Russian Rhapsody (cartoon)
| Russian Rhapsody | |
|---|---|
| Merrie Melodies series | |
 |
|
| Directed by | Robert Clampett |
| Produced by | Leon Schlesinger |
| Story by | Lou Lilly |
| Voices by | Mel Blanc (uncredited) |
| Music by | Carl Stalling |
| Animation by |
Rod Scribner Additional animation: Arthur Davis Manny Gould Robert McKimson (all uncredited) |
| Studio | Leon Schlesinger Productions |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release date(s) | May 20, 1944 (USA) |
| Color process | Technicolor |
| Running time | 7 minutes 1 second |
| Language | English |
Russian Rhapsody is a 1944 Warner Bros. cartoon directed by Bob Clampett, under the Merrie Melodies series.
Made during World War II, the cartoon mocks Adolf Hitler, showing him defeated by "gremlins from the Kremlin." The wordplay symbolizes the Soviet Union, a vital ally of the Allied forces.
The original title was "Gremlins from the Kremlin", but producer Leon Schlesinger changed the title when The Walt Disney Company began making its own wartime short about gremlins. In Falling Hare, Bugs Bunny was the victim, while Hitler is the victim and main character in this short.
Nazi German bombers are failing to make it to Moscow in World War II; infuriated by his soldiers' constant failure, Hitler announces his decision via a radio broadcast at a "New Odor" rally that he will personally fly a heavy bomber to attack the Russians. On the way to Moscow, Soviet gremlins sneak onto the plane in flight and without Hitler’s being aware of what's going on, begin to dismantle it while singing "We Are Gremlins from the Kremlin" to the tunes of “Ochi Chyornye” (“Dark Eyes”) and “Eh, uchnem” (“Song of the Volga Boatmen”), and the sabotage includes a "termiteski" busily devouring the plane's wing (with loud burps) and a microscopic gremlin smashing the control panel dials with an enormous wooden mallet and announcing "I'm only three and a half years old!"
Hitler eventually discovers the gremlins after he's been stabbed in the buttocks and tries to retaliate. He fails, being severely frightened by several gremlins holding a mask of Joseph Stalin. The gremlins succeed in ejecting him from the bomber by cutting a hole in the fuselage beneath him. As he falls, Hitler comes to and realizes the plane is right behind him in a power dive. He tries to outrun the plane and to hide behind a small sapling upon landing, but the plane alters course as seen by its shadow. Both Hitler and the plane are driven into the ground. The plane’s tail with its swastika insignia erupts from the ground as a headstone.
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