Truly Dreadful Film

Such a frustrating disappointment

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

In concept, this was a very intriguing if somewhat odd pairing, with Daffy often paired with Porky Pig, sometimes Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd and often just himself, and Henery Hawk is more closely associated with Foghorn Leghorn.But seeing as Chuck Jones was such a talented animator and director, that did have a knack for making potential oddities or atypical things work with the right material, this reviewer as a fan of Daffy, Jones and of Looney Tunes watched it anyway and would have done regardless.It is a great cartoon, and not only is Daffy wonderfully manic, sneaky and sometimes greedy and Henery both cute, witty and anarchic but their partnership is a lot of fun (they square off against one another brilliantly, and gel so well together) but it makes sense too. Which was great for a partnership so different, especially after seeing a couple of partnerships concerning Daffy that don't make sense and don't gel, namely with Speedy Gonzales.What's more, 'You Were Never Duckier' is enormously entertaining, with the typical wild looniness, razor-sharp wit and sardonic bite constantly shining in the dialogue. Plus there are some beautifully timed and animated and imaginative sight gags, that contain enough surprises. Sure the story is very predictable in places, but also has its fair share of unpredictable parts like the unexpectedly cute ending.Animation is as always bright and colourful, with lots of smooth movement, imaginative detail in the gags and rich and meticulous detail in the backgrounds. Carl Stalling's music score is as ever high in energy, liveliness, character, lushness and whimsy, and not only is dynamic and fits effortlessly with the action but enhances everything.In summary, an example of an atypical pairing coming off brilliantly in an exceptionally well made and enormously entertaining cartoon. 9/10 Bethany Cox

. . . the "National Poultry Show," the ostensible centerpiece of Warner Bros.' animated short, YOU WERE NEVER DUCKIER. Any Warnologist will tell you that the Warner folks were giving us 68 years' advance warning of our current U.S. Presidential Campaign, in which a Democrat has the most Rich People Party delegates, and a life-long Socialist is gunning for the Democratic Party lead. With his tiny little hands, Henery Hawk is taking on Daffy Duck's normal spot as a Donald Trump stand-in here. Not to be left out, Daffy's tunnel-vision focus on redistributing the $5,000 prize for Top Rooster to himself smacks too much of Bernie Sanders to be a chance coincidence. Waiting in the wings to collect the Big Bucks when Trump's charade inevitably implodes in Henery's pops, G.K. Chickenhawk (or Ted Cruz, to you). Where does Hillary come into all this, casual viewers may query? Obviously, she's depicted here (in a gender-blind casting coup) as the sleeping rooster, from whom Daffy/Sanders plucks tail feathers as part of his dastardly plot to snatch Socialism from the Mouth of Democracy.

Fun Chuck Jones short with Daffy squaring off against Henery Hawk and his father. Daffy tries to impersonate a chicken to win a contest and winds up in danger of being dinner for the two chicken hawks. It's a funny pairing with Daffy and characters he doesn't typically interact with. When we think of Henery we normally think of the classic Foghorn Leghorn shorts he was in. But he and Daffy play well off each other here quite well. Wonderful animation with well-drawn characters and backgrounds. Lovely bright Technicolor is always a plus in my book. The music is whimsical and upbeat. Exceptional voice work from Mel Blanc. A well-paced cartoon with lots of laughs and a great ending.

Pretending to be someone or something you aren't, is never a good idea. Daffy Duck finds that out here, big-time, as greed ruins him once again.Little "Henery Hawk" shares the billing with Daffy Duck. I've seen this opening theme in at least one other Looney Tune but I can't remember which one. It involves the main character (it might have been Bugs Bunny) being insulted because his species value at decidedly less than something else.Here, Daffy is insulted because he's worth only $5 while a rooster is worth $5,000, in a National Poultry Show contest for "best rooster" and "best duck" in some big city. "I came all the way from Dubuque (Iowa) for this?," asks Daffy. His plan is to pretend to be a rooster so he can win the "5,000 smackeroonies."Putting a crimp into his plans is little Henery, who wants to impress his chicken-hawk father by capturing a chicken. He heads out to the show and you know who sees first and brings home to papa!The bulk of the story, then, is Daffy is trying to save his skin from Henerey's father. Some of the sight gags in that segment are good, and the ending is very cute, guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.