"Always follow your heart."
Hello everyone!
Honestly, I'm convinced half the reason why Disney keeps making live action versions of their animated material is because they can't come up with anything new or exciting.
The nineties were the way to go for animation, if you ask me (not counting the OGs that started while Walt Disney was actually alive and thriving, at that).
So tonight we go with another fairy tale retelling, though this one I think has a lot in common with Pinocchio if you think about it, which I'll be doing towards the end of the review, as it struck me while I was watching the cartoon.
First, however, we kinda have to actually figure out what the cartoon is all about, am I right?
So get the popcorn ready, get your Kleenex for the feels, and double check there aren't any moles running around without a care in the world.
Thumbelina's up next.
Thumbelina is originally a fairy tale penned by Hans Christian Andersen, but was masterfully captured by 20th Century Fox into a cartoon which brought the tale to life to so many more youngsters.
It starts in Paris, with a swallow named Jacquimo, who loves great romances. And the greatest of all, he says, is also impossibly small - the story of Thumbelina.
Thumbelina's mother was a good woman who yearned for a child, but couldn't have one, so she visited a good witch who gave her a seed to plant. So she did, and when the flower bloomed, it opened to reveal Thumbelina asleep inside.
Mad props to the mom though, by the way, because she has a fully working farm and no other person around to help maintain it, which is HARD WORK.
But anyway, every night, the mother reads Thumbelina a story, and Thumbelina wants to hear about little people, like her, because she's convinced she's the only one in the world. Her mother shows her pictures of fairies, and what do you know, the fairies are out and about just then, transitioning the world into autumn and colouring the leaves golden.
Also, the king and queen have a rebellions son, Cornelius, who zips around on his bumblebee, which is the fairy equivalent of a motorbike.
It's in that fashion he stumbles across Thumbelina, and the two - like any great romance does - fall madly in love with each other by the end of the one duet they share. Cornelius promises to be back next morning to take her to his parents, but unfortunately for him fate has other plans.
See, during their song, they inadvertently landed near a barge of a family of toads - singers from Spain - and the eldest son immediately wants Thumbelina for himself. So his mother goes and snatches her right out of the house, telling her she'll now be travelling with them, singing with her beautiful voice - and oh yes, she'll marry the toad.
Left behind on a lily pad things look grim until Jacquimo pops up, singing to himself, and frees Thumbelina (well alright, he frees the leaf, which then almost goes over a waterfall, but the combined efforts of ladybugs and fish prevent that). He tells her to follow her heart, since she doesn't need a map, and he'll go find the Vale of the Fairies to bring Cornelius to her.
Cornelius, meanwhile, has already found out someone took Thumbelina and hurries to find her, begging his parents to hold back the winter frosts for as long as they can (which isn't long, barely a day, because ... my guy, one week wouldn't have hurt anyone any, kingy).
Thumbelina is actually not too far from her house as she's making her way back, but she runs into a beetle because - well, that's how the movie goes. And the beetle decides she's gorgeous and she'll sing in his lounge called the Beetle Ballroom (I wish I were joking). Now as before with Mama Toad, Thumbelina is momentarily dazzled by the idea of being famous and someone everybody loves, so she doesn't try to escape at all.
Of course then her costume (of a bug) falls off during performance, and all the beetles are like EW SHE UGLEH, SHE DOESN'T EVEN HAVE WINGS! And the original beetle kidnapper yeets her because ... well, he's got no morals, that's why.
Heartbroken, this is again when Jacquimo finds her and tells her Cornelius is the only one whose opinion matters, and she needs to keep going home. He continues his search, until a thorn in his wing prevents him from searching further, and also the winter frosts set in - along with snow.
Yeah the seasons here apparently run like those in Sims 4 where it's two days and BOOM! New season!
Thumbelina is cold and wet when she takes refuge in an old shoe - though she's still better off than Cornelius, who managed to fall into a pond and freeze when the frost settled in. And oh also, he's been found by the Beetle and the Toad, who're working together since Toad really, REALLY wants Thumbelina (he even takes the Beetle's wings to make him obey). Thankfully and luckily, however, the two idiots wander off so the lady bugs can try and defrost the prince.
Why did the morons wander off?
Well, Thumbelina got rescued by Mrs. Mouse (sadly, not the Mickey version), who takes her to Mr. Mole and has her sing. Naturally, this immediately means the Mole has to marry her, because he's a weirdo who collects shinies, and also Thumbelina's fate is kind of dashed when she's told Cornelius froze to death, and they find Jacquimo in the Mole's tunnel, apparently dead.
Turns out, not so dead, and he goes off to continue his hunt after Thumbelina gets rid of the pesky thorn in his wing - this also gives the girl the kick she needs to tell everyone A HELL NO and run off, back into the open, where winter is apparently already thawing (told you, Sims style).
Jacquimo takes her to what is supposedly the Vale of the Fairies, though Thumbelina doesn't believe him, but he convinces her to sing - and Cornelius joins in at the end, very much alive and finally, FINALLY reunited with her.
He asks her to marry him and she happily agrees, which leads to a kiss, which THEN leads to her suddenly sprouting wings - and tells you ALL THE DUDE NEEDED WAS TO BE A LITTLE MORE REBELLIOUS AT THE BEGINNING AND EVERYTHING WOULD HAVE BEEN FINE!
Ahem. Anyway, they marry in a beautiful ceremony with both families in attendance, and buzz off on his bumblebee, happy as can be.
And Jacquimo tells us that, hey, things DO work out, if you follow your heart - because your heart is the best guiding light you have.
I got teary-eyed just typing that LOL. But I do love Thumbelina, and you can easily see the parallels with Pinocchio: because neither one of them is technically born the way children are born, they don't get the time to develop and learn, but are very childlike and naive throughout, meaning they're easily swayed by big words and bigger personalities.
Of course, my sister had the comment of 'Yo, Cornelius is literally ripped, why would Thumbelina EVER want to marry someone like the Mole?!?" so I mean ...
Heartwarming, with beautiful music overseen by Barry Manilow at the time, Thumbelina is another one of those classics to add to the collection. Good news is it's available on Disney+ because of their deal with Fox - so go on and check it out.
Because 10/10 recommend.
And no, I still don't know why the seasons are so ridiculously short, except that it serves the plot!
xx
*images and video not mine
Quest for Camelot - The Swan Princess
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