Charley's Aunt

Farce and slapstick abound in this OK version of Charley's Aunt. There are plenty of sophomoric laughs, though the humor gradually goes more and more over the top as the movie progresses (or digresses, as it were). It's a notch or two above your typical Three Stooges fare.

This play by Brandon Thomas having its debut auspiciously in the decade that came to be known as the Gay Nineties is still one of the most popular plays works done in the English language. I venture to say that somewhere on this globe there is a production in some language done of Charley's Aunt.

This particular version and I count 10 versions on film going all the way back to 1911 stars Charlie Ruggles as the Oxford undergraduate talked into going into drag and playing the aunt of one of the people who talked him into it. Chaperones were a big thing back in the day and classmates Hugh Williams and Rodney Mclennan want him to be an aunt to Williams so that they can make some time.

Things really get complicated when Ruggles does his female impersonation so well that Halliwell Hobbes starts falling for him. Such gender bending proved to be enduringly popular over the years. I'm certain many a female impersonator got their start in a Charley's Aunt production. In fact I recall in one of John Wayne's B westerns in the Thirties Gabby Hayes plays a former actor who played in a company of Charley's Aunt and used his costume as a disguise.

The physical comedy is pretty good too as Ruggles has many a close moment in that female attire. The Jack Benny film from the early Forties is better known, but this production is just fine.

Romantic complications abound when a zany young nobleman at Oxford is persuaded to impersonate his friend CHARLEY'S AUNT from Brazil - - where the nuts come from...

Although quite an antique - with its faded print & missing moments - this ancient talkie version of the Brandon Thomas chestnut looks like what it is: a filmed version of the play, full of slapstick & mistaken identities. However, it is remarkable for containing one of the first great comedy performances of the sound cinema - Charlie Ruggles in the title role.

Although at 44 he's too old to be playing a college boy, and his American accent initially seems a bit out of place, Ruggles soon dominates the proceedings with his shameless acting. Flouncing about in a granny dress, shawl & curls, flirting outrageously with two silly old men, taking pratfalls, mugging the camera, he is absolutely hilarious. Off to a good start, for the next 40 years Ruggles would be considered one of Hollywood's ablest character actors.

Supporting him are some fine British stalwarts - Halliwell Hobbes, Doris Lloyd, Hugh Williams. Together with Charlie Ruggles, they make this seldom-seen film an entertaining treat for modern viewers.

Charlie Ruggles turns in a fine, fine performance. This is a classic film performance of an acknowledged theater classic as well. Ruggles is worthwhile every time of a performance in all his comedy films.

This is one of the early talkie versions. Many versions have been made in the following decades. A wonderful version also exists and is available as a theater revival on Broadway and can be found on Youtube. But Charlie Ruggles sets a wonderful early standard.

It is unfortunate that a good copy of this film, rather than a washed out poor negative, cannot be found. If anyone knows where one is available, please post the information.