In the 1930s, Paramount was known for its sophisticated comedies. This may be one of them but the details are lost to me in 2018. It's hard not to compare this to Duck Soup, which was made by Paramount in the same general time frame, but this movie seems inferior for two possible reasons.
First, while it does present the political intrigue of an imaginary kingdom, the intrigue is tied to participation in the very real Los Angeles Olympics. So, this is both a political farce and a commercial tie-in to a moment of actual, sincere national pride. Combining the two seems to weaken them both.
Second, this a Jack Oakie movie. Nothing against him but there is too little W. C. Fields. At the time, Fields had not yet broken out into stardom but it is clear here that he is the more interesting of the two leads. History remembers him as a drunken misanthrope but this movie, all too briefly, shows his grace and agility. His hat routine, during his opening scene, is his best of the movie.
Only in retrospect do I realize that I've seen Lyda Roberti in movies before. Here, she plays a cootchie dancer which is weird and a bit distracting. (Maybe, contemporary audiences found her performance titillating?)
I was excited when Ben Turpin appeared on screen but he never really gets a chance to do anything except appear, in his own cross-eyed way. His spy never really accomplishes anything. I'm not even sure which side he was spying for.
My favorite scene of the movie is Andy Clyde chasing the romantic leads. They start out fleeing on horseback, then transition to an automobile, then to a speedboat. All the while, Clyde relentlessly follows, in overcranked splendor, dressed in a full-body goat suit. It's such a great scene that they apparently named the movie after his character."
First, while it does present the political intrigue of an imaginary kingdom, the intrigue is tied to participation in the very real Los Angeles Olympics. So, this is both a political farce and a commercial tie-in to a moment of actual, sincere national pride. Combining the two seems to weaken them both.
Second, this a Jack Oakie movie. Nothing against him but there is too little W. C. Fields. At the time, Fields had not yet broken out into stardom but it is clear here that he is the more interesting of the two leads. History remembers him as a drunken misanthrope but this movie, all too briefly, shows his grace and agility. His hat routine, during his opening scene, is his best of the movie.
Only in retrospect do I realize that I've seen Lyda Roberti in movies before. Here, she plays a cootchie dancer which is weird and a bit distracting. (Maybe, contemporary audiences found her performance titillating?)
I was excited when Ben Turpin appeared on screen but he never really gets a chance to do anything except appear, in his own cross-eyed way. His spy never really accomplishes anything. I'm not even sure which side he was spying for.
My favorite scene of the movie is Andy Clyde chasing the romantic leads. They start out fleeing on horseback, then transition to an automobile, then to a speedboat. All the while, Clyde relentlessly follows, in overcranked splendor, dressed in a full-body goat suit. It's such a great scene that they apparently named the movie after his character."