Back Alley Oproar

I love opera and I love Looney Tunes, so when I heard of Back Alley Oproar, I thought after the wonderful What's Opera Doc and Rabbit of Seville, this is yet another perfect match made in heaven. And so it was. The animation is very good, with lovely backgrounds and the characters are well drawn. The story may be formulaic at first glance but it works really well. Where Back Alley Oproar really works though is in the music, it is outstanding and put to hilarious use. It is not everyday you hear Sylvester singing "Largo Al Factotum", Elmer getting increasingly tormented by Sylvester, and all those cats in heaven singing the Lucia Di Lamermoor sextet. The latter was hilarious especially. Sylvester is on top form here, one of my favourite performances of his, while Elmer is a perfect match for him. And as usual, Mel Blanc is absolutely fantastic, his singing voice here is brilliant. Overall, a complete delight and hilarious. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Sylvester the cat is one of the great, underrated performers. He's certainly underrated by Elmer Fudd who only wants a good night's sleep, not a late-night opera from a caterwauling cat. Elmer's shoe to the cat's noggin ends the kitty's Rossini performance. But that unkind gesture makes the red-clown-nosed kitty mad; and for his next performance he clomps up and down the stairs doing Liszt's "Hungarian Rhapsody."

This means war. Elmer throws books at him, ties him up, feeds him alum and tries to blow him up with dynamite. The kitty retaliates with a greased staircase, a floor full of thumb tacks for Elmer's bare feet and a surprising ability to chase him into the hereafter.

Meanwhile, a tabby cat with an unexpectedly beautiful female singing voice, becomes an unwitting participant in this mess. "You Never Know Where You're Going' Till You Get There" sings Sylvester; and that proves true for him, the tabby and especially Elmer.

Warner Brothers cartoons prove again and again that following a formula does not inhibit success—it creates it. A cat that sings all night and keeps some poor sap awake? It was done before; it was done later. This remake of "Notes to You" (1941), which starred Porky Pig and an anonymous cat, stands out not because of a novel premise. It stands out because it's very, very funny.

As the cartoonist Greg Ford says in his DVD commentary track ("Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume Two," Disc 4), this is Sylvester's finest hour. Sylvester—meaning Mel Blanc, his director Friz Freleng, and his animators—tops his work with Tweety, Speedy Gonzales and certainly Sylvester Jr. It's a great musical-comedy performance worthy of Danny Kaye (and worthy of Daffy Duck's imitation of Danny Kaye in "Book Revue" (1946)). It's so good that somehow we side with him over Elmer, even though he's completely in the wrong and Elmer is totally in the right.

Elmer is an excellent straight man—a thankless job, as Bud Abbott, Dean Martin and countless others will tell you. We also get a hilarious cameo performance from an unnamed orange cat who looks too stupid to sing like Jeanette MacDonald. But he—she?—does. Thanks for the laugh, unnamed kitty.

NOTE: Beware of censored TV prints that cut out the scene where Elmer walks over the thumbtacks with his bare feet. Why was it cut? Did someone worry that kids would imitate Elmer Fudd and walk over thumbtacks themselves?

Elmer Fudd settles into bed hoping to get a good night's sleep ("I could sweep for a week stwaight"). Unfortunately Sylvester the cat has chosen tonight to practice his opera singing on the fence in Elmer's backyard. What follows is a series of attempts by a frustrated Elmer to shut Sylvester up, only to have the cat come back more and more annoying each time. Very funny short with lots of good gags. The wonderful voicework (and singing) from the great Mel Blanc is the highlight. Lovely animation, of course. It's a remake of Friz Freleng's earlier Notes to You, a funny Porky Pig short. I prefer this one to that but both are good.

Best cartoon ever. Has my children in stitches every time they see it, and they've seen it hundreds of times. Who hasn't been interrupted when they want to sleep by someone being very annoying?

Great line up of old songs. That's partly why I love these vintage Looney Tunes cartoons, it keeps these great old songs like "You're Just An Angel In Disquise" and "Some Sunday Morning" alive for new generations to discover.

As usual the voices are great. Mel Blanc was a phenomena. Too bad they don't have the intelligence to make cartoons like this anymore. The cartoons today are so vapid and devoid of real charm and humor. This one delivers in droves.

Elmer Fudd is settling in for the night when he's constantly disrupted by Sylvester cat's singing. Fudd will go to any lengths to get a good night sleep, which makes the ending all the more funny. This is just simply a cute cartoon with all the singing and commotion and what not. It's a remake though which I can't help but hold against this short, but it's still good for what it is. That being a musical centric cartoon. This animated short can be seen on Disc 4 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2 and also features an optional commentary by Greg Ford.

My Grade: B-