Vamp Till Ready: A Silly Little Mess

Is this worth your afternoon?

If you like vintage comedy that doesn't try to be smarter than it is, sure. You'll probably enjoy the rapid-fire energy if you're into the The Kiss style of silent-era charm. If you need tight logic or characters who make rational decisions, run away.

Charley Chase has this frantic, bug-eyed way of acting that feels like he’s constantly holding his breath. It’s almost exhausting to watch, but in a way that keeps the momentum from dying.

The Setup

The whole premise is built on the classic 'wife plays pretend' trope. It’s thin, really thin. You can see the strings pulling the characters toward the inevitable punchline from a mile away.

Pauline High spends half the movie trying to act like a 'vamp' but just ends up looking like she’s trying not to sneeze. It’s weirdly charming, even when the dialogue is clunky. There’s a moment near the middle where a lamp almost tips over and nobody acknowledges it. I spent the next three minutes waiting for it to actually fall. It never did.

Odd Little Moments

• The wardrobe department clearly had a 'more is more' policy that day.
• Some of the reactions shots feel like they were filmed in a completely different room.
• The pacing is erratic, almost like the editor was working on a caffeine buzz.

It reminds me a bit of the frantic energy in Hurry Doctor!, just with less medical gear and more awkward domestic posturing. You can tell they were trying to squeeze every bit of humor out of a small set.

Is it a masterpiece? Hardly. It’s just a perfectly okay way to kill twenty minutes when your brain is feeling like mush. The movie doesn't care if you remember it, so why should I? 🤷‍♂️

There is this one bit with a hat rack that goes on way too long. The silence in the room during that scene is so heavy you could cut it. I think the actors were just waiting for a cue that never came. It's beautiful in its own broken way.