Hot Spot (1945)

Sorry, this movie sucks

Sadly Over-hyped

A Major Disappointment

It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

. . . Iran. When HOT SPOT was originally released in Aug., 1945, Leader Trump was technically a Fetal U.S. Citizen. But Warner Bros.' uncannily accurate prognosticators picture Leader Trump in his Trump Tower Oval Office at the beginning of HOT SPOT. Leader Trump is portrayed as the Lone Ranger type that he's proved himself to be, thinking nothing of traveling alone to America's future HOT SPORT--Iran--to personally see what kind of a deal his art can negotiate to replace Predecessor B. Hussein Obama's "dumbest deal in World History." However, the fearless Trump discovers that the 224 tunnels and 4,000-plus bridges on the Trans-Iranian Railroad to Russia makes it impossible to stymie this Smugglers' Paradise for nuclear weaponry threatening our American Homeland. HOT SPOT also depicts a Jihadi Truck Driver of the Future forcing the vehicles of our American Nuke Inspectors to plummet to their doom from Persia's inferior mountain "roads" right in front of a horrified Trump. HOT SPOT predicts that Iran's average temperature will be 180 degrees after Leader Trump blankets this rogue nation with mushroom clouds.

Another entry in the Private Snafu series made for use by the US Army during World War II. This one's directed by Friz Freleng and focuses on the hazards of transporting supplies across the mountains and desert areas of the Middle East. The Devil (voiced by the Great Gildersleeve himself, Harold Peary) leaves his cushy seat in Hell to go to Iran because he's told how hot it is and refuses to believe it's anything more than propaganda. He discovers it's true as he watches a group of soldiers (including a surprisingly mature if still not entirely competent Snafu) work in the scorching heat to transport supplies across dangerous terrain. Fun stuff helped greatly by Peary's marvelous voice work.

This is one of a series of shorts in the Private Snafu series of training shorts commissioned by the US Army during World War II. There will be spoilers ahead:This actually isn't a training film so much as an informational film about the supply routes the Allies used from Iran to the USSR during World War II. The supplies shipped to the USSR via land and sea routes were absolutely vital to keeping the USSR capable of fighting at the optimum against Nazi Germany.Private Snafu is actually a secondary character here, with the Devil instead taking center stage to be the narrator and supplier of information. The cartoon has its humorous moments, but it's more dry and informative than funny. Snafu only has a couple of foul ups ad they aren't central to the point of the short.The funniest aspect of the short is the Devil's reaction to the heat in Iran. He goes from his domain dressed in a full tux only to gradually shed layers of clothing, taking salt tablets and showing definite signs of heat distress. There's a nice gag involving a camel which has a beautiful payoff.This short is available on various DVDs and also online and is well worth the time to find. Most recommended.

During WWII, the US government financed a series of Private Snafu cartoons. Using a wonderful sense of humor, they were able to convey important messages to the troops--and the films were not shown to the general public. You can tell this in a few of the films, as the humor is a bit more adult than you could have gotten away with in theaters. Today, you can find these shorts on DVD as well as for free downloads at archive.org.The purpose of "Hot Spot" is to familiarize troops about conditions in Iran, as this was used as a staging point to bring war supplies to the Soviet Union. The Devil himself hears about how hot it is there and decides to have a look for himself. There he sees Snafu and the rest of the troops working amazingly hard in the sun. Most of it isn't all that funny, but the Devil was quite cute and engaging. Worth seeing but not brilliant. Oh, and by the way, it does NOT get up to 180 degrees there....ever.