Birds in the Spring (1933)

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

This is a very nice cartoon featuring two birds rejoicing over the birth of their three hatchlings. They are taught to sing and fly, yielding some funny reactions from the father bird. One hatchling wanders away from the nest and gets into some misadventures with grasshoppers, a rattlesnake, and a swarm of bees. The animation and music in this short were just great, and the voice-overs of the birds by actors Marion Darlington and Purv Pullen were just brilliant. A wonderful story about the birth of spring, free-spirit of nature, and the serenity of the day.Grade A

This is an early color Silly Symphonies short produced by Disney studio. There will be spoilers ahead:This one starts predictably, as birds (for the most part in pairs) build nests and sing. One pair is awaiting three eggs about to hatch. The third little bird is more adventurous and that gets him in one problem after another in this. It starts early, with a nice bit of foreshadowing, as he tries to eat a bee early on.Their father is trying to teach them how to fly. The first lesson is less than successful and mama and papa bird rescue the first two, but the third one gets separated and the stays separated so as to have some fun. There's a cute encounter with a couple of grasshoppers where the little bird learns a lesson of sorts. Then comes a sequence with hummingbirds, which is beautifully animated.Next come the obligatory dramatic encounter, this time with a snake trying his best to show the bird what it's like to be at the wrong end of the food chain. The end result is amusing, if somewhat predictable.Fleeing the snake, the little bird meets up with a beehive and is chased by a swarm, with colorful results. Mom and dad save him and the rest from Junior's mischief. Junior, far from chastened, shows his audacity, whereupon the father bird does what is necessary.This short is available on the Disney Treasures More Silly Symphonies DVD set and it and the set are well worth having. Recommended.

Disney released a two-DVD set entitled "Walt Disney Treasures: More Silly Symphonies, Vol. 2". The first DVD consists of black & white cartoons and the second are color ones (which begin in 1933). The first of these color ones is "Birds in the Spring"--and boy did it shock me when it started! The colors were incredibly intense--VERY intense. The colors tended towards lots of pastels as well as some almost neon colors--especially reds and yellows. It almost made my eyes bleed--but it sure got your attention! Realism, however, is not important to this film. I guess I can forgive this a bit, as Disney was obviously experimenting with color.The cartoon is a very simple story. There are three little birds in a nest. When they try to take their first flight, they fall. The mother and father bird come to the rescue but one of them is lost and has some adventures--some of which are adorable (such as with the grasshopper) and some terrifying (the oddly drawn snake and the bees). It's all pretty cute and the sort of stuff they made a lot of in the 1930s--and very antiquated compared to later films which had a lot more edge and humor to them. Worth seeing--especially if you love early cartoons.

This Disney Silly Symphony follows the adventures of some newborn baby birds. The animation and color is beautiful, but the soundtrack is almost all chirping, which became annoying very quickly. It's a nice piece, but it changes direction quickly toward the end when it goes from a very cutesy style to an almost slapstick style.