Somewhere in Dreamland (1936)

A Major Disappointment

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The titular song was old-fashioned, but so beautifully heartwarming. This Fleischer short seemed to be a bit of an oddity in that it's completely normal.. A positive and cute little tale of starvation, woe and a dream come true, with no monsters or crazy mayhem whatsoever. I liked the way the elaborately detailed animation reflected the different moods, with the visuals of the first half being very stark and freezing, capturing the desperate poverty of the children's lives. And it stays that way until they go to sleep and escape grim reality and drift away into sweet Dreamland, a sugar-coated fantasy paradise that offers all the limitless cakes, candies and toys they long for in the real world, but really know they can never have. The colouring and richness of the animation at that point becomes much more brighter and cheerful, almost festive in a way. The entire short has a definite Christmassy feel about it, and there's not so much as a Christmas tree. The revolving 3-D-like effects, while looking a bit weird and surreal, are still impressive today and give the short a touch more depth and magic. However, the animation and design of some of the characters was a bit spotty and rough in places, such as in the facial details of the perhaps sickeningly adorable little siblings who have strange plain black dots where expressive eyes should be, and the mother's spaghetti arms looked very poorly done. And sometimes the stubby characters looked almost out of place amidst such gorgeously detailed surroundings. The mother sounded and looked somewhat like an aged Olive Oyl! Not surprising since she was voiced by Mae Questel in a rare softer and more maternal voice role for a change. I found it extraordinarily moving when the boy tells his mother that he's still hungry and her face just crumbles and she cries helplessly. That scene really touched me, I love the way they know why she's upset and tell her that it's okay and that they're not that hungry to comfort her, reassuring her of their love. It even made me tear up a bit the first time I saw it. It's very sad and poignant and makes you feel something a little deeper, as the best kinds of cartoon often do. You feel a little sad, but the more distressing parts of it do set up the ending very well. There's such a warm sense of charity and kindness at the end when the urchins awaken from their idealistic happy dream of satisfied hunger to find a real feast waiting for them. The message is fairly simple but very true and endearing. Be grateful for what you have, appreciate the little things, empathise with the less fortunate... Never stop dreaming, and boy am I hungry!

Somewhere in Dreamland (1936) *** (out of 4)Animated short from Dave Fleischer has two poor children crossing in front of a bakery where they see all sorts of great food. They then have to walk home where their mother (voice of Mae Questel) has just hard bread for them to eat. That night they go to bed hungry but dream about a place where there's all sorts of food. I was really surprised at how much I enjoyed this film as at first I wasn't sure much was going to happen. I thought the storytelling was extremely good and I liked all the little points that Fleischer is able to get across without being preachy or having it in your face. I also thought the title song was quite catchy and done in a very good way. As you'd expect, the animated is quite good from start to finish and I really liked the Dreamland sequence because, well, it really did seem like a real dream. I won't reveal the twist at the end but it's quite charming and makes it easy to see why this short has turned up on many Holiday collections.

I grew up watching this cartoon every Christmas; it's a family tradition that I treasure. It's about two orphans who struggle to survive everyday with their single mom. They have barely enough food to eat and yet they are grateful for even the smallest gesture of kindness. This cartoon isn't like the simple shallow Christmas stories that we all see today on TV. It has a deep message and represents an unforgettable era in our history. Even though I did not live during the Great Depression, I totally get the message in the cartoon. It's a timeless classic that will stay with you always and I recommend it to anyone with a child. This touching film will help a child learn to appreciate their comfortable surroundings. Now that I'm a mom I am happy to have purchased this film so my daughter can watch it, just like my mother and grandmother did when they were young.

I love this charming cartoon. It starts off sad, with the children poor and starving, wanting a better life. A bunch of shop owners decide to do something, but i will get to that later. They have their dinner, and go to sleep, But what a dream they have! A wonderland of tasty food and fun toys, with stunning animation. The merry-go-round scene has the best animation, With a pseudo-3D look that is amazing. Another wonderful scene is where they go to the popcorn field, with popcorn falling from the sky! The dream continues, but then the dream ends, with the children back poor again. But then something amazing happens, Those shop owners i was talking about hold a feast for the children, making them happy! I really love this cartoon, and I'm glad i have it on DVD, as i can watch it again and again.