Hellzapoppin'

USA 1941
produced by
Jules Levey for Mayfair Productions/Universal
directed by H.C. Potter
starring Ole Olsen, Chic Johnson, Martha Raye, Hugh Herbert, Jane Frazee, Robert Paige, Mischa Auer, Richard Lane, Lewis Howard, Clarence Kolb, Nella Walker, Shemp Howard, Elisha Cook jr, Frank Darien, Catherine Johnson, Gus Schilling, the Six Hits, Slim and Slam (= Slim Gaillard, Slam Stewart), the Harlem Congeroos (= Ann Johnson, Frankie Manning), Olive Hatch, Eddie Acuff, Jody Gilbert, Jean Porter, Bert Roach, Bob Rose, Angelo Rossitto, Andrew Tombes, Dale Van Sickel
screenplay by Nat Perrin, Warren Wilson, based on the play by Nat Perrin, music by Frank Skinner

review by
Mike Haberfelner

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The New Chic Johnson & Ole Olsen movie Hellzapoppin' starts with a musical number and a series of sight gags set in hell - but the director (Richard Lane) doesn't like it. Sure, the whole thing is just like the play the film is based on, but this is Hollywood, and in Hollywood, things are changed around (seems like nothing has changed in the last 70 years, right?) - in case you're wondering, this is part of the plot.

So ok, the setting of the film is no longer hell but a high society mansion. The daughter of the house, Kiotty (Jane Frazee) is madly in love with playwright Jeff (Robert Paige), but her parents insist she marries Woody (Lewis Howard), a slacker who's seriously lacking in the talent-section, but comes from a rich family. Of course, Kitty doesn't love Woody, but he loves her, and while Jeff loves Kitty as well, he is also best friends with Woody and doesn't want to stand in the way of his romance.

So far, so boring.

Enter Chic and Ole as two propmen who help Jeff set up his musical revue scheduled for tonight to impress broadway impresario Kane (Andrew Tombes). This would make him a man worthy in Kitty's parents' eyes of course. But there's still Woody ...

Chic, Ole and their friend Betty (Martha Raye) make up a plan to make Woody think Kitty has an affair with the Russian aristocrat Pepi (Mischa Auer), who pretends to be a fake aristocrat for various reasons - and wouldn't you know it, the plan works, too. But it works too well, because now Chic and Ole also think Kitty has an affair with Pepi (actually, it's Betty who does), and now they figure they have to break up Jeff and Kitty out of friendship - so they totally sabotage his show. However, the sabotaged show turns out to be so hilariously funny that Kane hires Jeff right on the spot, and now finally Kitty's parents will accept him as their son-in-law ...

Granted, in writing the story sounds less than promising - actually it sounds positively appalling -, but on film that's a rather different matter, because the script is very much aware of its shortcomings, interrupts romantic scenes with mad sight gags, turns musical numbers into chaotic setpieces, and successfully replicates cartoon style humour. Actually, the film only gets slightly derailed in the finale, when Johnson and Olsen are sabotaging the musical revue and the chaos gets narrative backing, but by that time, too many good gags and funny bits have already come your way to still care much.

In all, anarchic cinema at its best, and one comedy not to be missed!

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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