The Devil and Daniel Mouse (1978)

Sick Product of a Sick System

A Masterpiece!

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

"The Devil and Daniel Mouse" is a 25-minute animated short film from 1978, so this one will soon have its 40th anniversary. It is a Canadian Nelvana English-language production and the director is Clive A. Smith. The music comes from John Sebastian. The main characters in here are two mice who make music, but don't have a lot of success. So one of them (the female) makes a deal with the devil and becomes very successful. But then the day of revenge comes for her. This is a decent story on morals and friendship and also has a couple fun moments I guess. All in all, it's a solid watch for young and not so young audiences I would say. The message is decent, the music is not bad (not good either though) and the characters are nicely animated and interesting to watch overall. The 1970s have certainly not been among the greatest animated short films had to offer and the Golden Age of Animation was over at that point already, but here we have a television special from 1978 that proves that with all the dark in terms of the genre, there is also some light. I recommend the watch.

Why is this getting so many good reviews? I'm going to start out blunt. It's not a good short film. The characters are boring and they have no personality or dept at all. Seriously. What can I say about Jan's character other than "she sells her soul to the devil"? The answer is nothing. She's dull. They are all dull.The animation is just awful. It moves too fast and soppy, the way the characters are designed is ugly. The Devil looks like a fat alligator. In fact worst devil I've ever seen.The songs are just bad seventies music. Though, it's not as horrible as everything else.The movie's plot is interesting. An unfortunate person sells their soul to the devil for a better life, eventually they realize "I'm going to hell", and they stand trial against Satan. This was a bad adaptation of that story. I'm giving this movie 1 out 10

I love animation from Nelvana Ltd., along with animation from: Fleischer Studios, Disney Studios, Rankin/Bass, Studio Ghibli from Japan, and Hanna/Barbera. Nelvana has great series like "Redwall," "Class of the Titans," "Little Bear", etc. Yes, Nelvana is an awesome studio. Well anyway, I loved this special "The Devil and Daniel Mouse," after I had watched when I was in Junior High. The special was broadcast as a Halloween special in on October 22, 1978 on Canada's CBC, then released on VHS in the 80s; of course I did not know whether it is a Halloween special, I guess I had heard that Halloween can be the highest satanic holy day, right? Well anyway (again), this musical special is about two young mouse folk singers named Daniel and Jan, who find themselves with a bleak future after finding their audience drying up in favour of rock music. Desperate for a better career and life, Jan vows that she would do anything to become a rock star. Instantly, the Devil arises to take advantage of that and offers to make her a star in exchange for her soul. She agrees and she quickly becomes the star she's dreamed of while Daniel, is left behind. On the night of her greatest triumph - her concert, the devil comes to collect on her soul. In desperation, she turns to Daniel who must attempt the impossible task of trying to find an escape loophole for his girl's release.Nelvana also remade this special as the movie "Rock & Rule," both about a couple in a musical group struggling in talent joints, the female member used in a diabolical scheme, and ending with the heroines dressed in white tatters and their lovers vanquishing an evil with a song from the heart. So my last word that I love this special, with excellent music and a top-notch cast.

This 22 minute short, short of a precursor to the later much better "Rock and Rule", features two folk singer mice who are going nowhere. The female mouse, Jan, signs a deal with the devil to become a hit rock star. So it's up to Daniel Mouse to save her soul. Made in the late '70's this has all the trappings of said decade (crap music, crap clothing and hair style, awful folk tunes) This cartoon is featured on the Second disc of the 2-Disk Collector's Edition of "Rock and Rule", it also comes with a Making of that runs almost as long as the show itself.My Grade: D+