My Little Chickadee (1940)
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91% of critics liked it
(11 reviews) -
66% of users liked it
(670 ratings)
The once-in-a-lifetime teaming of Mae West and W.C. Fields in My Little Chickadee had the potential for comic greatness: what emerged, though generally entertaining, was, in the words of critic Andrew Sarris, "more funny strange than funny ha-ha." Mae West dominates the film's first… More The once-in-a-lifetime teaming of Mae West and W.C. Fields in My Little Chickadee had the potential for comic greatness: what emerged, though generally entertaining, was, in the words of critic Andrew Sarris, "more funny strange than funny ha-ha." Mae West dominates the film's first reel as Flowerbelle Lee, a self-reliant woman who is abducted by a mysterious masked bandit during a stagecoach holdup. Because she refuses to tell anyone what happened during her nocturnal rendezvous with the bandit, Flowerbelle is invited to leave her prudish hometown and move to Greasewood City. En route by train, Flowerbelle makes the acquaintance of con-artist Cuthbert J. Twillie (W.C. Fields), who carries a suitcase full of what seems to be large-denomination monetary notes. After a lively clash with marauding Indians, Flowerbelle tricks Twillie into a phony marriage; she does this so that she can arrive in Greasewood City with a modicum of respectability, and incidentally to get her hands on Twillie's bankroll. Once she discovers that Twillie's "fortune" consists of nothing but phony oil-well coupons, Flowerbelle refuses to allow Twillie into the bridal chamber (he unwittingly crawls into the marriage bed with a goat, muttering "Darling, have you changed your perfume?") Through a fluke, the cowardly Twillie is appointed sheriff of Greasewood City by town boss Joseph Calleila. The plot is put on hold for two reels while La West does a "schoolroom" routine with a class full of markedly overage students, and while Fields performs a bartender bit wherein he explains how he once knocked down the notorious Chicago Mollie. Jealous over the attentions paid to his "wife" by Calleila and honest newspaper-editor Dick Foran, Twillie decides to gain entry into his wife's boudoir by posing as the still-at-large masked bandit. His ruse is soon discovered by Flowerbelle, but the townsfolk capture Twillie as he makes his escape. They are about to lynch the hapless Twillie when Flowerbelle discovers that Calleia is the genuine masked bandit. She urges Calleia to save Twillie's life by making a surprise appearance at the lynching and by returning the money he's stolen. When all plot lines are ironed out, Flowerbelle and Twillie bid goodbye to one another. Borrowing a device utilized by ZaSu Pitts and Hugh Herbert in 1939's The Lady's From Kentucky, W.C. Fields invites Mae West to "come up and see me sometime," whereupon West appropriates Fields' tagline and calls him "My Little Chickadee." The script for this uneven comedy western was credited to Mae West and W.C. Fields, though in fact West was responsible for most of it. Fields willingly conceded this, noting that West had captured his character better than any other writer he'd ever met. Despite this seeming gallantry, it was no secret that West and Fields disliked each other intensely, a fact that had an injurious effect on their scenes together. My Little Chickadee has assumed legendary status thanks to its stars, and it certainly does deliver the laughs when necessary: still, it is hardly the best-ever vehicle for either Fields or West, two uniquely individual performers who should never have been required to duke it out for the same spotlight. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Edward F. Cline
- Written By
- W.C. Fields, Mae West
- Genres
- Western, Classics, Comedy
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Jan 1, 1939 Wide
- Studio
- MCA Universal Home Video
Critic Reviews
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Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
It's really not a good movie, but it had something special about it that defied a rational critique.
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Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com
One of THE classic W.C. Fields films; includes adversary Mae West, a plus.
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Eric Lurio, Greenwich Village Gazette
Two greats blow it. Both have done far better.
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Bob Bloom, Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)
Fields and West, two comic forces collide and both come out on town. A timeless treasure of comedy.
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Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Neither Fields' nor West's best, but essential comedy all the same
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Cast
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Mae West
as Flower Belle Lee
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W.C. Fields
as Cuthbert J. Twillie
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Joseph Calleia
as Masked Bandit
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Dick Foran
as Wayne Carter
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Ruth Donnelly
as Aunt Lou
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Margaret Hamilton
as Miss Gideon
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Donald Meek
as Amos Budget
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Fuzzy Knight
as Cousin Zeb
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Willard Robertson
as Uncle John
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George Moran
as Clarence
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Jackie Searl
as Boy
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Gene Austin
as Himself
- Hank Bell
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William Benedict
as Lem the Schoolboy
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Wade Boteler
as Man
- Al Bridge
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Harlan Briggs
as Hotel Clerk
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Eddie Butler
as Henchman
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Lane Chandler
as Porter
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Lita Chevret
as Indian squaw
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Bing Conley
as Henchman
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Jimmy Conlin
as Bartender Squawk Mulligan
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William B. Davidson
as Sheriff
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Jan Duggan
as Woman
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Frank Ellis
as Townsman
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Al Ferguson
as Train Passenger
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Chester Gan
as Chinaman
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Ben Hall
as Schoolboy
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Russell Hall
as Candy
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Bud Harris
as Porter
- Edward Hearn
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Otto Heimel
as Coco
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Otto Hoffman
as Pete the Printer
- Dan Jackson
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Si Jenks
as Deputy
- Walter McGrail
- Bob McKenzie
- Charles McMurphy
- James C. Morton
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Anne Nagel
as Miss Ermingarde Foster
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Vester Pegg
as Gambler Townsman
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Addison Richards
as Judge
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Jack Roper
as Henchman
- Dick Rush
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Dorothy Vernon
as Diner
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Morgan Wallace
as Gambler
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Delmar Watson
as Boy
- Joe Whitehead
- Bill Wolfe
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Lloyd Ingraham
as Leading Citizen
- John Kelly
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George Melford
as Sheriff
- Robert Burns
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Bob Reeves
as Barfly
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Buster Slaven
as Boy
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Slim Gaut
as Bowlegged man
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Charles Hart
as Boy
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Georgie Billings
as Boy
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Mark Anthony
as Townsman
