Road to Andalay (1964)

Road to Andalay Review

Road to Andalay is a 1964 animated short film from the Merry Melodies series. It is a so-so short.

Sylvester Cat uses a hunting bird, Malcolm Falcon, in another unsuccessful attempt to catch Speedy Gonzales, the fastest mouse in Mexico. This is an odd setup for a Speedy movie as the dynamic now includes a tertiary character. The problem is that the bird was never properly developed and I was left wanting for more of him. The gags are also mostly uninspired.

The ending, though, was very strong. All three end up losing their tails, and it was very refreshing to see Speedy not get a perfectly happy ending as he almost always got. The animation is also stellar and Sylvester is very funny in a couple of sequences. This is a different, more unique premise than usual for the duo, but the execution should have been better and funnier.

Road to Andalay is a flawed, but solid Speedy Gonzales short that features a strong ending, but mostly forgettable gags.

My Rating – 3.6