FILM FOCUS: THE ADVENTURES OF ICHABOD AND MR. TOAD

For Christmas Nick and I got a Disney gift card and I knew right away what I wanted to use my portion for: a DVD copy of The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad.  I grew up with this criminally overlooked Disney classic, which we watched every October.  The nostalgia factor aside, re-watching it this year has confirmed that this is truly one of the best things Disney ever produced.  For the purposes of this blog post I’ll be looking solely at the “Ichabod” portion of the film, both because it’s the part related to Halloween but also because it’s always been my favorite half of this dual feature (sorry, Mr. Toad!  But your ride is awesome!).

I’m going to assume you’re familiar with the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, whether this Disneyfied version, the original Washington Irving tale, or one of the countless adaptations.  Instead of a synopsis I’m going to examine some of the many reasons why Ichabod has always captured my heart and imagination. 

First and foremost, this film looks beautiful.  If, like me, you pine for the old days of hand-drawn animation you will be in heaven watching Ichabod.  My favorite Disney artist is Mary Blair and her style and flair is easily identifiable here.  Blair was known for her somewhat abstract, brightly colored paintings and while she mostly did concept art for some notable Disney films and attractions, here her work is translated to the screen most directly.  Seriously, I would frame the many gorgeous shots of the New England countryside, all of which were clearly shaped by Blair’s slightly surreal touch.  My lifelong infatuation of covered bridges, New England villages and even autumn itself clearly springs from repeat viewings of this stylized Colonial wonderland.

While re-watching the film this year I was also struck by its many similarities to my all-time favorite Disney movie, Beauty and the Beast.  Both movies open with a quaint village and feature lots of beautiful autumnal backgrounds.  Brom Bones and Gaston are almost the same character in both looks and demeanor. Things end better for Brom than they do for Gaston, but it’s easy to see Ichabod’s influence on Beauty and the Beast. 

That being said, Ichabod has a moral ambiguity that you’d be hard-pressed to find in current Disney films.  Ichabod Crane may be the protagonist of the piece but he’s hardly a cookie-cutter Disney hero.  Rather he’s a gluttonous, money-grubbing coward.  Even his attraction to Katrina seems based more on her wealth than anything else.  It’s also the rare Disney film where the villain, in the form of Brom Bones, essentially wins at the end, as Ichabod is driven out of town and Brom marries Katrina (and she seems very happy with the arrangement).

Ah, Katrina!  She easily makes my Top 10 Favorite Disney Characters list.  Katrina is far sexier than your average Disney heroine; she’s got ample cleavage and is a shameless flirt.  She manipulates both Ichabod and Brom throughout the story and in the end she prefers Brom’s brawn to Ichabod’s intelligence.  She’s even called a coquette in the song about her!  Katrina, like this entire film in general, is underutilized by modern-day Disney.  It’s next to impossible to find any merchandise featuring her-- or Ichabod and the Headless Horseman, for that matter.  What I wouldn’t give for an Ichabod dark ride in Disney World’s Liberty Square!  The film isn’t totally unrepresented in the parks—there is a Sleepy Hollow snack stand in the aforementioned Liberty Square and the Headless Horseman gallops down Main Street every year to kick off Disney World's Halloween parade.

For all my gushing, I've barely touched on the Halloween aspects (and they are plentiful) of the film. Aside from the gorgeous fall landscapes and the Headless Horseman himself, we're treated to my favorite on-screen Halloween party at the Van Tassel farmstead.  It's not even called a party but rather a "frolic."  Now forevermore I too will only host frolics. The Van Tassel Halloween frolic is a feast for the eyes: cornstalks and pumpkins and squashes abound.  And the food!  I forgot how much of Ichabod (both the character and the film) is focused on food.  Over the course of the short movie we watch him devour turkeys, salad, pies and a huge assortment of foods at the Halloween festivities.  Including what looks like red velvet cake, long before it was trendy.

Clearly I could go on and on about The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad so I'll end things for now and surely revisit the topic next Halloween.  Despite it's short running time and many repeat viewings there's always something new to discover about it and enjoy.