Lapin et Lutin

Falling Hare (1943)

*** (out of 4)

World War II produced short has Bugs Bunny reading a book warning that there are "gremlins" out there who want to harm America. Bugs laughs this idea off but before long he's being beaten and abused by a gremlin.

FALLING HARE isn't what I'd consider a "classic" short but it's certainly rather unique. Many of the famous cartoon characters from this era were put into wartime shorts where they battled Germany, Hitler and various others. This film is certainly unique since we get to see Bugs taking the abuse that he normally hands out to other people. Obviously there's a "warning" message in the film and it comes across very well. Overall this is a fun short that has some great animation and a rather good storyline. The film is missing the laughs that you get with a normal Bugs short but it's still very much worth watching.

This short has a lot of topical humor, which is the case with most of the work produced anyway, but this is topical to World War II and to many people alive today, that seems like eons ago. References to Wendell Wilkie and "A" cards and the like will sail by many in the audience, but sight gags and the overall wackiness will be enjoyable enough. Check out the title of the book Bugs is reading at the start-it's a great gag! Well worth watching. Recommended.

This is a true time capsule of a cartoon in that it gives wonderful insight into what life was like for Americans back in 1943. There are so many wonderful references to gremlins, Wendell Wilkie and gasoline ration cards that the cartoon could be used as a tool to teach kids about WWII. Fortunately, while it is jam-packed full of such interesting tidbits, it also is pretty funny and well worth watching over 60 years later! The film does seem a bit strange, though, as for once, Bugs Bunny is NOT the wise-cracking or annoying jerk he was in most films made of him during the war. Instead, he is the unlikely voice of reason that tries to thwart the evil but mischievous intentions of the gremlin! The short abounds with cute jokes, sight gags and a very original script (the only similar cartoon I can think about is GREMLINS FROM THE KREMLIN--another Looney Toons cartoon, but one where a huge swarm of gremlins are working for the allies to destroy the Nazi menace).

Mr. Freeling, Producer of the Bugs cartoons in their most classic era, believed there were two basic dramatic types: Identification Characters (Porky, Elmer Fudd ) and Aspiration Characters ( Bugs, and...Yosemite Sam? Hmmm...). Bugs as we know is a supernatural Being, with powers ordinary rabbits or humans do not have. In this movie he encounters another such Being, the Gremlin. But the Gremlin is even more Elemental than Bugs---he's a sort of Primordial Force of Destruction.Its not that he hates anybody; its his job, and he does it well, like James Bond. Right at the outset of the Bug/Gremlin collaboration the little guy says that you have to hit Blockbusters just right; Bugs, with his typical streetwise sangfroid says, "Yeah?" but instead of the usual blowing off of the other character, the Gremlin even more authoritatively replies "YEAH!" and makes it stick. From then on, the Gremlin is in charge.

For another Bugs-Tables-Turned storyline, see the one with the Lion ( married to Hortense ): "I gotta go Mr. Bunny; sorry I can't stay and Kill you."

But for me the most important and intriguing detail of the cartoon is during the sequence with the Blockbuster Bomb, when the music distinctly plays the phrase "I'll Take Manhattan." This was 1943, remember, and the Manhattan Project was top secret.

I love Looney Tunes, and this is one of my favourites. It is very fast-paced without feeling rushed. It has a great and original story. The script is fresh and witty. The animation and settings look great, and don't look dated. The music has quirkiness and charm as well as a vast amount of energy. The gags are wonderfully timed and ones not to forget in a hurry. Bugs' mental breakdown is one of the best in cartoon history, and Bugs himself while different from his normal persona is just great. The gremlin is for me one of the most memorable foils/support characters in a Bugs Bunny cartoon, he looks cute but his actions suggest otherwise. Mel Blanc's vocals are superb. And not to mention, this is one of those cartoons where it does a very good job at keeping everything in sync, just hear how the gremlin strikes the bomb with his hammer in tune to the music, hearing that you'll probably agree that bit especially is very cleverly done. All in all, a classic. 10/10 Bethany Cox