Very well executed

Some things I liked some I did not.

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

Chuck Jones did three cartoons featuring the adventurous Ralph Phillips. In "From A to ZZZ" and "Boyhood Days", Ralph is a boy. In this Army-commissioned cartoon, Ralph is of military age and is having nightmares about the call from Uncle Sam – until Willie N. List turns up with his Anti-Nightmare Machine (from ACME corporation, of course), and calms Ralph's fears.At this stage of Chuck Jones' career, cartooning must have come easy. It is surprisingly good. The Army must has given Jones virtually free rein, because it comes across as informative and fun. It's a cartoon first, an Army recruitment exercise second.The creative additions add considerably to this cartoon: the dog that must be kept asleep with "Rock-a-bye doggie, in the tree top"; the send-up of Army stereotypes (the sadistic sergeant, KP duty, uniforms that don't fit).Yes, it's an Army recruitment exercise, but it's more than just that. It's a good cartoon that entertains its audience.

. . . to make a Looney Tunes KKK Recruitment Ad, as the U.S. Army did in this propaganda piece from the mid-1900s--the Klan Grand Wazoos surely would have been pleased as punch if the result was something as Lily White as DRAFTY, ISN'T IT? My Grand Pappy once explained to me a quaint adjectival acronym he picked up back in these benighted times: WASP (or White Anglo-Saxon People), as in "Only WASPs can buzz into this party," or "This neighborhood (or restaurant, motel, or what have you) is for WASP nests only." DRAFTY, ISN'T IT? portrays the U.S. Army as the ultimate WASP nest, complete with armored tanks and nuclear rockets. Potential enlisted "Ralph Phillips" is White, as are the four Boot Campers and the quartet of sergeants shown. Wikipedia has NO record of alternate versions of DRAFTY, ISN'T IT? also being paid for by U.S. taxpayers to recruit Asians, Hispanics, and Blacks into that Black Hole for American tax dollars, the U.S. Military. Though I got stung by a bee while doing brushwork in my yard today, this WASP sting hurts a lot worse!

Basically, this is an army recruiting film designed to show teens about to graduate from high school the favorable side of enlistment compared with waiting around to be drafted. What makes this one stand out from the average army-sponsored short is the professionalism involved in putting it together under the guidance of the master cartoonist Chuck Jones, the man behind such classic Warner Brothers cartoons as Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. Jones both directed and wrote it.A young man, Ralph Phillips, is shown asleep in his bed dreaming, with his dog curled up on the floor near the door also sleeping. One problem: Each pleasant dream turns into a nightmare with a giant shadowy figure looking very much like a drill sergeant beckoning Ralph to follow him. Who should sneak into the house but a little guy named Willie N. List, dragging with him an ACME Anti-Nightmare Machine. (Chuck Jones had a running joke about the ACME Company as his many fans know.) Willie N. List takes over the dreams and proceeds to show Ralph the positive side of military life. One way he does this is my shooting down many of the myths surrounding today's army (1957). Choice not chance is highlighted. The message: Don't wait around to be drafted but enlist now to receive the kind of training desired. The cartoon also spotlights the many careers available in the military. Though basically an army promotional cartoon, it is entertaining and even funny in places if the viewer keeps an open mind--plus the cartoon artwork is high tech for the 50's.

This is the second of two cartoons starring the adorable daydreamer, Ralph Phillips. In the first, From A to Z-Z-Z-Z, he spent his school day dreaming of being a hero in a wide variety of situations and in this followup, you've got the exact same formula, except that he's been sent to his room after accidentally breaking a window. While he waits for his dad to come home, his overactive mind creates a lot of funny situations that will delight the audience. The part I liked the best, though, was when the nice dad returned and Ralph left the room--imagining he was little George Washington out to chop down a cherry tree! You can imagine what is probably going to happen next and the cartoon fades out.Yes, I know that Washington never chopped down a cherry tree--but it's still a funny scene.