The Bank Dick.

Review #1354: The Bank Dick.

Cast: 
W.C. Fields (Egbert Sousé), Cora Witherspoon (Agatha Sousé), Una Merkel (Myrtle Sousé), Evelyn Del Rio (Elsie Mae Adele Brunch Sousé), Jessie Ralph (Mrs. Hermisillo Brunch), Grady Sutton (Og Oggilby), Franklin Pangborn (J. Pinkerton Snoopington), Shemp Howard (Joe Guelpe), Dick Purcell (Mackley Q. Greene), Russell Hicks (J. Frothingham Waterbury), Pierre Watkin (Mr. Skinner), and Jack Norton (A. Pismo Clam) Directed by Edward F. Cline (#877 - Three Ages)

Review: 
"You've heard the old legend that it's the little put-upon guy who gets the laughs, but I'm the most belligerent guy on the screen. I'm going to kill everybody. But, at the same time, I'm afraid of everybody—just a great big frightened bully"

Comedians can come in all shapes and sizes. They can deliver laughs on screen through sight gags, verbal puns, or through their comic persona. One can see many kinds of personas play out in film if they watch enough of them, and W. C. Fields is one that isn't easily forgotten. he was characterized for his misanthropic persona alongside a distinct hard-drinking drawl, with his strong presence often being identified with Fields (particularly his supposed hatred of dogs and kids). Fields' first talent was in juggling, entering vaudeville in 1898. He made his Broadway debut seven years later before appearing in the Ziegfeld Follies revue in 1915 to entertain the audience with a billiards skit. That year, he made his appearance in film for the first time with Pool Sharks, a short film. Not until 1924 did he return to film (due to stage-work), and he worked with various directors over the following decade ranging from D. W. Griffith (Sally of the Sawdust, That Royle Girl) to A. Edward Sutherland (It's the Old Army Game and five others). Health troubles led to his career slowing down in his final years, where he starred in just five films from 1938 to 1941, while making appearances in four other films in the following three years (along with continued radio appearances) before his death in 1946. at the age of 66. In any case, this was his penultimate starring role, for which he also contributed the story (under the pun name of Mahatma Kane Jeeves), while Richard A. Carroll helped with dialogue. Cline, who also began his career in vaudeville along with being one of the Keystone Kops, served as director, his fourth of five collaborations with Fields (the first was Million Dollar Legs in 1932). He believed in just letting Fields run with whatever he wanted to do, while editing out any undesired ad-libs (which tended to crack up the crew, including Cline at times).

Fields seems right at home with this film, a drunken crank who still manages to generate amusement alongside sympathy that makes for a entertaining sit at 72 minutes. He has a confidence to him in delivering zippy lines (whether when seeming drunk or not) and interacting with the others, whether that means pretending to be a film director or nearly throwing a urn at his daughter. He is exactly the kind of person we love to see be on screen with his flaws because they are the flaws we can see in ourselves. He may mistreat a kid or a mess with a comic foil, but we find ourselves laughing all the same. The film definitely has an episodic feel to it, particularly whether when seeing him as a director or in the saloon or the bank, but it never loses momentum at any rate. The rest of the cast keep up as useful foils, particularly with Sutton, Pangborn, and Howard. They have different manners of interacting against Fields (whether friendly or not), and they keep up with his antics just fine. The film builds itself up to a frantic chase sequence (complete with a re-used gag from one of Cline's earlier works) that makes for silly charm. One will have a fun time with this feature, a stand-out that represents Fields at the top of his game in making one laugh with entertainment. There should be no doubts about watching this to alleviate their curiosity, that much is for sure.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.