An American Tail (1986)

7/10

Warm family cartoon is definitely a winner

Laitue_Gonflable1 November 2003

I was introduced to An American Tail after perpetually reading the 'book' of the second film, Feivel Goes West. I can't say which one I enjoyed more although at the time, I think I was seven, but this one I understood a lot better.

The sweet-hearted tale of a family of Russian mouse emigrants who travel to America, the 'land of opportunity' but on their way lose their son, really manages to perk up your day. It has all the classic elements of a family flick: great characters, wonderful score and songs, and of course a happy ending (You can't say you didn't expect that).

In some ways it's meant to be almost a satire, a parallel story of many Russian immigrant families who flee to America from the Cossacks: there is actually a scene in the beginning involving the ransacking of a Russian village by Cossacks, aided of course, as most history books conveniently omit, by their vicious slavering cats who destroy the mouse population. This satire is slightly lost once they reach America, but the simple plot of the mouse boy trying to find his family again works very well. It's quite frustrating at times as we see how close they all come to running into each other; a split second here and a well-timed door slamming there, and it could have been all over in thirty minutes of screen time. But where would be the movie in that?

Lastly, the voice cast does a great job. While I personally think the sequel had a better cast, An American Tail boasts some fine names as well - Dom DeLuise and Nehemiah Persoff who also did the sequel, Christopher Plummer, and Madeline Kahn all combine for a great effect. It's not necessary to see this to also see the sequel but it definitely deserves to be watched. Touching, light-hearted and with one of the most beautiful theme songs you will ever hear, it's a winner. ***1/2 / *****

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8/10

Fievel the Turntablism Progenetor.

bradleyadita5 August 2004

Warning: Spoilers

**SPOILERS**

I saw AAT when i was young and recently watched it again. It was a favorite then and I still got a kick out of it and will probably watch it again. The animation and backgrounds work quite well, dim grimy dull, which make the few moments when things shine (the fireworks, the bottle floating, the waterfall and lighting when Fievel and the family are reunited) all the more powerful, overall the color is great.

Its good to see that IMDb is truly an International Database, and i love that i can read reviews by people who've identified that they are from such places as Pakistan, Jamaica, Argentina, and beyond. As an American Jew myself, the connections to this film are quite obvious and my more recent viewing really gave me a sense of the contribution Steven Spielberg has made in my life, and many other lives about Jews / Americans. I enjoy the opportunity to view other's readings of the film, to see how the messages in the film are viewed by people outside America.

The film has some obvious political undertones that a child will not necessarily pick up. This is a pretty cool thing / kinda sesame street like / a subtle education. While Fievel's family is Jewish, not all the mice in the film are, as we meet other immigrant mice who are carrying crosses, etc. What the mice have in common is immigrant status as well as being under the oppression of "the Cats" (don't say it too loud).

Who are the cats? Are the cats just the bullies in any given situation? While the Russian cats that drove Fievel's family from their home in Russia mirrored the Pogroms / Nazis / Jewish oppressors, Who were the oppressors on the American soil? (is it a direct reflection to a group of oppressors in American in the late 19th century?)

In light of current political situations this movie could have many implications / readings. Does America still seem to have that silver lining? Are people round the world still singing their own equivalents to "The Are No Cats In America?"

Contrast Fievel with Mickey "Mouse" himself, a wonderful comparison. Fievel is almost a real person whereas Mickey is more cartoony. Fievel is a child mouse. As children ourselves we can put ourselves in his shoes more easily, (which is why this is a children's movie) his fascination with "the fish," and always asking questions, his curiosity, which gets him in trouble, and his ability to dream and somehow stumble through it all still surviving (if not drunk and woosie, green-ish) from it all. (a little detail i enjoy is how, invariably he always winds up in some sort of "bubble" (the soap bubble, the bottle, the bed in watertower, etc.. where ever he goes he is protected in a bubble home, he is magically kept in this safety bubble, the bubble of being the main character in a major motion picture, of being the focus for millions of children.) ... another trait of Fievel's is his amazing ability to run up a stream of falling debris to which he uses quite often to escape sticky situations.

The collective effort of the mice to build the Mouse of Minsk is wonderful and the final product is huge and beautifully grotesque and awesome. I love how it rolls out, bursting through the door of the boarded up "museum of the weird." There is something in this, how the solution to the cat problem lies in the pieces of this abandoned museum. How all sorts of knicknacks, falderall, and whatnotknots could be gumbo-ed together to create this Mouse of Minsk monster (an analogy / metaphor to the very real-life America itself.)

There are also some extremely funny moments in this film, like when Tony Toponi, (Fievels friend and escapee from the sewing sweatshop) first sees and falls head over heels in love with Bridget (our Irish rabble rouser). She is all soapbox-ish and politics and talking about getting rid of the cats, and Tony freezes stiff and falls off the roof... (this falling off the roof i have watched, re-wound and watch again about 10,000 times) i don't know why but it just cracks me up the way his body remains stiff and sort of just slides / pops off the roof, and then how he is trying to repeat "cats" when Bridget sees him and he is the only mouse who has not yet run away, she is happy that they at least have each other, and then these hippy flowers come out of nowhere and it's like a sixties love-in all of a sudden.

Also the underground imagery in the sewer is quite accurate and really beautiful. (accurate in the sense of feeling one gets when crawling through a storm drain, which is the equivalent to the film, since it was managing water) (A sewer manages human waste and waste water, while the storm drain system manages excess Weather water...).... just beautiful (yeah in that grimy sooty way)

Another fun moment is when Fievel thinks he hears his father playing his violin, but it is only a gramophone, in which he climbs into, and then when looking into the void gets sad again because he doesn't see his father, then the lady changes the recording which is now this SUDDEN LOUD American boisterous BIG BAND song POMPING great American pride which causes Fievel to fall down into the void of the Phonography and is spat out onto the music which speeds up and slows down (which is of course how Hip-Hop (turntablism) was invented)-(which is also a metaphor for the very real America, the "melting pot" or rather the mixing, scratching, rapping pot.) ... a great little scene, which exemplifies how the mice have to deal with the human environment as well. The mice are real to the humans in the movie, (they see them as real live mice, something to throw a shoe at) somehow us in the audience are different, we are able to see the world at their level, to be able to hear their story.

Overall a fun classic movie which has some important messages about collective power, what freedom is and means from an American perspective. An Adventuresome "musical" with wonderful songs (and sad songs.) A little piece of my childhood as a young American... "America, what a place!" 8/10

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7/10

"In America, there are no cats."

utgard1426 January 2016

One of the better animated films to come out in the 1980s. Directed by Don Bluth and produced by Steven Spielberg, it's the story of a young mouse named Fievel who is separated from his family during their voyage from Russia to America, and his quest to be reunited with them. It's a nice movie, a little familiar in places, that uses animals to tell a very human story against the backdrop of late 19th century New York. The animation is excellent, rich in detail with some well-done action sequences. The voice work is top notch and the music is enjoyable, particularly the touching song "Somewhere Out There," which became a big hit at the time. The movie's only real flaws are its predictability and a dark palette that can leave you with a gloomy feeling while watching. I was a kid when it was first released and I remember leaving the theater underwhelmed. It plays much better to an older audience, I think.

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This film is an animation classic

Rodimus-217 August 1998

Not only is An American Tail easily one of the best animated features ever made, but it proves to be leaps beyond the efforts of recent Disney movies by refusing to be constricted to an all-too-familiar formula. This movie does not stay within the cozy, comfortable guidelines that Disney adheres to in order to make money. Instead, it tells a truly unique tale, one not borrowed from any other source, and one overflowing with artistic wonder and originality.

The characters you will see here are not stock, not pulled from the typical Disney hat. The story is not a chuckle-a-minute, lowbrow attempt to take the easy way out in pandering to children. The main character, Fievel, suffers real hardships and tragedy, and stares into the despair of his own soul before the movie is finished. This, of course, makes the ending that much more satisfying, an infinitely more significant and authentic moment than any cardboard cut-out Disney plot.

If you want to see what animation was meant to be as an art form, if you want to feel the power and emotion that can truly be reaped from this under-appreciated and over-commercialized medium, look no further than An American Tail.

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6/10

Bluth's Big chance

JoeytheBrit12 April 2010

The Mousekewitzes, a family of Russian mice (whose junior members' broad American accents curiously bear no resemblance to their parent's guttural Russian tones) are forced to flee their homeland after being torched from their modest home by marauding felines. Having already sung the praises of America ("there are no cats in America"), it is only natural that Papa Mousekewitz leads his clan to the land of the free, and it is not long before they are ensconced in the hold of an ocean liner. During a storm, Fievel, the youngest of the children, is washed overboard and is believed to have perished by his parents, although sister Tanya never gives up hope of finding him alive. Of course, Fievel survives against the odds and, with the help of an assortment of creatures, embarks on a voyage to relocate his family.

Back in '86, when the now rejuvenated Disney corporation was languishing in the doldrums and churning out sub-standard fare like The Great Mouse Detective, Don Bluth briefly looked as if he might be the man to speed off with the baton the Mouse Factory had so badly fumbled. Sadly for him, it wasn't to be, and on the evidence of this movie it isn't hard to see why. While An American Tail is acceptable enough entertainment for children, and is superior to Disney's output of the time, it still falls short of the standards to which Disney had – and occasionally still do – reach. Fievel is an adorable enough little character, and his predicament leaves you little choice but to root for him, but at the end of the day, he's just another cute cartoon mouse with little to distinguish him from all the other cartoon mice.

The film's storyline is simple enough, and the historical perspective of the emigrant rush to the States in the 1880s is a unique and interesting one in which to place it. Bluth's writers attach symbolic significance to many aspects of the story – particularly the role of the cats – which will fly right over the top of the kid's heads but which should be easy enough for most adults to pick up on. And while this subtext is welcome in what is overtly a sentimental kiddie flick, it is still a poor substitute for the knowing adult jokes we have come to enjoy (and expect) from cartoon films today. The fact is, there isn't much of a storyline here, even for a film with a kiddie-friendly running time of 80 minutes, especially as Bluth shoves in a half-dozen or so tunes that are as out of place as they are unmemorable. Only 'Somewhere Out There' stands out, but that's too slushy for most adults.

While the animation is, again, of a commensurate standard to Disney's at the time, it looks a little 80s-dated today: too recent to hark back to the Disney glory days, yet too old for the major animators standards of today. While the grimy background is in keeping with the period in which the movie is set, its subdued tones means it fails to catch the eye. So we focus more on the characters, and realise we're watching Disney clones – which might have been considered unavoidable to a degree back in the eighties, but doesn't really stand up today.

An American Tail.is a respectable, workmanlike effort that won't leave anyone angry at having invested eighty minutes of their time in it. But it lacks the vibrancy and texture required to capture both the audience's attention and imagination. Youngsters will be uncomplaining, but few over seven will commandeer the DVD player to watch it over and over again – which, after all, is the only true benchmark of a cartoon's worth..

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7/10

It's so lovely to see a family together...

Sylviastel20 January 2020

The film is probably best known for the duet between Aaron Neville and Linda Rondstadt which isn't even in the film. The ninety animated feature isn't as fun as other animated features. The animated tale is about a family of mice leaving Russia for America with all the obstacles along the way. It has it's moments but the film just doesn't seem enough at times to really capture the spirit and joy of animation.

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6/10

The story was about as loose as the animation.

TOMNEL27 April 2008

Director Don Bluth is known for being an ex-Disney animator, and still making it big after his career with them. But no matter how good his career was, it still wasn't as good as with Disney, in animation and in writing. An American Tail is a clever idea for a movie, and could have been good, had it some sort of center or plot, other than just "Feivel the mouse is lost in 19th century New York."

The Mouskewitz family decides to migrate from Russia to America after a particularly bad attack from cats. On the boat ride there, Feivel falls overboard and ends up being picked up by a pigeon, in New York. Feivel travels the town, meets some interesting characters, and tries to find his parents, always assuming violin playing must be his father. Feivel ends up at an anti-cat rally (or a wowwey as they call it here), which leads to one of the stupidest climaxes I've ever seen in an animated film.

One thing that keeps this movie afloat, is some of the characters. Feivel is adorable, and I can see why people would be attracted to watch a movie with such a cute little protagonist. Tiger, voiced by Dom Deluise, is a pretty interesting character, as a vegetarian cat who'd rather befriend mice, than eat them. But the odd thing in the relationship between Feivel and Tiger is, why this grown cat is now great friends with this tiny little kid mouse, and how fast they become best friends. It was just a relationship that should've spanned more time to make more sense.

The animation is not great. It's really loose, and characters shapes change depending on the scene. Sometimes characters are enormously fat, next scene they could be just slightly fat, next scene they could have a huge head. The animation over emphasizes what the point of focus on the character is in a certain scene. For instance, One scene, a cat is supposed to look ferocious, it has a huge mouth with sharp teeth, next scene it's supposed to look nice, so it's stomach is out, because we all know fat cats are innocent.

It may sound as though I hated this movie, but I actually, sort of like it. It's cute, but flawed in many ways, and by the end grows boring. I actually much prefer the Don Bluth-less sequel, Feivel Goes West, for animation, music and writing in general.

My rating: ** 1/2 out of ****. 75 mins. G

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9/10

Excellent movie for all ages that will warm your heart!

Catherine_Grace_Zeh26 July 2006

In my opinion, this is an excellent movie for all ages that will warm your heart! When Fievel (voice of Phillip Glasser) got lost, I wanted to cry. Although some of the characters were diabolical, I liked everybody. Well, it's hard to say which character was my favorite. The music was good, especially "Somewhere Out There, "A Duo," and "No Cats In America." In addition to the music being good everyone was cast perfectly, and the direction was flawless. In conclusion, I highly recommend this very touching movie for all ages that will warm your heart to anyone who hasn't seen it. You're in for a real treat and a good time, so go to the video store, rent it or buy it, kick back with someone close to you, and watch it.

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6/10

Uneven classic

Vartiainen13 November 2016

What's up with the 80s and mice. I mean, The Rescuers, The Great Mouse Detective... This movie. Though, come to think about it, Don Bluth worked on two of those movies and left the Disney Studio just as they were beginning to conceptualize Basil of Baker Street. So, Mr. Bluth: What's up with all the mice?

Nevertheless, it's not a bad film by any means, and is held as a classic by many who have seen it as children. Personally I saw it for the first time as an adult, and while I can see the pull, I can also notice all the flaws.

So what's the story? The family Mousekewitz are Russian-Jewish immigrants on their way to America where there are no cats, or so they have been told. But on the way there Fievel, their son, washes overboard and is believed to have drowned. Naturally our plucky main character simply washes to shore in a bottle, but they don't know that. And from there it's pretty much a story about how they get back together and end up in wacky hijinks while doing so.

It works, simply said. The allegory of cats and mice works really well to reflect the dreams of immigrants looking to start anew in America, the land of possibilities, only to find out that their new home is not terribly different from the place they left. The film is also pure gold on the technical level, with Bluth's signatory animation style lending itself really well to the small world of animals living in the lower quarters of our own. The songs are also very good, especially There Are No Cats in America, which is ridiculously catchy.

But then the problems. The story is pretty clunky. None of the various plot threads connect all that well, except in that Fievel just happens to influence all of them through forced writing. And Fievel himself is incredibly annoying. I can see the appeal of him, but to me he's easily the worst thing in this film.

Still, if you've liked other Don Bluth films, this one is definitely worth a watch. Not his best film, but it has a lot of good stuff in it.

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9/10

After Anastasia, American Tail is the best Don Bluth movie...

TheLittleSongbird4 March 2009

Not only that, but I think it's the best pre-Little Mermaid animation of the 80s, Land Before Time being an extremely close contender, as I haven't yet seen the Secret of Nimh. It tells the story of a little mouse named Fieval, who gets lost at sea, and his struggles to find his family. There is a vast difference to this and All Dogs Go To Heaven, and it is that American Tail is genuinely poignant, whereas All Dogs tends to be a little too morose, but don't get me wrong, All Dogs is a very good movie, but I do prefer American Tail. Another difference is that although Warren T Rat is a convincing villain, I still think Carface is a little more convincing. The animation is stunning, as are the songs, my favourite being "Somewhere Out There", which makes me cry every time I hear it. The incidental music and the script were also lovely.I have only two minor criticisms of this movie, which is that the story takes a while to get going, and I personally don't think Phillip Glasser can sing(which I can forgive, as he was only 6 years old). The voice talents, as is usually the case in Don Bluth movies, are exceptional. Phillip Glasser is very sweet and even touching at times, and Dom DeLuise likewise. Christopher Plummer is very good as Henri, and Madeline Kahn delights with her character's speech impediment. I cried at the end, and thank you Don Bluth for a heartfelt film. 9/10 Bethany Cox

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7/10

Before we read Maus, we had this

Mr-Fusion15 August 2017

There were a few Don Bluth movies that I was really into in my formative years; and how well they hold up to adult eyes can be a real gamble. "The Land Before Time" lasts extremely well, and I'm honestly curious about "The Secret of NIMH". But as for "An American Tail", it's still got that luster. It's an affecting story, the animation's easy on the eyes, and even the music's well done (or course it is, it's James Horner). Speaking of the music, this has one of the very best tie-in songs I've ever heard. It sounds good on the radio and captures the emotional vibe and somehow makes you forget that these movie pop songs can be painfully saccharine.

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8/10

Bluth's Masterpiece

matthewssilverhammer12 June 2019

Famously, Don Bluth was a top animator at Disney in the 70s. Unhappy with the way the struggling studio was being run post-Walt, he mutinied and left the company, taking many of his fellow animators with him. Knowing his propensity for drama and spite, I think it's no accident that his first two films (this and Secret of NIMH) starred naïve mice. This is, by far, Bluth's greatest film, boasting memorable songs, strong heart, and an uncharacteristic amount of complexity for a children's film.

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6/10

Just alright

briancham199431 May 2020

The best thing to say about this film is its authenticity and subject matter. While some might accuse it of sensationalising history, it clearly approaches the setting in a very genuine way with sympathetic and struggling characters. However, some of this film becomes a little typical and doesn't satisfy.

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4/10

Bluth has only succeeded at animation once; Spielberg, never.

Spleen15 July 1999

If Jeffrey Katzenberg is wise he will have taken out a court order forbidding Steven Spielberg to have anything to do with the production of animation at Dreamworks. Treacle for people under ten is his legacy. -I know this film sounded like the last trumpet to people at Disney in 1986; it thrashed "The Great Mouse Detective" at the box office and everyone oohed and aahed over it; but it's very hard to see why today. It was hard to see why even then. People gave the standard "Well, it's great for kids" line - hardly a ringing endorsement.

The story concerns a family of mice from Eastern Europe moving to America. One insufferably cute child, Fievel, gets lost on arrival and we follow the efforts of him and his family to become re-united. They pass within inches of each other so many times - I presume this is Bluth's attempt at poignancy - that we finally think, "Well, they're bound to bump into each other sooner or later," and cease to care. Sure enough, they do bump into each other sooner or later. (After Spielberg and Bluth have compiled enough footage.)

Animation is serviceable - considerably better than that in "The Great Mouse Detective", although Disney's movie wins in almost every other respect. And I don't care how many people are willing to pay good money to listen to "My Heart Will Go On," James Horner can't write songs today, and he couldn't then - nor could anyone fit his songs into the story. Great for kids? Well, if you mean that children will like it, then that may be so. But we all know what "great for kids" is code for.

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Still a classic masterpiece

GoodWillHunting6 July 2000

I remember seeing American Tail when I was very little, and I loved it. I always felt sad for Fievel when he was away from his parents, and at the time, I never knew that they were always very near him. I thought that they were always far away from him like he thought. Not too long ago, I bought this movie and watched it again...for the first time in years. I'm 17 and I still love the movie. It's the ultimate animated movie when it comes to being gentle, heart warming, and full of good heart. And the film is such a wonder to behold, even after all these years. Despite another sequel and one (or was that 2?) (one was made in 1999 and it's coming soon to video?) direct to video movies. Out of the three I've seen, this one is still the best, and it's among my favorite animated movies of all time

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6/10

An average tail.

OllieSuave-00721 September 2015

This is a somewhat adorable little animated movie about a Russian mouse named Fievel who immigrates to the United States with his family to be away from cats. He gets separated from his family during the process and tries to survive in his new country and to reunite with his loved ones, all the while discovering cats exist in the United States as well.

This film has its good moments, from Fievel dealing with getting lost to him and his new friends conjuring plans to defeat the band of cats. However, large parts of the film didn't generate much suspense or intrigue to keep the story 100 percent engaging, as I thought many of the scenes were rushed through and the characters were too childish or "cute." The songs, especially "There Are No Cats in America" and "Somewhere Out There" were too whimsical and pretty annoying - somewhat painful to listen to.

I've seen much animated films than this one; however, this one may be a winner for little children.

Grade C

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7/10

allusions and allegories

lee_eisenberg20 July 2009

I think that I first saw "An American Tail" when I was about three. All that I interpreted was a bunch of scary-looking men on horses. Now that I'm old enough to understand the historical context, every part of the movie makes sense. The scary men on horses were cossacks carrying out pogroms against the Jews in tsarist Russia (in the movie, they bring cats to terrorize the mice). Thus, a family of Russian-Jewish mice immigrates to the United States in the belief that there are no cats in America. Meanwhile, a Sicilian mouse recounts the misdeeds of a feline mafioso, while an Irish mouse remembers the sad things that happened on the Emerald Isle.

Sure enough, there are cats in America. But much of what happens in the course of Fievel's search for his family in New York seems to be a representation of the overall immigrant experience at the time. The immigrants are forced to work in sweatshops under the most dangerous conditions, and gangsters are the best hope for protection. Bridget's calls for the mice to unite against the cats sounds like an allegory for labor organizing.

All in all, I recommend this movie. It was probably Don Bluth's most creative movie ever, and certainly a credit to Steven Spielberg. I suspect that it was one of the first cartoon movies to cast movie stars (Dom DeLuise, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Plummer) as opposed to professional voice artists like Mel Blanc. Definitely worth seeing.

Also starring the voices of Phillip Glasser, Amy Green, Nehemiah Persoff*, Erica Yohn, John P. Finnegan, Pat Musick, Cathianne Blore, Neil Ross, Will Ryan and Hal Smith (Otis on "The Andy Griffith Show").

*Nehemiah Persoff also starred in "Some Like It Hot", and appeared on a "Gilligan's Island" episode as a deposed Latin American dictator.

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7/10

An American Tail

jboothmillard15 June 2005

Warning: Spoilers

Before The Land Before Time, Don Bluth made this lovable rodent filled cartoon. Basically it is 1885, and the Mousekewitz family of Russia: Papa (Nehemiah Persoff), Mama (Erica Yohn), daughter (Amy Green) and of course, son Fievel (Phillip Glasser) are forced to emigrate to America when their house is burnt down. Unfortunately on the journey Fievel falls off the side, and is now determined to find his family in New York. Along the way of course he faces all the commotion of the city from humans, mice and other creatures alike, but he still has friends to help him. These friends include: pigeon Henri (The Sound of Music's Christopher Plummer), Tony Toponi (Pat Musick) and his new found love interest Bridget (Cathianne Blore), and cat Tiger (Dom DeLuise). The big building story that Fievel and the family alike (apart of course) sees the mice, lead by Gussie Mausheimer (Madeline Kahn) and Honest John (Neil Ross) revolting against the cats of the city, lead by Warren T. Rat (John Finnegan) by building a giant machine, the Giant Mouse of Minsk (based on a story Papa told Fievel). Obviously the mice defeat the mice, and Fievel eventually finds his Papa and family, and the Statue of Liberty completes construction. It was nominated the Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Song for "Somewhere Out There". Very good!

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10/10

Don Bluth's "Furry" Tale

ja_kitty_7110 March 2008

Don Bluth is another animator I love along with Max Fleischer and Hayao Miyazaki, and this film, "An American Tail," is one of my favorites from him; it is a childhood favorite.

A reason I like mice (not rats) is because they are the "good beasts" from my books, like the "Redwall" series by Brian Jacques (my favorite author) and also "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" by Robert C. O'Brien, which was made into another film by Don earlier. Of course, those rats were good, and I could accept that. I love the romantic scene with Tony and Bridget (when they first meet, that is), and besides, I love Bridget, Tony, Tanya, and Fievel himself.

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7/10

I really enjoyed it!

Bubba3261823 July 2021

Warning: Spoilers

An American Tale is really good. This is the first Don Bluth movie I have seen and I am impressed, no wonder he was beating Disney when it comes to animated movies in the 80s. The animation is really good, I like the animation a lot. I like how the word cat is like a cuss word to the mouses. I liked the characters Fievel, Papa and Tiger the most. I also liked the story. I liked Tiger's song the most. Warren T. Rat actually being a cat was kind of cool, I thought so at least. I really enjoyed this. I don't have much more to say about it, this movie is just really good and a lot of fun.

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9/10

Another animated classic by Don Bluth

Rectangular_businessman28 June 2010

When I was a child, my sister and I would love watching all sorts of animated films. One of these films was An American Tail. My interest in the film increased after watching All Dogs go to Heaven. I only remembered bits and pieces of it, so I finally got the opportunity to watch the film, and it was definitely worth seeing.

Frustrated by all the cats in Russia, the Mousekewitz family to America, where there are supposedly no cats. During the voyage, Fieval Mousekewitz (Phillip Glasser) wanders off and is separated from the rest of the family. Fortunately, he lands in New York, where he is determined to find his parents. Fieval journeys through New York, meeting many friends, who include a French pigeon named Henri (Christopher Plummer), a young mouse named Tony Toponi (Pat Musick), and a large alcoholic mouse named Honest John (Neil Ross). He also discovers that there are cats in America, one of them being a scam artist named Warren T. Rat (John Finnegan).

There are several satirical moments in the film, such as the depiction of cats in Italy as mobsters, the depiction of cats in Russia as Cossacks, etc. But the film, although enjoyable, has some minor flaws. The first and the most obvious flaw is that the film may get too depressing for children, and the other flaw is that the film is that the voices may get a bit annoying, but it never gets even remotely unbearable.

Overall, An American Tail was an excellent animated film, and I highly recommend

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6/10

An animation movie that is not from Disney? Does this even exist?

jakobkettner10 July 2023

Animation quality good, but the story lacks interesting moments. At least in the German version, the singing is really hurtful for your ears. The characters don't play out that well. In the end, of course every one is happy about the story's outcome, though I think, a Disney movie could have created more investment into the character's emotions. Feivel's friends all are quite flat and not interesting at all (even Tony).

The main points of the movie definitely lay in being a tale for children never to give up and for believing in being able to build something big, even if you are small yourself. For adults who have seen this message in way too many movies yet, there is nothing new at all.

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10/10

An adventurous and heartwarming masterpiece

gavin-thelordofthefu-48-46029724 November 2011

After the darker and epic masterpiece "The Secret of NIMH", he teams up with Steven Spielberg (who directed the heartwarming E.T. and the shark monster "Jaws" and would later direct the adaptation of Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park) along with David Kirschner to direct the idea he came up with known as "An American Tail".

It takes place in Russian in the year 1885 where a family of mice gets chased out of their homes by the cats. On the way to America, a land where they think has no cats, a young mouse named Fievel Mousekewitz gets separated from his parents on the way. When he arrives alone in the New World, however, he keeps up hope, searching for his family, making new friends, and running and dodging the cats he thought he'd be rid off.

Since this is Bluth/Spielberg's first team up to make an animated film, it's an amazing effort from the greatest directors in the history of cinema. The story was so touching while having funny moments, scary moments, and very sad moments. The animation is breathtakingly beautiful and so are the colorful backgrounds. The characters are likable and so is the excellent voice acting. The James Horner music score/songs were so catchy you would leave the theater humming "Somewhere Out There" for about four minutes.

An American Tail is another masterpiece not only from Don Bluth, but from Steven Spielberg as well and would recommended to fans of traditional animation and Bluth fans.

5/5

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6/10

The most downbeat movie of our childhoods

popp-culture22 July 2013

Don Bluth's second animated film, and the first animated film produced by Steven Spielberg, tells the story of the pilgrims and their journey to America. With rodents. I'm talking about what may be the most downbeat movie of our childhoods, "An American Tail".

The movie takes place in 1885 Russia, where the Mousekewitzes— a Russian-Jewish family of mice —are having their Hanukkah celebration. Fievel, the young son in the family, is given a hat that has been in the family for three generations. But they are suddenly attacked by an army of cruel cats belonging to the Cossacks (a reference to actual anti-Jewish pogroms occurring in the Russian empire at the time), who destroy their village. They are forced to move to America, where Papa Mousekewitz is convinced there are no cats. On board the ship set sail to America, he tells everyone to set their minds at ease because, as they sing: There are no cats in America and the streets are paved with cheese. This song is very catchy and is realistic when you think of how there are poor people in other continents who literally believe that money grows on trees.

Correction: There were no cats in America, but everything changed when the fire nation attacked.

So during the trip, a huge storm strikes, causing Fievel to be washed overboard. The others arrive mournfully in America, believing that Fievel has drowned. However, he has floated to the shores of New York in a bottle. A friendly French pigeon working on the construction of the Statue of Liberty, named Henri (voiced by Christopher Plummer), finds him and gives him a wash. Fievel is pessimistic that he will ever find his family. Henri encourages him to always look on the bright side with a song that Fievel soon sings along to, titled "Never Say Never." I'm going to take the words out of your mouth: Justin Bieber stole Fievel's little song! That little biter! So Henri has one of his friends fly Fievel down to the city, where he goes his way to find his family. The city is full of immigrant humans and mice being hustled by con artists. One of the slickest of the scoundrels preying on the unsuspected newcomers is Warren T. Rat and his cockroach accountant Digit. Upset that he has made fifty cents less than the day before, Warren T. Rat spies Fievel, introduces himself and claims he can take the boy to his parents. Fievel follows the rat anticipating the reintroduction to his family right away, but the rats sells him to a sweatshop. But with the help of a street-smart Italian mouse named Tony, they both manage to escape. They pass a rally where an Irish mouse named Bridget is trying to convince the other mice to organize an order to defeat the cats. Fievel tells the crowd they have nothing to fear because of what his Papa kept saying. But at that moment, a gang of cats called the Mott Street Maulers attack the marketplace.

After they escape, Bridget takes him and Tony to see Honest John (the mouse, not the fox), who is a drunk yet reliable politician who knows all the voting mice in New York City. But as the Mousekewitzes have not yet registered to vote, he can't help Fievel find them.

On his journey, Fievel keeps thinking that he hears his father playing violin, but it comes from an Edison cylinder recording. He hears someone calling out his name, but it turns out to be another mother calling her son Fievel. Most of his search just leads to him falling into one depression after another. This is the main issue with the movie. As a film for kids, it should be more upbeat with some sense of discovery. Fievel doesn't learn a lot about America, except for the hard truth that there are, in fact, millions of cats there.

One of the only cheerful scenes in the movie is where Fievel meets a goofy, soft-hearted cat named Tiger who likes mice befriends him (he's voiced by Dom Deluise, who voiced Jeremy in "The Secret of NIMH". This won't be the last you hear of him in the Don Bluth brand). Fievel and Tiger find out that they have a lot in common and become "A Duo".

He is also given hope when Bridget tells him that she is certain his family is somewhere out there just waiting to be found. And meanwhile, Fievel's older sister Tanya has a feeling that he's still alive, thought her parents insist that the feeling will eventually go away. That night, Fievel and Tony stay at the water tower where Bridget lives. In a tear-jerking scene, Fievel and Tanya, though unaware of it, sing the song "Somewhere Out There" together.

"Somewhere Out There" is one of my favorite songs written for a movie. It's a song that could be sung in multiple cases. For instance, the situation the song is in in the movie, but it's often thought of as a song that gives you hope that your soul mate is out there watching the same stars with you, and somehow you will cross each other's paths.

I guess I sort of liked the movie; it has great musical numbers, an affable take on Jewish history, and the dark, fluid animation that made Don Bluth famous. But I wish it had focused far less on despair and more on making the most of the time you're alone, but with so much around you.

6/10 for "An American Tail".

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3/10

Kids Would Be Better Off Living With Serial Rapists Than Watching This Film

CalvinValjean27 March 2008

Warning: Spoilers

SPOILER: Here is a film so bad that it would make Jesus say: "Man, I should've stayed dead." Yes, I know, it was made for kids, but even children's movies generally have scripts. Not this one! This one takes a serious subject matter (the terrible experiences of American immigrants in the late 19th century)...and turns that into an 80 minute Tom and Jerry cartoon.

Okay, we start off with a family of Russian-Jewish mice being persecuted by Cossack cats, so they emigrate to the USA. The youngest mouse gets separated and then must look for his family. It wasn't until after this scene ended that I realized that I was suppose to be getting exposition or come to care about these characters. It was at least another 20 minutes in before I realized that this young mouse was supposed to be the story's protagonist. Fievel acts and sounds like a real 4-year-old. Go up to a 4-year-old that you know and start following him around with a camera. As you'll see within seconds, 4-year-olds are not very compelling characters. At least Ariel and Belle had character arcs.

The filmmakers are not interested in developing characters, or building emotional bonds, or exploring any of the history lessons they superficially throw at us. They just keep each scene moving aimlessly to the next. Fievel gets sold into a sweatshop. Okay, here's a chance for the story to explore sweatshops, their historical contexts, Fievel's character and his reaction to abuse...nope, they have him escape in the very next scene, without so much as a single scene explaining what they did at the sweatshop or the reason for its existence. Fievel escapes by coming up with a plan that none of the older or wiser laborers could ever have come up with: he climbs out the window! Holy Crap'n'Balls! Despite the movie being sympathetic to the plight of immigrants, it actually is filled with caricatures and stereotypes. During the "No Cats In America" song, an Italian mouse, with Italian stereotypes sings about the mafia and his brother Tony. Later me meet a major character who's Italian American. Guess what his name is? TONY! Later he falls in love with an Irish mouse, who in case you couldn't tell was Irish by her accent, is also dressed in green! The lack of plot continues. The terror of the cats are supposed to be metaphors for the terrible experiences that the immigrants face. Of course this metaphor only goes so far if logic is applied to it (what does the presence of cats have to with the presence of sweatshops, poverty, and terrible living conditions that the mice live under?). There's a character named Warren T. Rat (ho ho, wow, what witty writing! I wonder if Voltaire worked on this script!) who apparently runs a "feline protection racket" for the mice. I say "apparently" because we never see him do this and it's only mentioned in passing. Maybe a scene of him actually doing business would've established this a bit more.

And still it went on! It wouldn't end! Fievel gets captured and imprisoned so he can sing a song with a superfluous character and then escapes again! "Good job," the filmmakers must've told each other, "We wasted a good 10 minutes of screen time, how can we keep wasting them? C'mon, we gotta make this sucker last 80 minutes, or else I won't be able to afford a hooker for my step-son's prom." Eventually the smelly mice get rid of all the cats by building a giant Mouse of Minsk based on the Russian folk stories Fievel would hear. Too bad he couldn't have been more inspiring by doing something that kids could actually relate to or do themselves. Then a fire starts and Fievel gets separated from his homeboys. He wakes up in a slum with a bunch of bullies. How the hell did he end up there? I don't know about you, but when I go to sleep, I tend to stay in the same place; I don't wake up in a random place with strangers. The bullies convince Fievel that his family doesn't want to find him, which has actually been the truth for most of the movie.

Finally we come to the end, and it seems like the movie has finally gotten something right! Fievel is reunited with his family and there is a moment of genuine drama and emotion. After all, this was the scene that the entire rest of the movie was written for. But does it end there? No; how dare I be so naive? We must get a tacked-on scene of a French bird showing Fievel his statue. For a film that blew all of its chances to touch on history, how nice to end on the educational fact that the Statue of Liberty was actually built by a pigeon! I feel so much wiser now! But hold on, the entire point of the movie was that the various immigrants were oppressed in the US, and that the American dream was built on lies. I happen to agree with that message, but then why the hell do you end the movie with shots of the Statue of Liberty? Yeah, let's give our kids a bunch of junk about cats and mice, dress it up with historical context to make it seem deep, and then slap on a sickeningly patriotic ending. An American Tail? That's just a nice way of saying An American Butt. Kiss mine! So, kids, did this movie teach you anything? Did you learn a single thing about the plight of Russian immigrants? Did any of you get the Tammany Hall reference or the fact that Honest John was a caricature of Boss Tweed? Hell, most adults probably didn't get that.

Here's what I learned from this movie: the next time you see a mouse, frickin' stomp on it!!!!

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