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I more meant that I liked his voice for Balto. XD

Oh, I get you. lol

It just seems to me that some Balto fans dislike Maurice LaMarche because he isn't Kevin Bacon, not because he's actually crummy as an actor. And I don't think that's really fair on the guy, considering you can tell he's trying to be Balto as a character and not Kevin Bacon playing Balto as bland as wheat toast.

Cookiedough, do you REALLY think the producers and writers of Balto, Balto 2 or Balto 3 cared about physiological accuracy in creating the characters for the movies? No. They were anthropomorphizing them. They transferred human qualities and inferences upon them. They weren't worrying about what a dog or wolf might look or sound like at a certain physical age.


Isn't THAT the plain truth?

Well, I fully understand that Maurice is a better voice actor. I just kind of wish it was the voice that played Balto first XD Though Maurice did give Balto an older tone to his voice. I bet if Maurice played him first, I wouldn't just want Kevin playing Balto's voice in the sequels. Not that it's really a big deal that the voice actor changed, but I normally prefer the first one^^

THAT is the main problem with fans of animated movies and series: blind loyalty to the first actor (or actress) who did a voice...even if the successor is either capable, or even better at it than the first artist (I am not suggesting that LaMarche either was better OR worse than Kevin Bacon), or just different but very good. It's just like fans who absolutely despise and rail on Stella (from Balto 3), and yet inexplicably and consistently give Dixie (from the first movie) a total pass...SIMPLY because she was in the first movie. As I demonstrated to you in another topic (not to be repetitious, but for the benefit of others who may not have seen it or may not recall what I am referring to: /board/post1483955.html#p1483955), there is reason enough to give Stella something of a break, and to hold Dixie more accountable in the manner in which many fans have castigated Stella.

But back to the question of one voice versus the other. In LaMarche's case, as RJ has pointed out (as I have in the past on this forum), he actually strove to imitate the timbre, tonality and basic sounds of Kevin Bacon's voice exceedingly well. And, if you listen to the two side-by-side (which I have done), you can see how hard LaMarche (a professional voice actor rather than just an actor) worked at it. And then, of course, he added a touch of age--gravelly undertones, a softer and more mature cadence, etc.


This topic has been so busy that I only just noticed that post! I think a large part of it is Bacon's acting style. He's known for a deadpan, almost monotone delivery. Not that it lends itself to a role like that of Balto (especially an anthropomorphized cartoon character loosely based upon a real historical dog), but I always have thought of Kevin Bacon as being from the same "school", acting-wise, as Kevin Costner. Minimalism in emotive acting. XD Extreme minimalism. I mean, I didn't think he did a bad job with the role, but you are right about how his acting tends to come across. And that "cry" during his fall! Yeah! Sorta "meh", wasn't it? Ha ha!

For me personally it was Kevin Bacon who made Balto stand out to me and capture my attention in the first place as I was literally flicking through the channels. Please don't read that as I am a Kevin Fan Boy as that isn't what I mean. I felt that it was an unusual choice for a voice actor and as the hero, the character's voice stood out from other more softly spoken characters from other movies at the time (Lion King as an example). In my opinion Kevin Bacon's voice was raw and rough just how the stray wolf-dog in an unforgiving environment should have been.

As for Maurice LaMarche I did feel that he did a fairly good job at matching Kevin Bacon's tones to a degree (more so in WoC than WQ) and I don't accept people saying that he is a bad choice or voice actor. As a dedicated voice actor I would go as far as to say that he is better (in that field) than Kevin Bacon as you only have to look at his résumé to see this. If there has been an animated series then Maurice (and quite possibly Mark Hamill too... [WQ]) has been there. Some fantastic cartoons that shaped my childhood all had Maurice as main character voice actors such as the classic Pink & the Brain. I think that I said in my original review of WoC on my site that it did mean that all I wanted to hear was Balto to say "No Jenna, the same thing we do every night, TRY TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD". The only thing that I felt disappointed about his role as Balto (apart from the latter) was that in my opinion I felt he was holding back - trying hard to sound like Kevin Bacon rather than making the role his own. He did offer a little age to Balto's voice (and he should have grown up after the initial event) but it is a shame that the animators didn't add any age to Rosie in WoC - I mean not a day, she was still wearing the same clothes lol. I felt he could have offered more but yeah... just my opinion.

...Blind loyalty?... Just because I'm used to a voice and don't really want it changed?

I mean, I don't just want voices changing (Personally) Including on different T.V. Shows, I'd rather not have the voice change if they already picked a decent voice. Yes, I believe Kevin's voice was decent, and I believe Maurice's voice was decent too (in my opinion)


But like I stated a earlier, Maurice gave him an older tone to his voice, which Kevin COULD or COULD NOT have done. So who knows if it could've been for the best.

Interesting enough, Balto actually looked older in the sequels (to me anyway) I thought that was pretty cool.

Anyway, I guess this is getting a bit out of topic.. So I'll just stop.^^

Actually, for many fans who are in the know (and I know that you are certainly in the know), it was an indication of Maurice LaMarche's skill and dedication to a role that wasn't his "to make his own" (since this wasn't a reimagining or "rebooting" of an existing movie) that he worked to imitate Kevin Bacon's voice...just with a bit more age and experience to it.

Take the case of Charles Fleischer and the role of Boris. Now THERE'S someone who, even though he is a GREAT voice actor, botched the Boris role big time. And he probably was trying to "make it his own"...which was the problem. He not only didn't sound anything like Bob Hoskins' portrayal (and Bob Hoskins, even being an actor rather than a voice actor, is EXCELLENT with various accents and voices, as we've all seen time and again), but he ended up sounding too stereotypically Jewish in Balto 2 rather than Russian. Even if he corrected it a bit by Balto 3, it still was far worse than Bob Hoskins' portrayal, which was very accurately Russian I happen to believe.

No...in cases like this, trying to preserve a voice and portrayal by a previous actor or actress. I think, is imperative.


I was referring to you AND to many other fans. Because you're not looking realistically at how movies and television series are produced. You're projecting your own wishes and fantasies and best-case scenarios onto what is really a business, just like any other. Hollywood is no less about money and budgeting than your average grocery store, clothing store, restaurant, etc.


Or, as I pointed out to Cookiedough earlier in this topic (the entire topic of which you should have taken the time to read):





Yes. You're being blindly loyal. To one voice actor you heard in one movie. And rather than accept, on the surface, the possibility that another voice actor might do just as well (or maybe even better), you lament about the changes and how you wished they would have kept everything the same. Preferring that is one thing...fussing about it is quite another.


Discussion of the voice actors isn't. Your reactions to debates over your posts ARE.

Also, you need to learn how to post on this forum (every part of it). You should not be posting multiple consecutive posts. Put all your thoughts into ONE post, or edit an existing post. Don't post one and then another right after it (or a few minutes after). That is against the rules (unless a substantial amount of time has passed since you last posted, and no one else posted after you).

Okay.. Also, I didn't mind Kevin's voice being changed. I would've preffered his voice, but I didn't mind it. I do know they couldn't afford him and I accept the fact that some people need to change voice actors. I'm honostly not trying to make a big deal out of this.

It's not like I'm going: 'I hate the other voice actors because they aren't Kevin Bacon!' I simply don't mind that they changed it.

A fair point to include Boris - you are right and if I recall even the subtitles on WQ actually state that Boris talked with a "Yiddish" accent... He did become a little more Russian in WoC but IMO too little too late.

I guess it is a matter of opinion and circumstance, sometimes it is appropriate and sometimes not. I completely agree that for Maurice to sound close to Kevin Bacon takes some doing and hats off to him for it. However if I may drop an example into the mix, a completely different story and dare I say age range, I am currently enjoying the latest incarnation of "Spartacus". The first actor, Andy Whitfield, to portray Spartacus in "Blood & Sand" did a fantastic job but tragically died after the first series (and during the prequel series). Liam McIntyre took over the reins for the sequel and latest series and, while continuing the character, he has done an equally excellent job in making it his own while keeping the spirit of the first.

My main point for consideration is it would take a bold decision to decide to do an impression or acknowledge that yes, it is a different actor so let's not beat around the bush or pretend otherwise - he could have continued with the gravelly undertones of Bacon's style but put a little more energy into it - that is what I felt was lacking. Perhaps making him sound older and more mature was in fact him putting his own spin on the character, maybe it was just the way it came out. Personally I would shake Maurice by the hand for his efforts (and then ask him say "are you pondering what I'm pondering?" to which I'd reply "Umm, I think so, but what if the chicken won't wear the nylons?"

Oh, in each case, it very much is as you said, Ac. lol


Granted. But you know as well as I do that each production is different. As is each production company, each project (and its available funding), each director, and each actor and/or voice actor. And then there are also fundamental differences between live action and animation. What one actor, voice actor and/or director chooses to do with a role is not going to reflect what another might do...especially when it comes to voicing characters a children's animated movie series rather than other types of productions.


See, like some others, I personally think that LaMarche added more gravelly qualities to his voice, a reflection of age and more a reflection, as well, of the wolf heritage of the animated character, whereas Bacon's voice came across as smoother and "cleaner" (no grittiness or gravelly qualities). The question of making Balto sound older and more mature may well have been just LaMarche's input as an experienced voice actor, or it could have been directorial advice/instruction. Or both. I guess, without being able to ask LaMarche himself, the question will remain open to discussion and debate.

One thing I will say about Bacon versus LaMarche--and, again, this is just personal opinion (as reflected in previous comments I have made here and elsewhere in the past)--I still think that Kevin Bacon's delivery was somewhat deadpan and emotionally-lacking for the most part. Conversely, I think LaMarche added substantial touches of tenderness, emotive variety, and a more intangible "touch of experience" in the voice. A look at Kevin Bacon's repertoire will demonstrate quite clearly that he's not exactly known for emotional highs and lows in his portrayals. I don't know whether that's a quality of his particular acting method, or just that--to me--he may not be that good or emotive an actor (again, that Kevin Costner thing). *Shrug*

This is why I enjoy watching the movies with other fans - for many many years it was like a secret interest with me which I would hide away. I remember aspects in certain ways and hold onto the emotions I felt when I first saw the original - I still notice things that I hadn't before. Thanks to the world of the internet I have met many wonderful people and have had the chance to watch the movies with good company which allows us to talk and share opinions. Pointing out subtle aspects opens my mind a little more to enjoy the movies in different ways to when I originally saw them.

The "who am I" stuff was actually pretty good in concept, and although I'm no fan of shamanism I think that was a workable idea too. The big problem, from a storytelling angle, was that neither of those were very well-executed.