So Dear to my Heart: A little film with some big issues!

First of all, yes we are going to the past and starting with the Live/Action Animations. I do apologise that these will not be in right order, as I still haven’t tracked down a copy of Song of the South or The Reluctant Dragon. So, please forgive me. They will be added as soon as possible, but first let me tell you all of the saga of a little boy, and his pet sheep

So Dear to my Heart

Directors: Harold D. Schuster and Hamilton Luske

Year: 1949

Less of a standalone film and more of a follow up to Song of the South since it has a lot of the same cast including Bobby Driscoll and Luanna Patten. This is the story of a little boy called Jeremiah Kincaid (Driscoll) and his pet sheep Danny…enthusiasm overwhelms me right now!

Based on the book Midnight and Jeremiah by Sterling North it opens up in a disused, in an organised chaos type of way attic, as we move into a book and the narration and title drop song. Telling us of the long times past, the year the story is set is 1903, The opening scene is live action/animation and is some of the best I have seen from Disney at this point in their films, easily outdoing the package films, even if the song is whimsical and boring.

Adult Jerimiah (John Beal) is regaling the audience as he is flashing back in his memories, describing the scene with a perfect nostalgic rose tinted view, from the rustic homestead to the cows. This is an idealised version of a childhood, seen with a child’s mentality. There is a mention of a special place he went too, to do his “dreaming.” Whilst we see his grandmother (Beulah Bondi) pulling a plough via a horse and are told that the main town was about a mile away. So a little kid is stuck in the middle of nowhere, with his granny for company and well I guess nostalgic is wonderful isn’t it.

As we meet Jerimiah the child, he’s in town as when your poor the only thing you can do for entertainment is wait for the train to come in, and the first thing we see off said train is two bare shirted African-American’s, damn you Disney!

These unnamed men, clear the area, because Dan Patch, the greatest horse in the world is on a tour. Dan Patch was real, and I had no idea of this so colour me educated! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Patch

Jeremiah is a total fanboy for this horse and is able to give said horse an apple. As Luanna Patten steps into the picture, as Tildy (More on her later) and narrator Jeremiah states that he wants a horse of this own. His Uncle Hiram (Burl Ives) just so happens to be the town blacksmith and after replacing a nail for the wonder house, fashions the left over nail into a ring for Jeremiah, and takes him home to Granny’s.

That night, as Jeremiah tries to convince Granny to sell the old mare and get an updated newer horse, Granny to her credit isn’t biting as she is happy with the way things are. I give her credit for that, even if Granny is strict, too strict and it seems she puts everything in the hands of the Lord! As Jeremiah asks to check on the lambs that are due to be born, and they both decide to head out. Each of the three lambs, have had one new ram or ewe, but unto us another child is born as the appropriate named sheep Jezebel has given birth to twins, in perhaps the cleanest post animal birth scene in history.

But lo and behold, the white sheep has given birth to a black baby, whilst Jeremiah is delighted by all this, Granny has to look on her face, like Jezebel had given birth to Rosemary’s Baby!

Jeremiah tries to get Jezebel to feed her newborn son, but Jezebel turns violent a total of three times, as Granny states that these things can happen if one of them is black! I googled the question and found no proof of this. As they decide to turn the lights off, so in the cover of darkness, Jezebel may not notice or care she’s just given birth to a black baby. Perhaps I’m looking too much into this, but I’m getting a bit of a racist vibe from this.

Granny tells Jeremiah that it’s in the Lords’ hands if the baby survives, first of all religion is never normally discussed in Disney films, but no it’s not. But then again I salute the actress playing Granny for doing what she can with the material, but as I was watching this I just had her being the type of person to let someone die over taking them to the hospital.

So, Granny wants to place everything in God’s hands, but Jerimiah is having none of that and takes the baby into the house, cleans it off and proceeds to feed it. Even though Granny isn’t exactly impressed by this, you can tell she really doesn’t have it in her heart to say no, which is more the actress shining though then the character as she tells him, he can stay for one night before it goes back to where it belongs…to the mother who rejected him, yeah good luck with that one. However, Granny doesn’t want an animal in the house, because she doesn’t want an animal that cannot earn its keep, and she’s not that fond of black wool. Because black sheep are different from white sheep and will get underfoot and destroy everything. Swap, the word sheep with human and you have a problem. But Granny gives Jeremiah a bottle, and then calls the animal “Wicked”, and I cannot figure this woman out.

Jeremiah decides that if he is going to keep Danny, then he has to turn Danny into a champion, well just because. As we get out first animated segment, “It’s Whatcha Do with Whatcha Got” complete with animated Danny. The song also contains several biblical references, which is sort of nice to see.

In the real world, Danny is a little untamed shit, and Jeremiah is neglecting his chores, which isn’t that cool when he decides to build a pen for Danny and then decides to take said ram into town, where he proceeds to trash a shop. Bad raising a sheep Jeremiah, as he goes to his uncle Hiram for comfort and advice about how to turn Danny into a champion, instead of rising to be productive and good.

Later on Granny even tells Hiram that she doesn’t want to get rid of Danny after the ram is spooked and trashed the house, she’s just fed up of that simple fact that she has to do everything and she has to pick up after all the damage the sheep is doing. And this occurs after the house which also has little Tildy, in the scene and ok whose child is she? She’s not Hiram’s and she mentions her mother making her a new dress, and later on mentions her father. Is she a cousin or something? A throwaway line should have been inserted somewhere.

That night Granny’s attempt to sell the ram are dashed even after she assures Jeremiah that Danny will go to a good home and not wind up on Sunday’s plate complete with mint sauce, she changes her mind after seeing Jeremiah curled up in Danny’s pen…well that was rectified quickly wasn’t it?

Hiram gets the bright idea to get Danny to the fair, since if he’s a Champion no one can ever tell him off again, and that night as Hiram entertains Granny by singing “Lavender Blue,” which was nominated for an Academy Award. Thankfully “Baby its cold outside” from, Neptune’s Daughter won that year, as Lavender Blue is pleasant…but boring. As she joins Hiram in a rendition of “Billy Boy” and it’s worth mentioning that Beulah Bondi had a lovely voice.

As Hiram tries to bring up the Fair question, Granny proves that she had them all sussed in seconds, and calls them out on it as she thinks that is all “Tomfool notions” and dismisses their suggestions and Tildy’s pleas because her mother is making her a new dress for it (ok how is this girl connected to these people?) telling the young girl of having “dreams of the menfolk.” So apparently woman shouldn’t have dreams or ambitions, this film is set in 1903 after all?

Hiram decides to adopt some reverse psychology, by telling Granny she is too old to enjoy such things as Fairs, something that leads to a dance around the room, and perhaps the release of endorphins change Granny’s mind as she tells Jeremiah that he can go, as long as he earns the money to pay for it himself, and not to pray for it because praying for material possessions is bad, but praying for the soul is good. Something I agree with, and it’s a good moral.

That night, the cartoon Great Owl and of course the animated Danny appear to Jeremiah and we get another song, as we compare the dreams of Jeremiah to Robert the Bruce…well ok then,

Jeremiah true to his word sets about getting the money collecting Sassafras and if anyone is wondering what they are, wiki has a page about them http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sassafras

He also earns some money from getting honey from a wild bee hive, which he finds by venturing into a swamp, trashing both his and Tildy’s clothes in the process, and missing getting stuck in a bog (of eternal stench I hope!), but after he collects all the honey, claims 22 dollars, he gets home to find that Danny has bolted, so takes after him and in true fashion even with the clear sky that could only be found on a soundstage, a storm is brewing.

With the rains lashing down, Granny sets off and is able to find her rain drenched grandson, and tells him that it’s for the Lord to decide what to take away in our lives, something that Jerimiah disagrees with and says so. A notion that Granny calls him out on, as she correctly points out that he cares more about Danny winning a ribbon then taking care of him properly, and blames everyone, but himself when Danny screws up,  and she is exactly right.

The next morning Danny is found, but to Tildy’s devastation Jeremiah has changed his mind about going, because he promised God that if he found Danny, then he wouldn’t go. But Granny won over by this, lies her ass off and tells Jeremiah that since she knows god better than him, she prayed for God to do the opposite.

We get the next and final animated sequence “County Fair,” as we finally get to the competition, and everyone is happy with even Granny getting into the swing of the festivities as Danny enters and it is worth mentioning that he is the youngest contestant and Danny the only black sheep, but since Danny is of a poor perigee and Jeremiah doesn’t even know what the sire of Jezebel is; also Danny decides to head-butt the Judge in the arse. This is a Disney film, so of course Jerimiah and Danny have to win…only that they don’t, seriously they don’t win in a Disney film. What could have been a fantastic lesson in the spirit of competition and being yourself is dashed however as one of the Judges takes him aside and tells him (and the audience) that even though Danny has no breeding, the fact that he is well cared for, well-loved and has lovely black wool. He is given an “Order of Merit.”

So he is a Champion after all, of course, it’s a Disney film! As they return home, and are hailed as heroes, and everyone parties into the night, Danny included as the film ends.

Final Thought: This was never meant to have animated segments, but since this was at a time when Disney was trying to find itself and establish itself as a Global Brand, audience naturally began to equate Disney with animation, and the animated segments themselves aren’t bad, or distracting. I also give Disney its dues for trying something different, especially in a time when the Company was walking on a knife edge and one bad film could destroy the company. Even though the story is weak, it’s still a pleasant story and all the actors are doing well with what they have. So, it’s pleasant, not fantastic…but pleasant. The only issue I have is the character of Jeremiah, since it’s never established who his parents are or what happened to them. A few missing words, yet provided so much inconstancy.