I have always loved Donald Duck, he is my personal favourite of him, Mickey and Goofy and I love all three in their own way. Donald's Better Self is not one of my favourites from Donald, but I still liked it a lot. I do remember seeing it with a friend a couple of years back and she commented that while she appreciated some aspects she felt that it took much time getting the morals about but it forgot to entertain. I disagree somewhat. Maybe it is a little preachy somewhat with the go to school and never smoke messaging(and I am still not entirely sure about what anti-smoking message was trying to be conveyed), but I don't think it forgets to entertain. Yes, there are definitely funnier Donald cartoons elsewhere, but there are still some good gags like the at the start with Donald being told get out of bed/stay in bed and the devil telling Donald to go to the fishing hole and smoke a pipe. The story is very interesting too, the concept is not necessarily a fresh one but I did love how much of a psychological approach there was here, both in what both the angel and devil tell Donald to do and how Donald reacts to them. The animation is simpler in style, but still colourful and smooth, and the music has a lot of vigorous energy. Donald is like a child here and is fun to watch, but the angel and devil I found to be even more interesting to watch, I love their contrasting personalities and also their well-spoken voices. Clarence Nash is very good as ever as Donald. Overall, a good story and characters lifts an interesting cartoon, even if the morals may come across as preachy to some and you may question the significance of the anti-smoking message. 8/10 Bethany Cox
Review of Donald's Better Self
