Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs (1943)

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Look - Bob Clampett was an extremely talented animator. He made some of the more distinctive shorts for Loony Tunes and Merry Melodies over the years, and always his frames were alive with action and intensity and physical comedy. There's always something going on when it comes to his cartoons, and it's not simply gags; Clampett's cartoons are effective because of the bursting energy within the frame, how many movements his animation team accomplish with the characters, all the personality and mayhem (this was especially an influence years later for Kricfalusi in his Ren & Stimpy series). It's a shame then that he poured his efforts into this, which is a tasteless and insensitive 'parody' of Snow White.One of the buzzword-terms going about right now is 'White privilege' and for good reason - this is what it means to live in a society when white people have all the power and influence. I have no idea whether Clampett was a racist or had feelings that black people all had big lips and acted like fools and buffoons, but the depiction at the least shows that he and his animators could've given less than a rat's ass about the intentions. This isn't satirical in any way because there's no point, it's simply showing these characters in the most cartoonish way, but not with anything creative or cleverness. If there was a point to it or the point of view had something to say about black stereotypes (using Snow White as the jumping off point), but there is none. That there were zero black animators may seem like moot, but it isn't, as there's clearly no voice to be shared from the other side - it's just a bunch of white guys using black figures for the hell of it.I give the short a couple of marks only because it is animated with the same passion and verve as the other works that made Clampett so valuable to Warners. But in its way it's as bad as something like Birth of a Nation - it didn't have that movie's affect on culture of course (a 7 minute cartoon didn't inadvertently bring back the KKK), and yet it's kind of unwatchable as something so tone-deaf. It's currently one of those "banned" cartoons that you can only find online or in bootleg form, and maybe for good reason; while there may be some historical reason to watch it, to check it out for the same reason one would like One Froggy Evening or Duck Amuck is insanity.

And you'll love every second. I could comment at length about the excellent and fast director provided by the directors and animators, or the sound pattern and music that never lets up and is determined to not let a second of silence infect the pictures, but really, the reason this makes such a great cartoon is probably because there's no way it will ever get a DVD release today. Imagine every stereotype the Greatest Generation ever engaged in, and now set it to the music that same generation bopped out to before getting on the boat to go over there. And here's the thing: we have to laugh at 'Coal Black...' We have to laugh at it because the energy of piece never lets up. It starts out fast with quick music and dialog and keeps a beat- the pictures move in concert with the various ebbs and flows of the music. It's poetry in animated motion. And it's funny. The stereotypes are so silly and unrealistic that what gets the suits nervous make us laugh. We've got your Welfare Queen, your Dark Chocolate hottie, your Swingin' Playa, and your seven soul brothers. And an offer to kill Japs for free! This could only be misconstrued by the most humorless critic as insulting. They would have to so buried in their opinions and others' opinions that they would be prevented from seeing the beat and rhythm inside the cartoon's 7 minutes. You can't take it seriously. You can't take away a world view from it. All you can do, is laugh.

One of Warner Bros. notorious 'Censored 11' cartoons (racial stereotypes), this film is actually a wickedly funny spoof on Disney's 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'.Here, Snow White becomes So White, a sexy and sassy black girl who finds herself in the company of dancing, singing dwarfs and Prince Chaw'min (who has dice for teeth!).Also snap up to date on gangster films - the Queen demands that her henchmen 'black out So White!', this fast moving cartoon packs a lot into its 7 minutes and is excellent.Well worth searching out ... it is possible to find it!

People, people....Robert Clampett's style was always OVER THE TOP!!! No matter what the subject was. It is clearly shown that the team did some extensive field research(music, extra talent from the local scene, etc.) and came up with a very sardonic- urban-hop (predating hip-hop!!! Take that!) short that is deliriously funny, fast-paced and definitely NOT for everyone(what is, anyway?). Unfortunately, all the "racial" stereotypes will detract some viewers (with no sense of humor, I'm guessing-hey , I'm a Hispanic and I'm a stereotype, but, I DO have a sense of humor and Tolerance , above all), these were other times and no harm was intended-except for the members of the "Axis" during the WWII years-and STILL, it was never hate that was expressed, but plain ridicule). Clampett is my all time favorite director, the zaniest and the one who took the most risks-kudos to him on this one. Taking into account that no big-major-conglomerate-company in their right mind would release this classic on DVD, the only source that I've ever seen it on is 1989 VHS "Uncensored cartoons", definitely OOP. I think that there might be some business in releasing all of these "Politically Incorrect"(WWII, Inki, etc.) WB shorts with very stern warnings on the cover("Mothers of prevention"?-thanks FZ); we shall see...hey , if I had a way to do it, I would! It would be great to see this in a nice restored print.