Pests for Guests (1955) User Reviews

"I'll fix their widdle wed wagon."

[utgard14 · 7/10 · 27 September 2015]

Another Goofy Gophers short directed by Friz Freleng. This time Mac and Tosh find a wooden chest that would be ideal to store their nuts in. But Elmer Fudd shows up and takes it home, not knowing the gophers are inside. The duo proceed to gather their nuts and bring them back to the chest (in a clever little set-up that should bring a smile to anyone's face). Elmer, of course, doesn't care for his uninvited guests and does what he can to get rid of them. Great voice work from Arthur Q. Bryan, Mel Blanc, and Stan Freberg. Lively, whimsical music from Milt Franklyn. The animation is nice and crisp with bright colors. It's very cute and adorable with some funny gags but, as with most Goofy Gophers shorts, the dialogue provides most of the laughs.

Any symbologist worth their salt probably already has taken a crack at decoding . . .

[oscaralbert · 7/10 · 21 January 2018]

. . . the main conundrum posed by Warner Bros.' always prophetic Animated Shorts Seers division (aka, The Looney Tuners) during this brief cartoon from the 1950s, PESTS FOR GUESTS. It turns out that PESTS FOR GUESTS is simply another in Warner Bros.' continuing series of Extreme Early Warnings for We Americans of (The Then) Far Future regarding our upcoming Calamities, Catastrophes, Cataclysms, and Apocalypti. For any of the uninitiated wondering exactly WHAT IS the primary puzzle posed by PESTS FOR GUESTS, it can be summed up in the question "Who are these deplorable "goofy gophers" supposed to represent among current day space-fillers in our USA Homeland, and what exactly do "their" nuts represent?" By this point it should almost go without saying that Elmer Fudd's vermin nemesis are standing in for the Corrupt Corporate Fat Cat One Per Center Billionaires, and "their" horde of nuts represent the 90% of America's wealth these No-Good-Nicks have gathered into ill-gotten mounds upon which they sit and glower, like Smaug the Hobbit dragon. Elmer, or course, symbolizes the ineffectual fading remnants of the so-called "loyal opposition," which Warner demands be replaced ASAP by fresh young bloods with the gumption to exile our 100 million or so "bad apples" to either Russia (whose rule they seem to prefer) or, preferably, that Delaware-size ice berg floating next to Antarctica, permanently ridding America of its PESTS FOR GUESTS.

Fritz Freleng's third Goofy Gophers cartoon is one of his better ones

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 30 June 2016]

There is a preference for the earlier Mac and Tosh cartoons, especially 'The Goofy Gophers', however all of them are never less than good in their own way. 'Pests for Guests' is another great Fritz Freleng-directed Mac and Tosh cartoon.

In 'Pests for Guests', the animation is great, with some bright vibrant colours and richly detailed backgrounds and everything is very fluidly and smoothly drawn with no obvious jarring anywhere.

While Carl Stalling for me has always been the slightly better composer, Milt Franklyn still does a fine job, it is always dynamic and beautiful to listen to with lots of energy, whimsy and lively character. More importantly, it fits beautifully, just that Stalling's music went one step further in enhancing the action more effectively.

The dialogue is razor-sharp, clever and filled with the usual fresh and zany Looney Tunes wit, most of it is absolutely hilarious. The gags, in laugh-a-minute mode, are imaginative and executed very well indeed, most of the humour coming from the super polite dialogue between Mac and Tosh and their foiling of Elmer.

'Pests for Guests' fast pacing and fun story are further things to like. One may miss the dark and sometimes brutal, but never over-the-top cartoonish or stomach-churningly sadistic slapstick and violence of their earlier outings with the intellectual and well-spoken dog, but the slapstick and visual humour is still a lot of fun here.

Mac and Tosh work are a wonderfully entertaining duo, being cute yet very funny in their over-politeness to one another. Elmer is a great match for them and he never comes over as bland or less funny. All three characters are voiced brilliantly by Stan Freberg, Arthur Q. Bryan and Mel Blanc.

In summary, terrific cartoon and one of the better Freleng-directed ones. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Here We Go Gathering Nuts in May!

[Allans7 · 9/10 · 15 May 2015]

I've now had the pleasure of watching all of the Goofy Gopher cartoons and this to me is one of the best. I'm surprised it has not got a higher IMDb rating. The gophers battle it out with Elmer Fudd over possession of a chest of drawers, which they see as perfect for storing their nuts. Mac and Tosh are their usual polite, positive, wordy and creative selves. Elmer is a great foil for the gophers, who run rings around him.

Classic moments include Elmer dancing with a water cooler, the dynamite stick on a balloon in the fireplace ("Would you happen to have a pin on your person?"), and trapping the gophers in a box. Shame it is not on DVD to be more publicly available, as it is great humour and fun all round.