So You Think You Can't Sleep

Starring: George O'Hanlon, Phyllis Coates, Fred Kelsey, Ted Stanhope
Directed by: Richard L. Barre
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Short, Comedy
Length: 10 minutes
1953

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A man (George O'Hanlon) tries everything to cure his insomnia.

Review:

Tim: This is a fairly humorous short film. Going into this film without knowing anything about it, I found it a funny look at the lengths a man goes to in order to get some sleep. Some of the tactics are tried-and-true methods, some are more cutting edge science, and some are downright absurd. The short is effective because it's so focused and it touches on a theme that everyone has experienced before. There's nothing more frustrating than not being able to sleep and most people are familiar with that exhausted, draining feeling the next day.

What I found even more enlightening about this short was learning about the Joe McDoakes short film series. Apparently, George O'Hanlon made 63 of these short films between 1942 and 1956. I had never heard of these before, so it was very informative to watch this one. I learned that most of the shorts started with "So You Want..." There's a part of me that considering making it a goal to watch all 63, but I have enough movie goals on my plate at this time. For the moment, I'll be content that I actually know this film series existed.

Anyway, this short didn't blow my mind or anything, but it was entertaining enough that I'll keep my eyes open for more of these shorts in the future. McDoakes is meant to be a real average guy and that is a big component of this film. It's just an average guy going to above-average lengths to solve his problem.

I'm really glad I watched this short because I learned a lot about O'Hanlon and the Joe McDoakes short film series. It was fairly entertaining on its own right. This short film was another reminder that even though I've seen over 3,400 feature films and 100 short films, I've still barely scratched the surface of film knowledge. That is a valuable thing to keep in mind.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- N/A



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The other 62 Joe McDoakes short films