Sixty-five years ago, back in 1946, Walt Disney created a film masterpiece called "Song Of The South." The movie was a creative wonder as it put live action with cartoons, which back then was something quite new.
There were several memorable songs from the movie and the artists of the day recorded their renditions. The song that is probably most remembered is "Zip A Dee Doo Dah" (Academy Award Winner) and you can hear the fabulous Johnny Mercer/Pied Pipers/Paul Weston rendition by clicking here. Here's the clever "That's What Uncle Remus Said" from the soundtrack album.
I recall seeing this movie as a kid at the theaters as a re-release back in the 1970s. Unfortunately Disney thinks the movie is racially inappropriate now so they say they won't release it on dvd. There are websites full of fans wanting to see an official release of the movie. Although it hasn't made an appearance in the USA in years, official VHS videotapes and laser disc versions were available around the world. I recall seeing the video in Germany a few years back alongside other Disney classics at a shopping mall store.
Oddly enough, Disney World's Splash Mountain uses "Song of the South" music as its theme. Too bad many may not even know the background about these happy songs...
Despite the Disney reluctance to recognize this vintage movie, there are plenty of chances to view it. I've seen it for sale on Ebay, for viewing on YouTube, and have spotted videos at the local flea market from time to time! It may not be from a pristine print, but better than nothing.
Is it worth all the hype? The music is magical for sure, as are some of the cartoon scenes which incorporate live action Uncle Remus and kids with the cartoon animals. The actual story is actually pretty schmaltzy in my opinion. "The Wizard of Oz" holds up pretty good to the childhood memories, but "Song of the South" probably isn't worth all of the hoopla it gets from the bigwigs who are keeping the master films locked up in Vault Disney!
No comments:
Post a Comment