This was director Gus Meins' first attempt to correct the mistakes George Marshall had made in the previous Pitts-Todd comedies. Marshall attempted to give ZaSu and Thelma a slapstick emphasis. Seeing women perform these antics was just not funny. In "Sneak Easily", Meins gives most of the physical stuff to supporting players Billy Gilbert, James C. Morton and Bobby Burns. As always, they are welcome players in a Roach comedy and chew up the scenery as usual. The real problem with the film is its flimsy premise. Burns, a mad doctor, is on trial for blowing up his wife with an explosive pill. Thelma is the inept defense attorney. ZaSu is a juror. Thelma should have never been cast as the attorney. The film would have worked better had both Thelma and ZaSu been selected as jurors. Establishing the relationship that Thelma and ZaSu are room mates weakens the film. How could ZaSu have ever been selected as a juror with that connection to the attorney. The second reel is a slapstick dash to the doctor's house, since ZaSu has swallowed one of his exploding pills. Some of the sight gags are clever, but as a whole, the film is a misfire.
Review of Sneak Easily
