The Cinematheque

“I like Fleischer works. And when I say Fleischer, I do not mean Dave Fleischer the individual, but the whole animation staff … Several of the Popeye films are absolutely first-rate.”

Miyazaki Hayao

Since our first Fleischer animation program two years ago, restoration work on the many, many short films by brothers Max and Dave and their team of animators has continued at a great pace. To mark 90 years since one of their greatest-ever works, the amazing two-reeler Popeye Meets Sindbad the Sailor, here’s another selection of zany, inventive films by the studio that, at its peak, didn’t just rival but exceeded the popularity of Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny! Whether in colour or black and white, animated against three-dimensional tracking shots or nearly surreal architecture, the Fleischers’ creations are testaments to just how many ways there are to dance, clobber, serenade, and freak out in a cartoon fantasy land. Their popular endurance suggests there is still a lot to learn from their paradoxical mix of adventure and predictability.

KoKo’s Earth Control • 1928 • 8 min. The Mad Scientist • 1941 • 10 min. Ha! Ha! Ha! • 1934 • 7 min. The Cobweb Hotel • 1936 • 8 min. Greedy Humpty Dumpty • 1936 • 7 min. Hello, How Am I? • 1939 • 6 min. Billion Dollar Limited • 1942 • 9 min. Popeye the Sailor Meets Sindbad the Sailor • 1936 • 16 min.

“[Fleischer’s] Superman cartoons were years before their time in serious use of science fiction … Innovative in both narrative and design, the series continues to influence young artists, writers, and animators.”

Bruce Goldstein, Film Forum (New York)