Comedy is hard but the writers of Future '38 were spot on, almost. The repartee was lighting fast but the timing was still perfect and allowed the audience to keep up. There were only a few places where the laughs tapered off, but it always picked up again. The humor was respectful of today's P.C. sensibilities, passing up on some low-hanging jokes that might have crossed the line for some. With the exception of its blatant anti-Germanic bigotry and a few other stereotypes/ethnic jokes (Irish, African American, Jewish), the film is really progressive. ("They're jolly, what of it?... City hall's been hitching jollies for forty years.")
Many in the audience will miss some of the slang and early twentieth century references, but there's enough here to keep everyone laughing. Especially funny was the humorous treatment of time-travel paradoxes and the "parlor tricks" performed by Essex with Elke and others.
The acting was very well done for a comedy of this sort, and the plot was easy to follow. The cinematography was technically adequate and didn't overshadow the players/dialogue, although it would have been nice to put a little more effort into getting the color/tone to match those over-saturated, 80-year-old films. The cue marks were a wonderful touch!
Overall, well worth watching, especially for old movie buffs and scifi fans.
Triggers: Ethnic humor -- anti-Germanic bigotry, Irish, African American, Jewish ethnic jokes/stereotypes; Violence by the protagonists -- fists, gun brandishing (and the obligatory vase smash to the head).
