Sit Tight

Joe E. Brown is very good in this comedy about a health camp that occasionally tries to go the crazy comedy route -- he and Winnie Lightner together sound like Wheeler and Woolsey -- but, despite many good moments, the whole thing is less chaotic than muddled.

Mr. Brown, who rose to prominence in SALLY, was moving out of the musical-comedy roles that had defined him on stage into the brash roles that became his type for the next ten years. Sometimes, as noted, he sounds like half of Wheeler and Woolsey, sometimes he sounds like Charley McCarthy and sometimes he seems to be channeling Bert Lahr. He is excellent at the physical comedy -- his circus background was a real asset to physical comedy -- and it's easy to see why within a couple of years he would be one of Warner Brothers' biggest stars.

Miss Lightner sings one song and scraps with Mr. Brown, who is in love with her and there is a considerable subplot with young lovers Paul Gregory and Claudia Dell -- he's quite good and she is gorgeous. Tom Kennedy has a nice hulking bit. But despite some nice comedy construction, the remnants of a standard 1920s musical comedy plot render this antiquated.

The style of "Sit Tight" might surprise folks familiar with the movies of Joe E. Brown. This is because the style of the picture is little like the more famous movies he made for Warner Brothers in the 1930s. This is because "Sit Tight" was intended as a musical*...and the style of such a film is much more episodic than a typical Brown picture. But what also is surprising is that he doesn't even get top billing AND the romantic plot doesn't even involve him!

Winnie (Winnie Lightner) and Jojo (Brown) run a health clinic. Out of the blue, they discover that Tom (Paul Gregory) is a natural wrestler...and so they decide to train him for a career in grappling. As for Tom, he and his girlfriend just broke up and he's wrestling both for the money and to spite Sally. What's next? See the film...and see how insane it all becomes at about 52 minutes into the movie.

So is this any good? Well, Brown is pretty good...but the structure of the film looks more like a play and the comedy seems to play second to everything else. And, the role played by Paul Gregory is the sort usually played by Brown in his later films. It was as if they took a typical Brown script and split it up between two different leading men. Overall, a slightly disappointing film that is still watchable.

*In the very early days of American talking pictures, musicals were a HUGE draw. But after so many, there was a short-lived backlash against them. And so the studio decided to excise all but one of the songs from "Sit Tight"...yet they inexplicably kept the rest of the film without a major re-write.

Winnie Lightner is Brown's co-star in this seldom seen film from Warner Brothers. Looks like she only did thirteen films after her time in Broadway shows. She would be censored for the lyrics of her songs, even though the Hays code didn't really kick in until about 1934, 1935, when she was already retiring. Here she really steals the show, and sings a couple numbers. This one is in need of a restoration; the sound and picture quality are pretty bad for the first half hour, and again later in spots. Jojo (Brown) and Winnie (Lightner) run a spa, and Jojo wants to get married, but Winnie isn't ready yet. We see her at the beginning, then Jojo does a few vaudeville bits, alone and with other minor players at the health spa. Also a three way wrestling match. Jojo decides to train "Tom" (Paul Gregory) as a wrestler. Paul Gregory died at age 38 in NYC, but I haven't been able to find out the cause of death. Anyone know? During a wrestling demonstration, we suddenly jump into an out-of-focus display of a sultan and dancer scene, which doesn't make any sense. Also watch for "Snitz Edwards"... who was really born Edward Neumann. so how did he end up with the name Snitz?? Directed by Lloyd Bacon. Based on a story by Rex Taylor, who had started writing during the silents. It's pretty good. Exactly what you'd expect from a Joe Brown film.