This next film is both the last “package film” of the 1940s and the final film of the 1940s! Growing up, this was always a staple of my childhood, especially come Halloween time. In fact, I made sure to watch it last Halloween season (and got to listen to the Dapper Dans of Disneyland sing “The Headless Horseman Song” a few times). For this project, I’m focusing on the story itself, including dialogue, character development, any subplots, how a story presents itself, the speed at which it moves, if it slows down unnecessarily, etc.
Update: In February 2022, I started a video version of the DFP on Tiktok. You can find the video below. Thoughts expressed in the video may be different than what are expressed in the blog post, due to the time difference in posting.
A Brief Summary
Actor Basil Rathbone and actor/singer Bing Crosby combine talents to bring this next film to life. Opening in a library, Basil begins by telling about the fabulous J. Thaddeus Toad, from The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, whose latest mania has cost him his home and his freedom. Coming to his aid are friends Rat, Mole, and MacBadger who help him come up with a plan to regain his home and restore his good name. Returning to the library, Bing Crosby tells of Ichabod Crane, from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving, who is newly arrived in Sleepy Hollow to serve as the schoolteacher. After falling into a rivalry with Brom Bones over the fair Katrina Van Tassel, he manages to outwit the stronger suitor until one fateful Halloween night. Includes a yellow gypsy cart, weasels and a flaming jack-o-lantern.
What works
- I just love when the films use books as a way to start the story, and this movie one-ups that. Taking place in a library (that I want to visit), the narrators for both segments, Basil Rathbone (Mr. Toad) and Bing Crosby (Ichabod Crane) take control of the film. Through voice-overs, they discuss different book titles before each opening their specific book to begin their story.
- The script for Mr. Toad has been my favorite up to this point in the project (and will always hold a special place in my heart). Basil’s dialogue and that of the characters are smart, moving well and entertaining. There are even parts that totally went over my head when I was a child, but now I understand (and laugh) such as the following lines: Lawyer: And what is the honest way? Cyril: Ah-ha, I thought you wouldn’t know that, Guv’ner. Stuff like that. Basil even helps speed up the film by saying bits of dialogue for the characters rather than the audience have to sit through the characters saying it themselves. Not that it might have been a bad decision if they had, but for the bits of dialogue that isn’t relevant, Basil steps in to move things along. Also, his voice is great (he played Sherlock Holmes, you know).
- The courtroom scene is one of my absolute favorite scenes. There are high stakes (Toad’s freedom is on the line), it brings together all of the main characters and a certain not-so-nice character, and thanks to the fabulous dialogue, the audience gets to see how the different characters react in crisis mode.
- I could see this film as Storytime at the Library (which I guess it is already) but I mean, as an in-person, literal storytime. Both Basil and Bing have great narration skills, not too heavy and knowing when to brighten or darken the tone to match the story.
- I got the feeling that this film was trimmed down to just the necessities without cutting out the quality material. Similar to Fun and Fancy Free, there was the opening scene that introduced Mr. Toad’s story, the middle scene that introduced Ichabod Crane’s and then the final scene that closed out the film. Unlike Fun and Fancy Free, it didn’t feel overdrawn, in fact, the live-action library portions were the shortest of the film and the stories themselves moved so smoothly at a quick pace that it didn’t come off as too much.
- There’s more of a variety of settings in Mr. Toad than in Ichabod Crane which I appreciate (not that I don’t appreciate the settings in Ichabod Crane). With Mr. Toad, there’s Ratty’s house, Toad Hall, the courtroom, Winkie’s Bar, various countryside roads, the jail, the river, the train station and the train tracks. With Ichabod, there’s the town of Sleepy Hollow, the schoolhouse, Katrina’s house and the woods in the Hollow.
- It’s not that Mr. Toad’s story is better for having more settings, but it fits the type of story. Mr. Toad’s story (like the Disney ride it inspired) is a wild one, going every which way before coming to a successful, albeit crashing, end. With Ichabod Crane, it’s a spooky story in a quiet town and while I imagine there could have been more settings used, it was not required to tell the story.
- I love how Katrina is portrayed. Actually, I love how all three main characters are portrayed: Brom Bones, Ichabod Crane, and Katrina Van Tassel. Katrina is the beauty of the village but she’s smart if her smarts are used to manipulate the men around her for her gain. Brom Bones is both villain and jester. Half the time I want to cheer him on because he has some ‘nice guy’ moments, and the other half, I just want to smack him for being pig-headed and mean. And then, of course, there is Ichabod Crane, who frankly is not a likable character. I mean, he is, but he’s not a nice guy which makes me happy. Watching this movie for this project, I really see how he’s selfish, snobby and kind of creepy. He’s the titular character and he’s not
Honorable Mentions
- The lawyer at Mr. Toad’s court session. His no-nonsense biased approach to Mr. Toad and his friends was a highlight of the film. Probably also set the record for quickest witness questioning ever.
- The ‘Headless Horseman’ song and that whole scene is just my favorite part of this entire film (well, that and Toad’s court scene).
Side Questions
- What was the original deal between Mr. Winkie and the weasels with the stolen car? What was going to go down in the bar if Toad hadn’t shown up?
- Why didn’t Ichabod try to go home with someone, to accompany them rather than go home alone?
- What are the crickets chirping and the frog croaking during the initial portion of the ride towards the bridge? The crow says “Beware” so I’m assuming they’re saying something similar in a creepy fashion.
What I learned from watching this film
- The importance of developed characters rather than flat characters. Take Katrina. She could have been a beautiful woman with an empty head (I’m imagining empty-headed, beautiful Myra from the Holes book/movie) but she’s not. She’s actually quite smart, which I bet came from growing up with the richest farmer around for a father. She has mastered the skill of wielding her beauty to get men to do what she wants. There’s an entire scene in her introduction song where she gets a half-dozen men to move a picnic around to 3-4 different places by just shaking her head. These added layers to her character make her more enjoyable to watch, especially as she is the main instigator of the heightened rivalry between Brom Bones and Ichabod Crane. I mean, she did add a special note to Ichabod’s party invitation just to make sure he would come and up his game.
- Side note: I personally believe she always meant to marry Brom Bones, but she wanted to up the stakes to gain the best possible reward. Lessons she learned from Father? Perhaps.
If you’ve seen The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, what did you think? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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