Hare Ribbin'

So the dog was supposed to have a Russian accent?! I never realized that; I had always thought that he sounded kind of effeminate - maybe he's supposed to be a Russian woman. But the Soviet Union was our ally during WWII, so I can't really tell what it's supposed to mean that he sounds Russki. As for the aspect that they can breathe underwater...well, this is a cartoon, so nothing has to make sense. The point is for Bugs Bunny to be irreverent, even dressing up as a woman (interesting that they were able to get that into a cartoon back then). It's pretty funny, but still sort of brain-twisting.

Yeah, maybe that shouldn't have happened to a dog.

It's pretty typical cartoon mayhem, but a couple of scenes toward the end push the limits a bit, and had to be re-shot for theatrical release. The original director's cut showed Bugs Bunny in the middle of a big sandwich and the dog bites into it, looking like the rabbit was bitten in half. In the final cut, a brief scene was added showing Bugs Bunny pushing his legs up in the sandwich so that when the dog bites into the bread, we know the rabbit wasn't injured.

The most violent moment is when the dog wishes he was dead and the dog dies from being shot. The original director's cut showed Bugs Bunny shooting him right in the mouth. The final cut had the rabbit give the gun to the dog and shoot himself in the head. Both scenes would be too violent for children, and the gun scene is often removed completely when shown on TV.

In addition, Bugs Bunny appears as a rather provocative mermaid, and even uses his inflatable floating device as breasts, although nothing too explicit or sexual is seen. Probably the most suggestive part is when the dog races toward the mermaid as a very phallic-looking torpedo.

Some kind of dog: a combination French Poodle and Russian Hound, is out looking for a rabbit. Immediately, we see he is another dumb foil for Bugs Bunny. It seems Bugs always comes across the dumbest characters, which is a shame because few animated animals ever match wits with the clever BB. This dog is really stupid. After sniffing Bugs up and down his body, the only thing he knows is that Bugs has "B.O!" Thanks, we needed to know that!

After two minutes the chase scene begins as the dumb pooch finally reaches that IS a rabbit. In one of the more bizarre sequences I've seen in a Bugs Bunny cartoon, Bugs dives underwater, hops away (on the sand at the bottom of the lake) and then is seen sitting there with a blonde wig, a mermaid's tale and playing a harp and singing. He's in drag, with lipstick, long lashes and the whole bit. Of course, the stupid dog thinks the "woman" is super hot.

Bugs continues to do what he does best - tease this stupid idiot. All of it, including Bugs pretending to be a French waiter, is done underwater. How are these two animals breathing? I guess the writers didn't bother with that detail. They didn't bother with a lot of humor, either, or it's just too sappy for today's crowd. I love Bugs Bunny but you can't win them all. This was not one of his best.

Most of this makes no sense, but since it's an animated cartoon with talking rabbits and dogs, who cares. Bugs, in his usual commanding way, sets up an attack on a very stupid dog. It's the usual pratfalls and careless actions. Some of this was done earlier in another film featuring the same two characters. The underwater scenes defy physics. For instance, how can the dog drool when he is under water. See it. It's pretty interesting.

This one just does not make any sense, not even by Bob Clampett standards. What is the deal with this hound with the red poodle quiff (split down the middle) and a Russian accent? He's looking for a little gray rabbit, that's what. And he can breathe underwater. But then again so can Bugs. I suppose most cartoon characters can as long as they don't think about it. The chase starts in the usual Warner Forrest, but soon takes a dive into the deep end of the river and neither sanity nor the two leads ever surface again (I seriously doubt if that redski ever got out of the river at all). If Bob and screenwriter Lou Lilly were so keen to try out their new underwater ripple effects, why not write it into the story?

Now what would you do if you're trying to outsmart someone at the bottom of the pond? Use different disguises of course! The rabbit immediately dressed up as a mermaid while the dog turns himself into a torpedo. Bugs then pretends to be a french waiter speaking to a Japanese cook (I think). He even does an imitation of Elmer, who should have been here in a diving suit going after Daffy if you ask me. That must be it, Bugs and this immigrant were filling in while the others were renegotiating their contracts! The end is yet another version of that favourite Warner cop out: the attempted suicide (was that ever really funny?) Surprisingly, there is one last add lib after this that did make me laugh. That Clampett! He never gives up!

??? out of 10