Cat Fishin' (1947) User Reviews

that fish is fishy

[movieman_kev · 7/10 · 31 May 2005]

Spike the dog is guarding a watering hole, but he appears to be sleeping on the job. So Tom the cat uses the chance to sneak in hoping to get a little fishing in, using Jerry the mouse as bait of course. But thanks to an over eager fish who wants the mouse badly things don't go as planned. As the fish inadvertently wakes Butch up to get the drop on Tom. I mentioned in an earlier review how I didn't really like the Buzzard/Vulture in Flirty Birdy, well the same can be said about the fish in this one. It's an OK short, but not one of the better ones. This cartoon can be found on disc one of the Spotlight collection DVD of "Tom & Jerry"

My Grade: B-

Not Exactly A Relaxing Day Fishing

[ccthemovieman-1 · 8/10 · 10 February 2007]

We see signs on a fence that say, "Keep Out," "No Tresspassing," "No Fishing," and "Beware Of The Dog." The latter is the familiar "Spike," the big bulldog who sometimes gets into it with Tom.

Anyway, forget the dog and the signs: Tom wants to go fishing. He gets by the big dog - but not without some tense and funny moments - and sits on the dock and opens his tackle box. Under the heading of "live bait," is Jerry, asleep under his blanket. Tom picks him, of course, and Jerry - dresses as bait with a feathered skirt - is dangled in the water. However, that water is too cold for our "bait," so Jerry scampers back up the pole and back into bed.

Pictured after that are Tom's fishing exploits and his battles not only with Jerry but with a huge barracuda-like fish and, back again with Spike. The most vicious of the three is the fish. Overall, this is very entertaining from the get-go and it has an appropriate ending.

among Tom and Jerry's best

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 4 June 2006]

To me, the absolute best Tom and Jerry cartoons were made in the 1940s. Those in the early 50s were also excellent, but starting about 1955 or so, the quality steadily went downhill. That is until the began making excremental cartoons in Czechoslovakia called Tom and Jerry but where made by people who'd never seen the originals and who also could not draw--with these, the decline was HUGE.

Okay, enough of my rant,...on to this review. Of the 1940s Tom and Jerry cartoons, this is one of the best because it has spectacularly wonderful animation (in particular the backgrounds and high quality animations of the characters)--better than Warner Brothers and Disney shorts from the same period. Plus, like most of the best of their cartoons, Spike the dog is present to provide an additional foil. Plus, I love the horrible way that Tom treats Jerry when he tries to use him for bait. It made me laugh quite a few times and never degenerated to schmaltz--it was just violent, funny and excellent throughout--just what you expect from the series.

A wonderful cartoon of exceptional quality and charm.

Fishy fun with Tom, Jerry and Spike.

[BA_Harrison · 8/10 · 21 June 2008]

After a long slow pan across a beautifully rendered wire fence on which several warning signs are nailed ('Keep Out', 'No Fishing', 'Beware of the Dog' etc.), we see Tom, armed with rod and tackle box, blatantly ignoring any warnings and entering the prohibited area to indulge in a spot of angling. After a short altercation with guard-dog Spike, the mischievous cat sets about trying to land a fish—using Jerry as live bait!

With excellent animation, loads of funny gags, and an additional character in the form of a very toothy fish, Cat Fishin' is another top-quality adventure, and is highly recommended to fans of the cartoon cat and mouse. Standout moments include Tom hiding from Spike at the top of his fishing rod (what a dumb dog!), Jerry being dressed up as a worm and cast into the lake for the waiting fish (wearing a napkin), and the painful looking bit where Spike's fat head is forced through a narrow gap between two rocks (his eyes bulging out on the way!).

7.5 out of 10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb.

Tom takes Jerry fishing... as the bait!

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 16 September 2012]

Tom ignores the 'No Fishing', 'No Entry' and 'Beware of the Dog' signs as he heads to a lake that appears to be alive with fish. Sneaking past Spike the Bulldog is a little tricky but eventually he gets to the jetty and comes to select his bait. He decides to go with live bait... Jerry! The fish are keen to bite bit Jerry just kicks them away until a giant fish with a set of teeth that would make an alligator jealous spots him! Jerry beats a hasty retreat followed closely by the fish that snaps all the way and doesn't stop until it has chomped through Tom's rod. Tom continues to try to catch the fish and eventually gets it out of the water; it flies though the air and slaps Spike in the face... Tom now has Spike, the fish and Jerry to contend with! What follows is the usual slapstick violence as Tom and Spike batter each other while Jerry helps stir things up; all the time Tom must avoid the teeth of both Spike and the fish.

This is another fun short; the toothy fish made a great adversary; his teeth made him look far scarier than Spike. The fights contained the sort of gags we've come to expect but that is okay as they were well executed. Sometimes one has to feel sorry for poor Tom but not here; in this one he has already caught Jerry with the intention of using him for bait so I didn't feel too sorry for him when the tables were turned. The animation looks great and the backgrounds are fairly detailed as one would expect from a 'Tom and Jerry' short from this era.

Go fish!

[CuriosityKilledShawn · 6/10 · 20 January 2007]

Tom sneaks into a secluded area for some fish poaching. The lake is guarded by Spike, but Tom has his same old tricks for taking care of him. In his bait box he has a captured Jerry, who he promptly disguises as a worm and casts into the lake.

Some horrible sort of Gator/Fish creature pops up and decides he'd really like to get a bite of Jerry, but he'll be damned if he's gonna let Tom catch him.

There are a couple of funny moments in this cartoon but it's mostly just generic stuff and recycled gags. The ending isn't really up to much either, it's all just plain uninspired.

No need to fish for compliments.

[Pjtaylor-96-138044 · 8/10 · 19 August 2019]

'Cat Fishin' (1947)' includes all the ingredients for a great 'Tom and Jerry' toon. There's the two leads, of course, but there's also Spike the bulldog, a guest-star fish and a somewhat silly concept. That concept involves Tom sneaking onto a guarded lake to fish using Jerry as bait; naturally, hijinks ensue. The piece is wonderfully animated, with lively splashes of water and frequent flapping fish complimenting the bouncy character work. The gags are fast and fun, straddling the line between the more conceptual style of the 50s and the pure visual delight of the 40s. It's an entertaining, perfectly escalating time. They just don't make them like they used to. 8/10

Memoirs of a Clown

[mrdonleone · 6/10 · 6 May 2008]

This is truly a Tom and Jerry Classic. All the usual ingredients are in it: the chase, the plan, the jokes and the danger, mixed with some magic to make an animation short picture believable enough to work with kids, for who these animation short comedies are actually made. But hey, I'm no kid anymore, but I do appreciate it. Maybe that's because I remember how I laughed when I was young with this one. Perhaps the children of today will have fun with the 'Teletubbies' tomorrow. I don't know. If you ask me, 'Teletubbies' are not as good as 'Tom and Jerry' or 'The Muppet Show'. Nowadays, the young people is served with everything on it, no imagination can develop in the mind of the children at all. It's a pity. Kids should have more imagination and fun, like they witness in this 'Cat Fishin''.

An Unforgettable Fishing Day!

[Kalashnikovin · 10/10 · 19 June 2022]

You must already know my love for the original Tom and Jerry shorts, especially the ones by Chuck Jones and Hanna Barbera, as they were so much fun and stood out among other cartoons of the time, making my childhood watching them Unforgettable.

This short is Practically "Down And Outing" but without any Flaws, this Short is Almost Perfect, I saw it on Television as a Child and I loved it, and to this day I still like it!.

This short is Memorable since it was Produced in the Highest Point of Tom and Jerry, the Details are Great, and even the bars that prevent the passage to the lake are detailed!, The Animation is of the First Category Even surpasses that of Disney, and it's not because Disney is bad, on the contrary, they created shorts just as Memorable as this one!

The Animation as I said is of Excellent Quality and the Truth is Almost Incomprehensible as the Human Being with Simple Tools can Draw such Beauties, the Backgrounds and the Animation are Beautiful, they are of such Quality that the Current Cartoons look Poor in that Category, It has Fluid and High Quality Movements, even when something falls into the Water the Splash is Realistic and Detailed, this short would enter the 10 Best Animated Tom and Jerry Shorts I have ever seen.

The Music is First Class as well as the Animation, Scott Bradley was a Magnificent Composer and this short shows his Talent and I am Happy that he Composed all the Music of the original series!, the Music is so Good that I would even give it a lot Fight Carl Stalling (both Composers are from the same Category and I never decided which was better) in itself, the Music is Great and Unforgettable!.

Voice acting is Nothing, it's just Tom's Classic Scream provided by William Hanna!

The Sound Effects are Beautiful, and Gene Deitch would Tremble at this Point, since Deitch's Sound Effects are Horrendous and very poorly Synthesized while here are Great effects that fulfill their Purpose of making a Good Cartoon!.

In itself, a Great Short of the Original Era and Rivals to Enter my Top 10 of the Best Shorts of all Tom and Jerry!, and for this I give it a 10!.

In Real Life, the idea that any fisherman would use a rodent . . .

[pixrox1 · 6/10 · 3 September 2022]

. . . as "live bait" is utterly preposterous. You can read the international, national, state and county angling record books until you're blue in the face, and discover--as I did--that exactly ZERO of the 14,632,119 such standards were set with a rat, squirrel, mouse, chipmunk, vole, mole or other rodent listed as the lure. Though any person capable of reading would know this fact, Tom the CAT FISHING cat obviously cannot read. Further evidence of Tom's illiteracy comes at the beginning of this film, when he totally ignores the "No Trespassing" and "No Fishing" signs posted on the fence surrounding a private pond. Unfortunately, it's likely that many viewers as illiterate as Tom saw the misinformation in this picture, and went to their local lake with a live mouse in their tackle box. It's said that if you teach a guy to fish, he's set for life, but if you show him a Tom and Jerry film, he's probably doomed.

There is something mighty fishy going on here...

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 4 May 2010]

Even if the story is rather predictable, Cat Fishin' is still very entertaining. It moves quickly, has exquisitely rendered animation and fun music. And Tom, Jerry and Spike seem to be enjoying themselves immensely, though you feel really sorry for Spike, particularly when the fish abruptly wakes him up. But it is the barracuda-like fish who steals the show from under the three lovable characters, as he foils Tom's fishy exploits in a vicious kind of way. The ending is appropriate and entertaining as is usually the case with Tom and Jerry. Overall, occasionally predictable, but a lot of fun, that is elevated by the antics of the fish. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Mouse bait only a guard dog bites harder than any fishes!

[blanbrn · 7/10 · 17 December 2020]

This "Tom and Jerry" short called "Cat Fishin'" was one that was clever and fun as Tom sets out to the beautiful lake on a warm sunny day to fish a little. And the fish are swarming ready to bite only Jerry the little mouse is gonna be dinner as he's live bait! However Spike is the pond's guard dog and things become entertaining as Spike proves his teeth are bigger and sharper than any fish in the lake! Overall fun one that again had the cat and mouse in a different setting out of the house one of the better outdoor themed one's.

Hook, Line And Sinker

[StrictlyConfidential · 6/10 · 30 June 2021]

"Cat Fishin'" was originally released back in 1947.

Anyway - As the story goes - Tired of being bait on Tom's fishing trip, Jerry invites Spike the bulldog to join the party.

Cat Fishin'

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 29 August 2022]

Tom goes fishing and plans to use Jerry as live bait to catch the fishes.

First he has to evade Spike the bulldog. That is easily done as he is snoozing allowing Tom to past by.

However Jerry is unwilling to be fish food, it leaves both Jerry and Spike with a sore head.

This is a frenetic cartoon with a better relationship between the cat and mouse pair.

It is Spike who is the antagonist along with some of the fishes.

The animation is good with some funny sequences.

Kids will certainly enjoy this cartoon. Adults might find it a little too straightforward lacking a little bit of zaniness.

Tom goes fishin' using Jerry as live bait...

[Doylenf · 6/10 · 28 August 2009]

The setup for this one is typical Tom and Jerry stuff--but with a vengeance. Jerry never seems more abused than he is when he's being taken out of his sleeping berth in Jerry's tackle box and used as bait for a little illegal fishing in a pond with "No Fishing" signs failing to keep Tom out.

And this is despite the fact that the pond is guarded by Spike, the dog. Tom, in his usual clever fashion, manages to hoodwink the dog who is trying to get a daytime nap and remains oblivious to the fact that Tom and Jerry are about to invade the pond.

The sight gags are fast and furious with some very clever touches involving an over-sized fish intent on using his predatory instincts to survive. He almost gets his jaws around Tom and Jerry! Enjoyable and one of the most entertaining Tom and Jerry shorts I've seen in a long while.