Customer Reviews

Walt Disney's It's a Small World of Fun, Vol. 3

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Little new here, this is for the casual fan only or the fan who must have everything Disney.

1) "JOHNNY APPLESEED" - a cartoon originally part of the "Melody Time" compilation feature, but a dirtier & sharper film transfer.

2) "ALPINE CLIMBERS" - a 1936 cartoon starring Mickey, Donald & Pluto as they visit Switzerland. Originally released on the out of print DVD "Disney Treasures Mickey Mouse In Living Color volume 1".

3) "TIGER TROUBLE" - Goofy's 1945 classic adventure in India. Originally released on the out of print DVD "Disney Treasures Complete Goofy".

4) "PUEBLO PLUTO" - 1948 Mickey & Pluto take a trip to Mexico. Originally released on recent DVD "Disney Treasures Complete Pluto Volume 2".

5) "THE FOX HUNT" - 1938 Donald & Goofy go to Great Britain to partake in this sport. Originally released on the out of print DVD "Disney Treasures Chronological Donald Volume 1".

6) "HELLO ALOHA" - 1952 Overworked Goofy takes a vacation in Hawaii. Originally released on the out of print DVD "Disney Treasures Complete Goofy".

There is nothing here for fans with the Disney Treasures DVDs.

Cursed with a confusing title, Disney's "It's a Small World of Fun" discs have nothing to do with the classic theme-park ride. Instead they offer a handful of classic Disney cartoons, each loosely tied to a different international location. This disc takes viewers to the American West, Mexico, Great Britain, India, Switzerland and Hawaii. Most are pretty good.

"THE LEGEND OF JOHNNY APPLESEED" During the pioneer days, a God-loving but rather talentless young man travels throughout the West, planting apple seeds for settlers in this 17-minute cartoon, originally part of the 1948 compilation film "Melody Time." Using only verse, Dennis Day (a popular radio personality of the time) narrates the classic Christian tale that teaches that every person has value. There are no funny characters and no sight gags, but the short handles death deftly: when Johnny grows old, an angel takes him to heaven to plant apple seeds there. (Those clouds in the sky? Heaven's apple blossoms!) As for art, watch for the beautiful water scenes from Disney legend Mary Blair. No one has used white better.

"PUEBLO PLUTO" Pluto's expressive face is happy, sad, angry and scared as Mickey takes him along on a souvenir-shopping trip to Mexico. When his mouse master -- strange thought, huh? -- gets Pluto a buffalo bone, he refuses to share it with a smaller pup and soon finds himself stuck in a cactus fence. Shown in theaters in 1949.

"TIGER TROUBLE" Goofy with a gun? Now that's scary! Too bad it's not funny, at least not in this case. Mainly a series of chase scenes, this 1945 tale about tiger hunting is not one of Disney's best efforts. The story is weak, Goofy's voice never syncs with his mouth, and, if you look closely, he often doesn't have ears -- an unfortunate design experiment that would return in the 1950s. There's no real violence though, and the cartoon does have one great artistic moment: When the tan tiger walks in front of a thicket of tan bamboo, the animal becomes invisible except for its black stripes, nose and feet.

"THE FOX HUNT" Donald can't handle his hounds and Goofy can't control his horse in this 1938 short about the traditional upper-crust pastime of Great Britain. Alas, the two characters never meet. But as for Goofy, this is more like it! He's his old clumsy, clumpy self. A nice artistic touch: When Goofy and his mount go underwater, the surface above them has ripples.

"ALPINE CLIMBERS" My favorite Disney cartoons are those from 1928 to 1937, because the characters behave so badly! In this one, Pluto gets drunk! The characters in this 1936 cartoon also look different than their later incarnations: Mickey's eyes don't have pupils, Donald's head is too small and Pluto's still a little rough. The plot: As Mickey, Donald, and Pluto climb the Swiss Alps, each gets into trouble. Mickey faces the wrath of an angry eagle after he steals eggs from its nest; Donald has to deal with a head-butting goat.

"HELLO ALOHA" Like many 1950s Goofy cartoons, this 1952 short is just plain weird. Living in the suburbs, Goofy plays white-collar every-man George Geef, and every other character in the film looks just like Goofy! The plot? Vacationing in Hawaii, the Goof, I mean the Geef, decides to stay there forever -- until natives sacrifice him to the Gods and toss him in a volcano. Adults will enjoy the scene with the hula dancer, who performs just inches in front of Goofy's face, nearly giving our Mr G. a lap dance. And watch this segment closely: though the narrator says Goofy's eyes "follow her rhythmic hands," that's not what he's looking at! View the sequence frame-by-frame and it's hilarious -- as long as the kids are out of the room!

Except for some dust and scratches on "Johnny Appleseed," the shorts on this disc look as good as new: with crisp, bright color and sharp focus. Don't let the low sales ranking fool you. These "Small World" discs aren't bestsellers only because they're barely promoted and always available. Unlike Disney's movies and special collection DVDs, they never go back "in the vault."

Also check out Walt Disney's It's a Small World of Fun, Vol. 1.

This is the way disney should release cartoon shorts instead of put them on other movie dvd's. and if you don't want to shell out for those big expensive sets, this for you. every short on this disc is a winner, though i have to agree alittle, that it is short timewise there could've been more cartoons on this disc. but hey nobody's perfect, just keep them coming disney. nice collection i'm going to buy the others now.


Highly Recommended Title For Kids.

I bought this DVD to add to Volumes 2 and 4 of the set already owned and because of the selection of cartoons offered for viewing. Two of the five animated shorts on this DVD have particular sentimental meaning for me: Tiger Trouble and Johnny Appleseed. Both of these cartoons hold fond memories from a childhood spent watching Walt Disney on t.v., both in black & white and in color, and then being able to periodically share some of those special cartoons with my own children. Now that I'm the grandmother of 4 beautiful little girls, the collection of "Walt Disney's It's a Small World of Fun Vol. 2, 3, & 4" is providing me with a wonderful opportunity to pass these treasures on to another generation. Considering that so many of today's animated t.v. shows and feature films are designed around toys, violence and overly adult themes, I'm grateful to the Disney organization for giving me the chance to share some of the magic moments from my childhood with my grandchildren.

It goes back in time when America was great. America was clean and reverenced God and family, and had a genuine sense of pride that was not out of bounds or unwarranted. An America that I'm afraid we'll never see again except in video archives such as this one.

very funny and good classic disney shorts. must have for fans of old disney dvds

I used this video when I taught First Grade. We had a special week we called Apple Days, and the film was loved by my First Graders.

This has more duplication! No, I am not talking about the treasures, I'm talking about Classic Cartoon Favorites! "Hello Aloha" is on "Extreme Adventure Fun"! "Pueblo Pluto" is on "Best Pals: Mickey & Pluto"! Sheesh! I gave this 2 stars because of "Alpine Climbers". One of my faves! However, -2 shorts means less time of new shorts ( as if it were not short enough, rougly an hour). Grrrr! Please stop this madness, Uncle Walt!