“EXTREME FIELDS”

By Raymond Benson

If you’ve never seen what is essentially the last starring film appearance by W. C. Fields, Never Give a Sucker an Even Break (1941), then you’re missing the most extreme, surreal, and ridiculous motion picture featuring the boozy misanthropic comedian ever made.

Fields (William Claude Dukenfield) brought his vaudeville schtick to life in his films made in the 1920s and 30s and he enjoyed immense popularity until alcoholism derailed his career. He was indeed a talented man, however, and there are true comic classics among his filmography. He was often responsible for writing the initial storylines to his movies, and he used silly pseudonyms in the screen credits, such as Mahatma Kane Jeeves (“My hat, my cane, Jeeves!”) or, in the case of Never Give a Sucker, Otis Criblecoblis.

Even after the success of The Bank Dick (1940, one of Fields’ best films), Universal Studios was tiring of the actor’s antics and problems with drink. His storyline for Never Give a Sucker was roundly rejected as being too weird and absurd, and yet when the picture was nevertheless greenlit, Fields and his director, Edward Cline, used the material anyway.

The result is truly a bizarre and jaw-dropping piece of work that defies most screen comedies of the day. The film takes place on the fictional studio lot of “Esoteric Pictures,” where many known actors and comics play “themselves.” Fields is himself (called “Uncle Bill” by his niece, Gloria Jean, a teenage actress/crooner at the time who also plays herself), character actor Franklin Pangborn is a producer at the studio, Leon Errol is also a comic employed there, and so on. Fields presents his new picture idea to Pangborn, and then a series of vignettes illustrate the scenes of the movie in full costume and sets. These include when Fields falls out of an airplane window (it’s open during the flight!) and lands atop a mountain where fantasy women Ouliotta Delight Hemagloben (Susan Miller) and her mother (the inimitable Margaret Dumont!) have never seen men before. Fields sets out to marry Mrs. Hemagloben because he’s learned that she’s wealthy. After a succession of other wacky set pieces, Pangborn has had enough and fires Fields from the studio—but he is saved by his niece, who, as the studio’s hottest star, threatens to leave if her uncle is sacked. The climax is a hair-raising car chase through Los Angeles with Fields at the wheel, which can only mean trouble.

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break is cited on various W. C. Fields fan pages as one of the actor’s best movies. However, it is a mixed bag. There are comic bits that work beautifully and are extremely funny, to be sure, but there are others that are simply so dumb that one winces at how bad they are. One extended sequence without Fields involves Gloria Jean having to sing a number for producer Pangborn in the carpentry shop while workers are noisily attempting to build a set. This bit goes on way too long and ceases to be funny after the first “Shuuuttt upppp!” from Pangborn. Any of the scenes that required visual effects, such as Fields falling through the sky and bouncing repeatedly on a bed atop the Hemagloben’s “nest,” emphasizes the stupidity of the situation. And yet, there are moments that produce belly laughs. As usual, Fields’ delivery of lines are always the best parts of one of the actor’s pictures. While discussing games with one of his female costars, “beanbag” comes up. “Ah, yes, beanbag,” Fields says in his drawl, “exciting game. I once saw the world championship in Paris. Many people were killed.” Or the classic, “I was in love with a beautiful blonde once, dear. She drove me to drink. That’s the one thing I’m indebted to her for.”

Kino Lorber’s new high definition restoration looks quite good and comes with an audio commentary by film historian Eddy Von Mueller and English subtitles for the hearing impaired. A nearly-hour-long television documentary from the 1960s, Wayne and Shuster Take an Affectionate Look at W. C. Fields, provides some background and a decent overview of Fields’ career. There is also the theatrical trailer for this and other Kino Lorber releases.

If you’re a fan of W. C. Fields, then Never Give a Sucker an Even Break is a must-have. Others may want to start with more conventional Fields titles such as It’s a Gift or The Bank Dick before moving on to this near-psychedelic curiosity.

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