Men in Fright

OUR GANG may have ended its run at MGM ignominiously, but it didn't start out that way. In fact, I think the seven series films Metro made in 1938 are a bit better than the seven Hal Roach made earlier that year, and the best of them - in fact, probably the best of the whole MGM crop - is MEN IN FRIGHT, a funny, nimble romp made before the children's acting became painfully forced and those Sunday School lessons started seeping in. It's not just a fine MGM OUR GANG entry, it's a fine short, period.

1938-"Men in Fright" 1939-"Cousin Wilbur"-had it not been for the acting credits, I would have thought this Scotty Beckett playing Alfalfa's Cousin Wilbur and in the mid 30's playing Spanky's witty sidekick were two different people. 1940-"Kiddie Kure"-Alfalfa's swan song. He more than compensates for his deliberate, underachieved acting in most of the other MGM shorts. 1941-"Come Back Miss Pipps" 1942-"Going to Press" 1943-"Election Daze"-the kid who taunts Froggy in his election speech is cute. Janet Burstyn is at her best. In this short, the Gang shows they have fully recovered from the loss of Spanky. 1944-"Tale of a Dog"-last of the Our Gang shorts to be produced. Director Cyril Enfield, after a poor start in "Radio Bugs", and mediocre effort in "Dancing Romeo" now shows himself as a director of Our Gang shorts.

If there was ever a film that proved what an amazing young comedian Carl Switzer was, this was it.

While in the hospital visiting Darla, Alfalfa gets mistaken for tonsillectomy patient and is dragged off to surgery. However, before anything can happen, little Gary Jasgar unleashes some laughing gas in the elevator and Alfalfa goes nuts! His is a tour de force of wildness, as he does a Tarzan imitation on a gurney, impersonates a newborn baby, complains that the floor is full of holes, and swings on a chandelier.

The other kids are still very natural in their acting (with the possible exception of the too-cute Darla and Porky shouting out his name at the top of his lungs). You can tell MGM's gloss is creeping in, as the kids seem to work extra hard in hitting the proper marks, and dialogue is looped in whenever the kids can't say it themselves. However, this can be forgiven, as this short has more laughs than several of the Hal Roach shorts. In addition, we're treated to a bonus bit of Hanna Barbera animation. Definitely worth watching once even for the non-Our Gang fan.

Men in Fright (1938)

** (out of 4)

Darla is in the hospital having her tonsils removed when the gang shows up for a visit. Alfalfa decides to earn some easy money when a kid pays him for his close but this leads to the nurses thinking he's the one supposed to have his tonsils removed. MEN IN FRIGHT offers up a couple good laughs but once again MGM has delivered a rather routine and boring screenplay. It's easy to see why these weren't two-reelers because there's barely enough story to cover the eight-minute running time. Some of the highlights include Alfalfa's reaction to finding out why the nurse has come to get him. Another clever piece happens towards the end when we see the kids pigging out on food and this is followed by a nice animated sequence. The rest of the film is rather forgettable because not much actually happens. The kid's run around a bit but this here isn't all that funny. Darla isn't given anything to do other than sit in bed and most of the supporting players don't have much to do until we see them eat disgusting food at the end. Our Gang fans might want to check it out but others should find better material of theirs.

The gang goes to the hospital to visit Darley, who is recovering from a tonsillectomy. Their plans quickly go awry and the gang finds themselves in the same hospital.