Very disappointing...

Highly Overrated But Still Good

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

This to me is by far the most visually powerful and thrilling Silly Symphony of them all. Despite there being no words it speaks louder than most other entries in the series. The music is so wonderfully subtle. It's there, but unlike many of the others it's by no means the only thing that this short is about. You don't such hear the themes as feel them. I love all the various and endlessly rich details there are to take in, particularly of the mill itself. It was as if the place had a life of its own like the various creatures to which it gave shelter to. You can spot something new on every viewing. The striking sense of building momentum and force during the big storm sequence is nothing short of incredible. The orchestration of the wind, rain and lightning is awe-inspiring. The award was very well-deserved. It's a stunning example of what human hands and minds can create. I for one appreciate how the happy ending has something of a dark overtone to it. This is very probably just me, but even though the danger may be over this time, that windmill is afterwards noticeably precarious. If ever such a storm were to occur once again... You know, The Simpsons, of all things, made an affectionate little homage to this in an episode titled: "Bart has Two Mommies." Something I also found very welcome indeed was how the animals really did look like the real thing, unlike the singing and dancing sparkly-eyed animal-like sprites you usually get - not that there's anything wrong with that, but it was just a very nice change! The only bit I didn't enjoy as much was that of the little froggy chorus. I love frogs, but it was a little too whimsical compared to the rest. I love the humorous antics of the grouchy camera-shy owl. He's very similar to an owl seen during the "Little April Showers" scene in Bambi, and the Archimedes character from Sword in the Stone. Definitely one of the most striking and memorable sights is the blue momma bird who so bravely shields her eggs in what would be a futile effort had she not luckily happened to choose just the right crevice in which to nest. It's funny, even though you know she's safe and isn't gonna get smushed, I still feel a little shock of peril each time the wheel comes around! It really is like a glimpse into a little hidden world of nature. A world I imagine, still thoroughly unseen and unknown to the general public at the time. If some choose to view this as symbolising survival of world war or whatever, that's fine, but to me it just plain represents the way that life is fragile, but can with a little luck weather any storm and carry on even as things fall apart. Nice full-circle like effect, with the serenity of the opening and closing scenes. The ever-changing fortunes of nature, and of life... True quality in every sense of the word. Thank you.

The Disney cartoon "The Old Mill" depicts a bunch of animals living in an abandoned windmill...and then a violent thunderstorm blows on in. As always, you're helpless against nature.I've never been a fan of Disney, but I liked the depiction of the thunderstorm. This Silly Symphony starts out like any other Disney cartoon: nauseatingly cute with everything drawn to look as realistic as possible...until the elements take over. Sixty-eight years later, Hurricane Katrina showed everyone just how violent the weather can get. But anyway, this cartoon is OK.In conclusion, the answer really is blowin' in the wind.

I can't praise this beautiful masterpiece of a cartoon enough. The animation is absolutely stunning, and the storm effects were excellent, certainly give Snow White and Fantasia a run for their money. I didn't find the Old Mill dull in any way, it was beautiful and just perfect. Another special mention has to go to the music, its lyricality somehow reminded me of the countryside on a beautiful summer's day, and the animals the swallows especially were a delight. They never spoke, but were beautifully incorporated into the story, and there was a lot of genuine fright when the storm started. Who wouldn't be frightened, it was a truly wonderful moment. Overall, just beautiful, I can't find another word to describe how good it really was. I will admit I forgot I was watching a eight minute or so cartoon, and insisted I was watching a work of art. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Walt Disney's series of "Silly Symphonies," which ran between 1929 and 1939, was originally envisioned as a testing-ground for many of the elaborate animation techniques that would eventually be utilised so effectively in the studio's feature-length films. The cartoons, running less than ten minutes, began as brief vignettes of dancing animals and plants (and even human skeletons) set to classical music, such as 'The Skeleton Dance (1929)' and 'Flowers and Trees (1932),' but eventually expanded towards adapting classic fairy-tales, as seen in 'Three Little Pigs (1933)' and both versions of 'The Ugly Duckling (1931 and 1939).' Thus, throughout the ten years that Silly Symphonies were produced, the emphasis was always on visual innovation, and dialogue was always kept to a minimum. Wilfred Jackson's 'The Old Mill (1937)' is perhaps Disney's all-time greatest achievement, and certainly my favourite to date, and was originally conceived for artists to experiment with the animation of animals, rain, wind, lightning, ripples, splashes and reflection, and was the debut of Disney's revolutionary multiplane camera.Interestingly, that 'The Old Mill' was essentially a trial-run for 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)' probably contributed to its greatness. Unburdened by any notion of a solid narrative, the film allows the viewer to simply sit back and lose themselves in the atmosphere of the nature scene. The loose plot concerns the wildlife inhabitants of an old mill situated in an isolated swamp, and whose quiet night is suddenly violently interrupted by a terrifying and immensely-powerful storm that threatens to tear their home apart. The cartoon's attention-to-detail is simply staggering, every character lovingly drawn, their every movement and gesture almost poetic in its execution. Disney's radical and expensive multiplane camera, used here for the first time, allowed the artists to communicate animated depth like never before, and the richness of their creation feels so genuine that you could almost step into the cartoon and explore for yourself. The storm effects had come a very long way from those seen in 'Springtime (1929),' and the lightning streaks across the sky with frightening authenticity.Though Yuriy Norshteyn's 'Tale of Tales (1979)' holds the official title as my favourite work of animation, Jackson's 'The Old Mill' certainly comes a close second. The meticulousness of the animation work is such that I can almost feel the wind and rain beating across my face, and the miniature dramas of the rainstorm – the bird protecting its eggs from the spoke of the wheel, the owl shielding itself from the elements, the mill pitching over in the gale – always keep me gripping my seat in anticipation. The choice of music, too, plays a pivotal role in developing the required atmosphere. The musical tone early in the film is lighthearted and bouncy, with the chorus of croaking frogs forming a melody that sounds a bit like "The Sorceror's Apprentice." I'm unsure of the piece that plays during the storm's onset, but it is wonderful, bringing a frighteningly ethereal tone that suggests something epic and supernatural about this force of nature. A "silly" Symphony this is not; 'The Old Mill' remains one of the most majestic and heartwarming cartoons ever made.