The gags fly thick and fast in this Hope romp. If a viewer doesn't like one set-up, the next will be on in a flash. Hope's got to settle a debt to mobster Clark, otherwise he's toast. So the race-track tout sets up a phony Santa scheme using sidewalk donations supposedly going to an old ladies home. Can he pull it off since there're more characters to manage than a circus.
Hope's at his peak, physically and wise-crack wise. His shtick looks effortless, gliding from one set-up to the next. It's about as smooth as madcap comes, and not even the spare romantic scene dawdles And catch movie vets like a pre-Lucy William Frawley, fast-talking Lloyd Nolan, and professional grouch Fred Clark of the old Burns and Allen show. And for eye candy there's a luscious Marilyn Maxwell to sweeten things up. But shouldn't overlook versatile Jane Darwell of Grapes of Wrath.
But the real ace-in-the-hole is writer and uncredited director (IMDB) Frank Tashlin. His comedic stamp is all over the physical comedy. For instance, catch that undressing of the manikin in the storefront window. It's a hoot, and I would think a challenge for censors given the female detail. Or the cyclonic wind where the Girl Scouts help the wobbly Hope negotiate a sidewalk. In fact, there are numerous touches throughout that make this Hope entry a sleeper, especially at Xmas time. Too bad it's not better known among his stellar entries, Crosby or no.
Hope's at his peak, physically and wise-crack wise. His shtick looks effortless, gliding from one set-up to the next. It's about as smooth as madcap comes, and not even the spare romantic scene dawdles And catch movie vets like a pre-Lucy William Frawley, fast-talking Lloyd Nolan, and professional grouch Fred Clark of the old Burns and Allen show. And for eye candy there's a luscious Marilyn Maxwell to sweeten things up. But shouldn't overlook versatile Jane Darwell of Grapes of Wrath.
But the real ace-in-the-hole is writer and uncredited director (IMDB) Frank Tashlin. His comedic stamp is all over the physical comedy. For instance, catch that undressing of the manikin in the storefront window. It's a hoot, and I would think a challenge for censors given the female detail. Or the cyclonic wind where the Girl Scouts help the wobbly Hope negotiate a sidewalk. In fact, there are numerous touches throughout that make this Hope entry a sleeper, especially at Xmas time. Too bad it's not better known among his stellar entries, Crosby or no.