" . . . do not knock it," Henry the Skunk-of-a-runaway-husband-and-dad (a.k.a., Pepe Le Pew) says to conclude WILD OVER YOU. Obviously, this punch line is meaningless without knowing what the "it" is. What exactly is "it" here? "It" can be summed up in two words: Rough Sex. Pepe has tried to "close the deal" five times with an escaped wild cat who has painted itself up as a skunk to avoid recapture. (Since Pepe is nose blind, he never quails at his opportunities for inter-species trysts.) The Warner Bros. animators portray these five attempted rapes as cartoon whirlwinds--the representation you might expect if Bugs Bunny tried to get it on with the Tasmanian Devil. Pepe is somewhat ambivalent as he emerges banged up from his first four scrapes with the wildcat, but in the middle of his fifth attack (what he would call "Shooting Zee fish in Zee Barrel," as the pair are crammed into the basket of a rising hot air balloon), sadomasochist Pepe decides it's all good.
11 Reviews
"Le ha ha."
utgard1415 September 2015
Fun Pepé Le Pew short from the great Chuck Jones. It takes place during the Paris Exposition of 1900, where a wildcat has escaped from a zoo exhibit. The cat paints herself to look like a skunk to avoid being captured. If you've ever seen a Pepé Le Pew cartoon before, you know where this is going. Pepé chases the cat and puts the moves on her. The twist this time is that the wildcat rejects Pepé violently, which only seems to turn the skunk on more. This Sadomasochistic angle has made the short more noteworthy for some than your average Pepé cartoon. As always, the incomparable Mel Blanc is terrific as Pepé. The animation is colorful with well-drawn characters and backgrounds. The gags are funny with the usual French puns we all love from these shorts. It's not the best Pepé cartoon but it is entertaining.
For those of us familiar with the term "wildcat strike" . . .
cricket306 August 2021
Warning: Spoilers
. . . WILD OVER YOU may not make much sense. Wildcats generally strike with lethal force. If you cannot croak your prey, why strike at all? Though wildcat strikers have been known to wield blackjacks, brass knuckles and socks full of rocks, rods, roscoes and heaters surely must be considered their weapons of choice. When Fat Cat Management is pushing the under critters toward the brink of extinction, it's incumbent upon the latter community to fight and claw back with everything that they've got. However, you won't hear a shot fired during WILD OVER YOU! How sad.
Lots of typical Pepe Le Pew fun
planktonrules15 June 2007
By 1953, the Pepe Le Pew formula is getting to be pretty set in stone--Pepe comes upon a cat that looks like a skunk and he spends the rest of the film ardently in pursuit. This time, it's a bit different due to the setting (the famous Paris Exposition) and because the cat is in this case an escaped wild cat from the zoo. The bottom line is that if you love Pepe Le Pew, you'll love this one as well. If not, then there are no major differences that will change your mind (though, if you DON'T like these cartoons, you are a real curmudgeon).
One thing I particularly liked were all the terrible puns and plays on words when it comes to the French in the film. Again and again, terribly funny but bad puns abound when you see a sign in this short.
One thing I particularly liked were all the terrible puns and plays on words when it comes to the French in the film. Again and again, terribly funny but bad puns abound when you see a sign in this short.
Has much to be wild about
TheLittleSongbird19 January 2013
If you are familiar with Pepe LePew, you will know where Wild Over You is going to go. But that isn't enough to mar the cartoon's enjoyment. The animation is full of simple detail and elegant colour, very Chuck Jones but with also an authentic touch. The music is catchy and beautifully orchestrated, with a lovely amorous French flavour. The dialogue is very witty and quite kinky even for a Pepe cartoon, a series that was uniquely risqué to start with. The gags are as is the case with Pepe and Looney Tunes in general clever and imaginatively timed. The story could be seen as formulaic, but the vibrant pacing and entertainment value more than makes up for that. Pepe is still likable and true to the personality that we are used to seeing him, and the cat contrasts with him very well. Mel Blanc, criss crossing Charles Boyer and Maurice Chevalier, is stellar. All in all, a fine cartoon that has much to like about it. 9/10 Bethany Cox
This might prove that Pepe is insane.
lee_eisenberg10 February 2007
I don't know who said it, but a really good quote says that an insane person does the same thing over and over and expects a different result (which can easily apply to the present state of US-foreign policy). But at the very least, we can apply it to Pepe Le Pew, who always tries to to get slinky with females but always repels them.
In "Wild Over You", a wild cat - presumably a female, but they don't really identify the gender - escapes from a Paris zoo and paints herself black and white. Sure enough, Pepe sees her and his hormones go crazy. But this wild cat is a real fighter, and nearly massacres Pepe every time that he tries to hug and kiss her. Of course, Pepe never gives up.
Probably what makes me laugh the most in this cartoon is how they play with the French language. Every sign begins with "le", and a paper boy shouts out "Read-ay vous all about it!" after the wild cat escapes. I can imagine that Michael Maltese had a lot of fun writing the screenplay, Mel Blanc had a lot of fun creating the voices, and Chuck Jones had a lot of fun directing. A really funny cartoon.
In "Wild Over You", a wild cat - presumably a female, but they don't really identify the gender - escapes from a Paris zoo and paints herself black and white. Sure enough, Pepe sees her and his hormones go crazy. But this wild cat is a real fighter, and nearly massacres Pepe every time that he tries to hug and kiss her. Of course, Pepe never gives up.
Probably what makes me laugh the most in this cartoon is how they play with the French language. Every sign begins with "le", and a paper boy shouts out "Read-ay vous all about it!" after the wild cat escapes. I can imagine that Michael Maltese had a lot of fun writing the screenplay, Mel Blanc had a lot of fun creating the voices, and Chuck Jones had a lot of fun directing. A really funny cartoon.
How did the censors let this one pass?
tony_ginorio21 November 2003
This is the kinkiest of all the Pepe Le Pew cartoons (and the series is pretty out there to begin with!). Pepe's quarry in this one is an escaped wild cat, disguised as a skunk to elude capture. When Pepe goes after her, she doesn't merely run away--she viciously mauls him in a hissing flurry of fur and claws. Rather than deter him, the violence seems to entice him all the more! At the end, he tells the audience, "If you have not tried it, do not knock it". Hard to believe that this cartoon was shown to 1950s theater audiences, or that it is still shown to children. It's twisted and subversive...and funny as all get out! It just goes to show what you can get away with in animation.
One of my favorite Pepe cartoons with a great design
ja_kitty_715 January 2017
Pepe le Pew is my favorite character along with Pussyfoot & Marc Anthony and Hubie & Bertie created by Chuck Jones, one of my favorite animators. This cartoon is one of my favorite Pepe cartoons, because of its animation and design.
In this short, a female wildcat had escaped from the zoo during the Paris Exposition of 1900. To avoid the animal control, she use black and white paint to disguise herself as a "king-size skunk de pew". But the disguise attracts Pepe le Pew, who thinks the wildcat is a giant girl skunk. And here comes the running gag (if you would call it), in which before fleeing from the amorous skunk, the wildcat mauls him.
You know, I had looked on Wikipedia, that Pepe's quote after he first gets mauled: "I like it," has caused this cartoon much controversy for implying sadomasochism. Of course I didn't know that until now. Overall, I thought it was a good cartoon and that is all I have to say, except that it is another favorite starring Pepe le Pew.
In this short, a female wildcat had escaped from the zoo during the Paris Exposition of 1900. To avoid the animal control, she use black and white paint to disguise herself as a "king-size skunk de pew". But the disguise attracts Pepe le Pew, who thinks the wildcat is a giant girl skunk. And here comes the running gag (if you would call it), in which before fleeing from the amorous skunk, the wildcat mauls him.
You know, I had looked on Wikipedia, that Pepe's quote after he first gets mauled: "I like it," has caused this cartoon much controversy for implying sadomasochism. Of course I didn't know that until now. Overall, I thought it was a good cartoon and that is all I have to say, except that it is another favorite starring Pepe le Pew.
The French governmental authorities realize that their dilapidated . . .
pixrox129 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
. . . lingo is so illogical, unwieldy and in poor taste that any right-minded Frenchman would import as many foreign words, phrases and expressions into daily usage as he possibly could in a desperate attempt to communicate with the ease enjoyed by other people considered to be civilized, such as Americans. In a crazed attempt to prevent the inevitable decline and fall of "French" into another dead language within History's dust bin, what passes for the legislature in Paris has decreed actual LAWS WITH PENALTIES for including user-friendly American (or other non-French) bits among city ad signs, business names or within newspaper articles! Therefore, it is extremely disappointing to find a business headquartered in the USA incorporating so much French into an American cultural product, such as Henry the Skunk's WILD OVER YOU outing. If cartoonists tried an equivalent foray into foreign terms in "Gay Paree," they'd surely be Guillotined!
Chuck Jones's Sadomasochistic Side (or You Can't Do That On Cartoons)
Angel-Marie5 April 2002
Warning: Spoilers
Before I start this review, I would like to point out two things:
1) There are/could be spoilers in this review.
2) This review is dedicated to the men behind Pepe Le Pew, Michael Maltese (who created Pepe's fractured French and died in 1981), Mel Blanc (who lent a very realistic Charles Boyer impression to Pepe and died in 1989), and the last of the great WB animators, Chuck Jones (who created the character and died this year). May God rest both of your souls, you oh-so-talented men. Okay, on to the review...
To the eye of someone who still thinks that Looney Tunes are children's fare, this cartoon is nothing more than your typical Pepe cartoon (cat gets painted, Pepe mistakes the cat for a skunk, Pepe seduces cat, cat runs off, hilarity ensues until the end). To the eye of someone who knows that Looney Tunes cartoons are not kid-friendly, this cartoon has a twist from the usual Pepe routine. Instead of the cat running off, the cat (here shown as a wildcat from a French zoo) claws Pepe half to death whenever he's near her.
This unabashed cartoon made my side hurt the first time I watched it (and proved that Looney Tunes is not for children). I was never this overcome with laughter since "Cow and Chicken" (and believe me, their innuendo could make a Le Pew cartoon AND a Simpsons episode blush). Cartoon Network does air this somewhat frequently. GRADE: A+
1) There are/could be spoilers in this review.
2) This review is dedicated to the men behind Pepe Le Pew, Michael Maltese (who created Pepe's fractured French and died in 1981), Mel Blanc (who lent a very realistic Charles Boyer impression to Pepe and died in 1989), and the last of the great WB animators, Chuck Jones (who created the character and died this year). May God rest both of your souls, you oh-so-talented men. Okay, on to the review...
To the eye of someone who still thinks that Looney Tunes are children's fare, this cartoon is nothing more than your typical Pepe cartoon (cat gets painted, Pepe mistakes the cat for a skunk, Pepe seduces cat, cat runs off, hilarity ensues until the end). To the eye of someone who knows that Looney Tunes cartoons are not kid-friendly, this cartoon has a twist from the usual Pepe routine. Instead of the cat running off, the cat (here shown as a wildcat from a French zoo) claws Pepe half to death whenever he's near her.
This unabashed cartoon made my side hurt the first time I watched it (and proved that Looney Tunes is not for children). I was never this overcome with laughter since "Cow and Chicken" (and believe me, their innuendo could make a Le Pew cartoon AND a Simpsons episode blush). Cartoon Network does air this somewhat frequently. GRADE: A+
One of the best!
JohnHowardReid15 March 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Pepe Le Pew, Wild Cat, and the zoo-keeper.
Director: CHARLES M. JONES. Story: Michael Maltese. Animation: Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Richard Thompson, Abe Levitow, Ken Harris. Lay-outs: Maurice Noble. Backgrounds: Phil De Guard. Voice characterizations: Mel Blanc. Music director: Carl Stalling. Color by Technicolor. Producer: Edward Selzer.
Copyright 27 July 1953 (in notice: 1952) by The Vitaphone Corp. A Warner Bros "Looney Tunes" cartoon. U.S. release: 11 July 1953. 7 minutes.
COMMENT: One of my favorite Pepes, this one is set against a marvellously stylized art deco background of the 1900 Paris Exposition. Our very introduction to Pepe here is a classic variation as he saunters on to the garden scene singing, "Can You Kiss a Pretty Girl, Pepe Boy, Pepe Boy, Can You Kiss a Pretty Girl, Charming Pepe."
Director Jones uses an unusual number of inventive high angles to punch his visual points home, as our masochistic little hero chases a determinedly antagonistic wild cat from one delightfully period-flavored set-up to a final flight in an ever-ascending balloon. Even for non-Pepe fans, the artistic charm of this outing must surely prove irresistible.
Director: CHARLES M. JONES. Story: Michael Maltese. Animation: Ben Washam, Lloyd Vaughan, Richard Thompson, Abe Levitow, Ken Harris. Lay-outs: Maurice Noble. Backgrounds: Phil De Guard. Voice characterizations: Mel Blanc. Music director: Carl Stalling. Color by Technicolor. Producer: Edward Selzer.
Copyright 27 July 1953 (in notice: 1952) by The Vitaphone Corp. A Warner Bros "Looney Tunes" cartoon. U.S. release: 11 July 1953. 7 minutes.
COMMENT: One of my favorite Pepes, this one is set against a marvellously stylized art deco background of the 1900 Paris Exposition. Our very introduction to Pepe here is a classic variation as he saunters on to the garden scene singing, "Can You Kiss a Pretty Girl, Pepe Boy, Pepe Boy, Can You Kiss a Pretty Girl, Charming Pepe."
Director Jones uses an unusual number of inventive high angles to punch his visual points home, as our masochistic little hero chases a determinedly antagonistic wild cat from one delightfully period-flavored set-up to a final flight in an ever-ascending balloon. Even for non-Pepe fans, the artistic charm of this outing must surely prove irresistible.
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