Load of rubbish!!

Boring

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Before Gamera, before, Godzilla, before Mighty Joe Young, before King Kong. And way before, the Pink Panther, Mighty Mouse, Woody Woodpecker, Popeye, Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse, there was a dinosaur named Gertie. She was the first cartoon character and the first movie monster. Audience were thrilled when she appeared on screen as if people saw King Kong and laughed at her silly antics as if they saw Mickey Mouse's silly antics. It is basically started out as a bet and Windsor McCay won the bet. The movie is such an admirable landmark milestone in animation history, there was an ice-cream stand in honor of the dinosaur at Disney MGM Studios (now called Disney Hollywood Studios) in Florida. She made a cameo appearance in the comic book adaptation of "Dinosaurs Attack" and the movie LITTLE NEMO IN SLUMBERLAND (1991). The cartoon got referenced in an episode of ENCYCLOPEDIA where the dinosaur was designed and animated by Joey Ahlbum. In a world where classic cartoon characters are making a comeback for the new generation, I think it is time for Gertie to make a comeback don't you think? Give the cartoon a watch, it is pure family fun. Not rated, but a "G" would be nice.

Gertie is touted as being one of the first animated films and for its place in cinema history I decided to watch it. Having seen many very ordinary films from the first decade or so of silent film (trains pulling into stations etc) it was fun to see a sense of creativity here. The animator enters a museum and gets into a bet that he can bring a dinosaur to life with his drawing. This he does with the creation of Gertie the Dinosaur and it is not long before he is interacting with her, giving her instructions and, ultimately, entering the frame to ride on her. In a period where even the ordinary was viewed with wonder, it is something to have the creativity to not just animate a dinosaur but do so in a way that sees interaction with real life and in particular see real life enter the film in a way that is perhaps normal a century later – but not then.In terms of the actual film, it is less good than its historical value but is still quite fun. The dinosaur animation is basic for sure, but for me what made the difference was that it is pretty static and repetitive at times – with lots of the dinosaur repeating actions and rocking in a manner that seemed looped. Specific episodes with an elephant and with the creator himself were stronger and offered more, but they were still built around these sections. Perhaps it was because I had just watched a very creative and energetic short film from the same sort of period and this seemed very static next to it.So, not as great as a film to just watch, but it is pretty entertaining and watching it within a historical context will enhance what you are watching.

One of the earliest and certainly most important of animated cartoons is Winsor McCay's Gertie the Dinosaur. Surrounded by a live action recreation of McCay with fellow cartoonist George McManus (Bringing Up Father) making a bet of making a dinosaur come to life, the animated footage can still charm any animation buff with scenes of Gertie lifting a foot, crying, throwing Jumbo the elephant to the water, eating a tree, drinking the water, or carrying McCay himself out of frame. The cartoonist drew about a thousand feet of cartoons in six months without cels or backgrounds to put cels over. Just entire drawings with slight differences on sheets of paper. Certainly worth seeing for anyone who wants to study animation from the beginning.

Winsor McCay's skill, wit, and creativity are all quite apparent when watching his pioneering animation feature "Gertie the Dinosaur", which is also an enjoyable and sometimes enchanting little movie in its own right. The format is similar to an earlier feature in which McCay introduced his animated versions of the Little Nemo characters. The footage featuring "Gertie" is prefaced by a mini-story suggesting how the idea for her arose, and then comes the highlight, the animation starring the engaging dinosaur herself. The combination of McCay's imaginative images, and the fascination of dinosaurs in themselves, makes it quite enjoyable.The animation is extremely good for such an early effort. McCay already had the knack for drawing interesting figures, and in moving pictures such as this one he made sure to include little details that add extra interest. This feature also shows some good story-telling, as a number of times Gertie's antics effectively play off of audience expectations. Her interaction with McCay also works very well, and the whole feature is a very enjoyable piece of cinema and animation history.