DURING HIS MOST prolific film career, Pluto has been cast in many, many different jobs as a true working dog. Although we do know that he is officially the faithful "animal companion"* of Mickey Mouse, he is often put in starring roles in his own series in which his master doesn't make any appearance, not even for on frame of film.
AS WE'VE JUST stated, his jobs were numerous and quite varied. After making his screen debut in THE CAIN GANG (1930).** (There the character is drawn as virtual identical twin hounds seen in pursuit of escaping convict, Mickey Mouse. From there he has been put in the role of watch dog, sheep dog and even in the World War II Army K-9 Corps. Even Pluto volunteered his services then.
IN TODAY'S REVIEWED film short, we have Pluto as a rescue dog in what had traditionally been the domain of the Saint Bernard in the Swiss Alps. And that's where we thought this locale was at the cartoon's beginning. With our pup sporting a cask of brandy (?) attached to his collar and the surroundings being quite mountainous and snow filled that's what it appeared to be, Switzerland.
BUT NO, WE are abruptly introduced to the ocean and the rocky coastline. Armed with the knowledge that the country is landlocked, we knew it was surely another land, possibly in Alaska, Newfoundland or in northern Canada. But, we digress.
THIS SHORT DOES a fine job in both pitting Pluto against his seeming antagonist. This starts almost immediately, with the keg of whiskey's being the "bone" of contention. (Get it-'bone!') After several complicating incidents in which Pluto finds himself trapped under the frozen layer of ice, the little seal manages to save the day and cement a friendship with our canine hero.
THE TRUE GENIUS of this cartoon short lies in its ability to successfully bring us a highly satisfying, funny and satisfying 8 or 9 minutes of screen time. And lest we forget, the production team does so with only two characters, who don't talk. With both our doggie and the young seal only being able to bark, there is no truly spoken word dialog.
BUT THEN AGAIN, both Schultz and I agree that it didn't need any!
NOTE: * "Animal Companion" = what we used to call a "Pet." (Ain't this Political Correctness wonderful?)
NOTE: ** Now this year of THE CHAIN GANG being released was 1930, which coincidentally was the year that the planet Pluto was discovered. This begs the question: Is the minor planet named for Mickey's dog or visa-versa? (Sort of like: Which came first, the chicken or the egg?)
