Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageYou Can't Cheat an Honest Man (1939)
Director: George Marshall
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
'It is overloaded with two-reel comedy and no story, no pathos, no believable characters': the perceptive critic is Fields himself, who helplessly watched Universal mishandle his heartwarming story of a roguish circus owner. Most of the comedy is put into the sticky hands of Edgar Bergen, known now as the father of Candice, known then as a ventriloquist and the manipulator of dummy Charlie McCarthy, whose radio feud with Fields had all America doubled up. But their antics now seem far more historical than hysterical, and Fields' character emerges sadly belittled and coarsened. Still, good moments survive here and there.Author: GB
Cast & crew
Director: George Marshall
Producer: Lester Cowan
Cast: WC Fields, Edgar Bergen, Constance Moore, James Bush, Mary Forbes, Edward Brophy, Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson full cast
Genre(s): Comedy
Duration: 76 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Time Out's 101 Films of the Decade
Ten years, thousands of movies and millions of dollars in international box office, and it all boils down to this
Martin Provost discusses 'Séraphine'
Trevor Johnston talks to the director of 'Séraphine' about bringing a little known French painter back to life
Our verdict on Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson ends a triumphant decade with a sentimental misfire with this lush Alice Sebold adaptation
On the set of Ken Loach's 'Route Irish'
Dave Calhoun meets Ken Loach on the set of his forthcoming Iraq war movie
Stephen Poliakoff discusses 'Glorious 39'
Stephen Poliakoff’s ‘Glorious 39’ is his first film for cinema since ‘Food of Love’ in 1997. Dave Calhoun met him
Is 'Paranormal Activity' the new 'Blair Witch'?
How does a film go from DIY experiment to box-office smash? 'Paranormal Activity' director Oren Peli explains
Steven Soderbergh on 'The Informant!' and 'The Girlfriend Experience'
We talk to Steven Soderbergh about his two forthcoming films: one featuring a porn star, the other a chubby Matt Damon
A gateway to all things 'New Moon'
In anticipation of 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon', Time Out is offering the chance to pick up a limited edition pack with three exclusive magazines and a free poster.
The films that deserve a TV spin-off
With Roland Emmerich suggesting he'd like to make a '2012' TV spin-off, we propose some more movie-to-TV serialisations
Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam
In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations
What do you think?
Post your review now