On the Wrong Trek

This near-forgotten Charley Chase short comedy has probably achieved that status for a good reason – it isn't very good. In fact, the constant bickering between Chase and his on-screen mother-in-law quickly grows very tired and begins to irritate when it's supposed to amuse. Mother has decided they will holiday in California while Charley wanted to go to Michigan. Of course, their holiday is a series of disasters: they're robbed of their clothes and have their classy car stolen by a gang of hobo thieves, they run out of petrol and they inadvertently push another traveller's car over a cliff, etc. It's all pretty predictable stuff, and neither the material nor the leading man are funny enough to pull it off. The film's one strong point at a time when Hollywood was doing all it could to divert people's attention away from the dire state of the country, is its unflinching depiction of the great displaced, littering the side of the road as they try to hitch a lift in their search for work. The hobo camp, in which our weary heroes suddenly find the energy to perform a zippy song-and-dance number tells us we're still in La-La land though. It has to be said, though, that Mrs. Charley surely could nicely fill a pair of jeans; she – and an amusing cameo from Laurel & Hardy – are the only reasons to watch this insipid comedy.