Dumbo

For the Brooklyn, New York City, neighborhood, see DUMBO.

Story

The film takes place in a circus setting, ostensibly in present-day 1941, and begins with a formation of storks delivering newborn offspring to the various circus animals. Mrs. Jumbo's baby is delivered to her belatedly by a mixed-up stork, but the baby is well received by the other elephants until the size of his ears are revealed. The elephant, named Jumbo Jr. by his mother, is immediately re-christened "Dumbo" by the gossipy female elephants, who regard both mother and son as outcasts. The two get along fine without them, however, until Mrs. Jumbo is imprisoned as a 'mad elephant" after trying to defend her son from a crowd of teasing spectators. A mouse named Timothy becomes Dumbo's friend and mentor, and crafts a plan to make the sorrowful little elephant a star.

Related Topics:
Circus - 1941 - Stork

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Timothy subliminally convinces the circus ringmaster to set up a "pyramid of pachyderms," to the top of which Dumbo will jump (using a springboard). The act goes horribly wrong, the big top falls to the ground, the other elephants are seriously injured, and Dumbo is unceremoniously demoted to being a clown. Dumbo's clown act involves him falling from a platform in a dramatized fire rescue into a vat of pie filling. The audience reacts well to the act, and the clowns decide to alter the act for the next show so that Dumbo falls from an platform many times higher than the original one.

Related Topics:
Subliminally - Clown - Fire rescue - Pie

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After an emotional visit to his mother's cell, Dumbo and Timothy try to plot their next step. They settle down for a drink of water outside of the clowns' tent. Unbeknownst to them, the water has been spiked with moonshine, and the elephant and mouse become inebriated and hallucinatory, seeing pink elephants sing and dance before their eyes.

Related Topics:
Cell - Water - Moonshine - Hallucinatory - Pink

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Dumbo and Timothy awake the next morning--in a tree over 100 feet (30 m) up, awoken by a gaggle of amused black crows. Timothy surmises that Dumbo flew the both of them to the top of the tree while they were drunk, an idea the crows find hilarious. Nevertheless, the crows decide to help Timothy teach Dumbo to fly. By convincing the elephant he can fly with the use of a "magic feather," they succeed in getting Dumbo to fly.

Related Topics:
Tree - Crows

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Dumbo shows up at the next clown "fire rescue" performance with his magic feather; however, he loses the feather after leaping from the platform. Timothy admits that Dumbo can fly without the magic feather, and, barely avoiding death from the fall, Dumbo opens his ears and soars through the air, to the amazement of the audience. Dumbo the Flying Elephant is made the star of the circus and an international celebrity, and he and his mother are reunited and given their own private coach on the circus train.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~