A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court (1978)

Let's be realistic.

A Masterpiece!

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

"A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court" is an American animated short film from 1978, so this one has its 40th anniversary next year. The legendary Chuck Jones and Mel Blanc reunite here to bring back Bugs Bunny in a television special. Unlike the old Warner Bros cartoons, this one runs for over 20 minutes and includes also more characters than those that they usually fit in under 8, also more antagonists. This is set during the days of knights, princesses and dragons (yep SciFi is missing as a genre here) and Bugs really just wants to do his stuff, but the bad guys messing with him obviously only has bad consequences for them. Anyway, like I said earlier this film is not really working. It lacks focus and seems all over the place with the runtime. You can add the overlong title to the "too much" in the title of my review. The only really good aspect is once again Blanc's voice work and he was still at least as good as he was decades earlier, maybe even better. Okay anyway, all in all this one did not leave me impressed and it may have to do a bit with personal bias as the Middle Ages were never a time that interested me too much. Okay mention of Ray Bradbury though. I still believe Mark Twain would not have liked it either. Only worth checking out for the really biggest cartoon enthusiasts.

. . . that Mel Gibson was drawn and quartered at the end, and he's never been the same since. Bugs Bunny is sentenced to the same Fate during BUGS BUNNY IN KING ARTHUR'S COURT, and while Bugs has not drunkenly ranted anti-Semitic Nazi slurs in Public after COURT was in session during the late 1970s, Bugs too seems greatly diminished since his 1940s heydays. As the historical record documents that the fastidious British always began a good intestinal drawing with the Castration\Penectomy combo, it's not hard to see why this process might get a guy "down in the dumps." The fact that such distasteful fodder was grist for the Looney Tuners' mill by the 1970s simply proves how morally bankrupt this bunch became after Warner Bros. cut most ties with these Uncontrollable Pervs. TWO Mark Twain novels are mentioned here, counting a passing reference to SAINT JOAN. As Mr. Clemens famously observed, a UPA-style minimalist animation outing is a good cartoon spoiled.

Warner Bros. had retired the Looney Tunes characters throughout the '60s and stopped producing cartoons at the end of the decade (although the cartoons kept rerunning on TV). The release of "Bugs Bunny Superstar" in 1975 renewed interest in the series - sort of like how "American Graffiti" and "Happy Days" renewed interest in 1950s culture - so it was no accident that they brought the characters back for original productions.I should say that the animation in "A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court" looks really rough, and Sir Elmer of Fudde (Elmer Fudd) doesn't sound quite right with Mel Blanc doing his voice (his original voice artist Arthur Q. Bryan died in 1959), but you just gotta love some of the tricks in this movie. Whether it's Merlin's (Yosemite Sam) rants, Connecticut Rabbit's (Bugs Bunny) excessively long lance, or just the idea that advice from Ray Bradbury crossed with the missed left turn at Albuquerque could result in all this, there's some really funny stuff here. Chuck Jones had not run out of steam. Really great.BTW, did you notice that the shield displaying the title said "Whatsupius Doctorus"? That could easily be one of the bogus scientific names in a Road Runner-Wile E. Coyote cartoon.PS: this was the first time that Chuck Jones had directed Yosemite Sam, who had previously been a Friz Freleng character.

"A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court", which is retitled for home video as "Bugs Bunny in King Arthur's Court", is a real treat for all Looney Tunes fans. Chuck Jones takes the original Mark Twain novel and turns it upside down. This is not the novel, but a truly original reworking of it.Bugs Bunny is the "Connecticut Yankee", which in itself is kind of odd because Bugs is from Brooklyn, NEW YORK, but never mind, we'll except the premise. Daffy Duck is King Arthur, Porky Pig is Sir Loin of Pork and Yosemite Sam is the Black Knight. The story is so well known that I won't bother retelling it here.This short subject is smart, funny and original. This in itself is amazing since most animation is often uninspired, particularly when it comes from literature. But Chuck Jones, by planting the Looney Tunes characters into the plot and by making this 100% new footage, rather than most of the TV specials which are edited from the shorts, has made one of the most memorable TV specials ever.**** out of 4 stars