Any Little Girl That's a Nice Little Girl

Any Little Girl That's A Nice Little Girl (1931)

*** (out of 4)

The Fleischer Studio produced a number of these animated short films where the "bouncing ball" would have audience members singing together. This story starts off with a cat taking countless calls from the ladies. He then goes through his pictures and realizes that Betty Boop is the best one. The two are then seen on a date where we go to the bouncing ball and the title song. This will be of interest to fans of not only the Flesicher series but also to Betty Boop fans of course. The cat and Boop make for some nice characters to keep us entertained in what's going on so fans of the two will certainly enjoy this short for what it is. The title song is decent enough but it's the animation that makes it worth watching.

This Max Fleischer Screen Song cartune showcases the title song with the Bouncing Ball but also has a little tune before that called "What I Wouldn't Do for That Man" sung a couple of female characters. The plot concerns a male cat who has lots of female admirers and doesn't hesitate to date them all, it seems! Anyway, there's quite some amusing gags like a couple of telephones pulling hair, a heart elongating arms to bring the cat closer to one of his female dates, etc. The lady character may be yet another early version of Betty Boop. This was pretty funny if not hilarious but possibly now a little sexist. Anyway, if you're a Fleischer completist, Any Little Girl That's a Nice Little Girl is worth a look. It's on YouTube.

We have a little cat with a big ego who judges women (cats). He is obnoxious and has little to offer. I suppose he is cute. The title is one of those forgettable songs that these features used. There is really nothing to recommend this. The animation is fine but the subject matter is lacking.

"Any Little Girl That's a Nice Little Girl" is a wonderful example of an excellent cartoon studio (Fleischer Brothers) making an absolutely dreadful short. Back in the early 1940s, the studio made quite a few musical cartoons complete with a bouncing ball that was to encourage the audiences at the theater to sing along. Thank goodness this concept was short-lived, as the films are all about as entertaining as watching dead fish float by! The plot, though there is very little, involves a jerky cat who is adored by lots of kitties. However, he won't take any fat ones or skinny ones and goes out after a cat that sure looks a lot like Betty Boop. A bit later, they show a closeup of Lulubelle and it actually is Boop--or at least Boop circa 1931 when she still had a few doggy features--such as droopy ears. None of this is interesting and a bit sexist. Then, having almost nothing to do with the cartoon, the bouncing ball began and a song droned on and on. None of it was funny or interesting in any way--apart from giving folks today a chance to see the evolution of Betty.

The Sing-Along cartoons were often almost cheaters in that large segments of the running time were simply song lyrics running across the screen with a cue (usually a bouncing ball) pacing the audience as it sang along. They were quite popular for a number of years. The animation ranged from forgettable to excellent. This one is eminently forgettable. The only novelty involved is that Betty Boop, who at that point had been drawn as dog-like in all her previous appearances, has a feline appearance and is being courted by a would-be feline Lothario. This slender bit of novelty cannot save this from banality. The song isn't even all that memorable. Later Betty Boops would use more energetic, jazzy songs and stick more in the memory. For completeists.