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Matinee Mouse

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Stimulating

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Matinee Mouse

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This program is stimulating. It actively demands attention and can feel intense. For the recommended age, this may be on the more intense side. The pacing is moderate. The story remains easy for a child to follow. The sound is soft and supportive. The visuals are calm and well-organized.

The story keeps breaking apart: Tom and Jerry call a truce and go to the cinema, then the episode switches to a string of unrelated chase clips shown on the screen inside the story. Those inserted scenes have their own settings, their own props and their own beginnings and endings, so a child following the cinema story keeps being pulled into a different one. Events inside each clip do follow a simple pattern of action and consequence, a rake steps up and hits Tom in the face, a mousehole leads somewhere else than expected. But the episode as a whole has no single thread to hold on to, and the jumps between the theatre and the clips are not explained.

Almost every scene is built on one character hurting or humiliating the other, and the point of the humour is that the victim suffers. Tom laughs out loud in his cinema seat while Jerry is squashed on screen, and Jerry laughs just as hard when Tom is flattened, blown up or shoved into a garbage can. The brief truce, where the two shake hands and walk to the cinema together, is dropped without comment and the fighting resumes as if nothing happened. Distress is shown, ignored, and immediately followed by the next blow, so tension is rarely brought back down to rest.

Problems here are solved with a single swing, drop or trap rather than any thinking a child can follow. Tom decides for himself to go after Jerry, sets up his own attempts and keeps going after each one fails, so the drive comes from the character rather than from outside events. But there is no naming of the problem, no visible weighing of options and no adjustment after a failure; he simply grabs the next object and swings again. A child watching sees that force is tried and force fails, without a step in between that shows why.

There is essentially no spoken language in the episode. The soundtrack is music and effects, with only stray yelps, howls and a laugh from Tom, and no character explains, names or describes anything. That leaves nothing for a five year old to pick up in the way of new words, sentence patterns or ideas expressed in words. The few sounds that do come from the characters are pure reaction rather than content.

Very little here carries over into a child's own day. The settings are recognizable, a suburban back garden with a rake and a shovel, a kitchen, a street with a cinema, and the idea of buying a ticket and sitting down to watch something is real enough. But the actions themselves are hitting, dropping, exploding and chasing, none of which a child can copy safely or usefully, and the bodies that survive them belong to cartoon logic. The rivalry between Tom and Jerry does mirror a real pattern children know, two figures who cannot leave each other alone, but the episode never turns that into anything a child can use.

More information

The world here is made up almost entirely of animals: Tom, Jerry, a bulldog and a small black cat, moving between a suburban house, a backyard and a cinema. Only one person appears, a light-skinned man working as a cinema usher, so there are no women, children, older people or families anywhere on screen. Every character also reads as male, and the story runs on chasing, tricking and physical dominance rather than on characters with different tasks or personalities. Children watching get an entertaining chase, but almost no picture of the variety of people and ways of living together in the real world.

The world looks borrowed from everyday life, a suburban garden with a rake and a shovel, a kitchen, a city street and a cinema with red velvet seats, but almost nothing that happens in it could happen for real. Tom walks into a rake, gets flattened, blown up and wrapped like a mummy, and is fine seconds later, and at one point he sails over a graveyard on a broomstick. There is no villain: Tom and Jerry take turns causing each other trouble, they laugh at the same clips side by side in the cinema, and the antagonism never hardens into good against evil. For a five-year-old the make-believe is easy to follow, though the constant knocks that leave no mark are the part a child of this age is most likely to read as real.

This episode works better as a viewing experience for an adult than most of what a child picks, but the reason is nostalgia rather than storytelling. The framing idea is genuinely clever: Tom drags Jerry into a cinema that happens to be showing Tom and Jerry cartoons, and the two sit side by side laughing at each other's old misfortunes until the truce collapses. Around that idea sits a long string of clips from older shorts, so there is very little plot to follow and the visual quality shifts noticeably between the new material and the older footage. There is no dialogue and no repeated song, which makes it easy on the ears, though the constant crashes, bangs and orchestral stings run wall to wall for the full length.

Themes

Mischief

Central

Jerry repeatedly sets Tom up for a fall, sliding a rake into his path and leading him into a wall.

Rivalry

Central

Tom and Jerry spend the entire episode trying to outdo each other, even while sitting side by side in the cinema.

Slapstick

Central

Tom is flattened, blown up and knocked into a garbage can in quick succession.

Play

Recurring

The chasing has a game-like quality, with both characters grinning as they run through the garden.

Pets

Recurring

Spike the bulldog appears in the garden guarding a piece of meat.

Everyday life

Recurring

The chase moves through a back garden, a kitchen and a street with shops before reaching the cinema.

Activities

Chasing

The garden chase runs from the shed wall to the fence and up a birdhouse pole.

Playing games

The back and forth between the two plays out like a contest of who can catch whom.

Watching tv

A long stretch shows the pair seated in a darkened cinema facing a lit screen.

Running

Jerry dashes down a hallway with Tom skidding behind him.

Climbing

Tom shins up a striped pole after Jerry reaches the birdhouse.

Emotions

Frustration

Tom scowls and clenches his paws each time Jerry slips away.

Joy

Both characters roll about laughing in their cinema seats at the clips on screen.

Anger

Tom bares his teeth and lunges after being hit in the face by the rake handle.

Surprise

Tom's eyes bulge when the bulldog appears right in front of him at the fence.

Determination

Tom picks himself up after every failed attempt and immediately starts a new one.

Fear

Tom shrinks back when Spike looms over him with the meat.

Behaviour

Chasing

Tom pursues Jerry across the lawn, around the fence and up a pole.

Teasing

Jerry points and laughs from a cinema seat while Tom is crushed on screen.

Scheming

Tom sets up a broom and props to ambush Jerry in the attic.

Hiding

Jerry ducks into his mousehole and behind furniture whenever Tom closes in.

Using tools

Tom swings a rake, a broom and later a baseball bat at Jerry.

Running away

Jerry sprints across the grass with Tom's paw sweeping down behind him.

Watching tv

Tom and Jerry sit in red cinema seats watching cartoons on the screen.

Reconciliation

The two shake hands and walk together into the cinema after their fight in the street.

Social lessons

Peer rivalry

Neither Tom nor Jerry gives up on getting the better of the other, right through the closing scene.

Conflict

Every scene is built around one character attacking or outwitting the other.

Teasing

Jerry mimics Tom's flattened shape and laughs at him from the next seat.

Conflict resolution

The two briefly stop fighting and shake hands before entering the cinema together.

Mild violence

Tom is hit with a rake handle, slammed into a wall and blown up in an explosion, all played for laughs.

Chase scene

Long stretches consist of Tom sprinting after Jerry across the lawn and through the house.

Loud sounds

Crashes, bangs and an explosion punctuate the action with sharp orchestral stings.

Teasing

Both characters point and laugh at the other's injuries from their cinema seats.

Property destruction

A pie is smashed across the kitchen and food is scattered over the floor during the chase.

Misbehavior without correction

The hitting and tricking continues to the last shot with no consequence for either character.

Fast pacing

Gags follow each other without pause, with the picture switching setting every few seconds during the clip section.

Scary scenes

A sudden explosion fills the screen with red while Tom is thrown backwards.

Tom chases Jerry through a back garden, a kitchen and a hallway, running into a rake, a garbage can and a bulldog along the way. After a scuffle in the street the two shake hands and go into a cinema together, where they watch a run of their own past chases on the big screen and laugh at each other's misfortunes. The truce falls apart and the fighting starts again. The episode ends back at the house with Tom, Jerry and the bulldog still going at each other.

Season 1

18 episodes

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Ah, Sweet Mouse-Story of Life

recommended age

Tom the cat spends the episode trying to catch Jerry the mouse, first inside a house and then out across a city street and over rooftops. Jerry escapes again and again using firecrackers, a horn, a fire hydrant and various traps that leave Tom battered. The two never speak; the story is carried by music and sound effects. It closes with the pair side by side and a 'The End' card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Bad Day at Cat Rock

recommended age

In this Tom and Jerry short, the cat Tom chases the mouse Jerry across a half-built skyscraper of red steel girders high above a city. The pursuit runs through falls, mallet blows, stacked TNT and near-misses on the beams before moving down to sandy ground among wooden pilings. There is no dialogue; music and sound effects carry every gag. Jerry outwits Tom by the end, and the cartoon closes on a 'The End' card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

The Brothers Carry-Mouse-Off

recommended age

A cat and a mouse spend the episode trying to outdo each other around a suburban house, its backyard and a swimming pool. The cat sets traps and grabs tools like a bow and a mallet, and the mouse turns each scheme back on him. Along the way a mother mouse and a crowd of baby mice appear before the chase winds back outdoors. The episode ends without a real truce, closing on the classic 'The End' card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Haunted Mouse

recommended age

In this Tom and Jerry short, Jerry the mouse dresses up as a top-hatted magician and uses a string of tricks and illusions to outwit and frighten Tom the cat inside a house. Tom repeatedly tries to catch Jerry and is fooled, chased and hit each time, including a loud barrel blow. There is no dialogue; the story runs on music, sound effects and visual gags. It closes with Jerry triumphant as the cartoon ends.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

I'm Just Wild About Jerry

recommended age

Tom the cat chases Jerry the mouse through a closed department store, moving from toy counters to staircases, pipes and a ping-pong table. Jerry keeps outwitting Tom, who tries traps with toy cars and a heavy bowling ball, taking the brunt of each failed scheme. The chase runs almost wordlessly on sound effects and physical gags. It closes with a nighttime train-tracks scene and a final image of Jerry with a halo and wings before the end card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

The Cat's Me-Ouch

recommended age

In a suburban home and garden, Tom the cat hunts Jerry the mouse, who recruits a small bulldog to protect him. The two trade escalating physical gags, with Tom grabbing an axe and trapping Jerry in a jar while the bulldog keeps turning the tables. The comedy runs on chase and collision rather than words, with almost no spoken dialogue. By the end Tom is wrapped head to toe in bandages in a hospital bed while Jerry teases him.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Duel Personality

recommended age

A cat and a mouse settle their rivalry as a formal duel that begins in a grand mansion and moves out to an open field at sunset. They trade escalating attacks with a ball and chain, cannons, a bow and arrow, swords and dynamite, each scheme backfiring in slapstick fashion. There is no real dialogue; grunts, exclamations and loud sound effects carry the story. The chase runs its course and the episode closes on a 'the end' card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Jerry, Jerry, Quite Contrary

recommended age

In a darkened house at night, Jerry the mouse sleepwalks in his pyjamas while Tom the cat tries again and again to stop him or catch him. The attempts backfire into a string of slapstick mishaps for Tom, including an anvil, a fall down the stairs and a slam inside a trunk. The chase carries the whole short with barely any dialogue, driven by sound effects and music. It closes with a gag in a desert landscape and a 'the end' card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Jerry-Go-Round

recommended age

In this Tom and Jerry cartoon, Tom chases Jerry through a big circus, where Jerry teams up with a friendly elephant that keeps swatting the cat away. The two trade slapstick stunts around tents, a cannon and a tall diving ladder before the chase spills out into the town streets. It ends with Tom stuck in a manhole beside his own dynamite plunger as Jerry gets away. The story is told without dialogue, carried by music and sound effects.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Love Me, Love My Mouse

recommended age

Tom tries to win over a white female cat and presents Jerry the mouse to her as a gift. She adopts Jerry as a pampered baby, rocking and feeding him, which makes Tom jealous. He spends the rest of the cartoon scheming to get rid of the mouse, leading to chases and slapstick gags through the house. His plans keep backfiring, and the cat and mouse come out ahead by the closing 'the end' card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Filet Meow

recommended age

In this Tom and Jerry cartoon, Tom the cat tries to catch and eat a goldfish, while Jerry the mouse keeps rescuing it. The chase moves through a suburban house and backyard, with Tom disguising himself as a trash can and wielding a hatchet, and a large green shark eventually turning up to scare him off. There is no dialogue; the story is told through slapstick, music, and sound effects. By the end the goldfish is safe and Tom is left defeated.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Matinee Mouse

recommended age

Tom chases Jerry through a back garden, a kitchen and a hallway, running into a rake, a garbage can and a bulldog along the way. After a scuffle in the street the two shake hands and go into a cinema together, where they watch a run of their own past chases on the big screen and laugh at each other's misfortunes. The truce falls apart and the fighting starts again. The episode ends back at the house with Tom, Jerry and the bulldog still going at each other.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

The A-Tom-Inable Snowman

recommended age

At a snowy mountain lodge, a cat chases a mouse through ski runs, traps and deep snow. A large friendly furry creature keeps finding the mouse and shielding it from the cat, foiling each new scheme. The cat ends up battered, frozen and outwitted at every turn. The short closes on a comic tropical daydream before the final card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Catty Cornered

recommended age

In a city house, the mouse Jerry finds himself hunted by two cats, the gray Tom and an orange alley cat, who both want the place for themselves. Jerry turns the situation to his advantage by tricking the two cats into fighting each other with grenades, a cannon and other exaggerated weapons. The action is a continuous chase punctuated by explosions and comic impacts. By the closing 'the end', the cats have battered each other and Jerry slips away.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Cat and Dupli-Cat

recommended age

Tom stands on a moonlit pier in a harbour singing 'Santa Lucia' in Italian. An orange cat hidden nearby copies every note back at him, and Tom sets off along the docks and through the corridors of a moored ship to find whoever is mocking him, running into Jerry along the way. The chase moves onto a decorated boat where Tom aims a ship's cannon at his rival. The cannon goes off in both their faces, and the episode closes with gold confetti raining over Jerry on the deck.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Guided Mouse-Ille

recommended age

A cat and a mouse chase each other through a high-tech city in the year 2565, using robot gadgets, rocket skates and ray devices to outdo one another. Their rivalry escalates through traps, a chemistry lab and repeated slapstick clashes until a large explosion levels everything. The short then resets the pair as cavemen in a desert, still fighting with a bone. It closes on a 'THE END' title gag.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Cannery Rodent

recommended age

In a fishing cannery built on stilts over the ocean, Tom the cat spends the episode trying to catch Jerry the mouse. Their chase spills across beams, planks and the water below, where a large purple shark keeps snapping at both of them. Tom rigs traps with cans, rods and lines, but Jerry turns each one back on him. The episode closes at sunset with a final gag and a 'the end' card.

Tom and Jerry

Tom and Jerry

Advance and Be Mechanized

recommended age

In a futuristic space station full of screens, control panels and robots, Tom the cat tries again and again to catch Jerry the mouse. He builds and fires a stream of gadgets, from a mechanical robot dog to rockets and ray-guns, but Jerry keeps turning each trap back on him. The story is told through slapstick and sound effects with virtually no dialogue. It closes on a final gag and a 'the end' card.

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From this series Tom and Jerry

By age 5 years

By platform Disney+

By theme Anger Animals Disagreements Monsters Perseverance Problem solving

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