This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

The Reluctant Dragon is about a childlike children's book author who goes to Walt Disney Studios to see about having his book adapted into a cartoon, his adventure through the studio gives a look at how they created cartoons back in the 40's.Seeing cartoons in process is very interesting in itself, it features a cast of many known Disney talents including the original voice of Donald Duck, it's a treat seeing how these Disney Legends did what they did.Then you add in the animated bits, shorts like Baby Weems, How to Ride a horse Starring Goofy, and of course The Reluctant Dragon. These shorts are very funny, they each deserve a viewing on their own.It's a shame how few people have even heard of this Disney film. If you can get your hands on the Adventures of Ichabod & Mr. Toad with Fun & Fancy Free Blu-ray this film is included as well.All around I give it two thumbs up!

While not necessarily a childhood favourite, The Reluctant Dragon is very sweet and engrossing as well as easy to like. The animation is lovely, very colourful and nice to look at, fairly simplistic in its construction but very nice all the same. The music is very pleasant, very playful and sweet. I really liked the characters here, the reluctant dragon himself is very lovable, and I admit I mistook his voice actor for Ed Wynn when I first saw this. And the little boy's voice reminds me of the voice of Pinnocchio in the Disney film of the same name. Sir Gyles, despite not being in it very much, is a good character. The poetry is great too; the script isn't the best in the world, but all the same it is a sweet and thoroughly enjoyable mini-classic. 9/10 Bethany Cox

After filming the live-action sequences of "Fantasia" and hurting for a "feature release" following the financial fiascos of the aforementioned feature, presumably Disney rushed this into production (with most of it live-action, it not only cost less than a fully-animated counterpart of equal length, it took much less time to complete).It purports to tell the story of how Disney animated cartoons are made, but, courtesy of a disclaimer at the beginning of the movie, it turns out to be more fiction than fact.Various processes - like sound recording, paint-mixing, cell-photographing, multi-planing, etc - are all upended for the sake of humor (in one instance, a complete cel of Donald Duck comes to life, in another instance, the sound effects crew creates an "unplanned" cacophony by knocking over all the equipment).More to the point is that the sequences are not just staged, but they employ professional actors (such as Alan Ladd!) portraying Disney animators and other staff (although in certain instances, actual animators such as Woolie Reitherman and Ward Kimball make appearances).The "Baby Weems" sequence is often commended by many for being innovative and the forerunner of the UPA-style that would dominant the art of animation in the 1950s, but the fact is that "Weems" is nothing more than a sleek, streamlined version of a "leica reel" (a film which combines the pre-recorded soundtrack with the animators' storyboard sketches, as a way of assessing how story pacing and timing are before *before* any time and effort are spent creating fully-animated sequences). The story is cute, the drawings are more fully- rendered than they would be in a genuine Leica reel so they are nice to see, but "innovative"? I don't think so.The Goofy "How-to" sequence is okay (I never cared for the "How-To" series, but I know a similarly-themed version in "Saludos Amigos" with Goofy trying to be a Gaucho is funnier).The title short - "The Reluctant Dragon" - is cute and funny. I don't think it rates as a classic, but because it is such a rarely-viewed piece it needs to be watched by all Disney-philes.Considering its historic value, this movie is hardly a waste of time. It's just not one that deserves repeated viewings.

As she reads her husband the story of the reluctant dragon, Mrs Benchley has the idea of selling the idea to Walt Disney to make into a film. Reluctantly Robert Benchley goes to Disney studios to see Walt but tries to delay on the way. As he wanders around the studio he meets various cast and crew behind the Disney films and gets to see some of the techniques that make the film.Although I am not a real fan of Disney films from this period, I decided to give this film a try as the basic plot sounded quite interesting. I'm glad I did as this film is not only quite interesting but also an amusing mix of life action and animation. The basic plot is no more than a tour of the Disney process but done in a rather amusing way as Benchley slips from one room to another in an attempt to evade a very boring tour guide. This element of the film is quite enjoyable; the process is interesting (if not really valid anymore - it's all in Korea isn't it?!) and it is delivered by gentle wit that both kids and adults will like.The 100% animated strands of the film are mixed and will depend whether or not you are a Disney fan or not (I'm not - I prefer Loony Tunes). The Goofy section is very good but the storyboard telling of Baby Weems is pretty poor and the actual story of the Reluctant Dragon is a bit too cute and lacking teeth (if you know what I mean). The bits where Benchley is shown the animation process and the characters come to life are well handled and pretty cool - Daffy gives him a bit of a mouthful and is funny.The people in the film are rather airbrushed but still OK; the women are a bit too polished and wholesome, leaving the better roles for the men. Walt himself is OK and his presence adds to the value of the film, but it is Benchley that makes this such an enjoyable film. He died a few years after making this and he can't have been much more than fifty when he passed. His mocking humour is good and he isn't afraid to clown it up for the cameras.Overall this is a very enjoyable little film. For Disney fans it is almost a must-see as it goes around the basic stages of creating a cartoon within the studio. The animated sections are not as good (to me) and I was left wanting more of Benchley and the unofficial tour rather than the title story, but it was quite enjoyable in a rather fresh and amusing fashion.