As I keep stating in with aggravating frequency, I don’t much like WB’s celebrity cartoons, the ones doing all of the wan and obsequious take-offs of Hollywood celebrities. Well, familiar figures appear in this one too, but it’s a whole ‘nother kettle of fish. A real treat! A lot of time has passed, and pop culture sure isn’t what it used to be. Still, as both curio and an abiding expression of cultural interest and engagement, Have You Got Any Castles really stands up nicely.
You kind of suspect that, Alexander Woolcott notwithstanding, this multitude of book references has more to do with film adaptations than with how much more people read in the ‘30s. (A similar situation obtains with classical music, as it was utilized during the silent film period.) Still, what a collection of texts and textual embellishments! There are lots of bright jokes, with a number of them developing and building through the course of the picture. The design is also very bright and appealing. It would be pretty lame to suggest how many of these books we know, or movies we’ve seen. Still, that’d be cool!