Well Deserved Praise

The Age of Commercialism

Such a frustrating disappointment

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

"Fancy Pants" is a reworking of the story from "Ruggles of Red Gap", though I strongly advise you to try to find this film (particularly the version starring Charles Laughton) instead. In no way is this film the equal to "Ruggles".When the film begins, Bob Hope is an American actor who specialized in playing Butlers in British plays. Well, some Americans from the west convince him to return with them to Wyoming and be their classy Gentleman's Gentleman. Not wanting to disappoint the nouveaux rich (after all, they do have money), the follows. However, later the locals think that he's an Earl and suddenly he's no longer the hired help but the special house guest of this family. Soon, the President himself is traveling their way...and he, too, would love to meet the Earl.The film is just okay...and in every way the earlier films are better. Instead of being sweet, this Hope film is kooky and a bit silly...but nothing more.By the way, this film represents the biggest waste of Eric Blore in film history. See the picture...you'll see what I mean.

We have been enjoying this classic movie, "Fancy Pants," for years and never tire of it! Bob Hope is an absolute riot! Almost every single line by Bob Hope (the fake Humphrey the butler) is quotable and hilarious! We would love to list our favorite "Humphrey"/Bob lines here but there are too many to list! This is our favorite Lucille Ball movie (besides "The Long, Long Trailer") and one of our very, very favorite Bob Hope movies (besides "The Lemon Drop Kid" and "The Princess and The Pirate"). Many movies have forgettable soundtracks but the three songs in this movie are memorable, clever, fun, get your feet tapping and put a smile on your face! We cannot find one fault in this entire movie (except we sincerely hope all the animals were treated humanely during filming). If you've had a bad day, this movie will definitely put a smile on your face and give you plenty of belly laughs! This film deserves 20 stars!

The good news is that this is the type of role that Bob Hope usually excelled in playing. It's not exactly his "coward" role, with which he could run away with a picture. But it's close -- in this case a British actor portraying a British servant, playing a British earl...this time a somewhat cowardly braggart. There's nothing wrong with Hope's performance here.And then there's Lucy, playing an American Western woman looking for a husband. As with Hope, it's a good performance.And, Bob and Lucy always were good together...and were here.So what's the problem? Well, many stories need a set up to get going. But the set up for this story lasts about 40 minutes, and that set up is only moderately entertaining. Once the Westerners mistake Hope's character for an earl, things pick up and the film gets relatively entertaining.It's also a rather lush production with high production values.The supporting cast here does okay...with the emphasis on "okay". Bruce Cabot wants to be Lucy's love interest, but of course Hope is in the way; Cabot was, in my view, a marginal supporting actor, although he often looked right for his parts. Jack Kirkwood plays Lucy's father; again, he does "okay". Lea Penman does fairly well as Lucy's overbearing mother. Clearly the studio wanted to save money here -- the supporting actors are largely unknown to the American audience.What I find interesting here is the wide division between reviews here. People either love this film or hate it. I'm more in the middle.BTW, this is somewhat of a musical. The songs sorta work, but it's pretty clear that Lucy is lip-syncing (to Annette Warren singing).Chase scenes can be funny...but 3 chase scenes in a row is a bit much.I'll give this film a weak "7"

This has to be one of the most memorable and funny movies I've ever seen! (and I have seen many many movies) I wasn't sure if Lucille Ball would be as hilarious as she was in "I Love Lucy" but I was wrong. She had the same sense of humor all the way through as she did in her hit TV show. She is a remarkable actress and never fails to be funny as you'll see in this movie! Bob Hope & Lucille Ball work wonderfully together, most entertaining pair ever. It is a shame they weren't in much movies together. Anyways, hurry up & see this. I swear you'll love it to bits and pieces, and you might even end up falling out of your seat laughing. (like me!)