Gran Canyon

Academy Award-winning short subject was the movie prelude for many of the early showings of Walt Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" in 1959--and while the two pictures could not be further apart in subject matter, each includes the sweep and spectral beauty (one live action, one animated) courtesy of the Disney Studio. I'm not sure whether Ferde Grofe's music suite was inspired by the sights of the Grand Canyon or whether the footage here inspired Grofe, but either way the pieces are lovely (grand in their own right). The first section, introducing us to the mountains and valleys of Arizona (with clouds hanging low in the sky, casting deep, dark shadows on the desert below), is certainly the best. The waters of the Colorado River are hypnotizing to watch (the intricate culmination of rage and steady flow of the Colorado puts on a show for us all by itself, and the camera-work and editing here are superlative). The wilderness footage is reminiscent of Disney's True-Life Adventure films, however this portion--albeit brief--may have been handled with more care (there's some 'funny' music to accompany a snake slithering up a hill, but the tone of "Grand Canyon" is surprisingly solemn). On the big screen, this must have looked (and sounded) majestic and prestigious--no wonder it copped the Oscar, it probably dwarfed the competition. *** from ****

Disney deservedly won an Oscar for this mostly well-executed documentary. Visually breathtaking, the narration has a kind of monotone, almost flat-lined quality that would practically served as a cure for insomnia in most instances. This is an Achilles heel for a great number of Disney documentaries-narration. All too often, it either drones or is too cute by at least half. Still quite good here for the visuals. Recommended.

Edit: I've been meaning to get back to this comment for some time now, for more than a couple of years now, because I watched it again back in 2003 or so, when watching the tape I recorded it on from a broadcast off the Disney Channel and realized (to my embarrassment) that I'd been mistaken in recalling it as having narration-it has only a musical score with no voice-over. I want to correct the mistake, but I choose to leave the original comment in place, as I made the mistake and it's been here for five years. Wiping it out would be self-serving. An explanation and addition is called for. I will say that I've seen this in widescreen on the Special Edition release of Sleeping Beauty and it's even more impressive in the proper ratio than it is in pan-and-scan. It isn't perfect, but it is one of Disney's better live-action short films and deserved to win its Oscar. It and Sleeping Beauty are well worth getting. Recommended.

An uneven but beautiful attempt to do an early widescreen "music video" with Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite. The musical sequences are competently performed, though edited for time, and they do not appear strictly in order. What matters about this film are the visual elements. The Painted Desert sequence is as beautiful yet austere as the music, however it drags a bit. In the "Sunrise" sequence a trip down the Colorado climaxes in shooting the rapids. Innovative, but the constant downward angle with no sky ahead becomes claustrophobic. Just when you think it's going to be a so-so movie, it picks up beautifully as "On the Trail" displays the wildlife in a sensitive, natural and compelling way. The sunset and cloudburst sequences--well--see it for yourself. I won't spoil it for you. The movie involved a lot more thought than it appears. Finally, they released it in widescreen on the Deluxe Edition DVD of Sleeping Beauty. A long overdue reissuance, and very appropriate since they debuted together in the cinema.

One critic at the time said this short had "Fire, splendor and tenderness." I would agree.

I think the reasons it was originally teamed with Sleeping Beauty were: 1) Both used great music, although SB's Tchaikovsky was lightened a bit. 2) Both were in multi-channel stereo, and the theaters exhibiting SB during the first several months had to be equipped for 70mm to qualify, therefore were also equipped for multi-channel stereo. SB was in Super Technirama 70 and 6 channel stereo, and Grand Canyon was in 35 mm CinemaScope and 4 channel stereo.

Whilst this is bit too long, it's still quite an interesting documentary showing the massive expanse that is the Grand Canyon. From the air, it appears unending with the Colorado river carving it's way through the stone carrying the water that provides for an astonishing array of creatures and plant life. I can only guess at the energy required by the sidewinder as it struggles to slither it's way up the sand dune - though it does get a bit of a free ride down the other side. The photography is presented as a visual accompaniment to Forde Grofé's "Grand Canyon Suite" which is all fairly standard orchestral fayre until the weather closes in and the "Cloudburst" section breathes some thundery and snowy life into the proceedings as the animals seek shelter where they can and what looks like time-lapse photography gives us the impression the clouds are actually dancing. If you've ever seen this phenomena in real life then you'll know it's all about the sunrise - and that's captured beautifully here as are the images of the rainbows, the summer blooms and the proud eagles as they re-assert themselves over the chilliness of a winter you might not think would ever visit these desert climes.