Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land

Early Merrie Melodies animated short, directed by Rudolf Isling, notable today for being one of the Censored Eleven. For those who don't know, the Censored Eleven are cartoons that were withheld from syndication because they were considered to be too offensive due to their use of racial stereotypes and imagery. As other reviewers have mentioned, this cartoon pretty shamelessly rips off two famous early Disney cartoons, Steamboat Willie and The Skeleton Dance (although that has nothing to do with the cartoon's banning). The short stars Piggy and Fluffy, familiar-looking characters with debatable origins, along with the character of Uncle Tom. The story starts on a steamboat with some characters that look like monkeys in blackface. Piggy is the steamboat captain and his girlfriend Fluffy joins him. Then we cut to a scene of Uncle Tom in a cemetery being scared by singing skeletons. He runs away and tries to make it to the steamboat, but Piggy has to jump into the water to save him. While Piggy is doing this a mustachioed villain shows up out of nowhere to steal Fluffy. Pretty stupid stuff. The black & white animation is good for the time and the music isn't half-bad. Still, it's hard to watch it without cringing at some parts, particularly any scene involving Uncle Tom. It's one of the least offensive of the Censored Eleven but also one of the most banal.

This very early Warner Bros. Short has two claims to fame -- it's on the "Censored 11" list of cartoons United Artists ceased distribution of in 1968 because of their crude racial depictions, and it borrows scenes from two far more well-known cartoons -- the famous "Steamboat Willie" (1st Mickey Mouse) and the horror classic "Skeleton Dance," both from 1920s Disney.

And while this toon is mildly enjoyable but rather nondescript, the music is incredible. And, as far as I can tell, made especially for this cartoon. I need to do more research into this because this seems hard to believe, but I can't find any evidence of this song having existed outside of this cartoon, unlike the songs used in many 1930s WB toons. It sounds so authentic and lively and lived-in, like it came straight from some obscure country blues 78 on Paramount from the decade before.

Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land (1931)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

STEAMBOAT WILLIE and THE SKELETON DANCE are certainly "borrowed" from in this Warner short that is best remembered today for being part of the "Censored 11" due to the racial content. In the film, Piggy and Fluffy are on a riverboat trying to escape some bad guy while Uncle Tom runs into some skeletons. While this cartoon probably would have been forgotten had it not been for the controversy, there's still some mildly entertaining things to be found here. In fact, I'd say out of all the "racial" cartoons that have been banned, this one here is probably the least offensive as there's really no blackface jokes or anything to that nature and in fact, if you didn't know about the history before hand I doubt you'd see anything overly offensive. With that said, it's rather amazing that Disney didn't come after this short because it does rip off two of their most beloved early animated films. As it stands, this one here is mildly entertaining thanks in large part to the nice animation and I also thought the pacing and flow were quite good. There really weren't any laughs, which is what kept it from being rated even higher.

This is one of the infamous "Censored 11" cartoons from Looney Toons. Back in the 1960s, the company then owning the rights to the films (United Artists) decided to pull 11 of the cartoons from circulation because of racist elements. Some were incredibly racist and insensitive (even for the 1930s or 40s), though oddly some reviewers have championed the worst of these--saying they aren't offensive. Well, with a few of the cartoons (such as JUNGLE JITTERS), they might be up for debate but some are truly evil cartoons and I just can't see why anyone would defend them (such COAL BLACK AND DE SEBBEN Dwarfs--you have to see it to believe how awful and offensive it is).

My complaint about this one isn't just because it may be perceived as racist by most viewers. Sure, some of the characters are clearly seem to be "happy Negroes" living in the antebellum South--especially one named "Uncle Tom" (now THAT'S subtle!). But my main complaint is that the film is clearly a rip-off of at least two famous Disney cartoons. The pig-like character sure looks and acts like Mickey Mouse from STEAMBOAT WILLIE and the skeletons dancing about are practically lifted from the award-winning SKELETON DANCE. And, this was NOT "fair use" of ideas or characters--it's theft. Despite one reviewer incorrectly claiming that Hugh Harmon and Rudolf Ising were responsible for Mickey Mouse (it was by all historical accounts Ub Iwerks who created and animated most of the early Mickey cartoons and the rights were owned by Walt Disney).

The only positive thing I can say about this toon is that the animation, while derivative, is rather high quality compared to other products of the same era.

My advice is that this and all the Censored 11 cartoons should not be shown on broadcast television unless they are shown with some sort of prologue that could explain the context and reasons they offend. Having them continue to be available on the internet (when you can find them) isn't a bad thing, however, as I am loathe to ban any sort of speech and it is an unfortunate but important part of our history. And if we eliminate EVERYTHING that might offend from our history, then we are left with,...well,...nothing!

This short is one of eleven that likely won't be seen on television any time soon, if ever again. An innocuous little thing, cute in spots and with some good animation, it also has elements that make it unpalatable to some in the present day culture that has developed a mindset that no one should ever get their feelings hurt. Which, in the case of this short, is really unfortunae, because there is a scene with dancing skeletons which, though a bit derivative, is almost as enjoyable as the short it's emulated, The Skeleton Dance. An engaging cartoon and well worth the time and effort to locate. Most highly recomended.