La petite maison

Narrated by Sterling Holloway.

This is my personal favorite Disney short. It's a wonderfully animated story about a small white house who was happy, until her residents moved out. The city got bigger, the house got more and more roughed up. It has a surprising amount of character development and sympathy from the audience despite it's short length. The animation is brilliant and colorful. The narration by original voice of Winnie the Pooh, Sterling Holloway was really great. If you are a fan of good Disney produced cartoons, this is my favorite and if not the best, one of the best.

My rating: ****/****. 10 mins.

Sterling Holloway, the original voice of Winne the Pooh, narrates this nice little tale. It's a story of a little house who was happy in the country but got lonely at nights. The house wondered what it would be like to have neighbors around her - she soon finds out when the city grew around her. The little house then misses her solitary country life and wonders if she will ever find that peace again.

Ultimately it's a film about the problems that comes with progress/industrialization.

8/10.

There is so much to love about The Little House, though it might be a touch over-sentimental for some. There is no denying how wonderful the animation is, the backgrounds look so smooth and flow equally so and the colours are very rich. The animation on the house and the increase in size is very inventively done. Also great is the music, not surprising considering that if there is a component that is consistently good in the Disney shorts it is the music. It is beautifully orchestrated while not being syrupy, which it could easily have been, and it is certainly not without energy or driven rhythms either. The Little House's story is very simple but is an involving one and also one of Disney's most emotionally charged. Disney shorts have been known to make me cry, like with Mickey's Good Deed, The Old Mill and The Ugly Duckling and The Little House does that as well. Sterling Holloway's narration is remarkably sensitive and doesn't fall into the trap of explaining too much or being annoying, after hearing narrations in animation that start saying things that we can easily see on screen or are better off shown. The titular character is a sweet one and one that we do feel genuine sympathy for, it is always great to have a lead character to root for all the way and The Little House definitely has that. In conclusion, beautifully drawn, emotionally charged and sweet, one of my favourite Disney shorts of the 50s. 10/10 Bethany Cox

This is a little story about a house. It's very small and is made fun of by the fancier and larger houses. However, as the years pass, times change and homes come and go. What will happen with the little house? And, more importantly, does anyone care?

Sterling Holloway narrates this extremely sentimental cartoon. It's the sort of thing adults would probably enjoy and kids would find very tedious. While I am an adult, I also found this one a bit too sentimental and lacked the fun I expect in a cartoon. You see it and be the judge. It's well made....but not fun to me and my taste. If you want to see it, it's available on the "Disney Rarities" DVD collection.

THE LITTLE HOUSE sits on a little hill, way out in the country. Even though filled with a loving family, she can't help but notice the relentless approach of the big city coming ever closer to her...

This cartoon is a charming adaptation of Virginia Lee Burton's 1942 Caldecott Medal winner. For the few minutes of its duration, the viewer feels deep interest in, and sympathy for, the little house - a tribute to the skill of the Disney artists in giving life to an inanimate object. The film benefits greatly from the expressive narration of Sterling Holloway.