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Mae West, W.C. Fields, Joseph Calleia, Dick Foran, Ruth Donnelly ... see more see more... , Margaret Hamilton , Donald Meek , Fuzzy Knight , Willard Robertson , George Moran , Jackie Searl , Gene Austin , Hank Bell , William Benedict , Wade Boteler , Al Bridge , Harlan Briggs , Eddie Butler , Lane Chandler , Lita Chevret , Bing Conley , Jimmy Conlin , William B. Davidson , Jan Duggan , Frank Ellis , Al Ferguson , Chester Gan , Ben Hall , Russell Hall , Bud Harris , Edward Hearn , Otto Heimel , Otto Hoffman , Dan Jackson , Si Jenks , Walter McGrail , Bob McKenzie , Charles McMurphy , James C. Morton , Anne Nagel , Vester Pegg , Addison Richards , Jack Roper , Dick Rush , Dorothy Vernon , Morgan Wallace , Delmar Watson , Joe Whitehead , Bill Wolfe , Lloyd Ingraham , John Kelly , George Melford , Robert Burns , Bob Reeves , Buster Slaven , Slim Gaut , Charles Hart , Georgie Billings , Mark Anthony

The once-in-a-lifetime teaming of Mae West and W.C. Fields in My Little Chickadee had the potential for comic greatness: what emerged, though generally entertaining, was, in the words of critic Andrew... read more read more... Sarris, "more funny strange than funny ha-ha." Mae West dominates the film's first reel as Flowerbelle Lee, a self-reliant woman who is abducted by a mysterious masked bandit during a stagecoach holdup. Because she refuses to tell anyone what happened during her nocturnal rendezvous with the bandit, Flowerbelle is invited to leave her prudish hometown and move to Greasewood City. En route by train, Flowerbelle makes the acquaintance of con-artist Cuthbert J. Twillie (W.C. Fields), who carries a suitcase full of what seems to be large-denomination monetary notes. After a lively clash with marauding Indians, Flowerbelle tricks Twillie into a phony marriage; she does this so that she can arrive in Greasewood City with a modicum of respectability, and incidentally to get her hands on Twillie's bankroll. Once she discovers that Twillie's "fortune" consists of nothing but phony oil-well coupons, Flowerbelle refuses to allow Twillie into the bridal chamber (he unwittingly crawls into the marriage bed with a goat, muttering "Darling, have you changed your perfume?") Through a fluke, the cowardly Twillie is appointed sheriff of Greasewood City by town boss Joseph Calleila. The plot is put on hold for two reels while La West does a "schoolroom" routine with a class full of markedly overage students, and while Fields performs a bartender bit wherein he explains how he once knocked down the notorious Chicago Mollie. Jealous over the attentions paid to his "wife" by Calleila and honest newspaper-editor Dick Foran, Twillie decides to gain entry into his wife's boudoir by posing as the still-at-large masked bandit. His ruse is soon discovered by Flowerbelle, but the townsfolk capture Twillie as he makes his escape. They are about to lynch the hapless Twillie when Flowerbelle discovers that Calleia is the genuine masked bandit. She urges Calleia to save Twillie's life by making a surprise appearance at the lynching and by returning the money he's stolen. When all plot lines are ironed out, Flowerbelle and Twillie bid goodbye to one another. Borrowing a device utilized by ZaSu Pitts and Hugh Herbert in 1939's The Lady's From Kentucky, W.C. Fields invites Mae West to "come up and see me sometime," whereupon West appropriates Fields' tagline and calls him "My Little Chickadee." The script for this uneven comedy western was credited to Mae West and W.C. Fields, though in fact West was responsible for most of it. Fields willingly conceded this, noting that West had captured his character better than any other writer he'd ever met. Despite this seeming gallantry, it was no secret that West and Fields disliked each other intensely, a fact that had an injurious effect on their scenes together. My Little Chickadee has assumed legendary status thanks to its stars, and it certainly does deliver the laughs when necessary: still, it is hardly the best-ever vehicle for either Fields or West, two uniquely individual performers who should never have been required to duke it out for the same spotlight. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Flixster Users

67% liked it

652 ratings

Critics

91% liked it

11 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 31 min.

Directed by: Edward F. Cline

Release Date: January 1, 1939

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DVD Release Date: May 10, 2011

Stats: 58 reviews

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W.C. Fields, Joseph Calleia, Mae West Mae West and W.C. Fields Margaret Hamilton and W.C. Fields Mae West and W.C. Fields My Little Chickadee My Little Chickadee Joseph Calleia and Mae West
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Flixster Reviews (58)

  • groaningbitch
    May 31, 2011
    groaningbitch
    even i do like mae west but i didn't enjoy this movie.

    the reason i choose to review it now is because i feel like to vent!
  • bottcorecords1
    March 26, 2010
    bottcorecords1
    The combination of W.C. Fields and Mae West winds up being not as good as it sounds. My Little Chickadee takes place in the old west. When Mae West falls for a "Zorro" type masked bandit, she's sent to live in another town to keep her honor intact (har har). On the train ride,... read more she meets W.C., and mistakes his satchel full of whiskey coupons for a sack full of money and agrees to marry him in order to get that money. Meanwhile, W.C. is appointed sheriff of the town by the local bar owner (who sort of controls the town), as he thinks W.C. will make a good patsy. Add to this the local newspaper publisher, who's on a crusade to clean up the town and make it wholesome. Of course, all of the above men are in love with the aging West. And who could help themselves? She doesn't recite her lines so much as purr and growl them. West is all affectation and innuendo, and it's not particularly good innuendo. Her performance is very flat, to say the least, and as she was nearing 50 at the time (albiet a very attractive and young-looking 50), her schtick isn't very convincing . W.C. gives it his best, but the material just isn't up to his usual standard. It's a typical cowboy type picture with very little enthusiasm from the cast. I can't remember any of the gags, other than West limp-wristedly shooting indians out the train car window with deadeye accuracy. Pretty forgettable.
  • Dracula787
    May 16, 2009
    Dracula787
    I?ll be honest, I was screwing around on the computer while I was ?watching? this, so I didn?t get a whole lot out of it. The film provides a fairly inspired on screen pairing of Mae West and W.C. Fields, two sort of old-timey vaudeville types both with a slightly raunchy (for t... read morehe time) edge. The film?s western storyline is pretty stupid, it?s mainly an excuse for the two to engage in their trademark banter. This might actually be the first time I?ve actually watched a Mae West film, though I was pretty familiar with her shtick, which has permeated pop culture. I can?t say I was very impressed by her, her signature way of speaking got old as hell pretty quick. I was a lot more familiar with Fields, but he doesn?t really seem to be ?on? here. Overall this was a big piece of meh.
  • threefolddado
    June 16, 2008
    threefolddado
    Funny western spoof.
  • PinkMinkPrincess
    July 18, 2011
    PinkMinkPrincess
    Mae West, I think the word "Broad" was coined after her, cause in her words"I ain't no Lady", & she sure wasn't
  • shanleigh20
    September 11, 2007
    shanleigh20
    Mae West is just such a woman. Plot was weak and didn't particularly like the end but she was entertaining
  • jaynyca1
    June 7, 2007
    jaynyca1
    It was the only paring of Mae West & WC Fields and it was funny all the way through in each actors classic styles, and when they got together on screen is was something to see!. . .

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Critic Reviews

Dennis Schwartz
May 2, 2011
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

It's really not a good movie, but it had something special about it that defied a rational critique. Full Review

Steve Crum
February 23, 2008
Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com

One of THE classic W.C. Fields films; includes adversary Mae West, a plus.

Eric Lurio
December 21, 2004
Eric Lurio, Greenwich Village Gazette

Two greats blow it. Both have done far better.

Bob Bloom
December 17, 2002
Bob Bloom, Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

Fields and West, two comic forces collide and both come out on town. A timeless treasure of comedy.

Ken Hanke
August 21, 2002
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Neither Fields' nor West's best, but essential comedy all the same

October 23, 2008
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Frank S. Nugent
March 25, 2006
Frank S. Nugent, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Dave Kehr
January 1, 2000
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

Click to read the article Full Review

Emanuel Levy
July 16, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

Andy Klein
March 24, 2005
Andy Klein, Los Angeles CityBeat

No review available.

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Facts

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    • Cuthbert J. Twillie: Will you take me?
    • Flower Belle Lee: I'll take you -- and how.
    • Cuthbert J. Twillie: Will you take me?
    • Flower Belle Lee: I'll take you -- and how.
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