Category: Cartoons & Animation - Children - Children's Video - Family - Feature Film Family
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DVD Dumbo (Big Top Edition)
A Disney "classic" that actually is a classic, Dumbo should be part of your video collection whether or not you have children. The storytelling was never as lean as in Dumbo, the songs rarely as haunting (or just plain weird), the characters rarely so well defined. The film pits the "cold, cruel, heartless" world that can't accept abnormality against a plucky, and mute, hero. Jumbo Jr. (Dumbo is a mean-spirited nickname) is ostracized from the circus pack shortly after his delivery by the stork because of his big ears. His mother sticks up for him and is shackled. He's jeered by children (an insightful scene has one boy poking fun at Dumbo's ears, even though the youngster's ears are also ungainly), used by the circus folk, and demoted to appearing with the clowns. Only the decent Timothy Q. Mouse looks out for the little guy. Concerns about the un-PC "Jim Crow" crows, who mock Dumbo with the wonderful "When I See an Elephant Fly," should be moderated by remembering that the crows are the only social group in the film who act kindly to the little outcast. If you don't mist up during the "Baby Mine" scene, you may be legally pronounced dead. --Keith Simanton
Timeless classic, animation that set the pace for everyone else.
Disney has always been a leader in animated films, snow white through modern day Disney/Pixar. But Dumbo is a throw back to the old days, and a very good example of the art of cartoons at its best. Jumbo Jr. The little elefant with big ears and outcast of the paciderms becomes the hero of the circus. Does it get any better than that. Overcoming triumph. This film never gets old. And, it shows the values of the past, stokes delivering babies, and the ideal mother protecting their children. Also, Pink elephants as a representation of Drinking. Back then, nobody really talked about drinking, so they use terms such as "seeing pink elephants" to say that they were drunk. That part use to actually scare me as a kid. Anyhow, a must have DVD for the collection, I actually own the laserdisc copy, but did look at this DVD version, and it does have some good features on it. Fun for the whole family.
THE 60th ANNIVERSARY EDITION IS AN EXCELLENT WAY TO PRESENT THIS TIMELESS CLASSIC
ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR EDITION: 60th ANNIVERSARY DVD
The 60th Anniversary Edition of Dumbo on DVD has been very well restored with the right colors and the sharpness that is more fully appreciated via its DVD presentation through a very high definition transfer.
That would be enough, but there is more to recommend this edition.
-----> Michael Crawford Music Video, "Baby Mine";
this is a rendition of the song which was playing in the background when Dumbo went to visit his mother in the Elephant jail [a cart outside of the circus tents that was labeled "Mad Elephant"]. Here Michael Crawford serenades us with this tune while a music video filled with sentimental Dumbo images takes us cascading nostalgicly down memory lane.
-----> Original Walt Disney TV Introduction
-----> Celebrating "Dumbo" Featurette on the Origins and History of Dumbo; all I can say is I wish this one were longer. There are interviews, storyboards and some thoughts about Dumbo as a mute hero of sorts. Most interesting was the idea, at the time, that 'Dumbo' was relatively lighter fare than the Disney
features that had come before [Snow White - Fantasia - Pinocchio] and led up to Bambi the following year [1942]. The emphasis of the featurette was that 'Dumbo' was supposed to be a simple story of injustice and triumph which turned into something of a timeless classic that is very easy to enjoy. The featurette also discusses the motiff of the animation and the pastel colors that are utilized and the pastoral look.
-----> Sound Design - Creating the voice of Casey Jr
-----> Animated Shorts: "Elmer Elephant" & "The Flying Mouse"; These are cartoons from the period of Dumbo which are somewhat related. "Elmer Elephant" suffers and is transformed through a similar plight as Dumbo, and it is a nice cartoon to see. Both cartoons look to have been remastered.
-----> Storybook Read-Along - A New Adventure About Dumbo
-----> Sing-Alongs: "Look out for Mr. Stork," "Casey Jr."
-----> Art Gallery
-----> Dumbo II Sneak Peek
-----> DVD-ROM Content
WHAT IS DUMBO ALL ABOUT? - AGAINST ALL ODDS DUMBO RISES FROM SHAME TO TRIUMPH
Dumbo, because of his oversized ears is ridiculed at birth by the other elephants and immediately and increasingly excluded from elephant activities. When his mother is thrown in a ad-hoc circus lock-up and labeled as a "Mad Elephant" for defended Dumbo from abuse, the other elephants decide to reject Dumbo further and ultimately make the "solemn pledge" that he [Dumbo] "is no longer an elephant"!
UNFAIR - MEAN-SPIRITED & REALLY HEARTLESS BEHAVIOR AGAINST POOR DUMBO
But Dumbo finds a friend in Timothy Q. Mouse and still more in Jim Crow and his cronies. The mouse takes over Dumbo's mother's role, and supports, guides and protects the persecuted young pachyderm while the Crows instruct him in the art of flying with the help of the 'magic feather'.
PERSEVERANCE PAYS OFF IN THE END AND THERE IS A HAPPY ENDING
Rather being defeated by his plight, Dumbo, with a little help from his friends, rises above all the rest in the circus [literally] and in the process his mother is freed from jail and Dumbo and Timothy are happy campers.
IN THE END: DON'T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER - THERE'S UNIQUENESS IN US ALL!
Dumbo is a wonderfully uplifting film that does have its sad and disturbing moments. The songs are wonderful, heart-rending and move the story forward, which really books.
***** THE MAJOR VOICES *****
Sterling Holloway - Stork [Voice]
Edward S. Brophy - Timothy Q. Mouse [Voice]
Herman Bing - Ringmaster [Voice]
Verna Felton - Elephant [Voice]
Cliff Edwards - Jim Crow [Voice]
Sarah Selby - Elephant [Voice]
Billy Bletcher - Clown [Voice]
***** THE AWARDS *****
Best Score (win) Frank Churchill 1941 Academy
Best Score (win) Oliver Wallace 1941 Academy
Best Song (nom) Frank Churchill 1941 Academy
Best Song (nom) Ned Washington 1941 Academy
Best Picture (nom) 1941 National Board of Review
10 Best Films (win) 1941 New York Times
Best Animated Film (win) 1947 Cannes Film Festival
BOTTOM LINE: 60th ANNIVERSARY DVD OFFERS A GREAT DEAL
This is a fine animated film which features an excellent lesson in life as its main theme and is still suitable for children and adults. I personally prefer this 60th Anniversary edition because of the features and the excellent transfer which seems clearer to me than in the more recent release. Although the newer DVD release also has the "Baby Mine" sequence as a Special-Feature Music Video, we prefer the Michael Crawford rendition featured in this DVD.
IF YOU ENJOYED DUMBO ALSO CONSIDER SEEING:
*-> BAMBI, [1942, James Algar, Samuel Armstrong, David Hand, Graham Heid]
*-> THE LION KING, [1994, Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff]
*-> BABE, [1995, Chris Noonan]
*-> THE JUNGLE BOOK, [1967, Wolfgang Reithermann]
*-> THE BEAR, [1988, Jean-Jacques Annaud]
Marred Masterpiece
As a kid I loved Dumbo; my kids loved Dumbo; my two tiny grandkids love Dumbo (I bought this edition for them). My adult eyes now see aspects of the flick that both awe and disappoint.
First, the awe. The circus is presented entirely from the animals' point of view. Humans are seen as exploiters using the "dumb" animals for gain and assuming they have no feelings because they are "made of rubber." These attitudes suffuse every human from the barker to the lowly clowns, who'd gladly kill little Dumbo for a bit of fame and fortune.
The circus is mainly a sad affair, with constant and dreary movement from town to town often in driving rain. Even the train engine is caught in the unpleasantness as he pulls the overloaded cars up impossible hills gasping, "I think I can..."
The supreme joy for these captives is the appearance of their babies. The new life brings smiles and warmth to an otherwise cold, confined existence.
It is Dumbo's triumph to literally and miraculously rise above the caged horror of circus life, most poignantly epitomized by his mother's being called mad and mercilessly chained for the crime of being a mother. Dumbo, by employing his handicap, those big ears, to fly, breaks clear of his physical and psychological prison, exacts revenge on all who tormented him and his mother, and, by making more money than the circus ever dreamed of, gets to call his own shots.
Now the disappointments. The movie is short. Disney wanted it to exceed 60 minutes, so he inserted a boring fantasy sequence about pink elephants. This is not an avante garde piece of impressionistic animation: it's filler that gets the movie to 63 minutes, breaks the brisk timing of the rest of the film, and put three generations of my family to sleep when it showed.
The crows represent African American stereotypes that are demeaning and embarrassing and quite unfortunate when kids see them. There is a bit of redemption in the fact that Dumbo chooses them as his entourage when he could have chosen anybody, but that doesn't make up for the insulting portrayal, especially since the movie also features nameless black men as menial circus workers. Blacks are otherwise absent from audiences, townsfolk, and performers.
Should you buy Dumbo and screen it for your kids, anyway? Yep. It's a true classic. It is a shame, though, that the producers felt the need to accept fully the shameful dictates of an apartheid era.
It always comes up when people are comparing their most traumatic movie experiences: "the death of Bambi's mother," a recollection that can bring a shudder to even the most jaded filmgoer. That primal separation (which is no less stunning for happening off-screen) is the centerpiece of Bambi, Walt Disney's 1942 animated classic, but it is by no means the only bold stroke in the film. In its swift but somehow leisurely 69 minutes, Bambi covers a year in the life of a young deer. But in a bigger way, it measures the life cycle itself, from birth to adulthood, from childhood's freedom to grown-up responsibility. All of this is rendered in cheeky, fleet-footed style--the movie doesn't lecture, or make you feel you're being fed something that's good for you. The animation is... More Info about this DVD Director(s): David Hand - Wilfred Jackson DVD Release Date: Released the 01 March 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Imaginatively rendered but slightly chilly, this 1951 Disney adaptation of the Lewis Carroll classic is also appropriately surreal. Alice (voiced by Kathryn Beaumont) has all the anticipated experiences: shrinking and growing, meeting the White Rabbit, having tea with the Mad Hatter, etc. Characterization is very strong, and the Disney team worked hard to bring screen personality to Carroll's eccentric creations. For a Disney film, however, it seems more the self-satisfied sum of its inventiveness than a truly engaging experience. --Tom KeoghMore Info about this DVD Director(s): Wilfred Jackson - Clyde Geronimi - Hamilton Luske DVD Release Date: Released the 27 January 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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It's still one of the sweetest kisses onscreen, up there with Bergman and Grant, Bogey and Bacall: the moment when pampered purebred Lady and streetwise mongrel Tramp, sharing a moonlit plate of spaghetti in an alley behind an Italian café, unknowingly slurp the same strand, and suddenly find their mouths meeting in surprise and tenderness. Ah, puppy love. Lady and the Tramp is a delight of animation and surprisingly deep character development, given that the stars are all dogs. Lady, an adorable Cocker Spaniel, feels neglected when her owners become distracted by the pending birth of a baby. But the last straw is clueless Aunt Sarah's appearance with her conniving Siamese cats (among Disney's most creatively evil villains), who wreak havoc on Lady's blissful home life. Soon... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Clyde Geronimi - Wilfred Jackson - Hamilton Luske DVD Release Date: Released the 28 February 2006 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Disney's 1992 animated feature is a triumph of wit and skill. The high-tech artwork and graphics look great, the characters are strong, the familiar story is nicely augmented with an interesting villain (Jafar, voiced by Jonathan Freeman), and there's an incredible hook atop the whole thing: Robin Williams's frantically hilarious vocal performance as Aladdin's genie. Even if one isn't particularly moved by the love story between the title character (Scott Weinger) and his girlfriend Jasmine (Linda Larkin), you can easily get lost in Williams's improvisational energy and the equally entertaining performances of Freeman and Gilbert Gottfried (as Jafar's parrot). --Tom KeoghMore Info about this DVD Director(s): John Musker - Ron Clements DVD Release Date: Released the 05 October 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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