Terrytoons' output, overall and individual years, is inconsistent but is also very interesting for anybody wanting to see something different from the more famous studios, something that is older and lower in budget. The Gandy and Sourpuss cartoons were generally formulaic and not what one would call great, some are (much) better than others, but the two characters are fun together, their series is generally one of Terrytoons' better theatrical series and Gandy did grow as a character over-time.
1946 was still in early stages at this point, the Gandy/Sourpuss cartoon 'Fortune Hunters' being only the third. It is neither among the best or worst Terrytoons cartoons overall, and there were both better and worse that year. As well as better ('Post War Inventions', 'The Exterminator') and worse ('Who's Who in the Jungle') Gandy/Sourpuss cartoons, 'Fortune Hunters' is a middling effort for them. It is not as good as 'The Talking Magpies', featuring Farmer Al Falfa and Heckle and Jeckle (their series, one of the studio's best, interestingly was introduced that year) prototypes. It is better though than the lacklustre 'Svengali's Cat' starring Mighty Mouse.
Lets start with the good things. The best elements are the animation and music, hardly surprising as they were the consistently biggest strengths for the Terrytoons cartoons from the late-30s onwards. The ambitious, elaborate detail in the backgrounds is on display, the colours are a mix of vibrant and atmospheric and fluidity of drawing and movement has improved such a lot for the studio. The ghost town setting has a real eeriness to it. Even better is the music, it is beautifully and cleverly orchestrated and arranged, is terrific fun to listen to (both jaunty and spooky) and the lively energy is present throughout, doing so well with adding to the action.
Sourpuss, always a stronger character than Gandy, is amusing and one can really root for him when he is afraid with a great job done with his gestures and expressions. The haunted inhabitants are quite fun and spooky and there are moments that amuse and give the creeps. The ending raised the biggest smile somewhat although it was not a surprising one necessarily.
Gandy however is pretty bland and his comic timing isn't here anywhere near as much as in 'The Exterminator'. He and Sourpuss don't really sparkle here this time, somehow it doesn't feel as fresh as it does in their previous outings together. The premise is quite familiar ground for both animation in general and Terrytoons, 1944's 'The Ghost Town' (also from Terrytoons and also featuring Gandy and Sourpuss) had similar elements too and that was funnier, creepier and more imaginative. This definitely had a familiar, running out of ideas feel and other cartoons in the series executed the dream/nightmare concept much better.
Although there are moments of creepiness (though not much novel here), 'Fortune Hunters' isn't really very funny. The slapstick is predictable and lacks energy, while the gags are too far and between and those that are there feel like they were lifted from somewhere else and blandly so. The pace lacks lustre, which further added to the strong air of fatigue the cartoon has.
In summation, nothing special but an inoffensive one-time watch at least. 5/10
1946 was still in early stages at this point, the Gandy/Sourpuss cartoon 'Fortune Hunters' being only the third. It is neither among the best or worst Terrytoons cartoons overall, and there were both better and worse that year. As well as better ('Post War Inventions', 'The Exterminator') and worse ('Who's Who in the Jungle') Gandy/Sourpuss cartoons, 'Fortune Hunters' is a middling effort for them. It is not as good as 'The Talking Magpies', featuring Farmer Al Falfa and Heckle and Jeckle (their series, one of the studio's best, interestingly was introduced that year) prototypes. It is better though than the lacklustre 'Svengali's Cat' starring Mighty Mouse.
Lets start with the good things. The best elements are the animation and music, hardly surprising as they were the consistently biggest strengths for the Terrytoons cartoons from the late-30s onwards. The ambitious, elaborate detail in the backgrounds is on display, the colours are a mix of vibrant and atmospheric and fluidity of drawing and movement has improved such a lot for the studio. The ghost town setting has a real eeriness to it. Even better is the music, it is beautifully and cleverly orchestrated and arranged, is terrific fun to listen to (both jaunty and spooky) and the lively energy is present throughout, doing so well with adding to the action.
Sourpuss, always a stronger character than Gandy, is amusing and one can really root for him when he is afraid with a great job done with his gestures and expressions. The haunted inhabitants are quite fun and spooky and there are moments that amuse and give the creeps. The ending raised the biggest smile somewhat although it was not a surprising one necessarily.
Gandy however is pretty bland and his comic timing isn't here anywhere near as much as in 'The Exterminator'. He and Sourpuss don't really sparkle here this time, somehow it doesn't feel as fresh as it does in their previous outings together. The premise is quite familiar ground for both animation in general and Terrytoons, 1944's 'The Ghost Town' (also from Terrytoons and also featuring Gandy and Sourpuss) had similar elements too and that was funnier, creepier and more imaginative. This definitely had a familiar, running out of ideas feel and other cartoons in the series executed the dream/nightmare concept much better.
Although there are moments of creepiness (though not much novel here), 'Fortune Hunters' isn't really very funny. The slapstick is predictable and lacks energy, while the gags are too far and between and those that are there feel like they were lifted from somewhere else and blandly so. The pace lacks lustre, which further added to the strong air of fatigue the cartoon has.
In summation, nothing special but an inoffensive one-time watch at least. 5/10
