Thugs with Dirty Mugs

I never knew movie parody was developed this well in 1939, but this was a great send-up on gangster films of the era. This was shown on TCM before an airing of Edward G. Robinson's classic of 1931, Little Caeser. This cartoon complimented the film very well. Of course, this cartoon is a tour de force for Tex Avery. Very little of the humor seems dated in 2004, or is sophisticated enough to still have lots of appreciation. One exception was the imitation Fred Allen. However, this one needs to be seen more often as it is one of Tex Avery's best! It gets a 9/10. This is humour you didn't see in the 1970's, much less the late '30's.

Talk about dated: get this opening graphic as we see a cop pacing in the police station: "F.H.A. (Sherlock) Homes as Flat-Foot Flanigan with a floy floy (whatever that means!) Then billed is "Ed. G. Robemsome" as "Killer Diller"

Then we see headlines: "1st National Bank Robbed by Killer" followed by the 2nd, 3rd, 4th National Bank, etc., to the headline "13th National Bank Skipped; Killer Superstitious" and then all the way up to "19th bank" until the action starts.

We see a robbery (presumably the 20th National Bank) with a cool aerial shot. At ground, the sleek automobiles and very good artwork are great to view. It is capped off by yet another headline, "87 Banks Robbed In One Day."

For the first few minutes this was really a wild cartoon, a ton of fun to watch. The imitations of Edward G. Robinson and Fred Allen were very good and I enjoyed the 1930s gangster-type satire.

It kind of pooped out in the last few minutes with either too-corny or just not funny material, but overall I wish I could see more of these 1930s cartoons. Many of them are so dated they are a hoot. This short was included in "The Roaring Twenties" DVD and also is on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Vol. 3.

This old-school Warner Brothers cartoon spoofs gangster films. Yes there are some Edward G. Robinson jokes, police gags, and movie theatre jokes. Television was not there at that time. As Charleton Heston says in THE OMEGA MAN, "They don't make pictures the way they used to". Someday when I graduate from college, I'm going to make a not for kids cartoon about gangstas and a hellzapoppin of spoofs that is kind of like, LITTLE CEASER meets SOUTH PARK, meets THE FAMILY GUY, meets SCOOBY-DOO,but more updated and mature.

Tex Avery's 'Thugs With Dirty Mugs' is one of the director's great classics. Though less discussed than many of Avery's pictures, 'Thugs With Dirty Mugs' is a masterclass in parody and the visual gag. In fact, there are so many extraordinarily inventive and original sight gags on offer here that you can't quite believe Avery packs them all into seven minutes. The main concept of the cartoon is a parody of all those great Warner Bros. crime movies of the time (the main villain is a caricature of Edward G. Robinson) and this is observed wonderfully but instead of focusing on plot, 'Thugs With Dirty Mugs' quickly establishes itself as a series of spot gags with a loose cops and robbers throughline. Spot gag cartoons can sometimes be slow moving or hit and miss but 'Thugs With Dirty Mugs' has a ridiculously high hit rate and moves at such a lick that the few misses barely register. I don't want to spoil any of the gags by describing them here but 'Thugs With Dirty Mugs' features one of the best and silliest sight gags in history. Just listen out for the phrase "Take that you rat" and you'll see what I mean. One of the all-out funniest shorts in the entire Warner library, 'Thugs With Dirty Mugs' is a classic which everyone should make the effort to see.

Tex Avery was one also talented animator/director, with a style unlike any other and one that is immediately distinctive. He has also been responsible for some classic cartoons and also some memorable characters. 'Thugs with Dirty Mugs', a brilliant gangster spoof (one of the best and funniest ones in animation) is up there with his best.

In terms of animation quality, the cartoon is quite beautifully done, with lovingly detailed backgrounds and vibrant colours, Avery's unique style all over it with all his trademarks present. The music brims with lively energy and luscious orchestration, not only being dynamic to the action and adding to it but enhancing it as well.

The writing in 'Thugs with Dirty Mugs' is witty, wonderfully silly and never less than amusing (a vast majority of it is hilarious in fact), and there are some fantastic moments in terms of humour, especially the priceless ending and an inspired imitation of Edward G. Robinson. "Take that you rat" is immensely quotable as well, somewhat iconic too.

Characters are a lot of fun, as is the voice acting from the likes of the incomparable Mel Blanc and Avery himself.

In summary, brilliant and an example of a master at his best. 10/10 Bethany Cox