Hiawatha's Rabbit Hunt

"Hiawatha's Rabbit Hunt" is Bugs Bunny's first film directed by Friz Freleng, and it's a wonderful sample of what Freleng would have in store for Bugs for the next 23 years.

Freleng already starts throwing a curveball into the standard Bugs formula by inserting Bugs into the story of Little Hiawatha. While there is not much difference in intelligence between Hiawatha and, say, Elmer Fudd, Freleng does a great job at making the new character look funny (particularly in Hiawatha's run, which causes him to trip over himself often).

Freleng also introduces a new traditional Bugs joke...having the wabbit climb into a boiling pot thinking it's a bathtub. This little sequence alone is also fun to watch, including the little puff of relaxing steam that comes out of Bugs' mouth once he gets both feet inside.

And although Bugs acts more confident in this picture than he has in the recent past, even he is not safe from foolish mistakes. At the end of one scene Bugs leaps into the air, intending to land into a rabbit hole, but just misses and smacks his head on the ground. He sheepishly crawls into the hole, looking apologetically at the audience. How can you not like this character??

Sadly, this cartoon is not seen often because it deals with a Native American character. But if you get the chance somehow, do sit down and watch this cartoon. It's one of the early Bugs' best.

Hiawatha's Rabbit Hunt (1941)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

This is one of the best known Merrie Melodies shorts as Indian Hiawatha goes out looking for a rabbit and unluckily for him he runs into Bugs Bunny who makes his life one misstep after another. Of all the early incarnations of Bugs, this here is probably one of the most popular and it's easy to see why because the rabbit is given a perfect co-star and the two really work well together. Yes, some might object to some of the stereotyped humor but I tend not to let these things bother me. The film works so well because of the way Bugs manages to drive Hiawatha crazy and one of the best sequences is when Bugs jumps into his water for a bath and even helps him put a log onto the fire. Another funny joke involves a cliff but I won't even think about spoiling the gag. The two characters here are given quite a lot to do and they work so well together that you can't help but have a smile on your face the entire time. There's plenty of nice laughs and just as many good action scenes. If you're a fan of animation then this here is a must see.

This is the ninth Oscar-nominated cartoon for 1941 I'm reviewing on this site, having previously done the same for George Pal's Rhythm in the Ranks, Friz Freleng's Rhapsody in Rivets, Walter Lantz' Boogie Woogie Boy of Company B, Rudolf Ising's The Rookie Bear, Hanna-Barbera's The Night Before Christmas, Jack King's Truant Officer Donald, Dave Fleischer's Superman, and Paul Fennell's How War Came. In this one Bugs Bunny is reading a poem about Indian (or Native American) Hiawatha rowing his boat searching for a forest rabbit before realizing he's such a creature and Hiawatha finds him! In other words, it's another version of Elmer Fudd. Many funny gags abound courtesy of writer Michael Maltese with mostly excellent direction (or "supervision" as the credit was at the time) from Friz Freleng who was credited as I. (for Isadore) Freleng during this period. This was his first Bugs cartoon. It was also the second one nominated for the Academy Award of which the first was Bugs' debut in A Wild Hare. I'm not sure it was that good but hey, it's entertaining enough. Only one more nominated cartoon to go and it's the one that won...

Understanding the racial stereotypes in "Hiawatha's Rabbit Hunt", it's got some funny stuff, as Bugs Bunny avoids getting trapped by the eponymous Native American. As I understand it, this cartoon is a parody of a Silly Symphony from Disney, but I've never seen that one. I first saw clips from this cartoon in "What's Cookin', Doc?", in which Bugs submits this cartoon for an Oscar nomination. Watching the later cartoon in "Bugs Bunny Superstar" as a little boy was the first time that I'd ever heard of the Academy Awards.

Anyway, it's an OK cartoon. The tricks with the river are the best part. The cartoon even has a little twist at the end.

PS: This was the first time that Friz Freleng directed Bugs Bunny, and also the first time that Gerry Chiniquy helped animate Bugs.

This short, nominated for an Oscar, is a good, not great, cartoon. It does introduce a bit of Longfellow and any Bugs Bunny is a good cartoon and worth watching. There just isn't anything terribly funny or special about this particular cartoon besides the poem sections read at the beginning and end. But it is worth watching. It runs periodically on Cartoon Network.