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22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lots of good old fashioned laughs and fun down on the farm, March 7, 2002
This review is from: The Ma & Pa Kettle Collection: The Egg and I [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This film has always been a favourite of mine. Claudette Colbert, a superb commedianne always stated that the corn ball humour of this film was not really to her liking after appearing in such sophisticated fare as "Midnight", "The Palm Beach Story" and "Skylark". In reality Claudette has never been better than in this her last really successful film after a brilliant collection of both dramas and comedys during the 30's and 40's. Some people might call the humour "corn ball" or "un sophisticated" but it is a lot of fun and the great cast carry it off wonderfully. The film has many funny moments, Betty and Bob (Fred McMurray) meeting the unstoppable Ma and Pa Kettle (Marjorie Main, a superb and totally underated actress, in an Oscar nominated role...she should definately have won!) for the first time, Betty's hilarious "initiation" to Kettle table manners during her first visit to Ma and Pa's for lunch complete with children to numerous to count (even Ma doesn't know all their names!!). I also love the dance sequence when Claudette gets dumped with the oddest array of local yokels as dance partners. It still gets me laughing every time. I strongly recommend this film to those of you who like old fashioned humour. I certainly have a soft spot for it, not only because of the excellent cast and the great acting by all but because my own mother was alot like Claudette Colbert in this film, she was a sophisticated city gal who moved to the country encountering many strange and funny instances along the way in her introduction to country life. Enjoy this film!! and to quote Ma, " sit back and don't stand on no ceremony!!"
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Meet Ma and Pa Kettle in their first appearance., December 17, 1999
This review is from: The Ma & Pa Kettle Collection: The Egg and I [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Hop in the old truck with Bob (Fred MacMurray) and Betty (Claudette Colbert) and head for the hills of rural Washington State. Betty is unprepared for what awaits her--life on a chicken farm! Bob is gungho for the idea, but Betty has never gone near the kitchen to cook, much less to "put up all those canned goods" that Bob expects her to do! Down the road apiece live Ma and Pa Kettle and their hard-to-count-how-many children. Ma is an expert quilter and Pa is an expert borrower! You will experience life along with them going to the county fair, the weekly dances, planting a garden, everything right down to slopping the hogs. This movie is great fun to watch. I read the book, too. Try to get a copy, if you can. It is Betty's real life story. The movie is based on the book. I am sure you will be well entertained by them both.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lots of laughs and fun down on the farm, October 13, 2000
This review is from: The Ma & Pa Kettle Collection: The Egg and I [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Claudette Colbert always stated that the "Cornball humour" of this films was not something she liked after appearing in such sophisticated outings as "Midnight" and "The Palm Beach Story" but really Claudette has never been better than in this very funny, well written comedy about a well brought up girl learning (the hard way) to survive on a run down farm out west. What develops is a film with lots of laughs and good old fashioned humour with no need for bad language and crude humour for it to be entertaining like so many of today's comedies. The film has many hilarious moments, Betty and Bob meeting the unstoppable Ma and Pa Kettle (Marjorie Main in an Oscar nominated role...she should have won!!) for the first time, Betty's visit for lunch with the Kettles and their hordes of children (even Ma can't remember all their names!!), complete with chickens in the pantry, Ma's highly original methods of cleaning off the table in one swish of her arm, the absolutely priceless country dance where Betty gets landed with all the local "odd balls" as dance partners and accuses Bob of being a "cannibal" for enjoying a pork sandwich made from there own pig "Cleopatra", to Pa's "borrowing" of all the farm equipment. A hearty time is guaranteed by all. I strongly recommend this film and I have a soft spot for it as my own mother was a sophisticted city girl who married and moved to the country and encountered many funny people and situations as her "introduction" to country life. Enjoy!!!
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