In 1988, producer Steven Spielberg and director Robert Zemeckis made a landmark film that not only served as a love letter to classic cartoons from the 1940s and film noir, but also combined live-action filmmaking and animation. That film was "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", based on the novel "Who Censored Roger Rabbit" by humorist and novelist Gary K. Wolfe. Released under Disney affiliate Touchstone Pictures, it was a huge technical achievement at the time and was a huge success at the box office. The film was, indeed, a big deal, and to this day, the movie holds up well. As a response to the film's success, three Roger Rabbit shorts, also produced by Spielberg were made and released individually to coincide with feature films distributed by Buena Vista. "Tummy Trouble", made one year after the release of "Roger Rabbit", was the first of the three shorts to be released.
The film starts similarly to how "Roger Rabbit" began, where Roger (Charles Fleischer) is given the task to look after Baby Herman (April Winchell/Lou Hirsch). Unfortunately things go awry for Roger, as Baby Herman accidentally swallows his own rattle, so Roger takes him to the hospital to get it out. Hi-jinks ensue, including Roger accidentally swallowing the rattle after getting it out of Herman, and being mistaken as the patient. In the end, they do finish the cartoon, but the film doesn't end immediately. The finale becomes a live-action/animation combo like in the movie, and is shown as just another ordinary day of filming a cartoon (which we all know is not how its actually done, but a lot of us wish it did).
The short was released alongside the 1989 film "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids", and like the movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", it hearkens back to the cartoons that were made back in the 1940s, such as the Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, Popeye, etc. Hell, Tex Avery's Droopy Dog even makes a cameo appearance at some point in the picture. The animation is top notch, fast-paced, and fluent, and there's even some use of early CGI in parts of the film, similar to how it was used in a couple of Disney's prior feature-length pictures like "Oliver & Company" (1988) and "The Great Mouse Detective" (1986, also known as "Basil the Great Mouse Detective" internationally). It was an impressive appetizer of what was to come from the Disney studio, as five months later, Walt Disney Pictures would release the animated movie musical "The Little Mermaid", thus beginning the era known as the Disney Renaissance.
Personally, the best way to watch the movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" is seeing this, and the other two shorts ("Roller Coaster Rabbit" and "Trail Mix-Up") first, because it builds up to whats to come when you get to the movie. The three shorts were first released with the movie on the Vista Series DVD version, but today, it can also be found on the 25th Anniversary edition Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack as bonus features. The next time you put the movie on, give this and the other two shorts a watch.
The film starts similarly to how "Roger Rabbit" began, where Roger (Charles Fleischer) is given the task to look after Baby Herman (April Winchell/Lou Hirsch). Unfortunately things go awry for Roger, as Baby Herman accidentally swallows his own rattle, so Roger takes him to the hospital to get it out. Hi-jinks ensue, including Roger accidentally swallowing the rattle after getting it out of Herman, and being mistaken as the patient. In the end, they do finish the cartoon, but the film doesn't end immediately. The finale becomes a live-action/animation combo like in the movie, and is shown as just another ordinary day of filming a cartoon (which we all know is not how its actually done, but a lot of us wish it did).
The short was released alongside the 1989 film "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids", and like the movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", it hearkens back to the cartoons that were made back in the 1940s, such as the Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, Popeye, etc. Hell, Tex Avery's Droopy Dog even makes a cameo appearance at some point in the picture. The animation is top notch, fast-paced, and fluent, and there's even some use of early CGI in parts of the film, similar to how it was used in a couple of Disney's prior feature-length pictures like "Oliver & Company" (1988) and "The Great Mouse Detective" (1986, also known as "Basil the Great Mouse Detective" internationally). It was an impressive appetizer of what was to come from the Disney studio, as five months later, Walt Disney Pictures would release the animated movie musical "The Little Mermaid", thus beginning the era known as the Disney Renaissance.
Personally, the best way to watch the movie "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" is seeing this, and the other two shorts ("Roller Coaster Rabbit" and "Trail Mix-Up") first, because it builds up to whats to come when you get to the movie. The three shorts were first released with the movie on the Vista Series DVD version, but today, it can also be found on the 25th Anniversary edition Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack as bonus features. The next time you put the movie on, give this and the other two shorts a watch.