A Disappointing Continuation

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

The first must-see film of the year.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

. . . most likely was created in the basement hideout of a 21st Century hacker and downloaded onto a Warner Bros. DVD in a nefarious effort to cast America's undocumented guest workers as an invading horde. CROWS' FEAT again finds slackers Jose and Manuel singing off-key, while stowing away on passenger jet liners without paying for so much as a bag of mini-pretzels, and habitually stealing their food on the ground, as well, instead of working and paying for it. The sort of people who made CROWS' FEAT like to argue that many Swedish and Jewish Americans go to bed hungry while these interlopers (and the millions they represent) take away the plum jobs on the record labels and in Major League Baseball dugouts (failing to note the otherwise unendurable wait for the next Abba or Koufax to appear on the scene). Perhaps one of the highest profile and best paid positions in America is that of Astronaut. Naturally, CROWS' FEAT strives to up the envy quotient exponentially at its conclusion by having Jose and Manuel usurp Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the "Explorer 7" rocket ship!

In this, the second and final outing for Hosea and Manuel; the two dim-witted Mexican crows are flying to Guadalajara and hitch a lift on a passing aeroplane. They relax and sing a bit until they spot a corn field far below; then the head down and enter the field. When they spot a scarecrow they realise it is no threat so clobber it with a stick; this in itself isn't so funny but they then proceed to try the same trick in hunter Elmer Fudd who they mistake for a second scarecrow... this time they get shot! They come up with a few more ideas but keep getting shot or in one case blown up by a grenade disguised as a corncob. Eventually they give up and decide to continue to Guadalajara... their chosen transport will take them a lot further than they intended though!This was a fun little short featuring the characters introduced in 'Two Crows from Tacos'. Once again they aren't too bright which leads to plenty of laughs. The fact that Elmer Fudd kept getting the better of them demonstrated just how dim they were! The conflict between the crows and Elmer was pretty funny although my favourite moment was when the crows jumped from the plane and their sombreros acted like parachutes. Mel Blanc did a fine job providing the voices to the crows although somewhat surprisingly Elmer doesn't utter a word... this did make him funnier though and explained why the crows might mistake him for a scarecrow. The animation isn't bad for a cartoon of its time although it isn't as good as that from the earlier days when there was more money in animation.

For a reasonably late-era Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies cartoon, Crows' Feat is not bad at all. Actually it is quite good. It is too short and perhaps a little rushed in the pace, however the story while slightly standard is easy to take and sit through. Also the animation is pretty good with nice colours and backgrounds, character designs are not so good but I can tolerate them and the music is top-notch. The dialogue is witty and the sight gags are pretty funny. Elmer's persona is different here, but it is an alteration that actually works surprisingly well, and the crows are not too annoying. Mel Blanc does very good vocal characterisations as well. All in all, a much better cartoon than I expected it to be. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Two Mexican crows, via airplane, spot a corn field only to find the field is being guarded by a slick Elmer Fudd. Unfortunately, Elmer (for the first time since 1955's Rabbit Rampage) somehow gets the best of the duo.By 1962, it became obvious that the Warner Brothers Animation Department was fighting an uphill battle to keep theatrical shorts alive. Many of the cartoons produced were on tight budgets and of notably inferior quality to what was produced in the 1940s and 1950s. This short, however, stands out particularly because of the way Elmer Fudd is used. The crows, after seeing his scarecrow, mistake the real Fudd for the scarecrow. Thus begins a hilarious identity crisis with Elmer Fudd constantly outwitting the two crows. As you can probably guess, Elmer is a bit out of character in this cartoon being that he is generally the fall guy in other shorts (he doesn't even speak here). But for once, the slight alteration works quite well.The animation is surprisingly well done for the time period, and the music as (as usual) top notch. By no means is this one of the best Warner Brothers shorts, but for an early 1960s cartoon, it's certainly better than average.