To Hare Is Human (1956) User Reviews

Some Mid-1950s Nostalgia

[ccthemovieman-1 · 9/10 · 27 August 2007]

This is one of the three (I think) cartoons in which our buddy, Wile E. Coyote, goes after Bugs Bunny instead of the Road Runner. Either way, you know it's going to be fun to watch. Audio-wise, however, I can never put this proper-Old English Gentleman voice and dialog together with Wile. It just doesn't match.

As in one of the other ones I watched, Wile hands Bugs his card. This one is a little fancier and reads, "Wile E. Coyote - Genius; Have Brain, Will Travel. (For those too young, a popular western TV show at the time was called "Have Gun, Will Travel.")

Another sign of the cartoon date is the "Univac" in Wile's cave. That big machine is actually a computer and they were giant things that only rich corporations could afford. The days of personal computers were still a few decades away.

I enjoyed Bugs' lair in this cartoon, and is remedies for getting rid of the coyote, he can he showed up, which he did several times, of course. Wile might have had all the latest technology but we know which of the two characters had the real brains.

Bugs Bunny vs. Wile E. Coyote

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 28 June 2010]

The story is a little on the predictable side, and the title is rather curious, but To Hare is Human is otherwise very enjoyable. The animation is colourful and vibrant enough, and the music is energetic and rousing. Also excellent are the witty dialogue, some truly clever sight gags and some fast pacing. And I loved Bugs and Coyote together, don't get me wrong I do like the roadrunner vs. Coyote cartoons, but the cartoons with Bugs vs. Coyote are wittier and much more manic. Coyote is still as crafty as ever, yet is always the one who gets the worst of the joke(don't worry, for anyone who is tired of Coyote of falling down a cliff, it doesn't happen here), while Bugs is just as witty, rascally and charming as ever. Both characters are brilliantly voiced by the immortal Mel Blanc. Overall, very enjoyable to watch. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Bugs and Wile E.

[rbverhoef · 7/10 · 4 May 2004]

In 'To Hare Is Human' we see a talking Wile E. Coyote trying to catch Bugs Bunny (both with the voice of Mel Blanc). The Coyote uses an elevator to go down in the rabbits hole, is actually able to catch Bugs but then he spoils it by explaining to Bugs who he is: Wile E. Coyote, Genius. After this Coyote invents a Univac Electric Brain that must help him to catch Bugs, but of course things do not go as planned.

This is a nice cartoon. I like the talking Coyote although his silent one, from the Road Runner cartoons, is probably more fun. There are some good gags here. Especially the one where the Coyote asks his machine what to do next and the machine sends him to the real purpose of the Coyote in every cartoon is a great one. Recommended.

As far back as 1956, Warner Bros. had the foresight . . .

[oscaralbert · 8/10 · 4 May 2016]

. . . to warn America against computers with this animated short, TO HARE IS HUMAN. It turns out that Wile E. Coyote is an Early Adopter of the Univac Computer. However, before the conclusion of HUMAN Mr. Coyote gets blown up five times and crushed once. It develops that his Univac has been hacked by Bugs Bunny, turning Wile's life upside down. By the end of this episode, it's revealed that Bugs is Alan Turing (who won WWII by decoding the Nazi Enigma Machine), Edward Snowden, and the Dread Pirate Roberts, all rolled into one. A country that turns its financial system, record keeping, and national security over to computers deserves to be Terrorized back to Stone Age Anarchy by every pajama-clad Third World hacker clicking away in some tent, tee pee, igloo, or cave, Warner points out to America with HUMAN. However, tax dollars have been squandered for the past 60 years on public schools teaching fluff like sex and driver's education, rather than worthwhile subjects, such as Looney Tunes. Since you get what you pay for, Today's U.S. roads are clogged with bad drivers, our birth rate has never been lower, and computers lurk around every corner.

One of the more manic Bugs Bunny shorts

[llltdesq · 9/10 · 22 June 2002]

This is one of the shorts pitting Wile E. Coyote (Super Genius) against Bugs. In these, the old fellow talks, whereas, with the Road Runner, he's silent. Bugs is quite manic here. Not as off the wall as in Rabbit's Feat, but close. Best bits are Bugs bopping to "Sweet Georgia Brown" and the computer gags at the end. Well worth watching. Most recommended.

An expansion (and improvement) upon 'Operation: Rabbit'

[phantom_tollbooth · 7/10 · 9 January 2009]

Chuck Jones's 'To Hare is Human' is an expansion on 'Operation: Rabbit', a cartoon that pitted Bugs Bunny against a vocal version of Wile E. Coyote. I was never fond of 'Operation: Rabbit', partly because I wasn't keen on a talking version of the Coyote, but since this version of the character already existed, there was no harm in making a sequel. As it transpire, 'To Hare is Human' is actually a very funny short. By this point, the Road Runner series was well established and Jones had more to lose by pushing forward with this alternative version of the Coyote but, happily, it pays off this time round. Michael Maltese's script is a great improvement on 'Operation: Rabbit', beginning with a very clever sequence in which the Coyote deconstructs what we expect of Bugs's usual adversaries. This witty sequence segues into a series of often hilarious, brilliantly executed gags, all of which are tied together by scenes in which the Coyote consults a huge machine as to how he should approach catching Bugs. The ending is a predictable variation on the climax to several Road Runner cartoons but this disappointing finale is not enough to diminish the quality of the rest of the film. While there will always be a part of me that wishes Jones had never given the Coyote a voice, 'To Hare is Human' is the best argument against this viewpoint.

"One mustn't be rude, even to one's breakfast."

[utgard14 · 8/10 · 26 December 2014]

Taking time out from his fruitless pursuit of the Road Runner, Wile E. Coyote tries to nab Bugs Bunny. He introduces himself with a card that reads "Have Brain, Will Travel." And yes, this is one of the cartoons where Wile E. Coyote (or "Coyotay") talks. Of course, Bugs proves to be too much for Wile E. to handle. So the coyote builds a Univac Electronic Brain from a do-it-yourself kit. It's a super computer and he consults it on the best way to capture Bugs. There's a fun little twist to this but, suffice it to say, Wile E. is screwed . It's a fun Chuck Jones cartoon with colorful animation and some creative gags. Love the Univac. Great voicework from Mel Blanc, as usual. Wile E. Coyote is a fun adversary for Bugs in the few shorts they did together.

this cartoon truly represents what the baby boom generation grew up with

[lee_eisenberg · 7/10 · 8 December 2007]

Sort of a sequel to "Operation: Rabbit", Chuck Jones's "To Hare Is Human" once again has an eloquent Wile E. Coyote trying to trap Bugs Bunny. Needless to say, Bugs always avoids harm, and WEC gets harmed in the process. But even more than that is how this cartoon represents what the baby boom generation grew up with. Bugs vacuums his rabbit hole with his ears tied up like a 1950s housewife, and he even owns a womb chair! Imagine that: Bugs Bunny as Laura Petrie (Mary Tyler Moore's character on "The Dick Van Dyke Show")! Not to mention that the Univac sounds like a 1950s product, and looks like an early computer.

But maybe I'm reading too far into the cartoon. It was probably intended as pure entertainment, and it entertains. Worth seeing.

The dangers of relying to much on computers!

[DaniGirl1969 · 8/10 · 3 July 2011]

The second of Wile E Coyote's encounters with Bugs Bunny, and while not quite as funny as the first (the classic "Operation Rabbit"), it's still great fun and well worth watching. It gets off to a slow start, with Wile E -- having easily put the bag on Bugsy -- allows the rabbit to squeeze his out of the bag while he carries on a conversation with himself. But as soon as the coyote looks into that bag to see what Bugs has left him, the fun begins. This time, our self-styled genius relies on a giant computer -- "Univac, the Electronic Brain" -- to come up with ways to capture Bugs... and of course each idea ends with one barbecued coyote! Among the funniest gags is a pop-up carrot toaster -- which launches two hand grenades right into the face of our luckless predator.

This cartoon even serves as a warning to us today, though it was made over half-a century ago. Wile E obeys every command from his electronic brain, even when it orders him to stand under a falling rock and "take his medicine".. kind of like motorists today will slavishly follow every twist and turn recommended by our GPS units -- to the point of driving right into the middle of a swamp! Of course, we have to hope our GPS units don't have the same internal mechanism that Wile E's computer does!

Funny stuff!

[slymusic · 27 August 2009]

"To Hare Is Human" is a Warner Bros. cartoon directed by Chuck Jones that pairs Wile E. Coyote with.......Bugs Bunny! Quite an unusual combination, but it works. Just add a distinctive voice of elegance for the Coyote, and substitute Bugs for the Road Runner, and you've got it made.

My favorite scenes: I love the opening, in which the Coyote introduces himself to Bugs and offers a long scholarly explanation about the advantages of his own brainpower, after which Bugs plants an explosive surprise for him and dances back towards his hole while singing "Sweet Georgia Brown". While the Coyote attempts to burglarize Bugs' hole, Bugs (reading in bed while wearing a bunny-eared nightcap) tosses a banana peel for the Coyote to slip on. The Coyote throws a stick of dynamite in Bugs' vacuum; Bugs climbs out of his hole (his ears tied together like a kerchief), dances a jig toward a trash can (where the Coyote awaits), and dumps the contents of his vacuum.

"To Hare Is Human", and to err is Coyote!