When this film begins, Betty Boop is home singing about how she wants a fur coat. Ko Ko the Clown and Bimbo the Dog naturally assume that to win Betty's heart they need to get a fur, so they both go off hunting. Plus, Betty's home is adorned with hunting trophies. However, after a long and dangerous day of hunting, they return with lots of pelts and Betty doesn't want them—and yells at the boys. Perhaps it is because a long line of naked animals who lost their furs is standing nearby and Betty feels sorry for them. Then in the final scene, she has a HUGE fur wrapped around her as she marches along with the animals! This is a very odd film due to its confusing message about fur—I really am not sure what was intended. I did like, however, the great Fleischer animation as well as the beginning scene with the sun—it was very clever and adorable—and the sort of stuff the studio did best in the early 1930s. Worth seeing but far from Betty's best.
4 Reviews
Fleischer goes hunting
TheLittleSongbird30 March 2018
Fleischer were responsible for some brilliant cartoons, some of them still among my favourites. Their visual style was often stunning and some of the most imaginative and ahead of its time in animation.
The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her. That charm, sensuality and adorable factor is not lost anywhere here, nor her comic timing. This is more Bimbo and Ko-Ko's cartoon though and both are terrific fun, the chemistry with Betty is cute too.
'A Hunting We Will Go' is not one of the best Betty Boop cartoons by all means, but certainly not among the worst, her lesser efforts all being when the Production Code was enforced, things became tame and what made the early pre-Code cartoons so good was somewhat lost. This said, it has all the elements that make her pre-Code cartoons so worthwhile and does do so much, almost everything, right and little wrong. The weak link is the story, which is basically events strung together.
However, the animation is outstanding, everything is beautifully and meticulously drawn and the whole cartoon is rich in visual detail and imagination. Every bit as good is the music score, which delivers on the energy, lusciousness and infectiousness, great for putting anybody in a good mood.
As hoped, the fun is ceaseless and while it is not exactly creative everything is very well timed and never dull. The ending is a nice surprise with a good moral. The voice work is fine.
On the whole, a lot of fun and a great watch visually and in entertainment. 8/10 Bethany Cox
The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her. That charm, sensuality and adorable factor is not lost anywhere here, nor her comic timing. This is more Bimbo and Ko-Ko's cartoon though and both are terrific fun, the chemistry with Betty is cute too.
'A Hunting We Will Go' is not one of the best Betty Boop cartoons by all means, but certainly not among the worst, her lesser efforts all being when the Production Code was enforced, things became tame and what made the early pre-Code cartoons so good was somewhat lost. This said, it has all the elements that make her pre-Code cartoons so worthwhile and does do so much, almost everything, right and little wrong. The weak link is the story, which is basically events strung together.
However, the animation is outstanding, everything is beautifully and meticulously drawn and the whole cartoon is rich in visual detail and imagination. Every bit as good is the music score, which delivers on the energy, lusciousness and infectiousness, great for putting anybody in a good mood.
As hoped, the fun is ceaseless and while it is not exactly creative everything is very well timed and never dull. The ending is a nice surprise with a good moral. The voice work is fine.
On the whole, a lot of fun and a great watch visually and in entertainment. 8/10 Bethany Cox
What She Can Do "Fur" Us
Hitchcoc7 December 2018
Koko and Bimbo decide that they will be big game hunters. They are trying to impress Betty Boop. So they head off to find animals to hunt. At every turn they are repelled. But with weaponry they eventually prevail. However, at the end they are in for a big surprise. Betty shows her sympathy for animals which is perpetuated in this series.
Koko and Bimbo just can't win here at all!
llltdesq16 July 2002
This short had to be done pre-code, because it wouldn't have been worth doing if you have to change much to make it "decent". Koko and Bimbo both try to impress Betty, but they make an unfortunate error and try to give her what she says she wants-a dangerous move to make with most women. This is the place where a comment about fickleness in general and Betty Boop in particular, would belong, but visions of irate women armed with torches and pitchforks descending on my residence like extras in Frankenstein give me pause and, as with all noble cowards, discretion is my chosen course, so instead, I'll make an observation about people in general saying one thing but changing their minds about it later. Koko and Bimbo are in for something of a surprise in the end here. The moral here, kiddies. is to always have a backup plan for when things (almost inevitably) go differently than you planned. In print and available. Well worth watching. Recommended.
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