Tennis Chumps (1949) User Reviews

Wimbledon was never this funny!

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 21 July 2012]

This short sees Tom taking on fellow cat, the cigar chomping Butch, in a game of tennis with Jerry being forced to act as ball boy; it is clear that Butch is the better player as he returns Tom's first serve with such force that it sets fire to Tom's racket! The match continues in such a manner until Jerry starts to join in; first helping Tom by giving him an exploding ball to serve then helping Butch with an extra heavy ball; Tom and Butch get shattered, blown up, sliced and generally battered until they turn on Jerry and use him as the ball! As one would expect by the end of the match both cats are defeated and Jerry takes the trophy.

This was a typically violent 'Tom and Jerry' short with plenty of hilariously cruel gags that defied science in a way that only cartoons of this era seemed to get away with. Just about every shot in the game resulting one of the three characters getting harmed in some way... the gags are fairly rapid fire and most of them are pretty funny. One of the best things about this short is that it doesn't take place in a house and a third character is involved; in fact Butch's involvement is enough that this could be considered a 'Tom, Jerry and Butch' cartoon as his role is of similar size to his more famous co-stars. Fans of Tom and Jerry and children of all ages are likely to enjoy this although some parents might not like the level of violence... even if most of them grew up watching it when they were children!

Unusual and so much fun

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 14 June 2010]

I loved Tennis Chumps, there is so much to recommend it. The story may be a tad unexceptional, but everything else is top notch. The animation is very clean and crisp, and the music is delightful once again. What makes Tennis Chumps work though are the clever sight gags and the chemistry between Tom(shown as an inferior player), Butch(who smokes a cigar here) and sweet and funny little Jerry, as they do all these fantastic shots while bending the rules too. The pacing is thick and fast, and the whole cartoon is non-stop hilarity from start to finish. Overall, just a delight, very unusual but such a lot of fun as well. 9/10 Bethany Cox

When you scrutinize the complete cast and crew listing . . .

[pixrox1 · 8/10 · 9 October 2022]

. . . for TENNIS CHUMPS, one glaring anomaly sticks out like an ailing green thumb: There is no cast! At a time when the legitimate film studios such as Warner and Paramount were paying top dollar to voice artists such as Mel B-l-a-n-c and Jack Mercer, the cheap sideshow shacks lining Tinsel Town's infamous and seedy "Poverty Row"--such as the House of the Groaning Fat Cat which unleashed the violent TENNIS CHUMPS upon an unsuspecting American Homeland--often had a film director stand in for a cast, or dispensed with voice talent entirely. TENNIS CHUMPS distinguishes itself as a potential "Exhibit A" in a historical case of Crimes against Labor, or the indiscriminate ravaging of poor Union Label working stiffs.

The Wildest Tennis Match Ever!

[ccthemovieman-1 · 10/10 · 16 November 2007]

By the late '40s, Tom and Jerry had hit their stride, with excellent sight gags and a general wackiness to the stories. Whoever wrote this - probably directors Joseph Barbera and William Hanna - did a super job with it, because about every imaginable cartoon-like tennis stunt you could think of was included in this cartoon.

It's the championship tennis match, pitting Tom against some cigar-chomping cat but it no time it's a three-animal match with Tom, his opponent and Jerry Mouse all clobbering each other with an assortment of wicked shots and, well, let's say, bending of the rules.

Funny, inventive stuff and highly-recommended.

Love Deuce

[CuriosityKilledShawn · 6/10 · 12 October 2008]

Tom attends a Tennis championship, with Jerry in tow as a ball boy (or mouse) of sorts. Cigar-smoking Butch is his rival, and is a much better player. When he realizes that Tom is out of his depth, Jerry manipulates the players into using increasingly deadly tricks against each other, without any kind of reaction from the viewing crowds.

There's enough visual humor in this one to make it worthwhile and it's a welcome break from the usual chase through the generic house. I just wish that the extent of the jokes went beyond the characters batting stuff at each other and tripping over the net.

Above average.

It's game, set and match to Jerry mouse—again!

[BA_Harrison · 5/10 · 28 September 2014]

Tom plays a game of tennis against cigar-chomping alley-cat Butch, with Jerry the mouse on hand to carry the equipment and cause a little mischief.

This animated short goes all out to cram as much crazy, tennis-themed humour as possible into its seven minutes running time, but few of the gags it serves are aces: there are far too many jokes that simply rely on the two cats hitting each other with tennis balls and rackets, which is funny for a while but eventually becomes very repetitive. It would have been nice to have seen a little more imagination and variety to the chaos.

It might seem like me being a little picky, but I also felt a little disappointed with the animation: the tennis court backgrounds lack detail and the cats' rackets seem desperately short of strings.