This, along with Emperor's New Groove, is a lesser-seen Disney classic that I always recommend to people. It's a really smart modernising of Goofy that captures that adolescent frustration with your parents and vice versa perfectly, and the voice-acting and music are fantastic.
The direction is nimble, jumping from genre to genre seamlessly, from the Hammer horror dream sequence through the John Hughes school section to the buddy road trip movie, and using lighting and framing to drop in film noir moments or wring atmosphere from the mundane. The use of diegetic lighting is especially strong - so many atmospheric moments pulled from sources like glove compartment bulbs or blue-light specials.
The balance of old-school Goofy comedy and understated emotional drama is perfect too, and really makes the modernisation of Goofy work. The scene in the jacuzzi has such strong performances from Bill Farmer and Jim Cummings. The repositioning of long-time villain Pete as an overbearing father who insidiously undermines Goofy's relationship with Max via shitty alpha male advice because he's jealous of it is so damn clever and the actors nail it. Meanwhile, though, the classic Goofy slapstick is laced throughout and always well done. I particularly like the touch that the montage where Max takes Goofy to a ton of roadside attractions he knows he'll enjoy may as well be a clipshow of his old fifties shorts.
It's excellent in every way, and is pretty much the best Goofy movie they could have made. If Disney starting making theatrical movies for their individual characters that understood and modernised each one as well as this one does, they absolutely could have a new mega-franchise on their hands.
Rating: Great
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