Mickey's Polo Team

I've never seen humans drawn so ugly. Not so much the Polo players like Laurel and Hardy (I always like them) but more the spectators in the audience. I don't know who that huge-headed, bulbous-eyed guy was supposed to be but he freaked me out.

Anyways, it's Disney stars vs Real Actors in this Polo match (A rather odd choice of sport. Was it popular in the '30s?) and nothing really funny happens. Sure there are a couple of clever moments but, like far too many Disney toons, it's all a set-up for everything to come crashing down.

Vividly animated as it may be, it's still a bit too boring and doesn't hold up against Looney Tunes when it comes to hijinks.

This is a crazy cartoon featuring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and his friends who face off against a team of celebrities in a polo match. It's nice seeing the celebrities represented in this cartoon - Laurel and Hardy, Harpo Marx and Charlie Chaplin. There are even familiar-looking faces in the audience stands as well including Shirley Temple, Clark Gable, the Three Little Pigs and the Hare from Tortoise and the Hare.

Plenty of slapstick stuff, but the appearance of the many characters seem to be the only fun thing about this cartoon short. Other than that, the story just consists of lots of running and around and chaotic game-play. Not much entertainment here.

Grade D+

Mickey Mouse and the gang go and play some polo.On Mickey's team there are Donald Duck (on a mule), Goofy and The Big Bad Wolf.They're playing against some well known comedians of that time.That team includes Charles Chaplin, Harpo Marx (on an ostrich), Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.The referee is Jack Holt.Also in the audience there are some big names such as Shirley Temple, Clark Gable, W.C. Fields, Eddie Cantor, Greta Garbo and Harold Lloyd.The Disney characters include Pluto, Clarabelle Cow and the Three Little Pigs.It's a lot of fun to watch The Big Bad Wolf huff and puff and blow.There are many other funny parts in this Disney short, like when Hardy is under his overweight horse and Laurel not being too helpful.Or when Donald loses his nerve (again).And it's fun to watch Chaplin with his cane and Harpo with the ostrich.In David Hand's Mickey's Polo Team from 1936 Walt Disney is the voice of Mickey Mouse and Clarence Nash is the voice of Donald Duck.This cartoon is a fine piece of history.

one of the better 1936 mickeys. mm hardly appears in it though, the main player is donald duck as he battles it out with harpo marx, and he swallows the ball and becomes a target for the rest of the players. The laurel and hardy characters are spot on and overall the animation is a treat. Available on dvd now along with all the mm 1935-1938 shorts.

Now playing is a polo match between "Movie Stars" and "Mickey's Mousers." On the stars team is Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Harpo Marx and Charlie Chaplin. Playing for Mickey's team is Mickey, "The Goof," Big Bad Wolf and Donald Duck. Jack Holt is the referee.

In the crowd are such luminaries as Porky Pig, W. C. Fields, Minnie Mouse, Eleanor Roosevelt, Shirley Temple and a bunch of other famous people. That is fun to look at, trying to spot as many people and caricatures as you know.

The players are introduced. Those intros are funny. For instance, Harpo comes out on a ostrich, Chaplin uses a cane instead of a polo stick, etc.

That's the good news. The bad news is that the rest of the cartoon, the last 65 percent, is not very funny. We see some Laurel & Hardy bits, some Harpo stuff and Donald Duck get pummeled by everyone. None of it is very funny.

A good premise and a great start but overall, a disappointing animated short.