'The Bodyguard (1944)' keenly disrupts the classic cat-and-mouse formula by introducing a bulldog into the fray. This gives the short a sharp focus: Tom has to stop Jerry from calling his newfound friend, lest he incur a clobbering. This welcome change in pace is one of the earlier attempts at 'spicing things up' and it's highly successful, giving the picture a clear identity and, even, plot in the process. Of course, the narrative isn't exactly 'deep', per se; it just plays around with its core concept in some pleasing, and funny, ways. Obviously, a lot of the entertainment factor comes from the visuals. The animation is on-point for the era, with Tom's scraggly fur and (the then unnamed) Spike's crinkly skin being rendered incredibly pleasingly. Plus, the splendid sight-gags inventively play to the premise wherever possible. Overall, this is a very enjoyable experience. 8/10
11 Reviews
you know how to whistle, don't ya?
movieman_kev30 May 2005
After Jerry the mouse rescues Spike the dog from being caught by the dog pound, he offers to be a bodyguard for the mouse. All he has to do is whistle whenever he's getting attacked by Tom the cat, and spike will be right their to pummel Tom. At first it works superbly but after Tom gives Jerry a jawbreaker covered in glue Jerry finds that he can no longer whistle. This short has some great sight gags. And while Spike might seem a bit thick-headed and dense I enjoyed it immensely.This cartoon can be found on disc one of the Spotlight collection DVD of "Tom & Jerry"
My Grade: A
My Grade: A
Fun one as pal if you need help just whistle!
blanbrn17 December 2020
"The Bodyguard" a "Tom and Jerry" short involves Spike trying to stay away from the local dog catcher as he does not want to go to the pound! Upon seeing a chase a plan forms he decides to protect Jerry from Tom's chases as he tells the little mouse whenever you need help just whistle! This one for sure has Tom taking many cat poundings at the hand of the mighty bulldog! However the sounds of whistling doesn't last forever! Overall well done early tale from the cartoon classic series!
Spike-To-The-Rescue Gags Make This A Big Winner
ccthemovieman-110 July 2007
"Thanks, chum. I'm your pal for life!"
So says big Spike, the bulldog, after Jerry unhitches the rear of the Dog Catcher truck and lets him out. Jerry had been in the area when he heard Spike's plea for help. Now he has a handy friend "Anytime you ever needs me," says the tough and grammatically-incorrect dog, "just whistle."
Well, it doesn't long for Jerry take the dog up on the offer. Later, while he's in the middle of two slices of bread and a couple of olives, Jerry gives his first whistle!
This is a very funny cartoon. Yes, Jerry blows the whistle a few times, but in each case what happens to Tom is different with the sight gags and they're good. In this case, Tom deserves his punishment. He just doesn't seem to learn. Spike, with a bit of an Irish brogue, is hilarious.
The jokes were so good they didn't need the usual long chase scenes. What's also different in this one is that Tom actually comes up with a plan that works! The artwork was good, too, with some great expressions and reactions on Tom's face. Finally, this animated short also has an unusual, and very good, finish.
Overall, one of the top-echelon Tom and Jerry cartoons.
So says big Spike, the bulldog, after Jerry unhitches the rear of the Dog Catcher truck and lets him out. Jerry had been in the area when he heard Spike's plea for help. Now he has a handy friend "Anytime you ever needs me," says the tough and grammatically-incorrect dog, "just whistle."
Well, it doesn't long for Jerry take the dog up on the offer. Later, while he's in the middle of two slices of bread and a couple of olives, Jerry gives his first whistle!
This is a very funny cartoon. Yes, Jerry blows the whistle a few times, but in each case what happens to Tom is different with the sight gags and they're good. In this case, Tom deserves his punishment. He just doesn't seem to learn. Spike, with a bit of an Irish brogue, is hilarious.
The jokes were so good they didn't need the usual long chase scenes. What's also different in this one is that Tom actually comes up with a plan that works! The artwork was good, too, with some great expressions and reactions on Tom's face. Finally, this animated short also has an unusual, and very good, finish.
Overall, one of the top-echelon Tom and Jerry cartoons.
If ever in need of help, just give a whistle
TheLittleSongbird15 October 2017
Have always loved Tom and Jerry. Have vivid and fond memories of seeing all of their cartoons, with the classic ones (the Hanna Barbera years, the best of which among the best cartoons ever made, Chuck Jones' output was a mixed bag and most of Gene Deitch's were abominations and disgraces to cartoondom) being watched over and over, at my sister's late godfather's house at the age of six and have been a huge fan since.
'The Bodyguard' is up there as one my favourites, along with 'The Cat Concerto', 'The Little Orphan', 'Johann Mouse', 'The Two Mouseketeers', 'Tom and Jerry at the Hollywood Bowl', 'Down Beat Bear', 'Heavenly Puss', 'Solid Serenade', 'Mice Follies', 'The Invisible Mouse' and 'Quiet Please'. The premise may sound very familiar and formulaic but it has incredibly clever and imaginative execution and actually does do things differently, with less focus on the chases, Tom's plan for once not backfiring and a very atypical ending for a Tom and Jerry cartoon.
As ever with classic Tom and Jerry, the animation is beautiful to watch. Love the colours which are all smooth and vibrant, the gorgeously detailed backgrounds and all the characters are very well drawn (even early-design Tom). The music, courtesy of Scott Bradley, is lushly and cleverly orchestrated, with lively and energetic rhythms, not only fitting perfectly but enhancing the action.
When it comes to the writing, 'The Bodyguard' may be one of the more violent classic Hanna/Barbera-era cartoons but it is also one of the funniest. The gags are never distastefully sadistic like the ones in the Gene Deitch cartoons and they are not only imaginatively timed they are never less than very funny. The story is set up beautifully and never loses the entertainment and intrigue value.
Spike steals the show of the three characters. Brilliantly voiced by Billy Bletcher, he has great comic timing, is very clever and it is hard not to like him. Jerry amuses too and is suitably anarchic, proving to be more than just a cute-looking mouse. The funnier and more interesting of the duo has always been Tom, he not only takes the butt of the laughs wonderfully to great comic effect one also feels sorry for him, the cartoon does a great job with his expressions as is often the case with Tom and Jerry.
Overall, up there with the Hanna/Barbera Tom and Jerry classics. 10/10 Bethany Cox
'The Bodyguard' is up there as one my favourites, along with 'The Cat Concerto', 'The Little Orphan', 'Johann Mouse', 'The Two Mouseketeers', 'Tom and Jerry at the Hollywood Bowl', 'Down Beat Bear', 'Heavenly Puss', 'Solid Serenade', 'Mice Follies', 'The Invisible Mouse' and 'Quiet Please'. The premise may sound very familiar and formulaic but it has incredibly clever and imaginative execution and actually does do things differently, with less focus on the chases, Tom's plan for once not backfiring and a very atypical ending for a Tom and Jerry cartoon.
As ever with classic Tom and Jerry, the animation is beautiful to watch. Love the colours which are all smooth and vibrant, the gorgeously detailed backgrounds and all the characters are very well drawn (even early-design Tom). The music, courtesy of Scott Bradley, is lushly and cleverly orchestrated, with lively and energetic rhythms, not only fitting perfectly but enhancing the action.
When it comes to the writing, 'The Bodyguard' may be one of the more violent classic Hanna/Barbera-era cartoons but it is also one of the funniest. The gags are never distastefully sadistic like the ones in the Gene Deitch cartoons and they are not only imaginatively timed they are never less than very funny. The story is set up beautifully and never loses the entertainment and intrigue value.
Spike steals the show of the three characters. Brilliantly voiced by Billy Bletcher, he has great comic timing, is very clever and it is hard not to like him. Jerry amuses too and is suitably anarchic, proving to be more than just a cute-looking mouse. The funnier and more interesting of the duo has always been Tom, he not only takes the butt of the laughs wonderfully to great comic effect one also feels sorry for him, the cartoon does a great job with his expressions as is often the case with Tom and Jerry.
Overall, up there with the Hanna/Barbera Tom and Jerry classics. 10/10 Bethany Cox
When the whistle blows
Horst_In_Translation26 January 2018
Warning: Spoilers
"The Bodyguard" is an American cartoon from 1944, so this one has its 75th anniversary next year and if you see that it is another Hanna Barbera production, then maybe you guess correctly already that it is indeed another little movie (out of so many) starring the world's most famous cat-and-mouse duo still 3 quarters of a century later: Tom and Jerry. It runs the usual 7 minutes and is probably among their more, but not most known efforts. The major supporting character joining the duo this time is the hunky dog Spike, who becomes Jerry's new pal and protector from Tom when the little mouse helps him out od the dog catcher's van. And every time Jerry whistles, Spike is there to protect him. The funniest moments here come from Tom though, namely the scene when we see him react to Jerry's inability to whistle and when he digs his own grave at the very end almost. But the fact that Spike really isn't the brightest bulb out there is proven several times in here and not just at the very end when he gets caught again. Seeing Tom talk is still far more unusual than seeing Spike talk to me, but all in all, this is a pretty good watch, certainly one of the better T&J short films from back then. Man this is old. When it was released, World War II was still going on. I give it a thumbs-up easily and without hesitation as I liked it more than most of the others I saw. Join me in checking this one out. You won't regret it.
Spike does it again.
BA_Harrison21 March 2008
The Bodyguard sees the return of Spike the bulldog, and a return to form for Tom and Jerry (after the disappointing episodes, The Zoot Cat and Baby Puss).
After rescuing Spike from the dogcatcher's van, Jerry is told by the grateful dog that if he ever needs help, all he has to do is whistle. Which spells trouble for Tomuntil the wily cat tricks the mouse into chewing some specially prepared bubble gum, which makes him unable to call for his protective canine pal.
I liked Spike's first appearance in Dog Trouble, and even though he's less ferocious in this one, and even talks, The Bodyguard proves to be another very funny episode. Tom gets clobbered by Spike in a variety of amusing ways, and there are plenty of laughs to be had at the expense of the poor catat least until the very end, which sees Spike recaptured, and Jerry running for his life.
After rescuing Spike from the dogcatcher's van, Jerry is told by the grateful dog that if he ever needs help, all he has to do is whistle. Which spells trouble for Tomuntil the wily cat tricks the mouse into chewing some specially prepared bubble gum, which makes him unable to call for his protective canine pal.
I liked Spike's first appearance in Dog Trouble, and even though he's less ferocious in this one, and even talks, The Bodyguard proves to be another very funny episode. Tom gets clobbered by Spike in a variety of amusing ways, and there are plenty of laughs to be had at the expense of the poor catat least until the very end, which sees Spike recaptured, and Jerry running for his life.
And I will always ha-ate yooooooo!!!
CuriosityKilledShawn9 December 2006
Tom and Jerry are involved in a chase, as per damn usual. Jerry, when hiding, springs Spike loose from the Pound Van. As a reward, Spike says he will help-out Jerry whenever he is in trouble. All he has to do is whistle and Spike will be there to save him.
So the chase continues and just when Tom has him in his clutches, Jerry whistles for Spike and Tom gets a clobbering. Not so imaginative and the chase is kinda generic. There are a couple of sneaky tricks when Tom tries to stop Jerry from whistling but it's nothing special at all and the final gag isn't that great.
A thoroughly generic cartoon.
So the chase continues and just when Tom has him in his clutches, Jerry whistles for Spike and Tom gets a clobbering. Not so imaginative and the chase is kinda generic. There are a couple of sneaky tricks when Tom tries to stop Jerry from whistling but it's nothing special at all and the final gag isn't that great.
A thoroughly generic cartoon.
Whistling was invented by a Lithuanian dude named . . .
pixrox129 August 2022
Warning: Spoilers
. . . Crow Magnum in the late summer or early fall of 54,778 BC. Later, prairie dogs--a species much smarter than the mouse pictured in THE BODYGUARD--were taught by humans to whistle. People also taught another group of critters more intelligent than mice--namely, the marmots--to just pucker their lips and blow. Even groundhogs and woodchucks are able to emit a shrill signal of appreciation when they see a nice sunrise or beautiful sunset. No one knows how much wood a wood chuck could chuck, because they're so much smarter than rodents. It's imperative that you do not allow your young impressionable children to believe from the misinformation contained in pictures such as this one that mice have brains. If they did, they'd be wolf-whistling at all the gals as they scurry across the tiles of the high school girls' shower room.
The Bodyguard
Michael_Elliott30 December 2015
The Bodyguard (1944) **** (out of 4) Without question one of the best films in the long-running series, this one has Jerry helping a bulldog out of a dogcatcher's van and the dog offers to help him whenever he needs it. All Jerry has to do is whistle and the dog will be there to protect him, which of course means Tom gets beat up countless ways. THE BODYGUARD was the first truly great film in the series and it really doesn't matter how many times I've seen it, I laugh as hard each and every time. What makes this one so much fun is just how brutal it is in regards to the cartoon violence. Tom is constantly getting punched and thrown around, which leads to fast action and a lot of fun. The animation, music score and sound effects are all wonderful as well. Certainly one of the best Tom and Jerry ever did.
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