I, like many, grew up watching Dumbo over and over again. It was one of those movies that you never could enough of and, at a little over an hour in running time — making it Disney's shortest full-length feature — time truly flew while you were enjoying it. It's now been 65 years since the movie's release and the emotions it stirs remain intact.
The little elephant with the big ears we all learned to love still makes you shed a tear when he's separated from his mom, after she looses her temper when trying to defend her offspring. They all live in a circus and after he ruins the act of the elephants, he's sent to join the clowns. He's eventually looked after by Timothy Mouse, a short character with a strong and lovely personality. He and the elephant go through a few episodes during which Mouse helps him regain his self-confidence and together they learn that little Dumbo has a special gift: he can fly. When they return to the circus, Dumbo steals the show and the rest is history.
As for the extras included in the DVD, I found the audio commentary just as useful and enlightening (in terms of information about the people making the movie) as the 14-minute long featurette Celebrating Dumbo , which was more like a promotional piece than an in-depth look at the making of the film. There is also a couple of fun pre-Dumbo shorts, Elmer Elephant and Flying Mouse. Most of the bonus features are designed for children, including sing-along songs from the movie, a read-along storybook titled Dumbo's Big Discovery and a fun Disneypedia game called My First Circus.
In all honesty it doesn't seem to offer much more than the 60th Anniversary Edition released five years ago. I can't see enough justification for this release. However, a classic is a classic, so those who didn't get the previous edition, get this one. You will be delighted. Those who own the previous edition, you are safe to skip this one.
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