Horst in Translation ([email protected]) "Back Alley Oproar" is an American cartoon from 1948 and it was produced by Warner Bros. The days of World War II had been over at this point, so it's an unpolitical work again. It runs for approximately seven minutes just like the others. The director is Friz Freleng, writers are Michael Maltese and Tedd Pierce and these three worked on so many classic Warner Bros. cartoons. Same can be said about some of the voice actors, especially Mel Blanc of course. The story here is nothing really new. It's the usual one we have seen many times, in which one character wants to sleep while the other makes noises. And the former is Elmer Fudd in here (in Bugs' absence), while Sylvester wants to sing opera in the backyard and the result is the massive "oproar" mentioned in the title. I thought this was an okay watch. Some lengths were in here, but also 2 or 3 funny moments like the pretty hilarious nine lives reference at the very end. Poor Elmer. But not poor audience. I recommend the watch.

Edgar Allan Pooh . . . of accurately predicting the future, particularly with its Looney Tunes animated shorts. Whether it's an omen of specific upcoming events, such as 9-11 or the Advent of Trump, or Cultural Trends (for example, Video Gaming and the Concentration of Wealth), Warner often is 50 to 75 years ahead of its time with Long Range Forecasts, most of which are eerily Spot On. (As with Cassandra of the Ancient Greeks, America has most often taken Warner's Warnings with so many grains of salt, much to Her regret.) Though it's easily proved that Warner has been far more accurate that other notable-if-overrated prognosticators (think Nostradamus) regarding previsioning verifiable historical events and trends, Warner also has given quite a few Hints about the After Life. While you'll need to kick the bucket yourself to determine the validity of these Post Mortem inklings, it's probably wise to keep a Bucket List of what they are. In BACK ALLEY OPROAR, Warner's animators divulge that cats will outnumber humans in Heaven by a ratio of at least nine to one. Warner predicts that cat haters such as Elmer Fudd may defect Down Below when they discover this fact.

TheLittleSongbird I love opera and I love Looney Tunes, so when I heard of Back Alley Oproar, I thought after the wonderful What's Opera Doc and Rabbit of Seville, this is yet another perfect match made in heaven. And so it was. The animation is very good, with lovely backgrounds and the characters are well drawn. The story may be formulaic at first glance but it works really well. Where Back Alley Oproar really works though is in the music, it is outstanding and put to hilarious use. It is not everyday you hear Sylvester singing "Largo Al Factotum", Elmer getting increasingly tormented by Sylvester, and all those cats in heaven singing the Lucia Di Lamermoor sextet. The latter was hilarious especially. Sylvester is on top form here, one of my favourite performances of his, while Elmer is a perfect match for him. And as usual, Mel Blanc is absolutely fantastic, his singing voice here is brilliant. Overall, a complete delight and hilarious. 10/10 Bethany Cox

movieman_kev Elmer Fudd is settling in for the night when he's constantly disrupted by Sylvester cat's singing. Fudd will go to any lengths to get a good night sleep, which makes the ending all the more funny. This is just simply a cute cartoon with all the singing and commotion and what not. It's a remake though which I can't help but hold against this short, but it's still good for what it is. That being a musical centric cartoon. This animated short can be seen on Disc 4 of the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2 and also features an optional commentary by Greg Ford.My Grade: B-