An American Tail Reviews

A beautifully animated feature, AN AMERICAN TAIL opens in turn-of-the-century Russia, from which the Mousekewitz family, a clan of Jewish mice, are forced to emigrate after suffering under the rule of Czarist cats. Little Fievel Mousekewitz is separated from his family en route to New York and washes up on the shores of the New Land inside a bottle. Once in the big city, still looking for his family, Fievel encounters a variety of mice, both friendly and vicious, and finds that America has its share of cats. The story is moving, and the animation includes some powerful images, although some of the early scenes depicting the suffering of the mice in Russia may be too frightening for younger viewers. The tune, "Somewhere Out the There," was nominated for Best Song Oscar.