Porky's Road Race (1937) User Reviews

Great cartoon

[imdb-21622 · 7/10 · 30 March 2010]

I am watching it at the moment off the Golden collection #2.

I love cars and auto racing, so I probably give it a higher score than someone who's not as in love with cars and auto racing as I am.

I dig scenes in car race movies with a villain I am not familiar with a lot of the celebrities represented. I did know some of the more famous ones, mentioned above.

You see so many gags over and over, some of the gags in this one are a bit unique. Porky hammering away, and then the car in front of him drives away, and you realize his engine is really small. Hilarious.

The artwork is simple at times, and great at other times. I loved a few shots of car engines with lots of valves opening and closing. The Laurel and Hardy scene with them pumping up a tire was cool. The actual racing looks cartoonish, but, well, you know, it IS a cartoon :)

I am not that into the black and white cartoons, but I liked this one. Porky was just along for the ride, so to speak, which was fine by me. I am not a big fan of him, for the most part.

Alcohol and driving might be a bad mix . . .

[oscaralbert · 6/10 · 19 July 2016]

. . . but movie stardom and driving are an even worse pairing, Warner Bros. tries to warn America with this 1930s Looney Tune, PORKY'S ROAD RACE. Many Baby Boomers still are grossing out their great-grand-kids by reciting what they were doing when they first heard about actress Jayne Mansfield's decapitation in a grisly car wreck. Even decades after an Unchauffeured jaunt reduced actor James Dean to so much RUBBLE WITHOUT A CAUSE, a similar joy ride proved too FAST AND FURIOUS for Paul Walker. The idea of film icons trying to pilot their own exotic vehicles among normal people on Real Life Highways is more frightening than Frankenstein's monster robot (or Edna May Oliver in bloomers, for all of you born in the 1800s, which adds up to absolutely ZERO human beings alive Today), Warner warns us in PORKY'S ROAD RACE. They have a point. If the Human Race is to survive into the 22nd Century, ALL Oscar Voters MUST be prohibited from getting Behind the Wheel in Real Life. Let's make it plain to the Jaynes of Tomorrow that America wants them to get ahead--NOT to lose one!

It's not about Porky

[Horst_In_Translation · 6/10 · 24 May 2016]

Do not be fooled by the title "Porky's Road Race" here. Yes he may be mentioned in there and in the end he wins the race, but the fact who takes the crown is also an indicator of what this 7-minute black-and-white cartoon really is about. It is not about the pig or about racing, it is all about the caricatures of famous movie stars and their most known characters and films from back in the day. This one will have its 80th anniversary next year and it is a Schlesinger Studios production with Warner Bros. distributing it. I did not even recognize or understand half of the celebrities in here, but this was not a problem all because seeing them is already enough to make this a rewarding watch. If you recognize (almost) everybody, you will probably really love this film. I recommend the watch. Thumbs up.

Boris, Edna Mae, Porky et al Race To The Finish

[ccthemovieman-1 · 8/10 · 12 May 2007]

Before the story, we see a "disclaimer," called here a "foreword" that reads "All the characters in this picture are strictly phoney! Any fancied resemblance to any living person is the bunk!"

I quote that to give you an idea of the corny - but often funny - humor of the period, the mid '30s. It also gives you an idea of the language and the spellings of the era (i..e. "phoney).

One thing that isn't dated, apparently, is a comment about taxes. We see a banner that reads, "Porky's Road Race - First prize.....$2,000,000; less tax....$1,999,998.37; net....$1.63. That sounds like today!

In the race are tons of Hollywood celebrities, a lot of the same people parodied in many of the cartoons of the day: W.C. Fields, Laurel & Hardy, Charlie Chaplin, Clark Gable, etc.

Some I had never seen in cartoon caricatures included Boris Karloff (called Borax Karoff in here - told you it was corny); Edna Mae Oliver, Freddie Bartholomew, Leslie Howard and more.

Anyway, Karloff had the coolest-looking car among the entrants, and is the obvious villain in the race. Charles Laughton's vehicle was funny with his takeoff on "The Mutiny And The Bounty," and Gable, I guess, will forever be chided for the famous hitchhiking scene he did in "It Happened One Night."

I would have enjoyed this more if I had lived back in the '30s and knew everyone in the film, but it still had its charm and nostalgia. In the end, good 'ole Edna Mae - of all people - provided the last laugh!

Classic Porky Cartoon!

[horseloverab · 21 August 2002]

"Porky's Road Race" is one of my favorite cartoons. The classic essence of this comedy is timeless. It features many Hollywood greats of its day, such as: W.C. Fields, Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy, Borris Karloff (as the villain) and many more. During the race, watch for such novelties as the "Cheerio Special", driven by three British actors, among them Leslie Howard. Charles Laughton, who played the infamous character of Captain Bligh in "Mutiny on the Bounty" also makes an appearance and the race's hitch hiker is portrayed as none other than Clark Gable. Borris Karloff (who is known as 'Borax Karoff' in the film)drives an automobile that certainly is a sight to see: the black #13, as he dodges his way to the finish, sabotaging the other racer's attempts for the win. In the end, the underdog diligently pulls through and claims first place, but someone else walks away with the trophy! Excellent Porky Pig cartoon.

Neither one thing nor the other but notable for being Mel Blanc's debut performance

[phantom_tollbooth · 4/10 · 3 November 2008]

Frank Tashlin's 'Porky's Road Race' is a curious cartoon that feels like neither one thing nor another. It combines a story of Porky Pig in a car race with a series of celebrity caricatures. There were several of these celebrity caricature cartoons in the early years of Warner Bros. cartoons and it seems their popularity lead to writers trying to cram the caricatures into shorts that didn't need them. These then-topical asides slow down a cartoon which is at its best when Tashlin is playing it at high speed. The final battle between Porky and arch enemy Borax Karoff is the highlight of the film. Although he was still the studios main star at this point, Porky was quickly being milked dry of his potential and often ended up playing a supporting role in his own cartoons (he would be usurped by Daffy Duck in just a few cartoon's time). The main reason for the presence of the caricatures seems to be that the concept of Porky in a race just isn't strong enough to sustain a seven minute cartoon. While it's often quite a snappy and fun picture, 'Porky's Road Race' is ultimately an awkward cartoon that makes you wish you were watching either a better early Porky cartoon or a better Hollywood caricature cartoon instead of some strange offspring of the two. Nevertheless, 'Porky's Road Race' is extraordinarily important in at least one respect. It was the debut appearance of the unbelievably talented voice artist Mel Blanc whose presence would elevate Warner cartoons to a whole new plain of brilliance.

Mel Blanc debuts

[lee_eisenberg · 9/10 · 28 July 2007]

In Mel Blanc's debut, underdog Porky Pig enters a race against Hollywood's top stars (though the cartoon reminds us that any resemblance to any person is pure coincidence) for a grand prize of $2 million (which becomes $1.63 after taxes). While most of the actors and actresses play fair, Borax Karoff with his hearse-like #13 has more than a few dirty tricks in store.

It's always neat how the people making the cartoons played off of the popular culture of their times (of course, that's what any clever satire does). And it was only a matter of time before Mel Blanc took over Porky's voice and paired him with a certain crazy darn fool duck. A really neat cartoon, and I suspect that the movie stars caricatured - among them Charlie Chaplin, Charles Laughton and Clark Gable - felt honored to get portrayed in "Porky's Road Race".

The debut of Mel Blanc

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 29 September 2016]

Porky Pig has always been a likable and amusing character, if with a tendency to be overshadowed by characters with stronger personalities, and Frank Tashlin was responsible for a lot of very good to great cartoons but is somewhat under-appreciated.

This cartoon, 'Porky's Road Race', is particularly notable and of historical interest for the debut of the peerless Mel Blanc, one of the greatest and most prolific voice actors who ever lived. He does a great job as always. The rest of the voice acting, though personally am not a fan of Joe Dougherty's Porky voice, is very good. 'Porky's Road Race' has many other things going for it too.

Animation is of high quality, very fluid and detailed with smooth movements and pristine black and white. The music is lively, characterful with lush orchestration and clever instrumentation, dynamic with the action and even elevating it.

It is a very funny cartoon too, very snappily written and it was so much fun recognising the famous faces taking form of caricatures. This was a case of being familiar with them all, and there was not an obvious weak gag and it holds up better than a lot of early caricature cartoons. The final battle between Porky and the Boris Karloff-inspired character is indeed the highlight.

For all these fine things however, the story doesn't quite have enough to sustain the cartoon's length. Porky also doesn't have enough material to give him a distinct personality and it is not too inspired, he is overshadowed by the far more memorable caricatures.

In conclusion, good and entertaining cartoon but there are cartoons with better representations of Porky around. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Good Porky Short

[Michael_Elliott · 20 October 2009]

Porky's Road Race (1937)

*** (out of 4)

This action-packed short has Porky Pig entering an auto race where the big winner will walk away with just under two dollars after taxes. The only problem is that he's going up against a wide range of stars including the dirty Borax Karoff.

PORKY'S ROAD RACE is certainly a short that will entertain film buffs as there are a number of spoofs of various Hollywood personalities. There's the Boris Karloff lead but we also get Charles Chaplin, Charles Laughton, W.C. Fields, Clark Gable, Freddie Bartholomew, George Arliss and several others. This film also has a historical importance as Mel Blanc lended his voice to the picture. All in all this is certainly a very fun short as there's pretty much action from the opening seconds to the very end. Porky Pig is in good form and there are some nice laughs as well.

Porky's Road RAGE!

[slymusic · 28 July 2009]

Directed by Frank Tashlin, "Porky's Road Race" is a good cartoon that pits Porky Pig against a handful of fine celebrity caricatures in an automobile race. It's just a shame that the Porky we see in this cartoon is not the more familiar version of the hapless pig that we all love, and all the celebrities seem to "steal the show" from him. But we get plenty of wild and funny gags to boot.

My favorite moments from "Porky's Road Race" include the following. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy use a seesaw to pump a tire. Charlie Chaplin strides over to W.C. Fields and accidentally wrenches his nose. Edna Mae Oliver (in a wonderfully goofy caricature) asks W.C. Fields for some car repair assistance; a bottle of liquor becomes the cure! Edna Mae is also quite funny at the end of this film.