Knock on Wood

US (1954): Comedy/Spy/Romance

Danny Kaye plays a ventriloquist who runs away from marriage through his alter ego dummy due to a deep-seated childhood trauma based on his parents' difficult marriage. He becomes romantically involved with a female psychiatrist (Mai Zetterling). Paralleling this is a spy plot where important documents are hidden in the wooden heads of his two dummies and two opposing espionage agents are vying to get their hands on them, unbeknownst to Kaye. This makes for amusing and madcap moments, although one really does have to be a Kaye fan to enjoy this material. Once again his wife, Sylvia Fine, delivers a few totally forgettable songs. Nepotism at work. The funniest sequence is when Kaye impersonates a British car salesman and tries to demonstrate a new convertible that has so many buttons and so many options all hell breaks loose. Written and directed by Melvin Frank and Norman Panama for Paramount. (Arne Andersen, IMDb)

 View a clip of scenes from this film, including the title song, on YouTube.com.

1 nomination