MOVIE OF THE DAY: "HYPNOTIZED" (1932)

Hypnotized has possibilities for a wacky movie. American Circus worker Bill Bogard has to choose between getting married to his sweetheart Mitzi or sailing to the UK to cash in a sweepstakes ticket worth 150,000 pounds. 

Naturally, he goes with the latter scheme, with his idiot colleague Egbert Jackson in tow, and Mitzi giving chase. Prof. Horace Limberly, learning of Bogard's windfall, hypnotizes him into handing over the sweepstakes ticket. Through a series of inevitable mishaps, Bogard retrieves the ticket and marries Mitzi onboard the steamship. 

Sounds like an OK proto-screwball comedy. But this blog being what it is, Hypnotized has to be either an obscure curio or something bordering on abominable. One look at the poster will tell you which.

Since 1932, Hypnotized has been considered by many to be the worst movie ever made. As I recall from a book about comedy teams (published circa 1972), Leonard Maltin quoted a prominent movie critic who, upon the film's original release, said, "If you haven't seen Hypnotized, you cannot realize how bad a motion picture can be."

Look fast, folks, because that's the last you're going to
see of George Moran (right).

The main contributors to its reputation were Moran & Mack, a/k/a The Two Black Crows, a bush league Amos & Andy, who lacked the latter's attempt at humanity. That Moran & Mack were even attempting a grotesque blackface movie career as late as 1932 is shocking. At least Amos & Andy's creators stuck with radio after washing out in features two years earlier.

But what's even odder is that George Moran makes only a 15-second appearance early on before disappearing, handing over the rest of the picture to Charles Mack. I've never been able to discover the thinking behind this idea or if audiences sued movie theaters for false advertising. 

I needn't point out where Marjorie Beebe is.

In place of Moran, Mack is given a love interest, Mitzi's maid Pearl. There's no way a black
woman would be cast opposite a white guy (no matter what color he's playing), so B-list actor Marjorie Beebe blacked up for the part. While her make-up is less jarring than Mack's, it's still obvious that this is a white woman in the role, like Natalie Wood in West Side Story only without being provided words by Stephen Sondheim to sing. 

Here's hoping she hid a large piece of lead inside the
tip of the broom.

Therefore, it's all the more fascinating to see the great Hattie McDaniel as (what else?) the ship's maid sharing scenes with Charles Mack. One wonders what was going through her mind -- was she insulted, or just happy to get a couple day's work? Whatever, McDaniel really gets into beating Mack with a broom. No surprise it's the most satisfying scene in the picture.

You pretend you're sitting on a chair if you think it's
so easy.

In order to live up to its title, Hypnotized features several scenes with our "heroes" under the control of Prof. Limberly, played by Ernest Torrance (who, perhaps ashamed by the experience, died within a year). 

It's useless to expect little things like motivation or realism in this piece of junk. But why would an honest-to-gosh hypnotist make these two idiots sit on imaginary chairs, play imaginary xylophones, and convince them they're cats instead of just stealing the winning sweepstakes ticket and making himself scarce for the rest of the voyage?

When this is the best thing in the movie,
it's time to call it a day.

Easy! It allows them to partake 

in stupid sight gags like the ones described above. And in doing so, we get to see a troupe of bizarrely animated mice tease them by doing a soft shoe routine. 

This bit, which really must be seen to be believed, doesn't come out of left field as much as it does a whole different star system, and offers the one genuine laugh in Hypnotized's 76 minutes. At a time when studios were trying to create cute Mickey Mouse clones, these freakish rodents actually stand out in welcome relief. 

And the mutt probably didn't even get stunt pay.

A low budget comedy from this time wouldn't be complete without some animal abuse, and Hypnotized delivers not once but twice. The first time, Egbert, hypnotized into thinking he's a cat, gets into a fight with a dog, going so far as to bite its tail. Depending on your tolerance for such things, it's either made palatable or disappointing that the dog is obviously wearing extensions.

Blackface, animal abuse -- just another day in
Hollywood.

The second example happens during the climax, when a lion from the ship's entertainment act -- unlikely to be found on any Princess Cruise -- gets loose. After Egbert and Pearl jump into the pool to escape certain death, the lion insists on hanging around. Genius that he is, Egbert retaliates by pulling on its tail.

This time, there is no attachment. What we're watching here is Charles Mack (or his stuntman) really and truly pulling on this poor lion's tail. In a movie filled with dozens of moments where you mutter I can't believe this, this particular scene takes the cake. Fun fact: Wallace Ford, who plays sweepstakes winner Bill Bogard, would star that same year in Central Park, another movie where an escaped lion plays a key role. Strange typecasting.

Sennett asks for your
forgiveness.

The mastermind behind Hypnotized was Mack Sennett, the one-time self-proclaimed King of Comedy. While Hollywood comedies were becoming more sophisticated, Sennett's style hadn't developed in decades. His greatest discovery, Charlie Chaplin, must have been appalled by his former boss's fall from slapstick grace.

Also not helping is Hypnotized's low budget and lack of technical expertise. Wearing its crudeness almost proudly on its sleeve -- I would have sworn it was made in 1929 -- Hypnotized is perhaps the only movie that would look even worse if restored. 

What is the definition of "laugh"?

Yet despite all my carping, I would be hard-pressed to name Hypnotized the worst movie ever made. At least two others on this blog, Son of Dracula and Another Nice Mess, lack even an historical interest for viewing. Plus, they're boring as hell. But you almost can't help watching Hypnotized, as if it's daring you -- hypnotizing you -- to believe this really isn't some strange hallucination. 

Two years after the release of Hypnotized, Mack Sennett was seriously injured in an auto accident while driving in Mesa, Arizona. His passenger, Hypnotized' star George Mack, was killed. Sennett really knew how to treat a friend.

                               **********

To read about Son of Dracula, go here.

To read about Another Nice Mess, go here.

To read about Central Park, go here.