Reviewed by Jason S. LockardMel Blanc is an icon in cartoons doing the voices for some of the most loved cartoon characters such as, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck Tweety Bird, Porky Pig Yosemite Sam, Foghorn Leghorn, Marvin the Martian, Pepé Le Pew, Speedy Gonzales, Barney Rubble, Mr. Spacely and many more. But he also provided the voice for Private Snafu!
Private Snafu is the title character of a series of black-and-white cartoon shorts, produced between 1943 and 1945 during World War II. Snafu in this series stood for "Situation Normal All Fouled Up!" The films were designed to instruct service personnel about security, proper sanitation habits, booby traps and other military subjects, and to improve troop morale. Now the fine folks at Alpha Video has released a collection of 16 shorts on DVD. Let's take a look that this collection.
Our Rating System:
****=Don’t Miss it!
***=Worth a look.
**=An Ok way to a few minutes.
*=You haven’t missed anything.
Gripes (1943) Private Snafu learns the hard way about the need for military discipline and procedures to maintain an effective army. ***
Spies (1943) Private Snafu has a secret: his ship leaves for Africa at 4:30. He's determined to keep it, but bit by bit it slips out, and eventually, the details end up right on Hitler's desk and the ship is engaged. ***
The Infantry Blues (1943) Pvt. Snafu complains about being assigned to the infantry only to learn that other branches have their own problems. ***
Fighting Tools (1943) Pvt. Snafu suffers the consequences of not keeping his equipment and weapons properly maintained. ***
The Home Front (1943) A homesick Pvt. Snafu learns that his family are almost as committed to the war efforts as himself. **
Rumors (1943) Snafu inadvertently starts a panic on his base when he begins a mistaken rumor that the base is about to be bombed. **
Booby Traps (1944) Pvt. Snafu thinks he's too smart to get caught by an enemy booby trap, but he soon finds that the traps are alluring and that he is every bit the booby. ***
Snafuperman (1944) Pvt. Snafu becomes a superhero, only for him to become the world's dumbest one because he won't study his field manuals. **
Private Snafu vs. Malaria Mike (1944) Snafu learns hard way the consequences of not protecting himself from malaria infection. **
A Lecture on Camouflage (1944) Using Snafu as an example, Technical Fairy First Class teaches the methods of effective camouflage. ***
Gas (1944) Snafu learns the need of keeping his gas mask at hand when he is attacked by anthropomorphic gas cloud. **
Outpost (1944) Snafu has an object lesson on the value of complete and accurate regular reports when he discovers and reports evidence of the enemy's presence at his assigned area. ***
Target: Snafu (1944) A armada of malaria-laden mosquitoes seeks human targets and finds Private Snafu who fails to protect himself adequately against their onslaught. ***
Three Brothers (1944) Dissatisfied with being assigned to shoe consignment detail, Snafu learns about the true value of his responsibilities. **
It's Murder She Says (1945) A haggard mosquito complains how tough life is with the military taking the proper precautions against malaria infection. **
No Buddy Atoll (1945) Private Snafu is stranded on a tiny island with a Japanese officer; he must depend on his wits to defend himself against his sword-wielding foe. **
The cartoons included in this collection look really impressive! The audio and video quality is stellar for 40s entertainment. They run around 4 minutes a piece. They are a lot of fun and give you a glimpse into the world of yesterday with what our military men watched to get a break from the training and preparing themselves for the horrors of war.
So if your a fan of Mel Blanc, cartoons, or military related stuff this is historic entertainment! Head over to Oldies.com andf pick up a copy of Private Snafu today.
Moral Rating: Some mild swearing and racy material
Audience: May not be suitable for children
Genre: Action adventure
Length: Almost 70 Minutes
DVD Released: 2018
DVD Rating: A*Please note films rating above are my own personal opinion!
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