As You Were (1951) User Reviews

It seemed a bit rushed, but was pleasant.

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 3 February 2012]

This is the seventh of eight Sergeant Doubleday films. William Tracy played the goofy but likable Doubleday and his sometime nemesis/sometime friend, Sergeant Ames, was played by Joe Sawyer. I've seen all but two of these films and I just happened upon the last two by mistake. I rented a B-movie from Netflix ("Gasoline Alley") and it included the final two Doubleday films as bonus films. Not all of them were great, but several of the films (especially the first, "Tanks A Million") were exceptional--especially given their small budgets. So which is "As You Were"--one that isn't so great or one that's exceptional? At under one hour, this is among the shortest films in the series. Oddly, despite its short running time, a chunk of the first portion of the film is simply lifted from "Tanks a Million"--meaning that they really didn't do all that much in "As You Were" compared to the other Doubleday films.

The film begins with Doubleday no longer in the army. However, when he hears old Sergeant Ames recruiting soldiers, Doubleday is convinced to re-enlist--much to Ames' chagrin. It's odd, as Ames completely hates Doubleday in this film--much like he did in the first couple films. However, in the films in between, they became friends---and yet, oddly, this is forgotten--as if the writer never saw all the previous films. And, like the earlier films, every time Ames tries to get Doubleday in trouble, it ends up backfiring onto him. Eventually, it looks as if Ames' efforts might just get them BOTH into huge trouble. Can Doubleday manage to find a way to get them on the Colonel's good side--as well as get the Colonel to forget that they were caught in WAC's clothing? Is this, perhaps, the first case of 'Don't Ask/Don't Tell' in army history? All in all, this is neither a very good nor a poor entry in the series. The writing was inconsistent but also funny in places and easy to enjoy. Worth seeing but not one you should rush to get on DVD.

A long gap between were and are.

[mark.waltz · 3/10 · 17 March 2023]

Probably the most unnecessary sequel in movie history, this was the eighth entry in the military comedy series of films starring Joe Sawyer and Willuam Tracy, the first in 1941 and the previous one in 1948, and that had been the first since 1943. Nobody was asking about what had happened to these fictional clowns so for producer Hal Roach Jr. To come back with two post war streamlined features (which could be called the shortest feature length films ever made or the longest shorts ever filmed), and they certainly haven't matured, getting into drag and not getting any laughs, thus dragging the film down while in drag.

Tracy has been out of the service for a while, and goes back in just to turn Sawyer's world once again and get him into trouble, especially when they end up accidentally in the women's barracks. An all too understanding officer takes their sides when they get into trouble, perhaps either far too amused or maybe just confused, until he learns the truth, resulting in possible court martial. Of course the two men somehow end saving the day in a secret army mission, one that obviously is not on record in the pentagon.

On their side is Joan Vohs as the female sergeant speaking on their behalf even though her commanding officer (Sondra Rogers) is determined to take the case to trial. Veteran character actor John Ridgely is the officer on their side, certain he can use such wackiness to the army's advantage. Like most of the films in this series, this film ends very bluntly, really having no conclusion. I've seen all of the films in the series, and found a few films in it to be slightly above average and amusing, but none of them are classics. There's a few laughs here and there, but it is rather forgettable.