Home | Movies By Year | Movies from 1936


Somewhere in Dreamland

Buy Somewhere in Dreamland now from Amazon

First, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the movie. And once you've experienced the movie, tell everyone what you thought about it.

Wikipedia article




'Somewhere in Dreamland' is a 1936 animated short in Max Fleischer's Color Classics series. The film was produced by Max Fleischer, directed by Dave Fleischer, co-directed by Dawn Fleischer, and was animated by Fleischer veterans Seymour Kneitel and Roland Crandall. The cartoon, set during the contemporary Great Depression, follows two impoverished children who dream that they are in Dreamland where there is an area full of candy and ice cream. The cartoon is Fleischer's first in three-strip Technicolor.

Plot



During the Great Depression, a young brother and sister carry a wagon through town, gathering wood for their home stove. They pass by several merchants' shops and stop for a moment to admire the confectioneries in the bakery. As a friendly baker sees the children, he goes inside and comes back with ice cream for them, but the children have already left. The baker, the tailor, and the market owner gather to make a plan because they want to help the poor children who are mentioned to live around the corner.

The children reach home and sit down for supper: hard bread and flat water. The children eat quickly, with the boy saying that he is still hungry. Their mother, unable to provide enough food for them, begins to cry. The boy tries to make her feel better by assuring that he was only fooling, and their mother kisses them goodnight. They get in their pajamas, and they each sing a part of a song as they fall asleep beneath their tattered sheets.

In their sleep, they enter Dreamland. They happily frolic through the wondrous land, which includes a syrup river, an ice cream cone field, toys, nice clothes, and two luxurious beds. They laugh happily, and then fall asleep, only to wake up the next morning.

To their surprise, a large feast is on the kitchen table, as well as toys and clothing surrounding the room, all of which is provided by the merchants. The children look up to the baker, the tailor, and the market owner, asking twice if all these things are for them. The merchants nod and reply "All for you, yes!" The children shout in joy and begin to eat. However, the boy, suspicious of his good fortune, sticks a fork in his butt to ensure that they aren't just dreaming again. The children laugh and continue to eat as the chorus, "Somewhere in Dreamland tonight," plays.

Trivia



* This was Fleischer Studios' first film in three-strip Technicolor.

* This cartoon is available on numerous public domain cartoon compilation DVDs and VHS tapes, but some of the included prints omit the first three minutes of the cartoon, instead starting with the children singing "Somewhere in Dreamland" in their beds before going to sleep.

* Some copies of 'Somewhere in Dreamland' circulate with NTA openings and closings, with the "in TECHNICOLOR" and "COPYRIGHT 1936 PARAMOUNT PRODUCTIONS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED." bylines censored with a black bar on the main title card, while others circulate with original Paramount openings and closings. This is one of very few Color Classics to widely circulate with original Paramount title cards, whereas (in most current media) the rest have their openings digitally recreated.

** In 2021, as part of a new initiative by the Fleischer estate (in co-operation with Paramount Pictures) to formally restore the Fleischers entire filmography, a remastered print of 'Somewhere in Dreamland' (sourced from the original negatives) premiered on the MeTV network on December 13.

* This show was included in an episode of 'Donald's Quack Attack'.

* A clip of the cartoon was shown in the opening for 'Wonder Showzen'.

* Tom Pettys band Mudcrutch, used the sound bite but, Im still hungry mom ahh, Im just foolin.) from this cartoon, in the music video for their song, I Forgive It All.

* This short was aired as part of the MeTV Christmas special titled "MeTV's Super Colossal Cartoon Christmas" that was hosted by characters from 'Toon In with Me' and 'Svengoolie'.

References




Buy Somewhere in Dreamland now from Amazon

<-- Return to movies from 1936



This work is released under CC-BY-SA. Some or all of this content attributed to http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1110162133.