Roger Ebert gave this 2 stars because it was "too depressing." Then he gave All Dogs Go To Heaven 3 stars. Then he later gave Hunchback his highest rating of 4/4 stars!
That proves that Roger Ebert can be a hypocryte. Seriously his reason for disliking An American Tail is bullcrap. An American Tail is a very wonderful film, and a masterpiece.
"Masterpiece"? I wouldn't go that far-but it is very good. And yes, Ebert was hypocritical at times, but I still love his work! I wish I had the same job!
+Zachary Siple well, in my opinion, An American Tail is a masterpiece. I love An American Tail a lot! It's actually my favorite movie of all time. I would even argue that An American Tail is better than a lot of the popular animated films like Toy Story, Lion King, and Secret of Nimh.
Animated movies didn't have the reputation of quality anymore when AAT was released. Part of the reason that reputation was developed was by Bluth's work, Land Before Time, AAT, etc. Hunchback and Disney benefited from being pushed by Bluth to improve their own work. By the time Hunchback came out they'd had a string of high quality hits and the bias that they could do no wrong. Even still, Hunchback and parts of Tarzan and Mulan are the few times they dared go as dark/emotional as Bluth. Hunchback also had the advantage of being adapted from a famous and well respected piece of literature whereas AAT didn't. And lastly, critics be people too, and people be biased, stupid and inconsistent.
I know this happened 3 years ago but R.I.P. James Horner. Also, fantastic job, Mat. I love hearing about your passion for the art of animation through each of your lookbacks and reviews. Those “no cats” jokes are hilarious by the way.
Great review as always but to me the best part of the whole thing is the running gag with the "There is No Cats in America" playing throughout cutting Animat off, its hilarious Here are the times .2:18-2:24 .4:51-4:58(that one's my favorite) .8:05-8:11 .9:21-34
Well, he may or may not have grown up with classic cartoons, or at least cartoons that almost perfectly emulate their humor. So that could explain the comedic timing.
I love An American Tail and feel like it's a perfect mix of light and dark for a family film. It's very much a story fueled on emotion, which I think is something a lot of kids will really connect with; when things are bad, they go out of their way to have the audience share Fievel's sense of hopelessness, when things turn out good, you're just as overwhelmed with joy as the characters. I also understand Siskel and Ebert wishing they had delved a little more into the history of Jewish persecution in Russia and immigrant hardships, but for a kids' film, which you have to remember, is what it is, I think they did a really good job. Plus, like you said, the film takes on Fievel's perspective, and he's a little kid. It makes sense that those elements would only be hinted at because a young child observing them is less likely to understand the full context, but only to the extent that it directly affects his day to day life.
I truly love this animated movie in my childhood! Kids and families should definitely watch this movie to show the strong moral and theme of family and immigration. If I have kids, I should let them watch this movie with me in the future.
I remembered watching this movie years ago back during my childhood, so after seeing this video as an adult, I decided to go and rewatch it. Now I'm crying ugly tears ToT 😭😭😭
I watched it again as an adult and was surprised how emotional I actually got. To the point where I had to pause the movie toward the end! And, of course, I cried more when the family found Fievel.
@@dancepigloverYeesh…now I know why I admittedly thought it was painfully perfect timing for Donald Trump’s pathetic excuse of a U.S. Presidential election to have occurred right around the time it was exactly thirty years since this particular subject in AniMat’s Classic Reviews was actually released!
An American Tail is my favorite animated movie ever! Along with The Land Before Time (also directed by Bluth), this is also one of my favorite movies of all time, because of the heart and soul put into it. I'll always love this movie, its sequel An American Tail: Fievel Goes West and Fievel Mousekewitz himself forever more.
Tell me about about it :) Same here! An American Tail has always been a huge favorite film of mine(It still is my favorite movie of all time, even to this very day). I also love the sequel An American Tail 2: Fievel Goes West. Both the original An American Tail and Fievel Goes West are masterpieces. I still watch both these films on VHS, and I still have a really fantastic time with them, they never get old. My favorite character is Fievel Mousekewitz, he's an awesome, very relatable, energetic, and friendly character :) I wish the An American Tail series and its characters get more recognition these days. They're very wonderful films that still hold up strongly, even to this day.
Me personally, I didn’t have this movie on VHS or DVD, and I don’t dig this movie as much as some other non-Disney films, but... “BUT THERE ARE NO CATS IN AMERICA...” No, no, no, that’s not what I meant! Anyways, what I was saying, while it’s not one of all time faves, it’s still very charming, has fun characters, and definitely an emotional adventure. If you thought “American Tail” was dark and depressing though, wait till you get to the original “Land Before Time.” That movie definitely ups the intensity and drama. I hope that movie gets a classic review soon.
@@kylgrv Your opinion, but in my opinion, An American Tail is a really great film. The story, characters, music, and writing are really top notch in this film. The original An American Tail and its sequel Fievel Goes West deserve to be regarded as one of the best films of all time.
I might be in the minority for saying this but I think An American Tail is a bit better than The secret of Nimh. Now don’t get me wrong, Nimh was an amazing film, but I find there’s a bit more emotion here.
Me personally, I think the film is a mix of both light hearted and dark elements. For every traumatic hardship that Fievel faces when trying to find his parents in New York, he does end up getting into more sentimental territory with other characters. In a way, I feel like Siskel & Ebert missed somewhat of what the film was trying to do, but I can see where they were coming from nonetheless.
AniMat: It doesn't help either that the movie doesn't even commit to be a musical; because if it did, then we would have gotten a song from Warren T. Rat, Tony and Bridgit, or even Honest John. Honest John (Pinocchio): Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee! An actor's life for me! AniMat: NOT THAT HONEST JOHN!!!
An American Tail is somewhere down the middle...The Mouse of Minsc (the mice's creation to scare the cats) was terrifying for me as a child and terrifies my nieces but overall it is a balance of melancholy and upbeat.
Do you still love this movie? I've always loved An American Tail as well. As a matter of fact, I still love An American Tail(Even to this day). An American Tail is a very amazing and wonderful movie. Somewhere Out There is a very lovely and beautiful song :) I still sting this song a lot.
For no reason whatsoever, critics seriously downplayed this movie when it came out. Seriously this movie has a 68% on Rotten Tomatoes. It emotionally destroys me because whenever I say "An American Tail", everyone thinks I'm talking about "Fievel Goes West"...........WHY DOES EVERYONE LOVE THAT SEQUEL?!?! >:(
If your one who's only seen the original and want a proper follow up, skip "Fievel Goes West", forget that "Fievel's American Tails" ever happened, and just watch the two direct to video sequels.
That also happened to me as well. Every time I ask people in the school I go to if they have ever watched An American Tail, the response I always got recieved is "ooh, you mean Fievel Goes West?", when really I'm referring to the original An American Tail.
An American Tail still deserves to have a much higher score than 68% though. As a matter of fact, An American Tail deserves to have more recognition these days. Every time Don Bluth fans mention spectacular films, I always hear just the Land Before Time, Secret of Nimh, and Anastasia. Where's the love for An American Tail? An American Tail is a very wonderful film. I'm surprised that it become so underrated. Heck, to me, An American Tail is Don Bluth's best work. An American Tail deserves to have as much fame as other popular animated films like Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story, and the Lion King.
I will never for get the memories I spend watching these movies on VHS, I used to love these films so much and watching them again as a freshman would really give me pure nostalgia and happiness. I never even knew how accurate this movie was to desplying the hatred against Jewish people and personally if a movie can be this realistic and as still be targeted towards kids then you known your doing something right. These movies will always hold a special place in my heart.
To be fair, An American Tail is both whimsical and dark (similar to Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs). While the story in its core is dramatic and grim, it has some joyful moments that allow us to enjoy the film overall. Besides, we need more animated movies that tackle the same themes shown in An American Tail.
Name one classic illumination has done that's gonna be as well remembered as nihm, lbt, aat, And all dogs go to heaven.. Illumination is cheap safe animation
I think this review and Who Framed Roger Rabbit are my favorite reviews of yours so far this year. This is one of my personal favorite animated films from my childhood.
Ok, every time i hear Ebert's review of this film i can't help but feel like he said his wallet tasted good, I mean seriously An american tail was too dark for kids? Isn't Secret of Nimh a million times darker than this? Even worse is that Both Ebert and Siskel liked Secret of Nimh and i don't know why.
I remember really enjoying this film as a kid but in regards to the dark tone some people think it has, I had that more with the sequel, I remember being for some reason being a bit scared of the giant mouse trap and the water all drying up. Looking back, I was a weird child... but I still like both films a lot, and felt very alone when some performers at one of my many primary schools performed somewhere out there and I was about the only kid in the audience who knew it (minding you this would have been in the early 2000's though...)
An American Tail is my second favorite non-Disney animated movie in existence. Most of what I like about this movie comes from three things: the Star Child Fievel, the voice cast, and the movie's similarities to my first favorite non-Disney movie, The Land Before Time. First of all, Fievel is such a cute mouse kid that I feel outright distraught when I see him separated from his family. But, those sad feelings turn into happiness when I see those who have enough compassion to try to help him through his tough times. In fact, I get outright ecstatic when I see Fievel reunited with his family. Then there's the voice cast. The actual child voice of Phillip Glasser is the main reason why Fievel is my favorite character, but even there is even a good supply of adult voices; from cartoon actors like Neil Ross and Will Ryan to famous celebrities like Christopher Plummer and Dom DeLuise. Finally, this movie helps remind me of The Land Before Time. Not only can I tell it was Don Bluth who created this movie, but it even comes with music created by James Horner. Clearly this movie does not need dinosaurs to remind me of my favorite animation projects, it gets along just fine on its own. It's all three of these elements that make me love An American Tail, and that makes this movie perfect proof of how much I love Don Bluth. P.S. As annoyed as I am that this Patreon person is the reason for both American Tail movies being reviewed, I am somewhat happy that this can mean he is obviously a fan of the American Tail franchise. At least this can mean we have something in common. If only I could know if he likes The Land Before Time. P.S.S. I was amused when you brought up Fievel being "close" to his family. A-DA-DI-DA-DEE-DEE-DA-DA! They're taunting us! XD P.S.S.S. Mice and Dinosaurs forever!
I would watch this at my grandparents house when I was a kid. I do believe that even though I wasnt aware of history at the time, the values i learned and the emotions i felt through watching it made me a better person. Great review. Subbed.
Im definitely more in the middle between the film being in the light and dark. I think its lighter than Secret of Nimh and Land Before Time but i can see what Roger Ebert was talking about in his review.
Roger Ebert and Siskel Are very biased towards An American Tail. Their review of An American Tail is the worst review I have ever seen. I feel like I'm seeing a review of two soccer moms being over-protective of children. He and Siskel gives praise towards the Secret of Nimh, and that film is as equally dark as An American Tail. Siskel and Ebert prove to be hyprocrites in that review.
Full Voice Actor List Phillip Glasser: Fievel Mousekewitz - Amy Greene: Tanya Mousekewitz - Nehemiah Persoff: Papa Mousekewitz - Erica Yohn: Mama Mousekewitz - Dom DeLuise: Tiger the Orange Cat - John P Finnegan: Warren T Rat - Pat Musick: Toni Toponi, Multiple Females - Cathianne Blore: Bridgette - Neil Ross: Honest John, Multiple Males - Madeline Khan: Gussie Mousenheimer - Hal Smith: Moe, Multiple Males - Will Ryan: Digit, Multiple Males - Christopher Plummer: Henri the Pidgeon - Jim Cummings: Multiple Males - Tress MecNeille: Multiple Females - Billy West: Multiple Males - Peter Cullen: Multiple Males - Frank Welker: Multiple Males - Linda Gary: Multiple Females
Hey Animat ! Thank you for you review, i watched an American tail a long time ago, but I remembered almost everything thanks to this video. I have to say, i'm a bit mixed up with the idea of a dark side of the movie, because I think this is only the simple and pure vision of life. There is a dark side but, also, hope through the entire movie. Anyways, that was very interesting. I am very happy that the next review is this one, I really liked it, even if I watched It when I was, what, 15/16 years old back then. I was expecting something very different at the time, but it really affected me in a way. Thank you so much for everything you did so far, keep up the good work. !
I'm in the middle regarding the tone of this film overall. The opening is a bit... much, but I don't think the rest is too dark for most young viewers. However, I do have issues with the pacing and editing. I find it kind of abrupt and random sometimes. Also, for me the frustrating moments of Fievel and his family barely missing each other are just... Argh!
“No Cats in America” stood out to me as much as “Somewhere Out There”, but the latter is the most emotional song in the movie. And though Fievel’s voice actor has some trouble singing it, it still is a beautiful song to me.
I never saw this movie as a kid, only one of its many sequels, but it's a good one now that I have seen it, it definitely is good. Just a little messy, also I wish they would have put child actors who could actually sing to do the big duet, it makes it... very hard to listen to and enjoy how off key they are most of the time.
Great video except for one small gripe. When you mentioned some of the characters seeming like attempts at being Disney characters... Folks seem to forget that Don bluth worked for Disney before leaving to make his own movies, specifically because he felt movies could benefit from being darker and therefore more emotionally impactful; and Disney at the time was strictly doing what had always worked for them, not really doing anything new.
Also an american Tail also have books in mcdonalds toys plush and a collection of toys from the second movie the figurines include the characters of Fievel Tanya Yasha Tiger willye burp and Cat R Waul
Animat's Classic Reviews 2018 Rankings: #1 Wall-E & Who Framed Roger Rabbit *10/10* #3 Rescuers Down Under *8.7/10* #4 Alice in Wonderland *8.5/10* #5 Mr Bug Goes To Town *7.7/10* #6 An American Tail *7.5/10* #7 Wizards *5.7/10* #8 Fievel Goes West *5.7/10* #9 Pokemon The First Movie *5.3/10* #10 Quest for Camelot *5.2/10* #11 Titan A.E *4.7/10* #12 A Liar's Biography *4.7/10*
'Somewhere Out There' is a phenomenal song - no question about it. However, the original with Fievel and Tilly isn't really that good. It pales in comparison to the Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram's version.
George Harvey That's not true, Fievel & Tanya's version of Somewhere Out There is very good. It doesn't pale in comparison to Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram's version, it's actually better because it's adorable and more interesting. Also it's Tanya not Tilly, get your facts right! Linda Ronstadt's and James Ingram's don't have much and don't hold a candle compared the original making them the inferior version.
I love both the Fievel and Tanya's version & the Linda Ronstadt and James Ingram version. Both versions of the song "Somewhere Out There" are wonderful versions in my opinion.
Looks like were going down more country roads next time. Also, I'd consider my opinion of the film's tone to be somewhere in the middle. On the one hand, It would have an emotionally harsh overtone where the dangers seem very real and the fact that fievel is just a lost innocent child in a cruel world. On the other hand however, the film has plenty of moments with cartoony animal characters doing zany antics, upbeat musical numbers and a few comic relief characters like Tiger. Say what you will, but there's no denying that it's a journey where getting to the family Reunion is worth it.
My review for the first animated feature presented by Steven Spielberg is 7/10 for these things... - The Story: 8/10 - The Animation: 9/10 - The Characters: 7/10 - The Songs: 6/10
It is a tearjerking, dark, and very emotional film. But I wouldn't say it's waay too depressing the whole way through though. To me, this film is a great balance of lighthearted , sad, and dark. And one of the reason why I love An American Tail is because of that.
I wonder if anyone's going to mention that the DVD and Blu-Ray releases of An American Tail did some changes to the film. I'm serious, compare the VHS version of the film to the DVD or Blu-Ray version, there are various scenes where there are minor characters are re-dubbed, and change some dialogue, along with taking out some of the violin parts in the soundtrack. I'm surprised people rarely mention this fact. And the DVD and Blu-Ray version is the only version of the film that's re-released in any new media like streaming services(Itunes and Netflix for example), and the only way to watch the original theatrical version of the film with no changes are VHS, Betamax, and Laserdisk versions(As far as I'm aware of).
I LOVE An American Tail! :) I'm proud to say I'm a huge fan of this film. I actually own the original An American Tail and An American Tail 2: Fievel Goes West on VHS since I was little. I love both the original An American Tail and An American Tail 2 since I was little, and I still love them to this very day. You can ask anyone in my family,and they'll tell you I love An American Tail a lot, and that I'm a huge Fievel fan! :) The original An American Tail has a very wonderful story that's really relatable, meaningful, and inspiring that gives a a impactful experience. It gives a really smart social commentary regarding the immigration experience, which makes the situations Fievel is going through really real, relatable, and still relevant. An American Tail also has very amazing characters, a very wonderful soundtrack by James Horner, a really great and memorable writing, and beautiful atmosphere which the soundtrack complements. I even find the main villain Warren T. Rat a really great antagonists. He didn't seem to make it obvious he's the main villain till the 2nd to 3rd act in the film. And he manages to be both humorous and intimidating villian. In my opinion, An American Tail is a masterpiece, and it is my favorite movie of all time! I might be in a minority but, I even go as far to say that An American Tail is a lot better than a lot of the popular animated films like Toy Story, The Lion King, Monster's Inc. The Secret of Nimh, and Beauty & the Beast. People always says these films are the best, but I'll always say An American Tail is the best :)
I'm still not a fan of the film but I still can't believe I bullied Siskel and Ebert's critics solely because we didn't like it. What the hell was I thinking?
An American Tail is a huge personal favorite film of mine. It's heartwarming, has a really great story, and really memorable characters. An American Tail also has a really wonderful soundtrack as well. I highly consider An American Tail a huge underrated masterpiece. It still boggles my mind this film is barely talked about upon animation fans. Every time I hear people talk about Bluth films, it's mainly either the Secret of Nimh or The Land Before Time, or how very underrated Anastasia and Titan AE is , even though An American Tail is just as great as these films. I'll never understand why An American Tail is quite forgotten by so many people(Even Don Bluth fans, as sad as it sounds), which is strangely apparent it's forgotten. It's never forgotten by me, that's for sure. I love An American Tail since a long time throughout my childhood, and I still love it to this day. I even love the sequel An American Tail 2: Fievel Goes West. As a matter of fact, I still treasure both my VHS copies of the original An American Tail and Fievel Goes West, along with other old-school animated films on VHS.
I wonder if anyone could consider Looney Tunes' Sniffles the Mouse as sort of a Fievel prototype? I would probably call Sniffles a Fievel prototype. Note that I say prototype (another word could be "precursor") and not "rip-off", since Sniffles came first. It's more like in the Looney Tunes series, where there was a prototype for Bugs Bunny who first appeared in "Porky's Hare Hunt", and even appeared in the first Elmer Fudd short, "Elmer's Candid Camera", and Elmer Fudd has his own prototype named Egghead, and even Sniffles' debut cartoon features a sort of prototype of Sylvester, who would make his "official" debut in the Friz Freleng-directed short "Life with Feathers", and even Prissy from the Foghorn Leghorn shorts has a precursor named Emily the Chicken. Personally, if I would be an animation student, or something, I would probably use at least Fievel as sort of a subject to practice the directorial styles of each of Warner Bros. Cartoons' most famous directors. I think maybe I'd try and go with Friz Freleng's sort of style.
About the Warren T villain song, this was before the villain song became a stable of Disney musicals. Before the Renaissance, villain songs were either sung by minor characters (like "We Are Siamese"), were really short (like Captain Hook's song), or weren't there at all. About the dark tone, this is actually the reason I dislike Fievel Goes West. It's just really jarring how the first film was this heavy drama about the perils of immigration, and the sequel was trying to be a Looney Tunes cartoon.
Could you please add “Twice Upon a Time” to the Animation Hat? I’d really like to see a full review after the film was on your “Top 10 Underrated Animated Films” list.
Personally, I think this film is actually in the middle of Don Bluth's films in terms of its tone. It's not quite as dark as his other works like The Land Before Time or The Secret of NIMH, but it's still a bit darker than most of his works from the 1990s and 2000s. I can't wait to see you do a review on The Land Before Time, if you ever get along to it.
Same here :) I LOVE both the original An American Tail and An American Tail 2, they're very wonderful films, and they're very underrated as well. I wish the An American Tail films gets more recognition. Seriously, Fievel needs more love.
