The Old Man of the Mountain

From the word Go, this cartoon will rock you: it's got a hot score by Cab Calloway's band that kicks in the second the credits are over and never lets up, and sounds better each time you hear it. Many of these Betty Boop cartoons from the early '30s featured top jazz artists, but this one has the absolute best music --the horn solo heard when the vulture's eggs are hatching is fantastic-- along with some bizarre, naughty gags that flash past before you can get a handle on them.

Our stylishly-attired heroine finds herself in an Alpine village that is being terrorized by the titular character, a fearsome ogre who has apparently been plundering the town and having his way with the local women. The supporting characters are humanoid animals (an owl, a bear, a pair of fish, etc.) but nonetheless it's startling when we're given to understand that The Old Man actually despoiled a lady hippo. Clearly, he is one baaaaaaad dude. But Betty is nothing if not spunky, and she charges up the mountain with a determined stride to confront the villain and challenge him in a musical duel.

The Old Man's Hi-De-Ho singing voice was supplied by Cab Calloway, whose dancing was "Rotoscoped" (filmed live and then traced, basically) by the Fleischer Studio animators, which pretty much gives Cab a co-starring role. Betty, meanwhile, is at her sexiest and sauciest here, not at all fazed at the raunchy goings-on in the Old Man's cave. Dig that eerie Food of the Gods ending, too, when the woodland creatures rise up against human corruption and restore order. Cartoons don't get any better than this!

Cab Calloway and his "hi-dee hi-dee ho" jazzy music begins this cartoon.

Through an animated owl figure, the famous jazz crooner sings "The Old Man And The Moutain" during the first half of 'toon as we see everyone in the forest fleeing when word gets out that he's coming. "He" is the old man. The lyrics of the song are good and so are the animated antics of the critters as they gather their stuff and run. The owl, through the song, is explaining to Betty why everyone is panicking.

Betty says she's going up to the mountain "to see this old man for myself." Betty dances her way up the mountain as we continue to hear the jazz music. En route she sees some strange sights.

When she meets him, they do a duet - some fabulous music! The old man even tap dances. Then we have the usual chase scene, this time with the old man after Betty, even squeezing the dress off her!

Mostly this is a showcase for Calloway's singing and his orchestra and it is so up-tempo that it's a real hoot to listen to. This is one of the few cartoons where the music is better than the visuals. And, the latter is good, too. Overall: one of the best Boop cartoons ever made.

The Old Man of the Mountain (1933)

*** (out of 4)

The title character is someone everyone is afraid of. Of course, Betty Boop isn't afraid of him so she decides to climb up the mountain to confront the old man. Story wise there's certainly nothing great or even good with this short but it's another one of the Paramount films where the animators brought in a musician to really jazz things up. Cab Calloway is on hand here and provides the music score, which is excellent and a lot of the action in the film is played against the music. The music alone is reason enough to watch this short as Calloway was one of the greatest from this period and there's no question that the fast score really adds a lot of fun to the action. Betty is her typical cute self and for the most part this is an entertaining entry in the series.

This short was SUPER well done.

It was visually a joy to watch, the animation was seriously amazing. These cartoonists were so talented. I was really impressed by how creative and beautiful the art was.

In addition to that, this is a certified bop on a musical level. The way it's incorporated with the animation is awesomely done and the lead male singer is a pleasure to listen to. The entire soundtrack for this short should be applauded.

I had a great experience watching it and it nailed that classic cartoon vibe. I felt like I was captured in the same way I would have been when I was younger.

Don't come to this cartoon for a narrative experience though. Your much better off just watching in a more present mindset with the events on screen.

This was an awesome watch that definitely stood the test of time.

Like the previous year's MINNIE THE MOOCHER (a viewing of which preceded this one), this "Talkartoon" has its genesis in the current Cab Calloway hit; however, it also seems to take a leaf out of Dr. Seuss' Grinch stories as here we have the titular character whose coming terrorizes a rural town. In fact, his advance is made public by the lion town crier – who, hilariously, jumps atop two white rabbits, straps their ears around his feet and uses them to roller-skate down the mountain into town. This level of inventiveness is kept at a steady pace throughout its standard 7-minute running time.

Almost needless to say is the fact that, like its predecessor, it features Betty Boop and her faithful dog companion Bimbo and they are the ones who finally confront the notorious ancient bully but they get more than they bargained for – Betty ends up in her underwear and has to hide herself behind a tree (a scene which caused controversy at the time with the short's distributors Paramount being asked to tone these cartoons down)! Eventually, it is the angered animal population of the town who give the dirty old man his long-in-coming comeuppance.