Donald's Better Self

March. 11,1938      NR
Rating:
6.8
Trailer Synopsis Cast

Schoolboy Donald is torn between his angel and devil sides, though in Donald's case, the devil side isn't hard to resist. But the smoking he's encouraged to do turns him green and gives him regrets, and when the good side shows up and kicks evil's butt, Donald cheers.

Clarence Nash as  Donald Duck (voice) (uncredited)
Don Brodie as  Donald's Devil (voice) (uncredited)

Similar titles

The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat
The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat
Likely in June 1897, a group of people are standing along the platform of a railway station in La Ciotat, waiting for a train. One is seen coming, at some distance, and eventually stops at the platform. Doors of the railway-cars open and attendants help passengers off and on. Popular legend has it that, when this film was shown, the first-night audience fled the café in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This legend has since been identified as promotional embellishment, though there is evidence to suggest that people were astounded at the capabilities of the Lumières' cinématographe.
The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat 1897
Wheels That Go
Wheels That Go
A young boy ponders the marvel of wheels.
Wheels That Go 1967
Ashes of Doom
Ashes of Doom
A chain-smoking woman has an encounter with a vampire.
Ashes of Doom 1970
O Amor no Tempo da Publicidade
O Amor no Tempo da Publicidade
An animated musical love story about a young man who lives inside a billboard and is charged with updating the advertisements. When he falls in love with a beautiful lady living across the highway, he has to use the only method he knows to get his message across - advertising
O Amor no Tempo da Publicidade 2014
The Pawnshop
The Pawnshop
A pawnbroker's assistant deals with his grumpy boss, his annoying co-worker and some eccentric customers as he flirts with the pawnbroker's daughter, until a perfidious crook with bad intentions arrives at the pawnshop.
The Pawnshop 1916
The Count
The Count
A tailor's apprentice burns Count Broko's clothes while ironing them and the tailor fires him. Later, the tailor discovers a note explaining that the count cannot attend a dance party, so he dresses as such to take his place; but the apprentice has also gone to the mansion where the party is celebrated and bumps into the tailor in disguise…
The Count 1916
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers
Prime Video
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers
One of the most exciting and memorable stories in the history of the World Trade Towers is that of Philippe Petit, a French man who walked a tightrope between the massive monuments in 1974. Narrated by Oscar nominee Jake Gyllenhaal, this is an animated adaptation of the lyrical Caldecott Award-winning book by Mordecai Gerstein. Directed and animated by Michael Sporn, with music by Michael Bacon (of the Bacon Brothers).
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers 2005

Reviews

ThedevilChoose
1938/03/11

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

... more
Jenna Walter
1938/03/12

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

... more
Deanna
1938/03/13

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

... more
Geraldine
1938/03/14

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

... more
OllieSuave-007
1938/03/15

This is a fun little cartoon short from Disney, featuring Donald Duck as a schoolboy. Here, Donald meets his conscience, who resembles him and wears a white robe and a golden halo. She attempts to get Donald to get out of bed and go to school, but gets a run-in from Donald's anti-conscience, dunning a red cape and red horns, who tries to have Donald stay in bed. What results is a back and forth battle for Donald between the good and bad consciences. It's OK for a few laughs and it's somewhat entertaining to see some good vs. evil action going on. The good conscience wants Donald to go to school while the bad conscience wants him to go fishing instead, among of things.Despite Donald being in this cartoon, there isn't a whole lot of laughable moments or comedy you'd come to expect from Donald, but it's still not a bad cartoon short - a good lesson about right and wrong.Grade B-

... more
TheLittleSongbird
1938/03/16

I have always loved Donald Duck, he is my personal favourite of him, Mickey and Goofy and I love all three in their own way. Donald's Better Self is not one of my favourites from Donald, but I still liked it a lot. I do remember seeing it with a friend a couple of years back and she commented that while she appreciated some aspects she felt that it took much time getting the morals about but it forgot to entertain. I disagree somewhat. Maybe it is a little preachy somewhat with the go to school and never smoke messaging(and I am still not entirely sure about what anti-smoking message was trying to be conveyed), but I don't think it forgets to entertain. Yes, there are definitely funnier Donald cartoons elsewhere, but there are still some good gags like the at the start with Donald being told get out of bed/stay in bed and the devil telling Donald to go to the fishing hole and smoke a pipe. The story is very interesting too, the concept is not necessarily a fresh one but I did love how much of a psychological approach there was here, both in what both the angel and devil tell Donald to do and how Donald reacts to them. The animation is simpler in style, but still colourful and smooth, and the music has a lot of vigorous energy. Donald is like a child here and is fun to watch, but the angel and devil I found to be even more interesting to watch, I love their contrasting personalities and also their well-spoken voices. Clarence Nash is very good as ever as Donald. Overall, a good story and characters lifts an interesting cartoon, even if the morals may come across as preachy to some and you may question the significance of the anti-smoking message. 8/10 Bethany Cox

... more
ExplorerDS6789
1938/03/17

One bright sunny morning, young Donald Duck was still fast asleep. The alarm clock went off, Donald's good-self angel woke up, and tried to get Donald up too, but his bad-self devil convinced him to stay in bed. The angel tried getting Donald up so he wouldn't be late for school. Donald finally got up, put on his hat, grabbed his books and he and the angel trotted off to school. On the way, Donald met up with the devil again, who coaxed Donald to play hooky and go fishing instead. Down at the river, the devil tried getting Donald to smoke a pipe, saying it would put hair on his chest, which is the last thing a duck would need. So, Donald succumbed to temptation and tried the pipe. He started to feel very sick afterwords, with the devil laughing. By now, the angel realized Donald was no longer following him, so he went looking for him. The angel found Donald and the devil by the lake. Donald was still weary after his very first smoke. Angel tried to get the devil to stop what he was doing, but didn't want to fight. Needless to say the devil had the advantage. He knocked the angel right into the water. Fortunately, after wringing out his halo, the angel got even with the devil and sent him back far down below where he came from. As for Donald, he had learned his lesson and would go to school. So he proudly marched back to the schoolhouse, marching so proudly he marched right passed it, but the angel once again got him back on the right path.Donald's Better Self. This one is slightly different from other Donald Duck cartoons, because here he is depicted as a child. Perhaps this cartoon was made as a message to the children, telling them to stay in school. There's another Donald cartoon featuring his good-self angel and bad-self devil set during World War II where they convince him to buy war bonds. This cartoon perhaps isn't the best Donald Duck cartoon ever made but it's still pretty good. Any Donald or Disney fan should check it out. From 1938, Donald's Better Self. I recommend it.-

... more
Ron Oliver
1938/03/18

A Walt Disney DONALD DUCK Cartoon.DONALD'S BETTER SELF has quite a chore: to keep the young Duck from listening to Temptation and playing hooky.This is a very good cartoon, featuring excellent animation & acting. But why is Donald back in school? It must be a flashback to his youth. Highlight - our hero's first encounter with a corncob pipe. Clarence "Ducky" Nash supplies Donald's voice.Walt Disney (1901-1966) was always intrigued by drawings. As a lad in Marceline, Missouri, he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper; later, as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War, he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle. Back in Kansas City, along with artist Ub Iwerks, Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters. Always the innovator, his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe. Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923, where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor. When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor, the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination, ensuring Disney's immortality. The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut, STEAMBOAT WILLIE (1928), a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music. The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared, and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color, illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development, an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable. Mickey's feisty, naughty behavior had captured millions of fans, but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions: temperamental Donald Duck, intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto. All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films. Against a blizzard of doomsayers, Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White, Pinocchio, Bambi, Peter Pan and Mr. Toad. Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse, or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off.

... more