How to Watch Song of the South on Disney+

Walt Disney’s Song of the South is one of his most beloved and controversial movies. It introduced the world to the iconic song “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah,” and also gave James Baskett an Academy Award for his able and heart-warming portrayal of Uncle Remus.

However, Song of the South isn’t available on any official home video format in the US. Despite the fact that it was a box office success, Disney isn’t making it available on Disney+ either.

The Story

Disney is making a big move to erase its wildly racist 1946 animated film "Song of the South" from the public consciousness. The infamous movie, which was made at a time when racism was rampant in the US, is now being excluded from its streaming service Disney+.

The movie starred James Baskett as Uncle Remus, a storyteller who helps a young white boy learn about life on a plantation. It introduced the iconic song "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah," which earned an Academy Award for Best Song, and inspired the beloved Splash Mountain ride at Disneyland.

Although it wasn't an immediate success, Song of the South was seen as a step forward for Disney in their efforts to diversify their films. It also paved the way for many of the company's other landmark live-action/animation hybrids that would follow in the coming decades.

While it was a box office hit, the movie's gauzy depiction of plantation life sparked a debate over minstrelsy-themed animation and the underlying prejudices of the period. In response, some African American organizations, such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, boycotted the movie until it was removed from theaters.

But despite its racial controversies, Song of the South has become a beloved cultural artifact. It's even gotten an Oscar for the original song “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah,” which was written by Allie Wrubel and Ray Gilbert.

It was the first full-length Disney animated movie to feature black actors and the first color film shot in a non-Hollywood setting. It was also the first feature to be filmed in color by cinematographer Gregg Toland, who won an Academy Award for his work on The Grapes of Wrath and Citizen Kane.

That's a pretty big deal for an animated film that was produced at a time when most movies were in black-and-white, and it's also a huge step for a movie that is based on stories written by Joel Chandler Harris, a white pro-Confederacy journalist who spent part of his childhood on a plantation during the Civil War.

But it's not a great movie. It's an overstuffed slog of stereotypes and preachiness that probably wouldn't interest modern audiences much. It's a movie that's better known through pop culture osmosis than direct experience.

The Music

If you're a fan of Disney animation, you may want to watch Song of the South. It's a masterpiece of animation, and it features some of the best work produced by Walt Disney in his lifetime.

The film was created using live-action and animation, with 36 animators working for two years on the project. The film consists of three short animated sequences based on the folklore stories of Uncle Remus.

Each of these sequences has a unique theme and is narrated by a black character known as "Uncle Remus" who tells the story to Br'er Rabbit, Brer Bear and Br'er Fox.

In this way, Song of the South combines live-action and animation in an unprecedented manner. While it is criticized for its overly crude depiction of slavery, the film's musical score is incredibly impressive.

One of the most famous songs in the film is Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah, a tune that features some genuinely memorable lyrics. The song was a hit with audiences, and it remains part of the Disney lexicon today.

It was also the basis for the park's popular log flume ride that debuted in 1989. The ride featured characters and locations from the movie, including Br'er Rabbit and his nemesis, Br'er Fox.

The film's original screenplay was written by Dalton Reymond, who had grown up in the South and wanted to bring a populist tone to the movie. However, he was unable to write a script that could be accepted by the Hays Office, which objected to some of the language used in the film.

Despite these difficulties, Reymond was able to enlist the help of Maurice Rapf, who had worked with Walt Disney previously on So Dear to My Heart (1948). Although the pair were initially at odds, their conflict quickly subsided and the two men eventually worked together to develop the movie.

Sadly, Song of the South is not available to watch online anywhere in the world. It has never been released on DVD or Blu-ray, and there is no way to legally access it without a license. There have been rumors about a possible release, but no one knows when it will happen.

The Actors

Disney was a firm believer in the blending of live-action with animation, having previously tried it successfully in 1941's The Reluctant Dragon and 1943's propaganda film Victory Through Air Power. One of the earliest examples of this hybrid was the 1946 film Song of the South, a popular and controversial piece of work that combines the cartoons of Disney's studio with a live-action plot.

The movie's main character is Johnny, a boy who travels with his parents from Atlanta to his grandmother's plantation in an undisclosed Southern location. While there, Johnny meets an elderly Black man, Uncle Remus, who tells him a Brer Rabbit story and helps him get over his sadness over his parents' separation.

As he learns about life on a plantation, Uncle Remus encourages Johnny to look at the positive side of things and to try to make his own life better. The two develop a strong friendship, and when the boy is attacked by a bull, it's Uncle Remus who saves him from the animal.

While some critics questioned the movie's portrayal of Southern life, it was still a box-office success and was later rereleased in 1980 and 1986. Walt Disney himself held a special screening of the film in Atlanta to celebrate its 40th anniversary, and proceeds from the event were donated to help preserve Wren's Nest, an historic plantation home in Georgia.

Another controversy surrounding the production was the use of racist dialects and language. The Hays Office, which was responsible for censoring Disney's films at that time, objected to certain slurs and other offensive terms within the screenplay.

A further problem with the film was its reliance on a character who was not particularly well-respected amongst African-Americans. The main character, Uncle Remus, was created by Joel Chandler Harris, a former Confederate journalist who adapted oral folk tales from black slaves and wrote them as newspaper serials.

The character was seen as subservient and demeaning to African-Americans. As a result, some African-American organizations and political groups protested the release of the film.

Despite the racial concerns, Walt Disney had a clear vision of what he wanted to accomplish with this production. He wanted to stoke the rage against segregation and lynching. He also wanted to demonstrate that blacks and whites could live happily together.

The Controversy

Song of the south is a classic Disney film that tells the story of Johnny, a white boy who lives on his grandmother's plantation and befriends Uncle Remus, an African American former slave. It was a popular hit when it first released in 1946, but it has since attracted controversy over its depiction of race.

The movie received mixed reviews from critics and African American organizations. They appreciated its music and technique of combining live action with animated characters, but some were concerned that the film painted a misleading picture of slavery. They felt that it gave the impression of an idyllic master-slave relationship. The tar baby sequence was also considered to be offensive.

Even so, Disney re-released it theatrically four times. In addition to that, the cartoon characters from the movie made it into a number of books, comics and other forms of Disney media for years after its release.

But, while the film has a lot of historical value and it's one of the few movies from the 1940s that were shot in color, its depiction of racism has long offended many people. It's a shame that the film is no longer being seen in the US or even on the Disney streaming platform.

For a company that strives to be inclusive, this is a big deal. In fact, the Black Lives Matter movement has called out the film for its racist portrayals of African Americans and plantation life.

It is a difficult film to watch because it contains a lot of stereotypes and preachiness. It's not the most exciting or entertaining film that has ever been made, but it does teach important lessons about racism.

The story is based on the "Uncle Remus" stories written by Joel Chandler Harris. He was a pro-Confederacy journalist who spent time in the South during the Civil War.

As a result of this, the film has a lot of controversies and it's hard to watch. The racism that is portrayed in the film has offended many people and it is still an issue to this day.