Fun & Fancy Free

Fun & Fancy Free is a hit-and-miss yet mostly watchable anthology film that boasts two stories of varying quality, Little Bear Bongo and Jack and the Beanstalk, with the wraparound story featuring fun appearances by Jiminy Cricket (Cliff Edwards) and Edgar Bergen (along with, of course, Charlie McCarthy). There’s little doubt, ultimately, that Fun & Fancy Free is at its best during the Jack and the Beanstalk tale, as the short, which follows Mickey Mouse (Walt Disney), Donald Duck (Clarence Nash), and Goofy (Pinto Colvig) as they take on a fearsome giant (Billy Gilbert’s Willie), benefits from its predictably stellar animation and appealing emphasis on Disney’s core trio of iconic characters. (Little Bear Bongo, while beautifully drawn and entertaining enough, is unable to consistently grab the viewer to the same degree as Jack and the Beanstalk, ultimately.) And although the picture is, in the end, a far cry from Disney’s most celebrated releases, Fun & Fancy Free is generally an affable, easygoing endeavor that holds one’s interest for the duration of its 73 minute runtime.

*** out of ****