Humbersi
The first must-see film of the year.
Portia Hilton
Blistering performances.
Kirandeep Yoder
The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.
DAW-8
Ever wonder how the psychedelic, existential mindset of the 60s transferred itself to the next generation? Well, this cartoon is your answer. Starting with the existential title "The Bear that Wasn't", kids and viewers of all ages are taken on a mind trip where self-identity conflicts with social identity, and modern-day bureaucracy and hierarchy are satirized and exposed. All of this is done through some of the most beautiful and artistic animation of Chuck Jones, with its use of autumnal colors, shapes, shadows and outlines, all set to a Sergio Mendes-esquire mid-late 60s jazzy score, with its own psychedelic overtones. Not to mention the unusual length of this 'cartoon'--10 minutes. There all other tasty little tidbits of that time period too -- the Bear has a cigarette hanging out of his mouth for most of the cartoon while he is bewildered at what is happening to him.To think that little kids might have been zoned in to this in front of the TV on Saturday morning, while eating their breakfast cereal. What could they possibly be thinking after watching this? They say the 1960s counter culture was largely influenced by the fact that college campus theaters would show European new wave films, and so here were all these college kids innocently going to the campus theater, just cause it was there, yet being exposed to these radically artsy subversive films. This helped sow the seeds of a counterculture and the era which brought the widest and most pervasive critique of the society and everything about it, its values, norms, etc.
DoctorStrangelove
This is an interesting short from the WB gang, since it's message-driven. (See other comments below for plot descriptions from the fawning fans.) Frees' voice work is nice, and the characteristic Chuck Jones facial expressions on the bear are endearing, as usual... but "interesting" is about as far as I can go in praise of this 'toon.With a sledgehammer's subtlety, the message is made clear about one-quarter of the way into this short. After that it's repeated... and repeated... and repeated. And then, a full minute in the middle is spent rehashing what you just watched while the theme song (from the opening credits) plays... yet again. Some of the animation here is done beautifully, like the birds; while other parts are strange and utterly unnecessary, like the bizarre floor-arrows. There are very few characters, none of which have any real characterization; and what little conflict there is (necessary to ANY story) simply vanishes about halfway. The predictable ending comes with almost zero difficulty, plot-wise, and has me completely puzzled as to why a story so simplistic had to be ten minutes long? I'm a big big fan of classic WB and H&B animation, and I thought at first I was about to be exposed to a hidden gem; but it's pretty understandable why I've never heard of this short. I can only assume that it appeals to young children and the memories of those who saw it when they were very young. It probably deserves a 2-vote when compared to everything else Jones et al did, and a 6-vote when compared to other animation... so, on average, 4 out of 10.
ccthemovieman-1
This is really different, an animated that you would think has to be really funny with the people that made it, guys like Chuck Jones and Frank Tashin, Paul Frees and Maurice Noble....but it isn't. It simply is a comment on being who you are, and perhaps a dig or two on our industrialized, impersonal society. Whatever the intent, there is one thing for sure: this is different.One could made the same analogy with an alligator and the state of Florida. One day it's a swamp; the next thing you know it's nothing but concrete and condominiums. Huh? That's the scene here as the bear hibernates, wakes up and now he's in the middle of a big city and then, inside a factory where nobody believes he's a bear. Why would they? Why would a bear be in a factor? What happened to the open land where he lived? Everyone has questions in here.However one interprets this story, I enjoyed the artwork and the modern style of it in this cartoon. Like the story, the artwork is very different from the Looney Tunes we are used to seeing from the 1930s through the 1950s. In some respects, it is very '60-ish looking, a la The Pink Panther cartoons.Whatever it is, if you own the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume Three, don't overlook this extra cartoon that is listed under "From The Vault."
didi-5
'The Bear That Wasn't' is a fine little cartoon, directed by Chuck Jones and written by Frank Tashlin, both seasoned animators who by the 1960s were at MGM having spent several years at Warner Bros. honing their craft on Bugs Bunny and the like.The phrase 'To thine own self be true' could have been coined for this film. The bear who hibernates and awakes in the midst of an industrial estate could be forgiven for wanting to blend in with the crowd, but to celebrate individuality, however illogical it may seem, is more important to him.The bear is a character we can empathise with, even given the difference in species ... and perhaps this fable proves that with progress, truth does not automatically follow.Well drawn and tightly written, it can be found as an extra on the 3rd volume of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection.
