TOM AND JERRY: FUR FLYING ADVENTURES – VOLUME 1
(not rated)
MOVIE: *** (out of 5)
DVD EXPERIENCE: * (out of 5)
BY KEVIN CARR
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
The latest single-disc edition of “Tom and Jerry” comes with 14 classic cartoons. Installments include “Barbecue Brawl,” “Happy Go Ducky,” “Hic-up Pup,” “Little Quacker,” “Rock ‘n’ Rodent,” “Neapolitan Mouse,” “Pet Peeve,” “Pup on a Picnic,” “O-Solar-Meow,’ “Robin Hoodwinked,” “Guided Mouse-ille,” “Timid Tabby,” “The Vanishing Duck” and “That’s My Mommy.”
WHAT I LIKED
I love “Tom and Jerry” cartoons, in almost every incarnation prior to the 1980s. What’s great about this collection is that – like many before it – this samples from the various waves of cartoon productions. There’s some from the Fred Quimby days and others from the Chuck Jones days.
A digestible disc like this includes enough of the cartoons to spend a decent time watching, but it doesn’t overwhelm. And, for the novice coming into the series, you get a nice sampling of the supporting cast. We have Spike and Tyke, Little Quacker the duckling as well as Tuffy the Mouse in various forms.
I remember coming home after school as a kid and watching a block of “Tom and Jerry” cartoons each day on one of our local stations. This assortment of cartoons puts me back in that mindset. Like other single-disc releases of the cat and mouse team, this is a neat sampling of the many cartoons in the vault.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
Some of these cartoons (such as “Rock ‘n’ Rodent”) are somewhat rare to find in a collection, but others seem to be in everything else released. I’m talking about the charming but overplayed “Neapolitan Mouse,” featuring Tom and Jerry on a trip to Italy.
Also, this disc does overdo the supporting characters a bit too much. I like the different versions of Tuffy we get to see, including the lesser-seen “Robin Hoodwinked” (probably for the fact that Tuffy gets drunk on wine at one point). However, we do get a little too much of Spike, especially up front in the mix. Same goes for Quacker because one episode with him is just about enough for me to take.
Finally, while most of the shorts are 16×9 encoded, the Cinemascope version of “Pet Peeve” is 4:3 encoded, resulting in a double letterbox on 16×9 televisions. Seems like an isolated error, but disappointing nonetheless.
DVD FEATURES
None.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
“Tom and Jerry” fans.