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6.9/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.9/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. County Fair remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you like old cartoons where the laws of physics are just suggestions, then yes.
People who hate black and white slapstick or find old animation creepy should probably stay away from this one.
It is definitely for the crowd that misses when cartoons were just about a rabbit getting into trouble for no reason.
There is something about 1934 animation that feels like a fever dream. Everything is wiggling.
The fence posts wiggle, the cows wiggle, and even the air feels like it might start dancing. Oswald the Lucky Rabbit is at the center of it all, just looking happy to be alive.
He walks into the fair and you can almost smell the digital dust on the film. It feels more like a time capsule than a movie, honestly.
The music is that tinny, brassy stuff that makes you feel like you are at a parade you didn't ask to join. It never stops. Ever.
There is this one scene with a pie-eating contest that is just... strange. Oswald is eating so fast his whole body becomes a vacuum.
I noticed a small detail where a background character just vanishes for a second. It's those little mistakes that make these old shorts feel human.
The way the pies look makes me kind of hungry, even though they are just grey circles. How did they make grey food look good?
Oswald's ears also act like extra hands, which is something I always forget about him. It is a bit unsettling if you think about it too long.
The roller coaster scene is where the animation gets really wild. The tracks stretch out like they are made of rubber bands.
It reminds me a bit of the spectacle in The Big Cage, but obviously with way more drawings and fewer real lions.
There is a goat in this scene that has the most judgmental eyes I have ever seen on an animal. He just stares at the screen while the chaos happens.
The pacing is so fast you barely have time to process one gag before the next one hits you in the face. It's a lot noisier than The Flying Scotsman, that's for sure.
Tex Avery worked on this, and you can see his fingerprints everywhere. That weird, aggressive energy is starting to show up.
The barkers at the fair stalls are drawn in a way that makes them look slightly menacing. One guy has a nose that is definitely too long for his face.
I wonder if people back then actually thought fairs were this loud and messy. It’s way more chaotic than something like Anything Once.
Also, there is a cow that plays a trombone. No explanation. She just has a trombone and she is good at it.
The ending is kind of abrupt, like they just ran out of paper or time. Classic 30s move.
It’s not a masterpiece, but it’s a fun way to waste a few minutes. Anyway, I think I liked it more than I expected to.
IMDb —
1931
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