Betty Boop's Hallowe'en Party

When I downloaded this film for free from archive.org, it indicated this was a so-called 'banned cartoon'. Well, I really cannot see why this would be the case. I know that the Pre-Code version of Betty Boop (before mid-1934) was sexier than the later one---though so many Boop cartoons feature this sexier cartoon and weren't listed as banned on the site. Or, perhaps there was something objectionable and that portion was excised. All I know is that I noticed nothing objectionable in this cute cartoon.

The cartoon, not surprisingly, is about Betty Boop having a Halloween party. It goes from her and some friends preparing, the party itself and a nasty gorilla* crashing the party and terrorizing everyone. Fortunately, like all Boop cartoons, it ends on a positive note.

All in all, this is a fun cartoon. A bit dated perhaps but still fun. Like all these cartoons, the animation quality is terrific and there is a wacky sense of humor that was pure 1930s fun. If you do see the cartoon, you might notice an NRA symbol at the beginning—this was to indicate the film was in compliance with the National Recovery Act—a piece of legislation that was ruled unconstitutional and so was only BRIEFLY seen tacked on to the beginning of some films in 1933.

*This is the same gorilla that was the villain in "The Herring Murder Case" which debuted two years earlier.

This is a classic Betty Boop cartoon that I love. And Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. In this cartoon, Betty hosts a Halloween party, but then, just when the fun was getting good, a party-crashing gorilla nearly ruins everything. But he will soon learn not to be a mean bully on Halloween night. That's all I could tell you. Spoilers, you know.

I also want to point out that I found it odd that no one was dressed up for Betty's Halloween party. As I always point out in my reviews, I don't have any particular scene I like because I love this cartoon from beginning to end and it's great for Halloween.

I really like some of these Betty Boop cartoons. Many of the early ones deal with the overlap of evil, sex and hallucinogens, often mixed with jazz and Black men. This is one of the tamer ones in terms of the evil tone: she's in control where often she isn't.

But it is worth seeing quite apart from that because it is pre-code Betty. The animator had a real sense of sexual movement, and in spite of her dog's face this is one enticing body. When she calls the demon-bears to her party, she does so by bending over and wiggling her panty- covered butt at us three times. That wouldn't happen in a couple years.

Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.

Betty is quite stunning in this one. She gets ready for a Halloween party with the help of a scarecrow. The making of the jack-o-lanterns is really fun. Everyone is playing games until the obligatory gorilla appears. It takes some doing to deal with him. This is sharp animation and it tells a fun story.

'Betty Boop's Halloween Party' may not be one of the best Betty Boop cartoons. This said, it is still a very good cartoon in many ways, despite having a title that can easily mislead people.

Fleischer were responsible for some brilliant cartoons, some of them still among my favourites. Their visual style was often stunning and some of the most imaginative and ahead of its time in animation. The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her.

The flaws are few, but as said the title is misleading. The party only takes up a very small portion of the cartoon and it's over too soon and is not as memorable as when 'Betty Boop's Halloween Party' becomes spookier and more imaginative. There are too many characters somewhat, and some are better than others.

However the Halloween atmosphere is great, the visuals help give the cartoon a spookiness and much of it is wonderfully bizarre and deliciously surreal. The black and white animation is extremely good, smooth, meticulously detailed and well drawn with the black and white not looking too primitive. A lot of it is actually very imaginative as well, some of the most inventive, fantastically surreal and eye-popping of the early Betty Boop cartoons to me. The music is both atmospheric and infectious.

It's never a dull cartoon either, and the spirit of Halloween is incredibly well evoked, as well as some welcome humour, even if it is more risqué in other Betty Boop cartoons. The voice acting is fine.

Overall, good Halloween fun. 8/10 Bethany Cox