They're Off

A very good start to the 1948 series of Goofy shorts. It is not one of Goofy's or the How to...series' best, with the narrator not voiced by John McLeish a bit of a shock. The narrator still does a very good job, very droll and commanding, but lacking McLeish's more sardonic and thoughtful approach. Even with this change, as said before They're Off is still immensely enjoyable. The animation is vibrant and flows well from frame to frame, and the music is lush and lively with some witty sound effects. The narration still manages to entertain with some funny interaction- the gem has always been that Goofy often does the exact opposite to what the narrator says- and also to teach, I know next to nothing about horse-riding/racing and I learnt a good deal from They're Off. The gags are funny and well-timed, Goofy takes on multiple character roles again- except with a more dramatic rather than physical approach- and excels hugely and the fact that the horses had their own individual character was very nice. Overall, even if you don't know much about the subject, seeing as it's Goofy you're guaranteed to have some degree of fun, I certainly did. 9/10 Bethany Cox

A Walt Disney GOOFY Cartoon.

Snapshot III is odds on favorite to win today's race, but the course is crowded and they all have a chance to win....except poor Old Moe. "THEY'RE OFF."

Here is another typical entry in the Goofy Athletics field of films - the animation is routine, but the gags are enjoyable as the Sport of Kings comes in for gentle spoofing throughout.

Look very closely during Goofy's moment of madness early on to spot a brief glimpse of the galloping baby unicorns from FANTASIA (1940).

Walt Disney (1901-1966) was always intrigued by drawings. As a lad in Marceline, Missouri, he sketched farm animals on scraps of paper; later, as an ambulance driver in France during the First World War, he drew figures on the sides of his vehicle.

Back in Kansas City, along with artist Ub Iwerks, Walt developed a primitive animation studio that provided animated commercials and tiny cartoons for the local movie theaters.

Always the innovator, his ALICE IN CARTOONLAND series broke ground in placing a live figure in a cartoon universe. Business reversals sent Disney & Iwerks to Hollywood in 1923, where Walt's older brother Roy became his lifelong business manager & counselor. When a mildly successful series with Oswald The Lucky Rabbit was snatched away by the distributor, the character of Mickey Mouse sprung into Walt's imagination, ensuring Disney's immortality. The happy arrival of sound technology made Mickey's screen debut, STEAMBOAT WILLIE (1928), a tremendous audience success with its use of synchronized music. The SILLY SYMPHONIES soon appeared, and Walt's growing crew of marvelously talented animators were quickly conquering new territory with full color, illusions of depth and radical advancements in personality development, an arena in which Walt's genius was unbeatable. Mickey's feisty, naughty behavior had captured millions of fans, but the was soon to be joined by other animated companions: temperamental Donald Duck, intellectually-challenged Goofy and energetic Pluto. All this was in preparation for Walt's grandest dream - feature length animated films. Against a blizzard of doomsayers, Walt persevered and over the next decades delighted children of all ages with the adventures of Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Bambi & Peter Pan. Walt never forgot that his fortunes were all started by a mouse, or that simplicity of message and lots of hard work always pay off.

A narrator tells the story of the racetrack, where a bunch of Goofy lookalikes bet on various horses, some through dirty tricks. Goofy himself is the rich guy in this one, betting on a posh horse. Just about the funniest thing in the cartoon are the names of the horses. Other than that, much of the cartoon is just a lot of narrating and horse-betting - not much of a laughable cartoon here.

Grade D

There is only one horse in the race in this Goofy inspired dive into the sport of kings. But he is so full of himself that he can't resist stopping along the way to meet the press. The old timer, Old Mo, just keeps plugging along. This is somewhat instructive in that sometimes bettors can overthink races, missing the most basic things. This was OK but I like the ones where things are bit more instructional.

They say a mind is a terrible thing to waste. Well, I saw this cartoon maybe five times or so when I was about 11 or 12 (I had a period where I watched and re-watched a bunch of Disney cartoons, mostly older ones), and to THIS DAY when I watch any horse race, whether an actual one or in a movie or whatever, I think about 'OLD MOE vs SHAPSHOT' because of this damn cartoon.

I credit the narration above all; there are a bunch of good gags - how can you not have horses doing wacky things involving cheating and slipping up and getting up on legs that horses usually don't do during a horse race in real life - but the instructional part of it I think fits really well. It's a big race and a sports event, so without someone giving us the play by play (in a 7 minute short with variations of Goofy that are poor and rich) it might not work as well. Luckily, lightning seemed to strike with this one (not kidding, this is really entertaining).