Product Details

• Directors: Dave Fleischer
• Format: Color, Full Screen, NTSC, Animated
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Number of discs: 1
• Studio: Nostalgia Home Video
• Run Time: 78 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00076W0QY
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #152,780 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

The second--and final--feature to come out of Max and Dave Fleischer's animation studio was this look at a community of insects whose city garden home is threatened, and how a plucky grasshopper named Hoppity saves the day and wins the heart of a bee named Honey. AKA: "Mr. Bug Goes to Town." 78 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English; scene access. Plays All Regions.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A neglected gem revisited, February 26, 2005

By 

R. Gorey "Behemoth" (New York) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hoppity Goes to Town (DVD)

This feature length cartoon from the Fleischer studios deserves a larger following. Lavishly produced during animation's first Golden Age, in 1941, it tells the story of a community of bugs whose security is threatened when a fence bordering their lot is destroyed. Quite handsome, even by Disney standards, and very appealing for adults and children. A lively score by Hoagy Carmichael and Frank Loesser is one of the film's charming assets. "We're the Couple in the Castle", the film's theme song, was a hit in its day: few fans are aware it was written for this movie. Many historians consider this film (originally called 'Mr. Bug Goes to Town') superior to the Fleischer's first feature, 'Gulliver's Travels' and I'd agree. This is the kind of magnificent, elegant, and beautifully-rendered animation we see so little of, today. Many technical highlights include a stunning three-dimensional model of the Manhattan skyline during the opening credits and a spectacular climax in which the bugs find themselves caught in the erection of a skyscraper.
The DVD print (which has the 'Hoppity' title clumsily spliced on) is otherwise splendid. Not quite a Technicolor restoration, but lovingly cleaned up, with vivid color and a sharp image. No special features, unfortunately, so this release doesn't rate five stars. But for fans of the Fleischers, of quality animation, or of solid family entertainment, a wonderful addition to your collection.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Full-Length Animation That Disney NEVER Made!!!, May 5, 2002

By 

L. Johnson "groundhogger" (Wiltshire England) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hoppity Goes to Town [VHS] (VHS Tape)

It will always remain a mystery as to why Max and Dave Fleischer didn't persevere with this format, instead of concentrating on 'shorts' and serials, such as Betty Boop and Superman. Perhaps Hoppity wasn't a box-office smash at the time (1941).

Walt Disney's classic animations have stood the test of time - this beauty has too! The quality of the animation is second to none, the storyline is captivating, and the viewer always cares what is going to happen to the characters throughout.

This reviewer first watched Hoppity when it was shown on British television in around 1963 (at nine years old). I will recall being positively entranced by it all, finding the humorous interludes rib-tickling, the threats to our insect friends seemed all too real, and the sense of joy at their eventual arrival in the 'promised land' was overwhelming.

The BBC (who held the rights then, as they still do at the time of this review) regularly repeated showings for the next eight or so years, at which time the film appeared to suffer 'dating'. The last showing (as I recall) would be in around 1982, since when, it seems, it has gathered dust in the vaults. This is a real shame - I think that, despite the advances in animation technology which have produced such movies as 'Antz' and 'Bug's Life', today's youngsters would appreciate Hoppity's adventures as much as I did all those years ago.

Neither my children nor my grand-children have ever seen the film, and, as the VHS PAL (British) format of 'Hoppity goes to Town' has been deleted, I am very likely to purchase an NTSC version in the near future, and pay to have a copy transferred to VHS PAL.

It will definitely be worth it!

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great art & animation, decades ahead of A Bug's Life, April 25, 2005

By 

R. Christenson "SpaceComics.com" (Pine, CO USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hoppity Goes to Town (DVD)

If nothing else, this movie deserves credit as the only successful competition to Disney's animated features of that era. Dave Fleisher, who also did a series of renowned Superman cartoons, does a great job with the background art, and the animation here is smooth as with the Superman cartoons, giving the competition a run for their money. The story is about a group of insects in the big city who must find a new home due to the progress of people. Some of the cartoon insect characters are cute, and some parts very funny, but what stands out the most is the art and animation, making this a must for students of animation or film art. It's not much different from the modern animated features like A Bug's Life, Antz, etc., but they did this one all by hand.