| The Ugly Duckling | |
|---|---|
_poster.jpg) Poster forThe Ugly Duckling | |
| Directed by | |
| Based on | "The Ugly Duckling" byHans Christian Andersen |
| Produced by | Walt Disney |
| Starring | Clarence Nash[a] |
| Music by | Albert Hay Malotte |
| Animation by |
|
| Layouts by | David Hilberman |
| Color process | Technicolor |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 8:59 |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Ugly Duckling (re-titled asUgly Duckling in reissues) is aSilly Symphoniesanimatedshort film produced byWalt Disney, based on the 1843fairy tale "The Ugly Duckling" byHans Christian Andersen. The film was directed byJack Cutting andClyde Geronimi, and released in theaters on April 7, 1939. Music was composed byAlbert Hay Malotte, who was uncredited for the film. The animated short was first distributed byRKO Radio Pictures,[1] and was shown withLove Affair.
An earlierSilly Symphony animated short based on this fairy tale had been produced inblack and white in 1931. The 1939 color film won the 1940Oscar forBest Short Subject (Cartoons),[2] and also happened to be the last entry in theSilly Symphonies series, although it was branded in certain releases as a special one-shot short.
In the Andersen tale, acygnet is harassed because of his homeliness. To his delight, he matures into aswan, the most beautiful bird of all, and his troubles are over. In this version, the baby swan's sufferings are shortened, as he is found by his family after only a few minutes of rejection and ostracism instead of a whole year. This abbreviated version is read by Lilo to Stitch in the 2002 Disney filmLilo & Stitch. The story has a profound impact on Stitch, who sets out to look for his real family.
An expectant mallard duck father is pacing by his wife's side. Suddenly, the mother duck's eggs begin to hatch, much to the father's delight, giving birth to four little ducklings. But then, a fifth egg hatches, revealing a mismatched white duckling, and the father argues with the mother over this, forcing the two to go their separate ways after she slaps him (it is implied that the father is accusing the mother of having an affair with a swan).
The ugly duckling attempts to join the duck family, but they turn their backs on him, after which he discovers how different he is from them. So the duckling attempts to join a family of bluebirds; the young birds accept him but the mother drives him off. He then attempts to befriend a wooden decoy before its head collides with him. The duckling breaks down and cries, ashamed of his (distorted) reflection in the water, until a mother swan and her cygnets approach him. The mother swan extends her arm in love, and he joins the family.
As the swan family swims by, they pass by the mother duck and her ducklings, who recognize the cygnet. The cygnet proudly poses and swims off with his new family.
TheSilly Symphony Sunday comic strip ran a month-long adaptation ofThe Ugly Duckling from March 26 to April 16, 1939.[3]
The Film Daily wrote: "The Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale translated to cartoon language emerges a delight to the ear and the eye... Though the story concerns only the feathered folk, this Disney short is fused with real feeling and pathos."[4]
The short was released on December 4, 2001 onWalt Disney Treasures: Silly Symphonies - The Historic Musical Animated Classics.[5] It was included on the DVD release in the United States, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.[6] It is also available onDisney+ with restoredSilly Symphony title cards.
Silly Symphony film series | |
|---|---|
| 1929 | |
| 1930 | |
| 1931 | |
| 1932 | |
| 1933 | |
| 1934 | |
| 1935 | |
| 1936 | |
| 1937 | |
| 1938 | |
| 1939 | |
| Related | |
