Cockeyed Cavaliers (1934)
Today’s subject is Wheeler and Woolsey, a comedy duo from the 1930s who made their film debut in Rio Rita and who eventually became headliners themselves, remaining so until Robert Woolsey became ill and died in 1938. I’m actually not all that familiar with their work; as a matter of fact, Cockeyed Cavaliers is their only film that I’ve actually seen all the way through, though I’ve seen it a few times and found myself enjoying it every time.
Wheeler and Woolsey are on the run after Wheeler stole from the Duke. Joining them is Mary Ann (Dorothy Lee), who is set to be engaged to the Duke and is passing herself off as a boy in order to get away from him. The three eventually find themselves at the Duke’s castle, where they are mistaken for physicians sent by the king.
The best way I can describe this duo, at least based off of this movie, is Laurel and Hardy meets the Marx Brothers. Wheeler seems to be echoing the childish and dumb Stan Laurel with his performance while Woolsey is very reminiscent of Groucho Marx, right down to the glasses and cigar, in addition to making plenty of wisecracks. While they may not have the most unique characters, the two do still seem to work very well off of each other, and this still is a pretty unique pairing in that we never really got to see much of a Stan Laurel type in a Marx Brothers film (maybe Harpo, though he usually worked more off of Chico than Groucho). There’s a great scene where Wheeler gives Woolsey instructions on how to treat a horse when trying to treat the Duke, though my favorite scene is when they’re at the inn and come up with a plan to get away without paying. Such a simple plan, yet everything that could possibly go wrong ends up going wrong and it makes for some hilarious results on Wheeler and Woolsey’s part.
I suppose it is a bit unfair to call out Woolsey as basically being a Groucho Marx type, as he does seem to be very much a physical comic as well, with both him and Wheeler showing off their physical skills during the song sequences. Also, I think that’s Woolsey doing the stunt when he jumps over the horse, though I’m not entirely sure.
Speaking of the song sequences, that’s another thing that’s really good about this film. For one thing, there aren’t that many of them. However, the few that are in there are genuinely entertaining and once again I think that does result from the performances of our lead actors. It’s not like the Abbott and Costello films which feature random characters singing and Abbott and Costello singing only on occasion; Wheeler and Woolsey sing and dance for two of the three big musical numbers.
The supporting cast is pretty good. Featured in this film are Hal Roach regulars Thelma Todd and Billy Gilbert while Dorothy Lee plays the romantic interest for Bert Wheeler. Supposedly she played the romantic interest for him in most of their other films and you can see why they kept casting her. Much like Wheeler, she seems to have this very childish and sweet aspect to her personality, probably more considering she’s not a thief, and both she and Thelma Todd keep up very well with Wheeler and Woolsey during the big musical number featuring the four later in the film, “Dilly Dally.”
One other thing that should be noted is that the movie is a pre-Code film, meaning that it was produced just before the Motion Picture Production Code began being strictly enforced. As such, there are quite a bit of double entendres, particularly on Woolsey’s part, and the film sometimes tends to cross the line a little too much, particularly with that scene involving Thelma Todd and a powder puff.
Cockeyed Cavaliers is a good example of how to do a comedy musical right. It’s not perfect, as I do feel that there could have been a few more comedy routines with Wheeler and Woolsey (there’s a good amount of time where they’re working separately, which kind of pale compared to when they’re together). Also, there were a few moments that felt a bit rushed, like when we suddenly discover Thelma Todd’s character knows Mary Ann’s secret by a brief comment made by Wheeler. However, as a whole, the film is still pretty entertaining and shows that you can mix comedy and music and do it well.
9 out of 10
Wheeler and Woolsey are on the run after Wheeler stole from the Duke. Joining them is Mary Ann (Dorothy Lee), who is set to be engaged to the Duke and is passing herself off as a boy in order to get away from him. The three eventually find themselves at the Duke’s castle, where they are mistaken for physicians sent by the king.
The best way I can describe this duo, at least based off of this movie, is Laurel and Hardy meets the Marx Brothers. Wheeler seems to be echoing the childish and dumb Stan Laurel with his performance while Woolsey is very reminiscent of Groucho Marx, right down to the glasses and cigar, in addition to making plenty of wisecracks. While they may not have the most unique characters, the two do still seem to work very well off of each other, and this still is a pretty unique pairing in that we never really got to see much of a Stan Laurel type in a Marx Brothers film (maybe Harpo, though he usually worked more off of Chico than Groucho). There’s a great scene where Wheeler gives Woolsey instructions on how to treat a horse when trying to treat the Duke, though my favorite scene is when they’re at the inn and come up with a plan to get away without paying. Such a simple plan, yet everything that could possibly go wrong ends up going wrong and it makes for some hilarious results on Wheeler and Woolsey’s part.
I suppose it is a bit unfair to call out Woolsey as basically being a Groucho Marx type, as he does seem to be very much a physical comic as well, with both him and Wheeler showing off their physical skills during the song sequences. Also, I think that’s Woolsey doing the stunt when he jumps over the horse, though I’m not entirely sure.
Speaking of the song sequences, that’s another thing that’s really good about this film. For one thing, there aren’t that many of them. However, the few that are in there are genuinely entertaining and once again I think that does result from the performances of our lead actors. It’s not like the Abbott and Costello films which feature random characters singing and Abbott and Costello singing only on occasion; Wheeler and Woolsey sing and dance for two of the three big musical numbers.
The supporting cast is pretty good. Featured in this film are Hal Roach regulars Thelma Todd and Billy Gilbert while Dorothy Lee plays the romantic interest for Bert Wheeler. Supposedly she played the romantic interest for him in most of their other films and you can see why they kept casting her. Much like Wheeler, she seems to have this very childish and sweet aspect to her personality, probably more considering she’s not a thief, and both she and Thelma Todd keep up very well with Wheeler and Woolsey during the big musical number featuring the four later in the film, “Dilly Dally.”
One other thing that should be noted is that the movie is a pre-Code film, meaning that it was produced just before the Motion Picture Production Code began being strictly enforced. As such, there are quite a bit of double entendres, particularly on Woolsey’s part, and the film sometimes tends to cross the line a little too much, particularly with that scene involving Thelma Todd and a powder puff.
Cockeyed Cavaliers is a good example of how to do a comedy musical right. It’s not perfect, as I do feel that there could have been a few more comedy routines with Wheeler and Woolsey (there’s a good amount of time where they’re working separately, which kind of pale compared to when they’re together). Also, there were a few moments that felt a bit rushed, like when we suddenly discover Thelma Todd’s character knows Mary Ann’s secret by a brief comment made by Wheeler. However, as a whole, the film is still pretty entertaining and shows that you can mix comedy and music and do it well.
9 out of 10
It's been a while since I've seen this one, but I remember what stood out were the production values, costumes, Bert's kleptomania, and Thelma Todd. It is true that there are a lot of musical numbers in their films, but yes, they're the ones involved along with Dorothy Lee. If you ever want to see them sans musical numbers and still being a comedy team, I highly recommend the very pre code SO THIS IS AFRICA, which is available on YouTube. The only film they made at Columbia. Their other stuff is on DVD. Basically, my rule of thumb for Wheeler and Woolsey is the more pre code the better.
ReplyDeleteI’ll have to check that out. Thanks for the recommendation.
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