When listing Walt Disney's first 6 feature films in order, the list goes: Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, Bambi, and finally- the focus of this review: Victory Through Air Power. It's not really that surprising if you are not that familiar with this feature.
For one thing, it was never designed for wide release, it's simply a war propaganda film for American soldiers, giving strategies to defeat the enemy in WWII, along with historical context of the war. Most of the proposed idea involves defeating the enemy with new airplanes that drop bombs, hence the title "Victory Through Air Power."
On top of this, the film is rarely ever talked about, and it never received a VHS release. In fact, the only way you can physically own it is in an expensive DVD set called Walt Disney Treasures: On The Front Lines, which also has other WWII themed cartoons, including De Fuehrer's Face, where Donald Duck has a dream where he is a Nazi.
Anyways, back to VTAP: You can view it for free on YouTube, but I am very lucky to have found the DVD at a used DVD store. I traded a bunch of DVDs to own it, and I am very happy that I did.
I've pretty much given the synopsis already, so let me move past that and review the film as a whole. As for the entertainment value, I was actually pretty invested in the information provided, but I must confess that I was a little tired as I watched it and my attention wavered a little. A little rewinding and re-watching solved that very minor issue.
That said, let me make it clear that although this is a Disney cartoon, it is actually NOT for little kids. Don't show your 4-year-old child Frozen for the 100th time and follow it up with Victory Through Air Power. It's not inappropriate or anything like that (unless multiple bombings are considered inappropriate), but the youngest of kids would be bored by the movie, and they wouldn't even understand it in the first place. It'd be a nap time inducer for them, not entertainment.
On the other hand, I highly suggest this to middle schoolers and high schoolers- think around 7th grade and up. In fact, to any history teacher reading this that teaches World War II to this age group, I highly, HIGHLY recommend playing this circa your lesson about the attack on Pearl Harbor. History, film, and animation buffs should seek this out as well.
The animation is very well done, and quite an effort. I can't imagine how tough it most likely was for the animators to recreate airplane bombings, among some of the exquisite details, such as (but certainly not limited to) geographically accurate maps and newspapers with actual words written in. I also loved how it looked more like one of Disney's shorts than his films. For example, it's style mirrors more like Mickey And The Seal rather than Snow White or Cinderella.
The fact that this film is even animated is worthy of praise, as very few documentaries are animated in the first place- only Waltz With Balshir comes to mind, and I haven't even seen that. That alone makes Victory Through Air Power very special.
As was common for some Disney movies at the time, the movie itself has some live action. Most of it comes from Alexander de Seversky, who wrote the book on which the documentary is based upon. His segments explain the animated segments in wider detail, making it easier to comprehend. The animated segments are cooler, but the live action parts were a good touch as well.
Some may find it a bit repetitive and even a bit dry, as he just walks around a room and reviews the previous animated bit, but this was helpful to me to comprehend the film more and it's good for review either way.
The film is also very patriotic. The movie has a very pro-America message, and the movie closes out with the music to America The Beautiful. This makes me surprised that channels like TCM or History Channel don't air this on dates like July 4th or Memorial Day.
The DVD version also opens with a 4.5-minute introduction from film critic Leonard Maltin, who gives historical background on WWII and why Walt Disney made the documentary. Please don't skip over that, it's very impressive and filled with many fun facts.
No matter if you are watching Victory Through Air Power as a Disney film or a historical one, I highly recommend it to those who can enjoy and appreciate it. Again, the youngest would most likely be 7th graders. Just remember to watch it for educational value more than entertainment value, I can't stress that part enough.
As an educational film, a patriotic one, and perhaps the most underrated work of Walt Disney, this documentary is a victory through FILM power.
Note: The movie actually turns 80 years old next year. If the Disney Company is reading this, please consider releasing an 80th anniversary DVD and Blu-ray of this so it can be seen by more people. Victory Through Air Power earns it.
For one thing, it was never designed for wide release, it's simply a war propaganda film for American soldiers, giving strategies to defeat the enemy in WWII, along with historical context of the war. Most of the proposed idea involves defeating the enemy with new airplanes that drop bombs, hence the title "Victory Through Air Power."
On top of this, the film is rarely ever talked about, and it never received a VHS release. In fact, the only way you can physically own it is in an expensive DVD set called Walt Disney Treasures: On The Front Lines, which also has other WWII themed cartoons, including De Fuehrer's Face, where Donald Duck has a dream where he is a Nazi.
Anyways, back to VTAP: You can view it for free on YouTube, but I am very lucky to have found the DVD at a used DVD store. I traded a bunch of DVDs to own it, and I am very happy that I did.
I've pretty much given the synopsis already, so let me move past that and review the film as a whole. As for the entertainment value, I was actually pretty invested in the information provided, but I must confess that I was a little tired as I watched it and my attention wavered a little. A little rewinding and re-watching solved that very minor issue.
That said, let me make it clear that although this is a Disney cartoon, it is actually NOT for little kids. Don't show your 4-year-old child Frozen for the 100th time and follow it up with Victory Through Air Power. It's not inappropriate or anything like that (unless multiple bombings are considered inappropriate), but the youngest of kids would be bored by the movie, and they wouldn't even understand it in the first place. It'd be a nap time inducer for them, not entertainment.
On the other hand, I highly suggest this to middle schoolers and high schoolers- think around 7th grade and up. In fact, to any history teacher reading this that teaches World War II to this age group, I highly, HIGHLY recommend playing this circa your lesson about the attack on Pearl Harbor. History, film, and animation buffs should seek this out as well.
The animation is very well done, and quite an effort. I can't imagine how tough it most likely was for the animators to recreate airplane bombings, among some of the exquisite details, such as (but certainly not limited to) geographically accurate maps and newspapers with actual words written in. I also loved how it looked more like one of Disney's shorts than his films. For example, it's style mirrors more like Mickey And The Seal rather than Snow White or Cinderella.
The fact that this film is even animated is worthy of praise, as very few documentaries are animated in the first place- only Waltz With Balshir comes to mind, and I haven't even seen that. That alone makes Victory Through Air Power very special.
As was common for some Disney movies at the time, the movie itself has some live action. Most of it comes from Alexander de Seversky, who wrote the book on which the documentary is based upon. His segments explain the animated segments in wider detail, making it easier to comprehend. The animated segments are cooler, but the live action parts were a good touch as well.
Some may find it a bit repetitive and even a bit dry, as he just walks around a room and reviews the previous animated bit, but this was helpful to me to comprehend the film more and it's good for review either way.
The film is also very patriotic. The movie has a very pro-America message, and the movie closes out with the music to America The Beautiful. This makes me surprised that channels like TCM or History Channel don't air this on dates like July 4th or Memorial Day.
The DVD version also opens with a 4.5-minute introduction from film critic Leonard Maltin, who gives historical background on WWII and why Walt Disney made the documentary. Please don't skip over that, it's very impressive and filled with many fun facts.
No matter if you are watching Victory Through Air Power as a Disney film or a historical one, I highly recommend it to those who can enjoy and appreciate it. Again, the youngest would most likely be 7th graders. Just remember to watch it for educational value more than entertainment value, I can't stress that part enough.
As an educational film, a patriotic one, and perhaps the most underrated work of Walt Disney, this documentary is a victory through FILM power.
Note: The movie actually turns 80 years old next year. If the Disney Company is reading this, please consider releasing an 80th anniversary DVD and Blu-ray of this so it can be seen by more people. Victory Through Air Power earns it.