Lambert el León Cordero

This is a nice little lion tale, where the delivery stork from the movie "Dumbo" mistakenly delivers a lion cub to a flock of sheep. As a result, the mother sheep raises the cub on her own.

It's a cleverly written and interesting story, and an exciting turn-of-events come when the mother sheep is chased by a wolf and the lion, though cowardly, has to think how to act.

Grade A

In Australia (probably elsewhere, too) this short cartoon was screened just before "The Lion King". For a brief moment I sensed a new golden age, with hand-animated features basking in critical praise and paying their way at the box office, and classic short cartoons once again seeing the light of day (that is to say, the darkness of cinemas). The dream didn't last long, did it? "Lambert" turned out to be the last hand-animated short I ever saw in a cinema; today, Disney doesn't even bother to re-release its old FEATURES any more, and its animation department, which has maintained continuous production for something like seventy-five years and still has the best animators in the world, is fighting for its life in the face of general indifference. We are living in evil times.

I was particularly glad to see this cartoon in the dark, just before "The Lion King": it always brought tears to my eyes, which I managed to keep secret. I gather it was based on a children's book, or was at one point going to be a children's book, or some such, but unless the prose was as perfectly crafted as Hans Christian Andersen's, this is surely the better form. It's a departure for Jack Hannah, who doesn't try to be funny; he just tells a sweet, warm-hearted story as clearly as possible. How can you not love it?

When the stork delivers a crop of lambs, one of the ewes is left out. But there is a lion cub who is named Lambert. He was apparently mismarked. So he is inadvertently given to the mother. She decide to keep him and chases the stork away. Of course, the lion cub is rejected by the others, not recognizing his being for what it is. The conclusion is predictable. Still, it is well worth seeing and the song is very memorable.

Raised by sheep, LAMBERT THE SHEEPISH LION wants to live a life of gentle peace & quiet. Then one night, a wicked wolf carries off his foster mother...

Winner of the 1952 Oscar for Best Animation, this is a very enjoyable little film. Bill Peet, eventually a popular children's author in his own right, was one of the writers here. The title tune is infectious, and Sterling Holloway is perfect as the Narrator.

I loved this when I was a kid, and as you have already guessed, I adore Disney and all the Silly Symphonies and shorts they did. Lambert the Sheepish Lion is narrated excellently by Sterling Holloway who also narrated the 1946 classic Peter and the Wolf. The short features an amusing title song, has beautiful animation and tells an Ugly Duckling-like story of a lion who can't fit in with his sheep family, as they tease him for being different. The short also has a wolf, who is very similarly designed to the wolf in Peter and the Wolf, and while not as terrifying, has a roar that made my hair stand up. Thank goodness Lambert saves the day and finally gets accepted. Overall, a wonderful jewel, that deserves a 10/10. Bethany Cox.