TrueJoshNight Truly Dreadful Film

GrimPrecise I'll tell you why so serious

Nessieldwi Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

Gutsycurene Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

Michael_Elliott The Goldbrick (1943) ** 1/2 (out of 4)It's raining and cold outside when the alarm is given for Private Snafu to wake up and go train. He really doesn't feel like working today so he decides to play sick to get out of having to do anything. We then learn why he shouldn't have done this. This is another good entry in the War Department's training series, which was made to show soldiers why certain things shouldn't be done. This one here certainly isn't bad but then again it really doesn't stand out either. The animation is certainly the highlight as it's done extremely well. Mel Blanc also does a very good job with the vocal work. Unlike some of the other films in the series, this one here doesn't feature any of the "adult" moments showing why this was aimed at soldiers and not the general paying public.

Robert Reynolds This is a short in a series of training films done by the Warner Brothers animation studio during World War II for the US Army. There will be spoilers ahead:Private Snafu is the worst soldier in thee army. He was developed as a method of helping train soldiers to avoid the mistakes a poor soldier might make by showing the consequences of poor habits and actions (or inactions, as seen here).Private Snafu doesn't want to train, work or make any real effort, character traits encouraged by Goldie the Goldbrick fairy. As Snafu undertakes certain tasks, he's encouraged to take the easy way out over and over, with negative results, until he reaches combat in the Pacific theater out of shape and absolutely incapable of anything worthwhile.The consequences are spelled out rather starkly and grimly in the end of the short, when Snafu is a casualty and Goldie the Goldbrick is revealed to be Japanese, in an unflattering caricature. Which, given that this is propaganda, is pretty much to be expected.These shorts are available on various DVDs and online. Recommended.

phantom_tollbooth Frank Tashlin's 'The Goldbrick' is a great Private Snafu cartoon designed to discourage "goldbricking" (slacking off) in soldiers. One of a handful of shorts in which Snafu actually dies at the end, 'The Goldbrick' has at its core an infectiously lazy song which is so laid-back that it's virtually a poem but is impossible to get out of your head afterwards. Convinced by Goldie the Goldbrick fairy that he should fake an illness to get out of duty, Snafu slowly begins to learn all the tricks of goldbricking until he is singing along with the film's theme tune. These scenes are cleverly set-up with a couple of nice laughs but 'The Goldbrick' really makes its mark with the grim turn it takes at the end. The final scenes are genuinely troubling (and not just for the racist caricature) and the message is delivered forcefully without having to make any sacrifices in terms of entertainment. There are many Private Snafu shorts which more than justify the redistribution of the series and 'The Goldbrick' is amongst the very best.

emasterslake Snafu is tired of not getting any rest.That's when Goldie the GoldBrick(who's fatter than Technical Fairy First Class) comes along.He gives out tips on how to skip his duties and rest more.Snafu takes every one of these tips.But when he goes out into battle that can be a problem when he's all pooped out. And Goldie the Goldbrick isn't as trustworthy as he seems.This is another fine Private Snafu Cartoon with plenty of Dr. Suess like rhythms.It's a good lesson in not being a Goldbrick yourself when you're in the war.