One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)

For the first time since the 40s package films, a Disney movie does not begin with the opening of an old book. This is just the first of many differences in a new era for the studio. Whether they were aiming for a complete overhaul of everything Disney or not, there is something about this film that feels completely foreign, and I’m not talking about the London setting. Fewer songs, a new animation style, a simplified artistic vision, and a modern setting may shock fans of Disney’s two golden eras but the end result maintains the Disney standard of excellence.

Pongo, a Dalmatian, lives with his human, Roger, in London. After Pongo finds a wife for both himself and Roger (Perdita and Anita, respectively) he becomes the proud father of 15 puppies. He and his wife are thrilled at their blessings but their joy quickly turns to concern. Cruella De Vil, one of Anita’s former schoolmates, is mysteriously obsessed with acquiring the puppies at any cost.

After Roger refuses to sell the puppies to Cruella, she has a few of her lackeys break into the home and steal them. Desperate to reclaim their children, Pongo and Perdita use a country-wide network of dogs and other friendly animals to put out an alert. Thus begins a harrowing rescue attempt fraught with danger, not only from the winter-ravaged English countryside, but with Cruella De Vil hot on their tails in pursuit.

After all the lush and detailed art direction throughout the 50s, the animation of One Hundred and One Dalmatians is more than a little jarring. While they don’t abandon the multiplane camera, very little depth is put into the scenery. Disney’s emphasis on foreground characters grew during the preceding decade but this film takes a huge leap to keep the audience solely focused on the foreground.

Background elements like furniture and other décor are merely blobs of color with simple lines sketched over them to give the appearance of shape. Instead of a visually round environment, the only trace of three-dimensionality is with the characters and any objects they directly interact with. I spent much of the film in mental rebellion against this cost-saving venture.

The other major change is with the animation of the characters themselves. Beginning with this film, Disney became fully invested in the new Xerox photographing technology to cut costs. Prior to this move, Disney’s animators would sketch out characters on paper. These sketches would be given to re-drawers, who painted precise lines on animation cells. The Xerox method allowed the studio to eliminate the middle man and copy the sketches directly to the cells.

The end result quite literally resembles a moving sketchpad. By skipping the re-drawing phase, many of the animators’ reference and structural lines make it through to the final product. If it were an intentional move, it might be worth some merit but this effect is merely a by-product of an imperfect but cost-saving technology. The combination of this process and the art direction give One Hundred and One Dalmatians an unpolished look never before present in a Disney film.

This gritty/dirty quality is distracting at first but it actually works given the film’s modern setting. It helps make the city of London look appropriately blemished, while giving an edge to the countryside sequences. Fairy tales and fantasy adventures call for very crisp and clean environments but that same approach wouldn’t work for a story set in the real world. Even Lady and the Tramp had a bit of an edge to its street scenes. That doesn’t make this double whammy completely amenable, just tolerable.

One Hundred and One Dalmatians is still a fine Disney story. It promotes family values, persistence and kindness. Cruella De Vil is a little over the top and her motivation for snatching the puppies is kept a secret for too long. Knowing that motivation in advance really makes the timing of the reveal seem wrong. Leaking it a little earlier would help raise the dramatic tension during Pongo and Perdita’s search and rescue attempt.

The high point of the film has got to be the jazzy score. The opening itself is invigorating but a kind of free-wheeling attitude pervades much of the incidental music. This makes the film feel more contemporary than the actual setting of the film, I think. This might be one of the only of this film’s artistic decisions I can really get behind but the Disney team gets good marks for picking the perfect story to make these big transitions with.

RATING: 3.75 out of 5

Peter Pan (1953)

Some Disney films have grown so famous over the years that you occasionally forget why you like it so much. For me, such is the case with Peter Pan. What I remembered to be an innocent, playful romp through a fantasy land from my youth turned out to be a little darker than nostalgia would have me remember. This film may not fit into today’s political correctness-obsessed culture but, taken for what it is and when it was made, Peter Pan cannot be denied its rightful place among the top tier of Disney’s work.

John and Michael Darling love to hear the fanciful stories that their older sister Wendy tells them about a roguish, ageless boy named Peter Pan. Their father, not wanting the boys’ heads filled with ‘poppycock,’ decides it’s time for Wendy to have her own room, cutting the boys off from their beloved stories. That night, Peter Pan himself comes prowling around the Darling abode and whisks them away to Never Land.

Upon their arrival to Peter’s fantastic world, Wendy finds an unexpected foe in Peter’s pixie friend Tinker Bell, who is jealous that a girl should come between her and Peter. Tink’s jealousy leads her to assisting Peter’s nemesis, Captain Hook. The short-tempered pirate captain constantly has one eye on the lookout for Pan and the other on the lookout for the crocodile that claimed his hand and wants the rest of him too. The children explore their new surroundings, meeting the Lost Boys, an Indian tribe, and a fateful encounter with Hook.

Peter Pan gets back to what Disney does best- innovative animation, a delightful story, and memorable songs. That is the formula for Disney greatness. Cinderella nailed each component but Alice in Wonderland faltered in both story and music. Peter Pan already has a great story built in, so the songs and music are really where Disney should be most heavily evaluated.

“You Can Fly” is still among Disney’s most recognizable tunes but this is not a one-song film. Other memorable tunes include “Following the Leader” and “What Makes the Red Man Red?” are also quite enjoyable. Granted, the latter song, and the presentation of the Indian tribe as a whole, is a gross stereotype that would be met with all kinds of protest today. If you can keep in mind the time period when the original story was written (1911) and when this film was released (1953), you should be able to take these depictions with a grain of salt.

I had all but forgotten about the politically incorrect portions of Peter Pan since the last time I saw it (which is admittedly quite a long time ago). What I hadn’t forgotten was how great the film looks. Three significant accomplishments stand out for this production. First and most obvious is the animation of the children flying. I can’t even fathom how much time it took the animators to make those sequences look right. The children float, rise and dive almost without effort, creating a perfect illusion.

Second is the work involving Tinkerbell and her glow. Several times she hides behind pieces of foliage but her natural luminosity makes for a unique effect that I don’t recall ever seeing before now. Finally, during the climactic battle with Captain Hook, there is a sequence where the camera is ‘looking down’ on Hook as he climbs the rope ladder toward Peter. Instead of Hook just growing larger as he climbs closer to where the camera would be if it were live action, the effect is that of the camera panning backward at the same pace as Hook while the background deck of the ship grows smaller. It seems like a minor detail but it floored me because it is extremely intricate.

The beauty of the story of Peter Pan is that it works on two levels. Kids will love it because it is an adventure involving children that don’t grow up. The kids ultimately pick up a lesson that, at some point, growing up is inevitable and should not be resisted. For parents, the story of Peter Pan makes them confront some of the realities of adulthood. How much like Captain Hook and Mr. Darling are you? That’s the subtle question it asks while quietly assuring us that growing older doesn’t have to mean growing colder. The Disney team captures these messages perfectly.

While political correctness junkies may be loathe to show this film to impressionable children, I plan on showing Peter Pan to my kids someday. Chances are, kids won’t even remember the ‘red man’ stuff. The Disney team is on top of their game here, which means that children and adults will marvel at the colors, sounds and music coming their way. It’s a great story given a terrific treatment. This film is part of the reason that the story and spirit of Peter Pan still exists in our cultural lexicon.

RATING: 4 out of 5

Lady and the Tramp (1955)

I’m starting to see a pattern develop with Disney animated films. It seems as though the best of Disney’s work up to this point has come from classic fairy tales like Snow White and Cinderella. Other literary adaptations have proven successful as well despite the Disney version now being more familiar and influential than the source material (i.e. Bambi). Ever since emerging from the World War II era of package films, it seems that the quality of the Disney product has been see-sawing, taking a step forward with one film and then a step back with the next. Lady and the Tramp very loosely fits into this pattern.

Lady, a cocker spaniel has lived a pampered life with her owners Jim and Darling Dear. She is good friends with other well-to-do dogs in her neighborhood and consults them when her owners’ behavior toward her changes mysteriously. Her friends tell her that the humans are having a baby. In comes The Tramp, a savvy street dog who warns Lady that her life will be drastically different when the baby arrives, implying that babies and dogs don’t mix well in the eyes of human adults.

After the baby is born, there are a few subtle changes but Lady and the little one co-exist quite peacefully. Then the Dear’s go on vacation, leaving the cat-loving and dog-hating Aunt Sarah to watch the child. Sarah’s sly Siamese cats display a knack for causing trouble and laying the blame on Lady. When Sarah tries to muzzle Lady, the frightened dog runs away. The Tramp shows her a few things about life on the street and they fall in love. Their bond becomes critical when Lady returns home and is unable to help in a desperate situation.

This is only the third of Disney’s full-length one-story animated films to be almost exclusively animal driven. Dumbo was a departure from the lush animation style Disney was known for while Bambi was a return to that style. In the build-up toward Lady and the Tramp, Disney produced another detail-rich fairy tale (Cinderella), an experimental piece (Alice in Wonderland), and a fantasy-laden children’s tale (Peter Pan). While the beginning and end of Peter Pan take place in some form of modern times, this is the first Disney picture to keep itself in the ‘real world’ for its entire runtime.

The combination of these two factors makes Lady and the Tramp a real gamble. Going back to animals is the lesser risk here because Disney’s crew of animators has shown time and again that they are adept at replicating the look and movements of animals. It’s the ‘modern’ setting that might prove to be a deal-breaker for some people. After a number of films with exotic and lovely locations, the city streets are hardly what one would expect from Disney. While it does give the animators new territory, colors and shapes to explore, trash and alleyways aren’t all that visually appealing to anyone.

Lady and the Tramp rises above this potential pitfall though because of its high-class-low-class romance. Both Lady and The Tramp have a few things to learn from each other and it’s hard not to find an animal romance cute. The Tramp reminds me of Clark Gable in It Happened One Night. He’s sly, witty and devilishly charming. If not for him, the film would have no fun or soul.

One critical failing of this film, however, is the lack of potent music and songs. Aside from the now politically incorrect “Siamese Cat Song” and a few lines of “He’s a Tramp,” there’s not a memorable tune to be found. Sure, some of the music may be catchy but it’s the action of the dogs meeting in the middle of a spaghetti noodle that is more memorable than the “Bella Notte” song playing throughout the scene.

While most other song-light Disney flicks have managed to bounce back through style and story, Lady and the Tramp isn’t quite capable of a full momentum reversal. It does offer some fantastic animal animation. In fact, the personalities given to each type of dog is marvelous. The problem mainly lies with its lightweight story. Yes, there’s the romance, but what else? A rich dog runs away, falls in love with a poor dog, goes home and the poor dog “saves the day” from something that doesn’t make much sense as a serious threat to begin with.

For an hour and fifteen minutes of entertainment though, Lady and the Tramp fits the bill. The animators nail their subjects perfectly, creating engrossing characters that take your mind off of any quibbles you may have with the film’s urban setting. The high point is the design and execution of the animal characters even though the rest of the animation may not be up to snuff with Disney’s best efforts. It’s quick and to the point. To do so with characters like these makes it something special.

RATING: 3.75 out of 5

Alice in Wonderland (1951)

This is a tough film to place. I have never studied, nor even read, Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland or Through the Looking Glass. I don’t know if that leaves me at a disadvantage when approaching this film from a critical perspective. Literary types go gaga over the source stories and artsy-fartsy types (not to mention recreational drug enthusiasts) adore the trippy animation employed by Disney’s team. Seeing as I don’t really fall into any of the above categories, it should come as little surprise that this film fails to get much of a reaction from me.

The young and lovely Alice grows tired of living within the strict rules of reality. Dreaming of a world unlike her own, she spies a White Rabbit hurrying along and talking to himself. Following the curious creature, Alice falls down his rabbit hole and into a world full of nonsense. Along her pursuit of the White Rabbit she meets various unique characters that have become timeless: the Mad Hatter, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, and the grinning Cheshire Cat, just to name a few.

Not many of the characters Alice meets along the way are helpful but her quest isn’t much to get excited about. Through most of the tale she is merely trying to catch up to the White Rabbit and find out where he is running to. She does a good job of staying on task, despite being bombarded by gibberish and nonsense at every turn. Once she gets to where the Rabbit is headed, her life is put in jeopardy by the headstrong Red Queen.

The story itself is interesting, despite going off on a tangent with the seemingly random vignette of ‘The Walrus and the Carpenter.’ Then again, there’s really not much to the story at all. Alice is trying to find the White Rabbit the whole time and eventually realizes what a mess a world of nonsense would be. I guess the point of the tale is for Alice to learn a simple lesson while encountering a world of bizarre people and creatures. In many ways, this is similar to a number of other children’s fantasy tales. Alice in Wonderland just happens to be wittier and smarter than most.

Disney keeps much of the manic wordplay that made Carroll’s stories popular with the literary crowd. It is fun to hear the double entendres and usage of dual-meaning words. It is also enjoyable to watch the weirdness play out. The Cheshire Cat is really the only animation marvel in the film though, as he fades in and out of existence with ease. Yes, there are plenty of creative settings but Alice features Disney’s plainest animation since Dumbo. That takes away from the visual impact that could have turned the film into a real mind-bender.

I understand why Disney played up the story for a family-friendly vibe but Alice in Wonderland misses the mark a hair for modern audiences. I don’t know how kids were back in the 50s but nowadays it’s mostly the under-10 crowd that goes to see Disney movies. Kids that young won’t get much of the wordplay and will be more likely to watch it on the surface as a goofy fantasy with funny characters. Parents may pop it in just to entertain the kids and not think much, but they’re apt to find their brains in overdrive processing the literary lunacy being cut loose.

The utter weirdness of Disney’s Alice in Wonderland has made it memorable for generations. I remember seeing it and reading the Diseny read-along-on-tape book when I was a kid. Do I remember it for being awesome and fun like Cinderella? Nope. I remember it for being weird and being creeped out by the Cheshire Cat. Elements of the story remain in our cultural consciousness and I believe that this animated version has kept it there for the past 60 years much in the same way that Disney’s Cinderella has for that tale. Do many parents read Carroll’s stories to the kids anymore?

Maybe I just don’t belong to the niche audience that Alice in Wonderland was made for. It is entertaining to watch, albeit frustrating at times, but the conclusion lacks profundity. Alice learns that a world of nonsense is not a place worth living in. Any adult could have told her that but, like any stubborn child, Alice has to learn it for herself. Unlike most other Disney films, there are no central themes or morals to the story. Perhaps, given the source material, none are needed, and I’m just used to children’s stories having a lesson behind the colorful, musical fun.

Perhaps I’ll change my tune once I read the works of Lewis Carroll. Until then, I’m not surprised that this film isn’t remembered as part of the upper echelon of Disney classics.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5

Cinderella (1950)

From August of 1942 until the end of the decade, Walt Disney and his animation studio were in a kind of Dark Ages. Half of their animators were being used to make pro-Allied Forces propaganda films for the US military. After the end of World War II the studio didn’t have the funds to pull off a full-length stand-alone story. Thus they were stuck with the cheap-to-make package films that modern audiences have all but forgotten entirely. Walt Disney took a chance and nearly broke the bank to produce Cinderella. The rest is history.

If you don’t know the story of Cinderella then you have either been living under a rock or led a horribly sheltered life. Just in case anyone does fall into either of those categories, I will summarize. A beautiful young woman is mistreated by her step-mother and ugly step-sisters. The prince of the kingdom seeks a wife and the poor maiden gets help from her animal friends and a fairy godmother to transform her from a servant into beautiful woman. She captures the heart of the prince but leaves her suitor before the enchantments end at midnight. The prince is left to search the countryside for the maiden who fits a glass slipper left behind at the castle.

The motto ‘go big or go home’ may seem clichéd now but you can’t help but look back at history and point to instances of this motto working in magnificent ways. Cinderella is one such event. Had the film tanked, Disney was prepared to close up shop. Can you even fathom a world without Disney films? What a sad existence that would be! It’s hard to believe that that was a possibility, but it was.

Thank goodness Disney pulled out all the stops. The animation may not be as layered and gorgeous as Snow White or Pinocchio but Cinderella has enough colors and textures to dazzle the eyes. In fact, the animation has very little to do with the success of the film. That credit belongs to the following factors: a timeless story, charming characters and unbeatable music.

While this film version now serves as an introduction for most young people to the classic fairy tale, Cinderella has been around for hundreds of years. Operas, plays and even ballets have been written and produced to tell this timeless tale of love breaking through the boundaries of class and status. Even a half-dozen incarnations of the story were committed to film before Disney had his animators ink the tale in Technicolor. Returning to popular lore was the first step toward success. Cinderella exists in the hearts and minds of everyone. It’s a tale that resonates with just about all of us. Who doesn’t want to rise above their current situation and fulfill a dream? That’s the stuff Cinderella is made of.

With all the success Disney’s animators had over the years with bringing animals to life, it makes perfect sense for them to include anthropomorphic critters to the tale. Sure, it’s only the mice that walk, talk and sing like people, but the collection of personalities enhances the story instead of distracting from it. Plus, kids are easily entertained by animals doing human-like things. The trials and tribulations of Cinderella’s mouse friends are added in the right places, providing an extra dramatic kick or a much-needed dash of humor at just the right times. The step-mother and step-sisters are also developed with the right aura of coldness and haughtiness as to prevent them from being likeable in any way.

Finally there is the music. Virtually all of the songs in this film are memorable and fun to listen to. “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo” is still among the greatest Disney film songs of all time. On top of this rollicking treasure are other signature classics like “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes,” “Sing Sweet Nightingale,” and “The Work Song” as sung by the mice to relay Cinderella’s plight. The only Disney film to this point to feature so many songs that have stood the test of time is Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Everything about this film is iconic. Along with Snow White, Cinderella helps define Disney. The stars aligned for Walt and his crew and this film gave new life to the company. This film furthered their move towards a simpler animation style but it grips you where it matters most. Sixty years after its release, Cinderella hasn’t lost an ounce of its magic.

RATING: 4 out of 5

The Adventure of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949)

Maybe Disney and company realized their mistake in producing another multi-feature package film with Melody Time. Maybe the studio had made enough money through the 1940s to stick to longer tales. Maybe they decided it was time to get back to more serious literary adaptations. Whatever the reason for making The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, this film marks the start of Disney’s rise back to the top.

Similar to Fun and Fancy Free, The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad is a collection of two longer animated tales. Ironically, the tale of Mr. Toad (based on Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows) actually comes first. For those of you who are not familiar with the tale, a trio of anthropomorphic animals attempts to save their friend (Mr. Toad) from himself. Ratty, Moley and Angus MacBadger do their best to prevent their trend-happy friend from losing his home while also avoiding incidental personal injury at the hands of the over-exuberant Mr. Toad.

The second half of the film features a Bing Crosby-narrated account of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Washington Irving’s haunting ghost tale focuses on a superstitious town where jealously may or may not have turned deadly. The new schoolmaster catches the eye of a lovely young woman, drawing the ire of a testosterone-fueled local bully at the same time. The bully warns of a local legend called The Headless Horseman, who stalks the town at night, in an attempt to scare his competition out of town.

Once again, by focusing on longer stories, Disney’s animators are able to labor over the details. There’s a richness in the background animation here that was absent in many of the earlier package films. Having a longer subject gives the animator a chance to invest more of his or her time into the product, which ultimately gives the audience a higher quality visual experience to embrace.

Another interesting observation I made is that, with this film, the animation style that would prevail during the 1950s for Disney films is finally consistent through both shorts. Many of the shorts throughout the 40s package films had varying animation styles. Some were more experimental than others while others attempted to cling to the lavish beauty of Snow White and Pinocchio. Here we finally catch a glimpse of what’s to come- scaling back some of the background details, a flatter look to the foreground, and crisper colors for the objects we’re supposed to be focusing on. Some of this was used before like in ‘Peter and the Wolf’ and ‘The Legend of Johnny Appleseed’ but it seems like Disney had finally decided to keep this style as the norm.

The stories themselves are timeless classics and you won’t get any complaints out of me for that. Both tales are treated with respect but also make room for creative license. I think the only thing that feels off is the pairing. The Wind in the Willows is a little lighter and more madcap, whereas The Legend of Sleepy Hollow has a more Gothic feel. Disney does his best to lighten it up but there’s no getting around the horror that is The Headless Horseman.

If anything, this final package film (and the 11th overall production by Disney and his team) feels a little bi-polar. Disney broke them up for individual re-release in the 1950s, which accounts for most people remembering these shorts separately. Whether you care for it or not, this film is a symbolic victory for Disney. He and his animators are planting their feet down in preparation of leaping back to prominence.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5

Melody Time (1948)

After taking a step forward with Fun and Fancy Free, Walt Disney and his animation team takes a slight step backward by returning to the overstuffed ‘package’ film format. Melody Time has its share of virtues but it can’t escape the stigma of seeming like another Fantasia clone that fails to live up to the achievements of the original.

The film opens reasonably strong with ‘Once Upon a Wintertime,’ a tale of two young people in love on a romp through the winter scenery. The inventive but forgettable ‘Bumble Boogie’ comes next and features a jazz variation of “Flight of the Bumblebee.” Up next is the classic short 'The Legend of Johnny Appleseed.' Most people my age and younger have seen this charming animated tale while growing up and it still has all the charm and magic as the first time you may have seen it.

'Appleseed' is a tough act to follow but 'Little Toot' does well enough in the cleanup spot. It’s about a rambunctious little tugboat and features the signing of the Andrews Sisters. 'Trees' offers a bland recitation of a poem by Alfred Joyce Kilmer. Saving the day is 'Blame it on the Samba,' a wonderfully entertaining short featuring Donald Duck, José Carioca and the crazy Aracuan bird. This reunion from The Three Caballeros is a welcome attraction for me, even though I’ve grown tired of the formulaic structure of these War-era Disney films.

Wrapping up Melody Time is 'Pecos Bill,' a tall tale of the legendary Western characters adventures spun by none other than Roy Rogers. The home video release is cleaned up for political correctness (gone are virtually all depictions of our hero smoking) but the good-natured fun remains. It ends the film on a high note, which is good because anything less than a solid ending would have left audiences frustrated with this re-serving of more of the same.

I don’t mean for this review to come off so negative. The animation is solid, the music is enjoyable and the stories are fine. My beef is that ‘fine’ isn’t good enough for a Disney product. I understand that World War II drained Disney of resources and box office returns tanked but this is the fifth consecutive Disney film to lack a central story line. There is no meat and no growth for characters. All we get are a few splashy colors, fanciful music and short stories. This cheap and easy approach has lost its luster and leaves you longing for the glory days of Snow White, Pinocchio and Bambi.

While Melody Time never tries to be the second coming of Fantasia, it’s impossible not to compare them based on their similar structures. Where Fantasia was a bold and innovative experiment, Melody Time is intentionally formulaic and manufactured. The end product is still worth watching though; it’s just not a main course that you’ll be asking for seconds of.

RATING: 3.25 out of 5

Make Mine Music (1946)

Still strapped for cash and a full team of animators due to World War two, Disney cranked out this, yet another ‘package film.’ Instead of a common theme uniting the individual shorts, Make Mine Music returns to the Fantasia formula- an artful combination of animation and music. Despite bringing in a few big names to contribute to this anthology, the results are pretty mixed.

The original version of Make Mine Music began with a piece called ‘The Martins and the Coys,’ a Western-themed tale of two feuding families thrown for a loop when a boy from one family and a girl from the other fall in love with each other. I had to look this short up online, however, because all home video releases have removed this short because of its comedic use of gunplay that is no longer appropriate for children. Thanks a lot, political correctness.

Instead of a fun and lively opener, the version of Make Mine Music that I watched began with the dreadfully slow ‘Blue Bayou,’ a short that was originally supposed to be part of Fantasia. It’s simply a look at the animal and plant life of a bayou in the early evening. While the animation is beautiful, the pace is a downer. This makes for a very poor first impression and may hamper your ability to let yourself get into the rest of the film.

The first half of the film goes back and forth between slow pieces and upbeat shorts, creating an awkward see-saw effect. The second short on home video is ‘All the Cats Join In.’ Featuring the music of Benny Goodman, this short provides the spark missing from ‘Blue Bayou.’ A pencil draws the action as we’re seeing it, a clever twist to the animation, as cartoon teenagers get carried away by the new popular music of the era.

‘Without You’ is next, featuring a slow ballad sung by Andy Russell. Very little about this short is remarkable, save some of the shadows matching the music. The animated tale of ‘Casey at the Bat’ brings a little life back into the mix. Ernest Thayer’s classic poem is read and plays out with some pretty polished animation. Things drop back down a notch with ‘Two Silhouettes,’ which features an early example of rotoscoping, animating over footage of live-action events. Two ballet dancers appear as animated silhouettes while they dance to a tune sung by Dinah Shore and ‘interact’ with other animated elements on the screen. It’s a neat process but the pace kills momentum.

The final four shorts end Make Mine Music on a good note. ‘Peter and the Wolf’ offers a glimpse of the animation style that would become the norm for Disney in the next few years. ‘After You’ve Gone’ brings Benny Goodman back for a rousing mash-up between music and animated versions of the instruments being played. ‘Johnny Fedora’ and ‘The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met’ are both cute little tales (though 'Whale' ends on a bit of a downer for a film targeted at children) that feature colorful animation and some good music.

While Disney may not have been deliberately trying to repeat the success of Fantasia with this film, comparison to the earlier masterpiece is inevitable. Make Mine Music features a number of interesting shorts but the order in which they play out could have been arranged better. The loss of ‘The Martins and the Coys’ is a major blow because the film starts off slow. This might cause viewers to lose interest almost immediately, which was almost the case with me.

Despite plenty of good shorts and some clever blending of animation and music, Make Mine Music doesn’t really try anything bold or groundbreaking. Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros tried a few new things but the anthology formula feels like it’s played out this time around. It’s a pretty good product in the end but it almost need to be another Fantasia to really matter. Sadly, it’s no Fantasia.

RATING: 3.25 out of 5