The Original Release (1988)
Every so often, there’s a perfect storm that allows for great art to come into existence, and The Land Before Time in 1988 is one of those such perfect storms. The 80’s were a time of discord in Disney entertainment; their last ‘big’ animated film was Fox and the Hound, which did comparatively badly compared to its peers and they had begun putting more and more stock into real life film projects which, while producing some absolute gold like Honey, I Shrunk The Kids and Who Framed Roger Rabbit, never met the financial heights or memorability of the animated features. Don Bluth’s productions had been filling this gaping hole left in the box office with The Secret of Nimh and An American Tail and had been enjoying the great success those films seen. However, Land Before Time would be the Mjolnir to his Thor as it combined Bluth with Steven Spielberg and George Lucas and hit the world record for largest gross for an animated feature in the cinema, beating a Disney animated film for the second time (Oscar & Friends, An American Tail made sure The Great Mouse Detective took the second spot previously.)
Unfortunately, this success was short-lived as even though All Dogs Go To Heaven would come out in ’89 and keep Bluth’s name on the tip of people’s tongues, the Disney renaissance took hold in the early 90’s with The Little Mermaid and made sure their dominance would unquestionable. He tried, he conquered, but his storm only lasted so long before the real lightning struck.
My Full Experience (1991 – 2014)
Coming out a year before I was born, I never got to see The Land Before Time in the theatre. I did, however, watch it many, many times throughout my youth, to the point where I actually can’t remember first watching it. Rather I remember seeing it almost daily over the Summer and enjoying itevery-time, and I remember watching in the classroom during my formative educational years and enjoying it every-time. In short, I enjoyed this film a LOT as a child.
Fast forward a decade or so, and despite having seen some of the straight-to-DVD sequels and liking them, its now been a little while since I hung with 
Littlefoot and company on their first adventure together. Let me tell ya, that was a mistake on my part because this film is still glorious.
The traditional animation and gentle narration (provided by Pat Hingle, R.I.P) provide a sense of warmth from the opening sequences that really sets the tone for the rest of the feature. As Littlefoot makes his entrance and we learn of the leaf-eaters journey to the great valley, it isn’t just nostalgia that gives the film its charm; the production still holds up despite obviously not having the crispness of Disney films. From the voice-acting (which contains great performances from actors who never quite made it elsewhere) down to the character design, nothing looks or sounds dreadfully out-dated, apart from the obvious transfer of film to digital. The color palette remains bold and defined, and the character’s voices distinguishable with each having their own discernible identity that reflects the role they play in the story. Perhaps most impressive of all, however, is what happens when we meet Cera, a hotheaded female three-horn.
‘Three-horns never play with longnecks!’ Cera exclaims at Littlefoot as their first encounter surmounts to under-lying bitterness. That is, until they’re confined to each others company after Sharptooth’s first attack and the subsequent earthquake that follows and they begin making friends and the main plot is shown to not just be about a great journey to the Great Valley, but about how kinship can be found in the most unlikely of places. There’s a great subtext of love overcoming intolerance and how, though negative behaviors can be learned, they can also be over-written through personal experience in the face of great adversity.
And great adversity doesn’t come much greater than being left parentless with a seemingly endless voyage ahead, a fearsome and terrifying predator on the loose and only a new-found friend for company. Stu Krieger, the screenplay writer, and Bluth proved that although Bambi’s mother and the yet-to-be-released Lion King with Mufasa would be the ultimate in animated heartache, Littlefoot and his mother would be a very solid third for a long time to come. ‘Littlefoot, let your heart guide you. It whispers, so listen closely.’ You come for the articles, the freshly-cut onions are on the house, folks.
Littlefoot’s grieving is very sweetly complimented with his interactions with friendly faces as the ensemble for the adventure forms. First Cera, then Ducky, whose unyielding positivity not only brings Littlefoot out of himself, but also manages to not be nauseating to watch, then Petrie, whose neuroses provides comedy and delicate insecurity, and finally Spiketail, whose encounter proves the silent glue that holds the group together. I mentioned earlier how ever character is distinctly identifiable in voice and design, and when these five get together to sleep in combined loneliness, there is no greater example. Each represents an important compliment to the other with each personality drawing positivity out of the group and disregarding negativity or alienation. They treat each other, importantly, as equals in a world that views different tribes and races as not worthy of being played it. For a film so very obviously made for children, the handling of such subject-matter, especially in the 80’s is impressive.
So they venture on as one, with James Horner’s wonderfully whimsical soundtrack continuing to accent their adventuring. Being just over an hour, the pace is suitably fast but still hits all the important necessary plot-points of the characters finding themselves, proving they’re braver than they believe, finding catharsis in the journey not the destination, and most importantly, overcoming Sharptooth in a very finely tuned piece of mild horror that leads to the very syrupy sweet conclusion. Being the only Land Before Time film without actual singing parts, the story here still feels complete and weighty and the characters memorable. I almost want there to be songs in it so I could jam the soundtrack, but such is life.
Without question, The Land Before Time is as good now as it was in 1988. Traditional animation and well-written characters withstand aging better than most things and the story’s poignancy is not to be understated. I’d tell you to show this to your younger relatives, but first you should watch it for yourself and relive the journey all over again. You’ll be reminded why you remember it so well.
