The Three Caballeros
The film starts out with a really cool intro and song. Very grand, pretty much what you would expect from a movie made in that era.The intro was so enjoyable I almost forgot I was watching a film in which Donald Duck was the star. The movie is a collection of three distinct scenes that are presented to Donald in the form of a large birthday present sent from a great distance away that has obviously traveled from a great distance judging from the amount of postage stamps stuck to it. The package is addressed to Donald along with a short note written in Spanish, and yes in case you were wondering, Donald Duck speaking Spanish is just as annoying as you imagined it was. The first present is a film projector and a movie about birds, and a flying donkey. This was my favorite part of the movie. At first I thought it was an animated documentary. I was wrong. Once Donald is finished watching the film he opens his second present, a book, which is from his old friend José Carioca, the cigar-smoking parrot from Saludos Amigos. Jose and Donald travel into the book to the Brazilian state of Bahía, where they learn about the culture in Bahia. After some singing and dancing the two exit the book and are back in reality. Next, Donald opens his third gift, and inside is Panchito Pistoles, a rooster who represents Mexico. I don’t think they ever mention his name in the movie. I had to look it up online after the fact. The whole movie kinda falls apart for me at this point. Basically, they meet Panchito, he gives Donald and Jose a couple of sombreros and then suddenly they are best friends. They sing a song about it and everything. He then takes them to Mexico where they visit 3 different places, Pátzcuaro, Veracruz, and Acapulco The end of the movie made no sense to me whatsoever: Donald is looking out at the starry Mexico City sky, and all of a sudden there is a woman’s head floating in the sky and singing (what?!) Donald appears to fall in love with her and he starts singing along. At this point the last 8 minutes of the movie turn into something I think you can only fully appreciate on acid. There are more disembodied faces, and a bull, and fireworks. Seriously, it is so strange. To be perfectly honest this movie was not my jam. It does not withstand the test of time. I don’t really ever want to watch it again. I don’t recommend for children. It is way too sporadic, and I don’t think it will hold their attention. With that being said, this movie has a rotten tomatoes rating of 88% so maybe I’m the one missing something... -- Bev