So Dear To My Heart

History and Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland















Year Released: 1949
Michael's Movie Grade: A


                                            History

With So Dear to My Heart, Walt Disney was getting closer to making live action films without animation. So Dear to My Heart is essentially a live action film, but with bits of animation added. In fact some early scripts don't have any animation sequences in them. Animated scenes were added mainly due to RKO (Disney's then current distributor) saying they would not distribute a Disney film without animation. In fact Walt found out that his contract with RKO stated that they would distribute only animated films or live action films with animation, but not a film that was all live action.

The director of the film would be Harold Schuster. The reason for this is that Walt Disney loved the film My Friend Flicka which Schuster directed, and Walt thought because of he would make the perfect director of So Dear to My Heart, because Flicka had in it, the qualities Walt wanted in this film. Though Schuster directed the live action majority of the film, the animated sequences were directed by Disney regular Hamilton Luske.

 So Dear to My Heart was so dear to Walt Disney's heart. Walt Disney had fallen in love with the book by Sterling North (Who also wrote the book Rascal, which would later be made into a Disney film in 1969), and he knew that he wanted there to be a Disney film adaption. right after he finished reading it. One reason Walt loved this book so much is because of it's small town Americana aspects. The reason these aspects appealed to Walt so much was because as a child he had spent four years on a farm near Marceline, Missouri, and he always had a nostalgia for farm life. Walt would later refer to this film as one of his personal favorites. In fact if you have ever seen Walt's Barn (His own personal barn that was made into a museum in Los Angles (and any Disney fan NEEDS to go)) it was heavily modeled after the barn in this movie. The trains used in this movie gave Walt the idea to make a place called Disneylandia which would use trains to help people, especially children, learn about history. This idea never came to fruition but was still a precursor to Disneyland. Walt even got involved in making miniatures for the film. For instance he built the miniature of Granny Kincaid’s cabin that was used in this film. This was a hobby of Walt's and something he loved doing. He planned to make more for his Disneylandia idea.

The actual railroad used in the film were bought by animator Ward Kimball. When Building Disneyland, Walt tried to buy back the railroad, but Kimball didn't want to give it up, so an exact copy was built for Disneyland.

Interestingly this film made a difference in the world of folk music as well, because for this film, Burl Ives performed a song called Lavender Blue which became his first big hit single.

Unfortunately the film was not a box office success, even though it was a big critical success.

Review

Great piece of small town Americana, that should definitely be better known and have a greater availability. This film is simply extremely charming, and you don't have to have ever lived in the country to feel it's nostalgia for small town America, and it can even make one nostalgic for a life he/she never lived.

So Dear to my Heart captures a feeling of small town America as well as any film possibly could. It is easy to see why Walt, a country boy, would consider this one of his favorite Disney films. This feeling is captured so well that even if you are watching this film in the big city, you feeling like you just took a trip to a very charming small town. This feeling is very addictive and I don't think I could ever watch this film and not have a smile on my face, during certain moments. Adding to this charm is the likability and reasonableness of these character, and the charming work of the actors portraying them as well. This film is full of the type of charm that makes Disney films, truly special. 

The animation scenes unfortunately feel out of place in this film, and one could argue that the movie would be better off without them. However they are still quite well done, and give us some catchy song numbers, but they still feel like they belong in a different film. They are however quite brief and never feel too intrusive.

Overall this is a great film that should be better known, and shows an improvement in Disney's live action film-making since Song of the South (Though that still is a quite good movie). If you a can find this film definitely watch it, because it is an unjustly forgotten Disney classic. 

                                                                   Film Credits
Director: Harold D. Schuster

Animation Director: Hamilton Luske

Writers: John Tucker Battle, Maurice Rapf, Ted Sears, Marc Davis, Ken Anderson, Bill Peet

Based off the book Midnight and Jeremiah by Sterling North

Live Action Cast: Bobby Driscoll (Jerry Kincaid), Luana Patten (Tildy), Beulah Bondi (Grandma Kincaid), Burl Ives (Uncle Hiram), Raymond Bond (Storekeeper), Daniel Haight (Storekeeper's Son), Harry Carey (Judge at County Fair), Matt Willis (Horse Trainer), Walter Soderling (Villager), Spelman B. Collins (Judge)

Voices: Ken Carson (Wise Old Owl), John Beal (Narrator)

Producers: Walt Disney, Perce Pearce

Music: Paul J. Smith

Songwriters: Larry Morey, Eliot Daniel, Irving Taylor, Ticker Freeman, Don Raye, Gene de Paul, Robert Wells,  Mel Tormé

Assistant Directors: Jasper Blystone, Joe Lefert

Cinematography: Winton C. Hoch

Film Editors: Lloyd L. Richardson, Thomas Scott

Production Manager: Fred Leahy

Art Director: John Ewing

Cartoon Art Treatment: John Hench, Mary Blair, Dick Kelsey.

Sets: Mac Alper

Makeup Artist: Ted Larsen

Hair Stylist: Vera Peterson

Sound Department: C.O. Slyfield, Max Hutchinson, Robert O. Cook

Camera Operator: Harvey Gould

Special Effects: Ub Iwerks

Effects Animators: George Rowley, Joshua Meador, Dan McManus

Background Artists: Art Riley, Ralph Hulett, Jimi Trout, Dick Anthony, Brice Mack, Ray Huffine

Layout Artists: A. Kendall O'Connor, Hugh Hennesy, Don Griffith, Thor Putnam

Animators: Eric Larson, John Lounsbery, Hal King, Milt Kahl, Les Clark, Don Lusk, Marvin Woodward, Hal Ambro

                                               Resources Used

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0041890/?ref_=rvi_tt

http://www.mouseplanet.com/9333/So_Dear_to_My_Heart_The_Secrets_Behind_the_Film

http://www.bcdb.com/cartoon-characters/26-So-Dear-To-My-Heart

The Disney Films by Leonard Maltin

-Michael J. Ruhland

Melody Time

History and Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland
















Year Released: 1948
Michael's Movie Grade:B+

                                               History
Again, instead of doing one feature length animated story the Disney studio made a series of animated shorts put together to make a feature film. Again this was done mainly because of financial worries. Like it's sister film Make Mine Music, Melody Time focuses on the theme of music. Also like Make Mine Music, this film would be quite different from Fantasia, because of that film's financial failure and the negative reception it received from audiences and critics.  Melody Time would again be closer to Disney's more traditional cartoon shorts, rather than to the experimentation of Fantasia. Even though the Bumble Boogie segment was considered for Fantasia. This film would also feature a wide range of different performers and music, and would even include the last film performance of The Andrew Sisters, who had worked previously on Disney's Make Mine Music, and appeared along side famous comedy team Abbott and Costello,  under the direction of Arthur Lubin, (Abbott and Costello's first reoccurring director) in Buck Privates, In the Navy, and Hold That Ghost. Maxine Andrews remembered this film as a very happy experience, and considered Walt Disney to be a real gentleman. She also remembered seeing the storyboards for the films as two Disney songwriters (I don't know which ones since the song they performed seems to have been only written by Allie Wrubel) played the score, and Walt would explain the short to them. 

This film would be very similar to Make Mine Music, with different types of music and cartoons being featured. Again like Make Mine Music different cartoons would be handled by different directors. These directors would all be regular Disney animation directors, they would include Clyde Geronimi (Little Toot, Blame It on the Samba, Pecos Bill), Wilfred Jackson (The Legend of Johnny Appleseed), Jack Kinney (Bumble Boogie), and Hamilton Luske (Once Upon a Wintertime, Trees). Each would bring their own style, and give much variety to these shorts.


This film features some quick live action in it. Because at this time Walt was getting more interested in making a fully live action film, with no animation, which he would complete two years after this film was released, he often experimented with live action at this time. He was nervous about going completely into live action because the Disney studio was known for animation and many critics and audiences felt he had gone too far from what Disney films were known for, when the studio did Fantasia and Bambi. A live action scene features Bobby Driscoll, and Launa Patten, Disney's first reoccurring child actors, and the first actors to have a contract with the Disney studio. Also in this quick live action scene appears Roy Rogers, Bob Nolan, and Sons of the Pioneers, all of whom would perform the song for the following cartoon. Also featured would be Roy Rogers' horse Trigger. Also in the Blame It on the Samba cartoon, Donald Duck along with his south of the border friends, José Carioca and  the Aracuan Bird, interact with a live action Ethel Smith.

Melody Time did fairly well at the box office, and with critics. But many were wondering when they would see a full feature length animated story, but that was just two years in the future.

                                                                 Review

Again since this film is just a series of shorts I will review each short individually, and give them each their own grade, along with the grade for the film as a whole near the top of this page.

 Once Upon a Wintertime: Entertainingly little short is helped by great design work by Mary Blair. The story and the humor are nothing special, but they are nothing bad either. However the great stylized look of this segment has quite a charm to it, and the song is quite nice. Grade:C

Bumble Boogie: Very fun cartoon. Director Jack Kinney is a master at giving cartoons an addictive energy, and he does so very well here. The imagery is fantastic in this short as well. It is quite imaginative and fun to look at as well. The music has the same energy as the cartoon and the music and imagery fit together beautifully. Grade:A

Johnny Appleseed: Great piece of Americana, that only Disney could provide. This short is quite corny, but it has a spirit that fully overcomes that. Johnny is a quite likable character, the music is great, and  the imagery is great. Although the story isn't perfect, it is still quite likable, and holds all this cartoons charms perfectly. Grade:A- 

Little Toot: Fun if unexceptional short. The story is one we have seen a lot of before although it is handled well here, it has still been handled better elsewhere. The animation for this short is good, but not quite up to Disney standards.While the song is not the best song it fits the short well and the Andrew Sisters perform it great. Grade:C

Trees: Although this short has really beautiful imagery, the song doesn't work, and goes by much too fast to leave the impression it should. Singing the lyrics of Joyce KIlmer's poem to classical music just does not work. It honestly comes off as a bit pretentious. The idea simply is not as artistic as the filmmakers seemed to think it would be. However the imagery is really beautiful, with much of the same majesty that made Bambi work so well. Grade: C+

Blame it on the Samba: Fantastic short with great imagery, and great energy. This is just a beautifully constructed cartoon, and is full of fantastic imagination. Also the combination of animation and live action is beautifully achieved, and along with Disney's Three Caballeros, making up some of the best combinations between animation and live action, before Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The music has a great energy as well and compliments the cartoon perfectly/ Grade: A+

Pecos Bill: It probably is partly due to my love of country music that makes me love this short so much, but there is definitely more to it than that, mainly that this is a very funny cartoon. Every joke in here works, and the more unbelievable the more funny. This contains comic exaggerations at their best. The animation is very well done and compliments the jokes beautifully. Before the short starts though we have some beautiful animation of the desert, along with a great country song. This part is worthy of the best of Fantasia, and even a quite entertaining live action introduction. As a fan of country music I have to say the music we hear here is as great as the cartoon itself. Grade: A+

                                                                      Film Credits 

Directors:Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, Jack Kinney

Writers: Winston Hibler, Erdman Penner, Harry Reeves, Homer Brightman, Ken Anderson, Ted Sears, Joe Rinaldi, William Cottrell, Art Scott, Jesse Marsh, Bob Moore, John Wallbridge.

Little Toot segment based off of a short story by Hardie Gramatky.

Voices: Buddy Clark (Master of Ceremonies), Dennis Day (Johnny Appleseed, Johnny's Angel, The Old Settler), Clarence Nash (Donald Duck), Pinto Colvig (Aracuan Bird)

Live Action Cast: Ethel Smith (Herself), Bob Nolan (Himself), Bobby Driscoll (Himself), Roy Rogers (Himself), Trigger, Luana Patten (Herself), The Sons of the Pioneers (Themselves)

Song Performers: Buddy Clark, Frances Langford, Freddy Martin and His Orchestra, Jack Fina, Dennis Day, The Andrews Sisters, Fred Waring and His Pennsylvanians, Ethel Smith, The Dinning Sisters,  Roy Rogers, Sons of the Pioneers

Producer: Walt Disney

Songwriters: George David Weiss, Bennie Benjamin, Bobby Worth, Ray Gilbert, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Jack Fina, Kim Gannon, Walter Kent, Allie Wrubel, Oscar Rasbach,  Ernesto Nazareth, Eliot Daniel, Johnny Lange

Music: Eliot Daniel, Paul J. Smith

Cinematographer: Winton C. Hoch

Assistant Directors: Lou Debney, Mike Holoboff, Ted Sebern

Editors: Don Halliday, Thomas Scott

Effects Animators: George Rowley, Josh Meador, Jack Boyd, Dan MacManus

Special Effects: Ub Iwerks

Supervising Animators: Eric Larson, Ward Kimball, Milt Kahl, Ollie Johnston (as Oliver M. Johnston Jr)., John Lounsbery, Les Clark

Background Artists: Art Riley, Brice Mack, Ralph Hulett, Merle Cox, Dick Anthony

Layout Artists: Hugh Hennesy, Mac Stewart, Ken O'Connor, Lance Nolley, Al Zinnen, Bob Cormack, Don Griffith, Thor Putnam, Donald Da Gradi

Animators: Harvey Toombs, Marvin Woodward, Ed Aardal, Hal King, Cliff Norberg, Don Lusk, John Sibley, Rudy Larriva, Ken O'Brien, Bob Cannon, Judge Whitaker, Hal Ambro


                                                   Resources Used
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040580/?ref_=rvi_tt
http://www.bcdb.com/cartoon-characters/25-Melody-Time/#cartoon_writers
The Andrew Sisters: A Biography and Career Record by H. Arlo Nimmo

-Michael J. Ruhland

Fun and Fancy Free

History and Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland














Year Released: 1947

Michael's Movie Grade; B-



                                                          History

With World War 2, many Disney artists were drafted, and their foreign market had been shut off. The studio was also still worried by the financial failure of Pinocchio, and Bambi. Because of all this many animated feature length stories had been put on hold. At this time the studio was making animated feature films that were essentially multiple shorts put together and called a feature, but no films that had one feature length story.

Two ideas for animated features were a story of a circus bear named Bongo (Based on a short story by Sinclair Lewis, and a version of Jack and the Beanstalk staring Mickey, Donald, and Goofy. Because of these uncertain times instead of being released as separate features both were reduced in length and released together as one feature film. The two now shorts were be tied together with bridging sequences staring our old friend Jiminy Cricket. In this film he sings a song called I'm a Happy Go  Lucky Fellow which was originally written for Pinocchio, but ended up not being used in the final film. A line in this song is where the film's title, Fun and Fancy Free came from. Jiminy wasn't the only character from Pinocchio that was going to be reused in Fun and Fancy Free. It was planned that in the Mickey and the Beanstalk segment Honest John was going to be the one to sell Mickey the magic beans, but this scene was cut from the film. Since the Bongo section took place at the circus it was originally planned to reuse some of the characters from Dumbo, however this idea ended up being scrapped.

The original voice for Mickey Mouse was Walt Disney himself, but because Walt became heavily involved in too many projects to keep on doing the voice. So the voice for Mickey would be done by sound effects man James McDonald. The change in voice actors would happen during the making of Fun and Fancy Free. This film marks both the last time Walt Disney Would do the voice for a theatrical film, and the first time James McDonald would do Mickey's voice. Because their was barely a difference between the voices both can be heard here. However Walt would later do the voice for the introduction to the Mickey Mouse Club TV show.

Fun and Fancy Free was moderately successful both critically and financially, though many wondered when Disney would return to a full feature length animated story.

Review

Again since this film is made up of two cartoons put together, I am going to review both separately and give both a separate grade along with the collective grade towards the top of the page. 

Bongo: I don't know how Bongo could have possibly worked as a separate feature when it feels so overlong here. Sadly this is not that great. It's not really bad but it really pales in comparison to the work we are used to from Disney. The characters and the story just aren't that well developed, and would be better suited to a shorter running time. The idea of bears slapping each other to say "I love you" seems just silly, and not in a good way. However this short does feature some great background art, catchy songs (even if the lyrics aren't that great), and the beautiful voice of Dinah Shore. Overall a rather bland cartoon that feels too long, but is not without it's good points. Grade:D+

Mickey and the Beanstalk: A great overlooked cartoon short that would make the film worth seeing on it's own. Anyone studying character animation needs to watch this, as the character animation is full of great acting and is funny enough (in a quite subtle way) to improve every slapstick gag in the cartoon. The story is quite simple, but it never feels overlong like Bongo does. Willie the giant is a great character that I wish Disney could have found a way to use more of. He is especially helped by some great voice acting from a great and sadly overlooked comedic actor named Billy Gilbert (Who had previously voiced Sneezy in Snow White, and had also appeared often with Laurel and Hardy, and in silent Keystone Comedies, he also was in Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator, and had a small role in A Night at the Opera with the Marx Brothers). This segment starts with a live action Edgar Bergen, along with his puppets Charlie McCarthy and Mortimer Snerd, telling the story to Launa Patten and an animated Jiminy Cricket, while this would later be released for TV with Ludvig Von Drake narrating it, this is the version you should see. While many have pointed out that Bergen was not the greatest ventriloquist (you can easily see his mouth move), he was a great comedian. Him and his puppets comments are very funny, and it continues over the cartoon portions themselves improving that part as well. There is a true wit to this comedy and it adds a lot to the film. Overall this is a great cartoon that is unfortunately too often overlooked. Grade:A-

The scenes with just Jiminy are too brief to get their own grade, but they are quite charming, and I'm a Happy Go Lucky Fellow is quite a good song that I am glad we could hear in this film.  

Film Credits

Animation Directors: Jack Kinney, Hamilton Luske,  Bill Roberts

Live Action Director: William Morgan

Voices: Cliff Edwards (Jiminy Cricket), Jim Macdonald (Mickey Mouse, Lumpjaw),

Walt Disney (Mickey Mouse), Clarence 'Ducky' Nash (Donald), Pinto Colvig (Goofy), Anita Gordon (Harp), Billy Gilbert (Willie the Giant) ("Mickey and the Beanstalk"), Dinah Shore (Narrator), Edgar Bergan (Charlie McCarthy, Mortimer Snerd), The King's Men, The Dinning Sisters

Live Action Cast: Edgar Bergen (Himself), Luana Patten (Herself)

Producer: Walt Disney

Bongo segment based of the book Bongo by  Sinclair Lewis

Writers: Homer Brightman, Harry Reeves, Ted Sears, Lance Nolley, Eldon Dedini, Tom Oreb

Song Writers: Ned Washington, Eliot Daniel, Buddy Kaye, Bennie Benjamin, George David Weiss, Bill Walsh, Ray Noble, Paul J. Smith, Arthur Quenzer

Editor: Jack Bachom

Music: Eliot Daniel, Paul J. Smith, Oliver Wallace

Cinematography: Charles P. Boyle

Production Supervisor:  Ben Sharpsteen

Assistant Director: Joe Lefert, Mike Holoboff, Jack Atwood

Effects Animators: George Rowley, Jack Boyd

Special Effects: Ub Iwerks

Layout Artists: Donald Da Gradi, Al Zinnen, Ken O'Connor, Hugh Hennesy, John Hench, Glenn Scott

Background Artists: Ed Starr, Claude Coats, Art Riley, Brice Mack, Ray Huffine, Ralph Hulet

Supervising Animators: Ward Kimball, Les Clark, Fred Moore, John Lounsbery

Animators: Hugh Fraser, Phil Duncan, Judge Whitaker, Art Babbitt, John Sibley, Marc Davis, Harvey Toombs, Hal King, Ken O'Brien, Jack Campbell, Hugh Fraser, Edwin Aardal, Hal Ambro, Ted Berman, Al Bertino, Ted Bonnicksen, Bob Carlson, Al Coe, Blaine Gibson, George Goepper, Harry Holt, Ollie Johnston, Bill Justice, Rudy Larriva, Eric Larson, Don Lusk, Dan MacManus, Tom Massey, John McManus, Frank McSavage, Joshua Meador, G. Miller, Kenneth Muse, Milt Neil, Charles A. Nichols, Art Palmer, John Reed, Sandy Strother, Henry Tanous, Don Towsley, Bernard Wolf, Marvin Woodward, Robert W. Youngquist

Resources Used

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039404/?ref_=ttfc_fc_tt

http://www.bcdb.com/cartoon-characters/24-Fun-Fancy-Free/#cartoon_directors

-Michael J. Ruhland

Song of the South

History and Review By Michael J. Ruhland

Year Released: 1946

Michael's Movie Grade:B



                                                        History

With Song of  the South Walt Disney's interest in moving into live action film became much more clear. For the first time in a Disney film, there would be more live action than animation. This would also have the distinction of being the first Disney film to present child actors that would reappear in later Disney films, something that would become increasingly common in Disney history. These two child stars would be Bobby Driscoll and Launa Patten. They were not only the first reoccurring child actors for Disney, but they were also the first actors to have a contract with the Disney studio.

Even though the studio had found live action actors who would continue working at Disney, they still had not found a live action director that would become a mainstay. Again the live action director was one who never worked at Disney before and never would again. This time it would be a man named Harve Foster. This was his debut as a main director, though he was an assistant director on some films before this including Gone With the Wind (The main director was Victor Fleming), and a film I particularly love A Chump at Oxford (the main director of that film was Alfred J. Goulding) staring the great comedy team of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Harve's career as a main director of theatrical films after this would not be a long one, but he would go on to direct many TV episodes for such shows as The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, and Racket Squad.  The director of the animated portions of the film would be a name much more common at Disney, Wilfred Jackson. Jackson had be directing at Disney since 1929 with the Mickey Mouse cartoon, Mickey's Follies. He would direct many of Disney's best short films from the 1930's. He was also a sequence director on the majority of Disney features at this point. He would later go on to be one of the main directors on such Disney features as Cinderella, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, and Lady and the Tramp.

The cinematography for this film would be done by Greg Toland, who was the cinematographer for such great films as Citizen Kane, and The Grapes of Wrath.

One bit of trouble the film found it's self in was for the song number Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah. Because of trouble the lighting when shooting the live action, it became very hard to combine it with animation. Wilfred Jackson stated that he and the rest of the animation crew thought for a long time about what to do about this, but couldn't come up with an answer. The solution was found by Walt himself. He suggested that when they shoot actor James Basket before singing , they cover up the lights with cardboard, and then we he began singing they would take the card board off so it would seem like he was entering the world of animation. Despite these problems Wilfred Jackson stated in an interview with Animation Historian Michael Barrier, " I had more fun working on Song of the South than any other one picture I ever made. I guess maybe working on Snow White was more exciting, and I guess maybe there were others that hit high spots in some other ways, but out of all the different pictures I worked on, Song of the South was the most fun. The group of people that it was my good fortune to work with was such a wonderful bunch of talent". He would go on to talk about how much he enjoyed working with such artists as Associate Producer Perce Pearce, Animators Milt Kahl, Marc Davis, Eric Larson, Ollie Johnston, and Johnny Lounsbery, and Layout Artist Ken Anderson.

There was also a small problem with animated lip-syncing. Not only did James Basket play the live action Uncle Remus, but he also voiced the animated Br'er Fox. Disney Animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnson remembered that he spoke  the part so fast lip-sync was hard to get right. This was not James Baskett's first time working with Disney as he also voiced one of the crows in Dumbo. Song of the South would be his last film role.

Song of the South was a financial success. Although critics did praise the animated portions of the film, they were not kind to the live action majority. The film did get two academy awards, one for Best Song, and James Baskett got an honorary award for his performance in the film.

The film received controversy from right after is was first released. Many critics dubbed the film "racist". This reputation still hurts Song of the South to this day, and it is never shown today on TV, and it's home video availability is much rarer than most Disney films are. However the music, and animated characters live on through the log ride at Disneyland.

                                                       Review

Though Disney's live action film making would soon grow more sophisticated, this film is quite charming. The movie leaves the audience feeling good, which is of course exactly what it set out to do.

The cast in this film is absolutely fantastic. James Baskett is extremely charming as Uncle Remus, and it is hard not to find him likable. This performance enhances every scene he is in, and brings much of the films charm. Baskett is just as funny as the voice of Br'er Fox as he is charming as Uncle Remus. With this film Disney has already shown us how good the studio could be at finding great child actors. Even if you take their ages out of the equation, Bobby Driscoll, and Launa Patten, are simply great talents. They are very charming whenever they are  on screen. Of course Hattie McDaniel is great here as she always is.

The story is underdeveloped and could have probably benefited from more screen time. The relationship between the mother and Uncle Remus is particularly underdeveloped, and often feels rushed. However despite these faults the story is at times beautiful in it's simplicity. The relationship between the kids and Uncle Remus is very charming, and adds heavily to the feel good spirit of the film.

The animated parts are a must see for cartoon fans. They are quick, funny, energetic, lively, and most of all charming. They are full of classic cartoon slapstick, and clever writing. The characters are quite likable as well. I would not have minded a series of shorts based off these short segments at all.

Something I love about this film is it's message of the importance of stories, imagination, and escapism.  It teaches us well it is important to live in the real world, fantasy can be just as important. Which is of course the reason we love and cherish Disney, and why Disney plays such an important part in our lives. Overall  this film is very charming, and a worthwhile experience for Disney fans

                                                          Film Credits

Live Action Director: Harve Foster

Animation Director: Wilfred Jackson

Based on the book Tales of Uncle Remus by Joel Chandler Harris

Writers: Dalton S. Reymond, Morton Grant, Maurice Rapf, Bill Peet, Ralph Wright, Vernon Stallings

Live Action Cast: James Baskett (Uncle Remus), Bobby Driscoll (Johnny), Luana Patten (Ginny), Ruth Warrick (Sally), Lucile Watson (Grandma), Hattie McDaniel (Aunt Tempy), Erik Rolf (John), Glenn Leedy (Toby), Mary Field (Mrs. Favers), Anita Brown (Maid), Georgie Nokes (Jake Favers), Gene Holland (Joe Favers)

Voices: James Baskett (Br'er Fox), Johnny Lee (Br'er Rabbit), Nick Stewart (Br'er Bear), Babette De Castro (Birds), Cherie De Castro (Birds), Peggy De Castro (Birds), Roy Glenn (Bullfrog), Clarence Nash (Mr. Bluebird)

Producers: Walt Disney, Perce Pearce

Songwriters: Ray Gilbert, Allie Wrubel, Robert MacGimsey, Charles Wolcott, Ken Darby, Foster Carling, Sam Coslow, Arthur Johnston, Eliot Daniel, Hy Heath, Johnny Lange

Music: Daniele Amfitheatrof, Charles Wolcott, Paul J. Smith

Cinematography: Gregg Toland

Film Editing: William Morgan

Art Directors: Perry Ferguson, Ken Anderson, Philip Barber, Harold Doughty, Hugh Hennesy, Charles Philippi

Costume Design: Mary Wills

Production Manager: Frederic Leahy

Assistant Director: William McGarry

Art Department: Elmer Plummer, Irving W. Sindler

Sound Department: Fred Lau, C.O. Slyfield, Harold J. Steck, Gloria Gottschalk

Special Effects: Ub Iwerks

Effects Animators: Brad Case, Blaine Gibson, Joshua Meador, George Rowley

Gaffer: Vic Jones

Layout Artist: Ken Anderson

Supervising Animators: Les Clark, Marc Davis, Ollie Johnston, Milt Kahl, Eric Larson, John Lounsbery

Background Artists: Mary Blair, Claude Coats, Al Dempster, Ray Huffine, Ralph Hulett, Brice Mack, Ed Starr

Animation Planner: Bill Peet

Assistant Animator:  Clarke Mallery

Animators: Hal Ambro, Jack Campbell, Al Coe, Hal King, Rudy Larriva, Don Lusk, Tom Massey, Murray McClellan, Cliff Nordberg, Ken O'Brien, Harvey Toombs, Paul Murry



                                      Resources Used

http://www.songofthesouth.net/

http://www.michaelbarrier.com/Interviews/Jackson1973/Jackson1973.html

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038969/?ref_=ttfc_fc_tt




-Michael J. Ruhland

Make Mine Music

History and Review Written by Michael J. Ruhland










Year Released: 1946

Michael's Movie Grade:B+


                                                                    History
After the financial success of Saludos Amigos, and the financial disappointment of many other recent Disney features, it was decided to make another film along the lines of Saludos Amigos. In other words a collection of cheaper made cartoon shorts, put together to make a feature. The theme this time around would be music, however it would not be specifically classical music like Fantasia, nor would it include the experimentation of that film. This was of course so it would not be subject to either the criticisms Fantasia revived, or be as big of a box office failure. Though the Blue Bayou segment, and the Peter and the Wolf segment were originally intended for a future installment of Fantasia (Read my post on Fantasia, if you don't understand what I mean by that), this film as a whole would bare little resemblance to that film. This desire to be different from Fantasia lead  to a big change being made to the Peter and the Wolf segment. This change was an addition of narration by regular Disney voice artist Sterling Holloway (The Cheshire Cat, Winnie the Pooh, Mr. Stork, Kaa, and many narrators).   

The music selection would be varied. Performers included such names as The Andrew Sisters (Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B, Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree, also known for appearing with Abbott and Costello in the films, Buck Privates, In the Navy and Hold That Ghost, they would also later provide another song for the Disney film Melody Time) The King's Men (Probably best known for providing the Munchkins' sing voices in 1939's The Wizard of Oz), Nelson Eddy (Shortnin' Bread), Benny Goodman (Two O' Clock Jump), Dianah Shore (Blues in the Night, she would also do a voice in another Disney film, Fun and Fancy Free), and The Ken Darby Chorus (Ken Darby had interestingly been the singing voice for the Munchkin mayor in 1939's Wizard of Oz). The cartoon shorts would be directed by Disney regulars Clyde Geronimi (Casey at Bat, Peter and the Wolf, The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met), Jack Kinney (All Cats Join in, After You've Gone, Johnnie Fedora and Alice Bluebonnet ) Hamilton Luske (The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met), Joshua Meador (Martins and the Coys, Two Silhouettes), Sam Armstrong (Martins and the Coys, Blue Bayou).

Make Mine Music was reasonably successful both financially and critically, encouraging the studio to keep making films of this kind. The short cartoon segments would later be re-released as individual short films. Though this film is mostly forgotten today, many Disney buffs still praise Jack Kinney's direction and Fred Moore's animation on the All Cats Join in segment, and the whole The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met segment.

Review

Since this movie is a collection of short cartoons put together to make a feature film, I will review each cartoon individually.

The Martins and the Coys: Hilarious Cartoon featuring violent slapstick humor at it's best. Great cartoony animation, and a funny story to boot. Grade: A

Blue Bayou: Beautiful animation match with beautiful music. However it does not measure up to the best of Fantasia. This is because it doesn't ever create it's own atmosphere, and feels like it is trying hard to be artsy, unlike Fantasia or Bambi, which felt more natural. However as it is it's quite lovely. Grade: C

All Cats Come in: The best segment of the film. The character designs are fantastic, and match the setting perfectly. The music and animation could not be matched up better, no matter how hard the filmmakers tried. Most of all though this cartoon is overflowing with energy. That energy is certainly contagious and this segment leaves you with a smile. Benny Goodman's music is fantastically fun and catchy, and only adds to the fun. This is sheer Disney cartoon fun at it's best. Grade: A+

Without You: While this short does contain some beautiful animation, it is fairly lifeless. Again like Blue Bayou this segment is consciously trying to be artsy instead of naturally being that way. Here though that is much more obvious and the whole short just feels forced. However I applaud Disney for experimenting with a segment like this. Grade: D

Casey at Bat: Decent cartoon is nothing special besides some great work by Mary Blair. However there is nothing bad about this cartoon, and it does have some really funny moments, and features some great cartoony animation. Grade:C

Two Silhouettes: Visually interesting segment, is a worthwhile experiment. This segment has a very unique look. The segment is enhanced heavily by the beautiful voice of Dinah Shore, and the song writing of regular Disney song writers, Charles Wolcott and Ray Gilbert. While this experiment doesn't fully work it has a unique charm to it. Grade: B

Peter and the Wolf: Sadly, this cartoon is bogged down by unnecessary narration. As big of a fan as I am of Sterling Holloway, this would be a much better cartoon with no narration. In fact narration goes against the entire point of Peter and the Wolf, where a story is supposed to be told by instruments. However as it is it is a very enjoyable short. The animation is quite likable, and it has some really good laughs. Grade: C
    

After You've Gone: Fantastic treat of imagination and animation. This is music coming alive personified. This is almost a companion piece to the Pink Elephants on Parade scene from Dumbo. Pure surrealist cartoon fun. Grade: A+

Johnny Fedora and Alice Blue Bonnet: A quite charming cartoon, that gets you to actually care about a couple of hats. This segment is enhanced heavily by a great performance from The Andrew Sisters. Very sweet, charming, and fun. Grade: A

 The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met: At times quite funny at others very emotional. A beautiful and funny cartoon, that stands as a classic on it's own. A real treat. Grade:A+



                                       Film Credits

Directors: Robert Cormack, Clyde Geronimi, Jack Kinney, Hamilton Luske, Joshua Meador

Writers: Homer Brightman, Dick Huemer, Dick Kinney, John Walbridge, Tom Oreb, Dick Shaw, Eric Gurney, Sylvia Moberly-Holland, T. Hee, Erdman Penner, Dick Kelsey, James Bodrero, Roy Williams, Cap Palmer, Jesse Marsh, Erwin Graham

Performers: Nelson Eddy, Dinah Shore, Benny Goodman and His Orchestra, The Andrews Sisters, Andy Russell, Sterling Holloway, The Pied Pipers, The King's Men, Ken Darby Chorus, Thurl Ravenscroft

Voices: Jerry Colonna (Narrator), Sterling Holloway (Narrator)

Silhouette Dancers:  Tatiana Riabouchinska, David Lichine

Producer: Walt Disney

Music: Eliot Daniel, Oliver Wallace, Charles Wolcott

Production Supervisor: Joe Grant

Assistant Directors: Rusty Jones, Ted Sebern, Bee Selck

Songwriters: Make Mine Music:  Ken Darby and Eliot Daniel (Music and Lyrics) The Martins and the Coys: Al Cameron and Ted Weems (Music and Lyrics) Blue Bayou: Bobby Worth and Ray Gilbert (Music and Lyrics), All the Cats Join In:  Eddie Sauter (Music), Alec Wilder and Ray Gilbert (Lyrics) Without You: Osvaldo Farrés (Music), Ray Gilbert (Lyrics), Two Silhouettes: Charles Wolcott (Music), Ray Gilbert (Lyrics) Peter and the Wolf: Sergei Prokofiev After You've Gone: Turner Leighton (Music), Henry Creamer (Lyrics) Johnny Fedora and Alice Bluebonnet: Allie Wrubel (Music and Lyrics), Ray Gilbert (Lyrics)

Art Supervisors: Mary Blair, John Hench, Elmer Plummer

Color Consultant:  Mique Nelson

Effects Animators: Jack Boyd, Brad Case, Andy Engman, Don Patterson, George Rowley

Special Effects: Ub Iwerks

Background Artists: Claude Coats, Merle Cox, Al Dempster, Ray Huffine, Ralph Hulett, Art Riley, Jimi Trout, Thelma Witmer

Layout Artists: Ed Benedict, Don DaGradi, Hugh Hennesy, John Niendorff, Lance Nolley, Kendall O'Connor, Charles Payzant, Charles Philippi, Al Zinnen

Animators: Hal Ambro, Al Bertino, Jack Campbell, Les Clark, Phil Duncan, Hugh Fraser, Ollie Johnston, Bill Justice, Milt Kahl, Ward Kimball, Hal King, Eric Larson, John Lounsbery, Tom Massey, John McManus, Fred Moore, Cliff Nordberg, Ken O'Brien, John Sibley, Harvey Toombs, Judge Whitaker, Al Coe, Harry Hamsel, Jerry Hathcock, Murray McClellan, Milt Neil, Noel Tucker, Karl Van Leuven, Cy Young


                     
                                                       Resources Used

 http://www.awn.com/mag/issue4.01/4.01pages/allanmake.php3

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038718/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

 -Michael J. Ruhland

The Three Caballeros

History and Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland




























Year Released: 1944

Michael's Movie Grade:A-

                                                                     History
The Three Caballeros was the 2nd and last feature film Disney would make for The Good Neighbor Policy. Again this film would be both a tribute and an education about South America. However this film would be quite different from Saludos Amigos. Although there would be 2 cartoon shorts included the shorts would not be the focus. This would also get rid of the travelogue wraparounds.

Again this film would feature some live action as well as some animation. The live action director would be again someone who only worked with Disney this one time. This time that director would be Harold Young, who had directed such live action films as The Scarlet Pimpernickel (1934), and  The Mummy's Tomb (1942). Again the animation would be directed by Disney regulars, Norman Ferguson, Clyde Geronimi, Jack Kinney, and Bill Roberts. However the impressiveness of this over previous films is that the live action and animated characters would interact with each other. While this had been done since the silent era, it had never before been done as well. Much of this was due to a man named Ub Iwerks. Ub Iwerks had worked with Walt since the silent era, co-created Mickey Mouse with Walt, and animated some of the early Disney cartoons entirely by himself. However he left Walt when he was offered the chance to run his own cartoon studio, where he would make cartoons with such characters as Flip The Frog, and Willie Whopper. Sadly while these cartoons were great technically, they suffered from bland characters and even blander stories. Therefore his cartoon studio didn't last too long, so he would come back to Disney, this time instead of animator he would be in charge of technical effects such as the combination of animation and live action in this film.

I mentioned when writing about Saludos Amigos that Mary Blair was inspired by the trip to Latin America. Well in this film her work is much more noticeable than in that one. Anyone who is familiar with her work will easily notice it here.

The Three Caballeros did not do well financially or critically, but it has received a big following in recent years.

                                         Review
A big improvement over Saldos Amigos, and probably Disney's most energetic film. This film is also one of the best combinations of live action, and animation done before Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

The starts out being enjoyable but nothing spectacular, and this feels like it is going to be just a pleasant way to spend some free time. Included in this part are two enjoyable cartoon shorts. However by the time Donald and Jose go to Baía the film truly begins to take off. Around this scene the film becomes a great showcase for the imagination, artistry, humor and most of all energy, seen in the Disney animators best work. Surrealism and cartoony humor abound and for a rare occasion in Disney features, story takes a back seat to the artists imaginations and senses of humor. With this type of story the film is becomes a showcase for artists Mary Blair and Ward Kimball, both of who do some of their best work in The Three Caballeros. In fact Ward Kimball has stated that this is one of the few films he worked on, that he can watch and not think of ways he could improve it.

This film is so good.


                                                           Film Credits

Supervising Director: Norman Ferguson
,
Sequence Directors: Clyde Geronimi, Jack Kinney, Bill Roberts

Live Action Director: Harold Young

Writers: Homer Brightman, Ernest Terrazas, Ted Sears, Bill Peet, Ralph Wright, Elmer Plummer, Roy Williams, William Cottrell, Del Connell, James Bodrero, Joe Grant, Dick Huemer, Webb Smith

Voices: Clarence Nash (Donald Duck), José Oliveira (José Carioca), Joaquin Garay (Panchito), Sterling Holloway (Professor Holloway),  Pinto Colvig (Aracuan Bird), Fred Shields (Narrator), Frank Graham (Narrator), Leo Carrillo (Gaucho)

Live Action Cast: Aurora Miranda (The Brazilian Girl), Carmen Molina (Mexican Girl), Dora Luz (Mexican Girl), Trío Calaveras (Themselves), Trío Ascensio del Rio (Themselves), Padua Hills Players (Themselves), Billy Daniel (Dancer), Dante DiPaolo (Dancer), Matt Mattox (Dancer), Alex Romero (Dancer)

Producer: Walt Disney

Music: Edward H. Plumb, Paul J. Smith, Charles Wolcott

Songwriters: The Three Caballeros: Manuel Esperón (Music), Ernesto Cortázar (Lyrics), Ray Gilbert (Lyrics)         You Belong to My Heart: Agustín Lara (Music and Lyrics), Ray Gilbert (Lyrics)   Have You Ever Been to Baía?: Dorival Caymmi (Music and Lyrics)

Cinematography: Ray Rennahan

Film Editor: Donald Halliday

Production Supervisor: Norman Ferguson

Production Manager: Daniel Keefe

Assistant Production Supervisor: Larry Lansburgh

Assistant Directors: Mike Holoboff, Rusty Jones, Ted Sebern, Bee Selck

Art Supervisors: Ken Anderson, Mary Blair, Robert Cormack

Art Direction: Richard Irvine

Color Consultant:  Phil Dike

Special Effects Animators: Edwin Aardal, John McManus, Joshua Meador, George Rowley

Special Effects: Ub Iwerks, Richard Jones

Technical Advisor:  Gail Papineau

Background Artists: Claude Coats, Al Dempster, Don Douglass, Ray Huffine, Art Riley

Layout Artists: Don DaGradi, Yale Gracey, John Hench, Hugh Hennesy, Charles Philippi, Herbert Ryman, McLaren Stewart, Karl Karpé, Lance Nolley

Animators: Bob Carlson, Les Clark, Ollie Johnston, Bill Justice, Milt Kahl, Ward Kimball, Hal King, Eric Larson, John Lounsbery, Fred Moore, Milt Neil, Don Patterson, John Sibley, Frank Thomas, Harvey Toombs, Marvin Woodward, Jack Boyd, Fred Kopietz, Paul Murry, John Reed

Choreographer: Carmelita Maracci


                                                        Resourses Used

The Disney Films by Leonard Maltin

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038166/?ref_=rvi_tt

-Michael J. Ruhland