Un Capitaine à la Plage

The Katzenjammers spend a day at the beach and stuff happens. What should have been the quintessential outing for this oddball family is only sporadically amusing. Best Bits: Der Captain's futile quest for shade, his bumbling attempt to rescue Mama with a bottomless boat, and the "Canned Lobster" gag.

One of Friz Freleng's Captain and the Kids cartoons from his two-year stint at MGM has the brood spending the day by the ocean and experiencing a bunch of silly mishaps. I can see why the series never really caught on with audiences; MGM canceled it in 1939, after which Freleng returned to Warner Bros. I don't know anything about the comic strip on which this series is based. I probably never will, as I have plenty of comic strips that I like today, and plenty of cartoons that I like (Friz's WB work easily falls into that category). Since Friz Freleng had his own style and themes in his famous cartoons - show business and music synchronization - it probably made no sense to make him direct only one kind of cartoon. I believe that I speak for most people when I say that Freleng will be most remembered for cartoons like "Show Biz Bugs". "A Day at the Beach" is only worth seeing as a cultural reference.

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. Actually appreciate it even more through young adults eyes, due to having more knowledge of it, various animation styles, studios, directors and how it all works.

'A Day at the Beach' is not one of Friz Freleng's best cartoons by any stretch, in an uneven "still evolving" period of his long career, and he was yet to be in his full prime and not yet found his style properly. For a relatively early effort, 'A Day at the Beach' is average but not great or a Freleng classic, he would do much better later. It is never what one would call hilarious (but is never unfunny), Freleng's later efforts show more evenness and confidence in directing and the story is flimsy.

It is very predictable and thin story-wise and generally could have had more oomph, which would have been solved if the cartoon was a little shorter. 'A Day at the Beach' does feel routine and there aren't enough gags that are funny, a big problem for a gag heavy cartoon where the structure is basically an excuse to string them along. A few amusing moments but it's hardly laugh-a-minute and nothing is hilarious.

However, the characters are fun and the chemistry between them elevates 'A Day at the Beach'.

The cartoon has amusing moments, like the canned lobster gag, and there is some liveliness, though generally it was one that could have done with more oomph.

Animation is excellent, it's fluid in movement, crisp in shading and very meticulous in detail. The music is lovely on the ears, lushly orchestrated, full of lively energy and characterful in rhythm, not only adding to the action but also enhancing it. The voice acting from Billy Bletcher is terrific and full of character.

In summation, average and unexceptional but far from a waste. 5/10 Bethany Cox