Silly Hillbilly

. . . for whom True Americans always have yearned. Mr. Wilson was quick to credit Popeye as his main inspiration for torrid-talking Harold Hill in his MUSIC MAN stage play, which later became a film starring Robert Preston and Shirley Jones. The opening song of MUSIC MAN--"Rock Island"--sung by a horde of salesmen filling a train car, is based upon Popeye's masterful patter as he unfurls his traveling department store: "Here you are, folks, a complete line of shoes, suits, shotguns, flutes, dresses, girdles, hurdles, clocks, socks, bagels and lox, and a pickle for a nickel with the mustard on top." Note the inclusion of band instruments, such as flutes, and uniform underpinnings, including girdles. Harold Hill hurdles the library counter to reach Marian the Librarian, of course, and most of Popeye's other wares make cameo appearances in MUSIC MAN.

The Famous Studios, more the earlier ones than the more variable later ones, Popeye cartoons were generally amusing enough and all the 40s efforts were well made (a bit more mixed for the 50s ones). To me though Fleischer's Popeye cartoons were funnier and fresher (even when the stories were formulaic the material was often very inventive) and they looked better, or at least looked better than the later Famous Studios output where time and budget limitations showed.

1949 was an inconsistent year for the Popeye theatrical series, though not as much as the previous year. While 'Hot Air Aces' and 'Tar with a Star' were good fun, 'A Balmy Swami' struck me as rather uninspired. 'Silly Hillbilly' is somewhere in between, the premise was not the most exciting one in the world and the excitement and silliness in the overall execution of it could have been a good deal more. It's above average, but didn't wow me.

'Silly Hillbilly' does impress in enough areas. The animation is bright and colourful as usual for the late-40s efforts and there is some lovely background detail. Don't have any issue with the music either and never did throughout the series, which is typically merry and sumptuous, adding to and enhancing the action and even gestures and expressions. There are some amusing moments, especially the washing machine scene which was very funny, though little here is hilarious.

Popeye is an enjoyable titular character as always, will never get enough of his asides, while Bluto matches him, betters him even, in comic timing while being a suitably formidable foil. Their chemistry is nice though there is not an awful lot new to it. The voice acting is also fine, Jack Mercer was definitive as Popeye and Jackson Beck is suitably robust.

However, 'Silly Hillbilly' is very predictable and seldom feels particularly inspired. It could have done with more energy and certainly more gags, what was there never really rises above amusing. The first half can be quite dull and while things do pick up in the second half, the wildness isn't quite there.

Olive is very bland and has very little to do other than being a plot device.

In summary, worth the look but not great. 6/10.