A thousand voices. A single dream.

     Newsies

     Director: Kenny Ortega

     Drama, Family, Musical

 When I think of the name Christian Bale, the first thought that comes to my mind is..  “Batman“ or “American Psycho.”  Not so much  “Disney muscial box office failure.”  I’m sure the same goes for you as well. Well, stop picturing the Dark Night, and try to imagine a younger more innocent Bale as a poor orphaned newsboy…who can sing!

      Newsies is based on the true story of the Newsboys Strike of 1899 in New York City.  In July of that year, Jospeph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst raised the distribution price one-tenth of a cent per paper. The newsboys, who were poor enough already, were outraged and decided to go on strike. With Jack “Cowboy” Kelly (Christian Bale) as the voice of the new union, the poor orphans were able to find the strength to fight and challenge the ones who were more powerful than they.  You’ll fall in love with Bale again when you see how powerful his voice really is.

     According to IMDb.com, Newsies was not a commercial success when first released. It was actually ranked among the highest-costing and lowest-grossing Disney live-action films in the studio’s history (due to it being released on the same day as FernGully: The Last Rainforest which also failed). However, the picture gained fans when it was released on VHS and was played on the Disney Channel. 

      This film also has other big names attatched to it as well. This was the debut film for choreographer Kenny Ortega, who also did Dirty Dancing and Highschool Musical, movies that you can not escape if you try. Newsies also featured the music of big time composer, Alan Menken. Other works he is known for are, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Alladin and many many more.  

Newsies – Trailer

 

Newsies – King of New York