everything you have heard about this movie is true.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

Have you ever been so starving that you just felt like punching someone in the head? Well this particular Woody Woodpecker short may remind you a little of that! It's about Woody being a bit of a jerk and thinking that he doesn't need to bother heading south for the winter along with all the other more rational birds because he already has plenty of food stored up, but the icy weather has a few things in store for the cocky Woodpecker, and after he goes a little crazier than usual due to a little cabin fever and hunger pains after losing all his food, an equally hungry and crazed cat shows up and the show turns into a mad battle to see who gets to eat who! Woody sure was asking for trouble in this one though, he mocks his retreating neighbours, he dares the cold weather to try and take his food, he even laughs in the cigar smoking face of Death, which is such an unbelievably hilarious and bizarre image! "Starvation" my foot, that's totally the grim reaper with a palette swap! I suppose having the word death floating there may have been a bit much in an animated short aimed at forties children, even though the elderly bird clearly says it out loud at the beginning.. As with most of the retro cartoon shorts that I've watched in one way or another over the years, I love the colourful smaller details like the adorable tiny tree houses of the birds and the very impressive animation of when the blizzard sweeps on and instantly turns the sunny landscape into a winter wonderland, and when Woody's battered around in the snowy clouds by the figures like a tennis racket and briefly turns into one! The whole short is a beautiful one, everything is richly detailed and the action is very fluid, nothing looks poorly done or clunky, it's fun to watch and very easy on the eyes. This earlier version of Woody is much more fun and interesting than what they later made of him, not to mention downright psychotic once he gets going! It's a very fun short but it does have some rather dark themes in it, like Woody and the ugly Popeye-voiced cat's fight to cook and eat each other, which is slapstick but violent, and it's so macabre how they eat the poor hapless moose and all that's left of it is a pile of bones and its head stuck on a tree! And what an odd mistake neglecting to speed up Woody's voice like that at the end.. Just a neat little old cartoon that is very fun and satisfying to watch, this is a good example of am old animation studio at the top of their game. Great stuff, interesting funny inventive and pretty crazy! X

Was very fond of Woody Woodpecker and his cartoons as a child. Still get much enjoyment out of them now as a young adult, even if there are more interesting in personality cartoon characters and better overall cartoons.That is in no way knocking Woody, because many of his cartoons are a lot of fun to watch and more and also still like him a lot as a character. 'Pantry Panic', while not a Woody Woodpecker classic, is still very entertaining, yes even with some very corny (and in a bit too silly a way) puns, even for cartoons puns, and a fairly standard story. While there may be cartoon characters with slightly more interesting personalities, Woody is still at his best incredibly funny, never obnoxious and very lovable self, summing him up in one word it would be wonderfully nuts. His personality traits are still evolving, for example he is more vicious here in 'Pantry Panic' to usual, and while a few are different others are unmistakably recognisable.For so early on, the animation is great. Woody is much more appealingly designed even though still evolving, while the colours are rich and vibrant and the backgrounds meticulous in their detail.Another standout quality is the music. It's characterful, lushly orchestrated and is not only dynamic with the action it even enhances it. The writing is suitably witty and raises a number of chuckles, while the never less than amusing and beautifully timed sight gags are even more impressive.Especially, agreed, the ones with the ice cube and the moose, not to mention the ending. The cat is great support for Woody, and in a way you root for both but you're shocked at the vicious, but thankfully never overly-sadistic that it'll make one uncomfortable, lengths they go to against one another.Voice acting is good, though Woody's original voice actor Mel Blanc only does his laugh here.In summary, even with more of a vicious tone 'Pantry Panic' is still colourful and entertaining. 8/10 Bethany Cox

THIS PRODUCTION CAME along when the Woody Woodpecker character was still in its embryonic stages. The woodpecker had not developed into what we consider his best and far before his being the victim of creator/producer Walter Lantz's preoccupation with having a "cute" Woody; instead of a truly funny and irreverent wise guy. (This latter stage happened to coincide with the Woodpecker's words being voiced by actress, Grace Stafford (Mrs. Lantz).THE ON SCREEN presentation of starvation and the struggles between a manic starving bird and an equally hunger driven cat is a hard backdrop for comedy presentation. After prolonged struggling, the two are shown finishing up a feast on a hapless moose; who just wandered into the story during this extended period of extremely arctic-like conditions.WE'RE OF THE opinion that the powers that be at Universal Pictures wanted Producer Lantz to come up with an answer to Leon Schlesinger's BUGS BUNNY over at Warner Brothers' LOONEY TUNES/MERRIE MELODIES. This is a status that would be achieved, if only for a short period, some several cartoons later.WOODY WOODPERCER at the time of PANTRY PANIC may have had the proper lunacy, but gave us precious little to identify and sympathize with.

This short, also available on a great many public domain tapes under the alternate title of Pantry Panic, is proof that the difference between predator and prey is a matter of who is the hungriest. Entertaining but unexceptional. Fairly easy to find. Worth watching. Recommended if you like Woody.