I feel like I’ve not written anything about any movies I’ve seen lately, so I’ll type briefly about this one. I had never actually watched a whole WC Fields film before, and while the caricature of Fields is for the most part backed up by the film, it was much better than I expected.
The jokes tend to be quite cruel, with a nice emphasis on drinking and smoking; all right up my alley for humor, but I was surprised with what they got away with in a mainstream film. Maybe Fields could get away with more b/c of his stature? At one point early on, Fields’ daughter throws a bottle at him, hitting him in the back of the head as he is leaving the house. He groans, rubs his head and leaves. Then a few seconds later he opens the door with a huge potted plant and rears back to throw it across the room and crush the girl. His wife yells at him, and he holds off throwing it, but just barely.
Later Fields poisons a man with the help of a bartender, continues to try to keep him sick with the help of a doctor, roughs up an 8 year old boy, lies to get a job, lies again to get a second job, and convinces his naive son-in-law to embezzle money from the bank for which they both work. (that’s just what I remember). All the while there are about 10 funny one-liners delivered every minute. Oh yeah, he basically performs cigarette tricks for a group of children, telling them not to smoke until they are nine, or something like that. That scene reminded me of the bit where Christopher Walken is talking to a group of children in front of a church in The Prophecy – just pure, lovely, bad influence. His comic timing, his line delivery and his body movement were incredibly smooth sure-footed. Also it was nice to see Shemp Howard in an acting role (as the bartender) where Moe wasn’t around to hit him in the head with a monkey wrench or jab him in the eye with a salad fork.
I was also happy to see that the film was only 75 minutes or so, since my attention span seems to have shrunk to that of a ritalin-riddled 3rd grader. The copy I had was Criterion edition, and I have to take a moment out to say that there wasn’t a drop of “extra” in it. No commentary, no Fields shorts or introductions; nothing. The films generally look quite good, (though I wonder if that was really the full 70mm print in Tati’s Play Time I was watching recently), but Criterion gets more credit than they are due. Often the extras are weak, and the intros and commentary – when present – are done by who was available, rather than by the best available.
What else is good prime Fields? I might try to watch more if my video store has some more good stuff.
I tried to watch Nightwatch last night and got bored after 45 minutes. I may try again tonight, but it reminded me somewhat of that turgid Hungarian subway movie that Reynolds pretended was good last year. Are all Eastern Europeans so slovenly and barely able to move past a shuffle these days?
Based on watching one a half films, I’ll have to say yes.
oh, just you wait till frisoli sees this. (the stuff about fields, not slovenly hungarians.) i am by no means an authority on fields but i will recommend never give a sucker an even break–quite possibly the most insane film i have ever watched.
I can’t remember which Fields this is in, but in one movie he turns to some guy in his store and says, flatly, “I hate you.” That’s the punchline, no set-up, no nicing it up… just the inimitable Fields delivery. “I(eee) HATE yuh-oooo.” Yeah, Fields. Mmmmm. John Cleese always raved about the brilliance of Fields.
I recently re-watched Keaton’s Sherlock Jr., and although its set-up runs a bit long, its final turn to mayhem (with Keaton a lovelorn projectionist daydreaming his way into the films he shows) is outstandingly silly. I think I’m going to pull out my Laurel and Hardy and get some more of the good old stuff.
You’re Hungarian, aren’t you Mauer? It’s the diet of caramel corn what makes them slow on their feet.
oh, man, I love W.C. Fields and use him as a role model. I think the absolutely essential next Field’s viewings should be It’s a Gift, which includes a beautiful set piece where Fields tries to get some sleep on an outdoor porch, and The Man on the Flying Trapeze which is only available through “pirates” selling duped copies on ebay. For some reason the films made for one studio are available while those for another (I can’t keep straight which is which)are on neither video nor dvd. however, i discovered most of them are available through obsessive fans on ebay or other online auctions (at very reasonable prices).
I would also highly recommend the collection “Six Great Shorts” which includes the brilliant shorts “The Golf Specialist” (a brilliant bit reprised in You’re Telling Me, also worth seeing) and “A Fatal Glass of Beer” wherein Fields plays the zither with his gloves on, as well as “The Dentist” where Fields gets away with some highly sexual physical comedy with a woman in his dental chair.
so really, the essential next steps are It’s a Gift, Man on the Flying Trapeze and as many shorts as you can find. on a side note, Fields as Mr. Micawber is the only lively thing in the adaptation of David Copperfield.
favorite moments from the bank dick: The bank examiner is nauseous from the mickey Fields slips him…so back at the room Fields enumerates many types of food (veal cutlet, chocolate eclair, etc.) until the examiner pukes.
Fields deliberately steps on the examiner’s glasses (pretending that it’s an accident, of course) and says, “Oh, and I try to be so helpful!” I think of this phrase often when I try to be “helpful” myself.
Fields gets the flim flam man’s message about potential riches all mixed up….explaining to his family that if they buy the stock in the mining company (?) they’ll have a house with “rivers of beer flowing over your grandmother’s paisley shawl.”
I could go on and on. Mark, Let us know what you think of the others you see.
I think that Criterion DVD is now out of print. So hold on to it, Mark.
I re-watched this last night after finding a 5 film set of Fields stuff at a good used bookstore in Hollywood. It was just as funny as the first time I saw it. It’s a Gift is on the set as well, and I’ll watch that one next.
i may have pointed this out before..but the officially unavailable movies W.C. Fields made for Paramount (I believe), such as the great The Man on the Flying Trapeze (“look, dear, walnuts.”)are available on ebay for modest prices. what was in the 5-film set, mark? nothing much but the shorts seem to be currently available. the situation is even more appalling for Laurel and Hardy…where most of the great shorts aren’t on DVD while the horrific Utopia (also called Atoll K) seems to be included in every “deluxe” set. what shitheads are in charge of the releases of classic comedy?
Here’s the Amazon link for it.
My Little Chickadee / You Can’t Cheat an Honest Man / It’s a
Gift / International House
From the looks of it, International House is probably the stinker, but even that has Burns & Allen & Cab Calloway.
And yeah, it looks like it’s the Paramount ones that are in limbo – these are Universal. I’ve known that Laurel & Hardy are in the same boat as well. It seems the copyright on these things would have to expire soon, and then it’s up to whomever to find a good print and sell the things. Maybe we could do that Michael. I havent been sued by a studio in years.
So I watched It’s A Gift and I’m sorry to say it did nothing for me. Like many “old” movies, I could understand WHY I should like it, and why I might have liked it 60 years ago, but I didn’t laugh much watching it in 2006. The set pieces were too long, too repetitive, too bland.
Fields just sort to accepts all of the abuse in this one, whereas in Bank Dick he fights back, and heaps it on to others. I also tried the Golf Specialist and was put off by the terrible quality and sound. My Little Chickadee was marginally better, but had too much Mae West and not enough WC Fields. I’ll try a couple more, but I’m beginning to think I just happened to start with the best of the bunch.
oh, Mark! that long porch scene is brilliant–especially because it goes on so long! keep giving Fields a chance–the bit in the golf specialist is reprised in “You’re Telling Me” so there you won’t have the problem with the sound/image. “The Fatal Glass of Beer” is also terrific…especially the lesson, never break a tambourine. I agree that My Little Chickadee is lesser Fields…the pairing is strangely disturbing, too. If anything, Fields and West are stand-alone personalities.
i thought i’d posted this yesterday, but i think you should watch never give a sucker an even break before giving up on fields completely as a relic of the 30s.
I’ll certainly give the others in the box set and he shorts reel their due, and I will find “Never Give A Sucker” somewhere
My faith was significantly restored last night by watching You Can’t Cheat an Honest Man. Unlike the Mae West collaboration, there is genuine chemsitry between Charlie McCarthy and W.C. Fields. This is the funniest Fields film I’ve seen other than The Bank Dick.
There are still jokes that go on for too long, but unlike in “It’s A Gift” these get funnier and funnier the longer they go; in particular mentioning rattlesnakes and boa costrictors to the snooty rich matron, and the bizarre ping-pong game which finally ends when he does a somersault over a sofa. Good stuff.
I think some old Laurel and Hardy stuff on Netflix, but I hesitate to queue them up given Michael’s apprehension of L&H on DVD. Michael, do you know anything about a 9-disc series called The Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy? I’d read up on it but, like Mauer, I don’t like to read. I don’t know who else to ask (Arnab once bore false witness to his own poopy underwear, so he can’t be trusted) so I turn to you, Michael.
They look worthwhile to me, because you’d find most of the silent short comedies on those discs (most of which I haven’t seen, though I have most of the sound shorts, thanks to AMC, back when it wasn’t crap)–the discs also contain shorts in which only Laurel or Hardy appear, so one might argue that they are stretching the concept, most likely to increase the number of discs and hence the cost (though it’s nice to see their solo work I imagine). Also I don’t get the impression there’s much in the way of special features, scholarship, chronology or some of the items we’d expect in more meticulous packages (why can’t Criterion take up the comedy gaps of Fields and Laurel/Hardy). So I’d say go for it. I may put it on my cue too. has anyone watched all the chaplin shorts, which received much better treatment than L+H’s?
Unlike many 16 year-old girls, I haven’t seen Chaplin’s shorts (badoom TING!), but I recently watched Modern Times again and was a bit disappointed. It has some classic scenes (that aren’t funny) and some funny scenes (that aren’t classic). But it’s not my favorite. I really enjoy The Idle Class (it’s actually a three-reeler) and (clocking it at six reels) The Kid. But I’ve not seen much before 1921, which is something I hope to correct very soon.
Some more W.C. Fields material making its way to DVD soon.
http://www.amazon.com/Fields-Collection-Trapeze-Telling-Fashioned/dp/B000LC4C0Q/sr=1-1/qid=1168534290/
The Man on the Flying Trapeze / Never Give A Sucker An Even Break / You’re Telling Me! / The Old Fashioned Way / Poppy