Home on the Range

To save their farm from foreclosure, three cows (voices by Rosanne Barr, Judi Dench and Jennifer Tilly) set out to capture a notorious cattle rustler (Randy Quaid), so they can pay off the mortgage with the reward money. After this feature, the Walt Disney Co. is getting out of traditional ink-and-paint animation, and the sad truth is it’s just as well. Will Finn and John Sanford, who wrote and directed, have almost no experience—only six titles between them in the last 20 years—and it shows. The film is garish and frenetic but absolutely lifeless: It has a weak, illogical story; dull characters with awkward, unappealing designs; and corny, groan-inducing jokes. And, finally, there are several bland songs by Alan Menken, whose work has seemed aimless and mediocre since the 1991 death of lyricist Howard Ashman.