Horrible, fascist and poorly acted

Don't listen to the negative reviews

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

A rather boring cartoon about a courtroom scene where an owl judge and a bunch of stupid bird jurors try to find out who shot the Cock Robin with an arrow. Most of the time, the character sing their way through the trial, which I thought was quite annoying. And, those abusive bird cops were horrible - glad the leg sparrow punched them a few. The redeeming character of the cartoon is the Mae West-like character. But, overall, this is one of the least entertaining Silly Symphonies.Grade D+

Almost every cartoon short Disney released in 1935 are bonafide classics. Nominated for an Academy Award, Who Killed Cock Robin is one of the edgiest of the Silly Symphonies. By the mid-30's, most Silly Symphonies used fables and nursery rhymes as source material, gearing up for the feature films that would follow. It is especially interesting to see, that Disney dabbled into satire early on. Some of the characters in the film are caricatures of well known entertainers of the 30's. Cock Robin sings like Bing Crosby, Jenny Wren resembles and sounds like Mae West. Yet not all the birds are caricatures, when they easily could have been. Some of the artists expressed regret in later years that they didn't go that direction in full. Disney would accomplish this a few years later with "Mother Goose Goes Hollywood" (1938).Not only are celebrities satirized, but there is also a subtle jab at the justice system (a theme also explored in Pluto's Judgement Day, released the same year). This is summed up by a line that comes from the jury chorus "We don't know who is guilty so we're going to hang them all". The suspects were arrested at random with no evidence tying them to killing Cock Robin.Considering how rival cartoon studios were attempting to emulate Disney at this time, I've always wondered if the crime setting and bird characters influenced the WB cartoon "I'm A Big Shot Now" (1936); Chiefly the character Legs Sparrow.While this short was a popular Disney short, it hasn't been shown very much in recent decades. This is due to ethnic stereotypes (the "black bird" is a caricature of Stepin Fetchit) and police brutality. But it is still regarded as one of the best Disney cartoons by historians. These themes make it a Disney cartoon with strong adult appeal.

I have always been a Disney fan, and Who Killed Cock Robin is one of my favourite(after re-visiting it after so many years of having nothing but fond memories of it)Silly Symphony cartoons of the 30s alongside Flowers and Trees, The Band Concert, The Old Mill and The Ugly Duckling(1939). It is quite dark with all the interrogating, the perfect capturing of the mood of a detective story and the black and white opening credits, but the characterisation of Jenny Wren, the natural strut of the parrot while interrogating the parrot, the brilliant courtroom sequence and the delightful caricatures of Mae West(Jenny Wren), Bing Crosby(Cock Robin) and Harpo Marx(the third bird) ensure that it is very smart and satirical also(of the criminal justice system that is). The animation is fluid and colourful, each frame looking beautiful, and of the character designs the revelations were the strut of the parrot and the floating nature of Jenny Wren. The music is wonderful, really helping to enhance the action, and all the characters are great. There was a time where I was annoyed by Dan Cupid's high-pitched voice and his Ed Wynn-like laugh, but I am now used to it. Overall, simply brilliant. 10/10 Bethany Cox

In this Silly Symphony cartoon, Cock Robin is shot with an arrow while trying to woo Miss Jenny Wren (wonderfully animated as a Mae West parody). A trial featuring a wide variety of well drawn bird characters follows. The cuckoo bird, drawn to look like Harpo Marx, is especially enjoyable. This is a great short, but it seems to sprint through the story. Other Silly Symphonies, like The Wise Little Hen, take their time with things. This one seems very hurried. Still, that shouldn't take away from enjoying the wonderful animation.