A smutty and trashy movie that tries to pretend it actually has something to say.
In this erotic "thriller" a powerful woman CEO has sexual fantasies about being dominated by a man. When she meets a young intern who understands these fantasies, she puts her job and her married life in jeopardy to live them out.
If this movie admitted that it is nothing but pure smut, perhaps a would be kinder to it (I still wouldn't like it mind you). However, this film advertises itself as a thriller and tries very hard to actually say something. It simply fails at both of these. We never really learn anything more about these characters than their positions and sexual kinks (about our main characters family we learn even less). We are supposed to feel a sense of danger about what could happen if people found out. Yet when the characters don't feel real to us, it is hard to get invested enough to care. When it comes to the social commentary this movie doesn't really say much of anything. Its messages amount to that women should have important roles in the workplace and that sometimes people have sexual kinks that are opposite to their outward personalities. Neither of these is exactly groundbreaking, and both have been explored better in other films. The feminist message especially feels very forced and incredibly basic. There is absolutely nothing here that will leave you with any food for thought. This film is made worse by dialogue that is incredibly clumsy and poorly written. Some of the sexual scenes between the two main characters also can come off as unintentionally funny. The story is very melodramatic and unoriginal. It also relies on way too many melodramatic coincidences that strain believability.
This movie does benefit from a strong cast including Nicole Kidman, Antonio Banderas and Harris Dickinson. However, a good cast can only do so much with a script like this.
There are few films I dislike more than a dumb movie that thinks it is very smart. Unfortunately, that is exactly what this is.
Hello my friends and welcome back for another service of Cowboy Church,
Today's musical selection begins with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans with Jesus in the Morning. This recording comes from their 1973 album, In the Seet By and By. This song reminds us that we are not only to leave a small part of the day with Jesus as our focus but all day long as well as every day. We should wake up each morning with Jesus on our mind and go to bed each night the same way. While few of us will succeed with this every day, we will find that each day we do it will be an enriching day that will makes us grow as a person.
This is followed by Carley Pearce and Matthew West with their 2021 recording of Truth Be Told.
Afterwards is Tex Ritter with his 1948 recording of Rounded Up in Glory. Though we currently live in this world, we are not citizens of this world. Instead, we are citizens of heaven, and we are only passing through this world. One day we will be rounded up in glory and we will see our lord and savior face to face. No matter how good anything in this world is it cannot compare to the blessings God has in store for us in heaven. No matter what hardships we might face in life, they pale in comparison to the glories of heaven.
Then comes a fast paced and fun country gospel number from the Delmore Brothers. It is their 1937 recording of Heavenly Light is Shining on Me.
Next is Johnny Cash with My Ship Will Sail. This recording comes from his 1987 album, Johnny Cash is Coming to Town. This album may not be considered one of John's best, having come out during what is considered the lowest creative point of his career. However, despite some overproduction on many of the songs (John is always at his best when his music is at its most stripped down), there is actually quite a bit to like about this album.
Afterwards is Cowboy Copas with Cowboy's Meditation.
Then comes Rex Allen and The Sons of the Pioneers with their version of There's A Blue Sky Way Out Yonder. Rex Allen hosted a radio show in the 1950's and The Sons of the Pioneers guest starred on it. This is when, they made this wonderful recording. Rex Allen's singing is of course fantastic here. A real highlight however is Hugh Farr's fiddle solo.
Today's musical selection ends with Carrie Underwood with Because He Lives. Though this song in many was feels like an old hymn it is actually much more recent than you might think. The song was written by Gloria and William J. Gaither and won an award for being the Gospel Song of the Year for 1974. In an interview the couple stated how this song came to be, “‘Because he lives’ was written in the midst of social upheaval, threats of war, and betrayals of national and personal trust. It was into this world at such a time that we were bringing our third little baby. Assassinations, drug traffic, and war monopolized the headlines. It was in the midst of this kind of uncertainty that the assurance of the Lordship of the risen Christ blew across our troubled minds like a cooling breeze in the parched desert. Holding our tiny son in our arms we were able to write: How sweet to hold our newborn baby, And feel the pride, and joy he gives; But greater still the calm assurance, this child can face uncertain day because He lives." This recording comes from her 2021 gospel album, My Savoir.
Now for an episode of Roy Rogers' radio show.
Here is an actual recording of Buffalo Bill Cody's actual voice.
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8
A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 1 John 4:7
Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly. Proverbs 14:29
The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father's God, and I will exalt him. Exodus 15:2
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6
For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Colossians 3:15
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. So, we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” Hebrews 13:5-6
Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another service of Cowboy Church. Happy trails to you until we meet again.
This movie has a lot to like about it. The action scenes are fantastic. They feel larger than life, are well paced, have a good deal of suspense and are quite exciting. Both our hero and his young daughter are very likable. They may not be complex characters, but they are easy to care about and the relationship between them is quite charming. The villain is incredibly over the top but in a way fun way. He is also so cartoonily evil, that it is so easy to hate him. The song numbers are also a lot of fun here.
The main problem with this film is simply its length. There is no reason for it to be this long. The storyline is a pretty simple straightforward action story that could have been told in an hour and a half. However, the movie is instead over two and a half hours. There are many points when it can really drag. This is especially true in the middle section, which is often downright boring. The film also has the same problem as many Bollywood movies. Its messaging can be a little too on the nose and didactic, even if you agree with it.
There are quite a few things that I really liked about this movie but that doesn't change that it should have been at least an hour shorter.
Hello, my friends and happy Saturday morning. Once again it is time for some classic cartoons.
Today's cartoon selection begins with a classic Tom and Jerry short, Designs on Jerry (1955). This short film is one of the best Tom and Jerry cartoons of the 1950's. While it may not have as many laugh out loud gags as the 1940's Tom and Jerry shorts, it more than makes up with this with a clever premise and a great execution. The idea of blueprints coming to life was later reused in the opening of TV's Tom and Jerry Tales. Clips from this film would later be reused in the Tom and Jerry cartoon, Shutter Bugged Cat (1967).
I love of the cartoons of Chuck Jones from any period but there is something special about his films from 1942 and 1943. At this time, he was fully getting away from his slower paced cuter output of the late 1930's but had not yet gotten to the style of films he would make in the 1950's that everybody is familiar with today. So, what we get from output during these two years are cartoons that experiment with what you can do in an animated short. It doesn't hurt that he worked with such experimental artists as layout man John McGrew. Chuck gave McGrew plenty of freedom and what John accomplished in these movies is nothing short of amazing. This is especially shown in The Case of the Missing Hare (1942), where experimentation is seen in every moment. Just watch the abstract backgrounds that show a mixture of two colors at a time, but the colors change when there is a strong action in the foreground. This is something someone may not notice on their first watch, but it is something they can feel. A review in The Film Daily stated, "Here is another hilarious, the Leon Schlesinger creation that keeps growing in comic strength with every new release." I think anyone watching this cartoon today will recognize that the antagonist is not Elmer Fudd, but one reviewer from The Exhibitor didn't as in his review he stated "...this has Elmer, as a magician..." A review from the same magazine less than a month later stated, "Elmer isn't in this." The latter is right. A review in Variety called this "One of the better Bugs Bunny subjects."
Up next is the early Terry Toons short, Scotch Highball (1930).
A couple decades before The Flintstones, the Fleischer Studio made a series of cartoons taking place in the Stone Age. Here is one of those films, The Foul Ball Player (1940).
Now it is time for a commercial break.
Heavenly Puss (1949) is probably one of the best remembered and most beloved of the Tom and Jerry films. It certainly is one that has stayed in the minds of cartoon fans. The credited animators here are Ed Barge, Irv Spence, Kenneth Muse and Ray Patterson. Each of them gets their time to shine. Irv Spence animates the scene where Tom is crushed by the piano. Ed Barge handles most of the animation of the cat that grants passage to Heaven as well as the scene with the small kittens. Ray Patterson animates the scenes with the evil version of Spike the bulldog. William Hanna and Joseph Barbera would later make a semi-remake of this film with the Pixie and Dixie cartoon (from The Huckleberry Hound Show), Heavens to Jinksy (1959). Clips from Heavenly Puss would later be reused in the Tom and Jerry cartoon, Shutter Bugged Cat (1967).
Next comes the classic Disney cartoon, Orphan's Benefit (1934). This film marks the second Donald Duck cartoon, and the first time Donald appeared alongside Mickey and friends. As many of you know, Donald first appeared in The Silly Symphony short, The Wise Little Hen (1934). However, some of those who worked on the Disney cartoons at this time (including Walt), misremembered this as the first Donald Duck cartoon. This may be because the short was the first one the studio started work on. Historian J.B. Kaufman has stated that the Disney story department began work on this cartoon (with an outline entitled The Surprise Party) in November 1933, before they started work on The Wise Little Hen. However, this outline was quite different from the finished film. Donald was a small boy who was dragged to a party by his mother and made to recite Mary Had a Little Lamb. The recitation of Mary Had a Little Lamb has its origins in the origin of Donald's voice. Clarence Nash had created this voice as a child himself not to be the voice of a Duck but of a crying baby goat. He used to entertain his friends by reciting Mary Had a Little Lamb in this voice. He would later do this act professionally both live and on radio. Walt Disney, having heard Nash do this voice on radio, felt that it sounded more like a duck and pitched the idea of voicing a duck to Nash. In the early 1940's several older Disney cartoons were considered for some shot for shot remakes. However, only one of these were made and that was Orphan's Benefit (1941). The remake was almost exactly like the earlier picture except being that in color and using the 1941 designs of the characters. In fact, the remake even uses the exact soundtrack of the original. However, I personally prefer this 1934 black and white original and I hope you love it too. A review in The Film Daily stated, "It's all very clever, screamingly funny and with a dandy of a musical score." The original ending for this film was going to be Mickey, Minnie and Donald dressed as pigs performing Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf. However, that ending would be replaced by Donald's temper tantrum. Donald Duck's voice Clerance Nash later remembered, "I was more nervous about that picture than I as about The Wise Little Hen. I don't mind telling you that I prayed a lot, that the character would be a success. I was with a group of Disney people and my wife was with me too. I was just like an average audience - I got a big kick out of it, and I completely forgot I had anything to do with it."
Now for a short silent cartoon starring Pongo the Pup, Pongo Cleans Up The Goat Family (1924). Sorry about the video not having music.
Today's cartoon selection ends with The Simpsons in Bart's Little Fantasy (1989). This is one of the shorts made for The Tracey Ullman Show before The Simpsons go their own TV show.
Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for more animated treasures. Until then may all your tunes be Looney and your melodies merry.
Resources Used
Donald Duck: The Ultimate History by J.B. Kaufman and David Gerstein
DVD audio commentary (Tom and Jerry Spotlight Collection Vol. 1) by Jerry Beck.
An engaging sports drama about a 17-year-old girl, who gets to compete in women's boxing in the Olympics.
There is much to admire and like about this movie. It does exactly what any underdog sports film should. It immediately gets us on the side of our main character and to want to see her win. While the character, as presented here, is not exactly a complex character, she is likable. Her efforts to continue to be true to herself and her refusal to become someone else, makes us admire her. Ryan Destiny's heartfelt and charismatic performance lends much to how much we care about her. However, the scene stealer here is Brian Tyree Henry as her coach. This may be his best movie performance yet. He is very entertaining to watch and often brings some great humor. At the same time, he also brings a lot of heart to this film. It is said that Ice Cube was originally considered for the role. No offense to Ice Cube but I doubt the movie would have worked as well. Oscar winning filmmaker Barry Jenkins wrote the script here and he often provides something smarter than your average underdog sports film. This movie takes a look at something that most of these movies would never even acknowledge. This is whether all the main character has been training for and fighting for is worth it and if it will actually make a difference. This is especially well explored during the very smart third act. The director is Rachel Morrison with her first directorial feature film. She had earlier worked as a cinematographer and this is probably this is such a handsome film, where the story is just as much told through the settings and the visuals (especially of Flint, Michigan) as the characters and dialogue.
This film does have its flaws though. The romance and the family drama can feel very rushed through. Because of this neither is as emotionally effective as it should be. The middle section of the movie can also delve too much into sports movie clichés that we have seen many times.
This may not be a perfect film, but it will delight anyone who likes these types of sports dramas and even some who don't.
Remaking a true classic like the 1922 Nosferatu is a very risky undertaking. However, Robert Eggers (The Witch (2015), The Lighthouse (2019), The Northman (2022)) is one of few directors I would trust with such a task. He certainly did not disappoint here as he directed a worthy companion to the silent classic.
Being a modern horror movie, this film certainly has its fair share of gory and grotesque visuals. However, this is not the main source of the terror. This movie moves at a slower and more deliberate pace. It offers space between the typical movie scares. These spaces though are far from a time to feel safe or relax. Rather these moments are there to help build a real sense of dread. This film builds a dark and gothic atmosphere that makes sure we never once feel safe. The dread and unsettling-ness of this sense of atmosphere grows larger as the story moves. Because of this the scares never feel repetitive or lose their power but rather the movie grows more intense as it goes on. Much of the atmosphere comes from the wonderful visual style. While this movie is in color many of the most intense scenes use muted colors that give it a very noir inspired look. The contrast of these almost black and white scenes at night and the few bright and colorful sense during the day are jarring in a way that makes the film all the more unsettling. This movie may not have any iconic images of that will stay in our minds, but the whole film has a look the drags us into this dark and sinister world. The tension also builds from the growing intensity of Ellen's (our main protagonist) dreams and our growing understanding of why she is having these dreams. As we begin to understand the role she plays in this horror, the story becomes all the more unsettling. This is helped by a truly brilliant performance from a Lilly Rose-Depp, whose performance often made the film’s most unsettling moments much more effective. This is a tour de force of a performance and this young actress is more than up to the task for this complex role. The creepy filmmaking also allows some very sexual scenes to not come off as exploitative or pornographic but instead as deeply disturbing moments that add to the overall feel of horror and dread.
This remake runs at a much longer runtime than the silent original. Yet this film actually uses this run time to its advantage. In fact, it even improves on the only real flaw of the original. In the original, the protagonists were rather bland and boring characters compared to the much more interesting villain. This remake uses its longer runtime to make its protagonists much more interesting characters. Over the course of the film, we grow very attached to these characters and really worry for their safety. This makes the film's ending even more emotional here. While the imagery in the original's finale may be more visually iconic, the ending in the remake is more emotionally powerful. Both endings are absolutely brilliant filmmaking though.
That is what makes this movie so brilliant. It stands as its own film, while still being faithful to the original. Both the original and this movie are brilliant examples of horror filmmaking, but both have diffrent reasons for being essential viewing for cinephiles.
Note: If you have no familiarity with Bob Dylan, this review may contain spoilers but if you have a basic understanding of Bob's career there is nothing in this review that you don't already know.
Michael's Movie Grade: A-
One of the best musical biopics in years.
Director and co-writer James Mangold (who also directed the Johnny Cash Biopic, Walk the Line (2005)) based this film off the book Dylan Goes Electric! by Elijah Wald (essential reading for anyone interested in 1960's music). Like that book this movie doesn't focus on telling the story of Dylan's life but rather looking at Bob and his music through the lens of the culture and music of the 1960's. Through this film we get an immersive view of the 1960's folk scene and the culture that helped shape it. Because of this we understand just why Bob Dylan going electric was considered such an insult to this community. This makes the climactic scene of him performing rock and roll at a folk festival much more effective than it would have been in a film that focuses solely on Bob's life. At the same time this film helps us not only understand why the crowd was angry at him but also why Bob felt the need to go in this direction feeling tied down by the restrictions of what many consider traditional folk music. The movie also helps paint how rock and roll was always just as much a part of who Bob Dylan was, just as much as folk music was. This movie shows Bob as a person who is driven by his music to the extent of all else in his life. While we do see the true musical genius he was and is here, the movie is also not afraid to sometimes bluntly show moments that paint Bob in a less than sympathetic light. This is especially true of the scenes with Joan Baez, many of which can make him seem completely unlikable. Yet the movie is also a film that truly loves and respects its subject even while showing his biggest flaws. Because of this the scenes that show him being rather selfish, don't make him unlikable but rather make him just feel more human and real to us. At the same time Mangold refuses to delve much into Bob's actual past. In one scene he tells his girlfriend that people make up their past. Most of the times we hear anything about Bob before heading to New York, he is blatantly and obviously lying. This also helps paint a picture of who this movie shows Bob as being. Here we see a man who constantly reinventing himself to be who he wants to be at any such moment. To such a person, the past is often something to be tossed aside.
The performances in this movie are truly fantastic. There are many moments when you forget that you are watching Timothée Chalamet instead of the real Bob Dylan (even for someone who is a massive Dylan fan like me). This is more than just a simple impression but instead the actor truly becoming the character. Chalamet is an incredibly talented and versatile actor, yet this may be one of his best movie roles. While he is the one who will be getting much of the praise for this film the hole cast is wonderful. Edward Norton as Pete Seeger, Boyd Holbrook as Johnny Cash, Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez and Elle Fanning as Sylvie Russo (a character based off of Bob's real-life girlfriend at the time, Suze Rotolo) are all simply fantastic here. All throughout the movie we forget that we are watching actors and feel like we are watching real footage of these people.
While as a Dylan fan, I may be more than a little biased, I love the music here. This film features many songs played almost in their entirety. I love listening to any of these songs at any time and I loved hearing them here, especially as the actors and actresses are all great musical performers as well. The use of long excerpts of these songs also helps this film capture how Dylan often let the music speak for itself.
With all the standard and forgettable musical biopics in recent years, this movie stands out as something truly great.
Christmas is my favorite time of year. I truly believe that there is a certain magic to it that cannot be explained. I hope each and every one of you had a wonderful Christmas season. As Tiny Tim observed, "God bless us everyone."
While far from a great movie, this film is a definite improvement over the 2019 Lion King. I am still not a fan of this type of very realistic animation being used in a film about talking animals. However, I will admit it is done better here. The animators allow for a bit more expression and cartoon-yness to slip in. Sometimes these facial expressions appearing on such realistic looking animals can be unintentionally funny and take you out of the movie. However, they keep this film from feeling as cold and emotionless as the 2019 movie.
The best part of this movie is the relationship between Mufasa and Taka. This relationship feels completely real and the way it alters over the course of the story is very believable. Because of this we really care about these characters and it pains us to know what will happen (this is a prequel so that is not a spoiler). The storyline is pretty standard and predictable (then again by their very nature prequels are predictable), but these two characters make it kind of work.
This movie does have some truly awful moments though. The humor is really bad here. Every comedic moment simply falls flat and many of them are even quite annoying (especially the ones with Timon and Pumba). The songs are also quite bad here. They are forgettable at best and toneless and annoying at worst. I enjoyed the songs Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote for Moana (2016). However, his recent Disney work (Encanto (2021) and The Little Mermaid (2023)) has fallen far short of his songs for that film. This is his weakest work on a Disney film yet.
This will never be considered a Disney classic, but it is a step up from many of their recent remakes.
Hello, my friends and happy Saturday morning. Once again it is time for some classic cartoons. /
Today's cartoon selection begins with a classic Sylvester and Tweety Christmas cartoon, Gift Wrapped (1952). This short film features the cat and bird duo at their absolute best. This short offers one great gag after another and director Friz Freleng's comedic timing is perfect. This cartoon was submitted for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film but was not nominated.
Today marks the first day of winter and so here is an appropriate cartoon, Snow Foolin' (1949). This short film also fits the Christmas season very well as it features the classic Christmas carol, Jingle Bells. James Lord Pierpont wrote Jingle Bells in 1857. Despite being known as a Christmas song today, it was originally written with a different holiday in mind. Under its original title, One Horse Open Sleigh this song was written to be used in a Thanksgiving service at a Church where Pierpont was the organist. The song was so well received that it played again at the Church on Christmas day. For a song written to be performed at a Church, the original lyrics were racier than one would think and would be changed so that children's church choirs can perform the song.
Next comes a delightful short film starring Pooch the Pup, Merry Dog (1933). Though largely forgotten today, Pooch as one of the first starring characters in the cartoons of producer Walter Lantz. He would never reach the fame of Woody Woodpecker, Chilly Willy or even Andy Panda but his cartoons are still fun to watch today.
Next is a classic Donald Duck film, Toy Tinkers (1949). This cartoon features Donald once again going up against Chip and Dale. This film is directed by Jack Hannah, who at this time was directing the majority of the Donald Duck cartoons. When Chip and Dale had their very short-lived series of shorts, Jack Hannah directed all three cartoons in that series. This cartoon is laugh out loud funny. The slapstick is spot on and timed perfectly. Every joke works and they are all very funny. The humor is also displayed perfectly through the great character animation one should expect form a Disney cartoon. While Disney cartoons are often called sweet and cute in contrast to the hilarious antics at studios like Warner Brothers and MGM, the Disney studio could make slapstick cartoons as great as the rest of them (this is not an insult to Warner Brothers and MGM as I love there cartoons a lot as well). This stands as one of Disney's funniest shorts (a joke involving a telephone never fails to make me laugh out loud). This cartoon would make its TV debut on a 1958 Christmas episode of Walt Disney Presents. That version starts with some new animation featuring Chip and Dale telling Jiminy Cricket how they celebrate Christmas.
Now it is time for a commercial break.
Now for a visit to Christmas past and future.
Up next is one of my favorites of the early Merrie Melodies cartoons, The Shanty Where Santy Claus Lives (1933). I love the atmospheric feel to the early scenes in this cartoon. There is a delightful amount of detail in these opening moments. I also simply love the title song. Despite being a Christmas cartoon, this film was released to theaters on January 7, 1933, just barely missing Christmas. The animation of the dolls singing, and dancing was reused from an earlier Merrie Melody, Red Headed Baby (1931).
Now for a classic Columbia Christmas cartoon, Gifts from the Air (1937).
Today's cartoon post closes with The Simpsons short, Simpsons Christmas (1988), This is one of the shorts made for The Tracey Ullman Show before the Simpsons got their own TV series.
Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for more animated treasures. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies merry.
Resources Used
Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies: A Complete Illustrated Guide to Warner Brothers Cartoons by Jerry Beck and Will Friedwald
A wonderful movie adaptation of the beloved video game franchise.
The third movie in this series does exactly what a sequel should do. It ups the stakes without taking away the charm of the previous films. In fact, it even adds to the charm of the previous films. The action scenes are more exciting and fun to watch here, and the humor is often funnier. However, what makes the movie the best of this series so far is that underneath all the silliness there is a surprisingly emotional story. The storyline borrows much from the 2001 video game, Sonic Adventure 2. That includes Shadow's tragic and heartbreaking backstory. It remains just as effective here. Through a series of flashbacks, we grow to care about this brooding black hedgehog, just as much as we do about our blue hero. To a lesser extent there are some emotional stakes with Sonic, Tails and Knuckles learning to work together as a team. These scenes may not have the emotional urgency as the ones with Shadow, but they do their part to keep us emotionally attached to our heroes. Yet despite any emotional stakes, the filmmakers never forget that this is a movie about a blue hedgehog who can run really fast. Because of this they never forget this is supposed to be fun first and foremost and it is exactly that.
Jim Carey can be quite funny in his dual roles here. However, the filmmakers do seem to be too in love with his over-the-top comedy style. There are comedic bits with him that go on far too long and when the story simply seems to come to an unwanted halt for him to do his comedy.
This film will be a sheer delight for Sonic fans but will entertain those who have never played a video game just as well.
More than outright terrible, this Marvel film is instantly forgettable.
Sadly, the live action Sony Marvel films have come off as okay at best and near unwatchable at worst. This may not be the worst of these movies but there is not much about it to recommend either. The main problem here is that everything about this movie is extremely familiar. Everything that happens is something we have seen before and often times done much better. Because of it is very likely that a few days after you watch it, it will be hard to remember much of anything that happened. This is not helped by very bland main characters. These characters have so little to their personalities that it is hard to ever connect with them and really care about what happens to them. Though this movie does slow down at times and is not just constant action, all of those slower scenes are simply boring because they never really help establish the characters. Kraven is simply your typical action movie anti-hero with nothing to help him stand out. Rhino (who bares incredibly little resemblance to his comic book counterpart) is simply a boring typical action movie villain. Every other character is also extremely underdeveloped. There is a twist involving one of these characters towards the end that seems to come out of nowhere because there was no lead up to the sudden change in the character's actions. Outside of some truly horrible CGI (which is so bad that it makes the worst CGI in the MCU or DC movies look fantastic in comparison), there is little about this movie that is outright bad. Because of this unlike some of the truly awful superhero movies out there, superhero fans can't even get mad at how bad it is. This can make for a rather bland and emotionless experience.
The one thing about this movie that is actually quite good is the action scenes. These are quite well done and fun to watch (again with the exception of the bad CGI (I cannot overstate how bad it is)). The action scenes also make good use of the R rating.
Hello my friends and welcome back for another service of Cowboy Church.
Today's musical selection begins with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans with their 1949 recording of Wonderful Christmas Night. On this recording they are accompanied by Foy Willing and his Riders of the Purple Sage.
This is followed by Emmylou Harris singing Light of the Stable. Emmylou recorded this song in 1975. She would later state "Light of the Stable is one of my favorite tracks we ever cut. It was the jelling of the original recording group, the combination of Brain's [Brain Ahern] production and how incredibly creative those guys were was perfect. There is almost more space on the track then there are notes and I always loved that." The song would become the title track of her 1979 Christmas album, which I personally consider one of my favorite Christmas albums.
Afterwards is Gene Autry with his 1950 recording of When Santa Claus Gets Your Letter. This song is written by Johnny Marks. Marks is well known for writing Christmas songs. Some of the classic Christmas songs he wrote include Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree and A Holly Jolly Christmas.
Then comes Cowboy Copas with his 1954 recording of He Stands by His Window.
Next comes The Sons of the Pioneers with their 1937 recording of Leaning on the Everlasting Arms. This hymn began with a man named Anthony Showalter. As a fan of gospel music and an elder in a Presbyterian church, he held many "singing schools" at various churches in the south. One day he received two letters from former students who were struggling after their wives had passed. To respond to these letters, Showalter consulted scripture. He came across Deuteronomy 33:27, "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." After reading this verse lyrics for a song chorus went through his head and he wrote down, "“Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms; Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms.” After using this in the letters to his former students he sent this chorus to his friend hymnist, Elisha Hoffman. In the letter he also wrote, “Here is the chorus for a good hymn from Deuteronomy 33:27, but I can’t come up with the verses.” Hoffman then wrote the rest of the lyrics to which Showalter put to music. The hymn was published in 1887.
Afterwards is Johnny Cash with Hark the Herald Angels Sing. This hymn was written by Charles Wesley. Wesley stated that what he hoped to achieve through his hymns was to teach sound doctrine to the poor an illiterate, who may not be able to read the Bible for themselves. His brother John Wesley, who was a famous theologian and one of the founders of Methodism, stated that Charles' hymnal was the best book on Theology there was out there. Charles wrote the words to this hymn as he heard the church bells ringing on his way to church on Christmas Day. He intended this to be a poem that would be read in Church on Christmas Day. This poem first appeared in print in 1739 in Hymns and Sacred Poems. In 1753 George Whitefield, put these words to the music we know today. Whitefield also added the term “newborn king.”
Following is Eddy Arnold with Will Santy Come to Shanty Town.
Today's musical selection ends with Anne Wilson's 2021 recording of her self-penned, I Still Believe in Christmas.
Next is Johnny Cash's 1970 Christmas TV special.
Now for Gene Autry telling us the nativity story.
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8
The Lord bless you and keep you. the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9
Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Colossians 3:13
Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 13:11
Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. Matthew 10:34
But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Luke 6:27-28
Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21
Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another service of Cowboy Church. Happy trails to you until we meet again.
Hello, my friends and happy Saturday morning once again it is time for some more classic cartoons.
Today's musical selection begins with one of director Art Davis's best cartoons, Riff Raffy Daffy (1948). Art Davis may have only directed Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons for a short while, but the offbeat and often hilarious sense of humor has made him a favorite of many classic cartoon fans. I am especially a fan of his take on Daffy Duck. Though more energetic and wilder than Bugs Bunny, this version had some Bugs Bunny qualities to him as well. Like Bugs he was always at least one step ahead of his foes. The meshing of a newfound cleverness and remorsefulness with the wacky and energetic qualities that help define Daffy, creates a truly wonderful take on this character.
Next is one of my favorite Christmas cartoons of all time, Mickey's Good Deed (1932). This film was from 1932, at this time, Mickey was at the absolute height of his popularity. He was famous in a way that no cartoon character before had ever been. Critics often compared his popularity to that of Charlie Chaplin's little tramp, and like that character Mickey had fans of all types. He was equally popular with intellectuals and small children. In fact, this same year Walt Disney would receive a special Academy Award for creating Mickey. Renowned Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein (best known for his silent film The Battleship Potemkin (1925)) was a huge fan and even wrote essays on Walt Disney, that discussed the brilliance of Mickey Mouse cartoons (He would remain a huge Disney fan and even later call Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) the single greatest film ever made). Almost every other American cartoon studio was copying what Disney had done with Mickey Mouse. Characters like Foxy (at Warner Brothers) and Cubby Bear (at Van Beuren) were extremely thinly disguised copies of Mickey himself. In fact, in 1931, the Van Beuren studio was sued by Walt for using two mice characters that looked exactly like Mickey and Minnie. There was no doubt, Mickey was movie royalty. Mickey did for animated comedies, exactly what Charlie Chaplin's little tramp had done for live action comedies. Like the comedy films made before Chaplin, the animated comedies before Mickey were often very funny, but you very rarely felt any other emotional response to what was happening on screen. Mickey changed all that and nowhere was it clearer than in Mickey's Good Deed. You may notice that this doesn't sound like your typical cartoon short of the era, and my point is it isn't. This film while not sacrificing the slapstick comedy, also adds a lot of drama to the story itself. However, the Disney studio understood exactly what Chaplin had found out earlier. If the comedy and the drama are both driven by the story and characters, they can both easily co-exist. This idea is done to absolute perfection in this cartoon. This is a beautiful and moving film, while it never forsakes the comedy. The following is a review from The Film Daily, "Right up there with the best of these animated cartoons. Subject has a special holiday flavor in that it shows how Mickey and his dog manage to bring cheer into a big family of needy animal folks. Clever and lively as usual." The following is an exhibitor's review from The Motion Picture Herald, "Mickey's Good Deed: Mickey Mouse - Christmas cartoon. Kids like Mickey. That's why they come. One Mickey Mouse cartoon on your Saturday's program brings the kiddies out to the matinee. Running time, eight minutes. - Edmund M. Burke. Fort Plain Theatre, Fort Plain, N.Y. General Patronage."
Now for a delightful Terry Toons short, Sparky the Firefly (1953).
Now for a silent Aesop's Film Fables cartoon, The Pace That Kills (1923).
Now it is time for a commercial break.
Mouse Trouble (1944) was the second Tom and Jerry short to win for best animated short film at the Oscars. The first of these shorts was the previous year's Yankee Doodle Mouse. The next year a Tom and Jerry cartoon would again win the Oscar for Quiet Please making three years in a row where Tom and Jerry won an Oscar. Unlike a Disney cartoon where the animators would often times be assigned different characters to work with, in this film (and many other Tom and Jerry cartoons) the animators would be assigned lengthy segments (for a 7-minute cartoon that is) of the picture to handle themselves. Pete Burness animated the begging of the cartoon with Tom receiving the book in the mail and animates until Jerry runs in the hole and Tom turns to his book for advice. Ray Patterson animates Tom's failed attempts at using a mouse trap and a snare trap. Kenneth Muse animates Tom trying to use Jerry's sense of generosity against the mouse only to have Jerry end up tricking tom by engaging Tom's curiosity. Pete Burness animates Tom finding out a cornered mouse does sometimes fight back. Kenneth Muse animates Tom using a stethoscope to find Jerry. Irven Spence animates Tom's use of a gun, a tiger trap and a mallet to catch Jerry as well as him disguising himself a surprise package. Tom's use of a wind-up toy girl mouse to catch Jerry is animated by Kenneth Muse. Tom tearing up the book is animated by Pete Burness. Tom using explosives by Kenneth Muse. The end of the film with Tom ascending to heaven was animated by Pete Burness.
Next comes the Captain and the Kids cartoon, The Captain's Christmas (1938). This short film was directed by Friz Freleng, during the brief time he left Warner Brothers to work at MGM. He was not happy working with the characters in these Captain and the Kids cartoons and would soon go back to Warner Brothers.
Next is the Van Beuren cartoon, Opening Night (1932). This cartoon introduced a new character, Cubby Bear. This is one of the many Mickey Mouse lookalikes that populated American cartoons of the 1930's. Almost every studio was guilty of having Mickey Mouse clones at this time, since Mickey had become such a sensation. In fact, the Van Beuren Studio once took this too far, when they made some cartoons featuring Mice that looked just like Mickey and Minnie in 1931. Walt would sue the studio over those cartoons. This cartoon is also a rather historically interesting film for another reason. It was made for the opening of the RKO Roxy Theatre. It is not subtle about this either. Since the theatre opened in late December, the film begins with Santa Claus riding his sleigh and takes out of his bag various stars which form the words "RKO ROXY." The meaning is simple to decipher, the theatre was a Christmas gift to movie fans.
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For anyone wondering why Christmas is so awesome, let us close with this song.
Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for more animated treasures. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies merry.
Resources Used
Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons by Leonard Maltin
Disney by Sergei Eisenstein
Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse: The Ultimate History by David Gerstein and J.B. Kaufman
A very entertaining anime prequel to Lord of the Rings.
With this movie, popular anime director Kenji Kamiyama (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Eden of the East, Napping Princess (2017), Eien no 831 (2022), Blade Runner: Black Lotus) directs an animated prequel to Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films (Jackson serves as an executive producer). The film is a delightful mix of an anime fantasy, and the world J.R.R. Tolkien created in his classic books. In many ways this may come off more as a typical anime fantasy film than a Lord of the Rings movie, but it is a quite good one. The main character, while not exactly complex is very likable and easy to care about. We get invested in her character arc and enjoy seeing her grow into the ruler we know she is capable of being. The villain is also quite wonderful. He feels like an incredible threat to our heroes and is a great example of how vengeance can completely consume a person. The fantasy and world building are fantastic. Like in Tolkien's books or Jackson's films, the world here feels completely real to us.
The artwork here is simply beautiful to look at. It is full of great detail and helps make this fantasy world feel all the more real to us. However, the actual animation (that is to say the movement of the characters) is quite limited and stiff. The characters often stand there with nothing but their mouth's moving, which makes this look more like a TV cartoon than a theatrical film. This is especially true in any dialogue heavy scenes. However, many of the action scenes handle this limited animation better, having more of a cinematic quality than the more dialogue heavy scenes.
This movie does suffer from too many characters and too long of a runtime. The film does tend to drag at times, especially in the first act. The sheer number of characters also makes it so that some of them are not allowed to be properly fleshed out. Worse is that sometimes, you will forget that certain characters exist until they reappear for an important plot point.
While not without flaws this is good time at the movies for anime fans.
One of the taglines for Love Actually was "the ultimate romantic comedy." In many ways this is an apt description. Rather than simply following one romance, this movie features a large cast of characters from all over the U.K. finding love around Christmas time. Some of these stories are more comedic, while others are more romantic, while others are a mixture of both. The result is a surprising delight even for those that don't normal like romantic comedies.
One of the main problems I have with many romantic comedies is that I often find the comedy lacking. The comedy in many of these movies is more cute or charming than actually funny. Love Actually is a delightful exception to this. I was honestly surprised at just how funny this film can be. Pretty much anything involving the lonely aging rockstar (Bill Nighy) as well as the two stand-ins for sex scenes in a movie ((Martin Freeman, Joanna Page) is hilarious. Rowan Atkinson's brief scene in the jewelry store and the prime minister (Hugh Grant) performing a Christmas carol are also comedic highlights. As should be true in more romantic comedies, the romance and comedy never get in the way of each other and the film can be funny at times and sweet and charming at others. The two characters who fall in love despite not speaking the same language (Colin Firth, Lúcia Moniz) is an incredible sweet and charming romance that is a pure delight. This movie also functions as almost a 21st century version of all-star films of the 1930's like Grand Hotel (1932). This is not only true because of the all-star cast (Alan Rickman, Bill Nighy, Colin Firth, Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant, Laura Linney, Liam Neeson and many more) but because of the concept of weaving together various stories based on the same theme. This helps give the movie a certain old-fashioned charm, while clearly remaining a product of the 21st century (the humor here is definitely much more risqué than what you could even get away with in a pre-code film). It is the blending of old-fashioned story telling with modern sensibilities that helps make this movie stand out.
This is not to say Love Actually is a perfect film though. The sheer number of stories as well as a run time of 135 minutes can make this film uneven at time. The truth is some of the stories are better than others. There are some characters and stories that simply get lost in the mix and are too overshadowed by others.
This film opened on the exact same date (November 7, 2003) as another beloved Christmas movie, Elf (2003). Both of course were quite different takes on a Christmas movie. Elf was a fantasy-based story for the whole family, while Love Actually was a holiday romance aimed squarely at adults. Elf was a major hit in the U.S. but underperformed outside of the country. However, Love Actually performed better outside the US.
This film was written and directed by Richard Curtis. It marked his directorial debut. However, he had already made a name for himself in romantic comedies for having written such movies as Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Notting Hill (1999) and Bridget Jones's Diary (2001). He originally planned this film as two movies. One that would center around the prime minster character and another that would center around the couple with the langue barrier. However, he felt that this was too similar to other romantic comedies including ones he wrote himself. He felt he would have a better movie if he combined the two stories and threw in others. He had about 30 pages of his script written before he decided to set the film around Christmas time.
This film has become a Christmas tradition for many, and it is easy to see why. It is simply very charming and very funny.
This horror-action film is very entertaining in just how bad it is.
This movie has a very clever premise about a werewolf epidemic breaking out and the designs of the werewolves (including the use of practical effects) are great. Unfortunately (or fortunately) this is where the good things about this film end. There is no doubt that this is a bad movie, however it is bad in a way that makes it very entertaining to watch. Many of the action scenes look like they came out of a slapstick comedy rather than an actual horror movie. They are so over the top and unintentionally silly that even the goriest moments (and they can get really bloody) come off as funny rather than scary or exciting. The filmmakers even try to incorporate some family drama along with the action and horror. This works just as well as the action and horror, which is to say it doesn't work at all. The characters are incredibly poorly defined with barely anything that resembles a personality. This makes it hard to care about any of them. The dialogue during these family drama scenes is hilariously bad. It is incredibly corny, and each line feels incredibly forced. Once again, the result is laughter at these scenes that are supposed to be taken seriously. These lines are made even funnier by terrible delivery from the actors. The plot uses every cliché in the book to the point where this becomes almost an unintentional parody of horror movies.
I honestly feel that in the future this film may gain a following among those who like to watch bad movies. It is truly horrible but in the most entertaining way possible.
This is the first segment of the tenth episode of The All-New Super Friends Hour, unlike most other Super Friends formats, this one had hour long episodes that were made up of various shorter cartoons. The first segment would be an adventure staring two members (or three in some cases as Batman and Robin would often team with another Super Friend) of the Super Friends. The second would be a morality play staring the Wonder Twins. The third would be a typical half hour Super Friends adventure. The fourth and last segment would feature one of the main Super Friends teaming up with a special DC Comics guest star.
In this short Superman and Wonder Woman team up to stop The Collector from stealing priceless monuments, when he invents a camera that can capture transfer any object into a picture.
This is a wonderful cartoon. I always love when these shorts can make a non-powered villain feel like a real threat to our favorite superheroes. This cartoon does a wonderful job at just this. There is a real sense of suspense in this segment that works perfectly. That the possibly the most powerful superhero of all (Superman) is captured early on is what gives this cartoon its greatest sense of suspense. Wonder Woman must save Superman but due to the bad guy having captured Superman, we know he is capable of doing the same thing to Wonder Woman. This leads to some pretty exciting action scenes. The use of various priceless monuments from across the globe allows for some of the great artwork that typifies Hanna-Barbera cartoons of this period. This short does have a message of that important monuments should be treasured, taken care of and not taken for granted. However, this message never feels forced or didactic but rather completely natural.
This is the final segment of the ninth episode of The All-New Super Friends Hour, unlike most other Super Friends formats, this one had hour long episodes that were made up of various shorter cartoons. The first segment would be an adventure staring two members (or three in some cases as Batman and Robin would often team with another Super Friend) of the Super Friends. The second would be a morality play staring the Wonder Twins. The third would be a typical half hour Super Friends adventure. The fourth and last segment would feature one of the main Super Friends teaming up with a special DC Comics guest star.
In this segment Superman teams up with Samurai (a character created specifically for this show making his first appearance) to investigate when a UFO crashes into a volcano in Hawaii.
This is a fun cartoon. There is a real sense of suspense here as the aliens are in huge danger and refuse help from the super friends. This is a short with a message, but the message is handled very well here. It looks into prejudice as the aliens doubt that the earth men (yes, I know Superman is from Krypton) actually have their best interest at heart. Since this is tied into the suspense of the story, it feels less didactic than some of the other message themed shorts. The superhero action in this short is also a lot of fun and Samurai's powers are used very well in his first appearance. The cartoon also benefits from a lot of the great background art that populates Hanna-Barbera cartoons of this time period.
The clever idea of a horror-comedy based on the Y2K computer scare is wasted here as it is the only somewhat original idea. Everything else in this movie is something we have all seen many times and often in much better films. The characters are pure teen movie stereotypes that have nothing interesting about them at all. There are little attempts at times to try and defy these characters' stereotypes, but these add no depth to these characters. That is because these attempts are more interested in the act of defy these stereotypes and not in making them feel like real people. In here lies the film's biggest flaw, the characters never feel like real people. We never believe or care about any of them. On top of this they often come off as obnoxious. It is true that teenagers can be obnoxious but characters in a movie should never be so obnoxious that they annoy the audience. It doesn't help that this obnoxiousness makes up for a lot of the film's humor. Because of this I not only didn't laugh at the jokes but found myself annoyed by the comedic moments as well. Comedy that is foulmouthed or noisy can be hilarious, but it is not automatically funny. And when this type of humor falls flat, it can be painful. The other source of humor is 90's references. Again, the filmmakers seem to think simply making a reference to something is funny in and of itself. These moments may give people in their 30's and 40's a sense of nostalgia but that is the only appeal they have.
The horror-inspired scenes are probably the part of the film that works the best. However, even those parts could be much better. The violence is often gratuitous and at odds with silly tone of most of the movie. The filmmakers also seem more interested in these violent scenes than in actually creating anything memorable or scary. What does kind of work about these scenes though is that they create a real sense of danger. This danger comes from that the movie sets up that any character can die at any time making no one safe. However, even this would have worked better if we actually cared about the characters.
Happy Saturday morning my friends. Once again, it is time for some classic cartoons.
The Night Before Christmas (1941) was the third Tom and Jerry cartoon and one of the best. It is clear that Bill, Joe and the rest of the team were now fully understanding how to use these characters just right. The opening scenes with Jerry playing around the tree, the mistletoe scene and the ending were all animated by Jack Zander. George Gordon animated the scene of Jerry bouncing on Tom, and a very funny sequence involving boxing gloves. Cecil Surry animates Jerry freezing outside. Bill Littlejohn animates the scene of Jerry pretending to be a toy solider. Irven Spence who would later become one of the most prominent Tom and Jerry animators (known for animating over the top reactions) has a very limited role here. He animates Tom feeling guilty about Jerry freezing outside, while he is trying to sleep and a very brief scene of Tom shaking snow off of Jerry. This film was nominated for an Oscar. Its competition this year was Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B (1941, Walter Lantz), Hiawatha's Rabbit Hunt (1941, Warner Brothers, starring Bugs Bunny), How War Came (1941, Columbia), Lend a Paw (1941, Disney, starring Mickey Mouse and Pluto), Rhapsody in Rivets (1941, Warner Brothers), The Rookie Bear (1941, MGM, starring Barney Bear), Rhythm in the Ranks (1941, George Pal Puppetoon), Superman (1941, Fleischer Studios) and Truant Officer Donald (1941, Disney). Lend a Paw won the Oscar this year.
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Next is the Terry Toons cartoon, Spanish Onions (1930). Most of the early Terry Toons shorts (including this one) had food related titles.
Disney cartoons have long been associated with sentimentality and cuteness. Yet this wasn't always the case. The early black and white Mickey Mouse films were mostly pretty much the opposite. They focused purely on the gags and jokes and with keeping the comic momentum going. A perfect example of this is Mickey's Orphans (1931). This short has all the makings for a sentimental cartoon. It takes place at Christmas time and the involves Mickey adopting a bunch of orphans. Yet all of this is play strictly for laughs and some of the kids can be a little sadistic. A review in the Motion Picture Herald stated, "The youngsters will get a real kick out of this short, and the oldsters will extract a bit of enjoyment." A review in The Film Daily gave the same sentiment stating, "It will delight all children and get many a laugh from their elders." An issue of The Film Daily (Dated February 7, 1932) stated "In addition to El Brendel in person this week's show at the Roxy is a special treat for the kids. The presentation includes four scenes based on 'Mickey's Orphans,' the Mickey Mouse cartoon that was held over for three weeks at this house. The characters of Mickey and Minnie are portrayed by the Arnaut Brothers, popular pantomimists. Patricia Bowman, Fred Waring's orchestra in a novelty entitled 'Dancing Melodies,' and the Roxyettes also are part of the proceedings. In the Mickey scenes, the Roxyettes and ballet group are made up to represent kittens, musical notes and animated furnishings in Minnie's boudoir." This cartoon was reissued to theatres in 1934.
Now for a winter themed Foghorn Leghorn short, Weasel While You Work (1958). This is the third and last appearance of the weasel character in a theatrical short. His other two appearances were in Plop Goes the Weasel! (1953) and Weasel Stop (1956), both of which were Foghorn Leghorn cartoons. This film is also one of six shorts to use stock music from John Seely, rather than the usual Carl Stalling or Milt Franklin orchestral scores. This was due to a musician's strike at the time. The cartoon also marks one of the few times director Robert McKimson worked with writer Michael Maltese, who is most associated for his work with Chuck Jones. Weasel While You Work is one of only two Foghorn Leghorn cartoons written by Michael Maltese, with the other being Fox Terror (1957).
Now it is time for a commercial break.
Next comes a silent era cartoon starring Krazy Kat, Scents and Nonsense (1926).
Many of the later Betty Boop cartoons would turn the focus from Betty to her supporting cast. Quite a few shorts would focus on her dog Pudgy. One of these is Pudgy Picks a Fight (1937).
Next comes Bugs Bunny and the Tasmanian Devil in The Fright Before Christmas (1979). This short was originally created for the TV special Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales (1979). This was the final of three segments in that special and was directed Friz Freleng. This makes this the first time Taz was directed by someone other than Robert McKimson. The result like the whole special is a delightful Christmas treat and one of the best uses of Taz after the golden age of Looney Tunes. Also appearing here is Bugs' nephew Clyde. Clyde had only appeared in two theatrical shorts, His Hare Raising Tale (1951) and Yankee Doodle Bugs (1954). Both of those were directed by Friz Freleng.
Today's cartoon selection ends with A Garfield Christmas Special (1987).
Thanks for joining me. Come back next week for another selection of animated treasures. Until then may all your tunes be looney and your melodies merry.
