Betty Boop goes to see the fearsome Old Man of the Mountain for herself; he sings the title song and a duet with Betty.
11 Dec The Old Man of the Mountain (1933)
Spooky Black Magic
All music videos derive from this little masterpiece. It had an earlier incarnation in ‘Minnie the Moocher’ where Betty goes to a subterranean hell, enticed by the devil’s music. While there, she encounters demons with whom she ‘dances.’
In both of these, the music comes from Cab Calloway as do the dance moves (courtesy of rotoscope). In both we see Cab in ‘real life’ beforehand. In both, jazz is black jungle devilry, Betty is amazingly (precode) sexy and clearly promiscuous.
Where ‘Moocher’ simply had a journey to a sensual hell, this one is much more explicit. The devil is embodied in a man (thankfully not a black man) who boogies, drinks and tries to rape her. He gets as close as pulling her dress off.
The Betty of this era moves with a bodily sense that is unusual.
Posted in 2004
Ted’s Evaluation — 4 of 3: Every cineliterate person should experience this.
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