Porky's Garden

Love animation, it was a big part of my life as a child, particularly Disney, Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry, and still love it whether it's film, television or cartoons.

Tex Avery is a genius of animation, with his best cartoons being among the best there is. 'Porky's Garden' is a pretty good cartoon still, but it is very early Avery and it shows. In his prime (his 1940s MGM years) he was responsible for some hilarious, wonderfully wacky and visually inventive cartoons, in 'Porky's Garden' there is a sense that he had not yet found his feet and was still properly finding his style. He does a good job here, he just went on to much better things that's all.

'Porky's Garden' is pretty predictable and is more amusing than hilarious, it's well timed and are cohesive but slightly unimaginative. For Avery too it's pretty tame, while the supporting characters serve their point well but their personalities don't completely sparkle.

However, the voice acting is solid with Mel Blanc showing as ever why he was the infinitely more preferable voice for Porky and his multifaceted talents as a voice actor.

Animation, while not exactly inventive, is very good. It's fluid in movement, crisp in shading and very meticulous in detail.

Carl Stalling's music score as always is outstanding. It is as always lushly orchestrated, full of lively energy and characterful in rhythm, not only adding to the action but also enhancing it.

When it comes to the humour 'Porky's Garden' is amusing and well-timed, it's just not hilarious and somewhat tame by Avery and Looney Tunes standards. Porky is a very likeable lead character and has the presence and personality to justify why he is a lead, do think though that he is better playing it straight against characters with stronger and funnier personalities.

In conclusion, pretty good but by Avery standards it underwhelms a little. 7/10 Bethany Cox