Koko Needles the Boss (1927) User Reviews

A Stitch In Time Saves Koko

[ccthemovieman-1 · 7/10 · 9 December 2008]

Artist Max Fleischer draws a spool of thread and a needle. The needle then penetrates a blank canvas and, stitch by stitch, we see Koko the Clown being "drawn." Very clever. There is always a new and innovative and method of introducing Koko in these old Fleischer brother Koko The Clown "Out of the Inkwell' silent animated shorts.

Soon, we see real-life shots of Max with a needle and thread trying to rescue his creation who is stuck in the canvas.

Later, a dueling match ensues between Max and his creation. The artist keeps score, with an inning-by-inning count you would see on a baseball scoreboard. After three "innings," Koko leads Max, 3-0, but the Max goes nuts and scores 182 straight points! Koko gets his revenge, though, and more than evens the score. How, I won't give away, but the animated short offers a good mix of animation and real-life action and it gets pretty wild (with a kitten involved).

It's often been said that "The pen is mightier than the . . . "

[pixrox1 · 7/10 · 26 October 2019]

" . . . pin," but seldom has this Truism been better illustrated than in KOKO NEEDLES THE BOSS. The last half of this brief cartoon is devoted to the animated title jokester wielding a sewing needle as he duels his creator (even drawing First Blood!)--the live-action producer "Max F."--who is armed with the alleged pen (which he rarely dips into any ink well). It is said that during the 1900s, Camus and Sartre enjoyed sitting around, watching seminal films such as KOKO NEEDLES THE BOSS, while snacking on pretzels and palavering about the fine points of Existentialism. Legend has it that sometimes Pirandello would drop in from Italy with a vat of olive oil and an armful of bread, leaving his Bugatti parked askew in a more or less random fashion. Though "Kirk D." has dismissed this as an "apocryphal legend," most would quibble whether or not the latter was in any position to know one way or another, since these gatherings occurred before his time. Regardless of if Fleischer's clown was the primary inspiration for THE STRANGER and NO EXIT, who could argue against KOKO NEEDLES THE BOSS belonging among the 1,002 films that YOU need to see before you croak?

Stitch by stitch

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 23 February 2018]

Dave Fleischer was responsible for many gems. Ones that were amusing and charming, though over-cuteness did come through in some efforts and the stories were always pretty thin, with appealing characters, outstanding music and visuals that were inventive and with innovative animation techniques.

Ko-Ko similarly was an always amiable character to watch and among the better recurring characters in Fleischer's early work. Likewise, his series of Out of the Inkwell cartoons were among the best early efforts of Fleischer and silent cartoons in general. Fleischer may not be at his very finest and there are other cartoons of his that fit the word gem more. It is impossible to dislike 'Ko-Ko Needles the Boss' however as it is so enjoyable to watch and really put a smile on my face and provided plenty of laughs, a perfect antidote for when you're in a not so good mood.

Actually can find very little to fault 'Ko-Ko Needles the Boss'. The story is slight and it can get slightly erratic on occasions.

Everything else though is done so brilliantly that any issues had with the story don't stay for long. The delight of the character interplay and how well the animation and live action is handled so seamlessly for so early on, the wild fun and the live action interplay are just a few things to like.

One expects the animation to be primitive and very low quality, judging by that it's the early 20s when animation techniques were not as many, as refined, as ambitious and in their infancy. While Fleischer became more refined and inventive later certainly, the animation is surprisingly good with some nice visual wackiness and wit.

Pacing is lively and the bizarre and wild nature of the humour is done very imaginatively and never less than fun to watch, making the most of a strong concept. Koko as ever is very likeable and amusing.

In conclusion, yet another hugely enjoyable Ko-Ko cartoon. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Koko, as usual, is a real jerk...which is why we love him!

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 12 April 2020]

"Koko Needles the Boss" is another wonderful silent cartoon that pairs Koko the Clown with his animator, Max Fleischer. It all begins with Koko being created on the paper using a basting needle and thread....and it's still a very striking thing to see today. Soon Max accidentally tears the paper with Koko on it and tries to stitch him back together. But Koko is being his usual self and soon begins sword fighting with Max...and I'll say no more considering it might spoil the short...suffice to say, it's cute and clever. The animation quality and how well they integrate it with live action...well, it's darn good and impressive still!