Taxi Tangle (1931) User Reviews (4)

The Story of a Marriage

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 20 October 2007]

This early short starring Jack Benny way before he became one of the biggest stars in radio has him as a passenger stuck in a traffic jam and conveniently next to one Helen Hunt. In the twenty or so minutes that the short film runs, Benny talks the woman into both marrying and annulling the marriage. Made Britney Spears first marriage look like a long term affair.

Benny had not yet developed the character of the lovable tightwad that America and the world took to its heart yet. That would come later in the decade. Sad to say, but the humor of this short film seems rather forced. Or it's possible that I'm so used to Benny's character which spilled over into real life that I'm incapable of judging him as anything else.

Anyway, Jack's legion of fans should like this and in true Benny fashion the best gags are those with him as the object as Ms. Hunt demonstrates at the end why Jack dodged a bullet in marrying her.

Talk about a whirlwind romance!

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 2 August 2021]

"Taxi Tangle" is an incredibly strange comedy. The plot doesn't make any sense...nor was it intended to!

It all is set in a traffic jam in New York City. As the passengers of two taxis wait for traffic to begin again, the man (Jack Benny) begins making passes at the lady in the other taxi. It's obvious she doesn't care for him and he's a bit of a masher. However, when out of the blue he asks her to marry him, she agrees and within a couple minutes they are married...and only a few minutes more the marriage is annulled! None of it makes a lot of sense.

In his early film career, Jack Benny's on-screen persona was very different from the nice guy he played on his radio and TV programs. In these early films, he often was a fast-talking guy...almost a con man of sorts! In this film, he certainly isn't the sort of Benny character you'd expect...though the film is modestly funny and worth a look if you are a fan.

Jack Benny fans may want to check out his early short Taxi Tangle

[tavm · 4/10 · 8 September 2007]

Jack Benny is stuck in traffic in his cab besides a woman in another cab whom he identifies from his black book as Helen Hunt from Palm Springs (though she claims to have never been there). From just a few lines of dialogue, they propose (with a justice of the peace conveniently found nearby), argue about finances, then quickly annul! Jack says some amusing lines here but the topper comes after the woman leaves her car followed by plenty of her kids! Also appearing is silent player Tammany Young as Jack's cab driver whose banter with the police traffic officer about his various ailments is not funny here and may be even offensive today. All in all, an interesting curio for any Benny fans that might still be around...

Ten Minutes of Fun

[stevehaynie · 8/10 · 11 September 2007]

Taxi Tangle was made about a year before Jack Benny would begin his historic run as one of radio's biggest stars. Of the six or so characters in this short, every one of them is played to perfection. Jack's lead as an arrogant smooth talker makes one wonder why his film career did not go farther than it did. Instead, fate put Jack Benny in radio where he became its biggest star.

The jokes begin with Bill, the driver of Jack's cab, arguing with a police officer at a traffic light. There is a great turnaround in the dialog that makes the interchange pay off. From there we see Jack seduce the young lady in the cab next to his while traffic is stuck. An entire romance with a beginning, middle, and end is played out for the audience. The absurdity of the story and irony at the end are what makes this short sketch memorable.