Merrie Melodies - Duck Amuck (1953)

Duck Amuck is a 1953 American animated surreal comedy short film directed by Chuck Jones and written by Michael Maltese. The short was released on February 28, 1953 as part of the Merrie Melodies series, and stars Daffy Duck.

In the cartoon, Daffy Duck is tormented by an unseen, mischievous animator, who constantly changes Daffy's locations, clothing, voice, physical appearance, and even shape, much to Daffy's aggravation, embarrassment, and finally rage. Pandemonium reigns throughout the cartoon as Daffy attempts to steer the action back to some kind of normality, only for the animator to either ignore him or, more frequently, to over-literally interpret his increasingly frantic demands. In the end, the tormenting animator is revealed to be Bugs Bunny.

In 1994, it was voted #2 of The 50 Greatest Cartoons of all time by members of the animation field, losing only to What's Opera, Doc?, also directed by Jones and Maltese. In 1999, Duck Amuck was added to the National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or esthetically significant."

History:
According to the director Chuck Jones, this film demonstrated for the first time that animation can create characters with a recognizable personality, independent of their appearance, milieu, or voice. Although Bugs Bunny (who declares "Ain't I a stinker?") is revealed to be the unseen animator, Jones comments that the ending was just for comedic value: Jones (the director) is speaking to the audience directly, asking "Who is Daffy Duck anyway? Would you recognize him if I did this to him? What if he didn't live in the woods? Didn't live anywhere? What if he had no voice? No face? What if he wasn't even a duck anymore?" In all cases, Daffy is still Daffy; not all cartoon characters can claim such distinctive personalities.
Mel Blanc performed the voices. The film contains many examples of self-referential humor, breaking the fourth wall.