Hot Shots

Hot Shots (1956)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

The forty-third film in the Bowery Boys series or the second in the Gorcey-less series depending on how you want to look at it. Sach (Huntz Hall) and Duke (Stanley Clements) become involved with an 8-year-old TV star (Philip Phillips) after he tries stealing their car. Soon the boys realize that the kid is being used and taken advantage of by his uncle so they try to put a stop to it but the mean uncle has planned the kids kidnapping. HOT SHOTS is the second film in a row to fall flat on its face and it's easy to see that the series has ran out of gas and the new cast and director simply can't put any spark into it. Once again we're dealing with a very bad screenplay that is clearly written for kids in mind but I'd say the slapstick is a lot less than in some of the later Gorcey pictures and it's clear that the writers didn't know how to put a story around the new leads. Hall was a very capable actor when he was supporting Gorcey and at times the earlier films would allow him to be the lead but the screenplay here simply doesn't know how to use him. Quite often his brand of comedy just comes across so forced and out-of-place that you can't help but wonder what he's doing. Hall is giving the same old Sach performance but it simply doesn't mix with the other comics. Clements once again doesn't mix with Hall as the two have no chemistry and it's impossible for the two to act together as a comic team. It also doesn't help that Phillips is without question very annoying here. The kid comes off as such a little brat that you can't help but not care about anything that is going on with him. Even worse is how unfunny the guy is. Robert Shayne is decent in his role and blonde bombshell Joi Lansing is actually pretty good in her bit. HOT SHOTS lasts just 61-minutes but it feels much longer and that's never a good thing when you're watching a "B" picture. There are four more films in the series so lets hope it redeems itself somewhat because this and the previous picture were clear signs that they should have pulled the plug.