Our Walt Disney Studies series charters new territory with a double feature of the 2008 documentary Walt & Grupo, followed by the 1942 short film Saludos Amigos in an evening we’re calling South of the Border with Walt Disney! And during the interval between the features, a discussion and Q&A with the director, Theodore Thomas, will be hosted and moderated by Disney Historian Jeff Kurtti.

Walt & El Grupo: It was 1941, a critical time for the world and for the Walt Disney Studio. When the U.S. Government asked Walt to be a cultural ambassador to South America, the stage was set for his very own real-life adventure. With a group of handpicked artists, later called “El Grupo,” Walt’s road trip achieved the impossible: goodwill. And in the process, it paved the way for two classic Disney films, Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros.

Saludos Amigos: A whimsical blend of live-action and animation, Saludos Amigos is a colorful kaleidoscope of art, adventure and music set to a toe-tapping samba beat. From high Andes peaks and Argentina’s pampas to the sights and sounds of Rio de Janeiro, your international traveling companions are none other than those famous funny friends, Donald Duck and Goofy. They keep things lively as Donald encounters a stubborn llama and “El Gaucho” Goofy tries on the cowboy way of life…South American style.

Our Spielberg Summer series concludes with some post-Thanksgiving screenings of War of the Worlds, his hauntingly realistic reinvention of a Sci Fi classic that transforms an alien invasion into a terrifying story of survival.

When colossal extraterrestrial machines suddenly emerge from beneath the Earth and begin annihilating entire cities, divorced dockworker Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) is forced to protect his children as civilization collapses around them. As humanity struggles to comprehend the scale of the catastrophe, Ray’s desperate journey becomes a fight not to save the world, but simply to keep his family alive.

Released in the shadow of a newly changed America, War of the Worlds channels post-9/11 anxieties into some of the most intense and visceral spectacle of Spielberg’s career. Stripping away triumphalism in favor of fear, the film stands as one of his darkest works. It’s a reminder that even at his most pessimistic, Spielberg never loses sight of the human beings at the center of the story, making it the perfect film to conclude our 14 film retrospective of his work.