Other than
Blade II, the only other movies I watched this weekend were 15 Disney
Silly Symphonies (1933-38). They were impressive, to a point, and you can see a clear progression in technique, leading up to the feature release of
Snow White (that is, if you pay attention to the dates on the short films, they aren't shown in chronological order), such as the expanding use of color and a multi-planar camera. They were all atleast somewhat entertaining, some were very funny, others were rather affecting (
The Flying Mouse was perhaps my favorite). But there was something missing, especially when compared to the animation units and companies that I really prefer, Warner Brothers, the Fleischer Brothers (
Popeye,
Betty Boop, etc.), and Tex Avery-era MGM. The Disney shorts had many inventive visual and sight gags, but they lacked the witty, barbed, fast-paced verbal humor; the anarchic spirit; the adult humor and pop culture/historical references (the only ones I really could point out was the Wren who looked, acted, and spoke like Mae West, and her suitor in
Who Killed Cock Robin? that I assumed was modeled after Bing Crosby). All of the Disney films were based on fables, fairytales, or children's stories, and thus had simple, timeless appeal, but they also seemed disconnected from the historical moment in which they were produced. Actually, the best things about the Disney shorts were the apparent love of sheer movement, they seemed to love watching their drawings move to silly, little ditties. And what ditties! I unfortunately have "Whose Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf" stuck in my head, and I watched these films on Saturday (it was featured in
The Three Little Pigs and two of it's sequels), though I did like "You're Nothing, but a Nothing," from
The Flying Mouse.
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