Bugs refait l'histoire

Yankee Doodle Bugs (1954)

*** (out of 4)

Fun Looney Tunes short has Bugs Bunny having to explain American history to his nephew because he has a quiz at school. In his own way Bugs explains Manhattan Island being sold, Ben Franklin finding electricity, the Boston Tea Part, George Washington going to war and Betsy Ross coming up with the American flag. Of course, many of these historic things really happened with Bugs there. I really wouldn't call this one of the best films in the Bugs Bunny series but it does have a certain amount of charm that makes it worth viewing. There's nothing too funny here but I don't think the film was really going for laughs like a usual short nor was it going for big action scenes. Instead it was just giving a history lesson with Bugs taking part in many of them. The bit with Betsy Ross and how they came up with the idea for stars was quite clever. Fans of Bugs will certainly want to check it out but those new to him will probably want to watch one of the classics before getting to this.

Because of Bugs itself, this is what makes American History, the Warner Bros. way, really is!!! Far superior to Chuck Jones' 1939 "Old Glory", in sound, in Technicolor, in Carl Stalling's music, and in laughs, from start to "That's All, Folks!"!!!

The Looney Tunes cartoons were a big part of my childhood and still really like to love a vast majority of them, though a lot of the 60s efforts were sloppy. While there is a preference for Bob Clampett and especially Chuck Jones, Friz Freleng made some great Looney Tunes cartoons and a lot of the classic characters were handled beautifully with him, if more distinctively with particularly Jones. Have always adored Bugs Bunny and there is a reason as to why he is so iconic a character.

'Yankee Doodle Bugs' is not Freleng at his best, nor is it among the best of Bugs, but it doesn't disgrace either in any way and its best assets are brilliantly done. Even if the cartoon itself as an overall whole falls short of greatness. It is an interesting and hugely entertaining take on American history, and while it is not one of the funniest or wildest Bugs Bunny cartoons there is a lot to be entertained by. Is it accurate to history? No, but strictly speaking that was the point of the cartoon.

Did think that the character of Bugs' nephew Clyde was the weak link of 'Yankee Doodle Bugs'. The rest of the characters are far more compelling than him in personality, and while he is not cutesy or annoying he is slightly bland.

Some of the drawing lacks finesse but the animation on the whole is actually not a problem.

Pretty great actually on the whole. Especially the backgrounds, everything with the American folk is very inventively rendered, while the colours are vibrant and the attention to detail is rich. Milt Franklyn's scoring is just as good as Carl Stalling's at being lovely and clever in orchestration, having a lot of character and adding so much to the action and every gesture and expression. The dialogue is as witty as one would expect and doesn't get preachy or tired.

While there isn't anything hilarious here strictly speaking, the different sequences are funny and how Bugs inserts himself into them is very cleverly done. The lively energy in the pace is constant. Mel Blanc's voice work is exemplary as always, again voicing almost every character and giving each character individuality and different personalities and traits. Something that he was an unparallelled master at, and that is a distinction that is still the case now and we have had some fine voice actors in the past 30 years or so.

All in all, a lot of fun. 8/10

This was a very entertaining, if not very exact on history and this cartoon was fun to watch. I liked Bugs Bunny, his nephew Clyde, the idea of the cartoon (which was sort of original of the time) and the animation was sweet and unusual, for a LT cartoon anyway. The humour was also good, old fashioned while still being funny for modern audiences. The only thing I did not like about this cartoon was the thing which happened at the ending, it was quite sad and a wee bit disappointing.

In this cartoon, we meet a young rabbit called Clyde (in possibly his debut), struggling with history homework. He is staying with his Uncle Bugs (Bunny), who gladly helps him with his history and give him an account of American history, appearing in quite a few of the important parts. After the account, Clyde goes to do his history exam. How will he do...? I recommend this to people who like older but 21st century accessible Looney Tunes cartoons and to people who like Bugs Bunny. Enjoy "Yankee Doodle Bugs"! :-)

Taken at face value as a silly story of Bugs Bunny recounting American history to his nephew, "Yankee Doodle Bugs" is quite a laugh. Unfortunately, some of the events described don't reflect what really happened. In reality, when the Dutch bought Manhattan, they paid the wrong Indians, and the Indians who lived in Manhattan didn't even know that the transaction happened. Also, Betsy Ross didn't really create the American flag; her descendants made up that story to get people's attention. For more info, read Howard Zinn's "A People's History of the United States" and James Loewen's "Lies My Teacher Told Me".

But otherwise, Bugs's twisted versions of our country's history are a real hoot. Had those been the events, I wouldn't have minded experiencing them.