Betty Boop's Penthouse

As a general rule, when I comment on things, I try to avoid saying too much specific about plot, scenes, et cetera, while trying to give anyone reading my comment a basic idea of the feel of the film or short so they can decide if it might be their cup of tea, so to speak. Occasionally, I run into something I want to describe a bit more specifically, but I'll still try not to spoil anything. I may still let too much spill here. You have been warned.

This starts out with Bimbo and Koko playing Mad Scientist. They get distracted by Betty and start watching her instead of the stuff in the lab and an experiment goes awry. Shades of Boris Karloff as the experiment sets out to make Betty his Elsa Lanchester. Sight gags set in time to a great jazz score, some of them things that would have been unacceptable to the Hays Office a year or so later (one in particular that I'll remember the rest of my life!) and an ending that's incredibly silly, but fun to watch. This has everything an early Fleischer Boop should have-surreal sight gags, a little risque material (though tame today), great music and the unexpected. One thing I'll never know, though: did James Whale ever see this and I wonder what he thought of it if he did. 11 on a scale of 10. In print and available. Most highly and gleefully recommended.

In this cartoon, Betty Boop innocently works in her penthouse garden. The guys in the lab across the street are doing dangerous experiments (actually they are regulars, Bimbo and Koko). Instead of paying attention to their work, they are staring at Betty in her skimpy outfit. Soon, a creation of theirs becomes the villain. Some would say the regular male characters are worse.

Betty Boop's Penthouse (1933)

*** (out of 4)

Funny short in Flesicher's series has Bimbo and Kobo playing mad scientist who are trying to come up with the perfect formula. When they see Betty Boop across the way they start paying more attention to her and don't realize that a Frankenstein like monster is being created. Soon the monster goes after Betty and she must fight him off with her perfume. Fans of Boop will get a nice kick out of this short as it features plenty of pre-code sexual humor that anyone can eat up. The scenes dealing with a towel wanting to dry off Boop's butt is very funny as is the way the monster gets turned on by her and the aftermath of him smelling her perfume. The animation is quite nice from start to finish and there are a few nice homages to Whale's FRANKENSTEIN, although the square head is changed to the chin.

Fleischer were responsible for some brilliant cartoons, some of them still among my favourites. Their visual style often stunning and some of the most imaginative and ahead of its time in animation.

The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her. The charm, sensuality and adorability factors are here and she's fun to watch. Koko and Bimbo are also featured and they are amusing too.

'Betty Boop's Penthouse' is a great Betty Boop cartoon, perhaps among her better ones. That it's virtually plot-less doesn't matter that much, because it's so rich in imagination, never less than entertaining, is up there as one of Betty's most boldly risqué cartoons and loved the nod to James Whale.

Furthermore, the black and white animation is very good, smooth, meticulously detailed and well drawn with the black and white not looking too primitive. A lot of it is actually very imaginative as well, some of the most inventive and eye-popping of the early Betty Boop cartoons to me. Even better is the music, which is rousing, catchy and unquestionably accessible to anybody who loves or is familiar with the composition style. The voice acting is good.

My only minor complaint really is the ending coming out of nowhere.

Otherwise, a great Betty Boop cartoon and a must watch for fans of her and Fleischer. 9/10 Bethany Cox