The Reluctant Dragon (1941)
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The Reluctant Dragon Movie Review
The Reluctant Dragon is a 1941 Disney live-action/animated film starring Robert Benchley. It’s such a quaint, very interesting journey in time.
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“You look different in Technicolor“
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Yes, this idiosyncratic little film remains one of the most quaint of all the Disney pictures throughout the years, but thus all the more intriguing to me as it offers a simply fascinating glimpse into 1940s animation and how it was made.
The movie is filmed in live-action with some animated segments interspersed throughout. Robert Benchley wants to pitch the titular book to Walt Disney so he goes to meet him, but there he witnesses the creation of many future Disney classics such as ‘Bambi’ which was showcased in one very sweet scene.
But ‘Dumbo’ actually got the most screen time here as it came in the same year as this film so it was pretty much a documentary of making the film that acted as sort of a commercial for it. I do realize why audiences of the time might have objected to that, but to me as an animation enthusiast well versed in animation history, this film was a blast. I loved in particular witnessing the creation of those sound effects and the glimpse into the Technicolor process.
Although most obviously a giant commercial for their films and the studio which is so gloriously portrayed here and that is actually rather problematic in context as during this particular period many Disney artists joined a strike against Walt for low payments and lack of respect, but still decades after its release it succeeds as a very intriguing look into the animation process of its time and this particular period in Disney history.
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Walt got little screen time, but I loved seeing all the different famous animators and voice actors from the studio and to me Robert Benchley stole the show and was perfect for this type of role. I liked his old-fashioned, childlike type of humor which worked so well in tandem with the film’s subject matter. He acts as us the audience by being wildly amused and intrigued at all the goings-on during animation production. I also loved his wife and their fun interactions.
Unfortunately, The Reluctant Dragon doesn’t quite work as well in the animation department as it does in live-action. Baby Weems seemed like a very odd cartoon which I did not get all, though I did like the art in it, just the story felt uninteresting to me. Goofy’s How to Ride a Horse is a famous film of Goofy’s and here it was very well showcased, but again not all that important for the overall film.
And then we come to the titular film which is the longest of the short films stitched together into this very package-type picture similar to ‘Saludos Amigos’ and other such Disney animated offerings from the forties. I really liked this story, though it was done previously and much better in ‘Ferdinand the Bull’ which shares the same sentiment. But I loved the characters and their fun interactions, the animation is so wonderful and the story is quite charming and sweet. The titular character’s feminine behavior is also quite memorable and I loved the ending too.
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The editing and pacing are bad as the movie’s stitched together awkwardly into an incoherent whole which had potential in its structure where Benchley goes from one department to the other, but ultimately it felt disparate in its segments and overall just an excuse for the studio to promote their films. I did love their reused score from ‘Snow White’ though and I just loved how energetic in approach the entire film is.
The Reluctant Dragon is such a quaint little film which is definitely very oddly put together into an incoherent whole and is basically just one giant commercial for the Disney studio and their films, but still it offers a fascinating glimpse into early 40s goings-on at the studio and a great insight into the animation process. Robert Benchley is quite endearing as the protagonist and the titular animated short is very sweet.
