Penrod's Double Trouble (1938)

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

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.

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!