Who's Superstitious?

With Halloween just around the corner, it's no wonder that TCM has decided to haul out this "Passing Parade" short from the James Nesbitt series.

WHO'S SUPERSTITIOUS? covers familiar ground when it comes to superstitious myths but does it in an entertaining way. I was surprised to see DON TAYLOR doing a small role as a sailor (in 1943), since I thought he'd become a contract player at MGM by that time.

Walking under a ladder, a black cat crossing your path, telling a lie and crossing your fingers, knocking on wood and things of that nature are illustrated and explained briefly. Too much time is spent on the story behind the Flying Dutchman and the ship at sea but for a finale there's a good laugh at the way thirteen steps lead to a woman's fall on the steps of her brownstone.

Passes the time pleasantly.

This entry into John Nesbitt's PASING PARADE series covers some common superstitions, like not walking under ladders, crossing your fingers when you tell a lie, never opening an umbrella indoors, and fear of Friday the 13th. Eventually it settles into a meditation on the Flying Dutchman, and how this may have led to the mapping of some of the ocean's main currents.

It's a typical and amusing entry, with its combination of folksy narration and instruction. Nesbitt's series started as a bit on the radio, and for a dozen years was a mainstay of MGM's shorts department. Like many of them it was illustrated radio, with Nesbitt telling the tale, and the performers acting out the details in silence, albeit with occasional sound effects.

Who's Superstitious (1943)

*** (out of 4)

Passing Parade short shows us various superstitions and gives us the reasons behind their legend. The black cat, Friday the 13th, crossing your finders, walking under a ladder and various other superstitions are discussed here in this fairly interesting short. The film doesn't run long enough to fully get into the legends but for a short the film does a very good job at keeping your entertained as well as giving you these small facts. The film has a lot of reenactments and all of them are well done and contain enough charm to keep the film moving. The stories being told, making superstitions look bad, might not go well with those who believe in them but either way the film is worth viewing.