Strong and Moving!

Best movie ever!

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Friz Freleng's 'A Hare Grows in Manhattan' starts out with a promising premise and then reverts to a straightforward and largely uninspired chase picture. Opening as a Celebrity Lives TV show which interviews Bugs Bunny about his early years, 'A Hare Grows in Manhattan' virtually abandons this idea immediately for a chase between Bugs and a tough street dog. Although this is meant to take place during Bugs's formative years, there's really nothing to distinguish it from the average Bugs Bunny cartoon. There's a few nice little moments here and there but 'A Hare Grows in Manhattan' is nothing special at all. Robert McKimson would take a better (if not entirely successful) stab at Bugs's life story in 'What's Up Doc?', which at least ran with its original concept instead of lapsing into predictable antics which render the opening sequence entirely insignificant.

Directed by the wonderful Isadore "Friz" Freleng, "A Hare Grows in Manhattan" is a fine Bugs Bunny cartoon that describes how the wascawwy wabbit came to make his mark in the pantheon of Hollywood stars. It wasn't easy, as he had to protect himself from a menacing canine mob.Highlights: Bugs' tap dancing & singing "The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady" is brilliant. (Friz Freleng knew he could always rely on animator Gerry Chiniquy to take care of any dance sequences in his cartoons.) Bugs conceals himself within a hilarious Egyptian cigarette ad featuring a catchy Latin percussion rhythm. And finally, "Dog pile on the rabbit!"Last but not least, "A Hare Grows in Manhattan" features a great music score by the unfortunately underrated Carl W. Stalling, in particular not only during the aforementioned cigarette ad but also during the ascending elevator ride and during Bugs' hop on all fours (featuring some dissonant clarinets).

Now a big star living in the wealthy suburbs of LA with the other movie stars, Bugs is approached by the press to print his autobiography. Bugs tells the story of how he was born in humble surroundings in the Lower East Side, in particular an interaction with a group of dogs when he was a young man.This film opens well, with a knowing star expose of Bugs in his `real life ` personae as film star, having been in so many cartoons. We take the chance to hear his life story, although in reality this only serves to set up a scene between Bugs and a big rough East Side bulldog. The action is typical for Bugs cartoons and is pretty enjoyable, the film never really makes great use of it being in New York – only really using general buildings as opposed to landmarks but this isn't a real problem.Bugs is his usual self and is funny for it. The bulldog is not one of his strongest foils but is a strong character and works well with Bugs to create funny scenes throughout the film. The film has plenty of nice jokes; including one about dogs and `A tree grows in Brooklyn' which I've seen before in a Pepe Le Phew film!Overall an enjoyable short that Bugs fans will like as it delivers all that we love him for!

One of the ways to make a character a 'hero' is to make trouble find the character, instead of the character looking for trouble.In this short, Bugs is encountered by a group of New York 'toughs' who just happen to be dogs.This short is most noticeable for one of the early introductions of Spike, the big dog wearing the derby and sweater, later paired up with Chester in their own couple of shorts. This is a fun short, so if you get the chance, definitely watch it. 8/10.