Really Surprised!

Good start, but then it gets ruined

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

. . . falling asleep in a public library with this Looney Tune from the Mid-1940s, BOOK REVUE. Characters from various stories blend together and interact with each other amid a constant cacophony of loud noise. I have found my local library branches to be among America's noisiest places, as about half the people there are near-deaf (constantly shouting for help from the Reference Librarians, since these hopeless geezers were born in the 1900s, before computers were invented), while the other half of library "patrons" tend to be odoriferous foreigners yelling into their cell phones because 1)they were NOT reared in American Polite Society, and 2)they think that intercontinental communication requires them to raise such a ruckus. When MY ancestors arrived in the U.S., they were content to confine themselves to log cabins and sod huts, working hard to get ahead. With BOOK REVUE, Warner is telling us that by the 1940s a public library or "Booke Shoppe" was the WORST place to seek peace and quiet (and, of course, things have gotten worse ever since).

Of all the cartoons where books, magazines etc. come to life, Bob Clampett's 'Book Revue' is by far the finest. The problem with many of these kind of cartoons is that they rely on cultural references that have been long forgotten, inescapably dating the picture. Although there are many references to popular books of the day in 'Book Revue', it manages to sidestep the detrimental dating effect thanks to Clampett's typically engaging speedy pacing and the inclusion of Daffy Duck as a character. Daffy emerges from the cover of a Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies comic and proceeds to completely steal the cartoon away from all the witty book parodies. Ever the showman, Daffy opens with a Danny Kaye impersonation followed by the highlight of the cartoon, a phenomenal scat version of the Little Red Riding Hood Story. Mel Blanc must be given enormous credit for pulling this off so brilliantly but Clampett makes it all the better by matching this brilliant vocal performance with stunning visual, including the infamous moment in which Daffy turns into a giant eyeball. This is the sort of joke no other director would even attempt and Clampett pulls it off with grotesque glee, 'Book Revue' is so much better than all other cartoons of its kind because it doesn't get hung up on visual pun after visual pun. Instead, Clampett uses these books as the backdrop against which to stage a high speed chase. Unlike some of these reference heavy shorts, 'Book Revue' can be enjoyed whether you get the reference points or not. It's a classic cartoon bursting with energy and ideas.

"Book Revue" is a truly excellent Warner Bros. cartoon directed by Bob Clampett. The plot of this wild and wacky cartoon is quite simple: Inside a supposedly quiet little bookshop, which has been shut down for the night, all of the various characters on the covers of the many classic novels come to life and interact with each other. That's what makes this cartoon such a joy to watch! There were other earlier Warner Bros. cartoons of this particular genre, such as "Have You Got Any Castles" (1938), "Goofy Groceries" (1941), "Speaking of the Weather" (1937), and "You're an Education" (1938), but "Book Revue" is arguably the quintessential cartoon featuring still characters/caricatures coming to life.Here are my favorite moments from "Book Revue" (DO NOT read any further if you have not yet seen this cartoon). Among others, there are caricatures of crooner Frank Sinatra, trumpeter Harry James, clarinetist Benny Goodman, drummer Gene Krupa, and a trombonist who could be either Glenn Miller or Tommy Dorsey. (I am a jazz musician myself, so it is quite dear to my heart to see caricatures of these fine musicians in a Warner Bros. cartoon.) A little later, Daffy Duck puts on a blond wig & lavender zoot suit with a large green bow tie, adopts a thick accent, and expresses his disgust for jazz and swing music. Then, defying his principles, he sings a very nutty version of "La Cucaracha" and a fairly bouncy version of "Carolina in the Morning" while his body STRETCHES. Best of all is Daffy's wild scat singing as he tries to warn Little Red Riding Hood about the Big Bad Wolf. Also take note of how Daffy's eyeball greatly ENLARGES upon spotting the wolf; only director Bob Clampett could have thought of such a wild "sight" gag! "Book Revue" is a classic cartoon that contains a great deal of ENERGY, which is a primary characteristic of Bob Clampett's cartoons. Catch this film on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2 Disc 4, with an additional commentary by Michael Barrier, who is quite a knowledgeable animation historian.

Daffy Duck stars in the surreal short that has all the books of a book store coming alive in humorous ways. Fawning over Frank Sinatra, whom Daffy seeks to steal the spotlight from with his Danny Kaye impersonation (and he succeeds I might add). He also goes up against the Big Bad Wolf in this great Robert Clampett short (and pretty much all of Clampetts work on Looney Tunes was indeed great, so for this to be one of the standouts is really saying something). This animated short can be seen on Disc 4 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2 and also features an optional commentary by Micheal Barrier.My Grade: A+