Review of Defective Detectives

Twenty minutes of El Brendel is enough to get a sense of what his annoying style of comedy was all about, but fortunately here, he's joined by silent comedy legend to share the laughs which here are more physical than verbal. For those unfamiliar with El Brendel, to say a little bit goes a long way is an understatement as his over the top Swedish accent becomes just too much in the dozens of feature films he appeared in during the 1930's. Mr. Brendel and Langdon are inept maintenance men who get so much on their detective bosses nerves to the point where he puts them on a case following a gangster's moll simply to get out of their hair. Of course, they end up following the wrong woman (his wife!), creating all sorts of public disturbances. Much of the comedy is extremely dated and thus unfunny, a reminder of why some classic comedy teams stand the test of time and others do not.