Hitchcoc
We begin with Mickey being introduced as a lifeguard. He performs as seals and other sea creatures applaud. Enter Minnie. She is grabbed by the ocean's undertow and begins to flounder. Mickey risks his skin to save her. After she recovers she begins to cry. Mickey decides that music is the cure for her blues. Many of these early Disney films involved Mickey banging on various parts of animals. There is also a solo by a walrus that is quite entertaining.
Robert Reynolds
This is an early Disney cartoon featuring Mickey Mouse. There will be spoilers ahead:This short is a puzzlement. It starts out looking like it might have a semblance of a plot-Mickey is a lifeguard who winds up rescuing Minnie. That's pretty much it for a plot, but even as thin as it is, it's more of a plot than many early Mickey shorts had.It looks almost as though a plot was intended, but they got stuck after Minnie is rescued, so Ub Iwerks basically animated about three and a half minutes of gags set to musical numbers to fill out the time. That's not the only oddity. Two gags early on received the "repeat three times" treatment, usually done so drawings can be used repeatedly to save time and money. It looks and feels like a "fulfilling contractual obligations" short. Even when Disney did that, it still comes off better than many other studios typical work.Along the way, we get a walrus "singing", the sight of Minnie wading in the surf in high heels and a daring rescue by Mickey of Minnie, among other things. Not too bad for a time filler.This short is available on the Mickey Mouse In Black and White, Volume Two Disney Treasures DVD set. The set is worth tracking down.
TheLittleSongbird
Wild Waves is not among Disney or Mickey's best. It is rather routine, and I did find it odd that the first half of the short had a story and then for the second half more of a series of song and dance numbers(I do think it would have been better as one or the other). However, the animation is quite nice, a little primitive at times, but at least the backgrounds have crispness and the character designs don't look awkward. The animation of the waves is very good also. The music is very upbeat and catchy, and the dancing aspect is just as energised and animated convincingly. There are some nice gags like with Minnie's clothesline, and I really did get the sense that Mickey and Minnie genuinely cared for one another. Both characters are very likable, and the animals that join in the second half of Wild Waves are colourful characters as well. Overall, really sweet and is easy to like, but at the same time Wild Waves is not one of my favourites. 7/10 Bethany Cox
MartinHafer
I have been watching my Mickey Mouse DVDs we got for Christmas and noticed that most of the cartoons before this one in the Disney Treasures DVD (Mickey in Black & White volume 2) consisted of lots of song and dance numbers with little plot. However, this one appeared quite different--with Mickey and Minnie enjoying a day at the beach. Minnie is soon pulled out to sea and Mickey becomes the hero. HOWEVER, after about 4 minutes, the cartoon abruptly turned to what seemed like filler--lots of the same old song and dance as in the other cartoons of the era. Still, it is quite charming and worth seeing--at least for the first portion. Not a great cartoon, but compared to what else was being made at the time, quite good.
AD
