I'm not sure whether to call "Saludos Amigos" a film, a short, an educational piece or an experiment. It is, at the very least, an interesting endeavor. The snippets of information given in the segments are interesting, and it's nice to get a bit of culture. The aged, sepia tone video footage of the Central American areas visited (and South American) gives it a rustic feel, which makes me want to visit. Yes, this Disney cartoon made me wonder what it is like to live in Brazil, Argentina and so forth. That's impressive enough on its own.
"Saludos Amigos" isn't as such a whole story, but four segments. In all honesty, they don't seem like much to make up a movie, and while the first three are cute and well animated, they seem more like the Disney shorts for television. The style doesn't seem cinematically distinct, like the Golden or Dark Age of Disney. It's lovely to look at and masterfully done; the movements and comedic timing are sublime, and the backgrounds are gorgeous. It just seems a tad less special than Disney's other works.
That is, until the last segment. Set in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, it is called Aquarela do Brasil (Watercolour of Brasil). It's beautiful, artistic and inspired. The music is wonderful, and it showcases the animator's talent and imagination. It seems like the whole movie was interesting tidbits, leading up to a really cool piece of animation. The flamingos, waterfall and toucan-bananas were really cool! Not only that, but now I know where that green parrot originated from. José Carioca, needs to be brought back. He's suave, has a sexy accent, and smokes cigars. I demand more José! Also, seeing Donald getting drunk and nabbing some booty is rather hilarious.
The segments include Donald and Goofy in all sorts of situations; Donald rides a grumpy llama at Lake Titicata, Goofy takes on the persona of an Argentinian gaucho. There's a sweet little short involving a plane named Pedro, who must deliver mail in Santiago. There is a few funny moments, such as when Donald and his llama get stuck on a bridge, or when he breaks the fourth wall in the fourth segment by using ink from José's outline to draw a silly stick figure. The educational aspects were pleasant, you can tell the animators had fun. It was neat to see Uncle Walt! Overall, "Saludos Amigos" is a passable little feature. It sports some decent and amazing animation, and introduces a cool character. It was genuinely interesting. I'm not sure if the information is outdated, but it show cultures of days gone by, and that is worth a lot. It's nothing amazing, but it's cute, you can see the effort put into it. It deserves to be checked out at least once.
"Saludos Amigos" isn't as such a whole story, but four segments. In all honesty, they don't seem like much to make up a movie, and while the first three are cute and well animated, they seem more like the Disney shorts for television. The style doesn't seem cinematically distinct, like the Golden or Dark Age of Disney. It's lovely to look at and masterfully done; the movements and comedic timing are sublime, and the backgrounds are gorgeous. It just seems a tad less special than Disney's other works.
That is, until the last segment. Set in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, it is called Aquarela do Brasil (Watercolour of Brasil). It's beautiful, artistic and inspired. The music is wonderful, and it showcases the animator's talent and imagination. It seems like the whole movie was interesting tidbits, leading up to a really cool piece of animation. The flamingos, waterfall and toucan-bananas were really cool! Not only that, but now I know where that green parrot originated from. José Carioca, needs to be brought back. He's suave, has a sexy accent, and smokes cigars. I demand more José! Also, seeing Donald getting drunk and nabbing some booty is rather hilarious.
The segments include Donald and Goofy in all sorts of situations; Donald rides a grumpy llama at Lake Titicata, Goofy takes on the persona of an Argentinian gaucho. There's a sweet little short involving a plane named Pedro, who must deliver mail in Santiago. There is a few funny moments, such as when Donald and his llama get stuck on a bridge, or when he breaks the fourth wall in the fourth segment by using ink from José's outline to draw a silly stick figure. The educational aspects were pleasant, you can tell the animators had fun. It was neat to see Uncle Walt! Overall, "Saludos Amigos" is a passable little feature. It sports some decent and amazing animation, and introduces a cool character. It was genuinely interesting. I'm not sure if the information is outdated, but it show cultures of days gone by, and that is worth a lot. It's nothing amazing, but it's cute, you can see the effort put into it. It deserves to be checked out at least once.