Thursday, January 9, 2020

MA AND PA KETTLE BACK ON THE FARM

Marjorie Main and Percy Kilbride
MA AND PA KETTLE BACK ON THE FARM (1951). Director: Edward Sedgwick.

Ma: "You're lazier than that hound dog we used to have."
Pa: "Which one?"
Ma: "The one who used to lean against the wall when she barked."

Ma and Pa Kettle (Marjorie Main and Percy Kilbride) are back on the farm with their brood when Pa finds out "Mrs. Kettle" is pregnant. This of course, is his daughter-in-law Kim (Meg Randall), but Pa thinks his wife is going to deliver her sixteenth child! Once that is straightened out, the Kettles have to deal with Kim's parents. Her father, Jonathan (Ray Collins of Perry Mason) is a good sport but his wife, Elizabeth (Barbara Brown), is a termagant who wants her own way or else as far as her grandchild is concerned. Ma almost comes to blows with the woman, and does give a shove to the prune-faced nurse that is hired to look after the new arrival. Then there's the possibility that the Kettles' old property may be layered with uranium,

Bedroom hijinks with the Kettles
This third film featuring Main and Kilbride, who are absolutely wonderful, is as funny as the last one, with amusing dialogue and situations. One could argue that the flick is full of time-worn comedy devices, such as a frantic race in a car to catch a train and so on, but these things are still amusing, especially with Main and Kilbride on hand to liven things up. There's a great bit where Ma and Pa show pal Billy Reed (Emory Parnell) their own brand of arithmetic, which, incredibly, makes perfect sense as far as the Kettles are concerned. Richard Long is back as Tom Kettle, and Teddy Hart and Oliver Blake make a couple of politically incorrect but comical Indians.

Verdict: Lots of fun! ***.
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2 comments:

  1. angelman66January 11, 2020 at 10:05 AM

    One of the aspects of the old Hollywood studio system I love most is that it gave wonderful character actors the chance to step out in front and be the stars for a change, through these so-called B movies and serials. Marjorie Main was ubiquitous and worked constantly in every type of film imaginable, but you never get tired of her. Sometimes she's in a film for just one tiny scene (which she steals) but was perfectly capable of carrying a whole picture, and in this case, an entire series.
    -Chris

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  2. WilliamJanuary 11, 2020 at 10:21 AM

    Yes, I'm a big admirer of hers as well. I'd love somebody to write a bio of her and sooner or later it will happen, but I'd rather somebody else do it, LOL. You get curious about the private lives of some of these people who are so engaging on the screen. As I've said, Main could play soft and warm on occasion and was just as adept.

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