Boop-Oop-A-Doop (1932) User Reviews

Sex sells

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 21 September 2013]

In this installment of Betty Boop, Betty works for a circus--doing a variety of acts but refusing to do some for the owner! In other words, this cartoon is about sexual harassment in the workplace, as the boss becomes all grabby and won't take no for an answer!

If ever there was an example of the sort of risqué character Betty could be Pre-Code (before July 1934), then this is it! While she is virtuous, she sure doesn't look virtuous and the cartoon, if you think about it, is all about sex! However, given the general uproar about how scandalous movies had become (and they really had--with lots of nudity and family unfriendly content in the early 30s), instead of coming up with a rating system, they strengthened the old Production Code and eliminated all sorts of evils from films--some of which probably should have been (such as nude scenes in religious epics*) and much of which tended to make films a bit more bland. How did this effect Betty? Her clothing became much less revealing and male characters seemed far less lecherous post-Code, that's for sure! So is this any good? Well, yes...though it's still not the sort of thing I really think I'd show to young kids. They wouldn't understand and probably wouldn't find it very entertaining. Still, for fans of Betty, it is an enjoyable little film.

Betty at the circus

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 10 July 2012]

This short sees Betty at the circus where she works as the lion tamer and sings her 'Boop-Oop-A- Doop song while on the high wire. During the early part of the short the creators showcase their surreal imagination as we see various acts which included the bearded woman whose beard grew so fast it had to be constantly cut and the tall man which turned out to be four dwarfs standing on each others shoulders. Intercut with this we see Bimbo acting as the peanut seller; always stopping in front of the same audience member much to their annoyance. So far so family friendly; after Betty's song things get darker as the lecherous ringmaster follows her into her tend with impure intentions! He starts pawing at her but thankfully Koko the clown hears her protestations and comes to her aid.

This 1932 short was both very imaginative and fairly shocking; even though I knew this was made before the days of the Hayes Code I didn't expect sexual harassment and implied attempted rape. The ringmaster a perfect cad, with his moustache that practically twirled itself and behaviour that would see him locked up these days. Despite the risqué content this is a pretty funny cartoon; the only weak part being Bimbo's somewhat repetitive routine. If you are interested in early cartoons this one is well worth watching.

Circus Act

[Hitchcoc · 8/10 · 6 December 2018]

Betty is the star now and Bimbo and Koko are bit players. In this one she does just about everything in the circus. It is obvious that some expect more from her--this from a 1930's cartoon. Her scene with the lions is quite funny and her classic Boop-Oop-A-Doop catch phrase is ingrained into the audiences psyche. Some great animation too.

Betty saves her "Boop oop a doop" in this one.

[llltdesq · 10/10 · 13 July 2002]

They don't come with much more innuendo or double entendre than this one from 1932. Funny, definitely risque, with Koko as the support here, as well as a most despicable ringmaster, who does just about everything but chase Betty around a desk in this one. Well developed characterizations, especially among the circus animals and a solid plot as well as the typically excellent score make this a standout and a keeper. In print and available. Well worth watching. Most highly recommended.

The most surreal and risqué circus you'll ever see in a cartoon

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 21 January 2017]

Fleischer were responsible for some brilliant cartoons, some of them still among my favourites. Their visual style was often stunning and some of the most imaginative and ahead of its time in animation.

The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her. That charm, sensuality and adorable factor is not lost anywhere here, nor her comic timing and she is very well supported by the ever fun Bimbo and Koko. Loved also that a lot of development went into the circus acts too, and they were all both interesting and entertaining. You'd be hard pressed to find a more loathsome and lecherous ring-master in any cartoon anywhere.

'Boop-Oop-A-Doop' is not quite among the best Betty Boop cartoons, but still has pretty much all the elements of her pre-Code cartoons that made them great to still make it just as good. There is very little wrong here actually in 'Boop-Oop-A-Doop', the weak link being the routine of Bimbo which does feel somewhat repetitive, and the solution feels strangely unresolved.

However, the animation is outstanding, everything is beautifully and meticulously drawn and the whole cartoon is rich in visual detail and imagination. Every bit as good is the music score, which delivers on the energy, lusciousness and infectiousness, great for putting anybody in a good mood.

'Boop-Oop-A-Doop' certainly does not disappoint when it comes to being risqué, creative or delightfully bizarre. As a pre-code cartoon, a lot of the content here is very daring stuff, very ahead of its time back then and you don't see much like the pre-code Betty Boop cartoons made today. And it's done in a very hugely creative and humorous way. The voice acting is good as always.

Overall, a great cartoon that delivers on the fun, the risqué and the surreal. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Don't buy peanuts from Bimbo.

[F Gwynplaine MacIntyre · 4/10 · 26 June 2005]

'Boop-Oop-a-Doop' is an early Betty Boop cartoon, from the period when the Fleischers were still imitating Disney. The cartoon starts with Betty dancing a shimmy ... then the camera pulls back to reveal that this is actually a *drawing* of Betty on a circus banner, rippling in the wind. I laughed as I realised the meta-fiction aspect of this gag: it's not a drawing of the real Betty (who's just a drawing), it's a drawing of a drawing of Betty.

This time Betty works in the circus as a lion tamer, and I wonder if this 1932 cartoon inspired Mae West to play a lion tamer a few months later in 'I'm No Angel'. An elephant lumbers past, bearing a giant inkwell on his back like a howdah, and Koko the Clown makes his familiar entrance out of the inkwell. Bimbo is with the circus too, as the peanut butcher, but his running gag has an unfunny payoff.

Betty is pursued by the lustful ringmaster, whose moustache has a life of its own. He actually says 'Ah, me beauty!'. I was hoping he would catch Betty, so that I could find out precisely WHAT a male cartoon character intends to do with (or to) a female cartoon character. I guess I'll never know. Some of Betty Boop's songs feature double entrendres, but here she sings 'Don't take my "Boop-Oop-a-Doop" away', a sentiment which is a single entendre at best. I'll rate this toon 4 out of 10.

Can't take her Boop-Oop-A-Doop

[Horst_In_Translation · 4/10 · 29 August 2016]

"Boop-Oop-A-Doop" is an 8.5-minute (one of her longer works) black-and-white cartoon by Fleischer studio and this one stars (as you probably already guessed from the title) Betty Boop once again. It's pretty generic for a Betty Boop film. She is the star, gives us her show early on and then the two previously-mentioned characters show up for some dramatic action. Actually, more than usual as you never really see a bad guy asking Betty for sexual favors or she will be fired. The solution (with the hammer) at the end does not really solve anything in fact, but probably results in Betty's clown friend getting fired too. Anyway, the second half was still better than the first here I believe as the circus action with the animals, performances and tricks was nowhere near as entertaining or interesting as it could have been. i don't think this is one of Betty's best and I give it a thumbs-down.