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Crystalfilm-2
Reviews
Matinee Mouse (1966)
Why bother?
After years and years of feuding, Tom and Jerry decide to wave the white flag and call a truce. With that, they head off to the movie theater, which just happens to be showing their classic cartoons. And that's all it takes for them to start up the fight all over again.
Tom and Jerry creators William Hanna and Joseph Barbera got the director's credit for this even though it was released in 1966, and they hadn't actually made a T&J cartoon since 1958. I think that's only because about 75% of this cartoon consists of clips from the Hanna & Barbera period, and you're better off watching those any day. I'm going to be generous and give this a five out of ten, but like I said, that's generous.
Peace on Earth (1939)
Good will towards squirrels? Well, why not squirrels?
Some possible small spoilers.
I remember seeing this on television about ten years ago with my mother; the first part of the above summary was her question, the second part was my answer. Cartoon Network had the decency to dig this out of the vaults recently for the holidays, giving me the first opportunity I've had in years to see this, the tale of a kindly old squirrel who, on Christmas Eve, tells his two grandchildren about the strange creatures called "men," who killed each other off in pointless wars over the littlest things. After the death of all the men, the forest animals rebuild from the wreckage and establish "Peace on Earth."
Perhaps the first thing I noticed is the great visuals, in particular the battle scenes, with the death of the last two men on Earth having the perhaps the greatest dramatic impact. And there's a lot to be said for the music; I'm not ordinarily a crier, but I do get a little misty-eyed hearing the haunting chorus at the beginning and the end. But most important is the powerful message of love and peace, and if you ask me, viewing this cartoon now kind of makes this message even more poignant than ever. With the awful memory of the horrific events of September 11 sure to linger in our collective consciousness for quite some time to come, this cartoon serves as a fine reminder of most people are wishing for at this time of year: Peace on Earth.