Als Geschenk verpackt

This animated short can be seen on Disc 3 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2, it feature Sylvester cat who I like, Tweety bird who I'm not a fan of, and Granny whom I dislike worse then Tweety bird. Needless to say I really didn't care for this cartoon at all. It's nice that it's unedited for once. But couldn't they unedit the audio for "Bugs Bunny Rides Again" which was actually a good cartoon as well, or at least instead of?. Anyway in this short, it's Christmas time in the household and Granny, Tweety, Sylvester, and the Bulldog (for no reason whatsoever) are up to the usual stuff. Blah.

My Grade: D

. . . Livingston is not given enough credit here in GIFT WRAPPED and by those pontificating on this lengthy animation. This Sylvester Cat and Tweeting Bird cartoon begins with a voiceover of Captain Livingston's most revered poem, commonly referred to by its opening words, "Twas the Night before Christmas." Space does not permit a full recap of how a senile Tory traitor was spoofed by devious "friends" and relatives into stealing credit for "A Visit from Saint Nick" after the rightful author had passed away. Nor is there room to expound upon the cartoon writers continual stereotypical demeaning of Native American luminaries Geronimo and Pocahontas. Suffice it to say that this film deserves an "R" rating for wallowing in questionable material.

Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house. Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. Sylvester gets up on Christmas Day and is eager to unwrap his gifts. He is disappointed with his rubber mouse gift. There is Tweety Bird in a wrapped cage with a label for Granny. Sylvester switches the label and attempts to eat Tweety.

This is a solid Tweety and Sylvester and Granny short. On top of that, this is a solid Christmas short. On top on top of that, I absolutely love Granny smacking their butts like a ketchup bottle. That is always hilarious to me. This is a good short in many ways.

This is another winner from the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume Two, with fantastic artwork that captures the colorful Christmas setting magnificently.

We open with a beautiful depiction of an old house under a snowfall. It's "the night before Christmas and all through the night...."

Sylvester interrupts the calm narrative voice and spits out "oh, goody, Santy Clause has been here and I've been a good pussycat" as he admires all the gifts under the tree. He opens one of them and discovers a rubber mouse, which doesn't exactly thrill him. In seconds, he hears a bird singing "Jingle Bells." It's Tweety in his cage, gift-wrapped "to Granny." Sylvester switches tags and puts "to kitty" on the birdcage instead.

Suffice to say, without spoiling anything, Sylvester is not in Christmas spirit, only wanting to eat Tweety, and when a big bulldog jumps out of another present and eats Sylvester, Granny has to keep on top of things or there will be nothing left of either Tweety or Sylvester.

Granny sums it up best: "Land sakes alive: what a house!"

Friz Freleng's 'Gift Wrapped' is a decent entry in the lacklustre Tweety and Sylvester series. A Christmas cartoon set entirely in a house on Christmas morning, 'Gift Wrapped' adheres to some pretty standard and not terribly funny jokes involving dynamite and surprisingly effective toy guns. Such gags can be made fresh again with the right execution but in the Sylvester and Tweety cartoons Freleng always seemed content to just play them the way they'd already been played a million times before. The addition of Granny and a Bulldog to proceedings adds a little colour and Tweety is not excessively annoying this time round either but the main thing that saves 'Gift Wrapped' from being as weak as the worst Tweety and Sylvester shorts is the impeccably realised festive atmosphere which gives the cartoon a pleasingly cosy feel. I used to love seeing 'Gift Wrapped' at Christmas when I was young and that happy memory has not totally deserted me as I watch it again. But sentiment is not enough to make a great cartoon and 'Gift Wrapped' remains merely OK, a mildly enjoyable trip down memory lane which opens with its best moment ("You just ain't whistling Dixie") and then fails to live up to it.