Classic Disney
animation meets classic ghost story in this spirited retelling of the Washington
Irving favorite, narrated and sung by Bill Crosby. When schoolmaster Ichabod
Crane pursues wealthy Katrina Van Tassel, rival suitor Brom Bones frightens
the superstitious Ichabod with the perfect ghost story! It's the fearsome
tale of 'The Headless Horseman" who haunts the very road Ichabod must travel
on his way home from Katrina's Halloween party! Comedy and suspense build
to a heart-stopping climax in this thrilling and timeless folk story!
"I'm telling you brother.... It's a frightful
sight, to see what goes on Halloween night!"
- Brom Bones |
Washington Irving's classic story comes alive in this wonderful little
film, originally the second half of The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr.
Toad. Bing Crosby's singing narration and the excellent animation tell
a tale of humor and genuine fright. Ichabod Crane, the pedantic pedagogue,
is a triumph of the animators' art, while the film's climax - the ride
through the Hollow & the appearance of the hideous Hessian - is a celebration
of pacing and stylistic understatement.
Walt Disney was always intrigued by pictures & drawings. As a lad in
Marceline, Missouri, he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper; later,
as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War, he drew comic
figures on the sides of his vehicle. Back in Kansas City, along with artist
Ub Iwerks, Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated
commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters. Always the
innovator, his Alice In Cartoonland series broke ground in placing
a live figure in a cartoon universe. Business reversals sent Disney &
Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923, where Walt's older brother Roy became his
lifelong
business manager & counselor. When a mildly successful series
with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor,
the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination, ensuring
Disney's immortality. The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's
screen debut, Steamboat Willie, a tremendous audience success with
its use of synchronized music. The Silly Symphonies soon appeared,
and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly
conquering new territory with full color, illusions of depth and radical
advancements in personality development, an arena in which Walt's genius
was unbeatable. Mickey's feisty, naughty behavior had captured millions
of fans, but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions: temperamental
Donald Duck, intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto. All this
was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated
films. Against a storm of naysayers, Walt persevered and over the next
decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi and Peter Pan. Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started
by a mouse, or that childlike simplicity of message and lots of hard work
always pay off.
With this installment to his career, Disney made a wonderful masterpiece
that is pitch-perfect to complete your Halloween season. The story stays
faithful to the Washington Irving short story and also adds a beautiful
touch by having Bing Crosby's soothing voice-over to serenade this classic
animated film. The film uses some voices in it, but these are used
rarely. It proves even without many voices of characters how colorful they
still can be. A Halloween classic!
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- The
famous Bing Crosby narrates and sings the entire length of the short animated
film.
- An
ironic thing to watch for is when Ichabod catches the two trouble makers
in his class drawing Ichabod as a turkey, Ichabod asks his mother to make
him dinner for an apology. He is served none the less than a turkey.
- During
the beginning of Brom Bones spooky tale. A dark looking man leans out from
his chair and says "And some don't even wear their skin!" The animators
were to have said that they intended to make this character look like the
famous horror film star Vincent Price.
- At
the beginning of Ichabod's long journey home through the forest, you can
see that the clouds are made to look like hands starving the moon of life.
- If you listen closely it sounds as though the crickets, toads,
and crows are whispering Ichabod's name.
- While
Ichabod is staring at the Owl in the tree it seems to be saying "You You
You"
- When you see the black bird fly towards Ichabod and quickly escape
through the woods you can hear it's crow.... it's saying, "Beware Beware".
- As
a bit of humor they added Bing Crosby saying, "I'm getting out of here."
right before they fade to black.
     
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