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31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Vintage W. C. Fields, April 19, 2001
This review is from: It's a Gift [VHS] (VHS Tape)
W. C. Fields is at his "man against the world" best in this hilarious comedy. The plot of grocery store operator Harold Bissonette (pronounced Bisso-NAY, please), who yearns for a California orange ranch, is secondary to the frequent moments of classic comedy. For sidesplitting laughter, check out Harold's encounter with Mr. Muckle, the blind and deaf hotel detective who wreaks havoc in the grocery store. In addition, Harold trying to sleep on the porch swing is one of the greatest comedy scenes ever filmed. Aside from noisy neighbor disruptions, he suffers an assertive insurance salesman looking for Carl LaFong ("Capital 'L,' small 'a,' capital 'F,' small 'o,' small 'n,' small 'g.' LaFong!). Harold's reaction to these various annoyances keeps the viewer in stitches. Harold's shrewish wife and her scolding reaction to everything her husband says or does puts the "fun" in dysfunctional. Fields also has a couple of encounters with Baby LeRoy. Obnoxious children and their overbearing mothers are among Fields' best targets for razor-sharp comedy. Even Harold and the family dog don't get along. Harold threatens to replace the dog with an "iron" deer lawn ornament. Fields' comic style stresses physical humor, sight gags, and his trademark asides. The comic side of drinking is part of his standard routine, good taste notwithstanding. Fans of W. C. Fields, classic comedy fans, and everyone who enjoys debunking the guises of stuffy respectability needs this movie for their personal movie collection. Recommended for multiple viewing. ;-)
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28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Next, They'll Probably Give Me A Velocipede...", May 9, 2000
This review is from: It's a Gift [VHS] (VHS Tape)
In a number of films, W. C. Fields played a variation on the theme of the hen-pecked husband, but it all came together to perfection in "It's A Gift," an hilarious comedy directed by Norman Z. McLeod. Harold Bissonette (Fields) owns a small grocery store, has an overbearing wife, Amelia (Kathleen Howard), a daughter, Mildred (Jean Rouverol), who is in love, a son, Norman (Tommy Bupp), with a penchant for leaving roller skates in the wrong places, and aspirations to a better life that includes wealth, leisure, respect and gin (not necessarily in that order). He has his eye on an orange grove in sunny, Southern California, complete with a house, that he's seen a picture of in a magazine. When "Uncle Bean" passes away, Harold parlays a modest inheritance into the purchase price, and the pursuit of the dream becomes a reality, much to the chagrin of Amelia, who thinks he's a fool. And lets him know about it in no uncertain terms. A cross country foray to the promised land with the entire family follows, and when they finally arrive in California, they find the house in disrepair and nary an orange to be seen; at least not in their grove. Harold refuses to give up, of course, and with a little luck, and some shrewd bargaining with a land developer in need of a parking lot, by the end he's living his dream. The humor in this film is vibrant and punctuated throughout by the inimitable Fields, with his trademark delivery, body language and, of course, the "proboscis," that have made him an icon of Americana. There's one uproarious scene after another, especially one in which Harold tries to take a nap on the porch while contending with noisy neighbors upstairs and down, an ice pick wielding child, and an insurance salesman (T. Roy Barnes) looking for a man named LaFong: "LaFong, Carl LaFong. Capital `L' small `a,' capital `F' small `o' small `n' small `g.' LaFong!" he says. "I don't know LaFong," Harold replies, "And if I did, I wouldn't tell you!" Another memorable scene takes place in the store, and involves the blind Mr. Muckle (Charles Sellon), who has an encounter with a display of light bulbs, and a young lad who discovers the tap on a vat of molasses; all of which produces the anticipated results. With a supporting cast that includes Julian Madison (John, Mildred's fiance), Baby LeRoy (Baby Dunk), Tammany Young (Everett Ricks), Josephine Whittell (Mrs. Dunk) and Diana Lewis (Miss Dunk), "It's A Gift" is a laugh-out-loud movie that can be watched over and over again; this is Fields at his best, in a timeless classic comedy that gets funnier every time you see it. For Field's fans, or for anyone who just wants to laugh and have a good time, this film is a definite "must see."
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific film in sympathy of the common man, April 26, 2000
This review is from: It's a Gift [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This comic gem features W.C. Fields at his dryest and best as Harold Bissonette, a sort of everyman who inherits a fortune and invests in what starts out as a hair-brained scheme, to the chagrin of his nagging wife (played to the hilt by Kathleen Howard) and bratty children. Fields is the master of understatement when it comes to comedy - if you love subtle humor (as I do), you'll view this film repeatedly. This film remains one of my personal favorites in that the lead character is a man who seemingly cannot please anyone (try though he may), yet prevails himself in the end. Some of the greatest sequences include: the bathroom shaving scene, where Bissonette tries to shave while his ditzy daughter primps herself; a night-time argument between Fields and his wife, ending with Bissonette spending the night on the porch and having to endure all sorts of annoyances while trying to sleep; and a road trip to Florida with the Bissonettes, which from beginning to end is a riot. Plus all the scenes between Fields and Howard are excellent - it's no wonder they did a second film together. My favorite exchange: Mrs. Bissonette (fake-crying): "I've given you the best years of my life. . . "; Mr. Bissonette (under his breath): "Yes, you have, dear . . ." I suggest this film mainly for men (the ladies I suggest it to usually don't see much humor in it) - specifically guys who are numb from absorbing the blows from both family and the workplace. Thank you, Universal, for finally re-releasing it on tape (Side note: please release another Fields classic, "The Man on the Flying Trapeze," as soon as possible to video - it is on the same order as this one, it even co-stars Kathleen Howard).
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