Harvard, Here I Come! (1941) User Reviews

I felt a bit uncomfortable laughing at this one.

[planktonrules · 4/10 · 5 February 2010]

The film begins with Harvard Lampoon coming to Maxie's nightclub to give him an award. Maxie is unaware that the Lampoon is actually a comedic organization and the award is making fun of how stupid Maxie is. For the longest time, he has no idea he's the butt of a joke that's in rather poor taste.

Later, when he sees the newspapers talking about his dubious award, he finally realizes what happened and is determined to educate himself and "learn big words" so people won't be able to make fun of him. So he does what anyone would do--apply to Harvard! Considering he never completed grade school, this is ridiculous. However, professors from the anthropology department see him and want to hire him--they see him as the "missing link". Maxie thinks this means he's matriculating to the university--whereas they just want to study him and his less than stellar brain.

Once on campus, students act friendly with him, but in actuality many of them are making fun of him or laughing at his antics. Oddly, it turns out that that Maxie actually is a bit of a mathematics whiz--though how and why is not especially clear. But, apart from that I'll let you see for yourself where the film goes next. Will Maxie figure out the truth? Will he learn some "big words"? Will it all somehow turn out right by the end of the film?

This movie starred Max 'Slapsie Maxie' Rosenbloom--a man whose claim to fame in Hollywood was playing supporting roles. Rarely did he star in a film--like he did here in "Harvard, Here I Come!. Interestingly, he also plays himself here--a dumb punch-drunk ex-boxing champion who is tired of people making fun of him for his limited intellect. Sadly, in real life he WAS rather "punch-drunk"--suffering from an increasingly addled brain through his life as a result of appearing in almost 300 boxing matches (in fact, he was the light-heavy weight champ for several years)! So, when the film made fun of him or had him say stupid things, I had a hard time laughing because I wasn't sure how much of this was the real Slapsie Maxie--it was almost like laughing at someone with mental retardation. As a result, even though the film was enjoyable and even funny at times, I really can't recommend it wholeheartedly.

Harvard, goodbye!

[JohnHowardReid · 3/10 · 7 June 2016]

What promises to be a mild "B"-feature comedy turns into something rather less than that – thanks to the insertion of a whole reel of corny radio-type patter plumb in the center of the film. If this reel was eliminated, the movie would certainly have more appeal. True, the direction is mercilessly routine, but the cast holds some pleasant surprises, including brief appearances by Larry Parks (who has about two lines), Lloyd Bridges (who has one line), and Maurice Costello (who has no lines at all). Marie Wilson is on-screen for two or three minutes (and has two or three lines), and if you're really alert, you can catch a fleeting glimpse of Heinie Conklin near the end of the opening night club sequence. On the other side of the coin, Byron Foulger has a meaty part as an antediluvian professor. Oddly, Virginia Sale has more footage than Arline Judge, who does not figure in the Harvard episodes at all. Fortunately, there are some agreeable glimpses of Columbia starlets as bathing belles, and Tim Ryan does an agreeable turn as the English professor. However, it would seem that the budget ran out when the movie was half complete. Not only does it end abruptly, but includes a whole reel of static verbal padding. And to push out the running time even further, the editor has leaned heavily on reaction shots. Would you believe, Maxie Rosenbloom is allowed to hog the camera mercilessly. He even uses his own name! Production values, despite the credit to Franz Planer as cinematographer, are decidedly mediocre, even by "B"-picture standards.

Did not know it was released by Columbia

[cynthiahost · 14 November 2011]

This must have to been made independent and released through Columbia cause there no symbol of it at the beginning of the film. It's one of the few films in which Maxie Rosen Bloom is the main lead. He runs a night club ,in which hostess Francine, played by Arline Judge watches out for his business.It seems that Harvard shows up to give him an award, He doesn't realize because he is dumb. He doesn't find out until the next day he reads the news paper. Francine is mad with her boy friend Hypo,played by Don Beddoe, who looks more like her Uncle,cause he participated in promoting this insult, Maxie tells her to calm down cause this was Hypos' job, He decided to counter act this by going to Harvard. But even Francine feels that isn't a good idea and Hypo tells him he has to have credits.This confuses Maxie thinking he meant credit card so he state's he'll pay cash.Well he goes and tries to get into Harvard and the head want o use him as an experiment cause they think he's the last of the ape men. The professors off him 1500 and room and board , but he wants to learn. He's agreeing with them.He tells the head a the sorority that he wants to be a gentleman and be smart. The head tells him that most famous gentlemen from college were heels and no good. During the test he has to take to get into the sorority, he dresses up as BO Peep.He crawl with the rest of the new comer, moving a small ball until he meets the female sorority new comers going through the same test, Zella, played by Marie Wison, the original dumb blonde. It turns out later on he's good at math and he shows the professors what he does, like counting but skipping a few numbers.Eventually he's asked to endorse products which puts him in the spot light again. He opens another night club calling it the college, the professors and staff are all there with Francine and boyfriend hypo and his girl friend Zella. The professors inform him that his services are no longer needed , but he still want to go to school. It end this way . 11/14/11