The Ultimate Walt Disney Company Performances Bracket -- Round Six, Day Three
A tale as old as time...
Hello, friends, and welcome once more to the beginning of the weekend. As we mark the halfway point of the Elite Eight of the Ultimate Walt Disney Company Performances bracket, I will once again note that when this round wraps up, the bracket will take a brief spring-break…break, and will return on Wednesday, March 15.
So one of the two icons up for a vote today will have a few days to rest their heels before the Final Four kicks off. But you still gotta vote today, so let’s dive right in!
(1) Tom Hanks, Toy Story vs. (11) Angela Lansbury, Beauty and the Beast: So, here’s what I think is going to happen. I think Tom Hanks is going to win this one. This is one of two Elite Eight matchups that I would have pushed for myself, and I’m fine with either of these fine actors winning for their equally fine voice work in two very different but equally brilliant 90s-era animated films. There are no losers here.
But of course, more specifically, there will be only one winner. As I said, I expect Tom Hanks to win, but I cannot help but push once more for Dame Angela Lansbury. Limiting things to just the one performance, I realize that Hanks has more to do simply by dint of being the lead character of the film than Lansbury has as a supporting player. What can I tell you? Only one of these people sang one of the greatest songs in Disney history, and did it in one take. I vote for Lansbury, once more.
How about you?
I like to joke that there are two Tom Hanks. There’s SERIOUS ACTOR Tom Hanks who leads his troops in World War 2, brings astronauts back from the moon, and wins Oscars.
Then there’s “Blow a Gasket” Tom Hanks that buys dilapidated houses with Shelly Duval, is police partners with slobbery dogs, and hilarious overreacts to every frustration.
As Woody he somehow gets to be both and still makes it work (in the first film, anyway).
Even with all that, I still voted for Angela Lansbury. That’s how good she is.
Angela Lansbury is a treasure, Mrs. Potts is a lovely character, and her performance of the title song is iconic. But other than the song she really isn't given that much to do.
Hanks takes a character that coming off the page should be a real jerk and is basically a villain and actually brings him on a journey where you still love and empathize with him, and then Woody becomes the foundation for a whole franchise. Hanks gets to showcase both his manic comedy and his emotional pathos and the result is pretty special.