You Can't Shoe a Horse Fly (1940) User Reviews

Beasts Brutalized By Horrible Horseflies

[ccthemovieman-1 · 6/10 · 23 July 2007]

Horseflies are horrible insects. They are big, ugly, frightening and they bite. I felt for the poor donkey being tormented by one in this Hunky and Spunky cartoon. This horsefly bit this poor beast and the animation showed it up close and personal!

After getting throughly bothered by this bigger-than-life fly, the donkey's mother comes to the rescue and belts the insect off her kid. The fly, now seeking revenge, brutalizes the adult and then hightails it back to the pond where it hides under a pod.

There is humor in here and there is no question who you are rooting for in this tale of insect versus animal. However, it is pretty funny to hear the horsefly sing the title song and then get his buddies from "The Fly-By-Nite Club."

Thankfully, justice prevails in the end against there horrible pests.

Don't shoo this one away

[TheLittleSongbird · 6/10 · 20 February 2018]

Dave Fleischer was responsible for many gems. Ones that were amusing and charming, though over-cuteness did come through in some efforts and the stories were always pretty thin, with appealing characters, outstanding music and visuals that were inventive and with innovative animation techniques.

Mostly am not a fan of the Hunky and Spunky cartoons. Don't hate them, but apart from a few good elements (commonly the animation, music and the odd supporting character) they tend to be far too sweet and cloying, with draggy pacing, very weak stories, too little humour (when there is any it's rarely more than mildly amusing) and any conflict tends to disjoint the cartoon tonally. Also don't think that highly of the two lead characters themselves.

'You Can't Shoe a Horse Fly' however, while not a great cartoon and a long way from being one of Fleischer's finest hours, manages to be one of their better efforts by quite some way. Perhaps a contender for the best one.

There are things that work against it sure. The less said about the weak and practically non-existent story the better, when there is anything resembling one it's very predictable. The first part of the cartoon drags and is basically typically standard Hunky and Spunky.

While Hunky and Spunky are certainly at their least bland and annoying here, they still don't feel like strong enough lead characters to carry the cartoon. Hunky comes off the better of the two, her involvement at the end is the most interesting she ever was in any of the Hunky and Spunky cartoons.

However, while still too cutesy, the cloying sentiment isn't taken as far here in 'You Can't Shoe a Horse Fly' than seen in the other Hunky and Spunky cartoons. With more gags than usual, especially in the second half, and them being above mildly amusing, 'You Can't Shoe a Horse Fly' is easily one of the funnier Hunky and Spunky cartoons. This is largely thanks to the horse fly being a strong character that feels more like a lead, the pace really picks up when it's introduced and the conflict doesn't feel disjointed this time.

Best asset is the animation. Simply put it is great, very colourful and atmosphere with smooth character designs, meticulous if not innovative attention to detail and gorgeously detailed backgrounds. The other outstanding asset is Sammy Timberg's music score. It is both lively and lush and adds a lot to the cartoon's mood and what's going on.

Overall, surprisingly decent Hunky and Spunky cartoon. 6/10 Bethany Cox

This brief cartoon features one of the deadliest gas attacks in the history of . . .

[oscaralbert · 6/10 · 17 October 2020]

. . . animation, as the big donkey breaks wind to curtail the singing careers of at least 11 biting insects to climax YOU CAN'T SHOE A HORSE FLY. I had to scroll back and watch the expression of this mass murderer's face as it carefully raises and positions its tail and hindquarters into the classic position one generally assumes when it's time to let one rip. This lethal cloud and its murderous after effects happen so quickly that some casual viewers may lose track of what's coming to pass. However, as veteran of many treks up and down the Grand Canyon's Bright Angel Trail, I can attest that there's little in Nature as smelly as the effluents and odoriferous gases from critters of the donkey persuasion.

Nice Short

[Michael_Elliott · 30 May 2015]

You Can't Shoe a Horsefly (1940)

*** (out of 4)

Fun animated short from Dave Fleischer has a baby donkey and his mother looking for a place to take a nap and they finally find it. The baby has a hard time getting comfortable but as soon as he does a horsefly comes along to make things bad. This is a pretty good short that has a lot going for it including some very good animation. Fleischer certainly had this part of the film down and it also featured some pretty good laughs. This is certainly true towards the end when a gang of horseflies decide to attack but the impact from mommy donkey is priceless. There's also a nice little song that's actually quite catchy. Fans of the animation from this era will certainly enjoy this one.

When you major in Home Economics you're not required to take any classes . . .

[pixrox1 · 7/10 · 4 March 2020]

. . . in The Realm of Quantum Physics. However, I think that plain old Common Sense suggests that it would be impossible to forge iron footwear small enough to fit the feet (or hooves or feelers or whatever) of an insect. One would surely have to split an atom of iron in half (or quarters) to trim it down to winged-thing appendage size, and the nuclear explosion resulting from such microsurgery would obliterate patient, blacksmith--and the smithy, to boot! So the title YOU CAN'T SHOE A HORSE FLY could just as easily read YOU CAN'T PLOW THE OCEAN or YOU CAN'T PUSH PUTIN'S TRUMPASTE BACK INTO THE TUBE. Therefore, perhaps the main lesson of YOU CAN'T SHOE A HORSE FLY is that whether a Progressive Higher Thinker is dealing with insect pests or an infestation of a perverse political cult, the best way to deal with such Threats to Public Order can be summed up in three words: With Extreme Prejudice, as illustrated by the seven tombstones pictured at the conclusion of this brief cartoon.