Francis Goes to West Point

I have to admit, this film has nothing much to recommend it except for the fact that it was among the very first movies I ever saw. I believe it was in the Fox Theater in New Orleans, off Elysee Blvd. way, way back there. I know I was young enough to be mightily impressed at how on earth they got a mule to talk! I'm still not sure.

Anyway, Donald O'Connor is one of the more underrated musical comedy guys from back then, and the show as a whole is pleasantly sawdust-brained. It's part of my education in films, and I love it just for that.

It lacks the warmth found in the original film, but it is certainly funnier and has a better storyline than the second installment. Some audiences may be put off by the military setting considering that this film is supposed to be a light family film, but it does add some tensions to the story.

Francis the Mule is not quite the center of attention (It is as though the film should be called "Peter Goes to West Point"), but his role is much more involved here than it was in the second film. In fact, the film shift the attention away from Peter Stirling to Francis towards the end of the film.

On the whole, this film is worth your time whether or not you are a fan of the series.

Just as a grateful rich man once gave Laurel&Hardy a free trip to Oxford;a grateful military rewards Donald O'Connor for preventing an explosives plant sabotage by enrolling him in west Point as an "automatic genius". As an "Army Mule",Francis is much more at home there than O'Connor;who has to put up with the bullying upperclassmen and always ends up doing punishment drills;some of them for not giving away Francis' unusual ability.

Francis' whispered advice helps the Army football team to an undefeated season.

There is NO romance in the film whatsoever--the blonde is in love with the star quarterback;who feels "trapped" at West Point ---and the brunette is only permitted a few sympathetic clucks over O'Connor's bungling.

Funniest scene is when Francis' private drilling instructions to O'Connor somehow get broadcast onto t he main playing field;fouling up the dressage parade.

It seems odd to have Francis and O'Connor split up at the end,as they are supposed to be "pals to the end".

Otto Hewlett,as the football coach,gives the funniest backup performance.

While I didn't spot Leonard Nimoy,ADVENTURES OF SUPERmAN fans can look for perennial villain Pierre Watkin as one of the officers.

I'm also wondering if the film was shot on actual location.

This is the third in the Francis, the Talking Mule series. It begins with Peter and Francis at a plant where they save the building from being blown up. So Stirling now ends up at West Point. Some later familiar faces turn up here: David Janssen (credited as Dave, later of "The Fugitive") and James Best (yes, the later Roscoe P. Coltrane on "The Dukes of Hazzard"!) as a couple of guards at the place giving Peter a hard time, and Leonard Nimoy (partially recognizable as a younger version of Mr. Spock from the original "Star Trek" despite not wearing his hair with bangs and no pointy ears!) as one of the cadet football players. As usual, the funniest scenes involve Chill Wills' voice as the mule and his interactions with not only Donald O'Connor but some of the supporting players who discover Francis talking to them. So on that note, Francis Goes to West Point is worth a look.

The third in the FRANCIS THE TALKING MULE series is yet another ordinary affair, with nothing much to recommend in it. The setting is military school, with Francis missing in action far too much of the time, as well as most of the laughs, apparently. The only thing interesting for me was spotting a very young Leonard Nimoy as a cadet late into the film.

It's a shame that more entertainment was not accomplished with this formula, as Donald O'Connor and his jabbering jackass had the potential for being an entertaining pair together.

** out of ****