Tom and Jerry: The Chuck Jones Collection, recently released on DVD by Warner, highlights Jones’ work by featuring all 34 of his theatrical shorts.
One of the first things Jones did when putting his own spin on Tom and Jerry was to augment their appearances somewhat. Tom was given thick eyebrows, kind of like Jones’ Grinch, and his cheeks became furrier. Jerry was given a facelift as well, with larger eyes and ears part of the makeover package.
A lot of the work featured in The Chuck Jones Collection seems reminiscent of his work with his own created chase team of Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner.
“Pent-House Mouse” is a tale of the high life, with Tom living in a penthouse suite while Jerry goes hungry on a construction site. Jerry eventually ends up swallowing an ice cube and relaxing after a series of elaborate chases that actually includes an attempt by Tom to eat Jerry in sandwich form.
Other shorts in the collection include “Is There a Doctor in the Mouse?” and “Of Feline Bondage,” a funny tale that ends with the duo sharing a laugh.
There are plenty of laughs to be had with this set. While the quality of the cartoons doesn’t quite reflect what many may have come to expect from those classic Hanna-Barbera years, Chuck Jones still does an admirable job at setting up two characters that aren’t his own creations. Plus the title cards, featuring Tom hissing at the MGM lion, are classic.
The DVD set also features a pair of special features.
Chuck Jones: Memories of a Childhood is probably the better of the two features. Directed by Peggy Stern for TCM, it showcases Jones’ imagination and how his creative mind blossomed throughout his early life. The other feature, Tom and Jerry…and Chuck, is an older piece that discusses how Jones came to take over the Tom and Jerry legacy and his thoughts on it.
Tom and Jerry: The Chuck Jones Collection is a unique look at yet another era of the classic cat and mouse chase team. There are a lot of laughs with each cartoon and, while the impact of the cartoon violence doesn’t seem as far-reaching or essential, these 34 shorts pack a frying-pan-to-the-face-sized whack of good humour and fun.
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