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| Old-Fashioned Way, The |
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  (8/10)
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Runtime: 66 m |
| Public Rating: 10.00 (1 votes) |
Director: William Beaudine |
MPAA Rating:  |
| Genre: Comedy/Romance |
Year: 1934 |
| Writer(s): Jack Cunningham, Garnett Weston |
| Reviewed by: Vadim Rizov |
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When we think of the great W.C. Fields, we think of acerbic, often bitter comedy, directed at women, children and small animals - generally speaking, those memebers of the human race who destroy his complacency. We also think of alcohol consumption and, occasionally, surreal gags. That's why The Old-Fashioned Way is a surprising film. Fields loves his daughter, stays away from the alcohol, and even sacrifices his best pride for her happiness.
Fields is The Great McGonigle, leader of an obscure theater troup that travels through small burgs in the Midwest, frequently skipping out on their bills. The obscure Judith Allen is daughter Betty (tellingly, they have a loving relationship quite possibly because Fields is widowed, rather than married to some of the shrewish harridans that populated his films), his leading actress. Joe Morrison, a singer Paramount had high hopes for, is the boy who loves her and follows the troup from town to town, though he should be in school. When one of the actors leaves the troup suddenly, a replacement is needed, and Morrison gets to prove his stuff.
The film is divided into two parts. The first is typical Fields territory: the great man at odds with the world. He has to deal with a sherrif from the last town determined to collect payment, noisy companions in the sleeping car on the train, a (rightly) suspicious hotel manager, the town's richest woman, Cleopatra Pepperday (who can help, but must be cozied up to; unfortunately, she has the ambition of becoming a great singer, and how she sings must be heard to be believed; she's played by Fields veteran Jan Duggan), and the sherrif of this town, who was Pepperday's boyfriend, and who's restrained from arresting Fields by Pepperday, who keep threatening to return his ring. It's familiar territory, handled expertly.
The second half is a presentation of a melodrama entitled The Drunkard. The whole town gathers to watch, and so do we. The play's plot consists of all the cliches we associate with Victorian drama and silent film, including a villain clearly denoted by a mustache. Director Beaudine delivers a remarkably cynical look at small-town drama, rushing the cast through its paces, and emphasizing the slamming sound of the curtain as it falls in a rush. In between the drama, Joe Morrison gets to sing a sappy song called "A Little Bit Of Heaven Known As Heaven." Dad, played by Oscar Apfel, watches in wry amusement as the small-town folk eat it up. Apfel is worth noting; in the teens, he was a director and collaborator with DeMille. His directing career fell apart, and he ended up appearing in 148 films. The coda succesfully resolves the romance, at the expense of Fields, who stumbles bravely forth to a new career as snake-oil salesman.
It's brisk entertainment that's smart and, at the end, full of heart. It also includes a look at Fields' juggling routine, a throwback to the days when he was a vaudeville star. I'll never understand how such a competent director as William Beaudine, famous for his unwillingness to make a second take of a scene ever (a trait shared with W.S. Van Dyke), ended up directing such infamous stinkers as Bela Lugosi Meets A Brooklyn Gorilla and Billy The Kid vs. Dracula. It's short, invigorating, hilarious, and an excellent (not available on video or DVD) introduction to W.C. Fields without the mysoginistic overtones.
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