FALLING HARE

The Gremlin and the Rabbit

FALLING HARE (1943). Merrie Melodies starring Bugs Bunny. Director: Robert Clampett.

In this WW2 cartoon classic, Bugs Bunny laughs at the notion of "gremlins" committing sabotage only to encounter such a gremlin, who -- to Bugs' annoyance, consternation, and then terror -- manages to not only outwit the rabbit but employ the kind of tactics that Bugs generally employs on his nemesis, Elmer Fudd. The gremlin is a cute little fellow, albeit dangerous, culminating in a scary and hilarious scene when he tries to throw Bugs out of an airplane, which then runs amok and unpiloted over the skyscrapers of Manhattan. Will poor Bugs survive this encounter, let alone the gremlin? Writer Warren Foster supplies the clever and amusing answer.  The terrific voice characterizations are by Mel Blanc and the director, Robert Clampett. Believe it or not, some fans object to this cartoon because Bugs doesn't have the upper hand, and according to one critic, acts "like a coward and a weakling" -- how is he supposed to act being thrown out of an airplane? Get a life!

Verdict: Very funny Bugs-spectacular. ***. 

DUET FOR BUGS

Bugs Bunny and the Fabulous Elmer Fudd

STAGE DOOR CARTOON (1944). Director: Friz Freleng.
HERR MEETS HARE (1945). Director: Friz Freleng.

The DVD for Hollywood Canteen features two vintage wartime Bugs Bunny cartoons. In the first, Stage Door Cartoon, the "wascally wabbitt" is chased by Elmer Fudd into a theater, where the luckless hunter is forced to perform on stage for an audience, including a bit where he does a frightfully high dive into a very, very small glass of water. In Herr Meets Hare, Bugs takes a wrong turn at Albuquerque and winds up in Germany, where he encounters a Nazi hunter and even Adolf Hitler. At one point Bugs pretends to be a diva in a Wagnerian opera (recalling the classic What's Opera, Doc?). As usual, Mel Blanc does his brilliant voice characterizations.

The strange thing is that the latter cartoon features a disclaimer from TCM (which released the DVD) about ethnic and racial stereotyping, but the only stereotypes in the cartoon are of Nazis. Have we become so ridiculously politically correct that we have to worry about offending Nazis? Oy vey!

Verdict: Amusing, fluid, and well-done cartoons. ***.