Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969) is a cartoon created entirely by Marv Newland. Less than two minutes long, the film is a classic of animation; it was listed #38 in the book The 50 Greatest Cartoons (1994).
Bambi Meets Godzilla | |
---|---|
Directed by | Marv Newland |
Produced by | Marv Newland |
Written by | Marv Newland |
Cinematography | Marv Newland |
Release date | 1969 |
Running time | 1:30 |
Screenplay
The opening credits scroll over an animated image of the character Bambi serenely grazing while the Call to the Dairy Cows from Rossini's opera William Tell (1829) plays in the background. After the credits, Bambi looks up to see Godzilla's giant foot coming down, squashing him flat (set to the final chord of The Beatles' "A Day in the Life" slowed down to half speed). After a moment, the closing credits appear alongside held image of Godzilla's foot atop Bambi.
Only 12 of the film's 90 seconds of running time are devoted to the story's single gag. The bulk of the running time is consumed in the opening credits, all of which name Marv Newland, including crediting Newland's parents for "producing" Marv. The closing credits give grateful acknowledgement to the city of Tokyo "for their help in obtaining Godzilla for this film".
In 1973, Bambi Meets Godzilla was paired with John Magnuson's Thank You Mask Man by Randy Finley and Specialty Films in Seattle and released widely under the title The King of Hearts and His Loyal Short Subjects. The program ran in repertory theaters across America and in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it ran for several years.
Two sequels made by other animators followed: Bambi's Revenge and Son of Bambi Meets Godzilla.
In 2013 animator Coda Shetterly did a meticulous frame-by-frame recreation of the original via tracing the film frames and assembling the animation via digital video editing.
The Academy Film Archive preserved Bambi Meets Godzilla in 2009.
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