User Reviews

This short opens with Tom sleeping by the fire and Jerry sneaking on to the table to steal some food; Tom wakes and sees him and is soon after him. As Jerry tries to flee upstairs Tom tugs on the carpet; as he keeps pulling the piano on the landing approaches the top of the stairs then tumbles down and squashes Tom against the wall. It looks as if Tom's used up his nine lives as a gold escalator appears and takes him to the golden gates where recently deceased cats are queuing to board the Heavenly Express. As Tom tries to board he is told he can't as he spent his life tormenting Jerry... if he is to board he must get a signed letter of forgiveness from Jerry within one hour; should he fail he will go straight to hell! He wakes up and desperately tries to get Jerry to sign it; Jerry isn't in a forgiving mood so he will need a lot of persuading!

This was a great short with plenty of good laughs; with all the things that have happened to Tom and Jerry before it is amazing that neither of them has 'died' before. There is less violent action than usual but that is no bad thing as the scene where Tom ascends the escalator and tries to board the Heavenly Express were entertaining. There was one shock in there too... we hear how other cats died before three kittens emerge from a dripping sack suggesting that they had been deliberately drowned and the gatekeeper a shakes his head and says 'what some people won't do'... pretty dark for a cartoon. Tom's attempts to get Jerry to forgive him were fairly funny; almost the opposite of his usual behaviour. There is a little twist at the end... after all Tom can't really be dead as he has more cartoons to star in.

Oh my goodness you'll never believe it, Tom actually 'dies' goes to hell, and learns the error of his nefarious feline ways, it's pretty awesome! The idea of this one is brilliant but it's not quite unique to the series, it's very similar to "The Cat and the Mermouse", where the action goes under the sea! I'm not nitpicking, it was a great idea in that classic and it works just as well here. I always really loved the way the house is done as it appears in this short from this period. Everything is so cosy and richly textured, and it all clearly had so much passion and diligence put into it from the animators, and that's one of the things about Tom and Jerry that always sticks with you. I especially love the glorious golden details on the express train, and escalator to heaven! Wonder if Matt Groaning ever happened to see this one as a kid? It's already been noted, but that really is a rather subtly grim sight gag with the sack full of drowned kittens arriving in heaven. I doubt very much that anyone ever got the meaning of that as a kid. So the story is that Tom dies via a thorough piano crushing, and, lovably cowardly worm that he is, first tries to force the signature of forgiveness that he needs from Jerry in order to avoid getting thrown into hell which is run by a bulldog-devil, and the funniest part of it for me is how Tom actually gets mad when Jerry refuses to sign the document! Eventually though, after a terrific display of charades from Tom, the not totally-unforgiving Jerry agrees to sign - but by that point it's actually too late and things get a little hairy as the escalator before Tom vanishes and below him pops up a boiling cauldron and a laughing devil dog eagerly awaiting his arrival! And as the cat gets dunked in the pot, the twist happens, as it's revealed that the whole thing has been but a dream, and Tom is merely getting singed by the coals from the fireplace! But it wasn't all for nothing, as Tom is overjoyed to be alive and well and immediately runs to give a very confused Jerry a big hug and kisses! It's probably the sweetest ending in the scariest episode and I love it, it's a timelessly wonderful animation, one of the classic duo's very best. Thank you!

When I watched this short, it was kind of like Disney's "Pluto's Judgement Day" (your judgment day nightmare). Of course, I thought of "Judgement Day" as in when you have died, your soul will be judged. I had always questioned myself about the concept of Heaven and Hell, and Oh! Those little kittens are so cute, and I felt sorry for them; some people are just cruel.

Well, down to basics: in this short, Tom gets "killed" while chasing Jerry. He goes to heaven and meets the cat who meets dead cats boarding the "Heavenly Express." Tom is given one hour to have Jerry sign a certificate of forgiveness. If Jerry signs the certificate, Tom goes to Heaven; if he doesn't, then he goes to Hell. I love the ending and Jerry's "O-K, what just happened?" look on his face when Tom kisses him.

CAST: Tom, Jerry, a bulldog, a gatekeeper, and various heavenly express-bound cats.

Directors: WILLIAM HANNA, Joseph BARBERA. Animators: Ray Patterson, Irven Spence, Kenneth Muse, Ed Barge. Music: Scott Bradley. Color by Technicolor. Western Electric Sound System. Producer: Fred Quimby.

Copyright 17 June 1949 (in notice: 1948) by Loew's Inc. An M-G-M "Tom and Jerry" cartoon. U.S. release: 9 July 1949. 8 minutes.

COMMENT: I'm surprised this one wasn't nominated for an Academy Award. Tom finds he can't enter heaven unless he obtains a "Certificate of Forgiveness" from Jerry. The escalator to heaven is truly magical, the cauldron of hell unspeakably terrifying. A pleasantly off-beat story, with many neat touches.

Heavenly Puss was produced at the same time as The Little Orphan and Hatch Up Your Troubles, the latter of which is somewhat of a parallel to this one.

The premise is that Tom, in his typical (but more brutal than usual) pursuit of Jerry, dies, goes to heaven, is denied, and needs Jerry's forgiveness. When Jerry gives it to Tom too late, he plunges into hell for all eternity... until an ember wakes him up. Then he showers Jerry with kisses as the scene closes on Jerry's perplexed face.

This cartoon works so well because of many reasons. The first is that it still stays true to the other shorts while branching off into its own plot about the afterlife. The music also does an amazing job as usual, perfectly portraying the dire situation at hand without making it too dark.

What's most important is that unlike Blue Cat Blues, Heavenly Puss has lighthearted and funny moments, just like the other 113 shorts released in this era.

All of this is executed beautifully, but in the beginning, I made a comparison between it and Hatch Up Your Troubles, a similar episode in many ways but with Jerry as the star, not Tom.

It's not nearly as good in my opinion because it treats Tom as uncharacteristically cruel, doing stuff like trying to axe Jerry and drown the baby woodpecker in his stomach; whereas in Heavenly Puss, Tom's actions are part of a nightmare he has about how he treats Jerry, spotlighting that he doesn't want to kill him.

But more importantly, it isn't very funny by series standards and much, much slower-paced. I'll elaborate some time in the future, but Heavenly Puss, not Hatch Up Your Troubles, deserved the nomination in my opinion.

As soon as the lion stops roaring there's something soaring... in that beautiful melody announcing it will not be a classic "Tom and Jerry" - although a classic it certainly is.

The music accompanying the title-card is so beautiful it could have fitted a Hollywood romantic drama. "Heavenly Puss" was directed in 1949 when the design and animation had reached maturity and the finely detailed backgrounds were a credit to Joseph Barbera and William Hannah's then-perfectionism. And the short holds a special place in my memories, because -simply said- as a kid it scared the hell out of me.

I was the impressionable type and one of my earliest animated traumas dates back to Disney's "Pluto's Judgment Day", Pluto put on trial for his persecution of cats, surrounded by a judge, a prosecutor and jurors of the same species than his victims. The cartoon haunted me for its hellish and nightmarish atmosphere. "Heavenly Puss" follows the same pattern only with roles reversed for it is the cat who has to answer for his actions. And to make its very point, the cartoon opens with Tom peacefully sleeping near the fire and Jerry sneaking his way to the kitchen, not noticing Tom's devilish smirk while the casual music gets ominous, not the usual jazzy stuff. And when Tom stops Jerry from eating a cookie with a knife, we feel that this time, he means business.

We get so used of violence conducted by such props as cherry bombs, baseball bats or anvils but Tom's laughs or reactions and the episodic structures always downplayed it and insisted on the long-term indestructible nature of our favorite foes. This time Tom doesn't seem like bullying but attempting to murder Jerry who escapes by stairs, Tom grabs the stair rug and pulls it until he brings a piano that slides to his direction, Jerry escapes, but Tom is brutally flattened on the wall. A normal outcome by cartoons standards... but suddenly he gets his shape back and lays dead. Then a light illuminates his body. The soul leaves the body and takes an escalator to heaven. That second act is full of breathtaking imagery, partially borrowed from Pressburger and Powell's "A Matter of Life and Death".

The blue sky switches to shades of pink as to indicate a new beginning... I can just imagine the wonder in the eyes that watched that in a theater, whatever film they saw after couldn't have been as impacting. Tom walking on a platform of clouds, finds a train gate for the Heavenly Express, and allow me to say that the sight of these shadowy deceased cats slowly walking to the train before the Conductor (Daws Butler) says "Name Butch" made an impression I can't describe, it really showed a vision that I associated to death. The Conductor welcomes Butch who had one fight too many with a dog, a fat cat who went through a steamroller, another nod to Pluto's cartoon. Last but not least, there's a heartbreaking sight of three little kittens in a wet bag... a children's cartoon aims the innocent ones but doesn't sugarcoat some realities of innocence being murdered. As the Conductor said "what some people won't do".

Tom tries to get the clandestine way (he could see he was in trouble), but the Conductor notices him, examining his record, tells him that he can't get to heaven, even cats have standards. Tom's chance is to ask Jerry to sign a certificate of forgiveness and if he doesn't, well, all dogs don't go to heaven, and Spike (Billy Bletcher) makes quite a convincing devil, Tom's wide-eyed expression at that glimpse on hell says it all. He knows the stakes and he's got only one hour. Third act. Back to Earth with the ominous clock ticking like a Damocles sword, Tom tries to find all sorts of way to convince Jerry, bribing him with cheese and a delicious cake and even trying to sign in his place before the conductor "uh, uh" him. The suspense reaches a Hitchcockian limit until Jerry tears down the paper and Tom snaps. As he's about to hit Jerry with a fire poker, Evil Spike encourages him to finish him, Tom's reaction is heartbreaking in its desperateness. At that point, he realizes the meaning of his actions. At that point, he does feel sorry.

There comes a heart-pounding (or breaking) climax orchestrated by a nervous tempo where Tom literally pantomimes what awaits him if Jerry doesn't sign, the moment he begs Jerry to sign is some powerful storytelling. When the pen doesn't work, you can almost feel your heart stop. Now, let me tell you that as a kid, I turned to the volume down not to hear the "All aboard" as something in the echo and the tone made it unbearable to my ears... I can also see my mother bumping into the end of the cartoon and being glued to the screen ... her shocked reaction when the stairway disappeared and the trap door opened under Tom's feet so he can wave us goodbye. And as a kid I was more scared by the dramatic fall into the pit than the cauldron moment that immediately faded to the "all a nightmare" realization, just like Pluto with good old harmless fire.

Such a dark cartoon had to end with a relief and a little smile, Tom hugging a shrugging Jerry. We know the next short will have them as enemies again but it would be for fun for Tom finally knew his limits. In seven minutes, a wide range of emotions and themes were contained in "Heavenly Puss", a short about morals, accountability, responsibility and ultimately, redemption. ... "Heavenly Puss" is heavenly animation and storytelling and one of the best "Tom and Jerry".

. . . that Tom, and by extension, his entire picture franchise including Jerry, are quickly marching down the Road to Perdition; in others words, they're intent upon storming the Gates of Hades, hand-basket or not. HEAVENLY PUSS finds Tom riding a Golden Escalator within its first two minutes. Of whom will this remind most viewers? Surely contemporary film students will be put in mind of Oval Office Occupant #45, whose Final Destination in the Hereafter is even more uncertain than Tom's. Though Tom has hatched up many fiendish plots against his constituent Jerry, all of them collectively pale in comparison to the attack upon American instigated by Pudgy Fingers and his fellow malingering miscreants. It will be nice to see a pictorial representation of Mad Mr. T. trying to march into Paradise, when it becomes available.