The Emperor’s New Groove

Somewhere, lost in Disney’s 1990s collapse into multiculturalism and embrace of CG animation, is The Emperor’s New Groove. This is a full-length Looney Tune with an obvious, decent moral. That means it is zany and manic at the same time that it strives to teach about the need for repentance, humility, and wholesome family life. We don’t quite know what younger viewers might take away from it, but as Christian adults we prioritized the moral and enjoyed the zaniness for what it was. May wise guardians make wise decisions.

The story involves the Emperor Kuzco, who desires to take away a community’s hilltop village by virtue of his sovereign will (known in our day as “eminent domain”). Reminiscent of Ahab’s maniacal theft of Naboth’s garden, Kuzco wants the hill for his pleasure palace, only to be opposed by the good-hearted peasant Pacha. Kuzco, however, faces his own internal threats. His right-hand lady and her sidekick use a potion to turn Kuzco into a llama, kicking him out of the palace and taking over in a secret coup. It is up to Pacha to help Kuzco return to the palace and change back into a human, so that Kuzco can return to power.

And therein lies the problem. Kuzco remains a self-centered jerk, a snideful mocker of a teenage boy, even while Pacha tries to help him. Ever a model of patience, Pacha lets Kuzco fail in his own selfish schemes again and again until Kuzco eventually relents. You know what will happen after this, but the story is told in an upbeat, postmodern way. By “postmodern” we mean nothing bad. It’s only that the story is self-referential, constantly talking about the way the story is being told. The narrative starts and stops and restarts often, providing spunk and wittiness to an otherwise mundane, familiar plot. This we liked, as well as the failed empress’ sidekick, Kronk, who is a humorous mix of Rocky Balboa and Sancho Panza. Characters like Kronk are few and far between.

The Emperor’s New Groove was part of Disney’s effort to move away from traditional European settings and artwork, so the movie is a send-up of Peruvian and Ecuadorian landscape and Incan artwork. Unfortunately, the Incan empire was far from zany and cool, as The Emperor’s New Groove might have it. Probably a real Incan emperor would’ve been more interested in burning Pacha’s children than in repealing a decision to steal property. The Emperor’s New Groove engages in historical anachronism and bad judgment when it praises the continuation of Kuzco’s bureaucracy and empire. Still, Looney Tunes always simply use history as a prop rather than strive to make a point with it. In that sense, the movie is simply innocent and ignorant.

Entertainment: 9
Intelligence: 3
Morality: 6