A Very Merry Cricket (1973 TV Movie) User Reviews

A Very Merry Memory!

[bml84 · 7/10 · 1 November 2009]

Oh, I thought I'd NEVER find this. I remember seeing both this and the original a few times as a kid around 1980 on TV. Something about it really stuck in the memory and its been great to finally track it down.

I remember the final montage in particular and the general upbeat, feel-good atmosphere of both.

Its funny how some things stick so long in the memory, even if, like these shorts, nothing spectacular actually occurs. Maybe its just the time and its ambiance itself we remember and these films act simply as a prop.

At any rate, well worth the seeking out and sharing with a new generation.

Cute

[Christmas-Reviewer · 7/10 · 21 September 2017]

BEWARE OF FALSE REVIEWS & REVIEWERS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW TO THEIR NAME. NOW WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE MOVIE. IF ITS A NEGATIVE REVIEW THEN THEY MIGHT HAVE A GRUDGE AGAINST THE FILM . NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 300 HOLIDAY FILMS & SPECIALS. I HAVE NO AGENDA

A Very Merry Cricket is a 1973 animated television special. It was directed by Chuck Jones, who also wrote the teleplay with George Selden. It was a sequel to their acclaimed adaptation of A Cricket In Times Square and was followed by another holiday sequel Yankee Doodle Cricket.

A sequel to Mr. Jones Cricket in Times Square. We find Harry Cat, Tucker Mouse feeling down about all the commercial selling in the Big City of New York. People have forgotten the meaning of the Holiday, so off they go to Sunnyslope, Connecticut in search of Chester the musical cricket,also featured in "A Cricket In Times Square" also by Chuck Jones. We have a little fun with their adventures getting back to the big city of New York in time for Chester to play "Silent Night" on his wings during a blackout and remind people just what the holiday of Christmas stands for. With voices done by Mel Blanc, a wonderful holiday tape. For all ages.

This isn't great but it is a first rate production. The gags are very amazing and it has its heart in the correct place.

Quite an odd cartoon

[CuriosityKilledShawn · 4/10 · 4 December 2011]

This 1973 Xmas special, directed by Chuck Jones, is a sequel to The Cricket in Times Square which was shown earlier that year. I never knew this until after viewing, so I was a little puzzled by the storytelling.

It opens in a grubby, but psychedelic, New York with a mouse named Tucker and a cat named Harry reading Xmas stories in a storm sewer. They are depressed by the hustle and bustle of the big city so they buzz off to the country to bring back a cricket named Chester who chirps his legs like a violin. Maybe his cricket rendition of Silent Night can bring holiday magic to the throngs of human traffic.

I have to honest, I wasn't smitten by this grubby, cheap-looking cartoon. There are better holiday specials out there.

Old Christmas special worth a look, esp. for Chuck Jones fans

[Popeye-8 · 8/10 · 19 December 2000]

This cartoon, a sequel to the far superior A CRICKET IN TIMES SQUARE, re-unites the Bronx cat and mouse, as they seek out Chester, the musical savant cricket to bring back the holiday spirit to the cold and bitter big city. Not a bad cartoon, though Chuck Jones seems to be coasting on this one---until the final Christmas montage...which must rank among Jones' best work ever. The video, still available as a 'discount' purchase, is a must-see for that alone.

Good music, the rest is so-so

[Horst_In_Translation · 4/10 · 3 September 2015]

These 25 minutes here are the second of 3 Chester Cricket movies and came out over 40 years ago, one year after "The Cricket in Times Square" and one year before the trilogy's last installment. It's another collaboration between Chuck Jones and Mel Blanc, both legends in the animation/cartoon industry and both were already in their 60s when this was made. The best about this short film is, without a doubt, the music. There are so many famous Christmas songs/melodies included in here which really elevate the material. Unfortunately, in terms of the story, there is nothing too memorable about it. It is the usual issues with people forgetting the real purpose of Christmas and Chester and the gang of course manage to solve that issue at the end. It really came a bit of a sudden and felt fairly random with the power outage. All in all, only a mediocre Christmas special. Cannot truly recommend it, unless you loved the first film.