Some possible small spoilers.
I remember seeing this on television about ten years ago with my mother; the first part of the above summary was her question, the second part was my answer. Cartoon Network had the decency to dig this out of the vaults recently for the holidays, giving me the first opportunity I've had in years to see this, the tale of a kindly old squirrel who, on Christmas Eve, tells his two grandchildren about the strange creatures called "men," who killed each other off in pointless wars over the littlest things. After the death of all the men, the forest animals rebuild from the wreckage and establish "Peace on Earth."
Perhaps the first thing I noticed is the great visuals, in particular the battle scenes, with the death of the last two men on Earth having the perhaps the greatest dramatic impact. And there's a lot to be said for the music; I'm not ordinarily a crier, but I do get a little misty-eyed hearing the haunting chorus at the beginning and the end. But most important is the powerful message of love and peace, and if you ask me, viewing this cartoon now kind of makes this message even more poignant than ever. With the awful memory of the horrific events of September 11 sure to linger in our collective consciousness for quite some time to come, this cartoon serves as a fine reminder of most people are wishing for at this time of year: Peace on Earth.
I remember seeing this on television about ten years ago with my mother; the first part of the above summary was her question, the second part was my answer. Cartoon Network had the decency to dig this out of the vaults recently for the holidays, giving me the first opportunity I've had in years to see this, the tale of a kindly old squirrel who, on Christmas Eve, tells his two grandchildren about the strange creatures called "men," who killed each other off in pointless wars over the littlest things. After the death of all the men, the forest animals rebuild from the wreckage and establish "Peace on Earth."
Perhaps the first thing I noticed is the great visuals, in particular the battle scenes, with the death of the last two men on Earth having the perhaps the greatest dramatic impact. And there's a lot to be said for the music; I'm not ordinarily a crier, but I do get a little misty-eyed hearing the haunting chorus at the beginning and the end. But most important is the powerful message of love and peace, and if you ask me, viewing this cartoon now kind of makes this message even more poignant than ever. With the awful memory of the horrific events of September 11 sure to linger in our collective consciousness for quite some time to come, this cartoon serves as a fine reminder of most people are wishing for at this time of year: Peace on Earth.