The Reluctant Dragon

1941 film directed by Alfred L. Werker and Hamilton Luske

Film · TMDB

6.6

Humorist Robert Benchley attempts to find Walt Disney to ask him to adapt a short story about a gentle dragon who would rather recite poetry than be ferocious. Along the way, he is given a tour of Walt Disney Studios, and learns about the animation process.

Released: 1941-06-1974 minDir: Alfred L. WerkerAnimation, Family, Comedy

Cast

Robert Benchley as Robert Benchley
Frances Gifford as Doris
Buddy Pepper as Humphrey
Nana Bryant as Mrs. Benchley
Claud Allister as Sir Giles (segment "The Reluctant Dragon") (voice)
Barnett Parker as Dragon (segment "The Reluctant Dragon") (voice)

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Ratings

IMDb

6.7/10

Article

The Reluctant Dragon is a 1941 American live-action/animated anthology comedy film produced by Walt Disney, directed by Alfred Werker, and released by RKO Radio Pictures on June 27, 1941. Essentially a tour of the then-new Walt Disney Studios facility in Burbank, California, the film stars Algonquin Round Table member, film actor, writer and comedian Robert Benchley and many Disney staffers such as Ward Kimball, Fred Moore, Norman Ferguson, Clarence Nash, and Walt Disney, all as themselves.

The first twenty minutes of the film is in black-and-white, and the remainder is in Technicolor. Most of the film is live-action, with four short animated segments inserted into the running time: a black-and-white segment featuring Casey Junior from Dumbo; and three Technicolor cartoons: Baby Weems (presented as a storyboard), Goofy's How to Ride a Horse, and the extended-length short The Reluctant Dragon, based upon Kenneth Grahame's short story of the same name. The total length of all animated parts is 40 minutes.