Box Car Bandit (1957)

Box Car Bandit Review

Box Car Bandit is a 1957 animated short film from the Woody Woodpecker series. It is a pretty forgettable western short.

A bandit and his horse find out that a big shipment of gold bullion is being shipped by train, so they make immediate plans to hijack it. Woody Woodpecker is the train’s guard. This is not one of the worst western movies in the series, but it’s also not one of the best. It lies squarely in the middle, being serviceable but slight entertainment. The animation and score are only solid.

Woody is fine here, but I expect more from him. The bandit is not all that memorable himself. The movie benefits from a pretty strong energy to it, fine pacing and a good use of its setting. A couple of moments on the train were quite fun. But I needed more clever gags and strong scenarios.

Box Car Bandit has a fine use of its setting, but it needed better humor and more memorable scenarios.

My Rating – 3.4