Customer Reviews

Three Men on a Horse [VHS]

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A funny, fast-paced comedy about a nebbishy, stuttering greeting card writer (and would-be poet) who has a foolproof system for picking race horses, and his unlikely partnership with a gang of second-rate hoodlum gamblers. Character actor Frank McHugh is perfect in the role; this is probably his shining moment as a 'Thirties film lead. The tough-talking, blustering boss of the gang and his doofy henchmen are also riotously funny in their roles, and the changes in their relationships to McHugh is what makes this flick so endearing. Well written, well acted and genuinely hilarious, this is a little-known oldie that's well worth checking out.

This is one of the most hilarious films of the 1930s, a jewel of a play put on film with the best of the Warner Brothers actors and first class direction. Joan Blondell nearly steals the film, but the competition is stiff. What a delight. And why on earth isn't this in DVD? My VHS copy, the only thing available, flickers and is unsteady. Movie lovers arise!

In the 1930's Warner Bros. had a group of supporting players that they largely cast in the manic comedies that they did so well in those days. Three of those players - Frank McHugh, Guy Kibbee, and Joan Blondell - all show up in this often forgotten little film. What is so odd here is Joan Blondell, after several starring roles, is playing in support of Frank McHugh. McHugh had been an excellent supporting player in all kinds of Warner Bros. pictures for several years - an eccentric choreographer in Busby Berkeley's "Footlight Parade", a kind-hearted neer-do-well in the melodrama "Lily Turner", etc. However, here McHugh is the center of attention, and he handles it well.

Here Warners has managed to combine comedy with crime after the production code was in full effect with no danger of violating the code yet with great comic effect. McHugh plays a mild-mannered man who writes greeting card slogans and lives in a house on a street where every house looks the same. One morning, after a fight with his brother-in-law, he stops in at a bar rather than going to work. There he makes the acquaintance of three hoods who are trying to pick a winning horse without much success. The key to this new friendship is that McHugh has a gift for picking the winning horse in every race every day as long as he doesn't bet himself.

If you ever run across this film I strongly recommend it for an amusing way to spend eighty or so minutes.

Frank McHugh is a mild mannered greeting card writer who happens to figure out all the winners at the racetrack while on the bus to work everyday. He never places a bet, and in fact, has never seen a horse in person. He does it for the fun of it. After an argument with his wife one day, he goes on a drinking binge and winds up in the hands of some small time gamblers who recognize a gold mine when they see it. After he makes them a lot of money, they take control of this life so that he can make them rich. But McHugh maintains a delicate balance in his life, and if they upset his life too much, he won't be able to pick winners anymore! McHugh is appropriately low key in his role, making his character of Irwin a believable everyday loser. Allen Jenkins, Sam Levene, and Teddy Hart as the gamblers are a lot of fun, doting over him for all its worth. Joan Blondell contributes another winning performance as Levene's girlfriend. The rest of the cast is kind of grating, but thankfully, are not given too much screen time. Some of the jokes and innuendo fly, while others fall flat. There are some decent laughs in the film, but I somehow suspect this story worked more effectively on the stage where it first began. But it's a good premise, with some decent performances, and at under an hour and a half, it's easy to take.