Film & Shorts Discussions > Random Comedy Reviews

Pie A La Maid (1938) - Charley Chase

(1/1)

Paul Pain:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0030584/

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For he's a jolly good fellow!  This short is viciously panned left and right and center.  I see flaws, but nothing worthy of the hate this one gets.

The premise is simple.  Man is a masher, Charley gets messed up with him, gets pied, and falls in love with the girl that splutter him.  Make sense?  No?  Well, it's funny anyway.  The hat scene is food as well.  It's fun watching Charley act like an idiot while staring at Mary in the newspaper as he gets out of bed, shower, and get dressed, all with a rare musical background.

I enjoy the recurrence of the characters in this one.  The man who turns to be the podiatrist is the man Charley tormented on the bus.  Also funny is the way Mary recurs and then gives him the note.

The scene at Mary's house is... well... strange.  The man in drag actually somehow works, as it's clear at the start it's a farce, heightened by Steve Pendleton talking with no falsetto or anything.  It's clever how Charley sees his legs and knows he's being played.

The fight scene is typical Columbia slapstick that we all expect, quite awkwardly done but working all right.

Not a classic by any means, but this one is enjoyable still.

8/10 [poke] [poke] [poke] [poke] [poke] [poke] [poke] [poke]

metaldams:
Well, I gotta say, if nothing else, this one is memorable.  There aren’t too many shorts like PIE A LA MAID.  Probably a good thing, but it’s fine that at least one like it exists.

I am noticing Charley looking older in these shorts.  His face more drawn and always thin, seems to be even thinner, to an unhealthy degree.  Unlike late Curly, Chase does act fine, but knowing this is a man who is about to have a fatal heart attack only being in his mid forties does put somewhat of a damper on these later Columbias.

Like I stated in past reviews, Chase getting older doesn’t lend himself to playing after the young girl (in addition to living with his mother) as it did ten years earlier but the whole premise of this short is so unbelievable I can’t complain too hard.  The whole brother in drag thing, what’s funniest is the way he just goes along with it without much a fight.  If you gave him an angora sweater, he’d look like Ed Wood in GLEN OR GLENDA.  I usually hate these drag comedy things but here it’s better for one simple reason - unlike about every other time this happens, Chase does not fall for this for one minute and can tell it’s a man.

Really just a bizarre but entertaining short overall.  Makes no sense, but it’s like people have childish motives like in an old Sennett short.  Instead of ignoring the unwanted letter for a date, Ann Doran throws a pie in his face.  The whole drag thing lacks logic.  Chase’s mid forties puppy love lacks logic.  You have to accept this short on its own terms and not the real world’s terms.

Ann Doran puts in an energetic performance and looks gorgeous.  Lionel Belmore, the Al Thompson of Universal Horror, puts in some work at Columbia, a welcome presence.  The again Sennet like slapstick ending is bizarre but fun.  Like I said, this one is memorable and unique, though probably not for all tastes.  Glad I’ve seen it, anyway.

Paul Pain:

--- Quote from: metaldams on August 17, 2020, 06:13:16 PM ---Well, I gotta say, if nothing else, this one is memorable.  There aren’t too many shorts like PIE A LA MAID.  Probably a good thing, but it’s fine that at least one like it exists.

I am noticing Charley looking older in these shorts.  His face more drawn and always thin, seems to be even thinner, to an unhealthy degree.  Unlike late Curly, Chase does act fine, but knowing this is a man who is about to have a fatal heart attack only being in his mid forties does put somewhat of a damper on these later Columbias.

Like I stated in past reviews, Chase getting older doesn’t lend himself to playing after the young girl (in addition to living with his mother) as it did ten years earlier but the whole premise of this short is so unbelievable I can’t complain too hard.  The whole brother in drag thing, what’s funniest is the way he just goes along with it without much a fight.  If you gave him an angora sweater, he’d look like Ed Wood in GLEN OR GLENDA.  I usually hate these drag comedy things but here it’s better for one simple reason - unlike about every other time this happens, Chase does not fall for this for one minute and can tell it’s a man.

Really just a bizarre but entertaining short overall.  Makes no sense, but it’s like people have childish motives like in an old Sennett short.  Instead of ignoring the unwanted letter for a date, Ann Doran throws a pie in his face.  The whole drag thing lacks logic.  Chase’s mid forties puppy love lacks logic.  You have to accept this short on its own terms and not the real world’s terms.

Ann Doran puts in an energetic performance and looks gorgeous.  Lionel Belmore, the Al Thompson of Universal Horror, puts in some work at Columbia, a welcome presence.  The again Sennet like slapstick ending is bizarre but fun.  Like I said, this one is memorable and unique, though probably not for all tastes.  Glad I’ve seen it, anyway.

--- End quote ---

We strangely seem to be in full agreement on this one.  Something about how Steve Pendleton handles the entire drag concept is hilarious.  Seeing these other Columbia productions is extremely educational.

Umbrella Sam:
Well, anything’s an improvement over THE NIGHT SHIRT BANDIT, and this certainly does exceed that expectation. I agree with the Sennett connection; the story is kind of all over the place, but for the most part I do like the comedy here. Lionel Belmore is especially good in this. I love his reaction to Chase handing him the sock, as well as him slapping Charley on the bus. I also like the drag scene with Steve Pendleton.  Just like you guys said, it works because of how obvious it is that he’s a man and how clearly he just doesn’t want to do it, although it is odd how he kind of just leaves and doesn’t return; again, kind of like how the Sennett studios would handle such a story. The scene of Chase pretending to hurt himself is funny, and the climax is good too. Really, it is a pretty solid short overall. I guess if I did have one minor complaint, it’s that Chase putting on the socks does go on a little too long, but it’s still funny at first and doesn’t take up a ridiculous amount of time. I liked this short.

9 out of 10

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