User Reviews

The Terrytoons are oddly interesting, mainly for anybody wanting to see (generally) older cartoons made by lesser known and lower-budget studios. They are a mixed bag in quality, with some better than others, often with outstanding music and with some mild amusement and charm and variable in animation, characterisation and content.

1937, like all the other years for Terrytoons, saw a hit and miss batch, more so than the other years even. Of which 'Red Hot Music' is one of the better ones ranking it in correlation with the rest of the Terrytoons and one of the best 1937 cartoons. There are flaws but also a lot of strengths, and a few things done better than what was seen before. 'Red Hot Music' is well worth watching as an above average watch with more to it than completest sake.

Best asset is the music, which predictably is incredible. It is so beautifully and cleverly orchestrated and arranged, is great fun to listen to and full of lively energy, doing so well with enhancing the action. The ambitious, elaborate detail in the backgrounds is still great to see and some synchronisation is neat. Again this was an example of more fluidity in the drawing than in previous years which was also great.

A fair share of amusing moments, with more gags than there can be usually found, and there is a lot of zest and bags of natural charm. Also a suitably strange and something inventive quality that was fun and endearing to watch. Many of the visuals and gags are quite imaginative for Terrytoons.

Having said that, a few of the transitions are a touch crude however.

Likewise, the story is thin and formulaic, even with more structure than usual, with not much new. Kiko doesn't have strong enough a personality either, he's decent enough as a supporting character but as a lead he can be bland.

All in all, pretty good. 7/10 Bethany Cox

This animated black-and-white silent short features "Kiko the Kangaroo," a late 1930s rival of Mickey Mouse. The film is one of a series that made its way to Castle Films and was sold for home projector use.

In "Red-Hot Music" (my reel is entitled "Red-Hot Rhythm"), a radio station in the upper floors of a tall building broadcasts the music of a 'toon animal(jazz?)orchestra. The sound is so hot that the instruments and fixtures catch on fire. Kiko and several animal friends who work for the fire department are called out to douse the blaze and save the day. The action and humor here are continuous, and for the 1930s, this film must have been considered pretty manic. The visuals are often surreal (dancing taxicabs, an elephant who pumps a virtually endless stream of water from his trunk, etc.), yet the pacing is good and the story is clear. Occasional narrative frames are largely unnecessary, as the gestures and expressions of the characters read very well. Made for kids, but will certainly hold the attention of adults.

Here's another animated cartoon I watched on Uncle John's Crazy Town blog. It's a Terrytoon starring Kiko the Kangaroo. Who you ask? This was an animal character that originated in the Farmer Al Falfa series. In this one, Kiko is a fire fighter who's called to douse the flames of Station KIKO which has a literally hot jazz band playing in the building. The instrumental music provided is highly enjoyable throughout and is accompanied by some amusing gags like taxis dancing or some notes literally moving on air. The Kiko character didn't really have much of a personality to last long in the Paul Terry staple like later characters like Mighty Mouse or Heckle and Jeckle but in cartoons like this, he got showcased in some of the best black-and-white ones the company made in the '30s. So on that note, I highly recommend Red Hot Music,.