Christopher Walken Starred In One Of Disney's Most Infamous Box Office Bombs

There are more movies based on Disneyland attractions than you may realize, ranging from Brian De Palma's not-so-well-known "Mission to Mars" to the box office juggernauts that are Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean" films. Indeed, because of the "Pirates" movies, the Mouse House refuses to stop trying to turn its theme park rides into films. Yet, in truth, these movies tend to bomb pretty hard. "Mission to Mars," "Jungle Cruise" and "Haunted Mansion" all lost gobs of money (yes, COVID-19 was partially to blame for "Jungle Cruise" misfiring), while "Tomorrowland" remains one of Disney's biggest box office flops ever. The "Pirates" franchise is the exception to the rule.

Also on the pile of bombs? Peter Hastings' utterly bizarre 2002 musical comedy film "The Country Bears," based on the Disneyland animatronic musical revue show "Country Bear Jamboree." The stage program, some haunted children may recall, opened at Disney parks in the 1970s and features a cast of singing musician bear characters (all brought to life by audio-animatronic figures) who take turns playing various country-inflected songs. Their ranks include the emcee Henry, the pianist Gomer, the guitarist Romeo "Liver Lips" McGrowl, the hip-shakin' Terrence (aka. The Shaker), the lovelorn Trixie, and others besides. The attraction is inexplicably popular, and its songs are legitimate earworms.

Case in point: The stage show was still rolling high in the early 2000s when Disney, in its finite wisdom, elected to make a feature film about the Country Bears. The bears themselves were brought to life through a blend of animatronics and voice acting, with their singing voices being provided by notable musicians and country stars. Meanwhile, the villain of the film is Reed Thimple, a vicious banker portrayed by a weirdly committed Christopher Walken.

I shan't fault the animatronic technicians for doing the job handed to them. The bears themselves are complex robotic achievements. It's their design that is creepy. The bears look like updated versions of the cartoonish animatronics from the theme parks, lending them a bizarre, lumbering inauthenticity. It might have been the bears that kept audiences away.

One cannot fault the cast either, as everyone is committed. As the bears' voices, one has classy actors like Haley Joel Osment, Diedrich Bader, Candy Ford, and James Gammon bringing their all. When the bears sing, they are voiced by the likes of E.G. Daily, Bonnie Raitt, John Hiatt, and Don Henley. And so far as live-action actors go, it's always a delight to see stalwart supporting players like M.C. Gainey and Stephen Tobolowsky getting work. There are plenty of musical cameos to keep one's eyes sharp, too. Look out for Elton John, Queen Latifah, Willie Nelson, Brian Setzer, and Xzibit.

Most devoted of all, though, is Christopher Walken as Reed Thinmple, who aims to repossess the failing Country Bear Hall — the venue where the Country Bears used to perform in their heyday — and demolish it. The plot of "The Country Bears" involves hosting a benefit concert to save the Hall. Thimple, meanwhile, gleefully dreams of its destruction, and there is a very, very amusing scene in the film where he repeatedly crushes a series of Bear Hall models in his office, cackling and mock-whining in the bears' voices. Walken is in full Walken mode for "The Country Bears," giving a peculiar, off-balance performance as funny as anything he has done before.

Critics largely hated "The Country Bears," and the film holds a mere 29% critical approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes (based on 84 reviews). Reviewing the movie for The Austin Chronicle, Marc Savlov began by writing, "To paraphrase George A. Romero, when there's no more room in Hell, the Country Bears will walk the earth, alternately savaging their prey and crooning limp, country-fried retreads of popular hayseed standards." Ouch. Savlov later added, "It's as if David Lynch had taken a stab at the Disney franchise while on a Zoloft bender at Dollywood. [...] [T]his is either one of the best 'head' films of all time or one of the worst examples of Disneyfied opportunism to come down the pike in years."

Roger Ebert was a little kinder, although he only gave the film two stars (out of four) in his review. He was baffled by the movie's existence all the same, writing:

"It's hard to figure who the movie is intended for. In shape and purpose, it's like a G-rated version of 'This Is Spinal Tap,' but will its wee target audience understand the joke? Anyone old enough to be interested in the music is unlikely to be interested in the bears — at least, interested in the movie's routine and wheezy plot." 

Ultimately, "The Country Bears" only made $18 million at the box office against a $35 million budget. It remains a baffling curio from a pre-"Pirates of the Caribbean" era when Disney had yet to crack the code when it comes to movies based on its theme park attractions. Some would argue the studio still hasn't.