OllieSuave-007
Not much of a plot to the story, but plenty of song and dance with matching music to the characters' movements. No laughs in this one, and it's more like a miniature music without the singing. Grade C
Robert Reynolds
This is an early Disney short featuring Mickey, Minnie and Pluto. There will be spoilers ahead:The title pretty much says it all-Mickey, Minnie and Pluto go on a picnic. Pluto gets treated rather roughly, being first leashed to the back of the car when they drive out to have the picnic and then used rather strangely at the end. I suspect PETA probably wouldn't care much for this one.The bulk of the cartoon consists of Mickey and Minnie singing and dancing while various critters and insects swipe their food. There's quite a bit of repetition with regard to gags, probably to save time and money by reusing the same materials. Much of the animation is nice and some of the gags are funny, but there isn't a whole lot here to be enthusiastic about. Some of the animals/insects stealing food footage is quite good and there's some enjoyable dancing footage, but the short is kind of thin.This short is available on the Mickey Mouse In Black and White, Volume Two Disney Treasures DVD set and the set is worth tracking down.
MartinHafer
"The Picnic" is an odd blending of ultra-cutesy (yeck!) with good old fashioned cynicism--making for an unusual but very watchable cartoon short.It begins with Mickey going to pick up Minnie and her dog, Rover*. And, in a scene VERY reminiscent of "National Lampoon's Vacation", they tie the dog's lead to the rear bumper and set out for a picnic. Once there, Rover runs about trying to catch rabbits while Mickey and Minnie and the other animals dance about to the music. It would all have been nauseating except that soon the animals and bugs begin stealing all of the picnic items--which is pretty funny. Overall, compared to the average cartoon of the time, this one is superior and rather clever. Certainly not among Mickey's best but quite good. Also, the print is a bit scratchy but not enough to discourage you from watching.*Rover is clearly an early version of Pluto and looks exactly like him. But, the sign on the doghouse clearly says 'Rover'.
TheLittleSongbird
This is very short, but is fully redeemed by surprisingly good black and white animation(though there is a version of it on Youtube in Technicolour) and brilliant music, that does have a very lyrically nostalgic feel to it.Mickey and Minnie never fail to bring a smile to my face, and the picnic scene itself was very charming fare. But here, I loved Pluto, I thought he was absolutely hilarious, especially when he was chasing the rabbit. The look of Pluto diving in and out of the rabbit holes is enough to crack anybody up.All in all, very short, but very worthwhile. 10/10 Bethany Cox
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