My Little Chickadee (1940) User Reviews

It's A Tie

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 16 June 2008]

Although My Little Chickadee did not turn out to be the comedy smash of all time, both W.C. Fields and Mae West got in enough of their own shtick to make it worthwhile to see. What I can't figure out is when both were under contract at Paramount earlier in the decade why Adolph Zukor never thought of teaming them.

Probably because both of them were highly individualized and highly specialized performers. Both wrote their own material, but Mae believed her words were golden as she wrote them and Bill Fields was notorious with the ad-libs, even with a script he wrote.

Like Dallas in Stagecoach, Mae West as Flower Belle gets kicked out of one town and heads for another town accompanied by one of the Lady's League in the person of Margaret Hamilton. She's been spotted by Hamilton entertaining the mysterious masked bandit as only Mae entertains.

On the train she meets up with small time con man Cuthbert J. Twillie, a Fields pseudonym if there ever was one. She's convinced she's got a bankroll and she needs a husband to maintain a respectable front. Her gambler friend Donald Meek who looks like a clergyman and remember in Stagecoach Thomas Mitchell originally thought he was one, marries them on the train.

As a husband Fields is as ardent as Bob Hope was in The Paleface with Jane Russell who also needed to get married out of necessity to a stooge. He's sure willing enough, but Mae's to smart for him as she's got town editor Dick Foran and saloon owner Joseph Calleia panting hot and heavy for her as well.

My favorite moment is when Mae slips a goat into her bed and Fields gets a big surprise when he thinks he's finally going to score.

I'd have to say the film's a tie in terms of these two icons trying to top the other. There's plenty enough here to satisfy fans of both Mae and Bill and the many like myself who love both of them.

Fun Fields and West Comedy Pairing

[babeth_jr · 8/10 · 24 May 2008]

I love this little gem of a movie. It has two of the great stars of the early cinema, W.C. Fields and Mae West.

Fields is hilarious in his role as con man/card shark Cuthbert J. Twillie, who meets Flower Belle Lee (Miss West's character) on a train bound for Greasewood, a town that is ran by corrupt saloon owner Jeff Badger (Joseph Calleia). Flower Belle was ran out of her previous town and cannot return until she is married and a respectful woman, i.e., not promiscuous. She marries Cuthbert just to give her some respectability and it's hilarious to watch Fields pathetic attempts to try to be with his unwilling bride.

Of course, since this a Mae West film (both she and Fields wrote the screenplay) there are several funny double entendres in the film and Mae gets to sing a song, Willie of the Valley. I love both Mae West and W.C. Fields...they were both legends and I really wish they would have made another film together. The Hollywood rumor mill had it that they actually couldn't stand each other off screen, but if this is true, and I tend to believe that their feud was exaggerated for publicity purposes, you could not tell it by their performances. They had terrific on screen chemistry together.

"My Little Chickadee" is a fun film all the way around.

Great Fields, Good West

[smatysia · 8/10 · 22 January 2005]

Mae West and W. C. Fields were fantastic together, in spite of or their reportedly mutual loathing each other. Fields was at the top of his game here, and Mae West, in spite of her age and build was absolutely lovely. I really must see some of her earlier stuff, before the Hays Office made all films suitable for six-year-bolds. It was a bit incongruous to see Margaret Hamilton in a role here, when she will always be the Wicked Witch of the West. Some memorable lines from West and Fields throughout, and West's continuous streams of double entendres were a lot of fun. Also cute to see each of them say the other's signature line to each other at the end.

High Concept

[thurberdrawing · 7/10 · 23 April 2008]

I believe that, some time in the 1970's, more than thirty years after MY LITTLE CHICKADEE was made, the term "high concept" was coined. So, starting in the seventies, a lot of movies with sure-fire ideas became the trend. ("What?", someone, circa 1990 might say, "Arnold Schwarzenegger is being teamed with Danny DeVito? Why, that must be hilarious!") So, clearly, somebody thought the idea of W.C. Fields and Mae West sharing the silver screen would work, and MY LITTLE CHICKADEE remains the ultimate example of both the pitfalls and the merits of High Concept movie-making. Fields and West, both iconic figures, were actually so similar that the audience's loyalties are torn. We watch a West picture to observe Mae West turn the tables on men and we watch a Fields picture to watch Fields flout authority. When Fields and West meet and appear to like each other (he wanting sex and she wanting money) we love them both. Fields gets off one of his most memorable lines as he holds her fingers up to his lips and says, "What symmetrical digits.") She, in turn, throws her false submission at him, letting us know between the lines that she's a woman of steel. So far, so good. Their romance is viewed suspiciously by a character actress who is the perfect foil for both of them: Margaret Hamilton, who, of course, played the Wicked Witch of the West the year before in THE WIZARD OF OZ. Fields and West are married aboard the train by West's con-man friend -- hence, they are not really being married -- and this actor is also the sort of figure who belongs in a movie with either Fields or West. But let's cut to the chase. Both Fields and West have separate moments for the rest of the movie and each of these moments is somewhat minimal. West's scene teaching a classroom of overgrown adolescents seems to be a whitewashing of a bawdy routine from her stage days. It almost makes it. Fields's various encounters with gamblers and a female drunk (who HAS to be Celeste Holm, uncredited, as someone else on this board has noted) are promising, but somehow never really engaging. Thinking about this movie, nevertheless, brings a smile to the face. There are so many little things which, popping into the memory, are funny, that it has to be acknowledged that MY LITTLE CHICKADEE achieved its goal: driving into our minds the idea of the harmony of two comics who'd made audiences howl with laughter in live performance twenty years earlier. It should also be said that the ideal audience for MY LITTLE CHICKADEE is an audience in a darkened movie theatre. Ideally, the year should be the year it was made and the audience should be made up of people who've been anticipating this pairing and would be more than willing to hoot throughout. Has anybody got a time machine?

"My Little Peach Fuzz"

[Lechuguilla · 30 August 2009]

An Old West comedy that doesn't make a lot of sense, "My Little Chickadee" is mostly a cinematic vehicle for the talents of its two stars: Mae West and W.C. Fields.

Mae, all decked out in flowery glad rags, does her usual shtick, as she rolls her eyes, smiles mischievously, and walks in the slinky, suggestive manner that she's known for. I love it. She doesn't "act" so much as she projects her own unique on-stage persona. In this film she sings only one song: "Willie Of The Valley". It's okay, but I could have wished for a song more suitable to her wonderfully bawdy public image.

Wearing a high top hat and white gloves, and with that big nose and eccentric way of speaking, W.C. Fields plays Cuthbert J. Twillie, a blustery, flamboyant older man who uses big words to impress, and devious tricks to hoodwink. He's not seriously criminal, just a good-natured, booze-loving flimflam man trying to get along in life as best he knows how. Sometimes he succeeds, sometimes not. Fields is just as unique as Mae West. And his comedic routine is straight out of vaudeville.

The script's dialogue contains lines that highlight the humor of Fields, like when he tries to impress Flower Belle (Mae West): "The days of chivalry are not over. I've been worried about you my little peach fuzz. Have you been loitering somewhere? ... You are the epitome of erudition, the double superlative ...". His flowery metaphors sometimes get on Flower Belle's nerves, like when he says to her: "I climb the ladder of love to reach for the stars". She snaps back: "I'm in no mood for astronomy".

For all his bluster, Twillie is actually the weaker of the two characters. It's Flower Belle who uses a pistol to knock off villainous Indians, and Twillie whose use of a kid's slingshot backfires.

In this story, Margaret Hamilton, in her best witch voice, plays a histrionic busybody, in a support role.

This is a film that will appeal mostly to fans of Fields and/or West. I think the film probably showcases Fields' talents a little better than those of West. What hurt this film is the real-life villainous Production Code which tried to water down the bawdy dialogue. As a result, both the plot and some of the dialogue come across as flat. Had the self-righteous censors left the scriptwriters alone, "My Little Chickadee" could have really sizzled.

I'll take ya' and how!!

[kga58 · 7/10 · 26 February 2007]

It's a shame that West and Fields had such a dislike for each other. In their few scenes together you can see how incredible this film could've been. Their introduction on the train is a delight, with him slurping all over her "symmetrical digits" and she crooning "you're compromisin' me". Field's disguising himself as her lover the Masked Bandit and getting some lip action under false pretenses is hilarious. If only they could've spent so much more screen time with each other instead of focusing on their separate routines, this would be a major classic. As it is it is still great fun. And Fields' asides to Margaret Hamilton are priceless! "I hope she don't get too violent--I haven't strength enough to knock her down!"

Pairing of two super egos with flare and fun

[lora64 · 10/10 · 18 August 2001]

You could call it "slapstick" at its best. They don't make them like W C Fields and Mae West anymore. Is that a good thing? Probably. Any imitations could hardly live up to their special brand of comedy. That episode on the train where they get acquainted -- "It is not good for man to be alone" quoth he, from the Bible at that. "Yeah, it's not much fun for a woman either," says she. "Do you think it possible for us to be alone together?" he asks. "Quite possible," is her reply. Who can resist a smile at that dialog!

By the way, for one scene how they could get that billy goat to lie down in bed under blankets, I'll never know! There's also a scene of a young girl coming into the bar slightly tipsy and I'm sure it's a young Celeste Holmes but there are no credits to verify this. I wonder if anyone else has noticed this?

Flower Belle (Mae West) is burning the midnight oil with "The Bandit," who is masked of course. She also encounters a naive editor (Dick Foran) and conquers that territory too to some extent. Well, for Flower Belle it's all in a day's work, you might say. Townsfolk are up in arms and intent on finding the Masked Bandit. Along the way they make W C Fields their sheriff but that doesn't solve anything. Meanwhile down at the saloon...

This movie with Mae is the one I like best.

"Some Definite Pear-Shaped Ideas"

[telegonus · 8/10 · 27 November 2002]

My Little Chickadee is like a home movie W.C. Fields and Mae West just happened to make in their spare time, on the studio lot, back in 1940. The budget was not as ample as Miss West's er, well anyway, it's a pretty big picture but not that big. The dialogue is better than the film, which is frankly an amateurish mess. Both stars were past their prime when they made this western parody, and both seem a little tired, in general, and with one another, in their scenes together. They're much better when reciting the dialogue, which they worked on together (ah, to have been a fly on the wall during their script conferences). Maybe they spent all their energy on the writing. There certainly isn't much in their performing. For all its flaws, the movie has some hilarious moments, such as Fields' suggestion that he has "some definite pear-shaped ideas" he would like to discuss with Miss West.

Movie censorship was at its peak when this one was made. Fields and West had been two of the shining lights of early talkies, and the advent of the Production Code in the mid-thirties set them both back professionally, especially Miss West, who was the prime cause of it. Since they couldn't quite give this movie their all, due to the extreme censorship of the time, one has to continually read between the lines. There's a lot there, though not as much as I think they imagined there was. The film is an heroic effort none the less, if by today's standards rather quaint.

The Perfect Pairing of a Remarkable Comedic Team!

[Sylviastel · 7/10 · 2 January 2012]

Mae West stars alongside W.C. Fields in this comedy classic from the 1930s about the Wild West. She plays Florabell who is disgraced by one town and goes to another town. Aboard the train, she meets up with W.C. Fields's shady character and they get married. Florabell's gentlemen admirers and suitors include the masked bandit who rides on a horse and robs people among others. Anyway, W.C. Fields called Mae West, his favorite co-star, probably because she was his peer. She knew how to write and make some laughs. The scene in the town school is quite memorable. Mae West had her own unique walk, style, and language all of her own worth watching. Want to know who inspired Madonna and Lady Gaga, I think Mae West would have been the first and unforgettable lady of shocking attitude. The film also stars Margaret Hamilton as the dreadful woman who hates Florabell. Hamilton also played the Wicked Witch in the Wizard of Oz. She was a brilliant character actress of her time and is worth watching here. In the days of the Great Depression and a coming war, I could see why people flocked to the theaters every weekend.

Fields + West = Bummer

[ccthemovieman-1 · 2/10 · 17 April 2006]

Boy, I thought seeing W.C. Fields and Mae West in the same movie would really be something! However, the only thing it turned out to be was just plain annoying. I could barely get past the first 15 minutes.

West's "routine" gets tiresome in a hurry. All she does, scene after scene, is roll up her eyes and say something she thinks is clever and-or funny. Since she co-wrote the script with Fields, I'm sure she thought those lines were good, but I heard nothing humorous in them. The soft lens on her on every time is pretty obvious, too. What were they trying to cover up?

Her reputation is far better than her performance.

As for Fields, he was better off in his own films where he could ham it up on his own. He had a few amusing bits, but nothing memorable.

Classic teaming sabotaged by censorship!

[David-240 · 8/10 · 3 July 1999]

Mae West and W.C. Fields together for the first and only time - and how wonderfully they work together. They really fire off each other in this pretty bland and cheaply made little film. They also look great - Mae's cossies are splendid. But despite many memorable scenes - Mae gunning down scores of Indians from a train, W.C. cheating at cards etc - the dialogue is so sanitised that the pairing is never allowed to fly. Without sex Mae has little to offer and, although she tries to suggest things with those wonderful eyes, you can see her being tied down by the censors till she can hardly move or talk. This film makes you sad ultimately when you think how prudishness ruined one of the most electric partnerships of all time. How truly great this film could have been. By the way Margaret Hamilton plays a prude very well in the film - I suspect Mae would have liked to have gunned such people down.

has some excellent moments

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 6 February 2006]

Parts of this movie are great--particularly those with WC Fields. In particular, I liked the horrible and cowardly way that he dealt with the attack on the train--pushing hapless little kids with cap guns out the door to face the onslaught! But, you'll no doubt discover that although this is a WC Fields and Mae West film, they don't interact much together, as they apparently hated each other and had to often be filmed separately. Mae's moments are generally flat compared to Fields' as she once again plays the trampy old broad who every man MUST possess (god only knows why). While the film certainly has some excellent moments, there are better films by Fields you can watch (such as IT'S A GIFT, THE BANK DICK, etc.). As for West, this is probably a better than average effort from her as at least her character is slightly different than her usual 1930s fare.

Mae West and W.C. Fields not only co-star but wrote the script...

[Doylenf · 5/10 · 21 April 2009]

I'm not a Mae West fan so I can only report that I was underwhelmed by the script put together by West and Fields. To be sure, he gets off some good one-liners and she has a more restrained role than usual as the voluptuous female that she imagined herself to be, but it's all very silly and predictable.

West seems bored with her part, tossing off her lines that have no particular wit or sting to them, in her familiar monotone. Fields, on the other hand, has an amusing scene with a goat that somehow got past the censors. He also wrote some very dry humor for himself, sounding at times like Mr. Micawber of "David Copperfield." MARGARET HAMILTON stands out in the supporting cast as the spinsterish woman looking out for Mae's morals and DICK FORAN has a stock role as a handsome eligible male interested in Mae. Joseph CALLEIA is the masked bandit, the villain of the piece, whose identity is no great surprise to anyone when revealed.

Summing up: Should have been much funnier considering the talent involved, but Mae's fans apparently consider it one of her most enjoyable. At least Fields treats himself to some good lines.

For one performance only

[jaykay-10 · 6 July 2000]

With these two, it should have been one of the greatest comedy films of all time. Yes, it falls short of that, but only because of the expectations. Be grateful for what it is instead of regretful for what it isn't. If you like these two, the film is a treasure.

West vs. Fields "Feud?"

[Holdjerhorses · 6/10 · 11 November 2007]

The publicity surrounding Mae West and W.C. Fields "loathing" each other seems to be largely that: publicity.

Yes, they each wrote their own lines, as they had for years. Yes, they only had one scene together on camera. Their other scenes were shot separately, consisting of closeups and reaction shots -- then intercut. But that was standard procedure -- especially for West.

In her utterly delightful interview with Dick Cavett in 1976 (on YouTube), at the age of 83, West is asked if Fields' drinking was a problem. She says, "Not really. I'd heard about him. So I had it written into my contract that if he was drinking on the set he would be removed. He was fine for the first three weeks. Then I came on set at one o'clock one day and was told he had been drinking. I took a look at him and said, 'Get him outta here.' After that, we didn't have any problems with him."

A disappointment, especially to Mae West fans

[psteier · 6/10 · 20 January 2002]

Almost two movies since W.C. Fields mostly wrote his scenes and Mae West mostly wrote her scenes as well as the few scenes that they play together. Unfortunately, the production code forced Mae West to pull her punches and she mostly falls flat. The Fields routines are typical of his films of the period, but nothing memorable.

W.C. Fields & Mae West: What Euphoneous Appellations!

[gftbiloxi · 8/10 · 9 May 2005]

MY LITTLE CHICKADEE was originally released to mixed reviews, but by the 1970s a revival of interest in both W.C. Fields and Mae West sparked renewed attention to the film--and while it is somewhat uneven and does not give us either actor at their best, this single pairing of two of Hollywood's most legendary comics offers enough amusement to keep us watching right through to the end.

By every account available, Fields and West absolutely loathed each other. After Field's death West went to considerable effort to belittle both Fields and his contribution to this film, insisting that she herself wrote the story and the script and Fields was responsible for his personal material only. Ironically, her claims re this are hardly flattering to her talent, for the great weakness of CHICKADEE is the actual story itself, which is remarkable for its lack of imagination: Flower Belle becomes mixed up with an outlaw and is run out of town--and told she can't return until she can prove she is respectably married. The opportunity to do precisely that arrives in the form Cuthbert J. Twillie, an inept con-man who becomes her dupe.

Although uninspired, the plot does have the benefit of allowing both West and Fields to do their own thing both separately and occasionally together--and when it works, it goes off with a bang. Their meeting on the train, their wedding night, and West's unlikely stint as a schoolmarm (teaching the young about figures, of course) are all hilarious bits, and Margaret Hamilton gets in some good moments in the supporting cast. The film only sinks whenever it returns to the storyline of West and her bandit lover--so all in all, although not the best, it is well worth a watch, particularly for Fields and West fans. Recommended, but don't expect too much.

Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Uneven: Fields Takes the Field

[skallisjr · 7/10 · 20 August 2005]

IMHO, W. C. Fields is a comic master. Mae West is a good comedienne. However, time has been kinder to Mr, Fields than Ms. West. Naturally, each works best in their specialties. However, Mae West's dialog and quips seem more dated than W. C. Fields'.

When Mae West was teaching school, for instance, her speech was filled with then-current slang that doesn't necessarily translate to a modern audience. By contrast, Fields' asides and speech is timeless.

Those with a real interest in classic Westerns can find allusions to other films of the era, notably Stagecoach. But even for those who haven't seen the other films, this one's entertaining.

W.C. Fields heads west, Mae West

[Petey-10 · 9/10 · 10 August 2009]

It's the American Old West of the 1880's.Miss Flower Belle Lee is an attractive and seductive singer from Chicago.She's on her way to visit relatives out west.On the stagecoach there are also three men and the gossip of the town, Mrs. Gideon.Then a masked bandit holds up the stage for its shipment of gold.He rides off with the gold- and the saucy blonde.Later she arrives in Little Bend, unharmed.The masked bandit comes to see her again, and there's some kissing involved.Mrs. Gideon witnesses his presence and departure.This gives enough reason to get her out of the town.She gets on the train and heads for Greasewood City.On the train she meets a con man called Cuthbert J. Twillie who travels with his Indian companion.She decides to marry her for "respectability.And it helps to see the big amount of money in his bag, which later turns out to be fake.And also the marriage turns out to be fake, since the minister is actually a gambler.On the train they get in the middle of an Indian attack.She keeps her cool and shoots them Indians.He doesn't show any fear either- he shoots them Indians with a child's slingshot.In the town Flower Belle and Twillie have very little to do with each other, but she has much more to do with other men.And with the masked bandit.My Little Chickadee (1940) is directed by Edward F. Cline.It was the most successful film of that year after Gone With the Wind, despite the mediocre reviews it got from the critics.I enjoyed watching the film, just like the audience of that era.W.C. Fields and Mae West make a great couple.Fields mastered at his boozing comedian act.And he had the right nose for it.West was the silent sex symbol who mastered at the talkies, too.Those two were responsible also for the screenplay.Joseph Calleia plays Jeff Badger, who turns out to be the masked bandit.The newspaper editor Wayne Carter is played by Dick Foran.Ruth Donnelly plays Aunt Lou.Margaret Hamilton gives the portrayal of Mrs. Gideon.Donald Meek plays the minister/gambler Amos Budge.Fuzzy Knight is Cousin Zeb.George Moran is Milton, Twillie's Indian confederate.Jackie Searl is Schoolboy.This is a terrific western comedy.It's a lot of fun when Fields and West first meet in the train, and he starts immediately wooing her.And when Fields takes a bath in her room, and she goes out to meet the masked bandit.When he comes out of the bath he finds a goat on her bed.And it's enjoyable to watch Fields work as a bartender and West as a schoolteacher.They sure knew how to make people laugh in the old times.

Mae West and W.C. Fields provide plenty of comic spark in the uneven My Little Chickadee with solid help from Margaret Hamilton

[tavm · 6/10 · 2 June 2013]

This is the only film comedy legends W.C. Fields and Mae West made together. They're both larger-than-life characters who usually dominate their movies by themselves with only occasional help from talented supporting players to guide them through their classic shtick. They only share few scenes together but there's some gold in those few scenes though it's even better when they do separate and interact with the usual character types both have been known to associate with. One player here who does well with both is Margaret Hamilton, fresh from her Wicked Witch of the West role in The Wizard of Oz, who scowls her best scowl and acts suitably flustered whenever she encounters these two either together or separately. In summary, My Little Chickadee is worthy of these two legendary comedians despite some unevenness on the part of the screenplay they both wrote.

Iconography Trumps Comedy

[slokes · 5/10 · 5 March 2016]

An occasionally amusing yet ultimately disappointing vehicle for two screen legends, "My Little Chickadee" gives us Mae West and W. C. Fields as a mismatched couple trying to keep one step ahead of matrimony and the noose in the Old West.

Flower Belle Lee (West) is a girl in trouble, no temporary thing when the trouble is in the form of a persistent masked bandit who has been seen in her company too often. To get clear, she sets up a phony marriage with a smooth-talking but inept conman named Cuthbert J. Twillie (Fields), slow to the draw on the fact his wedding was a sham – not until he finds himself sharing his marriage bed with a goat.

Watching West take Fields for a ride is fun for 15 minutes or so. Unfortunately, there's still an hour to kill after that. Contrary to film legend, the two do share more than that one scene. Yet their relationship is characterized by distance.

"Big chief get a new squaw?" Cuthbert is asked by his Indian sidekick, Milton (George Moran).

"New is right," Cuthbert replies. "She hasn't even been unwrapped yet."

It's the kind of film where repartee like that, funny as it sometimes is, substitutes for dialogue. West's most common emotion here is a kind of bored, bemused insouciance, whether she's being wooed by Fields or abducted by the Masked Bandit. Shooting down a band of attacking Indians, she quips away between blasts ("There he goes in a shower of feathers") and is so encased by her screen persona to make what passes for a story purely inconsequential.

Fields does a little better. Like West, he was on the rebound after years of drinking had reduced him to radio work. His main role here is to be the butt of Flower Belle's wry jokes and machinations, an unaccustomed part for someone usually one step ahead of everyone else on screen in his shambling, erudite way.

I enjoyed his scene tending bar, and an exchange he has with a pair of Preston Sturges regulars, Al Bridge and Jimmy Conlin.

"Squawk Mulligan tells me you buried your wife several years ago," Bridge's character says.

"Had to," Cuthbert answers. "She died."

But this is a film more amusing for its clips than for watching from beginning to end. The basic scenario, of Cuthbert taking the unhealthy job of sheriff of Greasewood City, a post which has seen five previous late occupants in the last six months, could have been made into something; director Edward F. Cline is more concerned with setting up one-liners – no surprise considering his screenwriters were the pair delivering them!

Speaking of that, West is first-billed, both as actor and as writer, and the emphasis on her over everything else gets old fast. Told by the bandit she will be embarrassed if she knew his real identity, she rolls her eyes for the umpteenth time and replies: "I've never been embarrassed in my life."

West wouldn't be embarrassed by this movie; it was a popular if minor success and has grown in stature as being one of her signature roles. It's not much of a role, though, just an excuse to put her icon character through its paces while Fields stumbles along in her wake. You will be amused, too, but perhaps left wondering at what all the fuss was about.

not Fields best, but good none the less

[movieman_kev · 8/10 · 12 June 2005]

After Flower Bell Lee (Mae West) is run out of town when she's found out for her hanky-panky with the Masked Bandit, she meets con-man Cuthbert Twillie (W. C. Fields) on the train that she's departing the town. during an Indian raid. She marries him when she spies a bag full of money on his person. Fields is great as always, even if this is nowhere near his best movie. The story doesn't really go anywhere, but W. C. and to a slightly lesser extent West make it highly watchable none the less. This movie can be found in the W.C. Fields comedy collection, along with, "The Bank Dick", "You can't Cheat an Honest Man", "It's a Gift", "International House", and "W.C. Fields:Behind the Laughter"

My Grade: B

DVD Extras: Theatrical Trailer

ah yes, this is what they mean when they talk about screwball

[lee_eisenberg · 7/10 · 17 January 2008]

It is true that "My Little Chickadee" does have some stereotypical portrayals of American Indians. Other than that, it's a pretty good time. W.C. Fields plays his usual character: a simple-minded weirdo going on and on about his exploits (would people in the Old West have really been familiar with Afghanistan?). But there's a reason that Mae West is the star. She plays a bitchy woman taking some real pride in her illegal activities, so much so that she calmly and self-assuredly sasses the court. But the real action takes off when Fields becomes sheriff.

As for the news that Mae West and W.C. Fields didn't like each other, that doesn't change the movie. This film remains a piece of nice, short entertainment, despite the occasional racism. Even more interesting still is Margaret Hamilton's character: she basically plays a human version of the Wicked Witch of the West! So, this is far from the funniest movie, but certainly an important part of cinematic history. Worth seeing.

Flower Belle Lee and Cuthbert J. Twillie. What a whacked-out pair of names.

"Beelzebub! I've been hoodwinked!"

[moonspinner55 · 5/10 · 21 April 2009]

Mae West and W.C. Fields working below their abilities. She's a sassy singer run out of her community for consorting with a masked stagecoach bandit; he's a novelty salesman (with a satchel of phony money) who becomes sheriff in a troubled Old West town after falsely boasting of his shooting abilities. Mae "marries" W.C. via a gambler dressed like a preacher, only to spend most of her on-screen time with a handsome newspaper man. Fields plays bartender, trades barbs with busy-body Margaret Hamilton, and gets into bed with a goat he thinks is Mae. His quick retorts and sideline witticisms get some laughs, but this script (written by the two stars) never allows for any big, memorable moments. Mae has a song number in the saloon that seems rather lax (the Hays Code was breathing down her neck at the time), and her personality appears to have been zapped of vivaciousness. The movie doesn't look too bad, and it is certainly watchable, but one waits in vain for it to get off the ground and that sadly does not happen. ** from ****

Two Movies in One

[dougdoepke · 7 July 2014]

No need to recap the plot.

I guess Universal figured that since West and Fields were so funny apart, they'd be even funnier together. Unfortunately, things didn't quite work out that way. Each gets off some funny lines, but rarely do they share the same frame. It's almost like two movies in one. But then neither comedian needs a second party to bounce jokes off of. Each was like a self- contained act on his or her own—West with her leering innuendos, Fields with his grouchy misanthropy. So trying to mix them is like trying to mix Jupiter with Mars. Good thing the great Margaret Hamilton is along to bridge the gap.

If West comes off a shade less prominently than Fields, it's probably because she's less of an actor. Basically, she's got one comedic posture, and as good as it is, her air of the sexually irresistible doesn't adapt well. Fields' style, on the other hand, goes through a number of emotions, exasperation never far behind. Then too, his fascination with words from the thesaurus is usually on dialog display. Here I really love "euphonious appellation" instead of the more down-to-earth "nice sounding name".

Anyway, each was a comedic genius in his or her own right. And I particularly salute West for her daring brand of comedy at a time when censors did their best to eliminate the fleshy side of life. Nonetheless, each is better viewed in solo starring roles, e.g. Fields in It's a Gift (1934), and West in I'm No Angel (1933).