Lambert the Sheepish Lion

Lambert the Sheepish Lion (1952)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Delightful Disney short has a stork accidentally dropping off a lion cub to a group of sheep. At first the sheep laugh at the lion who they name Lambert but soon they come to need him when a hungry wolf shows up. This Disney short is probably one of the best remembered films that the studio ever did because from the time it was released to today, it seems like it's been all over the place. I remember watching it at least twice a week when I was a kid and it appears everyone knows the tale of the lion who got dropped off to the sheep. As you'd expect, the animation is extremely good and there's no doubt that the story itself is quite clever. I think one thing that fails to get enough attention is the vocal work of Sterling Holloway who is simply wonderful and adds a lot to the material.

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

I remember watching 'Lambert the Sheepish Lion' on the Disney channel years and years ago. It was my favourite Disney short. In summary, Lambert is a lion cub who is mistakenly given to a sheep. Lambert is ridiculed by the other sheep until there is trouble and he must save the sheep from danger. By doing this, he gains his courage. The theme tune to this little short is very catchy, and it's just a feel-good story with the ironic little twist and the feeling of success that Lambert has become a hero now instead of being bullied. Out of all these years, I have never forgotten this little short, and I can vaguely remember the tune.

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.

This short is one of the more successful Disney produced in the 1950s. Nominated for an Oscar in 1951, it has one of the more memorable one-shot characters Disney created in Lambert. Some of the visual gags, particularly toward the end of the cartoon are hilarious! Toward the end of the 1940s, Disney slipped behind UPA and MGM and even Warner Brothers in terms of shorts. The quality was still there, but the energy seemed to fade a bit. Cartoons like Lambert show that Disney could still more than hold its own. Highly recommended