The best laid plans of mice and men... often culminate with a hole in your foot. Such was the case when Edgar Kennedy tried to feign illness in order to get out of the house and go see the big fight. Classic premise we're all familiar with, as we've seen it on The Flintstones a time or two, and it even worked for Laurel & Hardy in their brilliant film Sons of the Desert. But, unfortunately, Edgar Kennedy has far worse luck than all of them. It all started one afternoon when Edgar's pal Sam invited him to go along to the fight, even selling him a ticket for $10. Ed says he can't go because, get this: his mother in-law won't let him go unless he takes Brother. Oh, boy. If it were his wife saying that, it would be different, but why does he let his mother in-law control what he does? If only Edgar had a spine... so, since he's a worm and listens to the old cow, Sam comes up with a "brilliant" idea: have Edgar pretend to be sick and he'll come in posing as a doctor and take him to his "sanitarium" for a few days of ringside treatment. What could possibly go wrong? Sam sends Edgar home, saying he'll show up as ol' Doctor Dimwitty, who graduated last at the Institute of Quackery. So Edgar plays his part, going home and claiming to be sick, and the family buys it. With Ed in bed, it isn't long before the doctor shows up... and hams it up. Putting a stethoscope to Edgar's chest and quoting big words. Ordinarily, such a ruse would fool nobody, but these nitwits bought it hook, line and sinker. Dr. Dimwitty asks for a moment alone with his patient, and that's when both of them come down with a serious case of overconfidence, congratulating one another on a swell performance, and doing it loud enough so Mother and Brother could hear them from the other side of the door. Wondering what exactly was brewing in Kennedyville, they search Edgar's coat and find his fight ticket. That's when they decide to fight fire with fire... possibly literally.
First thing Mother does is convince Floren... er, I mean Pauline to ask the doctor to examine her, but when Edgar finds out, he's deadset against it. He don't want no other man to put his hands on his wife, despite Sam claiming he can give her a quick diagnosis. Regardless, Ed doesn't want him playing doctor with his little lady. Mother and Brother walk in on Ed wrestling with the doctor, and manage to get him back into bed, while Mother suggests a hot foot bath with Epsom salts. Unfortunately, because she's a mean, vindictive old shrew, she uses not Epsom salts, but cement. Edgar's feet are going to be as hard as his head. Well, I suppose he was half lucky, as he only stuck one foot in the pan before the cement hardened. They managed to pull off the pan, leaving Edgar with a round block of cement around his foot. Well, a sledgehammer should solve this problem, right? No, it seems this isn't really cement, but rather Kryptonite. Brother tries an ax, but it destroys the blade. Next, Dr. Dumbass hears a jackhammer outside and asks the construction worker if he can borrow it... which would definitely cost that man his job, as they're not supposed to lend their equipment to civilians, but he hands it over without question. This can go only as well as anticipated. He starts hammering into the block of cement and strikes paydirt... ouch! All the while, Pauline becomes impatient about her impending examination, and despite Edgar's vehement refusal, Sam tries to go about his duty, though each time he tries to leave the room, Brother comes in hitting him with the door. This time, he comes baring a shotgun, but Edgar rightfully takes it away. Luckily, this gives Sam an idea: when in doubt, blow it up. He rigs an explosive out of gun powder, then lights a fuse and leaves the room, leaving Edgar to his impending doom. Now, in real life, such a thing would either killed Edgar, blown his foot off, or messed it up so bad it would have to be amputated. But since this is a fictional movie, Edgar was alright, just a few bruises. Unfortunately, this means he will miss the fight, as Brother went to it with Dr. Dimwitty... which I assume was done by blackmail, as impersonating a doctor can be a serious offense. I also hope Edgar sued Sam for the damages incurred.
To sum this one up: it's goofy. From start to finish, it's just plain silly. Edgar can't go to a fight because his mother in-law won't let him. How pathetic. Not to mention, we get to once again see that Edgar's family are horrible people. They're selfish, they're spiteful, they're cruel, and in Pauline's case, stupid. As you may have noticed, whenever Florence Lake was unavailable, they had another actress fill in as Edgar's wife and obviously tell her to mimic Lake as best they can. In this case, it was Pauline Drake, but they've also had Sally Payne and Irene Ryan, to name a few, always playing the tittering, chattering, airheaded little woman that, for some reason, Edgar said "I do" to. Mother and Brother are absolutely terrible human beings and Edgar did nothing wrong, so he didn't deserve what happened to him in this film, or in any film where he suffers at the hands of these scumbags. Like I said before, this premise of feigning illness to sneak away and do something has been repeated many times before, namely by The Flintstones and Laurel & Hardy's Son of the Desert. Each time, though, the liars are found out and have to pay a steep price... except for Stanley, because "honesty is the best politics." So, do I recommend "Hot Foot"? Sure, it's not a bad short, just zany and goofy. Bud Jamison from Three Stooges fame appears as Dr. "Dimwitty", real subtle name there, and he hams and mugs it up beautifully. If you like zany 1940s slapstick comedies, then this one is for you. Don't take it too seriously.
First thing Mother does is convince Floren... er, I mean Pauline to ask the doctor to examine her, but when Edgar finds out, he's deadset against it. He don't want no other man to put his hands on his wife, despite Sam claiming he can give her a quick diagnosis. Regardless, Ed doesn't want him playing doctor with his little lady. Mother and Brother walk in on Ed wrestling with the doctor, and manage to get him back into bed, while Mother suggests a hot foot bath with Epsom salts. Unfortunately, because she's a mean, vindictive old shrew, she uses not Epsom salts, but cement. Edgar's feet are going to be as hard as his head. Well, I suppose he was half lucky, as he only stuck one foot in the pan before the cement hardened. They managed to pull off the pan, leaving Edgar with a round block of cement around his foot. Well, a sledgehammer should solve this problem, right? No, it seems this isn't really cement, but rather Kryptonite. Brother tries an ax, but it destroys the blade. Next, Dr. Dumbass hears a jackhammer outside and asks the construction worker if he can borrow it... which would definitely cost that man his job, as they're not supposed to lend their equipment to civilians, but he hands it over without question. This can go only as well as anticipated. He starts hammering into the block of cement and strikes paydirt... ouch! All the while, Pauline becomes impatient about her impending examination, and despite Edgar's vehement refusal, Sam tries to go about his duty, though each time he tries to leave the room, Brother comes in hitting him with the door. This time, he comes baring a shotgun, but Edgar rightfully takes it away. Luckily, this gives Sam an idea: when in doubt, blow it up. He rigs an explosive out of gun powder, then lights a fuse and leaves the room, leaving Edgar to his impending doom. Now, in real life, such a thing would either killed Edgar, blown his foot off, or messed it up so bad it would have to be amputated. But since this is a fictional movie, Edgar was alright, just a few bruises. Unfortunately, this means he will miss the fight, as Brother went to it with Dr. Dimwitty... which I assume was done by blackmail, as impersonating a doctor can be a serious offense. I also hope Edgar sued Sam for the damages incurred.
To sum this one up: it's goofy. From start to finish, it's just plain silly. Edgar can't go to a fight because his mother in-law won't let him. How pathetic. Not to mention, we get to once again see that Edgar's family are horrible people. They're selfish, they're spiteful, they're cruel, and in Pauline's case, stupid. As you may have noticed, whenever Florence Lake was unavailable, they had another actress fill in as Edgar's wife and obviously tell her to mimic Lake as best they can. In this case, it was Pauline Drake, but they've also had Sally Payne and Irene Ryan, to name a few, always playing the tittering, chattering, airheaded little woman that, for some reason, Edgar said "I do" to. Mother and Brother are absolutely terrible human beings and Edgar did nothing wrong, so he didn't deserve what happened to him in this film, or in any film where he suffers at the hands of these scumbags. Like I said before, this premise of feigning illness to sneak away and do something has been repeated many times before, namely by The Flintstones and Laurel & Hardy's Son of the Desert. Each time, though, the liars are found out and have to pay a steep price... except for Stanley, because "honesty is the best politics." So, do I recommend "Hot Foot"? Sure, it's not a bad short, just zany and goofy. Bud Jamison from Three Stooges fame appears as Dr. "Dimwitty", real subtle name there, and he hams and mugs it up beautifully. If you like zany 1940s slapstick comedies, then this one is for you. Don't take it too seriously.
