boblipton

Here's a portrait of Taro, a young Japanese boy who lives on a farm. There is discussion of his hope to become an artist; his drawing instructor doubts it. Taro lives on a farm, where they grow wheat and rice in the same fields -- although not at the same time. They also raise silk worms, and there is some discussion of the finicky habits of silk worms, who must be kept dry and eat only fresh mulberry leaves.

How typical is Taro of young Japanese children. I can't be sure, but I have seen a lot of Japanese features from the era, and his life seems not particularly unusual. Certainly, this Encyclopedia Britannica film is intended to give a glimpse into Japan that is foreign to its intended audience of American youths.

Porky Pig and Daffy Duck live in a wreck of a house that is barely up to code. Then a meteorite goes through the roof, leaving green goo behind, and giving them ten days to fix it or leave. They're broke. So eventually they go to work at the chewing gum company, where flavor scientist Petunia Pig is trying to perfect her formula, while scoffing at the latest release. And a good thing, too, because it turns everyone who chews it into a zombie under the control of an alien.

The folks who made this 91-minute cartoon -- Peter Browngardt has credits as producer, director and one of the writers, so we'll give him credit and blame -- have constructed a very good story, which makes sense, proceeds at a good pace and has good plot twists. Clearly the major visual influence is Bob Clampett, the most extreme of the Termite Terrace directors. There are references to 1930s cartoons, and the alien resides on a Cyclopean flying saucer that recalls Maurice Noble's designs. There's a conveyor-belt sequence in which we get a version of Raymond Scott's "Powerhouse" and a couple of classic gag sequences are recycled for your nostalgic pleasure.

What all the talent here fails show is any spark of novelty. There's not a new gag in the entire 91 minutes, no sign of temper on Daffy's part -- he's just nuts.

As often happens with these reboots, I wonder what audience this was made for. I think it was made for eight-year-olds who enjoyed the cartoons in the theater, or later on TV's Bugs Bunny Show. I was one of the latter group. I enjoyed them immensely, especially as it meant I got to stay up half an hour later. In the succeeding years, I have seen every cartoon that Termite Trace turned out. I have enjoyed them immensely. However, I am no longer eight, and if you want me to admire your cartoon, you're got to show me something new and funny. This one doesn't.

Freddy Anderson plummets to his death when Paul Lukas doesn't catch him. Everyone believes it was deliberate. Their high trapeze act was a threesome, with Jean Arthur preferring Anderson. But no one can prove it, and the show must go on. So tyro Charles 'Buddy' Rogers gets a tryout, and it goes very well. And then Miss Arthur and he fall in love.

With the flying act and the love story and the threat, it's potentially a very cinematic story. However, it never quite excels, and I'm not sure why. Could it be the long-shot trapeze work that is obviously doubled? Is Lukas too urbane to believe as some one who would do something like that?is Miss Arthur still not accustomed to the microphone? Or is it the fact that it's directed by George Abbott, who never really prospered with the camera and went back to Broadway, 11 Tonies, and lived to be 107? With Helen Ware, Oscar Apfel, and Irving Bacon.