O Patinho Feio

During the ten-year period when Disney animators produced their delightful Silly Symphony series, Hans Christian Andersen's "The Ugly Duckling" was the only story they chose to dramatize twice. The studio released two quite different versions of the story in 1931 and 1939, at the beginning of the series' history and at the end. The later adaptation displays all the sophisticated techniques the crew had developed during that eventful era: it's in glorious Technicolor, the draftsmanship and character animation are superb, and the storytelling is clear, concise, and funny. And yet there's something to be said for the comparatively primitive black & white version of 1931. For one thing, and whatever the animators' intentions may have been, it appears to be a deliberate condemnation of racial prejudice in the form of a parable.

That might sound like a stretch, but the evidence is there, first in the design of the characters and second in their behavior. When the film begins we see a mother hen sitting on her eggs, and when they begin to hatch several identical chubby chicks appear; because the film lacks color, the chicks are solid white. Then the duckling hatches, and we are startled to find he resembles a caricature of a 19th century minstrel performer: his body is grayish but his head is solid black, except for his eyes and his large white bill. While his sibling chicks emit high-pitched peeps, his voice is an earthy sounding honk, rather like a jazz trumpeter. Instantly the mother hen is horrified at the sight of him, and ushers her chicks away. The duckling is dismayed at this rejection, and from then on strives to prove himself worthy of acceptance.

In the studio's later adaptation this element of prejudice can be found as well -- it's inherent in Andersen's story -- but somehow it's less pronounced there, perhaps because by the late '30s the animators' facility with character design had become so much more sophisticated. In the later rendition the duckling is different from his siblings (i.e. darker) and is rejected, but we still perceive him as a cute Disney character in his own right, while in the earlier version he's presented as grotesque. And there's a more significant contrast: in the 1931 version the duckling succeeds in earning the respect of his mother and siblings through an act of resourceful heroism, whereas in the later version he comes to find that he's happier with ducklings of his own kind.

Hmm . . . Sounds like the official Disney line on integration turned reactionary with the passage of time.

In any case, Disney buffs will find other elements of interest in this cartoon. The tornado sequence looks like a rehearsal of sorts for the big storm in the studio's later masterpiece, The Band Concert. And at one point during the storm there's a gag involving a woolly dog whose fur is blown off by the wind, causing him to resemble a character who hadn't been introduced just yet, Pluto. But the most intriguing aspect of the 1931 Ugly Duckling, as far as I'm concerned, is the unmistakable message that no one should be judged by appearance, nor should the "other" be rejected without a hearing. Sadly, it would be a long time before the Hollywood studios would find the courage to offer comparable messages in their mainstream features.

I've known this cartoon for a few years now and I like the way in which Disney has changed round the story to fit what he wanted to say. Here the ugly duckling is not accepted as an adult by swans, but still as an ugly duckling for saving the lives of his "brothers and sisters" (I won't tell you how, you have to see for yourself in the cartoon, mwahaha).

If you know either the 1939 Disney version of this story or the original Hans Christian Anderson story, then the first part of the plot of this cartoon will come as no surprise to you. It starts with a mother chicken sitting on her nests and (conveniently for the viewers) the eggs start to hatch almost straight away. The hen is extremely gleeful as each chick hatches and the group wait excitedly for the very last egg to hatch. When it does hatch, however, out comes a measly black "thing", as they see it and the mother ushers her chicks away from it. The poor "ugly duckling" tries to follow the chicks and their mother and desperately seeks love and food. Will the chickens see him for who he really is..?

I enjoyed the animation and ending in this cartoon and as you feel so much pity for the ugly duckling, by the end of the cartoon you really love him too. The music incorporated into the animation, as with all of Disney's Silly Symphonies, works well too and helps along with the story (even though there is no dialogue in this cartoon, DO NOT watch it with the sound turned off if you can hear it).

I recommend this to people who like black and white Disney cartoons and to people who love anything to do with the Ugly Duckling. Enjoy "The Ugly Duckling"! :-)

8 and a half out of ten.

This is a touching Silly Symphony cartoon from Walt Disney - a retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's tale, The Ugly Duckling. Here, a mother hen hatches some chicks, but one turns out to be an ugly duckling; therefore, it is immediately repulsed.

The ugly duckling was actually pretty adorable and will immediately grab your sympathy and heart as you see him try to get along with his new family. But, the poor thing couldn't catch a break and deemed to remain lonely. However, that is until he might prove a sense of belonging by braving through a tornado to save his siblings. It's a satisfying sight seeing that even an outcasted creature could be brave enough to save those who once ignored him.

A great little cartoon with a great message.

Grade A-

When the story begins, a mother chicken anxiously awaits her chicks hatching. However, oddly, one of the babies is a gosling....and the mother and her chicks instantly hate it because it's so different. In time, the gosling is able to prove its worth.

The 1939 version of "The Ugly Duckling" by Disney is a beautiful short film. However, back in 1931, the studio also made an earlier version of this story. Apart from making the original in black & white instead of color, the other big difference is that in the 1931 version, they changed the story...making the goose baby born in a nest of chicks, not ducklings. Until the end of the story, I had no idea why the studio made that choice...but the way the film ended made sense for this change.

Overall, a modestly entertaining short film but which also pales by comparison to the later much prettier version which sticks closer to the traditional tale.

This primitive 1931 black-and-white cartoon is based on the old fable of the unattractive child who grows up to be beautiful and spits in the face of all those who previous laughed and avoided them. After all, society SHOULD cast out those who are different as anything other than normal is frightening.

Of course the duckling turns out to be a swan who somehow ended up in the nest of a mother hen (not duck). It's a fable that has been drilled into the subconscious of most children in the developed world, yet most of them do still grow up to reject what is different.

During a storm the ugly one rescues the other chicks and is accepted.

Although I mentioned that the duck is actually a swan, it isn't. It's actually a duck, while the others are actually baby chickens. So the entire premise of the cartoon is false.