Mississippi Hare (1949)

Truly Dreadful Film

Fantastic!

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Blistering performances.

. . . but maybe what he MEANT to say was that there was nothing NUDE in broad daylight. Bugs Bunny disproves this adage in MISSISSIPPI HARE, as a Promenade Deck Costume Malfunction exposes his nether regions to a Southern Gentleman Admirer and, to quote the Warner star, "Oh well, we almost had a romantic ending." Bugs is either Transgendered or Transvestite in MISSISSIPPI HARE, but the North Carolina legislature cannot say which. However, the buxom bunny is sporting D cups at the very least, and he's already smooched Col. Shuffle full on the kisser. Warner uses MISSISSIPPI HARE to urge the sexually confused American South to "Go jump in the lake!" (or is it "Go leap in the river of fudge-hued sludge"?). Col. Shuffle Takes the Plunge four times, with a cremation thrown in there somewhere. Bugs' Gentleman Admirer also is last seen splashing in the drink, leaving Bugs as Last Mammal Standing. Since Bugs is baled into a giant wad of cotton as this episode begins, only a touch of serendipity (there's a hint of that Great Emancipator Abe Lincoln freeing Bugs below deck of the "Southern Star paddle-wheel steamship) bails him out. Join the Boss, Bruce Springsteen, in boycotting the South, Bugs seems to be saying here on behalf of Warner Bros.

Chuck Jones's 'Mississippi Hare' is a fun cartoon which never quite rises above merely good. Although it looks lovely (never more so than in its controversial opening scenes of the cotton fields), 'Mississippi Hare' feels like Jones's attempt to emulate Friz Freleng's Bugs Bunny/Yosemite Sam cartoons by way of a thinly veiled Southern version of Sam named Colonel Shuffle. This makes 'Mississippi Hare' seem like an unnecessary foray into imitation by one of the most inventive film makers of all time. Nevertheless, 'Mississippi Hare' moves at a fair lick and features some great gags amongst its more predictable moments. It doesn't scale the heights of Freleng's best Bugs and Sam cartoons but 'Mississippi Hare' is a fun, entertaining short nevertheless.

I understand that "Mississippi Hare" got censored for showing black people picking cotton, but most of the cartoon has nothing to do with that. In fact, most of the cartoon nearly made me die laughing, as Bugs Bunny plays every kind of trick to avoid getting shot by an aggressive riverboat gambler whom he beats at poker. While some scenes set up what's about to happen, others are sped up so that you can't wait to see what's going to happen! Yes, once again, someone tries to go after Bugs, but Bugs is somehow always ten steps ahead. You gotta love it. And as for that scene where Bugs dresses up as a Southern belle...well, seeing a woman like that, I might have easily fallen for any trick!

This is a short which I haven't seen in ages, as it was declared off-limits by Ted Turner when Turner acquired the rights to the shorts. While I can understand his trepidation, I'm grateful to finally see the short again, because it has one of the funniest scenes I remember from watching these close to 40 years ago. As I want to talk about the short in a bit of detail, this is a spoiler warning: The short starts with a scene which likely helped pull it from circulation for years-blacks working in the cotton fields, one of whom grabs Bugs's "cotton" tail and tosses him in the sack. We then watch Bugs make his way from field-sack to cotton bale bound for the Southern Star, a paddle-wheel on the Mississippi, bound for all sorts of ports, including "Cu-cka-mong-a" (an old inside joke Mel Blanc has fun with in quite a few shorts).Bugs happens to observe what happens to stowaways on board and so "borrows" a gentleman's suit (and presumably his ticket as well). This scene is hilarious. Bugs then winds up in a card game with Colonel Shuffle (think Yosemite Sam with a Southern accent). Bugs puts up $100, which buys one half of a white chip, Col. Shuffle deals and the scene fades out. The fade in shows Bugs with a mountain of chips and Shuffle with half a white chip. Bugs wins the hand, with both players cheating. Shuffle contrives to be insulted and challenges Bugs to a duel. A few very funny bits later, Shuffle winds up in the Mississippi River to start a running gag and the chase is on.In a short with some very funny bits, my personal favorite comes after Col. Shuffle has set his pants on fire in the ship's furnace. He races to a water dispenser which takes only pennies and turns to Bugs, asking in very courtly speech if he might have change for a "tenspot", adding that "I would prefer a profusion of pennies!". Bugs slowly checks the bill over (he bites it at one point) and slowly begins counting change. When he reaches $1.21, Shuffle grabs the change, thanks him, tells him he can keep the rest and buys a cup of water and finally puts himself out.Bugs disguises himself as a Southern belle and begins whacking Shuffle with an umbrella, with Shuffle apologizing abjectly (and futilely) until he discovers it's Bugs. Bugs as a belle persuades a Southern gentleman to kick Shuffle off into the river again. When the gentleman realizes the "belle" is a bunny, he exits jerkily, stage right, into the river himself. The closing line is perfect.This short is available on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection, Volume 4 and is well worth seeing. Recommended.