Penrod's Double Trouble (1938) User Reviews

Enjoyable programmer with the Mauch twins in the spotlight...

[Doylenf · 6/10 · 8 November 2007]

Let's face it, the late '30s were different times and the kids then were on the clean-cut side with polite manners and none of them had the agenda that today's teen-agers do--so, in this respect, PENROD'S DOUBLE TROUBLE is a dated piece from Warner Bros. aimed at the kiddie market in 1938.

It succeeds in being a harmless time passer, nothing more--with nothing really new in its story about two boys who are so identical in appearance that even the boy's parents can't tell the difference when one of them trades places. It's typical Hollywood fluff, performed in earnest style by GENE LOCKHART, DICK PURCELL and others in the Warner stock company.

Billy and Bobby Mauch are excellent, as always, playing their respective roles with professional ease and modesty. Too bad the screenplay is such a modest effort and didn't give them more substantial material to work with.

Summing up: A pleasant programmer, holds the interest for its brief running time.

Fun nonsense

[WaldoLydecker1 · 7/10 · 19 September 2022]

The third entry in this series, yet another work based on Booth Tarkington's Penrod books, is the second co-starring Bobby Mauch and capitalizing on Bobby and Billy's identicalness. Despite the fact that Penrod met his double, Danny, in the previous entry "Penrod and His Twin," there is no acknowledgment of it here. In fact, Penrod, his gang of Junior G-Men, and his parents (here played by different actors than the first time) don't know him at all, and Danny is able to pass for the missing Penrod. Despite that, this movie, which comes in at a short 63 minutes or so, is quick-paced fun. The Mauch Twins were extremely likeable in their short onscreen careers. The supporting cast are all fine, as well. You could do worse than this bit of naivete from the 1930s.

clearly made for kids

[ksf-2 · 6/10 · 20 September 2022]

Bill and bob mauch star as penrod and dan, in this third chapter from the mauch twins. When penrod gets in trouble with the neighborhood bully, he hides in a balloon that gets away. And that's where the adventures begin! The usual antics and hijinx ensue. Fraud, mistaken identy, teenage angst. Clearly made for kids. We jump the shark about halfway through the film, but it's still a fun story for the younger set. Keep an eye out for sonny bupp as "monk"; sonny and his brother were child actors in tons of films in the 1930s and 1940s. You'll see some of the kids from the "our gang" series. Co-stars gene and kathleen lockhart as mom and dad schofield. Directed by lew seiler. Story by booth tarkington, who also had "alice adams" made into film, among others. It's entertaining.

2 Penrods for one

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 26 November 2020]

The Mauch twins after making their debut in The Prince And The Pauper had a brief run of popularity. But there's only so much you can do with a twin brother act other than save money on special effects.

They got into a few B films at Warner Brothers based on Booth Tarkington's Penrod books. Billy Mauch plays Penrod Schofield who goes up in a hot air balloon and drifts off to parts unknown. When he's reported missing parents Gene and Kathleen Lockhart offer a big reward.

Which a couple of conmen Hugh O'Connell and Dick Purcell decide to cash in passing off Bobby Mauch an orphan who looks just like Penrod,

I'm sure you see more than a small resemblance to the plot of Mark Twain's The Prince And The Pauper in this film. There's no Errol Flynn to aid and assist so the Mauch twins are left to their own devices. Fortunately Penrod has a gang and a dog that are most helpful.

Nice film from Warner Brothers B picture unit.

Penrod's back...sort of.

[planktonrules · 4/10 · 24 September 2022]

In 1937-38, Warner Brothers made three Penrod movies which were based on a character created by Booth Tarkington. Oddly, in 1938, two Penrod films debuted...but there was no continuity whatsoever about them in many ways. While the Mauch twins, Billy and Robert, were stars in each, inexplicably his parents were replaced by other actors. Additionally, in "Penrod's Twin Brother", Penrod finds out that he has an identical stranger...but in this follow-up the two boys once again don't know about each other! It's as if the two films really aren't sequels at all and the studio did a slapdash job with the series as there are tons of contradictions in the movies.

Exactly like the previous film, Penrod is in trouble for all sorts of shenanigans that were actually perpetrated by his nemesis, Rodney. As a result of his being falsely accused, Penrod runs away and his parents offer a reward for his return. An unscrupulous carnie (are there any other type in old films?!) tries to pass off the identical boy as Penrod.

I was not a huge fan of the previous film...but at least it made some sense. This movie, in contrast, just seems like they made two different Penrod scripts at the same time and filmed each without any sort of concern that they are so contradictory....which seems to be the case. The only way you can really enjoy "Penrod's Double Trouble" is if you never watch the previous film.

The sad fact is that this film actually is a bit better than the previous one...and so it's worth seeing...just not in addition to "Penrod's Twin Brother". Not a great film but reasonably entertaining. But it's also a film without an audience, as it was targeted to kids...and I cannot imagine kids today enjoying this sort of faire.

The Mauch Twins & Pals Shine in a Programmer With Heart

[mbking-2 · 9/10 · 25 June 2007]

I've seen this movie several times and enjoy it more with each viewing. It is what it is: a B movie with heart. How can you not love a film where the family dog kicks the key under the door to the misunderstood son, who has been locked in his room by his father? It's fun to see the Mauch twins in their street clothes, speaking in their mid-western accents and playing cops and robbers. Especially entertaining is Bobby's first scene in drag as the captive of some sleazy Carnival "Professor." As a window into the world of what it was like to be a kid in 1938, the film is a most nostalgic trip back in time.

Billy and Bobby Mauch rightfully dominate the screen with their presence and ability to toss off a line and make it ring true. They personify the ideal of American boyhood of the 30s: forthright, honest and respectful of their parents... no matter how clueless they may be. The antithesis of the Dead End Kids, also employed at Warner Bros. at the time. Other actors who stand out are Jackie Morrow, as the obnoxious Rodney Bitts and Philip Hurlick, as Verman (pronounced vermin).

The film accurately reflects the status of blacks at the time as domestic help and caretakers of the white folks. Still, Verman is an essential member of the Junior G-Man Club. At the film's end, the Mauchs turn over their reward money for capturing the bad guys so Verman can attend college.

The highlight of the proceedings is when the gang attends a party and performs The Big Apple, a dance craze of the time, at which Bobby executes a mean jitterbug. Too bad these boys - who could sing in a clear soprano and tap dance at age 8 - didn't appear in any musicals. The last of the Penrod series, as the variations on the mistaken ID thing seemed to have run their course. Not available on DVD at this time... petition Turner, Boxed Set with all three entries in the series!