The Golden Mountain

The Golden Mountain is a 1984 animated adventure drama film directed by Don Bluth and released by United Artists and Lorimar Pictures. The film featured the voices of Carl Steven, Ami Foster, Dom Deluise, Roy Kinnear, Anne Ramsey, Pat Buttram, DeForest Kelley, and Jackie Vernon.

Synopsis
Bushy is a young coyote pup who is teased by all of the other coyotes in his pack both young and old alike, because of his unusually long and bushy tail from which he gets his name from. When an attempt to prove himself by challenging an evil coyote named Swiftclaws goes awry, this ends up turning the other coyotes, with the exception of his father Tawny and his best friend Marigold, against him. The only way to redeem himself is to travel to a supposedly enchanted place in the desert called the Golden Mountain, which is said to grant the wishes of those that travel to it. What follows after is Bushy's journey to the Golden Mountain as he learns to accept himself for who he is.

Plot
In a large desert, there is a pack of coyotes living with each other. However, one of them, a young pup named Bushy, is teased relentlessly by the other coyote pups while playing with them, because of the fact that his tail is longer and bushier than a normal coyote's tail. Only Marigold, Bushy's best friend, does not tease Bushy about his tail, feeling great sympathy for him. When the pups throw pebbles off the edge of a small cliff, Bushy ends up outdoing them by using his long tail to whack a pebble far across the horizon. This only makes the other coyote pups tease Bushy even more, which prompts Bushy to leave in shame. While Bushy is heading home, it is made apparent that his being teased is not just limited to the other pups, but the older coyotes also tease Bushy about his tail as well. After arriving home, Bushy is greeted by his father Tawny, who understands how Bushy feels about being made fun of for being different. Tawny also mentions to Bushy about how Maxwell, a former member of the pack, left on his own for a place called the Golden Mountain due to also being teased for being different and after supposedly have been able to defeat an evil coyote named Swiftclaws. After hearing this story, Bushy immediately becomes interested in wanting to learn more about Maxwell, despite Tawny's reluctance.

Meanwhile, Swiftclaws, an evil-minded resident of the pack, along with his thorny devil accomplice Thornetta, strive to find a way to get to the Golden Mountain so that Swiftclaws can use it to fulfill his selfish desires. Later in the afternoon, Bushy meets with the Woodpecker, a good friend of his and Tawny's, where he relays his problem about not being accepted by the other coyotes. The Woodpecker, despite being a bit of a klutz, is understanding and sincere to Bushy's problem, while Bushy is determined to find a way to prove himself worthy in the eyes of the coyotes, before he sings a song called "My Own Adventure", telling about how he wants to go on a journey to find out more about himself in order to be accepted by everyone else. After the song ends, the Woodpecker still does his best to assure Bushy that he's still special even in spite of how long and bushy his tail is. However, Bushy comes up with a plan on how to appeal himself to the rest of the pack; he will challenge Swiftclaws to a fight, like most of the other coyotes have tried to do in the past. Despite the Woodpecker trying to talk Bushy out of it, due to the fact that no one has ever defeated Swiftclaws in battle, Bushy is still determined to go through with it while stating that if Maxwell did it, then he can do it too. The next morning, Bushy then leaves to put his plan into action, while Tawny goes to see him off, unaware of what Bushy is really doing. At first, Tawny is proud that Bushy has gone off on his own, but the Woodpecker, unable to keep it a secret very long, finally reveals to Tawny while Bushy is really doing, much to Tawny's shock as he immediately becomes worried for Bushy's well-being.

Bushy makes his way to Swiftclaws' den, which Swiftclaws notices as he inquires about what Bushy is doing. Upon being informed by Thornetta that Bushy has come to challenge him to a battle, Swiftclaws becomes intrigued, intending to really give Bushy a battle he'll never forget.

Cast
Carl Steven as Bushy

Ami Foster as Marigold

Jeff Corey as Tawny, Bushy's father

Dom Deluise as the Woodpecker

Roy Kinnear as Swiftclaws

Anne Ramsey as Thornetta

Pat Buttram as Maxwell

DeForest Kelley as Jorge

Jackie Vernon as Digby

Buddy Hackett as Mr. Armadillo

Susan Pleshette as Mrs. Armadillo

Dorothy McGuire as the Narrator

Home Media
The Golden Mountain was released on VHS and Laserdisc by MGM/UA Home Video on May 14, 1985. The film was later released on DVD in 2002 before marking its debut on Blu-Ray in 2013.