The Court Jester

Although she would probably contest my interpretation of the facts, my wife despaired of this movie when it arrived from Netflix. "So, it's like a kids movie from the '50s?" she asked with an incredulous tone and mockingly raised eyebrow. I proceeded to tell her that it wasn't really a "kids movie," just kid-friendly, in that it's from the '50s and they hadn't yet gotten around to putting gratuitous gore, violence, sex, and foul language into movies yet. Well, most movies, anyway. Of course, even after explaining it thusly, my wife still inquired the next day, "So, how did you find this kids movie from the '50s?" Sometimes it's hard to tell if she truly forgets or she's just fucking with my patience. Keeps me on my toes, at any rate.

So, how did I come to put The Court Jester (1955) on my Netflix queue, even though I knew relatively little about it myself, other than that it was NOT just a kids movie? Well, it started with a roommate from college. He was a very cool dude and I generally had no complaints with his recommendations vis a vis the consumption of popular culture. And he swore by this movie. Up and down. Said it was one of the best movies ever. Later in our college careers, after we had both moved to different residences, he even hosted a party where the central attraction was a viewing of The Court Jester. Sadly, I could not attend at the time. College ended and the film faded from my memory.

It was by chance, nay, perhaps by fate then, that some years later, Netflix's recommendation engine would place The Court Jester in my purview yet again. I instantly recognized it as the film my friend had glowingly praised, and added it to my queue.

Ironically, being the great fan and student of film that I am, I am very hesitant to research movies too heavily before I see them. Call me old-fashioned, but I enjoy novel experiences. I don't want every last detail of the film and its production before going in. That's for later, after viewing. Beforehand, I want only the bare minimum of information to make a reasonable inference as to whether I should watch a film. And so it was that I knew almost nothing of The Court Jester other than my friend's long-ago regard.

I can tell you, I was not disappointed, and my wife was pleasantly surprised. Within the first 10 minutes, we were hooked.

We open on medieval England. A pretender to the crown, Roderick, has just slain the entire royal family and usurped the throne. A band of loyalists simmers in the forest, planning to wrest the throne back from Roderick. Their secret weapon: an infant, the true heir to the English monarchy, spirited away from the royal slaughter by the notorious loyalist, the Black Fox, deadliest man in all of England. But to place the infant back on the throne, the Black Fox will need to infiltrate the castle with his men. The only way is a secret underground passage, and the only key lies with the new king Roderick. A man is needed on the inside, and the bumbling coward Hubert Hawkins (Danny Kaye) is just the man for the job. Impersonating Roderick's new court jester Giacomo, Hubert gains entry to the court. But getting in is only the beginning. Hubert will have to navigate many perils, including a witch, an iron-willed princess, a case of mistaken identity, and a jousting tourney to the death, in order to make it out alive.

This film is an exemplary model of a lovingly crafted spoof. Writer/directors Melvin Frank and Norman Panama lampoon the high adventure Robin Hood genre made famous by Errol Flynn. But far from a heartless and biting parody, The Court Jester never forgets its source material. It is as much a part of high adventure film as it is a spoof of it. There is plenty of swordplay, intrigue, romance, and murder to get you in the spirit. And then when you're into the swing of things, Danny Kaye comes along and throws you a slapstick curveball that has you laughing your ass off.

Kaye, a master of song and lyrical tongue-twisters, serves up a heaping portion here, including the hypnotically catchy "Maladjusted Jester" and the famous Pellet with the Poison bit. Kaye is sensational as Hubert/Giacomo, a kind of bumbling, funnier, livelier precursor to Kramer from "Seinfeld". Very solid performances from Cecil Parker (King Roderick), Basil Rathbone (the odious and unctuous Ravenhurst, King's councillor), and Angela Lansbury (the steely-eyed and disturbingly attractive Princess Gwendolyn) round out the film.

Seriously, what's not to love about a movie featuring an army of little people, for gods sakes? Interestingly, one can see some very suspicious similarities between The Court Jester and Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975). These similarities are a little too suspicious to be coincidental, I think. Messieurs Chapman, Cleese, Idle, Jones, and Palin must have been fans of this film growing up.

So is The Court Jester a kids flick? I would say emphatically no, but at the same time, I think many children would enjoy it, so by all means, make a family night out of it. You won't be disappointed. High energy, great music, slapstick routines, and more subtle comedy; this is a really fun watch.

Storyline & plot: 8/10
Cinematography & effects: 7/10
Music & mood: 9/10
Performances: 9/10

The Reverend says: 8/10