Bernard suggests that she needs a new gown for it but Miss Bianca thinks that just khaki shorts and hiking boots will do.
They arrive at the Rescue Aid Society headquarters to a warm welcome. Miss Bianca gives an announcement about how they have accepted the mission to Australia and this is when Bernard realizes that they have been talking about very different events this whole time. This is also the first he has heard of the mission but there is no backing out now.
They head to Albatross Air in the snow storm. Bernard is too scared to fly and makes many excuses not to go. A sign reads “Under new management. See Wilbur” and so the two mice head over to the hanger where Wilbur is dancing and singing. Bernard turns off the music so they are able to introduce themselves. Wilbur is very excited to meet them because he has heard so much about the pair from his brother Orville. But he does think that they are joking when they say that they need to leave for Australia that night. He does not want to fly in the snow storm. The mice explain that a little boy has been kidnapped and he does have a change of heart at hearing that a child is in trouble. So they take off in storm, with lots of distress but eventually they make it.
Back in Australia, McLeach is still driving with Cody in the cage in the back of the truck. The boy keeps yelling for help and McLeach tells him to be quiet and that they are heading back to the poacher’s hideout.
At Cody’s home, his mom is yelling his name and is worried that he isn’t coming home.
Wilbur has caught a ride on an airplane. An announcement comes on that they are approaching the Sydney airport and so Wilbur takes off out of the airplane with Bernard and Miss Bianca in tow. They soar over the city of Sydney and head to the outback to Mugwomp Flats.
At the small airport in Mugwomp Flats, Jake the kangaroo rat and Sparky the fly are playing checkers when Wilbur comes over the radio asking for permission to land. Jake checks his charts and realizes that an albatross is classified as a jumbo and he knows that there is not enough room for him to land. He tries to turn Wilbur away because the runway is too short but Wilbur does not listen and lands anyway. Jake and Sparky attempt to extend the runway but it is still too short and Wilbur crash lands. But when he comes to a stop, Jake pushes the ladder up to Wilbur’s back so the passengers can come down. He is instantly smitten with Miss Bianca and takes her one bag for her while Bernard struggles with the rest. Wilbur offers to help with the bags as it is part of the Albatross Air service but as he takes the bags from Bernard, he throws out his back. Jake tells Sparky to watch the tower while he gets the bird to a hospital.
The nearby hospital is in an old medical van. The nurse mice have Wilbur all tied up and Miss Bianca and Bernard leave and tell the bird that they will be back as soon as they have the boy. The doctor assures Miss Bianca and Bernard that Wilbur will be just fine. After the rescuers leaves, the nurses launch the back brace, which is an old cane. Wilbur starts panicking and the doctor tells the bird to remain calm or he will have to take drastic measures. But Wilbur continues to freak out and so the mice shoot a needle into his bottom.
Miss Bianca and Bernard are looking at a map and are completely lost. Jake asks Miss Bianca if she and her husband are there for an outback excursion and Miss Bianca corrects him and says that she and Bernard aren’t married. Jake is very happy at this. Bernard tells him that they are there on a top secret mission and Jake correctly guesses that they are there to rescue the kidnapped boy. He tells Bernard and Miss Bianca that there are not many secrets in the outback. He offers to help Bernard read the map, but just makes up scary names of the places that they are going to come across such as Suicide Trail and Nightmare Canyon. Jake then says that maps are no good in the outback and tells them that they will need a guide. Miss Bianca asks Jake to be their guide and Jake is flattered. He leads Miss Bianca by the arm as Bernard follows behind.
The Rangers are searching the crocodile waters for Cody as the mice go by on the back of a sugar glider. Miss Bianca and Jake are up front and Bernard is desperately trying to hold onto the tail. Jake puts his arm around Miss Bianca and Bernard is quite jealous. Then they land but Bernard is flung off the tail before he has a chance to reach the ground and he lands in a prickle bush.
McLeach is down in his office in his hideout. He wants Cody to answer where Marahute is and throws daggers at a map that is behind the tied-up boy. Joanna is in her bath and eating animal crackers nearby. Cody still insists that he does not remember where the eagle is. McLeach then offers to split the poachers’ money with him but the boy refuses.
Miss Bianca is pulling prickles out of poor Bernard and she mentions that Jake has been gone awhile. Bernard sees his chance to propose and he pulls out the ring. But he quickly gets interrupted by Jake rescuing them from a snake. Jake wrangles the snake and tells the animal that he is going to bring them to where they need to go. And again, Miss Bianca and Jake ride at the front of the snake and Bernard is on the tail.
Back at McLeach’s, the villain has thrown Cody into a cage and says that he will give him one night to think it over. Cody keeps yelling that he will never tell as McLeach leaves the room. Frank the frilled-necked lizard is in the hay of the cage and he starts yelling with Cody. The other animals around the room in their own cages start to talk to Cody. Krebbs the koala says that the only way out of there is as a purse or wallet or belt. Frank starts to freak out but Cody is positive that they will think of something. They work together and start to tie sticks together with shoelaces in an attempt to get the keys off of the wall. But Joanna appears and breaks all of the sticks. So Frank starts to try and pick the lock with his tail, though no one else has any faith that will work.
Miss Bianca, Bernard, and Jake are riding on fireflies in the night. Bernard is struggling to keep upright but the other two mice are having a great time.
The next morning, back at the medical van, Wilbur wakes up with his head in a vice and the nurses are getting ready for surgery. Wilbur starts freaking out again and tries to escape but the mice all pull him back through the window. In the process, Wilbur lands on the doctor and this cracks his back. He feels back to normal and so he quickly takes off to find Miss Bianca and Bernard.
At Cody’s home, the Rangers are knocking on the door because they found Cody’s backpack. They give it to his mom and they assume that he has been eaten by the crocodiles. The end of the search is also announced on the radio.
The same radio message is playing at McLeach’s. The poacher thinks that he needs some food to help him think of a plan to find the eagle and mentions that he wants eggs. Joanna perks up at the word eggs and is very excited. As McLeach is getting ready to cook the eggs, she keeps eating them while he is not looking. She ends up eating all of the eggs and McLeach is very angry with her because those were not Joanna eggs! But this gives him an idea that the eagle’s eggs might be Cody’s weak spot.
Frank is still trying to pick the lock on the cage and he actually succeeds but does not realize it. Once he does, he is very excited and everyone tries to get him to be quiet and calm down. He must get the keys down but he can’t reach them. Krebbs and Red the kangaroo tell him to get something to stand on and Frank grabs a board. This offers him absolutely no height and so he grabs a box instead. He is able to reach the keys but they are too heavy and so he drops them loudly to the ground. Joanna appears at the sound and chases Frank around. The lizard drops the keys but Cody is able to pick them up and he lets himself out. He is trying to let the others out as well but is caught by McLeach. He grabs Cody and then yells at Frank to get back in his cage. McLeach leaves with the boy.
The rescuers arrive at McLeach’s and start to dig under the door to get inside. Jake suggests saying “open sesame” as a joke, but the door actually starts to open as he says it. The mice grab onto the door and climb to the top as it rises. The see McLeach throw Cody out and tell him that Marahute is dead, that someone else shot her. The mice think this must be a trick as McLeach lets Cody leave. The poacher says to Joanna that it is too bad about the eggs, now they will have no mother or father. This is said loudly enough for Cody to hear. Cody then takes off, presumably to help the eggs, and McLeach gets in his truck to follow. The mice jump on the back of the truck.
Wilbur is flying and trying to find the mice. He asks other birds if they have seen Miss Bianca and Bernard.
Cody reaches the cliff and starts to climb down to where the eggs are. The truck stops nearby. The mice scurry down to Cody and warn him that he is in great danger. But then Marahute appears and Cody sees McLeach on the top of the cliff. He warns Marahute to turn away but McLeach shoots a net and traps the eagle. Cody jumps onto the eagle in an attempt to save her and Miss Bianca and Jake jump as well. Cody tries to cut the ropes in time but McLeach hauls up the net and is determined to get rid of Cody for good. He throws them all into a cage in the back of the truck. McLeach then sends Joanna down to eat the eggs.
Joanna reaches the eggs and bites into one. It is completely hard and breaks one of her teeth. She then bites into another and it is the same thing. So she pushes them off the cliff to pretend that she ate them to please McLeach so he hauls her back up.
Bernard is hiding by the real eggs and he had put rocks in the nest instead. Wilbur then arrives and Bernard tells the albatross that everyone else has been kidnapped. Wilbur starts to freak out and Bernard tells him that his job is to stay there and sit on the eggs.
In the truck, Miss Bianca tries to comfort Cody by saying that Bernard is still out there and that she knows he will never give up.
At sunset, Bernard is racing through the desert and he sees the truck far in the distance. He comes across a sleeping pig and very assertively tells the pig that he is going to give him a ride. Bernard uses the same speech that Jake gave to the snake. The pig takes off and follows the tracks of the truck.
At a cliff over the rushing river, McLeach is going to lower Cody down to the crocodiles below. He dangles Cody up and down but suddenly the power goes out in the truck, saving Cody for now. The pig runs out of the truck and McLeach goes inside to check it out. The keys are missing from the ignition and Bernard is hiding them behind the gas pedal. He sneaks out of the truck with the keys but Joanna sees him and chases the mouse. Bernard throws the keys up to Miss Bianca and Jake in the cage.
Meanwhile, McLeach is trying to shoot the rope that is dangling Cody. So Bernard gets Joanna to chase him and they run right into McLeach, sending them both McLeach and Joanna over the cliff. McLeach gets chases down the river by the crocodiles. Cody falls into the river as well and Bernard jumps in after the boy. He is able to save Cody. McLeach falls over a waterfall as Joanna waves goodbye.
Miss Bianca and Jake are finally able to unlock the cage and Marahute flies out. She saves Cody and Bernard before they fall over the waterfall. She then soars off into the night with Cody and all of the mice safely on her back. Bernard is finally able to propose to Miss Bianca and she says yes!
Wilbur is back at the cliff and is yelling for anyone to come help him. But then the eggs start to hatch and he is stuck looking after the chicks.
Then the end credits roll.
Trivia:
- A team took a two week research trip to the Australian outback. Additionally, there were many trips to the San Diego Zoo to study the animals that appear in the film.
- Albatross Air’s slogan is “A Fair Fare from Here to There.”
- The Rescuers Down Under was released as a double bill with The Prince and the Pauper featurette.
- The Rescuers Down Under is well known for its use of the Computer Animation Production System, or CAPS. This allowed for digital use of inking and painting cells which was a huge cost saver for Disney. It also allowed the use of intense zooming effects, think of the opening sequence of the scene zooming towards Ayers Rock.
- This sequel film is based only on the characters from Margery Sharp’s books and not a specific plotline.
- The location of Australia was inspired by the popularity of Crocodile Dundee (1986).
- Jim Jordan, who provided the voice of Orville in the first film, sadly passed away shortly before The Rescuers Down Under. Instead of being recast, John Candy was hired to play his brother Wilbur. Orville and Wilbur are named after the Wright Brothers.
- In many of the dubbed films, it is known as Bernard and Bianca in the Land of Kangaroos or Bernard and Bianca in Australia because Down Under does not translate well.
- The Rescuers Down Under was the last feature film for Eva Gabor before she passed away in 1995. She did have a few other television appearances in the early 1990s.
- Russi Taylor, voice of Nurse Mouse in this film, has been the long time voice of Minnie Mouse since 1986.
Representation in the Disney Parks:
There is currently no representation of The Rescuers Down Under aside from meeting Bernard and Miss Bianca in Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea.
Check out the other films of Disney’s Renaissance:
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