The Tigger Movie

The Tigger Movie was the second theatrically released Winnie-the-Pooh feature film. It was originally released on February 11, 2000 in the United States. The movie is centered around Tigger, who for the first time in his life realizes how boring it is to be the only one of his kind, and excitedly decides to search for his family.

Cast

Tigger and Winnie the Pooh - Jim Cummings
Piglet - John Fiedler
Rabbit - Ken Sansom
Eeyore - Peter Cullen
Roo - Nikita Hopkins
Kanga - Kath Soucie
Christopher Robin - Tom Attenborough
Owl - Andre Stojka
Bees - Frank Welker
Frogs - Carole Jeghers
Mr. Narrator - John Hurt (final role)

Plot

The movie starts with Tigger changing the title before bouncing through the Hundred Acre Woods while singing his song, The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers, which ends with the line "But the most wonderful thing about Tiggers is: I’m the only one!". While he sings, Tigger starts looking for someone to bounce with him, but he soon finds out that none of his friends is very much interested because they all have more important things to do, since the winter is coming and they need to store firewood, get supplies and more. After Tigger accidentally bounces a rock remover on Eeyore’s house, Rabbit leads the gang to move it in the form of a big pulley system. Then Tigger bounces it with the Whoop-De-Dooper-Loop-De-Looper-Ali-Ooper bounce, a very powerful, fast and complicated bounce. This brings everyone in the mud along with the rock remover. Despite Tigger moving it, saying they just can’t bounce all day because they have something to say that they're not Tiggers and have more important things to do.

Very upset, Tigger realizes that he's in fact a one of a kind, and that's not such a good thing as he’d always thought. Roo appears and tries to cheer him up, saying that there must be other Tiggers in the world. Tigger must have a family somewhere. Tigger gets really excited with the idea and decides to visit Owl, who advises him to look for his family tree in order to find his family. Taking the advice too literally, Tigger starts looking for a giant striped tree full of Tiggers playing and bouncing on the branches. Unfortunately, he can’t find such a tree, or anything that might have belonged to his relatives among his stuff. Then Tigger finds a heart locket and believes there could be a picture in it but upon opening it he realizes it is, in fact, empty. Tigger finally sets on writing a letter and sends it in the wind, waiting for a response. Days later, Tigger gets no response back, making him even more sad than ever.

Seeing this Roo calls Owl, Pooh, Piglet and Eeyore together to write a letter back for Tigger, pretending it was written by his family. On the next morning, Tigger happily tells everybody that he’s received a letter from his family and that they are coming to visit him that very week. His friends are shocked, because they hadn’t written anything about visits, but Tigger tells them that Tiggers have the habit of reading between the lines. They decide to tell Tigger the truth, but he is already so excited and so busy preparing a big welcoming party for his relatives that none of them are able to. So, they decide to build up Tigger costumes and go to the birthday party pretending they are Tigger’s family. Half way getting ready Rabbit discovers what is going on and gets angry because it is winter and none of them are prepared but they all still decide to do their plan. During the party, however, Tigger discovers everything and gets angry as seeing it all as a big joke. He leaves in the middle of the snowstorm in order to find his real family; the one, he believed, who had written the letter. Pooh and his friends all feel very guilty, humiliated, and worried, including Roo who starts crying. Tigger hikes all the way to a steep cliff seeing his family tree (snow gives it the illusion of stripes) but when there are no Tiggers to be found Tigger gets very sad as the letter floats away from the wind.

Meanwhile, a heartbroken Roo comes over to Pooh's house, tearfully claiming he needs his help to go find Tigger and that it was his fault he left, for he wanted the tiger as a big brother. Then, Pooh, Roo, Piglet, and Eeyore mount an expedition to find decide to go after Tigger before he gets lost or gets hurt. They successfully convince Rabbit to lead them. When they find Tigger they try to get him to come home as Rabbit says "Forget all this other Tigger nonsense". Tigger gets very offended by this and from his loud yelling a giant avalanche takes place. Tigger manages to save all his friends, but is almost unable to save himself. Fortunately, Roo helps Tigger and everybody is fine. Then Christopher Robin discovers them and everyone explains why Tigger left. Christopher says Tigger never had to go looking for them but Tigger disagrees and reaches for his letter but finds it missing. Then Everyone recites the letter and then Tigger comes to reason that his family all along has been his friends. Later Tigger gives the party again, this time inviting all the Hundred Acre Wood gang, and gives a gift to each one of them:

Honey for Pooh
Firewood for Piglet
A new house for Eeyore
And for Rabbit, he promises to always watch where he is going

Roo’s present is last and is revealed to be the heart locket that Tigger found. Then Christopher Robin takes a photo of Tigger and his family to go in it.

Songs

Reception

The Tigger Movie wasn’t as well received as the original. RottenTomatoes gave it 71% and said "Tigger Movie may lack the technological flash and underlying adult sophistication of other recent animated movies, but it’s fun and charming." and MetaCritic gave it 63 out of 100.

It was also a success in the box office, grossing $90 million, three times as much as its budget.

The film was nominated for three Annie Awards, including Director (Jun Falkenstein), Music (Robert & Richard Sherman) and Voice Acting: Male (Nikita Hopkins as Roo).

Release

The Tigger Movie was released on VHS and DVD on August 22, 2000. The 10th Anniversary VHS & DVD was released between 2004 and 2005, featuring the same bonus features, plus two additional episodes of "The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" series, which are "King of the Beasties" and "Tigger’s Houseguest". Then the movie was released on VHS, DVD and Blu-ray in 2012.

Trivia

A trivial continuity issue: in this movie, it is implied that Tigger has never met his family, or anyone of his species. This is somewhat contradicted by the The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh episode "The Piglet Who Would Be King", in which Tigger mentions his mother.
Paul Winchell, the original voice of Tigger was supposed to voice Tigger for the the whole film but he got too old and his voice got too scratchy that he was replaced by Jim Cummings, the current voice of Winnie the Pooh. After this Winchell retired in 1999, Jim Cummings continued to voice Tigger. Paul Winchell died in 2005.
Aaron Spann, voice of Roo was replaced by Nikita Hopkins.
The Winnie the Pooh theme song was replaced with The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers.
Brady Bluhm, voice of Christopher Robin was replaced by Tom Attenborough.
David Warner, voice of Mr. Narrator was replaced by John Hurt.
This is the first Winnie the Pooh film to use digital ink.
In Round My Family Tree, there is a Tigger resembling Marilyn Monroe.
Gopher is the only animal character absent in the film.