utgard14 Originally part of Fun & Fancy Free, this cartoon was released on its own later. It's arguably the best animated version of the Jack and the Beanstalk story, and some might even say it's better than the film versions. It's narrated by Sterling Holloway, replacing the narration from Fun & Fancy Free by ventriloquist Edgar Bergen. I'm not sure the reason for the change but I would never complain about hearing Holloway's distinctive voice. Nice animation and voice work. Really just a fun cartoon all around.

Foreverisacastironmess Yay, memories! This is one I hold very dear to my heart. Right behind Pinocchio, it's actually my second favourite ever Disney work, even more so than the other Disney movies that I personally consider great, because it hits me with just the right kind of precious warm nostalgic magic that is so rare. Whenever I'd watch it as a kid, and it would show the magically captivating opening sequence where Happy Valley is 'imagined' into existence, I would always want to live there for the seconds before the place is shrouded by the mysterious and sinister shadow that steals away the land-enriching harp and quickly renders it a most UNhappy valley! Oh my god - the "My What A Happy Day" song!!! Such a cheerfully sunny and uplifting introduction that is infectiously charming! We always got a huge laugh out of the bull's solo! I challenge anyone to watch that whole sequence and not get a big smile on their face. One of the funnest elements is that it features all three of the most famous Disney characters, which is something that I always enjoyed in all the animations they were in together, as they just played off each other so effortlessly. And their chemistry here is top notch, with Mickey being the hero and heart of the team, and Donald and Goofy the slapstick. Goofy's my least favourite, but I do love his duet with Donald where they're singing all about food, watching that part always makes me wanna eat so bad! You can't count on a duck for squat when the going gets tough.. Donald gets one of his all-time best moments when he briefly goes stark raving mad from starvation when they have to split the last bean and slice of bread three ways! It's so hysterical when he snaps at the narrator to "Shaddap! I can't stand it!!!", then proceeds to eat the dishes! And then the way he looks so deranged as he grabs the handy viking axe off the wall and goes after the poor cow! I'm probably in the minority here, but why exactly are they so against eating the cow? Donald had a valid point - kill the cow and get the meat, Bossy's got to go! ::: My favourite scene is when the harp sings "In My Favourite Dream." It's very beautiful and soothing. Oh sweet maiden of the harp, you and your delightfully enchanting song of perfect melodious peace - I could listen to it all day, *forever!* I really enjoy the amazingly intricate and intertwining animation of the vines during the fantastic beanstalk growing sequence. It's so expertly done the way the motions of the creepers move to the music, and how they're given a kind of personality by how they react to the characters as they grow about them in their sleep. Now just how they managed to remain asleep through such chaos is anybody's guess! I love Willie the giant as the villain because he's a tad more interesting than just being a brainless oaf. Which he kind of is too, a lovable dope, but he alternates between playful dumb kid and threatening bad guy real quickly. It is pretty creepy. And he's a real menace for the gang to escape from when it gets to the big finale. And he was a magic giant too! I'd forgotten that the last time I saw this. The song that he introduces himself with is very strange and catchy. And the ending where he's tiptoeing around Hollywood in search of Mickey I always found such a surreal and odd way to end it, but it fits. Practically perfect, it's funny, thrilling and even though it's not a movie it has the look and feel of one of the studio's feature-length animated works. What a beautifully imagined and put together little classic. Pure bliss.

LanceStudsteele When I first viewed Mickey and the Beanstalk with my toddler son approximately 16 years ago, I saw it as more than a retelling of an old fairy tale. Later, while watching a documentary about the devastation wrought upon a real life "Happy Valley", the Owens River Valley, I was reminded of my initial impression of the back story of this short film - the drought and desolation in Happy Valley caused by the theft of the harp as a veiled metaphor for the appropriation of water resources by the GIANT burgeoning metropolis of Los Angeles under the direction of "Willie" Mulholland. Streams and brooks sing or are musical in their own way. Diversion of riparian resources can cause calamity. A giant municipality that diverts water for its own use can leave the former beneficiaries of those resources woefully lacking the wherewithal to prosper or even survive.If the writers used the foundation for the plot of this short animated film as an opportunity for political protest or commentary, they may have done so secretly, fearing that their theme might be edited from the film or that they might suffer reprisal. I'd like to believe that Walt Disney, whom I believe had a social conscience, left the metaphor in the film but didn't publicize it so as not to cause undue controversy around a film that was intended as children's entertainment. I'd appreciate comments about this subject, especially from anyone who has knowledge of the intentions of the writers, directors, or producer.

Ron Oliver A Walt Disney MICKEY MOUSE Cartoon.Three zany farmers - Mickey, Donald & Goofy - attempt to rescue the stolen Singing Harp from a temperamental giant.While it technically does not match the quality of their classic cartoons from the 1930's, MICKEY AND THE BEANSTALK is a most enjoyable two-reeler and provides the trio with one of their liveliest adventures. The sequence of the growing beanstalk up lifting & breaking apart the farmhouse is pure magic. Comic veteran Billy Gilbert provides the voice for Willie the Giant; Clarence Nash does the honors for Donald.Disney has produced at least three versions of this cartoon. Originally it was the concluding half of FUN AND FANCY FREE (1947) and was narrated by the marvelous Edgar Bergen with assistance from Charlie McCarthy & Mortimer Snerd. There is also a version narrated by Paul Frees in the character of Professor Ludwig von Drake. Finally, there is a version of the cartoon narrated by Sterling Holloway.Walt Disney (1901-1966) 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 (1928), 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 blizzard of doomsayers, Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi & 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.