The Fifth-Column Mouse

Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons.

'The Fifth-Column Mouse' is not one of Friz Freleng's best cartoons by any stretch, in an uneven "still evolving" period of his long career, and he was yet to be in his full prime and not yet found his style properly. For a relatively early effort, 'The Fifth-Column Mouse' is solid and above average but not a Freleng classic, he would do much better later. It is never what one would call hilarious (but is never unfunny), Freleng's later efforts show more evenness and confidence in directing and the story is flimsy.

Being a World War II cartoon, there are references (often political) and while most are easy to get and suitably sharp others are very lacking in subtlety and may go over the heads of younger viewers.

However, the characters are fun and the chemistry lifts 'The Fifth-Column Mouse' in a way that's entertaining if not quite inventive.

The cartoon is amusing at times, goes at a lively pace and it's never dull.

Animation is excellent, it's fluid in movement, crisp in shading, vibrant in colour and very meticulous in detail. Carl Stalling's music is lovely on the ears, lushly orchestrated, full of lively energy and characterful in rhythm, not only adding to the action but also enhancing it.

Voice acting is terrific as usual, then again one can't expect less from Mel Blanc.

Overall, good cartoon if not a Freleng classic. 7/10 Bethany Cox

"The Fifth-Column Mouse" is a bad cartoon from Looney Tunes...something you'd just never expect. In fact, I had to check twice to see that it WAS from Looney Tunes, as qualitatively it's well below the quality of their other early 1940s output. The cartoon is not funny and it features a lot of singing...and it's incredibly dated. No wonder I found this on a Roku channel...as apparently Warner Brothers (who owned Looney Tunes) hasn't bothered keeping the rights to it!

The cartoon is a very obvious parable about appeasement...the type that Neville Chamberlain and his likes did with Germany before WWII began. A mouse is caught and instead of the cat eating him, he hires the mouse to be his spokesman and convince the other mice that the cat likes them! This lasts for about 30 seconds and then the cat is out to eat the mice. The mice respond by mobilizing for war...along with a lot of annoying singing.

Overall, a bit of a chore to watch this propaganda cartoon and it just isn't funny.

The Fifth Column Mouse (1943)

*** (out of 4)

Creative and fun short has a group of mice having fun inside a house when to their horror a cat gets in and soon a chase is on.

While this short is in no way, shape or form in the same league as Tom and Jerry, for the most part there are enough laughs and some great animation that keeps it entertaining. I was really impressed with the animation including one great shot where we see the cat's mouth and teeth with a mouse inside it. The details to the teeth and mouth were just terrific. There's plenty of fun action throughout the running time as the mice finally get enough of the cat and decide to give him a taste of his own medicine.

Before Orwell's Animal Farm, the Schlesinger studio produced a couple WB cartoons depicting animal versions the rise of the Axis powers. McCabe's THE DUCKTATORS (1942) and Freleng's THE FIFTH COLUMN MOUSE (1943) focus primarily on Hitler's rise to power following a revolt. These carry a morale boosting tone.

There are several parallels between the events of Hitler's rise to power in Germany such as a mouse attempting to appease the cat in order to avoid war. The mice only decide to fight back when the cat turns on them. The nazi imagery is almost nonexistent in this short aside from a couple subliminal references to Hitler and the axis (look closely at the scene of the cat peeking through the foggy window before he enters the basement). This could be why the short was able to be reissued after the war ended.

WWII had some of the most interesting propaganda films that were covered by virtually every film studio. These were very effective in keeping a positive morale on the home front, despite the severity of the situation and the uncertainty of the outcome. I like how this short encourages the audiences to "grit your teeth, show some fight, and the stuff that you're made of; Remember to never say die!" The WWII tune "We Did It Before, and We Can Do It Again" was a nice addition.

The public domain status of this short has made it widely available.

When a cat gets into the house, the mice who live there find their source of food diminished, not to mention their freedom. All the mice are chubby little brown guys except for one grey one. The cat captures him and then allows him to live if he will do his will. He is to give speeches to the mice and get them to serve the cat. They do this for a while until the cat reveals his wish for a nice fat mouse for supper. The cartoon is predictable and a little cliched. But it has some nice effects.