20,000 Cheers for the Chain Gang

This Warners short, which I presume ran on the same bill as Mervyn LeRoy's "I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang," is a mostly tired and unfunny film. It reminded me of just about every "Saturday Night Live" skit ever made, in which all of the actors think the material is funnier than the people watching it, and push a one-note joke to the brink of exhaustion.

It is sort of fun to watch this after LeRoy's movie, because it spoofs specific details from the movie rather than its premise in general. Replacing the jailers' pack of bloodhounds with a bunch of fluffy white poodles was sort of funny, and I also liked the bellboy whose uniform was made of prison stripes.

There are a lot of musical numbers incorporated into the action, performed by people I'd never heard of. The whole thing feels very patchwork and grade Z, with terrible sound and only the most cursory attention given to the actual film-making.

20,000 Cheers for the Chain Gang (1933)

** (out of 4)

During the 1930s Warner was known for their hard-hitting social dramas and I AM A FUGITIVE FROM A CHAIN GANG was one of their greatest. This two-reeler is a spoof of that film and centers on a group of chain gang workers who grow tired of the horrid conditions so they decide to escape. Soon afterwards they get word that the prison has made some terrific changes so the men decided they want to break back in. 20,000 CHEERS FROM A CHAIN GANG has a pretty good title but that's about the only good thing going for it. It wasn't rare for Warner to spoof their features in their short films so this here certainly isn't anything new but at the same time very little is done with it. There are a few funny moments scattered throughout the film including one bit where the men are being chased by the dogs but the dogs turn out to be poodles and other non-threatening breeds. Another funny moment happens when the men try to break their chains but have a few issues. With that said, there are several moments that simply aren't funny and at times the film just comes across very boring and flat. This includes the entire second half of the picture where we see all the "changes" that were made but I assure you none of them will add any entertainment value.

"Interesting" is rather a neutral adjective, connoting neither good nor bad. (In fact, remember that supposed Chinese curse: "May you live in interesting times.")

But "20,000 Cheers for the Chain Gang" is much more interesting than entertaining.

It is one of the numerous Vitaphone shorts presented by Turner Classic Movies on the 90th anniversary of Vitaphone, then shown On Demand as part of a couple hours of some of the shorts.

Jerry Bergen, whoever he was, is the nominal star, but he was more of a distraction, with a silly hairdo and almost as silly mannerisms. (He somewhat reminded me of Joe Besser.)

However, as the ridiculous, but intendedly so, story continued, the movie became eminently watchable because of some beautiful legs among some talented dancers.

Roy Mack directed hundreds of these Vitaphone shorts, and naturally some of them were better, and some, like this one, not so much.

James Baskett is the uncredited singer, and is always worth hearing, and Harry Shannon, a good actor, is the uncredited warden.

Sure, give it a look. It won't take more than a few minutes, and you might get a kick out of the very non-seriousness.

A wonderful and often funny look at the life in a chain gang. Worth checking out if you could find it anywhere. It was well acted, nicely directed, and pretty interesting in its humorous look at Chain Gang farm under inspection.

Of all the ludicrous places to set a musical short, some very kooky people at Vitaphone thought it would be a great idea to have it be on a chain gang!! Yes, when I think of song and dance, I often think of chain gangs!!

When the film starts, the chain gang is singing up a storm and having an awfully good time, or so it seems. Some of these guys actually DO want to escape and they soon bolt towards freedom. Go figure...as it looked awfully amusing on the chain gang! Soon the law goes chasing after these fellows and the escapees wander upon a swell dance party...and everyone runs away when they see these guys in striped uniforms. Little do the escapees know that they SHOULD have stayed with the gang. This is because in the meantime, a committee is coming to inspect the barracks and the health of the chain gang. Because of this the boss decides to make a few 'small changes' to impress the committee. This actually is VERY funny...and you just have to see it for yourself. And what does happen to these five escapees? Just see it for yourself...you won't regret it.

This movie manages to work for one reason...it is completely ludicrous and silly. Anthing else would have been in bad taste and stupid....and while this one is very stupid, it's stupid in a GOOD way! Very cute and surprisingly funny...and a nice counterpoint to Warner's big hit from the year before, "I Was a Fugitive From a Chain Gang".