An American Tail (1986)

While emigrating to the United States, a young Russian mouse gets separated from his family and must relocate them while trying to survive in a new country.

Director:

Don Bluth

Writers:

Judy Freudberg (screenplay), Tony Geiss (screenplay)

Stars:

Dom DeLuise, Christopher Plummer, Erica Yohn

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview:
Erica Yohn	...	Mama Mousekewitz (voice)
Nehemiah Persoff	...	Papa Mousekewitz (voice)
Amy Green	...	Tanya Mousekewitz (voice)
Phillip Glasser	...	Fievel Mousekewitz (voice)
Christopher Plummer	...	Henri (voice)
John Finnegan	...	Warren T. Rat (voice)
Will Ryan	...	Digit (voice)
Hal Smith	...	Moe (voice)
Pat Musick	...	Tony Toponi (voice)
Cathianne Blore	...	Bridget (voice)
Neil Ross	...	Honest John (voice)
Madeline Kahn	...	Gussie Mausheimer (voice)
Dom DeLuise	...	Tiger (voice)

Storyline

Fievel is a young Russian mouse separated from his parents on the way to America, a land they think is without cats. When he arrives alone in the New World, he keeps up hope, searching for his family, making new friends, and running and dodging the cats he thought he'd be rid off.

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Plot Keywords:

ship | storm at sea | 19th century | lost at sea | cat | 

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Taglines:

Meet Fievel. In his search to find his family, he discovered America.

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Family | Musical

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 November 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Feivel, der Mauswanderer

Box Office

Gross USA:

$47,483,002

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$84,542,002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures,U-Drive Productions,Sullivan Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby DTS-Stereo (re-release) (1997) DTS (re-release) (1997)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Final film of Johnny Guarnieri.

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Goofs

Fievel and his family board their ship in Hamburg, in northern Germany, but the band welcoming the passengers is a Bavarian traditional band that would never play there.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Mama Mousekewitz: Fievel! Tanya! Stop that twirling, twirling! I mean it!
Papa Mousekewitz: But Mama, it's Hannukah.
Mama Mousekewitz: For you, every night is Hannukah.

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Connections

Referenced in Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?: A 'Toon for the Misbegotten (1994)

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Soundtracks

A Duo
Music by James Horner and Barry Mann
Lyrics by Cynthia Weil
Performed by Dom DeLuise and Phillip Glasser

User Reviews

This film is an animation classic

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.