Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 19, 2021

Edward F. Cline's "Never Give a Sucker an Even Break" (1941) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include an exclusive new audio commentary by critic Eddy Von Mueller and the vintage documentary "Wayne and Shuster Take an Affectionate Look at W.C. Fields". In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Another buptkie!

If you encounter old articles insisting that Never Give a Sucker an Even Break is an obvious misfire in W.C. Fields’ oeuvre, ignore them. The writers that wrote them obviously did not get what this film was trying to convey. Can you blame them? Well, does it matter if you do or don’t? I would like to highlight a few clues revealing why Never Give a Sucker an Even Break isn’t like the other films Fields made before it, so ponder them, and then figure out what your answer should be. By the way, they are not my clues. They are Fields’ clues and happen to be right in front of you.

Consider the sequence where Fields’ character, Uncle Bill, is seen standing in front of the big billboard promoting The Bank Dick. It is Fields looking at Fields. Two boys then come over and take a look at it too, he tries to engage them, they quickly turn him down. One of them dispatches a funny yet sobering comment, ”another buptkie”, and then they run away. Moments later, a lovely young woman stops by and Fields tries to engage her, too. “Hiya, tootie pie. Everything under control?” She gives Fields a blank look, while her man, who has been a few steps behind her, punches him in the face and he drops like a sack of potatoes. Neither of the two have realized that the man with the bloodied nose is actually the man from the big billboard before them. Another buptkie? You bet.

Here’s another very telling sequence. Now Fields and his charming niece, Gloria (Gloria Jean), enter Esoteric Studios to meet a pretentious producer who has the power to make dreams come true. In his posh office, Fields quickly goes to work to sell what he believes is a brilliant new script. At first the producer appears perplexed, soon after becomes annoyed, and finally makes it obvious to Fields that his brilliant script is a total dud. Yep, it is another buptkie.

It is at this very moment that Fields changes tactics and the story from his supposedly brilliant new script begins to overlap with the story of the film he is currently in, Never Give a Sucker an Even Break. Why? Think of it as a Hail Mary play to impress, only this time the producer he has been talking to at Esoteric Studios is utterly irrelevant. The Hail Mary play is for someone else. A mysterious recipient? Not really. Fields made Never Give a Sucker an Even Break with the great director Edward F. Cline, who worked closely with Buster Keaton, and it turned out to be the last film where he had the freedom to do what he wanted to do. Everything changed after it. Fields appeared in a couple of other films before he passed away in 1946, but he was never the creator and star that his previous films allowed him to be.

When the overlapping of the two stories eventually comes to an end, Gloria has a private meeting with the pretentious producer, too. What if Uncle Bill writes a new script? Can the producer give him another chance? Can he keep his career afloat a little longer? His reply: “He’s lived his live and ruined mine. Now it’s you we’ve got to think about. You’re young, you’ve got a great career ahead of you.”

Now, you should not conclude that Never Give a Sucker an Even Break is some sort of an odd eulogy that Fields concocted because he had realized that his time was over. It is absolutely not that kind of a pessimistic film. However, it is definitely the most personal film Fields made and obviously his most prophetic one, which is precisely the reason why it sticks out like a sore thumb when his oeuvre is closely examined.

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.36:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Never Give a Sucker an Even Break arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from an older master that was supplied by Universal Studios. However, this master isn't as good as the one that the major supplied for The Bank Dick. Indeed, both delineation and clarity are mostly decent, while clarity tends to be rather underwhelming. There are minor traces of digital corrections as well, which is why grain can have a somewhat smeary appearance. The gray scale is good, but the digital corrections have boosted some of the blacks. Image stability is good. A few minor scratches and blemishes can be spotted, but I don't think that they ever becomes distracting. All in all, the technical presentation is a bit shaky, so if in the future the film is fully restored, you should expect to see an all-around stronger organic appearance. My score is 3.25/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The dialog is clear and easy to follow. Dynamic balance is very good, too. In the upper register there are no serious age-related anomalies that I was able to detect. I spotted some extremely light background hiss, but it is not of the type that impacts clarity and sharpness. Can the audio sound better? Yes, I think that there is a little bit of room for meaningful improvements, though I still think that the quality of the current lossless track is very good.

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Wayne and Shuster Take an Affectionate Look at W.C. Fields (1964) - a very interesting vintage documentary that takes a closer look at W.C. Fields' craft and the many unique things the iconic actor did that separated him from his rivals. There is some fantastic analysis of key sequences from Fields' best films. In English, not subtitled. (52 min).

• Commentary - an exclusive new audio commentary recorded by critic Eddy Von Mueller. The bulk of the information that is shared in it addresses the production of Never Give a Sucker an Even Break, W.C. Fields' performing style, and his career and legacy.

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Never Give a Sucker an Even Break is a very interesting film to deconstruct because it is immediately obvious that it is unlike all the other films W.C. Fields made. There are plenty of clues in it revealing that Fields knew that pretty soon a lot will irreversibly change, so when seen with the awareness that it is such a personal film, it becomes awfully difficult not to admire it. Keep in mind that it is still a very, very wild film too, so there is a lot happening on multiple levels. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from an old and a bit shaky master that was supplied by Universal Studios, but it is definitely worth picking up. RECOMMENDED.