Misery (1990) MEETS "Hogan's Heroes" (1965-1971)
The title of "Most Bizarre Comedy Involving World War Two and Eager Females Ravaging Captive Males Who Do Not Bother to Defend Themselves" is now in competition.
Wake Me stars Ken Berry as Lt. Roger Carrington , a member of the US Air Force who accidentally parachutes into the German countryside during WWII. A baroness (Eva Gabor) hides him in her mansion and lies to the Nazis who are searching for him (including Werner Klemperer who reprises a hint of his famous Colonel Klink role for this film ).
The war is soon over. To keep her boy toy, the baroness fibs to him about the progress of the war, even paying former German soldiers to march about her house to keep the man in terror.
This is comedy.
About five years go by, and a new maid (Danielle De Metz) decides to tell Roger the war is over. However, since he speaks only English and she speaks only German they have difficulty communicating. Somehow he cannot understand the basics of another Germanic language despite being surrounded for five years by books, newspapers and radio programs exclusively in that language. Presumably he also has a problem deciphering pictures of the Axis surrendering and the Allies celebrating.
The latter half of the film focuses on the maid's quest to be understood; Roger just thinks she's flirting with him. Of course he does. Because when a woman with a serious expression, shouts and waves her hands about frantically she is always saying "Marry me, I'm yours." What else could she possibly mean? Oh, something about that pesky war you're in, perhaps? Nooo.
What has the baroness done to this man?! Have so many kisses been planted on his face he can't see what's right in front of him? To be fair, he is a silly man even before he lands on her property, so the baroness has a malleable mind to manipulate.
Speaking of asinine characters, Klemperer's role as Roger's romantic and ideological rival is completely superfluous - the baroness and Roger's own outrageous behavior are bigger threats to Roger's safety.
You had me with your opening line! Amazingly, I remember this film. The 1960s may have been the most eclectic of movie decades. It certainly produced some of the strangest movies.
ReplyDeleteStrange movies and comically long titles. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Rick.
-- Java