Okay, perhaps it doesn't quite rival the scope or length of James Cameron's epic, but considering this marks the Technicolor debut of Bob Clampett (up to this point pretty much head of the black-and-white Looney Tunes division), it's still quite remarkable. The cartoon is set in what appears to be a small-town grocery store after hours during the Christmas season (the grocery store window at the beginning reveals a snow-covered scene that would do the likes of "It's a Wonderful Life" proud) where grocery store characters, including a dog from a dog food box, cows from cans of condensed milk, and a rabbit intended as a parody of Jack Benny ("Jack Bunny" -- get it? Interesting, considering the fact that Tex Avery's original name for Bugs was "Jack Rabbit"...), come to life for a night of fun and entertainment. Of course, a complication does arise, here in the form of a gorilla from a box of animal crackers (stored ominously on a high shelf amongst a series of cobwebs, away from the other containers), quickly turning the film into a grand-scale send-up of -- what else? -- King Kong. And, this being Clampett, you can bet that it hardly ends as that film did, but rather takes an unexpected turn for a final gag that in today's society is decidedly controversial.
Clampett was known for being ever the experimenter and envelope-pusher in his work, and with a full pallet of colors to play with, he has obviously gone to town. Much has been made of the camera angles and technique of Frank Tashlin, anticipating that director's career in the fifties as a live action director rather than an animation director, but there are several elements of this early Clampett effort that seem to suggest some similar efforts on his part at live action simulation, or tribute in any event, once the gorilla makes his ominous presence in the film known. (And, this being Clampett, you can bet that it will be offset by a remark to the audience that causes the gorilla to acknowledge what we ourselves have observed of the character thus far.) As the gorilla gazes at the festivities, we see an overlay of the more cheerful scenes we have seen thus far across an intense close-up of his face. A bit later, the gorilla swings from a lamp, sending the store into a brief darkness, and several pairs of eyes come flying in all directions, some directly at the audience, as the characters are fleeing in horror. Naturally, all of this will be offset at the very end, and even the villain will be proved not quite as villainous and/or vicious as we have been led to believe that he is; after all, Clampett's work is nothing if not ultimately full of surprises.
The pace isn't quite the breakneck speed Clampett is more famous for...that is to say, it's fast, but not quite as rapid and "catch one's breath" as one is used to expecting from Clampett. Still, what with the wild chases and the crazy ideas, it's still highly recommended, and one heck of a colorful start.
