The Chump Takes a Bump

"The Chump Takes a Bump" is one of Charley Chase's last films. Unlike much of what he did for the Hal Roach Studio, by the late 30s, Chase was now doing films for Columbia that often recycled his old gags. Here, the main story idea from Chase's hit "Mighty Like a Moose" is reused-- but with pretty awful results.

The story begins with Charley's boss offering him a raise...IF he agrees to come along with him and pretend that the boss's mistress is his if anyone catches them. Charley's wife finds out he's out partying but doesn't realize that it's all part of his work. So, she gets all dressed up and goes to the nightclub to confront him. However, she's just gotten a makeover with a new hairstyle and he doesn't recognize it's the wife and he starts making passes at her. Where does it all go? See the film...or not.

In "Mighty Like a Moose", both Charley and his wife get plastic surgery. So, the idea of both of them meeting later and making passes at each other (i.e., they think they're cheating but they actually aren't) is kind of believable. However, in this lame remake you're expected to believe that a hairdo will be enough to make the wife unrecognizable?! Perhaps this might happen at first, but after spending the evening together and he STILL doesn't recognize it's her?!?! Unless he was insane, had a massive head injury or was rip-roaring drunk, this just doesn't make any sense. The film has a few laughs and is amiable enough but is also a reminder of just how far removed these later films are from his earlier successes. Watchable and not terrible...but you would expect more from a Chase film.

One of the advantages of Charley Chase's 25-year career in films was that he could revisit an old story every so often and offer new variations and gags. This one recapitulates his classic silent short, MIGHTY LIKE A MOOSE, combines it with TOO MANY MAMAS and runs them through their paces.

In the twelve years since the older versions were made, a lot had changed. Most obviously, this was a sound film, but more important, Charley's on-screen character had changed. In the first one, he was a wealthy young man. Now, for Columbia, his character was older and he works as a clerk. In the first movie, his wife has had a nose job that made her a stranger to Charley. In this one, she simply changes her hair color.

At the heart of both is the racy idea that Charley decides to have an affair with this stranger who turns out to be his wife.

With any good comedy, however, the plot is a minor point. It's the gags that count. There are a couple of very funny new sequences, one set in his office involving an ink pad and his boss' recruiting Charley as a beard for his two-timing and another in which he has his glasses scribbled on and he thinks he is going blind.

By the time Charley made this movie, director Del Lord and he had figured out how to pace Charley's naturalistic style of comedy for Columbia's faster-paced house style. Notice how this one starts out at a normal pace, picks up speed towards the end and uses an under-cranked camera to augment the pace. While this is not the best of the movies that Chase would make at Columbia -- they kept on getting better and better -- this is a topnotch short comedy.