Paul Bunyan was one of those animations that I saw a lot as a child, and was fascinated and highly amused by it. As a 20-year old adult, I still do have a soft spot for it, but I think I liked it more as a child. Mainly because when I was younger I paid little attention to the animation quality, but when you're older it's not really something that you can ignore really. And I hate to say it, but I do agree that the animation is not that great, despite Paul Bunyan being unique for being the last Disney short film to be inked by hand apparently. The character designs came across as rather blocky, except for Paul himself, and the backgrounds are very limited and flat. There is one touch that I did like and that was the Nothern Lights at the end, very nicely done. Aside from the animation, which I do think is too big a foible to excuse, I loved the music. The title song is very catchy with great lyrics, and the rest of the songs are humorous and the scoring whimsical. The singing of it is great as well, I still marvel at how the vocal ensembles manage to blend with each other so well and Paul Bunyan is no exception, while Thurl Ravenscroft has that same resonant basso-profundo voice. The story and writing have some funny moments, are faithful to the original tale and are very clever. The characters are memorable, especially Paul who is also very endearing and easy to like, and the voice work is great. Overall, I didn't care for the animation, but I thought the rest of Paul Bunyan was highly enjoyable. 8/10 Bethany Cox
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This longish short was nominated for an Oscar. Decent enough and a fairly good adaptation of the tall tale, but fairly routine Disney and with nothing especially memorable or exceptional about it in any area. Worth watching, this runs infrequently as filler on the Disney Channel during "Vault Disney in the wee hours of the morning.
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Hitchcoc16 February 2019I remember this from my childhood. Coming from Minnesota, we, like so many other areas, take credit for the legend. One day, Paul shows up in a gigantic cradle as a baby and is story begins. No need to go into details. Most of North America is created by him, the lakes, the rivers, the mountains. He has a strong personality but the West is only so defined. This is an adequate cartoon version of American folklore but not great shakes. I did enjoy the song, however.
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planktonrules14 August 2012This Disney short was created during the studio's creative free-fall in the 1950s. While the 1930s and 40s found the studio on top, by the mid-1950s, their shorts were dull, poorly animated and often overtly educational (yuck!). I am sure kids and adults alike longed for the old Mickey and Donald cartoons! Typical of the 50s, the animation style is VERY minimalistic--with exceptionally simple backgrounds and far fewer detail to the characters. This style was popularized by UPA Studio and Disney realized that making these cheap cartoons was profitable--though lacking artistry and sophistication--a trend that was to continue for the next several decades.
Despite crappy animation, the story itself isn't bad. It lacks a sense of humor (that's bad) but the song is very catchy and the story quite clever. It's certainly not among the best stuff Disney ever produced, though it's a good bit better than a typical film of the era.
By the way, listen for the voices of Thurl Ravenscroft (Tony the Tiger and many other cartoon characters) and Parley Baer (a TV regular and voice of Ernie from the Keebler commercials). -
cricket306 November 2021. . . America was comprised entirely of National Parks, Monuments and Forests when Columbus landed upon Plymouth Rock. PAUL BUNYAN is carefully crafted to illustrate what happens when no one is willing to exercise the 2nd Amendment Rights endemic to our U. S. Homeland. A metaphorical representation of ALL the rapacious woodsmen who collectively collaborated to destroy 96.31% of America's sylvan birthright, just so unwanted millions could "enjoy their go," PAUL BUNYAN is never cut down to size here via cannon, Gatling gun or military style assault rifle. This animated short concludes by picturing the bereft wasteland PAUL BUNYAN leaves in his wake. After seeing the sobering facts here, please remember to support your local chapter of BANGS (Broke Americans Need Gun Stamps).
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I am drawn to this thanks to "The Simpsons" episode "Simpsons Tall Tales." That version is much more entertaining, and in that episode, the neighbors are cruel and express their dark thoughts without restraint, just like in real life. Here, being a Disney production, they are portrayed as angelic. However, this version has a bittersweet ending that has made me appreciate it more. Generally, it can be said that this short film presents a story that doesn't offer much, which can be dull, but coming from watching "The Simpsons," I found it interesting. It is also interesting to learn about other versions of the story.
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tonyvmonte-549739 March 2024This is my second review of an Oscar-nominated cartoon for 1958 having just done the same for Art Bartsch's Sidney's Family Tree. This one is another version of the Tall Tale of Paul Bunyan, the giant man who chopped lots of trees and helped log them with the help of his blue ox Babe. The story begins when he's a baby found on a beach with the town adopting him with everyone helping in sewing clothes for him as well as schooling him and him having fun at the swiming pool. As he grows, he gets an ax for a Christmas present and then moves out west after chopping trees at his hometown. In moving out, Paul meets Babe and...well, let's just say things get exaggerated concerning how certain natural wonders are formed. The animation is pure '50s with the typical limited backgrounds of the period but they're pleasing enough. Directed by Les Clark. Oh, and nice hearing the voice of Thurl Ravenscroft-best known as Tony the Tiger of the Kellog's Frosted Flakes cereal commercials-as the title character. Only one more nominee to go...
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swking@ecs-online.com7 October 2017Not a great adaption for Disney, but certainly characteristic of the shorts released in the 50's. It's interesting to consider that this tale was part of American folklore long before it was put into print. Like most folklore,it's full of exaggerated fictional accounts of events. One can image loggers sitting around a campfire, or in a cabin, each trying to embellish and exaggerate the story to make it more interesting then the last time it was told. Certainly a colorful Tall Tale. All part of our collective heritage, and what fun!
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Horst_In_Translation12 August 2017"Paul Bunyan" is a Disney cartoon from 1958, so this one will have its 60th anniversary already next year. At 17 minutes, it is considerably longer than most cartoon short films from that or maybe I should say bigger because the title character is truly a tree of a man. Eventually, he is perhaps the most known lumberjack mankind has ever seen or maybe just the United States have ever seen as there is a lot of patriotism, maybe even heroism, attached to this little movie. It was nominated for an Oscar too, but lost to Warner Bros' Bugs Bunny entry that year. Back to this one here, if you take a look at the bodies of work from the director, the writer and some of the voice cast members, you will find that they worked on some real classic films. Paul Bunyan may not be among the latter, but their expertise helped in turning this into a pretty good film as well. The introduction to the character was nice for example when we see him as a baby, but the contest man vs. machine at the end was well done too. A happy ending, but they also weren't scared of including disappointments. At under 20 minutes, it is fine that all the other human characters in here are really irrelevant. It's all about Paul, who by the way was voiced in a recent animated movie by John Goodman. The size sure fits. I recommend "Paul Bunyan", a fairly good watch and finally also a thumbs-up for the "bulldog" pet who was quite a scene stealer in this one.
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"Paul Bunyan" is one of a string of animated shorts that Walt Disney made in the 1950s. These comic book style films were about legendary characters in America's past. This is a good rendition of the tale of a man who cleared the forests of a growing continent in its early years. Paul and his Canadian blue ox, Babe, were the logging champions of all time.
Kids young and old should enjoy this fairy tale, in Disney style, even in the 21st century. Of course, today the public concern has changed from one of taming the land to one of preserving and conserving the world's forests. -
Kirpianuscus13 April 2021A legend well used by an energetic and high sweet short animation. The giant, his people, his ox and the modernization of USA . Cut trees - too many for my taste and for the contemporary ecological habits - , good music and few good spoons of humor. And the comfortable end. An old fashion Disney animation preserving its freshness and all the special flavors in the forms of nostalgia.