"TOM & JERRY’S GREATEST CHASES: VOL. 2"
DVD Review
by Kevin Carr
| MOVIE: **** (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: * (out of 5 stars) Not Rated Available on DVD June 16 Official Kids WB site Studio: Warner Bros. Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
For more than half a century, the cartoon legends of Tom & Jerry have been entertaining audiences of all ages. As the best-known cartoon cat and mouse, Tom & Jerry have been in more than their fair share of chases. Warner Bros. has compiled some of the greatest chase episodes and put them on a single disc, featuring Tom, Jerry, Spike and various other critters in the episodes from the 1940s and 1950s.
WHAT I LIKED
Ever since I watched the classic Tom & Jerry cartoons in the afternoon during my grade school years, I have been a fan of the series. And, with the exception of the bizarre Gene Dietch years or the cheap 1980s years, I have loved every incarnation of this cat and mouse team.
I would imagine it’s hard to compile a list of fourteen of the best chase episodes considering that practically every cartoon ever made has some form of chase to it. Tom and Jerry are, after all, a cat and a mouse. However, these don’t just contain the best chase scenes, but some of the best cartoons made in the series.
In particular, classic episodes like “Quiet Please!” and “Mouse Trouble” won Oscars for Best Short Subject: Cartoon. Other episodes on the disc include “Sufferin’ Cats!,” “Baby Puss,” “The Million Dollar Cat,” “The Bodyguard,” “Flirty Birdy,” “Cat Fishin’,” “The Invisible Mouse,” “Heavenly Puss,” “Jerry and the Goldfish,” “Cue Ball Cat,” “Slicked-up Pup” and “Jerry’s Cousin.”
Having brought my own kids up on Tom & Jerry cartoons rerun on Cartoon Network and Boomerang, it was a blast to watch these episodes with my children and laugh together. In fact, we’ve seen so many of these cartoon together that we ended up reminiscing about other episodes as we watched these shorts.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
Even though these episodes are presented on DVD, there’s a rough quality to the prints from which these were struck. They aren’t remastered classics, as they have plenty of scratches, hairs, dirt and other distortions on the film. Additionally, the soundtrack, while intact, is not leveled between cartoon episodes and is inconsistently loud.
DVD FEATURES
Aside from a slate of more than a half dozen trailers for other Warner Bros. kids videos, there’s no special features.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
Tom & Jerry fans looking for some of the classics from the 40s and 50s.
