The use of classical music, as well as the classical music itself, for some reason makes me think of '2001: A Space Odyssey'. I almost can't find any faults on this because it really is "THE" Tom & Jerry classic for excellency and the only one which is as close to perfection as a Tom & Jerry cartoon can be. Conclusion: Definitely Tom & Jerry's finest. Other funny gags include with Tom using his baton as a snooker cue to throw Jerry off the podium, among other schemes of one against the other one. There are lots of intelligent gags, such as when Jerry pleads and begs Tom to let him conduct the orchestra but Tom uses Jerry's baton as a toothpick and throws it away and then an angry Jerry snaps Tom's baton in half and throws it away, only for Tom to take off a spare baton from his pocket and stick his tongue out at him. That is a very soft and relaxing music to hear. This time Tom conducts an orchestra (the Hollywood Bowl, famous amphitheatre in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles, California) of cats at the sound of the beautiful music "Die Fledermaus" by Johann Strauss II.
While this one still has some sadistic stuff, it doesn't overdo it, being very far from being one of the worst of Tom & Jerry on this aspect. This one, however, is more restrained on the infamous violent gags which Tom & Jerry's cartoons are known for. After all, in both of them Tom plays classical music, Jerry is excited to participate but Tom doesn't let him and, of course, both have the traditional fights between them and Tom at the end trying desperately to compete with Jerry. I believe this cartoon was inspired by 'The Cat Concerto'. If 'The Cat Concerto' won, how come this one didn't? This one was actually more deserving of that honor. How it didn't win any Oscars is beyond me.
"Tom and Jerry in the Hollywood Bowl" is my favorite Tom & Jerry cartoon. The story may be fairly minimal but that doesn't matter when it is as fun to watch and listen to as this. As one would expect there is a fair amount of cartoon violence Jerry is flattened between a pair of cymbals and Tom gets run over by a bus! There are also a good number of gentler gags I liked seeing the two dancing together and the way Jerry's mouse hole mirrored the design of the Hollywood Bowl was fun. Ultimately only one of them can continue as conductor and we can all guess who that will be! This was a fun short where the action went perfectly with the music (Die Fledermaus). As the cartoon progresses they continue to try to stop each other conducting all the while the orchestra continue to play perfectly. Tom doesn't want the mouse taking over and puts him in his jacket Jerry just emerges from one cuff then the other to conduct some more. He climbs up onto the music stand in front of Tom and starts conducting. A thumbs-down from me, I only liked the animation, but story- and comedy-wise, there are hundreds of superior works from the Golden Age of Animation.Īs this short opens Tom walks out to conduct and orchestra of cats at the Hollywood Bowl not long after they begin Jerry emerges from his mouse hole ready to conduct as well. It also did not really appeal to me and I would only recommend it to the very biggest fans of the characters here and those who love classical music too. This is extremely subjective though, but I agree with the Academy who awarded several T&J works, but not this one we have here. I am not too fond of these because they really lack chase sequences and very funny interactions between the two protagonists.
Here Tom is a conductor who tries to make sure Jerry won't disturb him while guiding the orchestra. And like some others with the duo involving Strauss and Tom at the piano, this is another piece of evidence that the music-focused T&J works are among their most known today. The soon 70-year-old "Tom and Jerry in the Hollywood Bowl" is one of the rare cartoons where you read about the two world's most famous cat and mouse characters in the title already, so yes this is another MGM Hanna Barbera short film.