Mouse Wreckers

This cartoon short, an Oscar nominee, features Hubie and Bert ("Yeah, yeah, sure, sure") tormenting poor Claude for the first time. Poor Clude didn't fare terribly well in any of his cartoons, either with Hubie and Bert or in other cartoons, but this is by far the most devastatingly funny appearance by any of them. You really get to feel quite sorry for poor Claude after a while here. He just happens to be in the way here. He doesn't do anything to deserve this nightmare. He's simply there. Recommended.

Mouse Wreckers (1948)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Mice Bertie and Hubie come to their new home when they notice Claude the Cat, the best mouse catcher out there, is staying there. Together the two try to make Claude think he's crazy so that he'll move out. This here is a minor cartoon that makes for one great ending but everything before it is rather dull and bland. All of the "tricks" being done to the cat are rather blandly done and for the life of me I could never believe that the cat would be dumb enough to think everything that was happening was only a dream. A dumb cat would have fallen for this but apparently this one was a great one so I don't buy it. The ending is terrific as the cat thinks he's in an upside-down room. The payoff to this sequence is enough of a reason to watch the film.

This is one of the all-time best Warner Brothers cartoons--even better than the best of Bugs or Daffy! It's THAT good! Hubie and Bertie the mice are looking for a nice place to live. They come upon a wonderful house they would love to live in, but there's a serious problem--the house ALSO has a cat. So, the incredibly cruel mice decide to drive the cat crazy so he will leave and they can have the house to themselves.

What results are some of the funniest evil tricks in cartoon history! At one point they put ear phones on the cat and then proceed to nail everything on the floor to the ceiling and vice-versa! The cat then awakens and tries, unsuccessfully, to walk on what he thinks is the floor! They also tie a rope to the cat's tail and run it all over the house--after which, they drop the weighted end down the chimney and watch the cat being drug all through the house! This cartoon has it all--great animation, great writing, great characters and a bit of an evil streak that makes you laugh out loud. While not quite as good, I also strongly recommend you see Cheese Chasers--with the same cast and high level of fun.

I never even knew that the cat in "Mouse Wreckers" was named Claude until I read about it on this site. But either way, Claude really suffers here, as New York-accented mice Hubie and Bertie pull a series of tricks to scare him out of the house. Probably the coolest gags are the stunt with the rope, and then the whole end sequence.

Still, I can't help but wonder why it is that cats always have to bear the brunt of abuse at the hands of cartoon characters. It seems like there should have been some cartoon in which a cat makes mincemeat of a dog or something. But still, this is a great one.

Claude really could have used some pineapple upside down cake at the end!

The Hubie and Bertie cartoons are not many, but they are all worth a look at least once and are worthy of more attention. Personally am in total agreement that their best is 'Mouse Wreckers', with 'Cheese Chasers' a close second.

Like with what was said in my review of 'Cheese Chasers', the animation in 'Mouse Wreckers' is excellent. Attention to detail is meticulous, the colours are rich and vibrant and the characters are designed in a way that's distinctively Chuck Jones. The animation in the ceiling trick gag is marvellously inventive and is a huge part of that gag's success.

As always, Carl Stalling's music does not disappoint and demonstrates why he has always been my personal favourite of the regular Looney Tunes composers. Orchestration is clever, rich and luscious, the energy, character and appropriately dark atmosphere are evident throughout and it not only fits with what's going on but adds to it.

'Mouse Wreckers' is the most relentlessly cruel of the series, though the cartoon's dark and somewhat sadistic edge is not done too much and not done to stomach churning effect, but also the funniest, the rope and climactic gags being especially hilarious.

Hubie and Bertie are lively and appealing characters, with great comic coming and provide a bold twist to the cat and mouse partnership, while Claude is an antagonistic character that's menacing, at other times amusing and one that one feels somewhat sorry for. Flawless vocals too from Mel Blanc and Stan Freberg, Blanc particularly sounding like he was enjoying himself thoroughly.

In conclusion, wonderful and Hubie and Bertie at their best. 10/10 Bethany Cox