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6.6/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.6/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. The Betty Boop Limited remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you like old-school animation that feels like it was drawn by someone who hadn't slept in a week, then sure. It's a quick blast of noise and motion. Don't go in expecting a plot, because the train is the only thing that actually does anything interesting.
This isn't for people who need logic. If you hate when cartoons just turn into a random parade of shapes and sounds, stay away. It’s definitely not a Orphans of the Storm type of experience.
The troupe is there, yeah. Betty sings, Bimbo juggles, and Koko is doing his usual thing. But the train itself? It’s constantly turning into other stuff. It’s like the animators just couldn't decide if they wanted a locomotive or a giant snake today.
There’s this one bit where the train tracks just… stop existing, and the train keeps going anyway. It’s the kind of casual physics-breaking that makes these old shorts feel so unhinged. It’s way more fun than, say, the stiffness you find in The Skin Game.
It’s not trying to be a deep, cinematic masterpiece. It’s just trying to see how much motion it can cram into a single frame. Sometimes the backgrounds are just swirling lines, and honestly? That’s fine. It feels less like a movie and more like a glitchy screen saver from the 1930s.
I caught myself wondering how they even drew some of this stuff. It’s not as polished as the later big studio stuff, but that’s the charm. It feels alive, even if it’s also kind of terrifying. 🚂✨