The Wise Little Hen is a 1934 animated short film from Disney, directed by Jack King and based on the Fable "The Little Red Hen". Part of its Silly Symphonies series, it is famous for introducing Donald Duck to the Disney franchise.
The Wise Little Hen of the title is looking for someone to help her plant her corn for the winter, going to the houses of Peter Pig and Donald Duck for help. Much to her dismay, they both feign belly aches to get out of the chore, preferring to play. So, with help from her chicks, she plants it herself.
Harvest time comes, and the hen visits Peter and Donald to their clubhouse for help. Once again, they fake being sick. As she was about to leave, the hen sees through their façade when the boards of their clubhouse fall off, showing them shaking hands with each other happily. Upon wising up to their tricks, she and her chicks wink at each other, knowing what to do with Peter and Donald later.
She cooks up a tantalizing assortment of corn dishes, and heads over to Peter and Donald to ask them to help her eat them. Before she can open her mouth, they already fake their belly aches. Once she asks them to help her eat the corn, they snap out of their façade and are excited to eat. As they fight to eat it, they discover that all they got is castor oil instead of corn. As they witness the hen and her chicks eat the corn themselves, with no intention to give any of it away, Peter and Donald repent with all their might by kicking each other in the rump.
Tropes:
- Animal Species Accent: Peter Pig has a deep voice resembling pig's grunts, while the hen herself has a voice like a chicken's cluck. Donald's ducky voice fits in perfectly with those two.
- Animated Adaptation: The short adapts the American fable "The Little Red Hen".
- Denied Food as Punishment: As punishment for faking their disease, the Wise Little Hen denies Donald Duck and Peter Pig the corn she and her children harvested, only giving a bottle of castor oil to the duo.
- Disneyfication: Downplayed, but the Mother Hen at least has her chicks helping her instead of having to do all the work herself.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: Along with his early long-billed design, there's no sign of Donald's short temper in this his first appearance.
- Food Porn: The feast the Wise Little Hen makes from her corn harvest. It's Lampshaded in the sung narration.
- Foul Medicine: Instead of corn, Peter and Donald get a bottle of castor oil for their "bellyache".
- Laser-Guided Karma: Peter Pig and Donald Duck play sick to evade working for the hen. In the end, she only gives her castor oil to cure their "illness".
- Lazy Bum: Peter Pig and Donald, who fake belly aches to avoid doing the hen's chores, preferring to play all day.
- Literal Ass-Kicking: The cartoon ends with Donald Duck and Peter Pig punishing themselves by taking turns kicking each other in the rear.
- Playing Sick: Both Peter Pig and Donald Duck play sick to avoid working for the Wise Little Hen. This backfires on them hard as she ultimately gives them castor oil instead of her corn.
- Rule of Three: The hen visits Peter and Donald three times.
- Secret Message Wink: Upon seeing that Donald and Peter faking their illness, the hen gives one of these to her children to silently tell them that Donald and Peter will get their punishment.
