A cartoon fiesta of fun and fantasy!
The Three Caballeros is a 1944 live-action/animated musical anthology film directed by Norman Ferguson, produced by Walt Disney Productions, and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures. It stars Clarence Nash and José do Patrocínio Oliveira. It was nominated for Best Original Score and Best Sound, but did not win either.
"Have you been to Baía, Donald?" - José Carioca
Plot
Donald Duck receives three birthday presents that take him around the world and teach him about different cultures.
My Favorite Part of The Three Caballeros
This is tough. I guess my favorite part of this film is the creativity. This is one of Disney's weirdest creations. It is out there. It feels like some of the artists got free reign to do whatever they want and put some truly cool and unique animation onto the big screen. It makes for a totally different experience from what any of these other Disney movies are like. In a way, it feels a bit like Fantasia (albeit much less cool).
My Least Favorite Part of The Three Caballeros
There is a lot to choose from here.
I think my least favorite part of this movie is the last portion. I also published a ranking of every segment in The Three Caballeros, but the end of this movie is just too weird and uncomfortable for me personally. Donald Duck chases after a bunch of women trying to get a kiss and then it devolves into this eerie, surreal dream sequence that is literally called "Donald's Surreal Reverie". It is a highly disturbing, highly uncomfortable, and highly awful segment and it soured me on the movie as a whole.
Why The Three Caballeros Sucks
I feel like I've been too nice to this movie so far. This movie is really, really bad. It's atrocious. It's like Disney decided to double the length of Saludos Amigos but make it more offensive and less watchable. They increased the amount of live-action they used, and it was just weird. They hadn't quite nailed the blending of live-action and animation yet, so it just felt strange and uncomfortable. And all of the segments are really, really boring. I hated this movie. It was terrible.
The Disney Evaluation
The Three Caballeros has nothing going for it in terms of iconic Disney scenes. The three caballeros themselves are somewhat memorable. Donald is obviously the standout icon, but José Carioca is kind of a fun character. The other guy, whose name is Panchito Pistoles, is relatively forgettable. And then there are no iconic scenes or memorable moments overall. There's music, but it's awful. There's dance numbers, but they suck. This movie is just plain bad.
I will give it a Poison Apple on the Disney scale.
THE DISNEY SCALE
Mickey Mouse (Top Tier Disney)
Genie's Lamp (Great Disney)
Glass Slipper (Good Disney)
A Sword in the Stone (Bad Disney)
Poison Apple (Terrible Disney)
Family Factor: 2.5/10
Characters: 4.5/10
Songs: 1.5/10
Disney Imagery: 1/10
Animation: 7.5/10
Final Thoughts and Score
Congrats to The Three Caballeros. It is officially my least favorite Disney movie.
I will go Moldy here. Age range is 4+. But don't force your 4-year-old to watch it.
SWEET N' SOUR SCALE
Sweet (Great) Savory (Good) Sour (Bad) Moldy (Terrible)
"The Three Caballeros"
Fun Factor: 2/10
Acting: 5/10
Story: 1/10
Characters: 4.5/10
Quality: 3/10
Directed by Norman Ferguson
Rated G for suggestive material, thematic elements
Released on February 3, 1945
1 hour and 11 minutes
Clarence Nash as Donald Duck
José do Patrocínio Oliveira as José Carioca
Joaquin Garay as Panchito Pistoles
Aurora Miranda as Yaya
Pinto Colvig as The Aracuan Bird