Nature in the Wrong

Nature in the Wrong (1933)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Charley Chase plans on marrying the woman (Muriel Evans) he loves but her rich aunt refuses because they know nothing about his descendants. A prankster sends Chase a letter saying that he's related to Tarzan so Chase decides to go into the jungle and become closer with his past. This isn't the best Chase short out there but I must admit that I found some parts of it so stupid that I couldn't help but be entertained by them. The film has a somewhat sly tone as it throws a few shots at various subjects including Republicans, Leo the Lion and even Johnny Weissmuller. Other comedy bits that actually work are the scenes with Chase learning that he's related to Tarzan and the stuff that follows as he walks down the street and it appears people begin to realize it. The second portion of the film is a dream sequence with Chase and Evans living the Tarzan- lifestyle with a kid. Their neighbor, a gorilla, comes over for dinner and this is where the film simply gets too weird for its own good. We get a lot of stock animal footage and the Tarzan yell done here is just too silly to get a laugh. I thought Chase was pretty good in his part as was Evans but the supporting cast leaves quite a bit to be desired. It's too bad they didn't get Weissmuller to do a cameo but as it stands NATURE IN THE WRONG isn't bad but it's not overly good either.