Family Friendly Pick: The Emperor’s New Groove (2000)
A lot of childhood favorites fail to stand the test of time, and nothing’s more heartbreaking than realizing a movie you loved as a kid just plain sucks now. Yet for every Hook and Space Jam that brings a sad tear of realization to your eyes, it’s nearly impossible to pick a title from Disney’s animated stable that hasn’t aged incredibly well. Among the best of these, in my humble opinion, is The Emperor’s New Groove, one of Disney’s funniest releases in their storied history.
The plot hardly deviates from the typical buddy romp, aside from the twist that one of the buddies is a llama. Emperor Kuzco is a selfish ruler whose underlings, Yzma and Kronk, try to kill him with poison and instead turn him into a llama – accidentally dumping him into the hands of a lowly villager named Pacha. Once he discovers that his old workers have taken over as rulers, Kuzco & Pacha embark on a journey back to the palace, eventually finding common ground, friendship, yada yada yada – all that good stuff.
Although the setup is hardly novel, a few elements make The Emperor’s New Groove endlessly entertaining for crowds of all ages. The voice cast, headed by David Spade as Kuzco and John Goodman as Pacha, is extremely talented and well-rounded. Much of the humor comes from Patrick Warburton’s turn as Kronk, while Eartha Kitt’s Yzma steals the show just as often.
The humor is full of jokes for both children and adults, with typical slapstick comedy, referential winks for parents and hidden innuendos that take multiple viewings to catch – descriptors of a well-rounded riot. Whether the thought of David Spade as a llama makes you puke in your mouth or not, the sharp writing more than carries any misgivings the plot or cast may give you. If you’re looking for a Disney movie with heart, big laughs and that’s infinitely quotable, you can’t do much better than The Emperor’s New Groove.