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Hell's Bells was released right after The Skeleton Dance in 1929. Following a similar template to Disney's short, this one is set in Hell where we can see Satan and several of his minions dancing around, playing instruments, and having fun... until Satan gets hungry and decides to take no prisoners and spare no lives.
Again, like The Skeleton Dance and many early animated shorts, Hell's Bells seems to exist mostly to showcase many animation techniques. In this case, we see fire brewing, bats flying, spiders swinging, dogs barking, and devils playing music and dancing around. When Satan gets hungry, little devils "milk" a cow-like dragon only to have Satan feed one of them to his dog.
Watching it back-to-back with The Skeleton Dance, it's certainly interesting to see its many parallels, similar beats, and the use of the same techniques but with different characters. It's still a memorable short, but I think I prefer the skeletons.
Grade:
HELL'S BELLS
(1929, Iwerks)
Horror film from the 1920s
(1929, Iwerks)
Horror film from the 1920s
"♪ I won't take no prisoners, won't spare no lives. Nobody's puttin' up a fight...♫"
Hell's Bells was released right after The Skeleton Dance in 1929. Following a similar template to Disney's short, this one is set in Hell where we can see Satan and several of his minions dancing around, playing instruments, and having fun... until Satan gets hungry and decides to take no prisoners and spare no lives.
Again, like The Skeleton Dance and many early animated shorts, Hell's Bells seems to exist mostly to showcase many animation techniques. In this case, we see fire brewing, bats flying, spiders swinging, dogs barking, and devils playing music and dancing around. When Satan gets hungry, little devils "milk" a cow-like dragon only to have Satan feed one of them to his dog.
Watching it back-to-back with The Skeleton Dance, it's certainly interesting to see its many parallels, similar beats, and the use of the same techniques but with different characters. It's still a memorable short, but I think I prefer the skeletons.
Grade: