Walt Disney's American Legends (Paul Bunyan, John Henry, Johnny Appleseed, The Brave Engineer): Thurl Ravenscroft, Alfre Woodard, Geoffrey Jones, Tim Hodge, Dave Murray, Carrie Harrington, Jerry Colonna, Ken Darby, Jon Dodson, The King's Men, Bud Linn, Rad Robinson, Jack Kinney, Les Clark, Mark Henn, Broose Johnson, Dick Kinney, Dick Shaw, Lance Nolley, Shirley Pierce: Amazon.ca: Video

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From Amazon.com

American history and pioneer mythology blur in this collection of animated Disney shorts hosted by James Earl Jones. From Disney's Golden Age come the marvelous Johnny Appleseed (1948), a fanciful, folksy, story-song tale of the real-life planter who seeded the Midwest, and The Brave Engineer (1950), a screwball version of "The Ballad of Casey Jones." Paul Bunyan (1958) is pure tall tale turned energetic American myth: the giant lumberjack is a homespun Zeus in flannel and logger boots creating the mountains and valleys of the American West with his big, blue ox, Babe. Joining these classics is Disney's stylized new take on the folk song John Henry (2000), narrated by Alfre Woodard. The sketchy, roughed-up style echoes Jacob Lawrence in moments, and the rich soundtrack soars with spiritual-influenced music. Like the best of Disney, these spirited folk tales speak to both children and adults. --Sean Axmaker

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Customer Reviews

15 Reviews

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
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Average Customer Review

2.9 out of 5 stars (15 customer reviews)

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3.0 out of 5 stars Cashing in on patriotism, Feb 17 2004

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SheLikesDVDs.com (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Legends (DVD)

This DVD was probably created as Disney's quick, kiddie answer to the surging patriotism in the United States after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. As American consumers were buying flags in record numbers, Disney artists were likely tossing through tinny stacks of old film reels, scavenging for old pro-American cartoon clips that could be spliced into a new collection for kids. Only one of the four cartoons on this disk is new. The other three have the familiar look and sound of Disney past, and if you are American, you're guaranteed to have seen these three cartoons more times than you could have counted during your own childhood.

I'll forgive Disney for cashing in on our heightened American-ness right now. I recognize our need to feel truly united after an event like the attacks on New York and the Pentagon, and focusing on the stories that define our nation is one way to do that. Disney attempts to give children that feeling of unity with American Legends, stories of four American "heroes" of years past. However, the cartoon selections on the disk are poorly chosen, and the disk itself is overpriced.

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3.0 out of 5 stars Glad to have it, Oct 18 2002

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"conundrum44" (LaVista, NE USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Legends (DVD)

I Love the original Disney shorts, and this is a pretty good collection. Others have already commented on the omission of Pecos Bill, who I also missed. But I haven't seen Casey Jones in A Long Time, and had forgotten how funny that cartoon is. The new John Henry short was pretty well done. I liked how the social context of the time was explained in the little space a short allows. The animation is fluid and life-like, but the rough pencil sketches can be seen under the color, which makes the cartoon look rough and is distracting.

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2.0 out of 5 stars what a disappointment!, May 27 2002

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brigid o'shaughnessy (San Francisco, California United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Legends (DVD)

1. I'm glad I bought it used. 2. I've sold it already. 3. Buy the Silly Symphonies and save yourself this lackluster excuse for nostalgia.

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