Bosko the Doughboy (1931)

One of the best films i have seen

Don't Believe the Hype

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

The Bosko cartoons may not be animation masterpieces, but they are fascinating as examples of Looney Tunes in their early days before the creation of more compelling characters and funnier and more creative cartoons. There are some good cartoons, as well as some average or less ones.'Bosko the Doughboy', one of the better Bosko cartoons by quite some way, is a welcome return to the war-oriented theme explored in 'Dumb Patrol', another one of the better Bosko cartoons. Again the story is slight and slightly flimsy and a couple of parts are not for the easily offended.On the other hand, the animation is good. Not exactly refined but fluid and crisp enough with some nice detail, it is especially good in the meticulous backgrounds and some remarkably flexible yet natural movements for Bosko. The music doesn't disappoint either, its infectious energy, rousing merriment, lush orchestration and how well it fits with the animation is just a joy.The gags are quite inventive and fun with a brave and successful attempt at being darker and grimmer than usual for a Bosko cartoon, Bosko while not a great character is more compelling than usual and the pacing is lively enough.In summary, very good. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Considering that approximately 11,000,000 people were killed during WWI, you would think it would be a topic that was taboo in cartoons. Yet, inexplicably, this is the second Warner Brothers/Looney Tunes cartoon set during the war that I've seen in the last couple weeks (the other being "Boom Boom" from 1936). Both are set in the trenches and both show the rollicking good time that can be had in the war!! Call me a killjoy, but I just can't understand this sort of subject in a cartoon.The film has a big strike against it at the start--it was made during the Harmon-Ising era at Looney Tunes. I say this because their productions emphasized cute and their creation, Bosko, was rather cutesy and bland. But, at least there is no singing in this one! Overall, it's animated well but also a bit unsavory. Plus, some might raise an eyebrow at the ending with its cheap attempt at humor (Bosko is burnt to a crisp and does an Al Jolson imitation). Overall, better than most Harmon-Ising cartoons but that still isn't saying a lot.

Bosko, in case you've never heard of him, was the original Warner Bros. cartoon star (before Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, etc). A feisty, black and white character of no discernible species - although he looks like a minstrel character - the Looney Tunes series would have him go through a litany of adventures representing common daily aspects of life.One entry was 1931's "Bosko the Doughboy". Hugh Harman's short casts Bosko as a soldier, presumably in World War I. Which brings up a discussion topic. You see, in Warner's WWII-themed cartoons, it was always very clear that it was WWII, and that Bugs or Daffy or whoever were fighting Nazis. Here, not only is the war never specifically identified, the enemy is never specifically identified. So how do we know who the enemy really is? One thing that we learned in "Catch-22" is that "...anyone with a gun is the enemy." Of course, I'm sure that the people behind the cartoon never intended for the cartoon to merit such a complex interpretation. I have no doubt that they envisioned it as pure entertainment. Not that it contains much in the way of entertainment. I believe that I speak for most Looney Tunes fans when I say that the Looney Tunes' golden age began with Porky Pig's debut in Friz Freleng's "I Haven't Got a Hat" in 1935.

Bosko shorts generally have very good animation and there are some very nice visual sequences. I want to talk about some specifics here, so there are spoilers: This is the second war-oriented Bosko (after the earlier Dumb Patrol), both using World War I as the setting. While Bosko was an aviator in the first one and it was a good deal lighter in tone and mood, Bosko is an infantryman in the trenches in this one and some of the gags are actually a bit like "gallows" humor-characters get shot and collapse in comically exaggerated manners, weapons are hit and "die" just like the other characters. This being a Bosko short, he and other characters play music at odd times and in unusual ways.There are some very dark and somewhat serious animated bits here, mixed in with the comedic absurdities throughout the short. Bosko has a running bit with his helmet whenever he tries to get out of a trench. Some of the typical gags found regularly in Bosko shorts are here, of course-Bosko is eating from a can when we first see him, in the same exaggerated style the animators tended to use, for instance. There's also a gag involving a pair of long johns and the back flap in this one. That said, there are some stylistic flourishes here that aren't standard in a Bosko and this is a fairly good short which holds up well after roughly 75 years. Well worth seeing. Recommended.