Sick Product of a Sick System

This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

This is a Warner Bros. cartoon from 65 years ago starring Bug Bunny and Elmer Fudd. The three key players behind it are once again Chuck Jones, Michael Maltese and Mel Blanc. I have to say I am pretty baffled by this film's popularity and success. There seems to be something about Looney Toons and opera. To me, however, as somebody with little to no interest in opera, these seven minutes were fairly mediocre and inferior to most other works involving Bugs and the gang from around that time. The gags weren't really funny, but maybe you have to know Barber of Seville to understand them. Bugs cut off Elmer's beard on one occasion, so I guess you have to. All in all, I cannot recommend this short film unless you know the piece I just mentioned.

Rabbit of Seville (1950) *** (out of 4)Looney Tunes spoof of Rossini's opera is one of the most popular films in the series. Bugs and Elmer are fighting it out when they find themselves on a stage where they must perform the famous opera while still doing battle. While I don't think this is as funny as it could have been I also don't think laughs was the main thing they were going for. I think the film is mainly a treat for the eyes and ears and on those levels the movie really hits a home run. The animation by Jones is top-notch from start to finish and that includes the wonderful look of the sets. Also worth noting is the music score, which packs a nice punch. The best sequence in my opinion is the one where Elmer thinks he's growing hair but we all know Bugs has something else planned.

"Rabbit of Seville" has Elmer Fudd trying to shoot Bugs Bunny, and so the latter leads the former into an opera house where "The Barber of Seville" is about to be performed. Within a minute, Bugs and Elmer are the barber and customer, respectively. Needless to say, Bugs tries a few unsavory experiments on Elmer.In an interview, Chuck Jones explained how, listening to Bugs sing his own lyrics for the opera (Welcome to my shop/Let me cut your mop/Let me shave your crop), you almost get the impression that the lyrics were written specifically for him. The first time when I ever saw this cartoon when I was really young, I probably thought that, as I didn't know about the original opera. Rossini would be really proud of the whole Chuck Jones/Michael Maltese/Mel Blanc creative team. Excellent.

This animated short is from what dreams are made. Its musical direction, humour, animation, build up and climax are flawless. It is funny that this small animated feature is worthy of such praise, no matter how great it is. However, the fact that this cartoon is only six minutes long means that it can achieve said perfection. Recent, much longer, fantasy epics are some of the greatest films of all time, however, their length (which is totally necessary) adds to the potential for problems.Yet, to say that "The Rabbit of Seville" is short but sweet is akin to saying the battle of Stalingrad was a "bit messy".Chuck Jones, Mel Blanc and all involved created perfection with this, all further attempts at animated comic shorts should be judged by this standard of excellence.