I call this sort of film "kitchen sink" entertainment because just about every style of film is shoved into this 19 minute film--you name it, it's got it! It makes for a very strange viewing experience and is a public domain example of Black cinema--when in the bad old days, Black patrons were not allowed in Whites-only theaters. As a result, a small Black-produced film business began--with lots of low-budget films of practically every genre.
The film begins as a musical and domestic comedy, with Dad dancing in the other room with the maid. Mom and the daughter are annoyed and tell him to stop, after which they begin talking about their neighbor, Mr. Adam. Oddly, without any evidence or set up in the film, Mom says she thinks that the man is working on an atomic bomb!!! How she came to this conclusion, I can only chalk up to derangement. The police are notified and they send a couple guys (sort of like the Black equivalent of Abbott & Costello) to investigate.
Once they arrive at a small party in the home where Mr. Adam lives, there is, of course, a variety show going on in the living room (a typical party circa 1949, right?!). And, in the final act of the program, Mr. Adam chooses the goofy cop (the Lou Costello-like guy) and does an insanely dangerous magic trick with the guy as his assistant. It really is just an excuse to do a Vaudeville-style comedy bit--though I must admit that at least this portion is funny. Afterwords, the cops realize (duh) that there's no bomb at all--the world, it seems, is safe for another day!
Overall, the film is bizarre and makes little sense with all its disparate story elements. The singing and dancing aren't particularly good, either. However, as a little window into Black-America of the time, it is of some interest and hence is worth a look. My score of 4 is probably a bit generous, but I did like the cheesy charm of this strange film.
The film begins as a musical and domestic comedy, with Dad dancing in the other room with the maid. Mom and the daughter are annoyed and tell him to stop, after which they begin talking about their neighbor, Mr. Adam. Oddly, without any evidence or set up in the film, Mom says she thinks that the man is working on an atomic bomb!!! How she came to this conclusion, I can only chalk up to derangement. The police are notified and they send a couple guys (sort of like the Black equivalent of Abbott & Costello) to investigate.
Once they arrive at a small party in the home where Mr. Adam lives, there is, of course, a variety show going on in the living room (a typical party circa 1949, right?!). And, in the final act of the program, Mr. Adam chooses the goofy cop (the Lou Costello-like guy) and does an insanely dangerous magic trick with the guy as his assistant. It really is just an excuse to do a Vaudeville-style comedy bit--though I must admit that at least this portion is funny. Afterwords, the cops realize (duh) that there's no bomb at all--the world, it seems, is safe for another day!
Overall, the film is bizarre and makes little sense with all its disparate story elements. The singing and dancing aren't particularly good, either. However, as a little window into Black-America of the time, it is of some interest and hence is worth a look. My score of 4 is probably a bit generous, but I did like the cheesy charm of this strange film.
