Film

Oliver & Company

Name: Oliver & Company
Genre: Animation, Comedy, Family
Released: 1988
Cast: Joey Lawrence, Billy Joel, Cheech Marin, Richard Mulligan, Roscoe Lee Browne

Survival adventure

Disney's scrappy retelling of Oliver Twist with a kitten and street dogs in 1980s New York. It's got heart, jazzy animation, and a genuinely chaotic energy—less polished than the studio's Renaissance films, which gives it charm. Perfect for kids who like underdogs and anyone nostalgic for when Disney tried weirder things.

TMDb rating

3.4

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you grew up loving Disney's animated sidekick-heavy adventures and enjoy a scrappy, street-level story where a lost kitten finds a found family among city dogs, with a bouncy Harry Nilsson-era pop score in the mix.

Skip it if you want sharp modern animation or a story that doesn't lean on its sweetness; the drawing is soft, the villain is broad, and the mood stays cosy even when the stakes rise.

What it asks of you: It runs about seventy-four minutes and moves briskly, with songs breaking up the chases, so it asks little beyond a willingness to let a cartoon city be warm and cheerful.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Rescuers Down Under1990

Another underrated Disney adventure with genuine stakes, inventive action sequences, and a scrappy hero who doesn't fit the usual mould. The animation is stunning and the villains are memorably nasty.

But It's slower to start than Oliver & Company, and the Australian setting means less immediate charm for some viewers. Some find the tone uneven.

An American Tail1986

Bluth's immigrant mouse family story has the same scrappy, earnest energy. It swings between genuine pathos and vaudeville humour without losing you, and the animation is lively and inventive throughout.

But It's more emotionally heavy than Oliver & Company, with genuine moments of loss. Some sequences are genuinely scary for younger kids.

The Secret of NIMH1982

A dark, ambitious animated adventure where a mouse mother fights to save her children. The hand-drawn animation is gorgeous, the story has real weight, and it takes itself seriously without being precious.

But It's genuinely darker and more violent than Disney's output. The animation style won't appeal to everyone, and it moves at an uneven pace.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Oliver & Company

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Stray Dog1949

Both find grace and moral clarity in the lives of society's outsiders. Where Oliver finds family through luck and charm, Kurosawa's characters find humanity through recognition of shared suffering.

Kurosawa's humanist masterpiece about a cop tracking his stolen gun through Tokyo's underworld. It's about dignity, desperation, and connection across social divides—the same moral spine Oliver & Company has, but filtered through neorealism and genuine tragedy.

But It's Japanese cinema from 1949: black-and-white, unhurried, and deeply serious. No songs, no colour, and the conclusion is bittersweet rather than redemptive. A substantial commitment.

DuckTales: The Movie - Treasure of the Lost Lamp1990

A perfectly pitched adventure film with Scrooge McDuck and his nephews. It's funny, the action is crisp, and it trusts its audience to follow a proper plot while keeping the tone light and enjoyable.

But If you've never watched DuckTales, you'll feel like you're joining mid-conversation. The humour skews toward kids and can feel slight if you're older.

DuckTales: The Movie - Treasure of the Lost Lamp poster

Aladdin1992

Peak Disney formula: a street orphan finds his place in the world through friendship and charm. The animation is vibrant, Robin Williams is electrifying, and the songs genuinely land. It's confidence made visible.

But It's been quoted to death, and the colonial attitudes don't age gracefully. If you've seen it before, there's little new to find.

The Land Before Time1988

Baby dinosaurs finding each other and learning to survive. It's genuinely moving without being maudlin, the animation has real personality, and it captures the loneliness and friendship that makes Oliver & Company work.

But It's emotionally bleak for long stretches. Some younger kids find it genuinely distressing, and the animation quality is uneven.

All Dogs Go to Heaven1989

A dog gambler gets a second chance at redemption. It's weird, sentimental without being sappy, and genuinely charming. The voice acting is warm and the story has real emotional stakes.

But The animation is occasionally clumsy, and the tone whipsaws between comedy and genuine grief. It's not as slick as the Disney competition.

Anastasia1997

A street orphan discovers her identity and finds family. Gorgeous animation, strong voice work, and a fairy-tale energy that never condescends. The emotional core is real and the supporting characters are genuinely funny.

But It's more adult-aimed than Oliver & Company, which can feel tonal whiplash. Some find it overly dramatic, and the ending is predictable.

Undone2019

Both use unconventional animation to tell stories about outsiders finding community and strength. Where Oliver finds dogs, Undone finds a magical heritage—but both are about belonging outside the world's expected structures.

A rotoscoped series about a woman discovering magical powers while struggling with her family and identity. It's visually stunning, emotionally complex, and genuinely surprising. Each episode expands what the show can do—it's ambitious animation with real stakes.

But The visual style is deliberately disorienting and won't appeal to everyone. It's adult and psychologically dark, touching on mental illness and family dysfunction. The pacing is deliberate rather than plot-driven.

Watership Down1978

Both use animal protagonists to explore what home means and who you choose as family. Oliver's found family is built on scrappiness and luck; Watership Down's is built on necessity and survival—but both understand that community is the only answer to a hostile world.

An animated epic about rabbits fleeing their destroyed warren. It's visually beautiful, genuinely thrilling, and completely unafraid to devastate you—the violence is shocking, the journey is epic, and the theme about community survives everything.

But It's brutal and occasionally graphic. The pacing is slow, the ending is ambiguous, and it carries a weight that animated films rarely attempt. This is not comfort viewing.