Munir's Disney Retrospective -- Animated Classic #9: Fun and Fancy Free (1947)

By Munir Abedrabbo.

Last Week's: Munir's Disney Retrospective -- Animated Classic #8: Make Mine Music (1946)

Here, finally, we have the first fully satisfying anthology film, and one that deserves a better reputation and more exposure than it gets nowadays. Part of its success is that it only has two very strong segments instead of many weak ones, and also because it features many beloved Disney characters (Mickey, Donald, Goofy and Jiminy Cricket!) in various roles. Both segments ‘Bongo’ about a bear in love and ‘Mickey and the Beanstalk’, a variation of the famous Jack and the Beanstalk story, feature plenty of laughs and good character development. Also helping matters is Jiminy Cricket’s intervention as the host, as well as famous ventriloquist Edgar Bergen, as himself, and his marionettes providing some comic relief and serving as narrator for the Mickey short. All these ingredients blend perfectly to produce a movie that, while still composed of short films, manages to deliver high quality feature entertainment and one of the best segments featuring Mickey & Co. in the studio’s history. Rating: 4/5.

Next Week: Animated Classic #10 Review: Melody Time (1948)

Munir's Disney Retrospective -- War Period Introduction

By Munir Abedrabbo.

War Period: The Anthology Films (1943-1949)

Overview

After a far too short period of developing and innovating animation techniques and completely changing the animation industry with ambitious projects, World War II took its toll on the Disney Studio. Pinocchio, Fantasia and Bambi weren't as successful as Walt had hoped and, out of a need to keep the studio afloat during and after the War, he had to cut expense. Disney then released a series of inexpensive shorts, encompassed in various feature films. Universally known as the Anthology Films nowadays, this period is rather obscure for the casual Disney fan that tends to jump from the end of the Golden Age with Bambi to the Silver Age with Cinderella. Nonetheless, even if these films aren't widely known, and even if many of them offer uneven experiences to the audience, they are certainly worth a look and they’re an important part of the studio’s history during that difficult time.

 

Tomorrow: Animated Classic #6 Review: Saludos Amigos