the audience applauded

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Mickey once again sells his best intentions to get a date with the fickle Minnie. He has a rival in Pete and Minnie doesn't seem to have any hesitation spending time with him. There are some funny dance things, especially when Mickey puts a balloon in his pants after stepping all over Minnie's feet. This is a pretty minor offering with little new produced.

The Barn Dance (1929) *** (out of 4) Nice Disney short has Mickey Mouse showing up Minnie's house to pick her up but competition is there for her as well. Mickey and Minnie end up at the dance but of course the third wheel shows up to try and take her. THE BARN DANCE isn't a classic film and it's certainly far from being as great as STEAMBOAT WILLIE but fans of the characters will still want to check it out. What's really so great about these early Mickey shorts is the animation, which was really taking on a life of its own. Even though this was just the fourth Mickey short, there's no doubt that you already came to love the little guy. His drawing is much better here and there's no question that the charm was at a high level even if he does do some naughty things here.

This is an early Disney short featuring Mickey Mouse. There will be spoilers ahead:The dynamic in this one reminded me of the Popeye, Olive Oyl, Bluto dynamic from the early Popeye Flieschers, where Olive was just as likely to pick Bluto as she was Popeye. Minnie is rather fickle in this one, often for tolerably obvious reasons. Mickey openly displays jealousy and it colors his behavior.The visual gags are quite good here and Mickey's personality is quite different from the one he's best known for to most people. He's a self-absorbed and inattentive clod at points here and it's hardly surprising that he loses out to Pete (who's no prize himself here, but better behaved than Mickey for a change).Pete has his own moments of crude and obnoxious behavior, but they aren't as obvious and pronounced as Mickey's. Minnie, for her part, isn't above petty choices, as she first chooses Pete because he has a car versus Mickey's horse-drawn cart, only to abandon Pete rather rudely when his car falls apart. Not exactly an example of charm and consideration herself in that regard. Mickey winds up on the short end of the stick here.This short is available on the Mickey Mouse In Black and White, Volume 2 Disney Treasures DVD release and is well worth tracking down. Recommended.

This is a very early Mickey Mouse cartoon. The version I saw was not the original form, as it had been colorized (not bad looking--most black and white films colorize well).This film features Mickey and Pete (who is a cat in the earlier Mickey Mouse cartoons). The film consists of Mickey stealing Minnie away from Pete as well as Mickey's behavior at the barn dance. Surprisingly, although Mickey is the star, he's rather mean to Pete and Pete is amazingly civil. Pete is not the cranky guy he was in STEAMBOAT WILLIE and you kind of feel sorry for this big guy, as Mickey is pretty nasty to him--unlike the beloved Mickey we know today. Plus, in a scene that would not please PETA, Mickey is also a bit mean to his horse. Oh, well--it's an early Mickey cartoon and they hadn't yet hit their lovable stride.Overall, typical animation and quality for an early short, though the story lacks the charm of most of the films in the series.