MovieChat Forums > The Black Cat (1941) Discussion > The Tedious Mr. Herbert

The Tedious Mr. Herbert

posted 15 years ago by gdjudkins
10 replies | jump to latest

This is a good film--that is, if you can stand Hugh Herbert. A little bit of his 'humor' goes a long way, and he seemed to be in just about every other scene. I fast-forwarded through as much of him as I could, and hoped that the murderer would soon bump him off.

The supporting cast--Basil Rathbone, Gale Sondergaard, and Gladys Cooper--was very good. I'm not crazy about Broderick Crawford in this particular role, though. Ms. Cooper always adds a touch of class to anything, and I was surprised that she appeared in a Universal flick.

As I said, if you can stand Hugh Herbert, I'd highly recommend this film. Herbert's so-called humor (I wouldn't have liked it if I had sat down in 1941 at a matinee to view it) reminds me too much of Lou Costello's.

[–] mam13143 15 years ago

I agree wholeheartedly -- except I think Lou Costello was far better than Herbert.

[–] Woodyanders 15 years ago

I thought Hugh Herbert was a total hoot as the bumbling Mr. Penny; his goofy comic antics added a great deal to the film's considerable entertainment value.

"We're all part Shatner/And part James Dean/Part Warren Oates/And Steven McQueen"

[–] gtj73 14 years ago

Completely agree. Watched it last night for the first time and it constantly annoyed me how he'd utter a forced laugh, like "Hoo Hoo" after just about every line of his dialogue. Other than that, great film.

That house is not fit to live in. No one's been able to live in it. It doesn't want people.

[–] tamra 14 years ago

I have to agree too. I don't mind Lou Costello, but Herbert just seemed to be ripping him off with the signature laugh and all. It comes off as cheesy and an attempt to cash in on Costello's popularity. I found Herbert's character annoying, distracting, and just too much of a rip off.

[–] brucepantages-1 13 years ago

So sorry to disagree with you 'tamra,' Herbert's character was firmly established in his dozens of 1930's appearances in Warner Brothers programmers. Costello was around, but not in movies during the '30's and his character took off in the 1940's. Personally, I can't stand either one of them. However, there is one Hugh Herbert character, actually a dual role, in RKO's "To Beat the Band" (1935) that comes off quite funny...he plays Hugo Twist and Hugo's old aunt, Elizabeth Twist. His personality works in drag - he should have stayed in dresses. He also successfully plays an evil cad in Tallulah Bankhead's "Faithless," (MGM 1932). He plays it straight, without a single "woo hoo" and shows he could be successful at dramatic roles. A surprise to me. But his comedy is just too grating to be funny.

[–] tgemberl 7 years ago

Maybe Herbert preceded Costello, but in Abbott and Costello movies, there's just enough of Lou's humor to make it hilarious. It never gets in the way of the story but fits right in. I found Herbert extremely annoying in this film, too. If they had just reduced his screen time a little, it would have greatly improved what is still a good movie.

"Extremism in the pursuit of moderation is no vice."

[–] ScaryMary123 7 years ago

Herbert was a yawner in this film. Every time we saw him, he was either breaking something or doing his "whoo-hoo" shtick. A little of him went a long way.

[–] HarlowMGM 10 years ago

Oh man, I NEVER can stand one-note comic Hugh Herbert (who amazingly had a career that lasted years doing this sort of nonsense in pictures) but this movie had to be him at his all time worst. I kept hoping someone would bump him off at some point but no such luck!! His character could be completely cut from the film and I can't help but wonder if it was "added" into the original script because it is so incidental, perhaps put in to make the comic edge to Broderick Crawford's role not seem so jarring but adding Hugh Herbert to anything is always a bad decision.

I agree with you the cast was superb - except for the woo hoo man.

[–] tswift51 9 years ago

My wife and I watched this film the other night on TCM. I sort of liked Hugh Herbert based on earlier films he had been in. It almost seemed like they just turned him loose on the set with no lines and said "go do your thing". When he started drilling a holes in that piece of furniture my wife screamed..."what the hell is he doing?!" For the past few days I have been torturing her by touching my fingertips together and saying "hoo,hoo,hoo! She just looks at me and says "I HATE that guy!"

[–] www1125 8 years ago

She's a very intelligent woman. I HATE that guy too!