A Connecticut Yankee

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court must have been seen by Mel Brooks because you can picture a couple movies of his ( History of the World Part One and Blazing Saddles ) taking their ideas from scenes from this movie. The problem is Brooks's films were a lot better. This movie is supposed to be funny, trust me it was not. In fairness, There is one effective scene involving Will Rogers on a horse with a rope at a joust, but except for that the only reason to watch is Myrna Loy as Morgan Le Fay. Watch Myrna's eyes they are something to behold. I have seen Myrna as the bad girl quite a few times, and this might be her most evil role. As a Myrna fan I can only imagine Will Rogers enjoyed kissing her. With the exceptions of Salma Hayak, Sophia Loren and possibly Elsa Martinelli there is no actress I would prefer to have made out with. I give the film 3/10 stars. One for inspiring better movies the other two for Myrna Loy.

Incredible as it may now seem, over ninety years ago this nonsense was a huge box office hit and actually made the 'New York Times'' ten best films of the year. Unfortunately most of Will Rogers' topical jokes would now only be funny to an expert on Depression-era America, while the many deliberate anachronisms - both verbal and visual - similarly seem merely childish rather than satirical.

The version today is substantially shorter than the film that originally hit cinemas, which probably explains the brevity of the presence of probably the film's greatest asset: Myrna Loy as Morgan Le Fay. Wearing a long slinky gown, those sloe eyes in heavy eyeliner, the preCode Myrna was a very different entity from the perfect wife as which she later officially became a star. Stills of her in costume make the film more fun to anticipate than actually to sit through.

A radio man visits a spooky old house at night. There he briefly meets the strange inhabitants, including a mad scientist who tries to use radio waves to tune into the past. An accidental bang on the head sends the radio man back to King Arthur's Court.

So starts this version of the oft-filmed Mark Twain tale, this time re-worked for the personality of Will Rogers - who certainly doesn't sound like a Connecticut Yankee. In fact, Will is the main reason to watch this early talkie. His humor - one suspects much was ad-libbed - was always refreshing. Fox obviously spent a lot of money on the Camelot scenes; they look very good. Many of the performers, however, have trouble with their stilted dialogue.

Myrna Loy looks beautifully evil, but her part is not developed. The always lovely Maureen O'Sullivan is totally wasted in a small role. William Farnum does the best he can as Arthur, but the other male co-stars are much hampered by the script or just plain immature acting.

Will Rogers, as always, is wonderful - delivering his lines in his soft, shy, Oklahoma drawl. He had star presence without even trying. It is terrific fun seeing him win a joust with a knight by using his excellent roping & riding skills. Mark Twain's Ghost must have smiled...

The movie is updated from Mark Twain's 1889 novel, with Will Rogers, as Hank Martin a radio engineer who heads out to a spooky castle sort of pace, where he meets various people, then onto the main body of the story: sentenced to death, the eclipse prediction - which is based on something that actually happened to Christopher Columbus - and the introduction of modern technology and methods: knights getting armor repaired at service stations, telephone switchboards, Model T cars and auto gyros, and Rogers in a tournament with a bunch of armored knights, where he gets to show off rope tricks.

While the visuals are handled nicely, the pacing of the movie is rather slow, both in the way that dialogue is directed, and the editing needs to be quickened; it's a common situation at Fox in 1931. The serious heart of the novel is cut out, and Rogers gets only one great line, a bit of gallows humor. While it's always a pleasure to see Rogers, and there's a fine cast that includes William Farnum and Myrna Loy and Maureen O'Sullivan, this is not among the best of Rogers' vehicles.

I love Will Rogers. Living in Oklahoma near Claremore, his home town. . .I know just how to appreciate him. I've been to his museum/memorial many times. It's so sad to me that he couldn't have made MORE talkies. Silent picture are SO hard to watch! But A Connecticut Yankee is one of his best talkies. . . the jokes are still funny and relivent today. Who would have thought of Will Rogers as Mark Twain's American Yankee? This movie is timeless! I couldn't love it more. Having been to his museum, I've seen his costume for this film. It kind of made me realize that Will Rogers was a real person, and there was something of his that I get get close to. . . something he'd worn. It made this movie more interesting to me. Of course, not everyone can go see his costume. But at least you can watch this film, and remember one of the greatest Americans who ever lived. This movie is a must see for any Oklahoman, Will Rogers lover, or anyone who likes a good joke!