The Winged Scourge (1943)

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Blistering performances.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

This was a somewhat strange topic for a Disney made propaganda film. While it is informational and fact based, you can definitely tell that it is used for propaganda. They make mosquitoes out to be evil criminal vampires out to kill, steal, and destroy. While they are pesky and can spread disease they are simply insects. To combat the mosquito armies Disney recruits the help of the beloved Seven Dwarfs along with Dopey who thought it would be necessary to bring a meat cleaver. They show example of how citizens can rid infected mosquito from their environment. While some of the suggestions are good, you can tell that others are very outdated and would be considered harmful today. They recommend dumping oil in water sources and burying cans and trash that could hold water for mosquito breeding grounds, both of which today would be considered pollution. It is a good little short, made entertaining by the use of the dwarfs, and teaches about the harms of mosquitoes and what people can do about it. It is fun to watch pieces like this and learn about the past and also how times have changed. Dopey is also quite the maniacal mosquito exterminator!

For the love of God, don't watch this while eating dinner. I made that fatal mistake. It's not a pleasant cartoon, it's a nasty little public service announcement warning of the dangers of mosquito breeding in your back yard. If you're quite squeamish when it comes to bugs (as I am) it'll make you completely paranoid.The horrid detail it goes into, especially the cross section close-ups of a mosquito biting some guy, really give you the heebie-jeebies. A good thing the Seven Dwarfs are so obsessed with cleaning up and totally eliminate every possible mosquito breeding ground from their home. According to this short they can breed almost anywhere. Needless to say, I cleaned my kitchen and bathroom right after watching this, while struggling to keep my dinner down.