In Popeye's dream, Olive Oyl is an angel and Bluto comes between her and Popeye. Olive lays out a picnic for Bluto. Nothing seems to go right for Popeye. He starts sleepwalking in the real world. In the dream, he eats spinach and takes care of Bluto. It has the big three. Bluto needs two devil horns, a tail, and a pitchfork. Overall, this is a fine Popeye short.
4 Reviews
Very Inventive And A Lot Of Fun To Watch
ccthemovieman-12 July 2008
Warning: Spoilers
This is one of the most inventive Popeye cartoons I've ever seen, one that gets better and better as it goes on. Since it involves Popeye having a dream, you get some wild visuals and happenings. This is really good stuff, very clever in parts. Anyone who has a lot of dreams will be able to identify with things they see here, such as trying to move fast but unable to go any speed but slow-motion.
The funny gags are divided into two scenes: Popeye tossing and turning and muttering in bed while he's having the dream and what happens in his actual dream. They alternate the two scenes back and forth....with comic results. Actually, the first part is the best. You've never seen anyone this fidgety while trying to sleep. For instance, in one part of his dream,
Popeye is almost standing on his head in bed while his feet are cycling in the air 90 mph. (You have to see this to appreciate it.) When he's trying to eat his spinach, he's really eating the stuffing out of the mattress! In other words, watching Popeye squirm and make all this odd snoring noises and contortions while trying to sleep is very, very good.
The dream isn't bad, either, laugh-wise. We get Bluto - in heaven, no less - trying to steal Olive Oyl from Popeye. There are some good visuals here and I think you'll laugh out loud at a couple of them. As I said, it gets better and better during this wild-and-crazy dream.
The funny gags are divided into two scenes: Popeye tossing and turning and muttering in bed while he's having the dream and what happens in his actual dream. They alternate the two scenes back and forth....with comic results. Actually, the first part is the best. You've never seen anyone this fidgety while trying to sleep. For instance, in one part of his dream,
Popeye is almost standing on his head in bed while his feet are cycling in the air 90 mph. (You have to see this to appreciate it.) When he's trying to eat his spinach, he's really eating the stuffing out of the mattress! In other words, watching Popeye squirm and make all this odd snoring noises and contortions while trying to sleep is very, very good.
The dream isn't bad, either, laugh-wise. We get Bluto - in heaven, no less - trying to steal Olive Oyl from Popeye. There are some good visuals here and I think you'll laugh out loud at a couple of them. As I said, it gets better and better during this wild-and-crazy dream.
Nightmarish-ly good
TheLittleSongbird25 May 2020
Popeye has always been a fun and compelling character to me. Bluto is even funnier and more interesting and their conflict is always so much fun to watch regardless of the quality of the rest of the cartoon. The Popeye series is mostly decent to classic, especially in the mid-late-30s, though there were underwhelming ones later like the worst of the late-50s. It was never less than watchable though. Among the best theatrical series for both Fleischer Studios and Famous Studios that took over in 1942 through to 1957.
'Wotta Nitemare' was an excellent Popeye cartoon, not just for 1939 (of which it's one of the best) but also for the late-30s period (of which it's among the stronger ones), among Fleischer's best Popeye cartoons and a standout of the whole series. If asked whether 'Wotta Nightmare', my answer would be an easy yes and would go as far to say that it's one of the series' must sees. One of the series' most inventive premises fully lived up to and put to near-perfect use.
Couldn't really find much to criticise, but Olive's material and role are nowhere near as interesting or as funny and Popeye and Bluto's.
On the other hand, 'Wotta Nitemare' is one of the best-looking Popeye cartoons in my view with some of the series' most inventive and wildest visuals. Nothing looks cheap here and it was hard to not admire the attention to detail. The music is characteristically superb, full of clever orchestration, character and quite stunning to listen to. Popeye and Bluto are both splendidly characterised, Popeye coming off funnier here, and their chemistry a joy to watch in timing and how it carries everything.
All the gags work, becoming wilder and more hilarious all the time. Some of the funniest, wildest and most inventive depictions of dreams/nightmares in animation to me. Do agree about it being relatable too, my dreams/nightmares are very similar in effect and am also a fidgeter sleeping. Jack Mercer and Gus Wickie prove themselves to be the definitive voice actors for the characters, nobody relished those mumblings and such in the way Mercer did and Wickie's voice was the one that fitted Bluto's character design and personality the most.
Summing up, excellent. 9/10
'Wotta Nitemare' was an excellent Popeye cartoon, not just for 1939 (of which it's one of the best) but also for the late-30s period (of which it's among the stronger ones), among Fleischer's best Popeye cartoons and a standout of the whole series. If asked whether 'Wotta Nightmare', my answer would be an easy yes and would go as far to say that it's one of the series' must sees. One of the series' most inventive premises fully lived up to and put to near-perfect use.
Couldn't really find much to criticise, but Olive's material and role are nowhere near as interesting or as funny and Popeye and Bluto's.
On the other hand, 'Wotta Nitemare' is one of the best-looking Popeye cartoons in my view with some of the series' most inventive and wildest visuals. Nothing looks cheap here and it was hard to not admire the attention to detail. The music is characteristically superb, full of clever orchestration, character and quite stunning to listen to. Popeye and Bluto are both splendidly characterised, Popeye coming off funnier here, and their chemistry a joy to watch in timing and how it carries everything.
All the gags work, becoming wilder and more hilarious all the time. Some of the funniest, wildest and most inventive depictions of dreams/nightmares in animation to me. Do agree about it being relatable too, my dreams/nightmares are very similar in effect and am also a fidgeter sleeping. Jack Mercer and Gus Wickie prove themselves to be the definitive voice actors for the characters, nobody relished those mumblings and such in the way Mercer did and Wickie's voice was the one that fitted Bluto's character design and personality the most.
Summing up, excellent. 9/10
Funny Popeye Short
Michael_Elliott8 February 2017
Wotta Nitemare (1939)
*** (out of 4)
Popeye is comfortably in bed dreaming of a pleasant date with Olive. All of this changes when Bluto arrives in the dream and it quickly turns into a nightmare.
WOTTA NITEMARE is another winning short from the Popeye series and it has several nice laughs and of course the great animation that you'd expect. There are several funny moments scattered throughout the film but the highlight comes once Popeye is awake and poor Bluto gets a beating that he actually didn't deserve. If you're a fan of the series then you'll certainly enjoy this one.
*** (out of 4)
Popeye is comfortably in bed dreaming of a pleasant date with Olive. All of this changes when Bluto arrives in the dream and it quickly turns into a nightmare.
WOTTA NITEMARE is another winning short from the Popeye series and it has several nice laughs and of course the great animation that you'd expect. There are several funny moments scattered throughout the film but the highlight comes once Popeye is awake and poor Bluto gets a beating that he actually didn't deserve. If you're a fan of the series then you'll certainly enjoy this one.
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