Very well executed

the audience applauded

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

To Duck or Not To Duck (1943) *** (out of 4)Elmer Fudd and his beloved dog Rover are out duck hunting when they com across Daffy Duck. Soon Daffy and Elmer are in a boxing ring where you know the duck isn't going to play by the rules.If you're a fan of Daffy and Elmer then you're obviously going to want to check this early teaming out. I don't think this here is one of the best shorts together as the series would eventually get much better but there are still plenty of nice laughs here that make it worth viewing. There's no question that the highlight happens early on when there's some "duck shot" being fired at Daffy as he flies through some clouds. As you'd expect the animation is of the highest quality.

. . . Daffy Duck demands of hunter Elmer Fudd at the outset of TO DUCK . . . OR NOT TO DUCK. For years Disney families had wanted Bambi's clan to be able to exercise their Second Amendment Rights. (If the Bambis had turned out to be dyed-in-the-wool pacifists, Thumper-with-a-Thompson-Sub-Machinegun would be the next best thing.) Unfortunately, things have not turned out as Hunky Dory for humans in Real Life as they seem to be at the end of DUCK. America's Critters increasingly are resorting to Biological Warfare in a coordinated campaign that may have Humanity closer to the Brink of Extinction than we think. In clear violation of the Geneva Conventions, Elsie and her cohorts are threatening people with the incurable, inevitably fatal Mad Cow Disease every time we gulp down a burger. Squirrels in Kentucky have jumped on this Prion sneak attack bandwagon for anyone eating their state stew. Bambi's descendants are helping to spread Lyme Disease all over America. Pigs are vying with our feathered "friends" to see which can mutate a flu virus into an airborne Super Bug lethal to humans. With food sources such as these, who needs enemies?

Directed by Chuck Jones, "To Duck....or Not to Duck" is a Daffy Duck/Elmer Fudd cartoon that is not Warner Bros.' finest hour, but then, even the best in the business (like Chuck) have their failures now and then. The problem with this particular cartoon is that it doesn't really go anywhere. Daffy challenges Fudd to a boxing match, in which the hapless hunter is absolutely no match for the swaggering duck.Only two scenes in this short that I find funny: First, at the very opening, Daffy frolics and sings while flying, and he points out the "duck shot" that narrowly misses him. And second, after Daffy says to Elmer "A great sportsman, eh?", Daffy is hilarious as he rapidly grunts and wildly gyrates his body.I can't really recommend "To Duck....or Not to Duck" very highly, but if you wish to see it for yourselves, at least there'll be no harm done. Catch it on the Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 6 Disc 1.

While the Daffy Duck of the `50s and `60s was funny, there is no beating the Daffy from the `30s and `40s and here is proof of that and who can forget the famous Daffy laugh which inspired the Woody Woodpecker laugh? I don't know if it was because of Woody that the Daffy laugh was absent in the `50s and `60s but I don't think so because both Woody Woodpecker and Daffy Duck were performed by Mel Blanc.