Search - Looney Tunes - Golden Collection on DVD

Janice P. (Pfeiffers)
Reviewed on 8/7/2009...

Enjoyed watching all the original cartoon characters. Worth watching.

1 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.

Golden Rules for Looney Tunes

Doctor Mabuse | Seattle, Washington USA | 03/23/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Animation legend Chuck Jones had a mythic set of ground rules for his ingenious Road Runner series: the setting was always the desert, the characters never spoke, the Road Runner never left the road, the Coyote never caught the Road Runner, etc. A similar set of rules seems at work in THE GOLDEN COLLECTION introductory DVD presentation of Warner Bros. animated shorts. Here is the breakdown:

1. The majority of the fifty-six motion pictures included are artistically valuable and the collection as a whole is a sheer delight which belongs in the library of anyone who loves classic cartoons. The set includes such masterpieces and popular favorites as "Duck Amuck", "Bully for Bugs", "Deduce You Say", "Fast and Furry-ous", "Long-Haired Hare", "Rabbit of Seville", "Rabbit Fire", "Rabbit Seasoning", "The Scarlet Pumpernickel", "Wabbit Twouble" and "Duck Dodgers in the 24-1/2 Century". All the films, even the weakest, deserve preservation, restoration and DVD availability.

2. The selection of complete shorts spans two decades (1940-59), according to year of initial theatrical release. This means that the heyday of Porky Pig (1936-39) is excluded, along with the historic Harman-Ising period (1930-33) and such early characters as Bosko, Buddy and Foxy. On the other hand, the set is also free of material from the Warner cartoon studio's years of decline (1960-64) and decay (1965-69).

3. Within the 1940-59 span is an intensive focus on the six-year "middle" period 1948-53, when the Warner cartoons were at their technical zenith. Fully half of the films in the collection were released during the three peak years of 1949-51 (ten in 1950 alone). The high degree of concentration allows for appreciation of the studio output of a particular era, lent contrast and variety by the broader context.

4. The star of the show is unquestionably Bugs Bunny, with twenty-one cartoons. There is an adequate amount, for a starter set, of Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, and Sylvester & Tweety. Key films of the Road Runner, Pepé Le Pew, Foghorn Leghorn and Speedy Gonzales are duly included. Important supporting characters like Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam and Marvin the Martian are well-represented, and the Tasmanian Devil makes a token appearance. The bill is rounded out with a few one-shots and curios.

5. The individual directors at Warner's animation studio are as notable as its character stars. A full twenty-five of the films (almost half) are by superstar director Chuck Jones (and written by Michael Maltese). Most of the rest are directed by Friz Freling, with several by Robert McKimson and one by Arthur Davis. Only three films are directed by the great Bob Clampett.

6. There are no films directed by the legendary Tex Avery, who departed the studio in the early 1940's, or the influential stylist Frank Tashlin.

7. Most cartoons are voiced by the amazing Mel Blanc.

8. All cartoons are scored by Music Director Carl W. Stalling or his immediate successor.

9. Most notable of the anomalies is the poor showing of the ultra-popular (and ultra-"violent") Road Runner, with only one episode (albeit his debut); while tired old Foghorn Leghorn encores with an undistinguished late episode -- rather than, say, "The High and the Flighty", his memorable pairing with Daffy Duck. In keeping with Rule #6, Avery's Oscar-nominated classic "A Wild Hare" (1940), the first "true" Bugs Bunny cartoon, is supplanted by Jones' "Elmer's Candid Camera", a rare prototype from earlier that year which features the debut of Elmer Fudd and the still-evolving Wascal Wabbit. And the extras, in their mania for completeness, include the animated excerpts from the feature films TWO GUYS FROM TEXAS and MY DREAM IS YOURS twice each, but only one version is digitally restored.

10. Not all of these Golden Era cartoons are masterpieces or true classics, but the less exceptional films included represent the high standard against which the extraordinary stand out. A technically crude quota quickie like McKimson's "Rabbit's Kin" shines because voice artist Stan Freburg's endearingly dumb Pete Puma character is memorable. A couple of genuine duds (Davis' "Porky Chops", for instance) have been thrown in for good measure, and even these serve to offset the overall excellence of the remainder.

11. Organization is minimal, with most of the Bugs Bunny material on Disc One, Daffy and Porky on Disc Two, and the others in an "All-Star" free-for-all on Discs Three and Four. The cartoons are presented in seemingly random order, but this very randomness is exactly how audiences experienced them both in theaters and on television.

12. The hours of extras are an embarrassment of riches.

13. Such beloved masterpieces as "Beanstalk Bunny", "Duck, Rabbit, Duck!", "Robin Hood Daffy", "The Singing Sword", "The Three Little Bops", the Oscar-Winning Rabbit's "Knighty-Knight Bugs", and (supremely) "One Froggy Evening" and "What's Opera, Doc?", have been withheld for future DVD editions. The set is designed to whet the appetite for more and leaves the grateful viewer with much to look forward to.

14. THE GOLDEN COLLECTION is worth more than its cost in dollars and is an infinitely better investment than the cheap alternate "Premiere Collection", which simply duplicates Discs Three and Four with no extras. The Premiere Collection is kiddie fodder for the undiscerning bargain-store shopper and is to be avoided by anyone concerned with art and popular culture. High sales of the vastly superior Golden Edition will determine future releases, so buy 'em up and give 'em to your friends.

CARTOONS ARE FOR EVERYONE!
"

Total Hilarity, Smartly Assembled, and BEAUTIFULLY RESTORED!

E. Lynch | 11/15/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"QUERY: "What's Up, Doc?"
ANSWER: My favorite DVD of the year. Possibly of all time.The original LOONEY TUNES gang is back, and boy do they look terrific. Warner Home Video has compiled a terrific selection of 56 animated gems starring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky, Pig, Elmer Fudd, along with dozens of other characters, and added hours and hours of bonus features and documentaries. This is sure to become a perennial in anyone's serious DVD collection.Best of all, the cartoons have been GORGEOUSLY restored. Restoration means bringing something back to its ORIGINAL form, and that's what Warner Bros. has lovingly done here. The glorious Technicolor imagery is mind-boggling, the animation art is sharp and clear. So sharp and clear that you see can even see the dust that was on the original cels these cartoons were painted on.THAT'S restoration.Thank heavens Warner didn't go the route that Disney did with SLEEPING BEAUTY and monkey around with these images, wiping out all traces of the original cel animation and making them look like CGI. No, it's beautiful old-style animation, and each cartoon has been restored to look as they did when they first hit theater screens decades ago.Each cartoon on this collection is an American classic in its own right. Happily these classics have not been tampered with, but are presented with the utmost respect and attention for the masterpieces they truly are."

Perfection! An extroardinary collection of classic WB toons!

E. Lynch | 11/09/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Let's face it, when it comes to cartoons, LOONEY TUNES rule! This superb DVD collection distills the over 1100 Looney Tunes made over the course of nearly 40 years, and brings us some of the very best selections, along with exceptionally entertaining bonus features.Each cartoon has been meticulously restored, with dazzling color and great sound quality. These shorts look as great as they must have when they were first released to theaters decades ago.The hilarity is contagious, so be warned!Among the great highlights:DUCK AMUCK (Probably Chuck Jones' masterpiece)
RABBIT OF SEVILLE (The amazing send off of Rossini)
DUCK DODGERS & THE 24 1/2 CENTURY (Need I say more?)
BUGS BUNNY GETS THE BOID (Clampett's take on Bugs with Buzzard)
BUGS BUNNY & THE THREE BEARS ("Tell me more about my eyes!")
FAST AND FURRY-OUS (The very FIRST Road Runner cartoon)
DOUGH FOR THE DO-DO (The surrealistic Porky Pig masterpiece)
SCAREDY CAT (Sylvester and Porky in a macabre lampoon)
HAREDEVIL HARE (The FIRST Bugs Bunny & Marvin Martian cartoon)
DEVIL MAY HARE (The FIRST Tasmanian Devil cartoon)
SPEEDY GONZALES (The Oscar winning cartoon with the famous mouse)
WABBIT TWOUBLE (Bugs and Elmer in an early Bob Clampett gem)
BULLY FOR BUGS (Bugs as matador vs. a nefarious bull)
THE FOGHORN LEGHORN (The rattled rooster at his best)
FEED THE KITTY (The little kitten bewitches bulldog Marc Anthony)
BASEBALL BUGS (Wait till you see the colors on this one!)...and that's ONLY the tip of the iceburg. 40 more beguiling LOONEY TUNES and MERRIE MELODIES masterpieces have been assembled here with great care, with the participation of several animation veterans and experts.Nicest touch of all is an introduction by Chuck Jones, obviously taped before his recent passing.This collection is a great start from the brothers Warner, and I'll just have to wear out these discs until the next volumes are released.BRAVO! BRAVO! BRAVO!"