Good Will to Men

This cartoon is the result of William Hanna and Joseph Barbera deciding to revisit the theme explored in another cartoon, Peace on Earth, done in 1939. Both cartoons are excellent ststements and are still all-too relevant today. Exploring weighty concepts-war, hatred and destruction-both are equally effective in each its own right, although Good Will to Men is seen all too rarely. An excellent effort that is sadly out-of-print. Well worth the effort to track down. Most highly recommended.

Good Will to Men (1955)

*** (out of 4)

Oscar-nominated cartoon is a remake of the Oscar-nominated 1939 short Peace on Earth. The film has a preacher mouse telling the younger mice how men destroyed the world due to war and violence. This is a pretty good cartoon, although I prefer the original version. The animation is very good as are the characters and I always like seeing cartoons in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio. It's funny to think that an innocent short like this couldn't be made today due to the religious aspects of the story.

This Hanna-Barbera cartoon certainly is different from the norm. Seeing mice in the opening, I wondered if this was another Tom and Jerry-type cartoon.....but it is anything but that! This is a serious cartoon with a serious message. It's also a message no one could argue with, and a good one to watch at Christmas, since that's pictured during the cartoon.

It's an anti-war cartoon, and a pro-Bible one, too, as it turns out, rhetorically making us question whether we have learned valuable advice that has been told to us for centuries. We say we do, but do we "practice what we preach," as this film asks?

This is depicting some time in the future when there are no more humans left in the world. The mice in this choir are singing the Christmas tune, "Hark, The Herald Angels Sing" when the head mouse explains to the little ones the story of man, and why their are none around anymore. It ends with a nice tribute to the Bible and to men ignoring what it says in there, hence, not treating neighbors as they should led to their downfall.

It's a shocking cartoon in spots, showing the devastating effects of war and, in particular, weapons of mass destruction. No one has mentioned here, but the visuals are stunning; just beautifully drawn and looking great in CinemaScope.

This was a bonus feature, a "restored" cartoon I assume, that was on the "It's Always Fair Weather" disc. It is certainly worth checking out. Don't miss it.

This animated film is proof that the team of Hanna-Barbera could produce films with decent frame-rates and nice animation. This is because before they left MGM, the team was responsible for some wonderfully animated Tom & Jerry cartoons. Then, when the studio shut down its animation department (farming the work out to, of all places, Czechoslovakia), the two needed work and could not afford to make better cartoons. So, instead of the usual 24 frames per second, they produced what looked like slide-shots because so few cells were used and many were repeated. So, animation quality-wise, "Good Will to Men" was nice--not as nice as the best of Hanna-Barbera from the late 40s--but close.

As for the story, well, that's a different story. Some may love its risky anti-nuclear message--as the animals recount how mankind wiped itself out with all of their wars. And, for historical reasons, it is an interesting curio from the Cold War. But, it's also INCREDIBLY preachy. On a preachiness scale from 1 to 10, I'd give this one a 47. It is SO preachy about world peace that it actually made me cringe. Nicely animated but awful.

Please note that most reviewers adored it--one calling it 'the Citizen Kane of cartoon shorts', though at least bigtommyboy agreed with me...for what it's worth. It could just be that I am just too cynical for my own good.

Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons.

Hanna-Barbera are better known to me for their more comic-anarchic violence-oriented shows and cartoons, many of them good to classic so there is no complaining here. Like what was said with describing in my review for 1939's 'Peace on Earth' (mentioned by many reviewers, being a cartoon with a similar story and also a message cartoon that is pretty much the same message and subject) that Hugh Harman grows up with one of his most serious and darker efforts, 1955's 'Good Will to Men' sees Hanna-Barbera turning serious and providing one of their most mature and serious works. Again like 'Peace on Earth' this different approach comes off in a good, no great, way.

Of the two, it's hard to say which is preferred of the two. They are both powerful cartoons with a daring subject, weighty themes and an important message that actually is not too irrelevant. For me 'Peace on Earth' packs slightly more of an emotional punch, while 'Good Will to Men' handles its message a touch more subtly while still making its point very forcefully. In terms of quality overall, the two are about equal.

Regardless, 'Good Will to Men' makes a big emotional impact. It packs a very poignant punch and really makes one think about what it's trying to say. The beginning and end scenes are cute but not too sentimental, while the darker content in between provokes thought and moves. Story-wise, it's simple in terms of structure and plot development while still having a good deal going on but this is a good thing, making the cartoon easier to understand and resonate with.

The characters carry the cartoon beautifully, they look adorable in appearance but show stronger personalities than one would expect. Daws Butler shows that he can do much more than comedy and he does a great job at it.

Animation is rich in detail for design and backgrounds, vibrant in colour and crisp. Composer for the prime-era 'Tom and Jerry' cartoons and regular Tex Avery composer Scott Bradley provides a lush and atmospheric music score.

In conclusion, great. 9/10 Bethany Cox