Directed by David Hand, The Mad Doctor (1933) was the second Mickey Mouse cartoon short released by Disney studios on 1933, taking on a different approach to what Disney had been making for Mickey’s shorts at the time. The story revolved around a mad doctor kidnapping Pluto to make an experiment by sowing up his head into a chicken’s body. Mickey then battles his way through booby traps in the mad man’s castle, only to find himself trapped onto a table while also waiting to be cut open by the Doctor. With a little twist at the end, the story obviously ends well for Mickey and Pluto though.
Although not missing the classic gags and comedic feel, it flirted with the horror genre, with spooky skeleton filled scenes and a menacing doctor wanting the cut Pluto and Mickey open. Some theaters refused to show it for that reason, deeming it to be too frightening for younger audiences. The short was even censored in the United Kingdom and Germany for a while. Nevertheless, it did get a good response from the critics, to the point of being called “one of the liveliest animated cartoons to come along” by The Film Daily on that year.
The technique used to make the short is the same as it had been for while now, not bringing any innovations to the ink on cellulose and the multi-plane camera staples of the time. On the other hand it is possible to see a great improvement to the drawing and animation techniques, as character figures and movements are much more distinguishable then in earlier Disney works. It is also worth noting the increasing use of camera movements, background animation and perspective changes, such as in the scene where Mickey slides through a stone tunnel inside the Doctor’s castle.
Being one of the few of Mickey Mouse’s cartoons that has lapsed into the public domain, The Mad Doctor (1933) is available for watching at a variety of platforms throughout the internet, including YouTube.
References:
Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons
“Short Subjects”. The Film Daily. Feb 10, 1933.
“How Was Animation Done At Disney In The 1930s?”. Forbes. Jan 07, 2020.
