Elmer's Candid Camera

Elmer Fudd takes up wildlife photography. He takes all his camera gear into the woods and finds a rabbit. The rabbit has some fun at Elmer's expense.

This is mostly interesting to see the progression of Bugs Bunny. He's not called Bugs here. He doesn't sound like Bugs. In fact, he does a Woody Woodpecker laugh to close out the short. He does have the attitude and he is that trickster. The design is a little rough and not as cute. Elmer Fudd's design is also a little different and he has the voice. As it stands, this is a very familiar Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny story. The designs are fascinating for historical reasons.

Elmer's Candid Camera (1940)

*** (out of 4)

Elmer, in his first appearance, is reading a photography book, which inspires him to head out into the wilderness to photo some wildlife. Sadly for him his first target is a troublesome rabbit (a future Bugs Buggy). This certainly isn't classic Looney Tunes but it's a fairly entertaining short in its own right. I think most people will prefer the more classic approach to the characters but if you're fair to this film then you should enjoy it. Not too much happens storywise as Elmer keeps getting jokes played on him. None of the jokes are all that funny but that doesn't mean there isn't any charm here. The highlights are certainly the sequences where Elmer finally goes overboard and blows his cool after the rabbit plays all his jokes.

The Elmer character is different from the one we are more familiar with from the toons of the late 40's and 50's. The rabbit character is a prototype of Bugs Bunny. Interestingly, the rabbit has a laugh similar to Woody Woodpecker's at one point.

I am a great fan of Looney Tunes, so I was all for seeing Elmer's Candid Camera. It is one of Elmer Fudd's first cartoons, but sadly it is not one of his best. It is not completely terrible, the animation is very beautifully coloured and detailed and the music is wonderfully orchestrated and lively in tempo which helps to give Elmer's Candid Camera some energy. Mel Blanc and Arthur Q Bryan are great, though they is even better in later cartoons, and Elmer is still rather likable. However, the rabbit character that looks like Bugs but doesn't act like Bugs is not very likable, he lacks verve and he is too sadistic at times as well. The humour also feels flabby rather than funny, the dialogue is not as fresh or as witty and the gags not as clever or imaginative. The story was a good idea but drags badly in the middle that the cartoon lacks momentum. There was the sense that everything was trying to find its feet. Overall, could have been much more, it's not a complete disgrace but it is towards the "my least favourite" end of the Looney Tunes spectrum. 5/10 Bethany Cox

This little gray rabbit with the perfect powder puff cotton tail and the wacky laugh seems to be Bugs Bunny's Dad!!! This early version of B. Bunny is also seen in a cartoon with an earlier version of Elmer Fudd called "Hare-Um Scare-Um". And as I said before, Bugs' grandpa seems to be the little white/pink bunny in the early "Porky's Hare Hunt" and another film, "Prest-o Change-o".

In this funny little gem, Elmer Fudd hopes to get a new hobby going: photographing wildlife. He tries many times to get pics of squirrels, birds, and a cute little gway wabbit, but the wabbit keeps thwarting poor Elmer's efforts.

I do prefer the true personality of Bugs, the one that Tex Avery created and Chuck Jones refined, but this cartoon is very endearing.