A rich young man who travels from Alpine spa to Alpine spa gets pursued by an enterprising beauty of the "black widow" type. He's got other problems too. Although he's as healthy as a horse - a healthy horse, that is - he thinks he's seriously ill. As a result of a silly mistake an eminent specialist declares that he is, indeed, dying. The cause : an ultra-rare case of "canine acidity" that will cause the young man to devour his own body, bones included...
"Never say die" is a pleasantly silly and funny comedy/farce. It boasts the kind of plot that gets stolen for merry musical comedies or merry operettas. This resemblance gets confirmed by the inclusion of an amusing musical number about "oom pah pahs".
The touch and tone are consistently light. Many of the classic mechanisms of comedy are present, such as mistakes, misunderstandings, disguises and impersonations. The movie also pokes fun at stock characters of other genres, like the smart, sophisticated "black widow" whose successive husbands come to sticky ends. (Note the practiced ease with which the widow consults expensive lawyers.) Bob Hope plays the rich young hypochondriac, while Martha Raye is the damsel in distress who crosses his path. Both of them do very well and their chemistry is a thing to behold.
Lovers of the comedy genre will notice a joke about a duel that gets recycled for a later Danny Kaye movie called "The court jester". You know what they say - jokes are like wine, they improve with age...
In short, an enjoyable "divertissement".
"Never say die" is a pleasantly silly and funny comedy/farce. It boasts the kind of plot that gets stolen for merry musical comedies or merry operettas. This resemblance gets confirmed by the inclusion of an amusing musical number about "oom pah pahs".
The touch and tone are consistently light. Many of the classic mechanisms of comedy are present, such as mistakes, misunderstandings, disguises and impersonations. The movie also pokes fun at stock characters of other genres, like the smart, sophisticated "black widow" whose successive husbands come to sticky ends. (Note the practiced ease with which the widow consults expensive lawyers.) Bob Hope plays the rich young hypochondriac, while Martha Raye is the damsel in distress who crosses his path. Both of them do very well and their chemistry is a thing to behold.
Lovers of the comedy genre will notice a joke about a duel that gets recycled for a later Danny Kaye movie called "The court jester". You know what they say - jokes are like wine, they improve with age...
In short, an enjoyable "divertissement".