A Language All My Own (1935) User Reviews

"If you sing it when you're sad it will always make you glad!"

[Foreverisacastironmess123 · 7/10 · 20 August 2017]

This short has Betty playing the role of goodwill ambassador to Japan, where she gives a heartfelt thanks to her many adoring foreign fans! Normally I don't care for it all that much in her cartoons, but I actually really like Betty's song in this one, you kind of have to in order to really enjoy the short. It's an entertaining little tune, I like how she goes through several nationalities while she sings and even sings some of it in Japanese while in her nifty kimono dress which is so cool! The short has a bit of a multicultural vibe to it, which is no surprise as it was created out of appreciation of the large Betty Boop fanbase in Japan, and you get that, it has a celebratory feel to it as well. And not that they do very much besides singing along, but I really like how they were very respectful of the Japanese people and gave them dignified designs that were normal and not the bucktoothed squinty eyed nonsense that you'd usually be getting at the time. They're quite caricature and stereotype free, the short feels like it was carefully made so as to not contain anything offensive, and that to me kind of sets it apart from other Boop cartoon shorts and a lot of the racially insensitive vintage animations of the time. The short was made before ww2, so any doubts about its purpose are sorely misplaced. It sure does cast a hefty shadow though, but it's still a sweet animated token of racial harmony and good relations between countries and people in my opinion. There exists a colourised version but I much prefer to watch any of Betty's distinctive escapades in the monochromatic wonderful dancing freak show world she was made for. And also, for all intents and purposes it's the last time that Betty would be acting all sexy and suggestive in her wardrobe attitude and movements, as the dreaded 'code' soon swooped in and cleaned up her image, and we ended up with Pudgy the Pup - a tragedy! It's a simple short plot-wise, there are no monsters or creepy chaotic fun elements to speak of, but I'm fond of it, it's sweet and well- meaning, not to mention rather catchy. One of many endearing mini adventures for the legendary charmer. The whole world still loves you so sweet Betty! X

Betty's Show, Whole Cartoon - Very Entertaining

[ccthemovieman-1 · 9/10 · 24 February 2007]

This is primarily one song-and-dance routine by Betty, but I really enjoyed the prelude, so to speak, in which she finished one act and flew in her own plane all the way over to Japan for the big number. The airplane made me laugh out loud several times, sprouting legs and running down the runway, getting ahead of itself mid-flight, etc. There were a lot of good sight gags with that plane.

Then, Betty performs the title song to a sold-out audience in Japan and leaves. The song is good and so is the presentation, with little dancing people-lamps and other props. Betty sang song "catchy" tunes in her day.

This is entertaining.....all of it.

Not much in the way of plot, but it is awfully cute...and VERY unusual!

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 15 August 2013]

My score of 8 is relative to other cartoons of the 1930s. I don't think it's really fair to compare this cartoon to the stuff of the 1940s and 50s, as Looney Tunes, Disney and MGM were making amazing cartoon shorts in this era. During the 30s, cutesy singing stuff was pretty common--and doesn't hold up as well as these later cartoons. However, this Betty Boop cartoon, for a singing one, is awfully good due to nice animation (the Fleischers were known for this) and clever gags.

This cartoon, according to IMDb, was made to thank the huge support the Boop shorts was receiving from the Japanese. So, Betty finishes a show in America and flies to Japan to thank them. Once there, she and the audience have a bit sing-a-long and the film ends.

"A Language All My Own" is very interesting because compared to the day, the Japanese people are portrayed well--not as the typical stereotypical giant-toothed folks with thick glasses (I have no idea why this image was so popular at that time). This is very nice but I am also sure that the studio shelved the cartoon during WWII, as the American people DID want outrageous stereotypes of the Japanese at that time! Worth seeing because it's so catchy and cute. So, if you are curious enough to watch it, it can be downloaded for free at archive.org--a site often linked to IMDb pages.

One of the best later Betty Boop cartoons

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 4 February 2017]

A good deal of the pre-Production Code Betty Boop cartoons are daring and creative, with content that makes one amazed at what's gotten away with. While the later Betty Boop cartoons made after the Code was enforced are still watchable and exceptionally well-made, they are so toned down that they feel bland.

Fleischer were responsible for some brilliant cartoons, some of them still among my favourites. Their visual style was often stunning and some of the most imaginative and ahead of its time in animation. The character of Betty Boop, one of their most famous and prolific characters, may not be for all tastes and sadly not as popular now, but her sex appeal was quite daring for the time and to me there is an adorable sensual charm about her. The good news is that she has not lost her charm, she is still cute and her comic timing is good.

While it was said in the first paragraph that the later Betty Boop cartoons were bland in comparison to the pre-Code ones there were exceptions. 'A Language All My Own' is one of them, even if missing the risqué and surreal edge of before and being light in plot (not unusual for Betty Boop).

The animation is beautifully drawn and detailed and the music infectious and dynamic. The voice acting is good.

On top of that, 'A Language All My Own' is one of the funniest and more inventive later Betty Boop cartoons, there is some very funny content here and timed with a lot of wit and imagination. There are stereotypes here but nothing at all to get offended over.

In summary, very nice cartoon and one of Betty Boop's best later cartoons. 8/10 Bethany Cox

provocative

[Kirpianuscus · 8 February 2022]

Like each short films of Betty Boop, provocative at whole. For airplaine between fly and bird, for the song , not special but sounding in hear=d for a time after the end of episode, for the portrait of Japan. Short, just nice, reminding the differences between the time of her and us.