Alice in Wonderland - 1951

Oh, sweet Alice. Silly Alice. Your film is…fine.

Honestly, fine. And I mean that in a good way. Similar to Mr. Toad, it’s clearly supposed to be silly and nonsensical and because that’s done so well with kooky characters, harsh lines and bright colors. It can definitely get frustrating with the dialogue that just goes in circle like at the Mad Tea Party but, I mean…that’s just Wonderland.

I think it’s at this point where it’s clearly indicative that there was/is an A-Team and a B-Team in the Animated Features department at the studio. They all have to reach a very high minimum bar, that’s obvious because it’s still a gorgeous film in its own way but, I don’t know if I’d consider Alice as picturesque and fine art-like as I do Cinderella. That’s not to say it’s crude or ugly. It’s just different. And that’s fine! I don’t think it would be nearly as good if it was stylized like Cinderella or even the original illustrations like Sir John Tenniel. Yes, it’s different. Comparatively, yes, it’s less than, but that’s the lane it’s supposed to be in and that’s why it works.

I’d say this is the first time Disney didn’t make something insanely painful to get through after a smash hit. Not to say there wasn’t some stuff I could’ve done without, specifically the story of The Walrus and The Carpenter but, I’m blaming the source material for that one. The ending felt a little unresolved as well. Alice is being chased from the Queen of Hearts and her crew and when it hits the climax, Alice just wakes up. I can’t hate that too much, as it’s no different in real life.

My stance remains unchanged. Alice is fine. It will never be a go to but I enjoyed it for what it is. It’s fine.

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Cinderella - 1950

Disclaimer: This film was taken in with the Childhood Favorite Filter on so bias is in full swing.

New decade, new look, new Disney. Wow, wow, wow. Cinderella saved this company and it shows. There’s a reason why that big ol’ castle in Florida is fashioned after the one in this film. This movie did a lot for Disney. The man and the company. The dress transition scene is iconic and that’s just one part of one scene. The animation in Cinderella sets a new bar for Disney animation at this point. The characters you’re supposed to like are likable, the characters you aren’t supposed to like are still fun to watch. Come on, Lucifer is a jerk but those expressions are something gif-worthy that every sassy person should have in their arsenal.

This story is nothing new. Everyone and their mother knows the story of the girl who leaves behind a shoe because she’s gotta make curfew. Yet Disney does a fantastic job of making a compelling story that pulls at your heartstrings. Plus, the music! Catchy, clever, creative. This movie was one of my absolute favorites as a kid. I cant explain why it just captured so much of my heart. I’m so happy I decided to do this rewatch because I haven’t visited this film in at least a decade. Even if Cinderella isn’t my favorite princess, I think it may be one of my favorite princess movies. I could continue to gush but that’s incredibly boring. Cinderella easily cemented itself in line up of timeless Disney classics. The thing I will always chew on from a historic perspective is what comes next.

Will the next entry in the Disney Feature Film Animation ledger top what comes before it? That’s certainly the case now a days with studios like Pixar. At the time Cinderella was being produced, 2 other movies were also in development: Alice In Wonderland and Peter Pan. Both would wind up being made, as we know but would either of them capture the magic or emotion that Cinderella has? Will the artwork of it be as awe-inspiring? From where I’m sitting, it’s a toss up. Disney did a damn good job with Snow White but was what came next as good or better than it? *checks notes* Hmm, Pinocchio…no. Well what about after that? Dumbo. Uh, also no. Try again? Oh it’s Bambi? Yikes.

We’ll see.

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The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad - 1949

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad 1949

Well, well. Another first time viewing for this babbler. What a…ahem…wild ride… Ichabod and Mr. Toad was! I am not sorry for what I just did there. Really, I’m not.

There’s a lot I didn’t really know going into this film. Everything I knew was from the select few times I’ve been on the ride. I will follow that statement up by saying I do not enjoy the ride. It’s in my top 2 of rides at Disneyland I absolutely will not go on. (The second being Snow White’s Scary Adventures which is alarmingly terrifying considering it’s a Fantasyland ride. It is worth mentioning however, that the ride is currently under a long overdue refurbishment that will get some of the same updating treatment that the Alice ride got and sources I follow on Twitter seem to indicate they will water down the spooky factor. Anyway….)

Some questions I had going into this film were:

1.     How will they depict Mr. Toad going to hell?

2.     How am I going to brace myself for the monster thing that’s at the end of the ride?

3.     What does Ichabod have to do with anything?

I discovered about a quarter of the way through the whole movie that the Ichabod thing was going to be a bigger enigma than I realized, considering I was significantly along in the story of Mr. Toad and there was no mention or indication of Ichabod being a factor at all. Not being able to stand it anymore, I busted out the Wikipedia article which explained to me the following, “The film consists of two segments—the first of which is based on the 1908 children's novel The Wind in the Willows by British author Kenneth Grahame, and the second is based on the 1820 short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", called Ichabod Crane in the film, by American author Washington Irving.”

WELL OKAY. So, this is literally a feature film of 2 different stories that have absolutely NOTHING to do with each other sandwiched into one thing. Question 3: answered!

On to the rest of the questions. It turns out that the 2 things I detest most about the ride, the scene going to hell and the monster at the end, ARE NOT IN THE MOVIE. Questions 1 and 2, basically answered. So, did I like sitting through the whole Mr. Toad portion of the movie on edge the whole time? No. But! That didn’t affect my enjoyment of it! I thought Mr. Toad was great! It was fun and silly and the characters were enjoyable. It didn’t take itself so seriously and was just a cute story illustrated through some classic Disney Animation.

TRANSITION TO…The Ichabod portion of the evening.

I’ll cut to the chase with this one. I HATED IT. Besides the fact that it dragged on, because you basically have to reset from one story ending and a new one beginning, the story of Ichabod is gross and…. say it with me…unfortunately a product of its time. Everyone in this story is a complete asshat. You literally have no one to root for. The titular characters only redeeming qualities are that he reads a lot, therefore being a teacher and can dance well. He spends the entire film being an opportunistic jerk, hopping from woman to woman, mother to mother of his students who have the best food so he can be fed, knowing all the while he’s some impressive so-n-so.

Once we establish that character trait about him, he literally leaves a picnic he’s on with a woman and her kid to dreamily follow the town hottie and daughter of the rich guy, Katrina, who is pitting Ichabod against the big brute in town, Brom Bones. He’s like Gaston: The Beta Version. Anyway, all of this culminates at the gal’s Halloween party which Brom uses as an opportunity to scare superstitious Ichabod into believing he’ll be hunted by the headless horseman on his way home. Ichabod is scared senseless, and then there’s a way-too-long sequence of him running away from a headless horseman. The ending is left open ended, not knowing what happened to Ichabod as the horseman caught up to him. All I can say is, good riddance.

I left this movie with 2 thoughts:

1) There is a reason we don’t hear about the Ichabod portion of this movie. It’s truly awful and aged horribly.

2) Why would these two stories get put together? Leonard Maltin explained in his book The Disney Films that these 2 stories “seem to complement each other quite well.” How?? I don’t see it. Toad is about a scallywag adventurer that needs to clear his name, save his reputation and get his home back. Ichabod is about a know it all douchebag seeking nothing but attention for his brilliance, a warm meal and to marry up.  

Would I watch this again? No.

Even the half of it I liked? No, probably not.

Sorry, Toad. Ichabod screwed ya. Still not going on your creepy ass ride either!

NEXT:

Bambi - 1942

Well. I don’t really know how to start this one.

I’ll be blunt.

It was so boring.

A few minutes in, I was texting my friend who had also seen it recently and said, “oh my god are we still in the intro?! Enough with the scenery!” This film was very much Disney trying to show off its master artistry and the story as well as anything interesting kind of fell by the wayside.

All these characters, literally all of them, are so annoying. There’s no real story. Bambi is born. He learns to say “bird.” He grows up, understands the harsh reality of living in a forest with the introduction of the film’s (weak-ass) antagonist, “Man.” Meets his dad, runs into Man again, and then the forest gets set on fire.

I feel so stuck. I literally didn’t care at all about this movie. I wasn’t even sad when Bambi’s mom died. I’ll give it that it’s pretty. The picturesque nature scenery is nice. Not for me, but nice.

I wish I had more to say. I really do. Ah, well. Can’t all be winners.

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