Fallen Arches

All right, not literally. I have a few issues with this Charley Chase picture. First, he doesn't sing. Second, the set-up gag is that he takes everything literally and follows orders.

Once you get past these two issues, you find your typically fine Chase picture from this period. Gus Meins is listed as the director, but Chase directed his own pictures although he would consult with his brother or Leo MacCarey when they were supposed to be his director. His leading lady in this period is Muriel Evans, not as fine a comedienne as Thelma Todd nor as good an all-around performer as Helen Mack, but pretty and competent and a subtle skill in letting you know she was having a good time.

Plus there's Billy Gilbrt in a foul mood and a nice Roach-Studios puddle gag. No one was as consistently funny at such a fast pace as Chase was, and if you have a chance to see a film by him, do so.

Fallen Arches (1933)

*** (out of 4)

Funny Hal Roach short has Charley Chase playing the lovable idiot who takes everything people says way too serious. When his boss (Billy Gilbert) tells him to hike up to San Francisco and start working poor Charley takes him literally and starts walking. Along the way he runs into a woman (Muriel Evans) who just happens to be the boss man's daughter and the two cross paths with a car thief. This is pretty much a one-note comedy with all the jokes being centered around Chase taking everything too literal. This includes one scene where a man tells him to jump in a lake, which he does. Another example is the daughter joking that she deserves a spanking, which Chase then gives her. This one-joke would be rather lame with just about any other comedian in the world but Chase is just so lovable as this type of idiot that he makes it work and makes it work extremely well. While the jokes were all very dumb I couldn't help but laugh at them simply because Chase sold them so well. You really do believe this guy is that stupid to where he'd do all these foolish things and not think twice about what he's doing. Evans gets a nice little sexual pre-code wink during a scene where she takes her clothes off to go swimming and this was certainly a highlight of the film. Gilbert only appears in the first five minutes but he's his usual great self. Chase's career went through so many periods with some better than others and while this here isn't a classic it's still a nice little picture and a good one to start with if you're unfamiliar with the star.

I am a huge fan of Charley Chase and have seen a bunch of his shorts. And, whenever Turner Classic Movies shows another one I have not seen, I am sure to watch--as he's very funny and very under-appreciated. However, even the best comedians make a poor film now and again...and this one, aside from a few decent gags is pretty bad--mostly because the main plot device is just dumb.

Charley's boss (Billy Gilbert) is frustrated as Charley is always taking people literally and getting into trouble. While this idea sounds good, he was 100% literal ALL THE TIME--and this stretched the idea well past the funny point. In addition, the frustrated boss seems to always be saying things that Charley will take too literally. Can any boss be that dumb? Can any employee be that dumb? Well, even Stan Laurel and Curly Howard's characters weren't THAT stupid. As a result, I found this short too long! The only really good gag was the one involving Charley being offered a lift--that's cute!