St. Benny The Dip (1951)

On the run from the police, three con men (Dick Haymes, Roland Young, Lionel Stander) pose as ministers to elude the cops. But they find that their new identities bring unforeseen consequences. Directed by cult director Edgar G. Ulmer ((DETOUR), this tepid comedy takes a premise that might have been silly fun and flattens all attempts at humor. Young and Stander have comedic credentials so they do what they can with the material at hand but the callow Dick Haymes and Nina Foch as his romantic interest lack the chops to overcome the inferior material. Mercifully short at an hour and 21 minutes, the movie still drags. It was interesting to see former child star Freddie Bartholomew (in his last movie role) as a nerdy minister. You'd never have recognized him if you hadn't seen his name in the credits. The bouncy score by Robert W. Stringer isn't half bad. With Dick Gordon, Jean Casto and John Lupton.