The Scarecrow (2000) User Reviews

To me, this is a film of pluses and minuses

[TheLittleSongbird · 5/10 · 6 November 2010]

When it comes to Richard Rich, he is rather inconsistent. The Swan Princess was surprisingly good, while The Fox and the Hound is one of Disney's most touching and underrated films. The Black Cauldron was okay thanks to John Hurt and the music but suffered from badly underdeveloped characters, while The King and I had a lot of problems but not quite as bad as it is made out to be. I'd say his weakest films are The Trumpet of the Swan, while not terrible it wasn't exactly good either and this, The Scarecrow, an example of a film that had its good points but a lot of bad ones too.

What I did like about The Scarecrow was the story. It was a very interesting concept and worked well. The film started off very nicely with a nicely done prologue in the viewpoint of Bebe. Bebe is a character you either love or hate, while I don't love her I can tolerate her. She is humorous and narrates the prologue fine, but I have never always been accustomed to her voice which dependent on who you are can grate. I have to say though, the weakest part of the story was the conclusion, I personally think there could have been a stronger finish to that. For me it came across as rather rushed and perhaps predictable, and the last few minutes have a that's it? feeling to it.

If I had to sum up the animation in one word, I'd say inconsistent. There are some beautiful backgrounds in fluidity and colour, and Polly is nicely drawn. Plus I loved the lovingly rendered dance sequence. However, the editing is rather choppy especially in the later part of the film, and I personally didn't entirely like how Max was drawn. His colours seemed washed out and his movements didn't always convince.

The music is also mixed. The incidental music is lovely, with some poignant melodies and some nostalgic like rhythms(ie. what sounded like the jitterbug at one point). Where The Scarecrow is not so successful is in the songs. In Your Arms is wonderful, and When She Looks At Me is also pretty pleasant, but the first song is overlong and very forgettable with some very uninspired lyrics, while some of the other music was so out of place they took away from any authenticity. And out of the singing really only Polly's singing voice really wowed me. Everyone else ranged from good to reasonably adequate.

The dialogue has its moments. The prologue was nicely written, and I liked Scarecrow's slang, but Grisham's came across as somewhat lame. And the pacing while brisk to start with, meanders towards the end. Then there are the characters. My two favourites are Polly, who is beautiful and has a nice personality, and the broom who is quite endearing and sweet without speaking. Bebe is tolerable, and Scarecrow/Feathertop is likable enough if occasionally too serious. Max is okay sometimes, but when it comes to comic relief and giving advice that is a different story. Speaking about comic relief, it doesn't gel really in The Scarecrow. It does try, with Max and Cheswick. But with Cheswick the running gag about his big belly becomes tiresome and unfunny after the second or third try. The worst character? Easy for me- hate to say it, but it was the villain Grisham, who is a contender for the most annoying villain in an animated film ever.

The voice acting is variable. Polly and Feathertop are reasonable, but Ray Porter trying no doubt to do something with his awful dialogue no doubt overacts dreadfully. In fact, I am sorry to say Grisham's voice is one of the main reasons why he comes across as annoying, as well as his uninspired motive.

So in conclusion, I wouldn't say it is awful, but it isn't exactly good either. It has a great story and decent protagonists but with better music and a better villain it could have been better. 5/10 Bethany Cox

So it has it's flaws...

[sib_saft · 6/10 · 9 February 2006]

I actually like this film ,despite it's terrible half-assed looking animation and some of the music is so out of place it seems wrong, I loved Richard Rich's previous stuff as well Including The Swan Princess and his remake of The King and I. I can actually sit and watch this film over and over and not get bored. Some of the songs are horrible whilst the others grow on you and you find them forever stuck in your head, My favourites being "In Your arms" and "When she looks at me". I just hope there'll eventually be a DVD release because although I own it on VHS...it's starting to get worn out and I'll need to replace!

Seriously folks,if you have kids don't neglect this movie...it has a nice story and unlike everything else that seems to be made at the moment, is done in traditional 2D animation, I suppose that's what made me like it so much...

Does it have flaws? Yes. Is it a bad film? Probably not

[gavin-thelordofthefu-48-460297 · 6/10 · 22 January 2012]

To those who don't know, I sort of have a liking for Richard Rich. The Fox and the Hound was an underrated film back at 1981. The story, while dark in the second of the film, is still intact and very original with tear-jerking moments, likable characters, an excellent voice cast, and one of the greatest climaxes ever to put in Disney history. The Black Cauldron was underrated as well, but suffered from it's bare resemblance to the first two books and it's lack of character development and The Swan Princess was also underrated as well as my childhood favorite, but suffered from it's mediocre story and the one of the main characters named Derek was bland and shallow. Then, his career went downhill with box office bombs including The King and I remake and The Trumpet of the Swan. With this... well, let's say I remembered watching this on the Cartoon Network Movie Marathon when I was a 10 year old and I have to say I kind of enjoyed, but as a young adult, however, this film seems to have some flaws.

I haven't seen the play it was based on, but I actually found the story in this film to be pretty decent. Despite it's weak ending, it has a nice concept about a scarecrow who comes to life due to a magical feather and has motivational lessons including listen to your heart and do the right thing. It was a tale of hope, faith, and sacrifice and it has some very touching moments.

The characters aren't that bad. The Scarecrow/Feathertop (a love child of Aladdin and Peter Pan), although bland, is tolerable and manages to save Polly from the evil Grisham (we'll get to him in a moment). Polly is also tolerable as a damsel in distress. In fact, her singing voice really amazed me. Bebe, on the other hand, is my least favorite character, but wasn't as bad as I thought she would be. She only appeared in the beginning of the film, but then disappears. That doesn't mean I can't tolerate her. The sidekicks like Max and the broomstick are OK, but nothing special. The weakest character is Cheswick whose running gag about his belly becomes tiresome and unfunny, but the worst character in the movie this far is Grisham who is an example of being the most annoying non-Disney villain in the history of animation cinema.

The dialogue has some humorous and touching moments where Scarecrow/Feathertop sacrifices his life to save Polly from danger on the destruction of a bridge. The prologue told by Bebe was great and Scarecrow's slang is good, but Grisham's was plainly pathetic. Polly's dialogue was also good as well while the sidekicks' are OK.

The animation is pretty much a mixed bag. It has some beautiful backgrounds, and fluidity character animations. I found the dance sequences to be nicely choreographed, but it's editing seemed too choppy at times especially the ending and the way Max was drawn seemed too poorly due to his washed out colors.

The music is mediocre. "When She Looks At Me", "Come On, Everybody", and "In Your Arms" were good, but the first song in the beginning was overlong and had uninspiring lyrics and the rest of the music seemed out of place.

The strongest aspect is the voice acting. Scarecrow and Polly were tolerable and Corey Feldman's voice for Max really suited him well, but Ray Porter gives out some of his terrible dialogue and no doubt overreacts so painfully which is the reason why Grisham was the most annoying character to begin with.

In short, The Scarecrow isn't a great film, but in terms of animated features, this is good for kids young and old. With a decent story, decent protagonists and excellent voice acting, it's certainly not that bad, but would've been better with a better villain and better music.

DIRECT TO VIDEO-Someone should have released it to the theater.

[kimtyme · 14 November 2002]

WOW!

The Love Song from this show makes me cry! It is a wonderful story, and it is not SCARY as the title has Scarecrow in it. Yes it ends well, and it is a fantasy. The music is pretty good, the lines are okay, and the story is hopefull!

Not a bad cartoon from the directors of The Swan Princess(some spoilers)

[lisafordeay · 7/10 · 6 April 2011]

I saw this a few years ago on Cartoon Network when I was a pre-teen kid back in 2005 and I had no idea what it was about so I decided to watch it. Now before I review this I want to say that this is a very underrated film. Copies of it are very hard to find and its not on DVD only on VHS in the States and not where I'm from so there maybe an odd spoiler so here we go on to the review.

The Scarecrow is a 1999 film that was released in 2000 and it is directed by Richard Rich and Brian Nissan(yeah these two were responsible for The Swan Princess which is one of my favorite non-Disney movie as a kid and still is)and starts off with an enchanted witch who tells the story of a young girl named Polly who is living in an orphanage with three children who wants a better life for herself and she collects money and leaves it near a scarecrow who she falls in love with, but magically the scarecrow comes to life by the enchanted witch who leaves and says I let you find out yourselves and so we begin the film. When the scarecrow does comes to life he falls in love with Polly as like I have mentioned,he minds Polly's money for her as she buries it near him by digging up a small little hole to put the money in.

But when an evil ruthless man named Grisham (Ray Porter) (who is also in love with Polly) wants Polly's money,the scarecrow decides to give Polly back the money,but when he gets caught by one of the men who works in the orphanage where Polly is staying,the scarecrow does a runner and wishes to become human so the enchanted witch(who left a message to the scarecrow) gives him a magic feather and it transforms him into a human. But there is a catch you see as he has to wear this magic feather on his hat at all times otherwise he would turn back into a scarecrow again and he must not go near any mirrors because the human form is just an illusion so people would see him as a human,while he can see his real self in the reflection of the mirror. But problems arise however as Feathertop(that's what the scarecrow calls himself now)falls in love with Polly who also falls for his human form and he decides to help her get back the money again. So will he become human in the end,will Polly get her money back from the evil Grisham?. So what did I think of this movie,well to be honest I actually found it rather enjoyable and good. It does however steal a lot of the Disney formula,with the music and the animation even though this film is from Warner Bros Animation,and the whole happy ending,but hey this is from the same company that brought us The Swan Princess.

So is there a lot of music? YES and I have to say that I love the song In Your Arms which is sung by the two would be lovers Feathertop(Scarecrow) and Polly as its a very romantic song,and I also like the song When She Looks At Me,which is very pretty and the guy singing as Feathertop is actually really good.

The animation is OK,its similar to Anastasia,and the charcther design of Feathertop reminds me of Dimitri for some strange reason. Overall I would say check it out. Its not the best animated movie of all time but it is a very underrated film. Also keep an eye out for a enchanted broom and a mouse called Max(voiced by Cory Feldman),they steal the film. If I have to choose a few things that had me annoyed was the fact that the scarecrow and Polly were rushing into their relationship,as he wanted to marry her later on and also the dance sequence was so bad it was like a bee gee's/1970s disco fever feel to the scene. And there is one error where the scarecrow's reflection never shows up on the dance floor,while he was dancing with Polly.

Anyway I give it a 7/10.

Just barely succeeds, but works against itself most of the way

[IonicBreezeMachine · 6/10 · 28 May 2020]

If you were to look at the basic nuts and bolts of The Scarecrow's story on paper you'd probably think it would make for a decent enough movie. I myself am easily won over by romantic movies with characters trying to work against some flaw that prevents people from seeing their inner beauty. Notable examples being Warm Bodies, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Phantom of the Opera, or Beauty and the Beast. The Scarecrow is loosely adapted from a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne titled "Feathertop"(and when I say loosely adapted that take the scarecrow coming to life part and the name then add everything else).

The story follows indentured servant Polly and a Scarecrow (brought to life by a good witch) who is secretly in love with her. Polly hides her money beneath the Scarecrow in the hopes of buying not only her own freedom, but the freedom of three other orphans who she has befriended. However when the arrogant Count Grisham who lusts after Polly discovers her intentions he goes to great lengths to stop her and force her to marry him. the scarecrow donning a magical disguise as Feathertop then comes to her aid to try help her secure freedom. The general plot as you can see isn't bad for an animated movie, even if it does seem to be inspired by Disney's Beauty and the Beast and Hunchback of Notre Dame films. There is charm to be had from this movie, but there's also some rather obnoxious elements.

The Scarecrow is played in a fashion very similar to how Aladdin was played, and Max the mouse and a living broom named Bristles are clearly inspired by Carpet and Iago from the movie as well. The villains of Grisham and Cheswick are also rather underwhelming coming off as second rate versions of Gaston and Le Fou (with fairly similar character designs too). Despite my issues with the overly cocky way that the Scarecrow is portrayed, he does make for a likable character as does Polly.

The animation is hit and miss, some scenes look almost as good as Beauty and the Beast, while others feel more in line with a straight to video project. And then there's the tone....The movie seems to be set in colonial America with the abundance of tri corner hats, powdered wigs and a off hand reference to "the colonies" but the dialogue is filled with anachronisms that permeated many post Aladdin animated films because EVERYONE was trying to capture the magic of Robin William's Genie without understanding why it worked. It would be one thing if Bee Bee the witch were making the anachronisms(her being magic and all) but when you have characters saying "cool" "hang out" or referencing Max Factor it becomes needlessly distracting. Unfortunately the tone also isn't helped by the songs. the two romantic songs are okay, but the rest of them are tone destroying and filled with anachronisms including a lengthy sequence where the characters dance the Charleston, the Jitterbug, and yes even the Hustle from the 1970s.

The Scarecrow is the kind of movie you wish were better than it is. Richard Rich when he began his directing career at Disney with The Fox and the Hound and The Black Cauldron made some very interesting(albeit flawed in Black Cauldron's case) animated films that felt unique and connected on an emotional level, unfortunately most of his work since Swan Princess in 1994 has been rather bland and forgettable fare that is often only made profitable from brisk home video sales(hence why we still have Swan Princess movies being made) The Scarecrow comes close to being at the same level of his first two movies, it just doesn't quite make it. It works well enough and it'll keep kids entertained so a marginal recommendation.

Scarecrow? More Like Scarecrud

[Zantara Xenophobe · 1/10 · 18 May 2004]

This review has SPOILERS in it. Be forewarned.

I should have read the warning signs. Upon seeing the names Richard Rich and Brian Nissan, I should have stopped the tape right there. I should have hit Eject and put the tape away. But I watched this whole movie, what little running time there is. Why? Because I'm stupid. Because I will watch almost anything once and like to stick things out to the end just so I can say I saw something and have a reason never to sit through it again. And certainly a reason never to sit through ‘The Scarecrow' is because it is just so awesomely awful that a second viewing would send me straight to the asylum.

The plot is a very simply fairy tale. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that; it's what is done with it that is warped. It's a story, set in Colonial America, of a magical scarecrow, brought to life and taught to dance by a frumpy, kind witch. The witch is hiding out from the town's richest man, a half-insane mill owner specializing in dancing equipment. Whenever somebody owes him a debt, he forces them to gruelingly work in his mill until they can pay him off. The madman, Grisham (John Grisham?), wants the witch's magic so he can perfect a love spell where his dancing partner will fall in love with him. He wants Polly, a young girl that is working in the mill and trying to save enough money to get her and three orphans out of the mill. She hides her loot in a hole near where the scarecrow hangs in the day, and the scarecrow falls in love. After the witch abandons him (I'll get to this later), he makes a wish that he could be real so he can be with Polly. Some old spell the witch left grants this, only the scarecrow must keep a magic feather in his hat. Going by the name of Feathertop, he gets Polly to fall in love with him (sort of) and earns the ire of Grisham. It all leads to an ill-conceived dance contest at Grisham's castle and some hilariously bad evildoing by the villain.

This goes to show that the people behind the lackluster ‘Land Before Time' films aren't the only people frittering away cash without rhyme nor reason. There are so many things wrong with ‘The Scarecrow' that it becomes unbearable. Richard Rich (Rich Rich? Richie Rich?) thinks he can get away with aping the tiresome Disney formula of bad jokes/sidekicks and forced songs. I wish animation directors would quit doing this as it only encourages Disney to shell out more of the same instead of something new and original. The sidekicks here are a magical broom (with no dialogue, that makes this the best character in the movie) and a wisecracking rat named Max that is supposed to be funny but is far from it, giving illogical advise for Scarecrow to leave town. Jokes with nods to the audience just don't work in cartoons that are set hundreds of years in the past (and no, I don't think this sort of thing worked in big movies like Shrek either). References to things like swing music, hip-hop, and Max Factor come off as stupid. And the music is just awful, with one exception. It's in a scene at the docks where Scarecrow teaches Polly to dance. He explains to her that a good dancer will flow with the music, or something like that. The song begins and Polly is taught to dance perfectly with ONE LESSON! Thing is, at the docks there could not have been a way this music was playing, so how does Polly flow with music that is not there? Think that type of laziness is bad? It's worse:

As Feathertop, Scarecrow appears as a normal human unless he looks in a mirror. His reflection shows his straw and stick self. Yet Rich and Nissen forgot this during the dance contest, when we see Feathertop's reflection in the dance floor and his legs are not that of his scarecrow self.

Early on the witch indicates that Grisham's obsession with making dance apparel at the mill is insane. But a song later states that it is making him very wealthy. That doesn't sound insane to me.

The voice cast isn't anything special. Polly is fine as the damsel in distress, but Scarecrow is voiced in an uninspired and boring manner.. Worst of all is Grisham. Ray Porter gives him a slur so over-the-top that he is neither funny nor scary. He's just stupid and laughable.

One of the tired running gags is the big belly of the mill foreman, Cheswick. Cheswick even named his stomach Melvin. Melvin has a mind of its own, moving from side to side and leading his master around when hungry. This is as amusing as watching mold grow on cheese.

I find it insulting that Polly would fall in love with and agree to marry Feathertop when she barely knows him.

You would think Grisham would be smart enough to make the judge of his dance contest a loyal and heavily paid employee, not the chauffeur that hates him.

The thing that first raised a warning sign for me is the thing that made me most upset. The witch that made Scarecrow is hiding out in a shack near where Polly lives. The witch realizes that someday Scarecrow will speak to Polly, which she concludes will result in Grisham finding out where she is and coming to get her. In a totally selfish act, the witch high-tails it out of there, leaving Scarecrow to almost certain doom should her hunch be correct. This is just wrong in so many ways. She's essentially his parent, and instead of working the situation out or taking Scarecrow with her, she leaves her child to die. And being the narrator suggests that she knew what was going on from start to finish, and never stepped in to lend a hand.

`But you can't use these things to judge a movie for kids,' some people are probably saying. I disagree. If animators want to make something for kids, they can't insult their intelligence, poor animation and songs aside. But most children's films that are at the bottom rungs are better than this. Films like `The King and I,' and `The Swan Princess III' (and, gee, look at who made those!) are bad movies, but not terrible movies. This . . . is a terrible movie. Zantara's score: 1 out of 10.

What a wonderful movie!

[emilyrae12345 · 10/10 · 23 August 2012]

I watched this when I was 10. I'm much older now and have never forgotten this movie! It is one of the sweetest, cutest most heart warming movies I have ever seen in my life.! All the songs are quite lovely and the scarecrow is quite charming!!!! I wish things were like this in the real world!The way scarecrow looks at Polly every time he see's her. The innocence in his heart. Especially the song he sings about her is just incredibly romantic! And his voice, both his and Polly's couldn't have done a better job! I only wish I could have seen them get married.! I wish he hadn't of left her at the chapel after all those years of waiting and when it happens he walk away. But that's love for you. The end is my favorite, where he saves them and finally becomes a real human! :) Such a sweet happy ending!

They don't get much worse than this.

[rjslick · 1/10 · 13 May 2004]

Wretched animation, inane dialog, and songs that would embarrass Tiffany to have sung.

The musical numbers all feel like they were lifted from an SNL skit in the 80's. The animation makes Scooby Doo look like art. The fairy godmother appears as a computer screen, complete with touchpad to make your selection. There are other bad references to 80's & 90's culture throughout, although it's supposedly set in the 1800's. Hawthorne's heirs should sue for defamation.

Just poke yourself in the eye for 90 minutes while listening to a jackhammer; it'll be a more enjoyable experience than this.

Actually, amazing.

[kittybum · 10/10 · 3 February 2007]

Okay, so the animation is low-budget, the characters act completely without regard to their time period, and the lyrics to the songs, which are far more catchy than they have any right to be, sound as if the writers were offered twenty bucks and a sandwich for their services. (I won't even go into the unfortunate Cheswick, or the completely grating little witch Bebe, who frames the story.) That doesn't stop this from being an amazingly hilarious, ultimately sweet film worth a look (or ten), especially with a group of adult friends. The movie showcases one of the campiest, most flamboyant "villians" ever committed to film, adorable protagonists, quotable lines, and even a surprise evildoer in the guise of a comic sidekick--seriously, what is wrong with Max the mouse? Do yourself a favor, and pick this up for a couple of bucks, with a group of like-minded buds looking for hilarity. Kids would probably enjoy this one, but it's really for someone old enough to understand why "jivey, hip-hop trash!" is so funny.

GET THE FEATHER.

Quick Review

[Alex_Kladis · 4/10 · 20 September 2018]

The Scarecrow's animation is uniquely bad. Every movement is out of synchronisation, the characters are bland caricatures and the script give them not mercy.

A bit of a copycat of Beauty and the Beast in style and in plot, but - again - with no hero or any character at all making it worth watching it!

Disappointing

[James12345203799 · 10 February 2003]

This film could have been a success. The scarecrow looking too human made the conclusion slightly ridiculous. He should have been more nightmarish. Also, two annoying sidekicks, bad animation, an annoying villain and (except one) awful songs made this a failure, at least to me. You'd be better off sticking with the new wave of Disney adaptions then this rubbish.

Animated film with a terrible message

[biga1992 · 4/10 · 18 August 2017]

Did enjoy the animation and music of the film, only thing about this movie that bothers me is that Scarecrow not gets the girl, he does it by and getting away with lying. I mean Polly and orphans trusted him and the whole time, he's been lying them. It bothers because, this is one if the animated films that's designed to lecture kids the importance and differences between right and wrong, the type of life lessons that are not only considered useful in the real world, but keeps kids from growing up to be criminals. For example, Aladdin and Buster Moon dealt with the same situation, but they eventually had to endure the consequences of lying. They didn't even added a scene where the Scarecrow (Aka Feathertop) develops the balls to finally tell Polly the truth, but instead the kept Polly suckered in the Scarecrow's masquerade like the rest of Grisham Heights.

It's not even that bad

[pmorris-74703 · 10/10 · 15 July 2021]

I mean yes the animation is bad but most of the songs on here is quite underrated.

This movie had potential... it just chose to ignore it...

[raven_blood88 · 1/10 · 28 July 2006]

This movie could've been an adorable film. No lie. The storyline had the best potential I'd seen in a while. *A poor girl struggles in the Colonial Era to earn enough money to free herself and three other kids from an orphanage and a cruel man. But knowing he would take her money, she hides it under an old scarecrow, who is deeply in love with her.* Let me tell you, I was enchanted at the first few minutes of it. It had all the warmth of a Disney movie, but it also had elements similar to a good Don Bluth movie like 'Anastasia' or 'Thumbelina'. Then, it happened.

The Scarecrow comes to life, and uses slang. Okay, that's bad, but I still thought it could've been a good movie. Silly me. His dreams of becoming a dancer were actually extremely cute. All he wanted was to dance with Polly. That's so cute and child-like, I pretty much pushed the slang thing aside. Until... a random witch who was narrating this movie appears to change him into a human for Polly. It seemed cute, until I saw his human form.

His gawky, lanky frame was suddenly that of a buff, tough looking guy. His golden straw hair was suddenly black. (He doesn't even look remotely the same.) And the only way he'd look like this is if he kept his magic feather ('Dumbo' anyone?) in his hat. Thus, he adopted the name Feathertop, and went to find Polly.

Polly, needless to say, forgets that her loyal scarecrow even existed, and falls head over heels for Feathertop. (Why any girl would fall in love with a guy who was named after a feather in his hat is beyond me. I guess love really is blind.) He teaches her how to dance in one lesson, which was bizarre, and then the two go off to a dance contest. Cue the most horrendous music I think I've ever heard in my life. They go from JITTERBUGGING to doing BACKSTREET BOYS/Britney SPEARS CRAP DANCING!! Hello! This is the 1800's. These dances wouldn't have even been thought of.

Then, I don't even remember the ending, except he stays a human. (BUT he stays his ugly brunette buff self, instead of becoming a human form closer related to his scarecrow form. I mean, come on, the brunette buff form was just a disguise. He should've looked more like his older scarecrow self, only human of course.) It was just bad. This movie had potential... it just chose to ignore it, and that's why it was bad. 1 out of 10.

A Fun Filled Romantic Musical

[MovieTVRomanceFan · 10/10 · 20 August 2021]

I fondly remember this movie from my childhood and after watching it again for the first time in years it's better than I remembered. This movie had so much and it was all completely perfect the comedy, music, romance, adventure, magic etc. Everything was simply perfect. I honestly love movies like this one. The songs were fun and uplifting from all the dances, solos or duets. I also loved the characters. Feathertop was spirited, Polly has the biggest heart, Rat was realistic and Grisham was absolutely selfish. Honestly, I think Grisham is one of my favourite villains. I loved watching as he tried to steal Polly's heart, his pettiness or his catchphrase and Rat is one of the best animal characters ever and I feel like there should be more like him out there.

However the real highlight of the entire movie was Feathertop and Polly's romance. They are so sweet and absolutely beautiful together. I just love how everything Feathertop did throughout the film was just so he could be with Polly and in the end, he got his wish granted by proving himself through a heroic sacrifice. Polly and Feathertop really proved their love by the end of the film through Polly's faith in him to his courage to confess his true self. Plus all the dances they shared with each other were amazing to watch from beginning to end. Overall, the Scarecrow is such an underrated film with great songs, a beautiful love story and characters anyone could love or relate to.

Happily Surprised

[weaselgirl_rk4ever · 14 May 2004]

I'm an animation fanatic, and so when I saw that Cartoon Network was airing The Scarecrow, I thought it looked interesting. So I watched it. I have to say that it was very good. Most of the smaller animation studios eke out films that are barely decent, but this film was surprisingly good. The animation was extremely smooth and the colors vibrant, while the voices were excellent. (Except for the fairy in the beginning; I found the prologue to be a little annoying on her part.) The dance sequence at the competition was brilliantly executed. The music was done by Kurt Bestor, who did one of my favorite movies, Rigoletto. There was, of course, several hokey things done "for the kiddies" that were just dumb, like Chezwick's "Melvin" deal. But I found the movie to be for the most part excellent.

AAAAAUUUUUGGGGGHHHHHH!!!

[eowyn_in_gondor · 24 May 2004]

I would have more fun having fifty leeches drain my life away through my face. And I'm not just saying that. Can you say "Anachronism?" Because that is basically what this is. A very long anachronism. This thing takes place in the 1800s, right? Then what in the ruddy heck is swing dance and ballet doing there??? DISCO?!?!It's just too agonizing to watch. And of course even the poor and destitute of the town are perfect company dancers. I wouldn't think this kind of drivel would even SELL any more - how the heck did they get the money to make this?

It is one of those movies that is so horrifically bad it's hilarious. I was watching it with my siblings and when the bad guy said menacingly, "GET THE FEATHER!!!!!" I burst out laughing, even when my little brother, bless him, turned to me with pain in his eyes and said, "That's not funny..."

But in its defense, at least they are making an honest effort to make clean entertainment for children. Too bad they didn't do a better job.