Dumbo

Voices of: Sterling Holloway, Edward Brophy, Cliff Edwards, Verna Felton
Directed by: Samuel Armstrong, Norman Ferguson
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Animation, Adventure
1941

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: A young circus elephant is ridiculed because of his giant ears. Searching for his place in the world, he befriends a mouse who has a plan.

Review:

Tim: Dumbo is one of Disney's all time classic films. It certainly has a place among the true early animated classics. However, I have to admit that this is a film I have never loved. I get why some people adore the movie, but for me, this movie is a bit overrated, and not one of my favorite animated films.

For me, the story is too simplistic and it doesn't flow very well. It feels like there are these memorable moments, but the connections between them are pretty weak. For example, the moment when Dumbo's mother goes crazy stands out to me, as does the flying scene, the introduction of Timothy, and a few others. How the story moves from moment to moment is completely lost on me. This is a film that has impressive scenes, but as a whole, falls short.

I also seriously question the decision to make Dumbo mute- that's right, our main character doesn't utter a single word in the entire film. I'm not sure what the benefit of this was. If anything, it made it harder to connect to him. I get there is the use of facial expressions, but even these weren't maximized to their full potential. I never felt overly connected to Dumbo or his story. There's some very emotional moments throughout this film, but they were lost on me. I needed to feel a closer connection to this little outcast elephant, but I did not.

If you were interested in noting the difference between an animated film like Dumbo from the 1940s and an animated film today, you have to look no further than the drunken pink elephants' scene. I can barely describe to you how crazy this sequence was. Children in those days were certainly tougher than kids today. I'm a grown man, and I have to admit I cringed at the phantasmagoric, nightmarish sequence. First off, our characters get drunk (and Dumbo is quite young), and secondly, these frightening images flash before our eyes. The elephant made out of other elephants heads is pretty grotesque, but there are quite a few moments that felt unsuitable for children. I definitely don't understand the value of including this scene.

I also have to comment on the borderline racism inherent in the Jim Crow scene. I don't care the ethnicity of the voice actors, it's pretty obvious what is depicted in these scenes. I do give the movie a this scene a bit of a pass because this was perfectly acceptable when the film was released in the 1940s. However, it's a very good thing for audiences today to watch scenes like this and be reminded of our ugly, racist past. This is not an attack on Disney by itself, but it was perfectly acceptable to showcase a scene like this only a few decades ago.

I did love the character of Timothy Mouse, and not just because he has an awesome name. As a character, he was interesting and propelled the story forward. He was intelligent, kind, and resourceful. He was a character the audience could identify with a root for. I mention these things because they are in stark contrast to Dumbo. I found Timothy an infinitely more interesting character, and he played second fiddle to the titular elephant. This was a big flaw in the film.

I certainly understand that people have held up Dumbo as a classic film for decades. It's certainly a landmark animated film and should be required viewing for any movie fan. For me personally, I can't claim to be a huge fan of the film. Disney has made far, far better films, and this effort seemed sub-par to me. This movie is worth seeing because of its influence on cinema, but the movie itself just leaves something to be desired.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend:
Cinderella, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs