St. Benny the Dip (1951) Reviews

• Delightful

  JohnSeal2004-09-18

  Considering its a Danziger Brothers poverty row production, St. Benny the Dip is blessed with a marvelous cast. Dick Haymes, Lionel Stander, and Cosmo Topper himself, Roland Young, play a trio of small time hoodlums who disguise themselves as priests to escape a police dragnet. Finding themselves in an abandoned Bowery mission, the threesome take their masquerade to extremes, holding services and feeding the poor. This marvelous tale of redemption also stars a luminous Nina Foch as love interest and Freddie Bartholomew in his final screen appearance. This is perhaps the first and so far only noir-comedy ever made, with some very fine black and white location photography by Don Malkames, whose career took him from Yiddish pictures to 'race' films. John Roeburt's screenplay is consistently intelligent and amusing. The film's low budget is apparent, but its clear everyone involved was working very hard to make a quality picture, and they succeeded.

• A comedy with some wan contrasts

  Nozz2011-11-10

  In his characteristically bemused and half-faltering voice, Roland Young reads the majestic opening of Genesis to a handful of charity cases in a nobly spacious but dilapidated old building still remembered for its better days. He and his comrades, the script reminds us, are just three people in a city of eight million, and the city is visually portrayed in towering terms of expressionism; but the eccentric trio still nurses hopes of turning the game in their favor. It turns out that Man proposes, but God disposes. A wise priest is on hand waxing philosophical and poetic about the situation, and in addition along comes a woman-- Nina Foch-- whose own definition not about fame (which she seized at but lost) or about globetrotting or getting rich quick but about a successful domestic life. A comedic situation arises from the contrasting lures of a quiet, productive lifestyle versus an independent and unrestrained one. Dick Haymes sings an unexpectedly bluesy hymn in one of his last movie roles, and fellow actors Roland Young and Freddie Bartholomew are winding up their big-screen careers as well, adding unintentionally and retroactively to the movie's elegiac quality.

• Redemption

  shaneskiser2007-06-25

  Regarding the previous comment about being unable to see St. Benny the Dip as a parody of Les Miserables, I, too, do not see a parody. I do see, however, an homage to Les Miserable. There is in both works the common theme of redemption. In the same way the priest in Les Miserables covers for Jean Valjean and gracefully provides for him, so, too, does the priest in St. Benny the Dip provide for our three scoundrels, and that gracious act in the same way begins the process of redemption. True, Jean Valjean was not the scoundrel that Benny, Matthew, and Monk are, but they, like Valjean move from outside the law to inside the law. Grace begets grace.

• Parody

  Pleasehelpmejesus2005-09-21

  How is this a parody of "Les Miserables"? I fail to see any similarity other than the fact that both stories deal with sympathetic criminals. There is no chase, no obsessive policeman-the Sgt. isn't really in pursuit of Benny and his gang in the way Javert pursues Valjean. I don't see any true parody here at all but I am willing to listen to counter arguments. Is it possible that you mean a particular scene? I'm going to go back and watch it again to see if I can catch something I might have missed the first time around. The movie is pretty lightweight despite its creative team having such a strong pedigree but still, it's pleasant enough. Stander and Roland Young are great as usual and crooner Dick Haymes is likable and believable enough as Benny. It's not "We're No Angels" or "His Girl Friday" but it's not bad.

• Enjoyable but very slight.

  MartinHafer2011-08-09

  The DVD for "St. Benny the Dip" was released by Alpha Video. Like most of their DVD's I've seen (and I have seen at least 50), the picture is badly in need of restoration, as it's a fuzzy print. The basic plot idea of "St. Benny" has been repeated at least three times in "When in Rome", "The Left Hand of God" and "We're No Angels" (the 1989 version)--and these are just the films I can think of right off my head. Some crooks are hiding out from the law and pretend to be priests. In this case, Dick Haymes, Roland Young and Lionel Stander are these faux priests. Through the course of the film, the guys slowly start to change and their behaviors seem to mirror their new clothes. This film, while enjoyable, is also very slight. In other words, it certainly won't change your life and is pretty much in the category of time-passers. The film is cute but VERY hard to believe (such as the behavior of the real priest--who acts like this on this planet?!). My advice is to watch it--but be sure to turn off your brain and don't question the plot.