The Medicine Man (1930)

• 75% of users liked it
  (65 ratings)

Jack Benny wasn't even 39 yet when he starred in the maudlin backstage drama The Medicine Man. Benny plays Dr. John Harvey, the worldly and none-too-honest title character, who while passing through a small town falls in love with winsome Mamie Goltz (Betty Bronson), the victim of what one observer… More Jack Benny wasn't even 39 yet when he starred in the maudlin backstage drama The Medicine Man. Benny plays Dr. John Harvey, the worldly and none-too-honest title character, who while passing through a small town falls in love with winsome Mamie Goltz (Betty Bronson), the victim of what one observer described as the most abusive father in movie history (E. Alyn Warren). Our hero puts his larcenous nature on the back burner to champion Mamie's cause when her despicable dad tries to force her into a marriage with an equally odious elderly millionaire. Forced out of town due to a scandal, the doctor is nowhere to be found during the wedding ceremonies, and for several uncomfortable minutes it looks like poor Mamie will have to go through with it. Not a good film by any standards, The Medicine Man is worth having if only to see Jack Benny in a virtually "straight" role. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi