Some Good, Some Boring

v_haritha_in

In the years following Fantasia, Disney came up with some animated films which are a collection of shorts. Melody Time is one them. It contains seven unrelated musical vignettes.

1. Once Upon a Winter Time: A lovey-dovey young couple go ice-skating and there they have a cutesy misunderstanding but make up cutesy-ly in the end. As though this doesn't ooze enough icky cuteness, there is a rabbit couple imitating the human couple. A poor beginning.

2. Bumble Boogie: The movie starts getting good. This is Disney's take on Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "Flight of the Bumblebee" and a very interesting one too. If anything it ends too soon.

3. Johnny Appleseed: A romanticized story of Johnny Appleseed, a real- life, pioneer apple-cultivator, this short has some of the best animation in any Disney movie.

4. Little Toot: The good run continues with the story of a naughty little tugboat who eventually learns to be responsible.

5. Trees: A short, totally forgettable song on how trees shelter animals and birds.

6. Blame it on the Samba: Donald Duck and Jose Carioca dance to some Samba music played on piano by Ethel. It has some interesting animation but nothing special.

7. Pecos Bill: This is the longest feature and has a live-action sequence. It tells the tale of the folklore hero, Pecos Bill and it is really enjoyable.

Watch the better shorts separately rather than the entire movie.

score 7/10

v_haritha_in 1 September 2014

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3079282/