It's Showtime

This is a hilarious doco which could best be described as the THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT of animal scenes from Hollywood's history. From silent era Rin Tin Tin and monkey/chimp comedies to Asta the Wonder Dog from the Thin Man films, to horse operas and Flipper, every famous and infamous critter gets a scene ....and most are very funny. There is a theme song like That's Entertainment too. Released clumsily in the mid 70s this is a comedy compilation up there to be enjoyed with DAYS OF THRILLS AND LAUGHTER, BIG PARADE OF COMEDY, and the MGM musical docos as well. I would assume it is impossible to find on tape and rarely on TV, this is great fun and well worth saving into your collection. Thehuman component is as startling as the animals because every major Hollywood star is seen here as well...Fetch and lap it up!

It's Showtime (1976)

** (out of 4)

Documentary in the same vein as That's Entertainment except this one highlight various animal acts throughout the history of cinema. Dogs, cats, horses, apes and various other animals get put in the spotlight as we see clips from hundreds of movies. Flipper, Frances the Talking Mule, Rin Tin Tin, Lassie and a few others get their own segments as well. I guess these types of documentaries have their benefits but I've always felt they were rather tame because it's hard to fully enjoy what you're seeing outside the context of their original films. I've seen a lot of the movies that have clips here and the clips just don't have the same magic as they do when viewed in the original film. The best moment in the film are the clips of Rin Tin Tin. I've only seen one of his movies but that one movie was enough to call this dog amazing but that doesn't come across here because the clips, while great looking, are backed by some silly music, which really takes away from the scene.

The clips of animal scenes from the silent era to what was then the present (1976) are cute enough, but it certainly could have used some documentary style narration. The clips of the individual films are certainly long enough and contain some great animal moments, including those of the original Rin Tin Tin, National Velvet, and Flipper. However, imagine "That's Entertainment" with absolutely no narration at all. It's great to have the individual performances, but some context is what turns a show consisting of a series of clips such as this into a memorable documentary. Thus if you are familiar with the animal stars and the films showcased this is a fun trip down memory lane. However, kids probably just won't get it if they haven't already seen the old films from which this movie takes its clips.

This is a clip show movie with animal performers. Some are famous. Most are not. Some are cute. Mostly, I'm thinking how these animal were trained and how they performed the trick. It's the times. We can't turn away from some of the more brutal training methods. This was probably put together for animal lovers and for nostalgia's sake. This could be compelling if the audience could remember some of these films from their childhood. Most of this happened way too early for me and nostalgia has no hold. Also, this film has no expository narration so non of the clips can be put into context. It's just a bunch of clips with animals. Do with it as you wish.

I absolutely loved watching this as a kid in the 80's. Having gone through my grandparents video collection, i came across this wee gem and gave it a watch with my 4 year old, who is used to watching very fast paced animation, and generally never would watch something like this. We were so captivated by the craziness of it all. Full of great clips that keep you laughing and amazed right through to the end. Thank goodness animals aren't treated like this in the entertainment world anymore! Some are pretty shocking but still a fantastic watch. Love how its cuts between clips and keeps you entertained. Good for kids with short attention spans. Truly a great watch :)