Cinema Crazed

DVD:

2006

Rated: Unrated

Genre: Kids/Family Adventure Comedy Animated Series

Running Time: 1:28

Review by: Felix Vasquez Jr.

Review Date: 8/2/08

Special Features:
None

TOM AND JERRY TALES: VOLUME 5 (DVD)

If you go in to “Tom and Jerry Tales” with the presumption that we’re going to get the classic Hanna Barbera episodes with hysterical physical comedy and hilarious animation, then you’re due for a disappointment. I shed all of those hopes when I was able to catch volume 5 of the DVD release for “Tom and Jerry Tales,” and was surprised to see that it wasn’t that bad. Sure, the animation is mediocre, and the voice work leaves much to be desired, but I was often entertained by the sight gags with episodes that place Tom and Jerry in the most unusual situations. Jerry and nephew find themselves confronting a Sasquatch, and famous movie monsters in six minute episodes that didn’t have me breaking in to roars of laughter like the classic episodes, but rest assured I was scoffing quite often.

The animation is serviceable for the simple vignettes we see here as Tom and Jerry are mainly true to their spirits. Tom is the angry, relentless stalker, and Jerry is the clever, sly foil and both handle these odd situations with some gags that are quite chuckle inducing. Take Tom’s struggles to break free from a mummy wrap, or his surprise bite on the butt from a werewolf. And, I couldn’t help but snicker a bit at Jasper the Social Ghost’s introduction and offer of friendship only to be sucked by Ghost vac by Tom.

There are also the funny side characters featured within the series of gags that stick true to the formula of the classic episodes. Hell even Van Helsing plays straight man to Tom and Jerry’s antics at one point. It’s not as entertaining and brilliant as the classic Tom and Jerry tales but it may prove to be a good time had by parents and children alike. As for the DVD, there’s nothing. We get trailers to other WB home releases, as well as a Languages function. Beyond there, we get squat.

It’s far from animated cuisine as the original toons were, but for ninety minutes of imitations it’s not such a bad time. The gags are cute, the animation is watchable, and there aren’t any religious overtones as we saw in the Tom and Jerry Nutcracker.

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