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Really Surprised!

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Disney's older, black and white Silly Symphonies were nothing short of weird. Here, a demigod dances in a forest with the creatures and forces of nature. But, the event is cut short when a fire breaks out and consumes everything in its path (this part really sways away from the meaning of the title).It's somewhat dark and foreboding, which unconventional characters and lack of plot. It's not really something that is conventional for children. Grade C+

This is a short in the Silly Symphonies series which was produced by Disney. There will be spoilers ahead:This short has a plot of sorts. Pan, the faun, the Greek god of the wild, is playing his pipes and enjoying himself as various fauna and flora join him in dances. Fish, a turtle, flowers and such all dance to his pipes.Two clouds get into the act and here there be trouble, as one strikes a tree with lightning and so begins a fire. This can be considered a stepping stone to Flowers and Trees in that trees come to life trying to save themselves from the fire.Bears, squirrels, skunks and other woodland creatures try to fight the fire and/or save themselves from it until finally one goes to tell Pan what's happening. Pan manages to save the day, performing his duty as god of the wild, in an inventive way and all ends well.This short is available on the Disney Treasures More Silly Symphonies DVD set and it and the set are well worth finding. Recommended.

There are Silly Symphonies that I absolutely love whether they are simple or not, The Old Mill, Ugly Duckling, Flowers and Trees, the Goddess of Spring and Water Babies. Playful Pan is one of them, exceedingly charming, while having no dialogue and being simple in plot. What makes this Silly Symphony is the animation, with solid backgrounds and convincing character features and the music from the charming, simple melodies played on the pipes to the more dramatic and stirring music as the fire started. The characters again are sweet, from the dancing flowers to the pipe-playing centaur. Overall, very charming with wonderful music especially. 10/10 Bethany Cox

A Walt Disney SILLY SYMPHONY Cartoon Short.Spring is in the air and PLAYFUL PAN is full of joy. The wild creatures romp to the music of his pipes, and even the flowers & trees join in - until a dreadful forest fire threatens to destroy all...A simple plot and much action/reaction animation in this cartoon. That is unmistakably Walt voicing the cries of the bear cub.The SILLY SYMPHONIES, which Walt Disney produced for a ten year period beginning in 1929, are among the most fascinating of all animated series. Unlike the Mickey Mouse cartoons in which action was paramount, with the Symphonies the action was made to fit the music. There was little plot in the early Symphonies, which featured lively inanimate objects and anthropomorphic plants & animals, all moving frantically to the soundtrack. Gradually, however, the Symphonies became the school where Walt's animators learned to work with color and began to experiment with plot, characterization & photographic special effects. The pages of Fable & Fairy Tale, Myth & Mother Goose were all mined to provide story lines and even Hollywood's musicals & celebrities were effectively spoofed. It was from this rich soil that Disney's feature-length animation was to spring. In 1939, with SNOW WHITE successfully behind him and PINOCCHIO & FANTASIA on the near horizon, Walt phased out the SILLY SYMPHONIES; they had run their course & served their purpose.