Pluto at the Zoo

A Walt Disney PLUTO Cartoon.

You can be sure there will be plenty of action with PLUTO AT THE ZOO attempting to steal a huge bone from the lion.

This standard Disney film is enlivened by Pluto's encounters with the lion, kangaroo, ape & crocodile.

Walt Disney (1901-1966) was always intrigued by drawings. As a lad in Marceline, Missouri, he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper; later, as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War, he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle. Back in Kansas City, along with artist Ub Iwerks, Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters. Always the innovator, his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe. Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923, where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor. When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor, the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination, ensuring Disney's immortality. The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut, STEAMBOAT WILLIE (1928), a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music. The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared, and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color, illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development, an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable. Mickey's feisty, naughty behavior had captured millions of fans, but he was soon to be joined by other animated companions: temperamental Donald Duck, intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto. All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films. Against a blizzard of doomsayers, Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi & Peter Pan. Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse, or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off.

This is one of the Pluto's cartoons I like best. It is simple and predictable, but great fun and classic Disney. Plus, it features adventure and danger in a funny way.

Pluto is a lovable but very independent and somewhat confident dog. He is more than just a house dog, he loves to explore things and places and he has the need of some adventure.

In this story, Pluto decides to go to a zoo. He takes some great risks here. He has a bad time to steal a bone from a huge lion and because of this bone he gets in trouble with the lion, many crocodiles and some other wild animals.

On its whole, a nice old-fashioned cartoon like Disney doesn't make nowadays anymore.

Not the most original of premises, but what actually could have been repetitive actually turned out to be full of colour and fun. As to expect from a Disney short, the animation is really nicely done with bright bouncy colours and vibrantly fluid drawings and backgrounds. Just as lively is the music, the amount of character in the orchestration has always being a source of admiration and even more so with how well it synchronises with the visuals. The crisp pacing and simple and charming storytelling are nice to see too, while Pluto carries the short very well. He has always been very likable, he's very cute and his energy would put a smile on anybody's face. The wild animals are colourful fun characters as well. The gags are very funny, the best are hilarious actually, and timed beautifully. The de-feathering of the peacock and the sequence with the gorilla were the best parts, though Pluto at the Zoo is very consistent in the entertainment department.

Overall, colourful and funny, a great Disney and Pluto short and well worth seeing at least once. 9/10 Bethany Cox

This is a hilarious Pluto cartoon, where he spots a huge bone in a lion's den at the zoo. Therefore, in his greedy self, he decides to sneak the bone out of the lion's lair. What results are some very funny moments as Pluto struggles to get the bone out, and when he thinks he has finally made it, the lion spots him. Then, when Pluto tries to escape, he has run-ins with just about every zoo animal.

Funny stuff here - especially enjoyed the sound effects the animals make. Unpredictable and unique, it's one of the funniest Pluto cartoons.

Grade A