Every Bugs Bunny Ever: Hillbilly Hare (1950)

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Hillbilly Hare (1950)
Directed by Bob McKimson
Written by Michael Maltese
Animation by Rod Scribner
Music by Carl Stalling

Sorry we missed you last week, but I’ve been very ill as of late.

In either case, “Hillbilly Hare” further emphasizes the wonderful marriage between Looney Tunes and classic music, or in case it’s Southern music. “HillBilly Hare” isn’t anything particularly special, but it’s a great and very funny misadventure with Bugs mainly because of the wonderful musical direction. I dare say that I learned about square dancing because of “HillBilly Hare” and loved the way the short utilized it as a means of comedy. While this certainly the first comedy to take square dancing and use it as a comedy plot point or running gag, “HillBilly Hare” is just so great about.

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Last Man Standing: The Chronicles of Myron Sugerman (2023)

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Director Jonny Caplan’s documentary is probably one of the most outstanding and entertaining crime documentaries of the year. Despite its short run time, he manages to unfold the story of a real underdog hero and anti-establishment mobster whose entire life was spent virtually kicking societal status quos in the ass. “Last Man Standing” is a True Crime Feature Documentary on the life of Myron Sugerman, son of Barney Sugerman, a partner of leading US mobster Meyer Lansky.

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At Capacity (2024)

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I admit I was a bit skeptical about approaching “At Capacity” because a lot of these films always feels so cynical, Thankfully, Spencer Jamison is so talented she lends a fresh gloss to a tired formula. Having had its world premiere at the LA Shorts International Film Festival, “At Capacity” is an entertaining and intelligent romance comedy about serendipity and salvaging good out of what might seem irreversibly bad.

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The Mexico Trilogy: El Mariachi, Desperado & Once Upon a Time in Mexico Limited Edition [4K UHD/Blu-ray]

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The best way to approach Robert Rodriguez’s series of action films are as more avante garde independent films. They’re much more obsessed with the mysticism and the lore of the mariachi than pursuing traditional action films. In the process he loses himself in a trio of imperfect often incoherent action films that, while fun, are hard to follow. “El Marciahi” for instance cost Rodriguez everything to make where he couldn’t even afford to film two takes for a lot of his shots. In spite of the troubles, the film made him an indie legend, inspiring many to go their own gold. “Desperado” is the partial remake and sequel now following Antonio Banderas as El Mariachi. The vengeful and vicious music player travels across Mexico with the aide of a gorgeous local nurse—played by then unknown Salma Hayek–as he sets out to put and end to their reign.

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The Bootleg Files: A Doonesbury Special

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BOOTLEG FILES 875: “A Doonesbury Special” (1977 animated film that received an Oscar nomination).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: On VHS and laserdisc plus a blink-and-you-missed-it DVD release in an anthology collection.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: There might be a rights issue that is unresolved.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: A re-release on DVD and Blu-ray is not likely at this time.

As a prefix to this column, I need to confess that I’ve never been infatuated with Garry Trudeau’s comic strip “Doonesbury.” Yes, I am highly aware of its awards and cultural resonance, but I never found Trudeau’s brand of satire to amusing or provocative. That being said, I was curious to explore “A Doonesbury Special,” the 1977 production that marked the only time that Trudeau’s comic strip was adapted into an animated film. Trudeau collaborated with Oscar-winning animators John and Season Hubley on this work – John Hubley died while the production was in the storyboard phase, but he still received co-director and co-producer credit with his wife and Trudeau.

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