Three years after shutting down their animation department, MGM contracted studio Rembrandt Films to produce thirteen Tom and Jerry shorts, all to be directed by Gene Deitch, the first of which was Switchin' Kitten, in which Tom pays a visit to a creepy castle where a mad scientist and his mouse assistant (Jerry) perform mind-swapping experiments on animals.
Produced on a tight budget, Deitch's animation is much cruder than that of Hanna and Barbera, with jerky movement and backgrounds rendered in a simpler style; also serving to make the films less satisfying than its predecessors is the sparse soundtrack that consists of bizarre electronic sound effects with heavy reverb.
Switchin' Kitten features some nice ideas (I like Tom being sucked through the glass scientific equipment, and his discovery of the subjects of the scientist's previous experiments), but lacking the charm and sophistication of Hanna-Barbera's work, Deitch's cartoon is, for the most part, quite painful to watch (and listen to).
