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Film Title: The Tortoise and the Hair

 Best for ages: 7 and up.

Movie Website:  Click Here

Year Released: 1935

Rated: G (US)

SYNOPSIS

    The Tortoise and the Hair DVD includes six different animated shorts produced by Walt Disney Studios.  The Tortoise and the Hair being the feature short on the disc, which is about Max Hare and Toby Tortoise whom agree to a foot race. Max knows that Toby is slow so he speeds ahead of him, but knowing he has time he takes it to flirt with some bunnies and takes a nap, only to awake a bit too late. The disc also includes the Disney shorts Babes in the Woods, The Goddess of Spring, Toby Tortoise Returns, The Saga of Windwagon Smith and Paul Bunyan.

VIOLENCE/GRAPHIC CONTENT/language

  Anything that is considered even remotely violent in these short films is really nothing of major concern, but there are a few things that parents might want to take notice of because these shot films were made in a time when not everything was deemed to be a concern. A few little things like animated fighting, and a few scary images.

    The Tortoise and the Hair, really does not have much except for a few tricks here and there, and maybe some confrontations but nothing crazy.

Babes in the Woods has some animated violence in it which include a witch on a broom, and a crow in a dead tree, kids flying on a witches broom in what is a Hansel and Gretel story, where the witch tires to fatten them up so she can cook and eat them. they get caught in a spider web, where Hansel is turned into a spider and put in a cage, a cat is turned to stone. A gnome shoots an arrow at the witch just missing her, whom in turns puts Gretel in a hole in the floor. But all is said and well and Gretel turns all the animals back into children as the gnomes brutally attack the witch with arrows and flings objects at her, she then falls off her broom and into a pot of potion that turns her to stone.

   In The Goddess of Spring, the Devil comes up from hell with a bunch of demons, and chooses the Goddess as his queen. She refuses and he kidnaps her. This starts a war between demons and the little forest people. The Devils brings her to hell, and tries to force her to become his queen. Scary looking small demons are seen dancing in and around fire, playing organs and the such. The Devil somehow agrees to returning her to the forest where she brings spring back.

   Toby Tortoise Returns shows Toby and Max Hare in a boxing match. You think they would be pounding each other, but they more or less trick one another before the punches are thrown. Max Hare puts boxing glove on his tale and hits Toby with it, knocking him into a big busted female bird who's at ringside. Max really beats up on Toby, but it's all pretty much the animated violence we expect to see from cartoons that were produced in the nineteen thirties though the sixties.  Max does light and throw fire works into Toby's shell and blasts him into the sky and turns him into a turtle fire cracker. which in turn, helps Toby win the match in an explosion of fireworks in which Max Hare is sent to the hospital in an ambulance.

   Paul Bunyan really does not have a lot of violence, but does show some ax wielding, and a giant baby who washes up on a beach and is adapted by a town. Of course being a giant kid has it's problems, and Paul does things like take the roof off a school house.  He is given an ax and goes to work chopping down trees.  Paul throws an ox on a fire to help him melt from the cold. The Ox gets as big as Paul and they do play fight with one another destroying things in their wake. Paul also gets into an argument with a man who invents a log hauling train.

   The Saga of Windwagon Smith really does not have anything that is really of concern. Some greedy, grumpy old men, and the captain of the Wind Wagon smokes a cigar, and some cowboys shoot guns in the air. A man is hit in the head with a jug of booze. And old man fires a rifle. The Windwagon is scooped up by a tornado and sent flying into the sky.

OVERALL VIEWS

   This Disc is Volume four in the new Disney Animation Collection of classic short films. While there are things in these shorts that we might not deem as acceptable today. We must remember that back in the times in which they were produced there were no real restrictions on things and certain things were not known to be harmful at that time. Not that there are things in these films that are harmful to children, but there are some scary images and some parents whom want to instill religious beliefs in their children might not care for a cartoon with a witch in it and especially a cartoon with the devil himself in it.

   I for one remember some of these cartoons on television growing up as a kid. They are classic Disney cartoons that show how much cartoon have evolved over the years and where they came from. I think these discs are great to own simply because they hold so much history. I think that they are best suited for older children over the age of seven. But I think adults who grew up watching these cartoons are going to be the ones who enjoy them the most simply because they remind us of our childhood.

   The DVD includes six classic Disney shorts and the Disney Fast Play feature, English, French, and Spanish Subtitles are also available on the disc. The Disc also come with a collectible Litho Print.

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