Good Will to Men

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Movie
Original title Good Will to Men
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1955
length 9 minutes
Rod
Director William Hanna ,
Joseph Barbera
production William Hanna,
Joseph Barbera,
Fred Quimby
for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
music Scott Bradley

Good Will to Men is an American animated short film directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera in 1955.

action

In a church ruin, a mouse choir from the organist sings the song Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men . A mouse wants to know what the word men actually means , i.e. human , and the organist looks back. People were beings who were always at war. Some wore terrifying gas masks , others wore helmets, and all were armed. They killed each other with submachine guns , and when the ground was insufficient for the wars, they continued to fight in the air. The purpose of mankind seemed to be to always kill more people than the enemy. Endless grave fields testified to their efforts.

In the end, both sides dropped an atomic bomb on the opposing side at the same time , with the effect of both mushroom clouds spreading over the entire earth and thus extinguishing human life on earth. There was silence and the animals came out. In a church ruin they found a book that contained rules on how you should not kill and love your neighbor as yourself , and which people apparently ignored. The organist was still a little mouse at the time. Since that time the animal society has lived by the rules of the book, which is the Bible .

The mice tune the Christmas carol again. The church ruin fills up with churchgoers wishing a Merry Christmas.

production

Good Will to Men hit theaters in Technicolor on December 23, 1955 .

The film is a remake of the short animation film Friede auf Erden , which was released shortly after the start of World War II in 1939 and was nominated for an Oscar. However, Good Will to Men also goes into the events of the Second World War, shows more drastic images of war and ends with the dropping of atomic bombs , which in the film mark the end of humanity.

Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men is a new text for the Christmas carol Hark! The Herald Angels Sing .

Awards

Good Will to Men was nominated for an Oscar in the category " Best Animated Short Film " in 1956 , but could not prevail against Speedy Gonzales .

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