Speedy Gonzales

Speedy Gonzales (1955)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A group of Mexican mice are having trouble breaking into a cheese factory because none of them are faster than the guard, Sylvester the cat. With nothing left to do they hire Speedy Gonzales to steal some of the cheese. I might take a beating for this but I've never been a fan of Speedy and I might go even further as to call him my least favorite of all the popular animated stars no matter what studio they're from. I've always found him to be all one-joke but there are a couple good moments here. Having Sylvester in the mix brings a few laughs as he will stop at nothing to try and catch Speedy but of course we know he's going to fail. The stereotypes of Mexicans has been discussed to death so I'll just jump over that.

Speedy Gonzales is another one of my favorite Looney Tunes characters, along with Bugs Bunny, Pepe le Pew, Tweety, and the lesser-known Hubie and Bertie. This award-winning short is one of my favorites out of Speedy's filmography. Just because I gave it a 9 out of 10 rating doesn't mean it can still be a favorite. This short marks Speedy's second screen appearance, following his debut in a 1953 Bob McKimson cartoon titled "Cat-Tails for Two." But of course, he didn't look the way we know him now.

The sight of Sylvester defending the cheese factory while on all fours amuses me greatly. I also love the pseudo-Spanish conversation between Speedy and the mouse villager.

An apparent criticism of the Speedy Gonzales cartoons is that they stereotype Mexicans as sombrero-wearing wackos. I guess that this one - actually called "Speedy Gonzales" - basically does that, but it's still a really funny cartoon, as the Fastest Mouse in Mexico gets hired to snatch cheese out of a factory (presumably across the US-Mexico border) guarded by Sylvester.

If in fact it's the US-Mexico border, then the cartoon raises the immigration debate. We see the people - or mice - in our southern neighbor needing to get into our country for better opportunities (as far as I'm concerned, there's no such thing as an illegal immigrant). Then again, maybe I'm reading way too far into the cartoon; it was probably intended as nothing more than silly entertainment. If so, then it succeeds. Worth seeing.

He's the friend of everybody's sister. Speedy certainly seems like he could be a playboy.

This is probably one of the best Speedy Gonzales cartoons. While I strongly agree with another reviewer who said they "hated Speedy Gonzales" and he was "overrated", I must admit this was a pretty good cartoon. It was a lot of fun watching Sylvester get tortured throughout the film by Speedy as he ran back and forth grabbing goodies for his starving mouse friends. I think, though, that apart from a few early Speedy cartoons, they were definitely a few notches below the other Loony Toons cartoons. In fact, in the 1960s, they inexplicably paired Speedy with Daffy Duck to produce what were probably the worst Warner cartoons since the mid-1930s. Watch and enjoy this film--just be forewarned about other Speedy pictures.

The native mice of Mexico want some American cheese, but Sylvester the cat is guarding the border. After a few disastrous attempts to get at it. They send for Speedy Gonzales to get pass this gringo pussycat. The second appearance of Speedy is a classic and cemented yet another great character in the already impressive array of Looney stars. Don't listen to the mind-stealing PC police, Speedy is funny. This Oscar-winning animated short can be found on disc 4 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 1 and features an optional music only track as well as a commentary by Jerry Beck.

My Grade: A