Broadminded

Released in 1931 by First National Pictures the Joe E. Brown comedy vehicle Broadminded is a brisk 65 minute endeavor that not only showcases the star but has the added attraction of Bela Lugosi, fresh off his triumph as Dracula, appearing as his nemesis. The story concocted by writers Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby is episodic and serves up some Pre Code style sex and debauchery while director Mervyn LeRoy switches gears from social melodramas to lensing the shenanigans of Brown in a pleasant though uninspired way.

Jack Hackett (William Collier Jr.) is youthful New York playboy living off his father's wealth and indulging in a freewheeling party lifestyle. When his latest escapade nearly ends in scandal his father (Holmes Herbert) orders him to leave town and puts him into the care of his cousin Ossie (Brown) whom the old man somehow believes is a steadying influence. The young duo pack up a car and drive out to Pasadena where they become involved with a pair of society gals (Ona Munson and Marjorie White), their disapproving Aunt Polly (Grayce Hampton), and hot headed South American named Pancho Arango (Lugosi) whom Ossie runs afoul of.

The story presents minimal plot and commences with a truly bizarre party sequence where everyone is dressed like a baby. The film is largely set-bound with a handful of exteriors around the Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena. Sequences of Ossie and Jack driving are lensed with some hilariously awful rear projection that is so phony it intrudes on whatever suspension of disbelief the movie intends to conjure up. Director Leroy seems to have encouraged broad, theatrical performances from his cast who emote as if they were onstage. One wonders how a film depicting the travails of spectacularly rich and decadent sex-starved characters with unlimited free time went over with Depression audiences.

Fans of Joe E. Brown will likely be pleased with his antics here. The rubber faced, Pac Man-mouth star is frequently amusing and displays remarkable athleticism in several scenes. Perhaps even more delightful is Bela Lugosi as his combustible antagonist Pancho if only because it is so refreshing to witness the horror icon in a completely different milieu. Lugosi deserved costar billing but for some reason is buried down the cast list and not even mentioned in contemporary promotional material. Nevertheless he leaves an impression and all of the film's highlights involve him. William Collier Jr. Is forgettable as the horny heir being haplessly chaperoned by Brown as is a disappointingly vapid Ona Munson who enacts his true love. Spunky Marjorie White and equally vivacious Margaret Livingston chew up scenery as Miss Munson's pal and Collier's spurned lover, respectively, while Grayce Hampton channels Margaret Dumont as the haughty Aunt Polly. Adding plenty of glamour to the show is foxy Thelma Todd whose mere presence causes all kinds of trouble for the men in the cast. Miraculously she ultimately ends up in the arms of Lugosi!

Broadminded is a mirthful exercise in the absurd and will likely entertain most anyone. It serves as a proper gateway film for those who wish to explore Joe E Brown while fans of Bela Lugosi are sure to enjoy him in this atypical role. Toss in the tragic Thelma Todd, frank depictions of amorous protagonists, and Hollywood Pre Code freedom and the recipe for a harmless good time is achieved.

I recorded this movie to see Buster Collier, who appears in a photo in one of my silent movie star books. I learned that he had dated Constance Talmadge for awhile, and was interested in hearing his voice, to see how close the one I had silently supplied for him was. It wasn't. I was very pleasantly surprised to see Thelma Todd's name in the cast, and she was very good, as she has been in everything in which I've seen her. It's easy to see why she was in such demand.

All through the picture, I kept picturing Jim Carrey in Joe. E. Brown's role. They are both terribly cloying.

I couldn't get over Lugosi's Romanian accent being put across as "South American." All in all,though, it was worth seeing, and only an hour long, but I deleted it from my DVR once I had seen it. I wouldn't sit through it twice. It was a passable time killer.

This is a very odd film. First, although it's billed as a "Joe E. Brown" film, he is definitely the second banana in this film. Instead, William Collier Jr. and his love life are front and center and Brown just tags along for comic relief. So, if you like Brown, then you might be disappointed he isn't the main focus of the film. My own personal taste is decidedly anti-Brown, so I didn't mind this very much. Also, another odd bit of casting involves having Bela Lugosi play a supporting role as well--as a South American named "Pedro". I don't know about you, but when I see and hear Lugosi, I DON'T think "maybe he's Hispanic"! But regardless of this odd casting, Bela is surprisingly funny in his role as a hot-headed foil for Brown's antics.

So apart from odd casting, what are we left with in the film? Well, as a comedy, it isn't particularly funny most of the time. As a romance, it only works slightly better. No, in the end we are left with a movie that is a definite time-passer--not particularly offensive but not at all memorable except for the scenes with Lugosi.

By the way, it is worth watching just the first few minutes just to say you've seen something DIFFERENT. It's a really creepy and somewhat disturbing sequence where a bunch of rich knuckleheads have a "baby party" where they all come dressed like little kids. Seeing Joe E. Brown in a stroller and drinking booze from a baby bottle just seemed really, really creepy--like they're all at a very sick and creepy "adult" party. YECCH!! I wonder if Sigmund Freud ever saw this film? It was made in 1931 and he didn't die until 1939, so it is possible!!

1931's "Broadminded" was an early vehicle for the hugely popular Warners star Joe E. Brown, known for his unusually large mouth and inevitable yelp when in trouble (in later years he would become immortalized by three words to climax 1959's "Some Like It Hot" - "well, nobody's perfect!"). As an athlete and former circus clown his rubbery features already looked like a clown without makeup, and this screenplay by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby takes every advantage for facial expressions and bits where he impersonates a gorilla, then Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. One need only endure a fairly embarrassing opening reel, where police raid a 'baby party,' all the guests dressed as toddlers with bottles not filled with milk, and an enraged Senior Hackett (Holmes Herbert) hoping to straighten out his ladies man son Jack (William Collier Sr.) by sending him away from New York with cousin Ossie (Brown), who's an even bigger carouser than put upon Jack. A long trip to California is made far longer by Jack's insistence on stopping to flirt with every girl en route (even one milking a cow!), but once they pull over at the Cactus Cafe the fun really starts at the 15 minute mark. Here we get to see Bela Lugosi, still basking in his newfound stardom after "Dracula," making for an excellent comic foil as South American Pancho Arango, unable to get through a promising meal with Ossie throwing salt over his shoulder ("dandruff!"), then using Pancho's own fountain pen to turn his cherished dessert from strawberry to blackberry. A busload of female students distracts Ossie long enough to ram into the car in front of him, which turns out to be driven by a still fuming Pancho: "first you spoil my shortcake and now you ruin my rear end!" Jack and Ossie end up at a hotel where they've made the acquaintance of brunette Constance (Ona Munson) and blonde Penelope (Marjorie White), but Ossie's attempts to humor Connie's disapproving aunt (Grayce Hampton) get him into more trouble (it's a jaw dropping sight watching him eat celery as noisily as possible). When he begins to talk about punching out some South American 'bozo,' who should be in the booth right next to him but Pancho and his gorgeous girlfriend Gertie (Thelma Todd), giving Ossie the full Lugosi stare as he stammers and stutters, admitting defeat by feigning laryngitis. When a blackmailing former flame tries to halt Jack's engagement to Constance, Gertie is hired to play the fiancee to accept Jack's damning love letters but again Pancho spies his girl in a negligee and gets the wrong idea. Kalmar and Ruby were best known for their work for The Marx Brothers but went on to script two more vehicles for Brown, as well as Eddie Cantor and Wheeler and Woolsey. Those unfamiliar with Brown's appeal as a star comedian probably won't be swayed by his material here, but his ability to use his entire body makes him akin to Buster Keaton, and Thelma Todd was always a welcome presence opposite the cinema's top comedians. The underrated Marjorie White unfortunately has no opportunity to display her skillful singing and dancing, a diminutive dynamo who excelled in Wheeler and Woolsey's "Diplomaniacs" before her final screen performance in The Three Stooges' "Woman Haters" (she also appears with Bela Lugosi in "Oh, for a Man!" "Women of All Nations," and "The Black Camel"). With nearly 9 minutes screen time, Lugosi not only holds his own in another surefire box office success, he also gets the girl for the fadeout.

The star of this movie is listed as Joe E. Brown, the big-mouthed (literally) comedian who looks as if he could eat a hamburger in one bite. However, stealing the scene whenever he is present, is Bela Lugosi, in a change-of-pace role considering he starred in "Dracula" earlier that year (1931). Here, Bela (a native Hungarian) is a hot-tempered South American (Pancho). When Joe E. Brown (Simpson) accidentally spurts some ink on Bela's dessert at a diner, Bela goes into a maniacal rage. So naturally, their two paths keep crossing. Later Joe E. Brown has a fender-bender with Bela's car... Bela winds up driving off with Brown's car in tow! Bela has some wonderful opportunities to show his comedic abilities. When his girlfriend asks Bela to explain a mix-up to Joe E. Brown (Simpson), Bela goes: "To Simpson-- never!" and opens his mouth wide in a mugging imitation of Joe E. Brown. A must-see movie for Bela Lugosi fans who only consider him a horror actor.