Good start, but then it gets ruined

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

Ferdinand is a bull that likes to sit under a tree in the forest and smell the flowers. He doesn't hang with the other bulls and chooses to be by himself, perfectly content with his independence. When he was taken into a bull arena to fight a matador, he does not engage in the battle and, instead, smell the flowers that were tossed from the crowd.A great story - reminds you that you can be perfectly content with the simplest things in life and you don't need to be part of the in-crowd or have materialist things to be happy. You can also be carefree and release yourself of any distractions in life.Grade A

There is some historical significance associated with the story of Ferdinand the Bull as the Spanish Civil War is said to have begun a few months after the story of Ferdinand was written. The domestic harmless nature of the bull is said to represent pacifistic views towards the situation in Spain. Munro Leaf may have partly been influenced by the political climate around him while writing about Ferdinand, but this remains uncertain. The 1938 short by Disney does not consider all this, and is more concerned with showing Ferdinand's love for flowers. Ferdinand does not care about bull fights unlike his fellow bulls, and prefers reclining under his favorite tree, inhaling the sweet fragrance of the flowers. His mother, despite being a 'cow' is very considerate and allows him to do as he likes. But after a bee accident, Ferdinand is thought to be the most ferocious of bulls and is brought to the bull fight. His name too changes to 'Ferdinand the Fierce' for the event; everyone including the bullfighter is scared of him and they anticipate his grand entry. What happens after this surprises everyone in the story but now us because we already know how Ferdinand actually is.This story would have been stratospherically more poignant and rich had auteur Frederic Back made it; remember how he beautifully used the chair as a motif while showing the rapid transformation of Quebec society in his brilliant short 'Crac'. Ferdinand the Bull would have got that flavor of Spain had Back made this film; however, Disney does enough justice to make this film watchable and enjoyable. Ferdinand the Bull hence does not wow us but it does bring a smile upon our faces, which is Disney's primary aim. Verdict: Would have been stratospherically more poignant and richer had Frederic Back made 'Ferdinand the Bull', but Disney does manage to make the short entertaining enough

Ferdinand the Bull tells the story of a bull who likes smelling flowers, instead of fighting like a typical bull in a bullring. Ferdinand himself is a very charming character, and is well drawn. All of the other characters are well done, with the exception of one or two lifeless backgrounds. Then Ferdinand is sent to Madrid, where he is expected to fight a toreador, but that isn't what Ferdinand wants to do. The music is also good, and Don Wilson's narration was very satisfying indeed. It is such a shame that few people know more about this gem, I don't think it is the best short in the world, but it is certainly entertaining and I would definitely watch it again. 9/10 Bethany Cox.

A Walt Disney Cartoon Short.Young FERDINAND THE BULL wants nothing more than to sit under his favorite cork tree, just smelling the flowers. But he is chosen to fight in the great arena in Madrid, where only the bravest, fiercest bulls have a chance for glory...This splendid cartoon, based on Munro Leaf's 1936 classic paean to individualism, is one of Disney's finest. The original story has been left basically intact - no animated mice or ducks, no dancing and/or singing trees & flowers needed here. Robert Lawson's evocative black & white drawings come to life in beautiful color & motion. The animators did have a bit of sly fun: the banderilleros & picadors are caricatures of the artists; the matador is a spoof of Walt himself (he was not amused). Don Wilson, Jack Benny's decades-long announcer, is an inspired choice as narrator. The personality & character of Ferdinand has been a matter of speculation for years, but the truth of the matter is perhaps best left in the privacy of the bull field...