The Vanishing Prairie

source: The Vanishing Prairie

Moviecut—The Vanishing Prairie

The Vanishing Prairie

"The Vanishing Prairie" is an old nature documentary from Disney that just debuted on Disney+. I enjoyed watching it very much, though the quality of the print is surprisingly poor. It's a bit fuzzy and faded...but not so much you shouldn't see it. It's not nearly as nice to see as Disney's newer nature films....though I could look past this. The film focuses on the center portion of the United States...between the Eastern and Central portions of the country and the Rocky Mountains. Much was filmed in and around Yellowstone National Park, as many of the animals couldn't be found elsewhere in the 1950s. Featured are mostly mammals (both predators and non-predators) but you'll also see a few clips of birds and fish. So is this worth seeing? Yep. The narration is generally good, the footage sometimes amazing and one of my only complaints (aside from the print) is the 'funny' music they sometimes used. I would have just preferred no music at all in some cases.

One of the most famous "True-Life Adventures" from Disney and a charming documentary that showcases very well the style of this feature series. It's value as a documentary is arguable, but the intention of Disney was always to create something entertaining and not far from its fictional features, even when that means a lot of anthropomorphizing and staged situations.

I didn't knew the existence of this until i saw a disney+ instagram story. Hope it's good! Love from brazil!

Wonderful documentaries, and certainty of the perfection of nature, how everything fits perfectly, like a puzzle, between hunters and prey, seasons, food, naturally balanced (when there is no human interference) everything millimetrically magnanimous... The narration is so cute, the magnificent photography, richness of details, enthralling, there could be more "stories" with the personified animals...

Oscar-winning documentary from Disney about life on the American prairie. No humans here, just various animals. Most of which are being cute. There are some moments to illustrate nature's more violent tendencies but nothing too graphic or depressing. This is Disney, after all. The point of this was to raise awareness about conservation of the prairie. It may seem dated and unoriginal today after decades of nature documentaries on television but, keep in mind, this was pioneering stuff back in 1954. I can imagine it was very impressive to see such footage in theaters at the time. The color photography is beautiful. There's also a fine music score from Paul J. Smith. Winston Hibler's narration is a little monotonous but there's enough action, drama, and humor to keep your interest. It's very enjoyable and should please young and old alike.

I imagine that a lot of viewers today, young or old, will wonder why "The Vanishing Prairie" was so popular at the time, and why it won an Academy Award. In many ways it doesn't seem very different from the countless nature documentary shows seen on television nowadays. But one has to remember that this was new stuff to audiences back in 1954. And while its approach may be familiar, the documentary still manages to entertain today. Certainly, sharp-eyed viewers will manage to point out with confidence segments that were obvious manipulated (or down right faked) in the editing room or on location. But the documentary does contain more often than not footage that is genuine (like the famous birth of a baby bison sequence) and manages to educate as well as entertain. If you're in the mood for a nature documentary and your expectations aren't extremely high, you'll likely find this to be worth your time.

Disney's second feature-length True-Life Adventure, after "The Living Desert". I still have reservations about the use of music for a comic effect, but I suppose it's done to cater to the smallest kids in the audience. Once again, the company photographers deserve credit for their hard work. Most impressive are the shots from INSIDE the underground tunnels that the prairie "dogs" (more like squirrels) dig, most revealing is the scene of a buffalo giving birth, and most suspenseful the near-encounter between a puma and a fawn. *** out of 4.