Genre:
Comedy
Release Date: 11/29/2005
Sound: DD2
Run Time: 82 Minutes
Flags: Suitable for Children
Distributor/Studio: Alpha Video
Filmed very cheaply in New York,
St. Benny the Dip (British title:
Escape Me If You Can) has a charm and appeal that transcends its modest production trappings.
Dick Haymes,
Roland Young and
Lionel Stander star as Benny, Matthew and Monk, three confidence tricksters forced by circumstance to pose as priests, tending to a slum mission. While clerically garbed, the three sharpsters slowly but surely change their ways, to the benefit of all concerned. As a result, two of the three find honest jobs in the civilian mainstream, while the third elects to remain a man of the cloth. The handpicked supporting cast includes
Nina Foch as Haymes' sweetheart, and former child-star
Freddie Bartholomew, making his final film appearance as an uptight genuine priest. Devotees of director
Edgar Ulmer have insisted upon finding all sorts of hidden meanings in
St. Benny the Dip, though it appears that
Ulmer's primary concern while making the film was keeping all three of his formidable leading men within camera range.
~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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