We're on Our Way to Rio

This animated minimovie was a tropical delight and proof that the Famous Studios POPEYES were not just kid stuff. The funny thing is that, this is clearly a take-off on the ROAD movies with Bob Hope and Bing Crosby, but when the two animated sailors were singing the wonderfully Cole-Porteresque/Rogers and Hammersteinian title song, the guy who voiced Bluto sounded for all the world like Gordon MacRae! Too bad he didn't sing more here -- maybe do a "soliloquy!" (Too bad also, that the creators didn't draw Bluto to LOOK a little like Gordon to boot, like they did in "Shaving Muggs" and "Parlez-Vous Woo.") I'm a POPEYE fan from way back (especially Famous Studios Popeye) and I am a big fan of Gordon MacRae's movies, looks, and voice (in his heyday), and I say, ya gotta love a Bluto who sings like Gordon MacRae!

I truly love this cartoon! Brings back a lot of nostalgia growing up!

World War II brought cultural exchanges between the two America's. Many film studios dabbled into Latin American culture during this time. This lively Popeye short was one of his first in Technicolor and it benefits greatly with a brilliant use of color. Popeye and Bluto ride into Rio on an Ox and go to a nightclub, where they oogle over the Samba dancer (Olive Oyle). I can only wonder if this sequence was inspired by Tex Avery's RED HOT RIDING HOOD which caught moviegoers by storm the previous year. (A South American themed Avery short with Red, the Wolf, and Droopy would have been interesting).

The gags and timing are nicely executed. Popeye's impromptu Samba dancing is both impressive and funny. I wonder who voiced the Samba dancer. It couldn't have been Olive Oyle's regular voice at that time.

An excellent contibution to America's wartime Good Neighbor policy. Well worth seeking out and now available on Blu-Ray fully restored.

Popeye and Bluto are heading for Rio to see the clubs and the girls. They go to a nightclub and who should be the singer/dancer--you guessed it, Olive Oyl. Of course, the two of them immediately are stricken and battle over the affections of the skinny object of their lust. It's a very well done cartoon with brilliant color and come neat direction.

Of all the Popeye cartoons made for Famous Artists from 1942-1957, this ranks as my favorite. It's a delight from start to finish.

This is just one of many attempts to incorporate FDR's Good Neighbor Policy into the cartoon industry. In fact, in the waning days of the Fleischer Studio, there had been one earlier attempt "Kicking the Conga 'Round" which is certainly a good cartoon.

"We're on Our Way to Rio" is even better. As Popeye and Bluto enter Rio (beautifully drawn) on burro singing the wonderful title song, one can't help but be reminded of Hope and Crosby on camel-back singing "The Road to Morocco".

Olive Oyl is playing an obviously Carmen Miranda-inspired nightclub singer. The laughs come quickly and the music as memorable as in the sadly departed Fleischer days.

Famous Studios would never again make a Popeye cartoon as memorable as this. Before much longer they seemed to give up even trying.